Solivagency - Empires SMP

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A/N: HAPPY THIRTY CHAPTERS!

tw for knife caused injuries, mentions of sacrifice, non con body modification and mildly transphobic language at the second POV, stay safe and take care friends :)

Xornoth didn't want to have this conversation.

Although to be fair, they really shouldn't have been stupid enough to assume that Joey knew who Exor was. That one was on them.

"Who's Exor, Xornoth?" Joey repeated. This time his voice was calmer and softer, but lower. A comforting tone traced his words, but it couldn't stop the fact that he was talking about Exor.

(They didn't want to talk about Exor, they wanted to run so far away that it would be impossible for them to even hear a single mention of him)

(They were a coward like that)

"I-" They stammered under the intensity of his questioning gaze. "I- I don't-"

He didn't interrupt them, but that just made it worse because it reminded them of months trapped in a small cell with no one that interrupted their cries whatsoever. They felt their heart lodge itself in their throat, threatening to spill out if they opened their mouth just a little bit more.

They could tell they were about to have some sort of breakdown, and they made themself breathe in and out. The action didn't help much at all, only serving to make them feel like they were hyperventilating even though they logically knew they weren't.

"It's okay." Joey hurriedly said, pulling them into a deeper hug. "You're okay. I mean, I don't know who they are but I know they aren't here-"

Xornoth squeezed their eyes shut. "It's… he…"

The silence filled the room, a noticeable jab into their ears. Fuck. Why couldn't they just say it? Maybe it was the fact they had no clue where to start, or maybe it was pretty much everything else in existence.

"...do you know how I became," They hesitated, unable to choke out the words 'a demon'. "...corrupted?"

Joey's hand found it's way down to theirs, entwining their fingers and smoothing his thumb over the back of their palm. "No."

They pressed their head into his collarbone, trying to ground themself. They refused to panic now, not when they needed to pull themself together and tell him everything that had happened. They couldn't leave him in the dark like that.

"I… there's a prophecy." Xornoth inhaled, keeping the panic at bay with pure willpower more than anything else. "Every few generations, twins are born to elven monarchs. They're selected by- by our gods, Aeor and Exor, to be their… champions." The word felt like the most bitter of poisons on their tongue.

Joey, to their surprise, didn't look at them like they were weird or broken. Instead, he gently leaned his chin on the top of their head, letting them continue.

"Scott- Scott got Aeor. He was lucky. I think." Not so lucky anymore. "I… wasn't."

"What did he do to you?" He asked. His voice was quiet, but somehow so loud in the silence.

They shivered, curling up into his hold. He took that as a signal to make the hug tighter, more comforting. They didn't want to tell him, but at the same time, they did. They wanted to let him know. They wanted to tell him everything that had happened to them. They didn't want to leave him clueless and guessing.

So Xornoth took a deep breath to ground themself and told him everything they could.

-

Eventually, they couldn't continue any further and hid their face in Joey's shoulder, resisting the urge to shake as much as they could.