Hermitcraft - Villlian Au

Grief

Etho stumbled along through the dead landscape, unsure of his destination. Iskall had abandoned him, Hels was too dangerous to be around and he knew he couldn't go back the the hermits. He wasn't the Etho they knew, they wouldn't accept him.

He continued until he reached the rubble of Xisuma's base. He noticed something strange. A small bit of green grass, the last bit of life in this barren world. He watched as it shrivelled up into dead, grey grass.

Then he noticed more, more small patches that led off into the distance. We're they... footprints? They definitely were in the shapes of shoes or boots. He followed the trail, all of them slowly withering away.
He continued for maybe 5 minutes into the dead forest. Not a single leaf left on any of the trees. Etho slowly came up to a cave entrance where the footprints continued inside.

He descended into the tunnel as it slowly sloped downwards into the earth. Suddenly he stopped in his tracks. Growing out of the floor in front of him was a crimson rose. Something was alive. Some life had survived, he didn't know how but that didn't matter. There was life, and if there was life there was hope.

Etho continued, the further he walked down this tunnel the more life he saw, patches of grass, vines, flowers and shrubs. He finally reached the end, it opened into a small room. The walls were covered in vines and the floor was soft, healthy grass. Flowers bloomed out of the vines and there were even bees flying around. Then he saw her.

Sitting on the floor with her head in her knees was a girl he didn't recognise. She had long, messy, red hair and a green shirt with denim overalls.

"Hi?"

The girl looked up suddenly, tears streaming down her face. She managed to compose herself.

"Hi." She grabbed a knife. "Who are you?"

"Calm down, I'm not here for a fight. I'm Etho, I think. Can I sit down?"

The girl paused before nodding and putting down the knife. "I'm Gem. You're a hermit right?"

Etho shrugged. "I don't know anymore."

"What do you mean?" Gem asked.

Etho suddenly burst out everything he'd been thinking, what had happened. How he didn't feel like Etho anymore.

"I just don't know who I am. I know I'm not Etho. I was made to be a servant for Iskall but now I'm not. He abandoned me, I don't feel like I belong anywhere."

Gem played with some flowers on the floor. "I think we're in the same boat. I dont think I can go back to the hermits either. I failed them. I wasn't strong enough to finish the prophecy and now it's too late."

Although Etho wasn't entirely sure what she was talking about he tried to comfort her. "You don't know that."

"I do. I saw the golden dust in the air. Xisuma is gone."

"That's not your fault. You didn't do it." Etho looked around. "What's up with this? All this plant life and stuff."

"We'll that's the next part. My oracle powers also have the power of life. I'm not controlling this but my body Is automatically trying to regrow life around me. It sounds great but it's not. My body isn't strong enough. The more this goes on for the more power it's going to use."

"And what does that mean?"

"It means it's going to kill me Etho. Over time my power is going to kill me, all because of what happened to this world."

"You can't get rid of your magic?"

"Not without transferring it into something else. And that would just be passing the torch, by giving someone my power I'd be killing them instead. This is my burden to bare."

"What if they have a strong enough body."

"It would have to be pretty powerful. Someone that already has strong magic within them, even then it would get rid of their current power. Just so their body could handle it, magic is smart like that."

"Not when it's killing you."

"True that."

Gem started to weave a flower crown.

"Do you have any family gem?" Etho asked.

"I did. I hope I still do, I don't know if they survived all this. They live quite a way across the ocean anyway."

They sat in silence for a while. Gem held up the finished flower crown and put it on her head. She started on a second one.

Etho took a breath before speaking. "Would my body be strong enough?"

"I wouldn't imagine so. Why?"

"I'm not exactly from here."

"Depends. I'm talking Xisuma level strength."

"I guess not then." Etho rested against the wall.

Gem finished the flower crown and gave it to Etho. "Here, you don't have to wear it. It's just a little gift."

Etho grinned under his mask and put it on. "Thank you."

The unlikely friends chatted until they fell asleep on the comfy grass.

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Scar was doing his best not to panic. The carnage was over but now the aftermath was setting in. It was hard to believe it could all be ok.

"Is everyone ok?" He shouted.

They did a headcount and realised Cleo and Joe were missing.

"Where is Cleo and Joe?"

"They uh, led the injured away." Bdubs looked tired, tears in his eyes.

"Right yeah." He looked at the hermits. He couldn't go around asking them to do things. They needed more time.

"I'm going to go check on them. Make sure they made it."

Bdubs moved to follow him and Scar shook his head. "Get some rest. That sleep spell really took it out of you."

Scar stumbled down the hill. Grief filling his gut. He found the pair at a makeshift hospital.

Joe's glasses were broken. "W-what happened?"

"I don't know. I've got something to tell you."

"I have something to tell you too." Cleo spoke up. "My memory is back. I'm Cleo again."

"That's great. I'm really glad."

"I'll have to ask X to see if he'd know why."

Scar sat down. "About that. That's the news I have to tell you."

He told them about everything that had happened.

They didn't take it well, everyone would heal eventually but in the meantime it would be very painful.

They would have to move on, to grow with the world around them.

It had to be ok eventually, right?

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I once again have not much to say.
If you have anything you're particularly enjoying and want to see more of in this story feel free to let me know
Anything you have to say is greatly appreciated

Next chapter: A Terrifying Work of Art