Corrupted - A Hermitcraft (and Empires) Fanfiction

13: Cub

'GONE?!'

'Yes!'

'And by gone you mean... disappeared? Not on the server?'

'Unless another definition magically came into existence in the seconds between me saying it and your reply, yes. Every single magical player is gone from the server.' 

'Then find them.'

I pause, frowning at Xisuma's command.

'Find them?!'

'Don't just give up and fail me again, Cub. Find them.'

'They're outside the world in some other world we can't enter. I can't just 'find them'.'

'Have you tried?'

'Of course I've tried. There are a billion worlds, most of which I don't even have access to. I don't trust whether I'll even stay alive or connected to the skulk upon leaving this one.'

Xisuma continues pacing. 

'You will always be connected to the skulk. And with the skulk, you will stay alive. It will protect you. And if you are so untrusting as to not realise that, maybe I misjudged you.'

I step back, gathering skulk in case he tries to do the worst.

'Pity.'  A dagger of skulk in Xisuma's hand. 'I rather enjoyed keeping you as a servant.'

'A servant?!' In an instant the skulk in mine's a sword 'After all I've done...'

'All you've done is fail me over and over.' He steps towards me. I have to back away. 'You are little more than a failed servant. And I easily find another servant. Scar perhaps.'

'I don't care about Scar.' I spit. 'I don't care about any of the hermits. And you can't find him either, by the way. Or anyone else. Can't we just start spreading skulk around instead of focussing on building an-'

Pain. 

I hit the ground, Xisuma towering over me... I raise a hand to my forehead, fingers slicking with blood. 

'We're on the same side, Xisuma.' I glare up at him. 'Unless you want to be my enemy.'

Skulk. But not defending me, attacking, pinning me to the ground as Xisuma steps closer. I try to control it back, force it away. But he's stronger, his will against the skulk is stronger.

'You follow MY commands, Cubfan. You do what I say. I rescued you from the surface, so act grateful.'

'I'm trying!' The skulk digs tighter to the point of pain. 

'Try harder. Or you'll be replaced.'

The skulk recedes again and I stand, still glaring, hiding my pain. 

'Then how do I find the hermits?'

'You will go to the surface and spy. If you're so scared of leaving this world, I won't force you to. But when they return, you will find them. And you will not be allowed back into my home until you've caught one or died trying, do you understand?'

'Yes, X.' I mutter.

'What was that?'

'Yes, Xisuma.' 

A nod. 

'Good.'

I cross the room, gathering plenty of skulk around my arms and legs in case of emergencies, getting caught out like I did before. A glance over at the list of targets, memorising names and faces before heading towards the exit and the danger beyond.

'And Cub?' 

'Yeah?' I glance back.

'Don't fail me again.'

Of course it's still light as I reach the surface. But I don't have to wait long until the sun's set enough to stop harming me. I creep from the base, taking to the air, scouring for anyone. Again, I'm in luck. Sounds echo from inside their tower. Voices. 

They're back.

'...away from a meeting with Watchers!' 

'I couldn't stay there a moment longer while they... they refused to understand...' 

'I understand. Those eyeificating wingificators are jerks with extra jerk sauce.'

'Tango, I know. Shut up. Scar, you do realise what Pix said. Without their help, we've got no chance in stopping them!'

Silence for a moment. I creep closer to see if I can hear more... I recognise Scar's voice, and almost recognise the one arguing with him. I just need to wait until one of them is alone... I'll have the advantage. It's night, unlike before, and they'll still be hurt.

'We can't give up, Grian.' Scar mutters. 'I can't give up to Cub,'

'I'm not giving up. I'm being reasonable. We can't just barely escape them any more. If we want to fight and get our friends back, we needed the Watchers' or the Vexlings' help.'

'The Vex never said if they were for or against it. And if we attack all together...'

'We can fight off the skulkification. Lure them out, set their base on fire and murder their murdery faces until our friends come back.'

'Cub can't respawn.'

'And we don't know how badly Xisuma's been affected, or how powerful he is. Murder is off the cards. We'll need to discuss this all together with the others. For now, you need sleep, Scar. You're still hurt. Tango... you need sleep too.'

'And what about you, Grian? What are you going to do?'

'I don't know. Head back to my base and try to act normal for the night.'

'Grian...'

'Don't try to argue with me, Scar. I need a break from saving all of Hermitcraft. See you tomorrow.'

Another silence, and then a sigh. 

'Stay safe.' 

'I will.' 

I creep out of view, further onto the roof, glancing up at the moon. I've still got time. And now, with Grian going off in his own, I've got a chance to strike.

It's still a few more minutes until Grian appears, probably talking to more of their little magic group. It's the Watcher from before, wings stretching behind as he searches for fireworks. I hide in skulk for a second, just in case he glances up and spots me. But he doesn't, just flying past towards the pile of rocks that must be his base. With a grin, I follow, gliding over on wings of skulk, ready to attack.

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