Against all odds (The Pack)

Chapter 23

Warnings: Mentions of blood, feels

     ~Rob's P.O.V.~

The last thing I remember seeing is Preston diving stupidly into the pit after me, tunnelling through the wall with surprising speed, surrounding us with cobble, wrapping his arms around me to shield me, and then loud explosions and flashes of light before blackness. Now as I slowly feel my senses return to me, I realize sadly I must be in... The Aether was it? Having failed my mission and died. But a stinging sensation on my face makes me second guess myself. If I'm dead why do I feel pain?

I slowly crack open my eyes to see Mitch, Jerome, and Vikk standing over me. Mitch has tears in his eyes, and Jerome and Vikk look pale with worry. With a start I realize Preston is beside me too, slowly shifting. My eyes catch sight of the large patches of stone on his back, and it makes my stomach churn.

"I'm... I'm alive?" I mutter weakly, using all my willpower to fight through the pain and drowsiness and push myself to a siting positron.
"Preston saved you mate, but he nearly died." Vikk states softly, Mitch frantically trying to wipe away his tears so nobody notices them.

It's just then I notice the worrying amount of blood caking the ground, me, and Preston.

"His back got like, torn off, from protecting you so we fed him your enchanted golden apple, and then sealed up his back with water so he wouldn't die." Jerome explains. "But I think he burned you a little bit on accident."

I nod shakily in understanding, watching as Preston's eyes slowly blink open, and he groans. There's a slight scraping sound as Preston's now stone back scrapes against the sandstone below us, and he glances around groggily, shaking his head. I don't even give him a second to gather his thoughts, instead lunging forward and tackling him in a hug, tears collecting and tumbling down my face.

Preston yelps in surprise as we hit the ground, "Thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you." I repeat gratefully.
His charcoal coloured eyes lock onto me, widening in surprise, "Rob?" He asks in shock, and then in a mumble, "I didn't think that'd actually work..."

He pats my back lightly signalling I can let go, and so I do just that, backing off him and pulling him back onto his feet. Preston, upon standing up, winces and rubs his back. The hoodie is completely torn at the back, so whe his fingers brush over the stone there, his eyes widen.

"What happened to my back...?" He asks, fear and panic evident on his face.
"When the TNT exploded, it really messed up your back and took chucks out of it. So we stuffed an enchanted golden apple on your mouth and poured water on your back as a replacement. So now, your back is like over half stone. But I mean, you didn't die so..." Mitch trails off.
"Oh..." Preston replies simply, his eyes dropping. "So does that mean I'm going to be like this forever?"

We all nod solemnly.

"Okay..." He sighs in defeat. "But I mean it was worth it." He points out smiling at me.
"So then, if we're all done here, we should probably get to the Dimensional kingdom. We have a war to stop, you have a friend to find," Jerome begins, his gaze shifting to look at Preston. "And... We should probably get you a new hoodie."

~~~

A few days later, in the Dimensional kingdom...

~???????'s P.O.V.~ (Hm now I wonder who this could be... XD)

"..."