Book 2: The First Fallen Human

Cold Greetings

Ink whipped up his head as he heard someone enter the Doodle Sphere. "Heya! Er-" He stopped, standing up with his paintbrush. He never did like meeting his own doppelgängers, but neither did the Ink in front of him. Ink recognized him almost immediately. "Oh, what brings DreamSwap to the area?" He asked, grinning.

The other Ink, who he liked to call Paint, sighed in annoyance. "Justice Reigns is hunting the three negative skeletons." He stated. Ink hummed and nodded. That name was just as dumb as he recalled. He tried to remember.

"Let's see, that would be... Nightmare... Error...?" He paused for a moment before nodding. "Error. And..." He couldn't grasp the last one, even though it was on the tip of his tongue.

Paint looked down and his voice gave the slightest hint of a tremor. "Cross." Ink lit up. Oh, yes!! Yes! He nodded, snapping his fingers.

"Right! Sorry, I haven't interacted with your Multiverse in a long time! But, uh..." He rubbed his head. "Can you not come for them right away...?" Paint furrowed his brow and stared up at the other. He actually wore his own brown, fluff-hooded hoodie, but he carried no paint brush at the moment. The ink splatter that stained the side of his face was much more smeared. And he didn't smile nearly as much, despite always being around Dream, who practically breathed positivity.

Ink grinned nervously, floating above the other. "We're having a bit of a crisis right now and if you guys come over, you might actually get hurt." He tried to explain. Paint stared at him before sighing.

"It's a bit too late for that. Dream's already here. Code is on his way." Paint said, crossing his arms. Ink inhaled sharply.

"Ah... that's no good. Well, I suppose I can't stop you now, but I would REALLY like to ask that you stay out of the way. Because this threat that we have is pretty... uh... bad..." He gave another nervous chuckle. It was clear this was going to be a serious issue. "Oh geez..." He mumbled, rubbing his head. "I really have to find them..."

"Not to be nosy, or whatever you call it, but what's going on?" Paint asked. Ink turned back to look at him in surprise before laughing nervously.

"I'd say nothing, but then I'd be a liar. Let's just say, if you see or smell any blood, STAY AWAY FROM IT." Ink had gone dead serious as he stated the last part urgently. Paint raised a brow.

"Blood only comes from humans. Y'all got humans running around?" Paint asked, tipping his head. Ink made a whining, uncertain noise.

"Ehhhhh... I guess you can say that... but it's only one. And STARS, have they been making a real mess of things..." Ink said. He jumped. "I really have to look for them!! Okay! So, tell your Dream I know you guys are here and I'll try to get everyone out of your way, alright?? And PLEASE!" He gave a grin that was so wracked with worry, it twitched. "STAY AWAY FROM THE BLOOD."

Paint nodded, a bit taken back. He'd never seen his counterpart so worried. He watched as Ink bid him a quick goodbye and disappeared up into the golden papers. Briefly, the strands of light and the golden parchment kept Paint's attention. This would've been his if he was really Ink.

For a moment, he felt a pang in his chest. It always happened. That need to feel like he was part of something bigger than him. He didn't need his vials anymore, due to Dream's constant positive aura, but he couldn't help but have these thoughts. What if he had stayed with Cross? What if he had become the AU Guardian?

Paint was quiet for a few moments. He jolted and shook himself back to reality. "No! It's an honor to serve by Dream's side. I can't be ungrateful." He whispered intensely, seeming to be reminding himself. He frowned. He had to go report back to Dream.

Paint turned and ran his hand through the ink on his cheek. He used it to create a portal and moved through, dropping into the Omega Timeline. He stood up as the portal closed. He approached DS, who was sitting quietly with his wings curled around him. "Boss. The AU Guardian says it's okay for us to hunt." He scoffed quietly. "Like it matters what he says." He crossed his arms, knowing full well DS would've hunted anyway, with or without Ink's permission.

DS opened his eyes and glanced at Paint. Paint furrowed his brow. "Got a nick?" He asked, gesturing to the new slice on the other's nose. DS scowled and nodded, his wings giving an irritated flap. Paint sighed. "Who got you? One of the guys here?"

"This Multiverse's Cross. He's... much more of a soldier than ours could ever hope to be... and..." DS sighed. "This one's Nightmare." Paint blinked and raised a brow.

"Is he like ours at all?" He asked, sitting in front of DS. DS shook his head.

"The only thing remotely the same is that fact that he bleeds negativity. But this Nightmare... ate the apples instead of me..." He rubbed his head, flinching at a buzzing noise. He hated it. Paint listened quietly, noting that DS seemed to be hearing the buzzing again.

"Well, hopefully, we have them cornered now." He said. DS murmured in quiet agreement. Paint blinked, remembering the other thing he was supposed to tell him. "Oh, Boss? AU Guardian had a warning for us."

DS raised an eyebrow and Paint nodded. "I wasn't going to take it seriously either, but I've never seen him so serious about something." This caught DS' attention. "He says that if we see any blood, to stay away from it. It seems their Multiverse is in the middle of a crisis." He said, his voice firm.

"Blood? As in, human?" DS asked, seeming surprised. Paint nodded before pausing. He furrowed his brow.

"He... said it was something like that, but I don't know what he meant." Paint said, getting an uneasy feeling up his spine. "But he said it could hurt us." DS snorted, not believing that part. He sighed and nodded before pushing himself.

"Then we shall get them and go. I don't want to get involved in whatever wild chase is being spun here."