Hermitcraft Stories

The Log Father Part 3

Xisuma felt exhausted. He blinked, trying to take in his surroundings. He was in a small cell laying on a cold, hard bed. Looking over, he realized that he was connected to a heart monitor. The room was silent except for the faint beeps of the machine. Wail – it was silent. He didn't hear the Log Father. A wave of relief flooded across him as he remembered what had happened. He was free now.

Xisuma tried to sit up but realized that he was chained to the bed. His heart started racing and he felt his chest get tighter as he tried to rip off the chains.

A very disgruntled Doc came bursting through the door and he raced over to Xisuma.

X tried to move away from Doc, but the chains prevented him from moving.

"X, I need you to calm down," Doc said, his voice sounding just as worried as Xisuma felt.

Xisuma stopped moving and stared at Doc with wide eyes.

"Do you remember what happened?" Doc asked.

He nodded since the words felt caught inside his throat.

"X, I'm so sorry. I didn't realize what was happening until I felt you go limp. We thought we lost you for a second. I was so afraid. I didn't want to lose you."

Xisuma felt himself calm down and his gaze soften. Doc still thought he was a friend, he still cared. How could he? Xisuma had done so many things. Yeah, the Log Father had been controlling him, but he still felt responsible for everything.

Tears started flowing out of his eyes, and X couldn't stop himself from sobbing. He felt Doc's arms wrap around his shoulders and could feel Doc's shoulder push X's helmet into his face.

The door opened and Xisuma could hear voices walk through. He felt embarrassed, sobbing into Doc's shoulder with his arms and chest still chained to the bed, as the hermits stared at him.

Cub ran forward with a ring of keys and unlocked the chains wrapped around his arms and torso. X instantly wrapped his arms around Doc.

"I- I'm ss-so sorry Iskall. I, I-I couldn't s-ss-stop, couldn't stop m-myself. I almost killed you and I couldn't stop, I couldn't stop. He wouldn't let me stop." Xisuma could feel himself shaking. "I did so many things. I stole saplings, bribed Hermits, unfairly sold land, broke tree farms, and so much more. I'm so sorry. You are all so wonderful and you don't deserve a rotten friend like me. If Iskall hadn't killed the Log... him, I would have killed you. I didn't want to kill you, but he wouldn't let me go. He wouldn't let me stop."

"It wasn't your fault Xisuma," Joe said.

"But I did all those things, and I was too weak to stop myself," X sobbed.

"Xisuma, you are one of my greatest friends," Python said. "You didn't want to do those things and you tried to stop; I know you tried, but he didn't let you stop. That's not your fault, it's HIS."

Scar stepped forward. "I'm so sorry. We should have noticed things sooner and we should have dealt with finding out better. We don't blame you for what happened."

"None of us do," Cub added.

Xisuma looked around at them. "But..."

"No." Wels' voice was firm. "It wasn't your fault. Someone took advantage of you and that is unacceptable. You are just as much as a victim, perhaps even more, as the rest of us."

"I'm so sorry I joked about the rabbit X," Iskall said. "I didn't know what he had done."

"I-It's alright Iskall. You were the one to save me. If you hadn't..." X trailed off. He didn't want to imagine what would have happened next.

Doc removed his arms from around Xisuma and told the others, " We should probably tell Ren; he was worried."

Cub walked out of the room as Xisuma asked, "Where is Ren?"

"Sheriff False is interrogating him. We wanted to know what happened," Wels explained.

"Xisuma!" Ren ran in and engulfed X in a giant hug. "We're finally free my dude."

Cub and False followed panting. "He couldn't wait to see you."

"I was worried," Ren replied.

"Well, I guess we are going to be in here together for a while," Xisuma said.

All the Hermits stared at him in confusion.

"We were found guilty," X said.

The room fell silent as the truth sunk in.

False cleared her throat. "Well, with what Ren told me, we have enough evidence to drop all charges."

All other Hermits cheered, but Xisuma sat there in silence. "I deserve it though," he whispered.

"NO!" Doc's shout quieted everyone. "You did not deserve any of this. The Log Father made you do awful things, but that does not make you an awful person. You are still one of the most amazing people ever and he can't change that about you. He is gone, and you are in no way responsible for HIS actions."

Xisuma stared at Doc for a second and wrapped his arms around him. He held Doc tight and whispered, "Thank you."

~~~~~~~~~

This story has been going a lot better than I expected, but it feels like it is coming to an end. Please let me know if you want another chapter of "The Log Father" or another short story. I need more ideas. As always, feel free to comment your feelings towards this chapter, and I am open to answer any questions. Thank you so much for reading, it really does mean a lot.

Have a good day!

-J