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bluuedraws · 5 months

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What’s this? A new fic? Yes, yes it is.

Chapter One

Slam!

Xelqua flings the door closed behind him, shaking fingers fumbling for the lock as he quickly glances around. He’s panting hard, chest heaving as he bends over, hands on quivering knees. He doesn’t rest long before he lowers himself to the ground, wings splaying out behind him, nearly falling over in the process.

He has to be quick. He can’t be caught.

If he is, it’s over.

Taking a deep breath to settle his nerves, Xelqua opens his Eyes. They snap open immediately, effortlessly. It’s as natural as breathing. He can still remember when it was the hardest thing he’d ever done, taking him months to learn how to keep them open for longer than a second. Now, it’s second nature.

Xelqua shakes his head once, shutting down the memories as quickly as they came. He doesn't have time for this, not now. Not when They could find him at any moment.

Deep breath in, deep breath out. Ignore the fluttering in his stomach.

(Wham!)

Again, he opens his Eyes, but this time with a concentrated intensity. Worlds upon worlds stretch out before him, tickling his fingers as he reaches out a hesitant hand.

Which one, which one…

(Wham!)

His teeth grind together, anxiety sparking through his chest as he looks faster, scanning worlds with a growing panic. All of them are multiplayer and heavily populated. No, no that won’t work, he needs a single player world, one where he can hide properly-

(Wham!)

Fingers dance in the air, Eyes flicking back and forth frantically. Xelqua can feel his rising anxiety, growing and expanding in his chest. His breaths are short and quick, barely audible even in the silence of the room.

…the previously silent room, that is.

Xelqua jerks his head up as the sound registers, ringing in his ears and heart in his throat. The door flies off its hinges, crashing to the ground mere inches from his left wing. It’s smashed to pieces, and as Xelqua spins around, he realizes who has found him. Swirling purple magic greets him, and he’s slammed against the wall with such force he’s left breathless.

No, no no no nonononono-

“O⍑, ||ᒷᓭ” a voice whispers in the darkness. “What a pathetic attempt, Xelqua.”

“Go away!”

He screeches and lunges for the worlds, still visible in front of him, dancing just out of reach. He no longer cares which one he chooses, just so long as it’s far, far away from here so he’ll be safe-

A hand catches his outstretched arm and flips him sideways, slamming him to the ground. Xelqua rolls away, shoulder aching and arm spiking with pain, but the adrenaline pumping through his body refuses to let him sit still. He lunges again, but is met with glowing talons that slash his face, his arms, his chest, and pin him to the ground in a spray of blood.

“ᓭℸ ̣ 𝙹!¡ ℸ ̣ ⍑╎ᓭ! This is not a battle you can win!”

The claws tighten as blood drips down his arm, his face, into his eyes. Everything is red and Xelqua can’t breathe, he can’t move but he has to, he needs to get out get out GET OUT-

“I ∴𝙹リ’ℸ ̣ ! I WON’T GO BACK, I WON’T!”

The Galactic escapes him in his panic, and Xelqua kicks the thing off his chest, pushing magic into his legs to fling them farther. He leaps forward, half blind and body screaming in pain as he desperately reaches for a world, any world, he just needs to LEAVE.

His hand grabs something, and he clutches it to his chest tightly, desperately, as if it’s his very own soul and he won’t lose it again, he won’t-

But the world resists, deflecting his every attempt to get in. Whoever this world’s admin is, they’re a powerful one. Panic rising in his chest, Xelqua slashes at the wall that keeps him out, ripping and shredding until there’s a hole big enough for a person to slip through. He feels his pursuer nearby, mere seconds away from discovering his escape, and his heart leaps into his throat.

No no NO NO NONONONONO-

With a last desperate tear, Xelqua flings himself through the hole, his body on fire and tears streaming from his eyes.

He’s falling, falling fast, and he can’t tell what’s up or down, whether he made it through or was caught, just seconds from escape. The world fades from black to white to a sudden burst of color, and he shuts his eyes against the blinding light engulfing him. His head spins, everything spins, a twisted rollercoaster that he can never get off of. He feels sick, so sick, his head about to split open from the pain of the never ending fall. The world fades, everything fades, his body feels heavy and light at the same time, floating in the air.

Xelqua sighs, and lets himself drift into the black.

Xisuma has never seen anything like it before. He peers closer to the screen in front of him, hands frantically typing as he stares at the lines of code that are dissolving in front of his eyes. It’s as if something is tearing open the firewall, destroying the code that the admin had put so much time and care into to keep his hermits safe. Xisuma had thought he’d done a pretty good job, but fear sparks through his chest as he watches… watches something break its way in effortlessly, shredding his precious code to pieces.

He works with unmatched concentration, fighting against the thing forcing its way into the server, but it was a losing battle to begin with. Xisuma can barely keep it out 5 minutes before, finally, it shatters the last barrier between them.

“Shit!” The curse surprises him, causing him to stumble as he springs to his feet. He’s not usually one to curse, but honestly? It feels appropriate. Xisuma grabs his communicator and hurriedly types out a message to the group.

>>Xisumavoid<<

Emergency meeting at spawn, now. Everyone needs to be there. Something just broke through the firewall, so be on your guard. See you soon.

He ignores the immediate storm of shocked responses, instead shoving the console deep into his pocket, strapping on his elytra, and rocketing out of his base. He has to be the first to spawn. There’s a small chance the intruder would have appeared there, despite their unceremonious entrance to the world. If there’s any chance it’s hostile, Xisuma isn’t going to put any of his hermits in danger because of his failure. This is his problem, and he needs to solve it. As the admin slowly descends from the sky, he can make out two figures standing below him. Anxiety spiking, Xisuma quickly drops to the ground to see Scar and Mumbo already there, and deep in conversation. Relief fills him as he realizes they’re alone..

It doesn’t seem to be anywhere nearby…

“Hello Mumbo, Scar.” Xisuma lands with a soft thump beside the pair, startling Scar despite his soft touchdown.

“Oh! Xisuma, you scared me!” Scar’s bright laughter helps calm his nerves a little, bringing a bit of calm back to his thoughts. Honestly, just standing near Scar is an incredible cure for his anxiety. The man is so bright and bubbly, one of the kindest people you’ll ever meet. Xisuma has never met anyone quite like him before.

“Sorry Scar, but I must admit I have a few things on my mind right now, so I might not be very attentive at the moment.” Xisuma smiles apologetically before quickly checking his communicator for any updates.

It looks like everyone will be here soon.

“Yeah, about that X. What on earth do you mean something broke through the firewall? You can’t just say that and then go silent!” Mumbo fiddles with his hands, obviously nervous. His mouth is twitching as he fixes the admin with an anxious gaze. “Isn’t the wall supposed to be hacker-proof?”

Xisuma sighs, hand reaching for his hair but blocked by his helmet. He tries to pass off the movement as if he was just brushing something off as he thinks about how to answer.

“Yes, I thought so too. But I should save the explanation for when everyone is here. Better to only explain it once, that way we have more time.”

After a moment's hesitation, Mumbo reluctantly nods in agreement. The three of them sit in silence until more players begin to arrive, filling in the courtyard and chattering nervously. When it’s finally clear that everyone had arrived, Xisuma clears his throat and steps forward. Immediately silence settles over the crowd as all eyes turn to him.

“Hello all, thank you for coming on such short notice. I have some worrying news for you all. Something has broken into the server.”

This much is already known, although the confirmation does warrant a few gasps. Intrusion on a protected server such as this is practically unheard of. Xisuma is honestly surprised that no one is panicking yet. Even anxiety riddled Mumbo has managed to keep calm, with the help of Scar and a few other Hermits. Xisuma continues.

“I watched myself as whatever it is absolutely destroyed the firewall and slipped into the world. We don’t know whether they’re hostile or not, so please, everyone, be careful. I’ll need volunteers for patrolling, we’ll have to set up guards around the clock until we find this thing.”

Almost immediately after the words have left his mouth, several hands are raised. Xisuma nods his thanks to them before addressing the crowd.

“Thank you for the immediate volunteers. Scar, Keralis, Mumbo and Ren can patrol first. Pick any area nearby, and search it thoroughly. After a couple hours report back to me. In the meantime, I’ll be working on finding out anything else I can. Be careful, everyone. Stay vigilant.”

With that final note, Xisuma ends the meeting with a sigh. He feels exhaustion sweep over him, but he keeps his shoulders back and chin up. Showing weakness now would only spark fear. Xisuma walks over to Scar and Mumbo, the first to arrive and the last to leave. He gives them a small smile, before saying, “You be careful, ok? Don’t be afraid to ask me for help.”

“We know, X, but the same stands for you, alright? Don’t worry yourself to bits when we can help.” Scar fixes him with a stern glare, and Xisuma cracks another smile, nods, and turns. It’s time to go home.

He has a long night of coding waiting for him.

Something soft brushes against Xelqua’s face, swishing against his his jaw and tickling his nose. The feeling is so nice, so out of place from his usual life that he nearly lets himself fall back into the comforting blackness he’d been floating in just moments before. He lays there, relishing in the feeling, when suddenly pain spikes through his body. His eyes shoot open and he sits up with a gasp, frantically glancing around. The sudden movement sends more waves of pain through his body, and he winces again, bringing a tentative hand up to his cheek. It comes away red.

Xelqua quickly opens his Eyes and surveys himself, taking in every cut and bruise. His forehead has a relatively shallow cut on it, but seems to refuse to close. Blood still drips from the gash, pooling against his cheek and dripping down his cloak. His arms are marred with deep cuts, still trickling blood. He has quite a few bruises, but nothing seems broken, thankfully. His worst wound, however, is the one on his chest. It’s deep, very deep, and the constant stabbing pain causes his eyes to fill with black dots. Xelqua pants on the ground, clutching the ruined fabric of his robe against his chest in an effort to relieve some of the pain. It does nothing, of course, and he squeezes his eyes shut against the agony.

Where am I?

He’s sitting in a field, grass pressed against his legs and the sun shining down upon him.

Oh, the sun. How he’s missed the sun.

Obviously he’d managed to escape, or else he wouldn’t have waken up in the first place. He should be glad to feel anything, even pain. It means he’s alive.

But how long would he stay that way? How long until They found him again? The thought forces him to his feet despite the pain, and he stands there, panting and holding his chest, wings drooping against the ground, too exhausted to do much else. Move. He has to move. If he can find somewhere safe, he can rest, he can plan. Safety first, questions later.

Slowly, ever so slowly, Xelqua places one shaking leg in front of the other. He’s moving, very slowly but honestly? Who cares? As long as he was getting closer to safety.

What felt like hours, maybe years of pain-filled steps and heaving breaths, Xelqua finally spots a cave in the distance, overgrown and covered with vines. Shelter. With what feels like the last dregs of his strength, he hauls himself to the entrance and drops to the ground, too tired to move even an inch further. His eyes close, limbs still against the cold rock.

He hopes he’s hidden enough here, because there’s no way he’ll summon the strength to move again. Even now his thoughts are slipping away, falling back into that peaceful nothingness he’d come to treasure so much. He sighs, one last thought drifting through his head before he loses consciousness.

I made it.

Hope you all enjoy <3

Many thanks to @desertduality for the advice and support! Yes, I was the desperate anon begging for advice xD

Your support meant the world, and even though this chapter is fairly short, I’m so proud of how it turned out ^^