Chapter Text
The hum of a machine broke the oppressing air of Planet Voss. Pink mist radiating from the expression of engineering prowess, landing on top of two figures standing below it.
“I’m just saying, if we try to kill the killer, they won’t be able to kill us!”
“Shed. That’s idiotic.”
Shedletsky rolled his eyes. Just as Builderman pinched the bridge of his nose. Both were under the dispenser the engineer had built. They had been walking in between the white walls of Planet Voss when they both got hit by a stray Mass Infection from this round’s killer, 1x1x1x1.
“Then what else do you propose?” The sword master leans against one of the walls. Propping his sword up in front of him like he was holding a cane. An internal snicker erupts in his mind. He’s not that old.
“What we normally do?” Builderman raises his eyebrow. Turning to look up at Shedletsky.
The sword fighter pulls his sword out of the ground. It started to get embedded into the floor from the pressure applied to it. He sheathed it as he responded. “But different is funnn.” He draws out the last word with a whine. Overexaggerating a tad by leaning forward and lowering his shoulders as far as they can go.
“It gets us killed more times than not.” He hears the CEO exhale. Exasperated by his relentless attempts at spicing up the unending rounds they find themselves in. He just wants something different so that they don’t go insane! “We always return to the classics anyways.”
“Then how about-“ Before he could finish talking, Builderman’s head swiveled around to beyond the wall they were behind. “What? What is it?”
“Sentry’s down.” The admin replies. He starts to walk further away from the dispenser. All his wounds have been patched up, only a little bit of blood remained from the sealed cut.
Shedletsky follows after his friend. He’s got nothing better to do. He isn’t even sure where 1x is. And if Builder’s sentry was destroyed, 1x would be there. However, he didn’t even know where it was built.
Builderman starts to build another one behind a wall. One where most of the survivors would loop around the killer. He knows he’s used this spot plenty of times before too.
“So… who do you think 1x is after now?” Shedletsky bounces on the ball of his heel as he watches Builderman craft a new construct.
“Beats me. At least it’s not me.” The CEO shrugs.
They stay in silence for a while. Even after Builderman finishes the machine and stands up. They had 5 seconds left in the match. As long as no one else died.
Shedletsky can’t remember if anyone had died this round. Guest was close, but was saved by both Two Time and Elliot. He hadn’t seen Dusekkar, Noob, Chance, or Taph all round. So two of them must have been left out. He did see Seven completing a generator early into the round…
There’s no use thinking about it now. The rounds ending anyways.
True to his own inner thoughts, he was brought back to the cabins within a blink of an eye. More specifically, his own eyes.
He could hear cheers coming from everyone for another deathless round. Dusekkar floats in with Chance following after.
“Free round everyone!” Elliot cheers. “Pizzas for everyone!”
As much as he loves Elliot’s pizzas, it’s been the only thing they’ve eaten for the longest of time. Sure, he has chicken legs, but it’s never enough for everyone. So he withholds his groan in favor of joining everyone’s cheers.
He wraps his arms around both Dusekkar and Builderman. “Great to have the gang back together without any deaths this time.”
“Thy would have to agree with this line. Even if thy was unable to assist this time.” The pumpkin admin agrees.
Builderman readjusts his hard hat after it got knocked around. “Shed, be careful. I only got one of these!” He raises his voice slightly, but a smile is displayed on his face.
“That’s a lie. I know you have an entire closet full of ‘em.” Shedletsky knocks the CEO’s hard hat off with his wings. It clatters to the floor drawing some attention to them.
Laughter erupts from the interaction. Builderman simply shakes his head with a smile, bending down to pick his signature hat back up.
The good vibes end abruptly when someone gasps so audibly that it would even be heard even if someone was screaming during a chase. The culprit? Noob.
Their face is pale, hands over their mouth. They take a step back as everyone turns their attention to them. More gasps erupt from the crowd as they follow where Noob is looking.
Shedletsky follows, gazing back towards the Victors Table. There was only one person still seated. Taph.
That’s… unusual. Taph typically joined them in celebration or walked out immediately like Seven does often. But… something was off about Taph…
Wings.
He has no wings.
Why doesn’t he have wings anymore?
What happened to his wings?
The group watches in a mix of horror and empathy at the demolitionist. Silence raining throughout the once joy filled room.
A yelp is drawn from Taph suddenly. Everyone quickly starts to look at each other for help. Shedletsky looks directly at Elliot and Builderman. They could heal this, right? But… it’s outside of a round and his wings aren’t back.
Shedletsky turns back to see Taph reach behind him, grabbing onto nothing. Then the trapper turned to look for himself. And starts to hyperventilate.
Oh SFOTH he just learned. He just learned his wings are gone.
As if the sound prompted action, Shedletsky bolted to Taph in an instant. Elliot, Guest, Dusekkar, and Builderman following milliseconds after. The rest of the survivors stay back. Seeing as how Taph already started flinching and shivering with the 5 of them crowding him.
“Taph! Taph, everything’s going to be okay!” Shedletsky hears Elliot as the pizza worker holds one of Taph’s hands. Dusekkar took the other, while attempting to inspect the damages done. Just like he is.
The place where Taph’s wings had connected to his back were now little stubs. The ligaments move slightly with the instincts Taph still has. He’s seen this before. He knows well how these injuries look. He’s committed these atrocities before. Back when he was someone else.
He removed 1x’s wings back when he was Telamon. He shouldn’t have done it. Not to such a young creation kid. But he still did it.
These are just like 1x’s. And Taph had wings before this round. Now he doesn’t.
1x did this. 1x cut off Taph’s wings.
Life would have been worse if 1x were to have wings now. Able to stabilize themselves in the air, move faster, fly. Everyone here would have had a harder time surviving against them than they do now.
But… his decision cost Taph his wings… It’s his fault Taph lost his wings.
“We need to get ‘em to his cabin!” Builderman shouts, drawing everyone’s attention. The remaining survivors move out of the way for Taph.
“His wounds are healed. There’s nothing I can do to bring his wings back.” Elliot dejectedly notes. Looking up to Dusekkar and Guest.
“Thy’s magic is only powerful enough to support, not repair. Healing magic weakened, it will only be able to treat with light care.” Shedletsky watches as Dusekkar squeezes Taph’s hand. Attempting to ground the demolitionist, only for it to not work.
“I can easily carry him to his place.” Guest speaks up. Before he turns to look at Elliot. “I will need some help though.” The pizza worker nods at a fast pace.
Guest 1337 and Elliot bring Taph’s arms around their own separate necks. The minimum wage worker keeps his worried expression on Taph, occasionally shifting it to look at everyone around.
Shedletsky watches all this happen. It’s his fault that Taph’s permanently dewinged. He’s the root cause. The thought of pizza has become even less appetizing than before.
Builderman rushes ahead and opens all the doors needed for the trip. Grabbing the medkit from the cabin’s shelf as he passes the front door. Dusekkar follows at a slow pace, yet faster than Shedletsky. He’s muttering spells with his eyes closed. Holding onto his staff with a strong grip. The tip of it glows a light blue, fading into a green at the top. His internal flame grew intense from the strain.
They finally reach Taph’s cabin after what felt like an hour. When Shedletsky realistically knows it’s been at most a minute. The cabin had traps littered around the place. So everyone had to slow down besides Dusekkar.
The group made it to Taph’s room without any scratches or explosions. A few close calls due to how fast they were going though. Elliot tripped over himself after almost stepping into a bear trap. While Builderman almost triggered a tripwire.
Guest 1337 and Elliot placed Taph into his bed. The demolitionist curls up into a ball the second they stop touching him. Back facing everyone.
Dusekkar finally releases the spell he’s been building up. A soft shower of green particles float over to Taph. Coating the bomber in the substance, before it absorbed into his body. The majority of the surface area the particles touched was where his wings used to connect to his body.
Once the spell ends, Dusekkar slumps. Nearly falling to the floor if not for Guest’s fast reactions. “That is about as much as thy is able to contribute.“ The mage exasperates. Clutching onto Guest as his legs tremble.
Dusekkar takes some time to recover his strength, enough to stand up. Although, he heavily relies on his staff to keep his balance. All through that time, the only sounds in the entire room come from Taph. Sobbing, uneven breathing, and flapping head wings.
Guest 1337 grabs the medkit out of Builderman’s hands before kneeling down next to Taph’s bed. He takes out some disinfectant wipes and gauze. The veteran cleans the wounds lightly, making sure they are cleaned even with the after-round healing factor. Taph would flinch every time the wipe touched where his wings used to connect to his body. Everyone cringed in empathy, even if they have never and will never experience what the demolitionist is going through. Elliot especially, as he winces every other flinch from Taph.
Once Guest made sure the wounds were properly cleaned, he started to wrap the gauze around Taph’s chest. Lifting up his robes slightly to get the gauze to touch skin. The cloak stays on, not revealing Taph’s body. Especially not when the demolitionist hugs himself tighter at the action.
The military soldier rips off the end of the gauze after he finishes. He stands up before turning back to everyone. “We should give him some time alone.”
Builderman nods. “It would be beneficial for him to rest up.” He keeps his eyes on the wounded form of their employee.
“I’ll bring him some pizza later…” Elliot worriedly mumbles as he runs out of the cabin. Guest followed after, only at a slower pace.
All that is left in the room are the three admins. The ones closest to Taph, from what Shedletsky can remember. He hasn’t seen Taph talk to anyone else. He’s been either alone or with one of the other admins ever since he’s been brought here. It doesn't help that the others don’t know the language in which the demolitionist speaks. He doesn’t even know it either. Only certain buzz words that he picked up over the course of these games.
If he had just left to find 1x instead of sticking with Builderman… If he had just learned sign language… If he hadn’t negated 1x and Taph from seeing each other again…
His fists lessen, alongside the scowl he didn’t even know formed on his face. A hand on his shoulder brought him out of it. “Thee had no opportunity to gain knowledge of the actions set in place. There was no way to brace.”
Shedletsky finally turns from the small, trembling figure in the bed to the mage next to him. While Dusekkar kept his sights on Taph, he kept speaking to Shedletsky while his hand stayed on the swordfighter’s shoulder. “The being of hatred’s current actions are at fault. While thee’s prior choices were the root cause, thee should not carry the burden of this assault.”
“Thee’s negative emotions housed many opportunities to perform something unique. Yet hatred runs deep enough to disregard those choices in favor of something so bleak.” Dusekkar drops his hand. Pulling his staff back up. He starts to walk away. Footsteps light yet audible. “Do take thy’s words into consideration. Don’t let thee’s thoughts disrupt thee’s dictation.”
As the footsteps grew silent, all that was left were Builderman and Shedletsky. One kept an eye on the injured demotionist, while the other eyed their fellow admin.
“I… think it’s time we get goin’…” The CEO breaks the silence. Walking closer to Shedletsky. Yet the hand on his shoulder does nothing to move him. He stands firmly in place.
“I can’t.” The sword master mutters. He can’t bring himself to look away. Even with Dusekkar’s words, he is still at fault. He can’t leave Taph alone. They left him alone to deal with 1x and this is how it ended up like.
The silence returns for some time. Neither speaking nor meeting each other’s gaze. Until Builderman gave a deep sigh. “Alri’t.” He brought his hand off Shedletsky, starting to walk off. Only to stop in the doorway. He turns back to speak once more. “We’re here for the both of y’all. Yer’ just need to give us a holler.”
And with a click of the door closing, Shedletsky is left alone with Taph. The demolitionist hasn’t stopped moving the entire time. The protruding ligaments in his back continue to shift under the gauze, as if he was moving his wings to surround himself. The quiet sniffles and sobs grew ten times louder with the lack of sound from the other survivors.
Shedletsky slowly creeps over to Taph’s bed. The demolitionist kept a tight grip around his body. Attempting to give himself as much comfort as he could. It wasn’t enough, and Shedletsky could tell.
The admin sat down on the bed, right by Taph’s head. It caused the mattress to dip slightly, even with its hard texture. He could see Taph flinch slightly from the shift.
Shedletsky gives a soft sigh before pulling his legs up onto the bed. Crossing his legs right above Taph’s head. He carefully brings one of the demolitionist's remaining head wings into his hands. It fights against his hold to get back to where it rested, right in front of Taph’s face. While his grip was careful, it was also strong. Not letting it snap back to its place.
He brings it to half of its wingspan. The black with golden tip feathers are left astray. Folded over each other and left out of place. Dirt, grime, and ash lodged in between them. How long has it been since Taph preened his feathers?
So Shedletsky does it. He picks out the broken off feathers. Cleans out the invading filth trapped inside. Realigns the feathers back into place. All throughout the wing.
He was so focused that once he was done, he didn’t realize the difference in Taph’s behavior. The demolitionist had gone still. Soft sobs still racked through his body, but they were muted from before. His other wing wasn’t tight against his face, instead it was left drooping at the side of his head.
Shedletsky cracked a small smile. He pulled Taph closer to him. His head now in the admin’s lap. Even from this angle, the demolitionist's hood still covered his face. It now lay flat against his face until it reached the top of his mask. Completely hiding his eyes from the world.
He brought his hands to Taph’s other wing. Starting to preen that one as well. Along with keeping an eye out for how Taph reacts.
By the time he reaches halfway from the base of the wing, he could tell Taph was asleep. All tension has left the man’s body. While his arms still wrapped themselves around his body in the form of a hug, they weren’t nearly as tight as before. Instead, laying limp against his chest. Which was rising and falling at a steady rate.
He still has half of the wing left. So he continues. But not without muttering apologies. Whispering them for only the wind to hear. For the recipient is fast asleep and unknowledgeable.
Taph doesn’t know he was Telamon. And he isn’t sure how to make it up to Taph for everything he’s done and influenced.
Hopefully being there is enough.
Hopefully protecting him from now on will be enough.
Hopefully the apologies muttered to no one awake will be enough.
Oh how he wishes he could go back and save Taph from 1x. Sword Fight On The Heights he wishes he could change how he acted as Telamon.
But he can’t.
And he has to live with it.
Live with the guilt that he’s at fault.
At fault for Taph being dewinged.
He finished preening Taph. The wings are now left to lay flat against the bed. Shedletsky makes his way towards the closed door, opening it softly.
He stops in the doorway, hand on the frame. He turns back to Taph’s sleeping form and mutters one last time. “I’m sorry.”
He gently closes the door.