Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Grian pov:

Xelqua’s wings ache and his head is pounding. The sounds of incoherent screaming echos through the corridors and around the palace as they search for him. He can't take another second in this place. He needs to leave. He stretches out his conscious searching for the gap he knows is there.

He begins to push his way through, ignoring the burning feeling that rips through his body as he does. The screaming is getting louder and louder, closer towards him with every second, one final shove causes him to tumble into the new world. The entrance he had created sealing quickly behind him as he falls to the ground and his world goes dark.

̇/ᒷꖎᑑ⚍ ᔑ joined the game

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3rd person pov:

“What was that…” Scar muttered fear coating his voice.

Mumbo didn't respond, instead he began to walk towards the source of the sound closely followed by an increasingly anxious scar. The due stumbled up an open clearing. Mumbo and Scar hear the horrible explosion while out on a supply run in the forest. The sound is followed by the snapping of branches and a loud painful thud.

The forest goes silent. No birds, insects or other wild animals make a single sound other than the soft balling of a nearby stream. The pair freeze for a moment unsure of what to do before advancing towards the sound from before. They come across a clearing filled with cracked branches and twigs all spread out around a young man with blonde hair and purple robes. The two men faulter staring at the poor man before them.

“Contact X” Mumbo says quickly snapping out of his trance and taking a step towards the stranger.

Scar gives a quick nod and pulls out his com sending a quick message to Xisuma.

[Goodtimewithscar] Hey X, we found something someone. Coordinates are ***, ***, ***.

He hits send before hurrying over to help Mumbo check on the strange man.

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Grian pov:

His eyes blink open slowly and he winces at the sight of the bright lights above him. He pushes himself up quickly as he sees the sterile white walls and flooring. They had gotten him, he hadn't made it out. He pushed himself off the bed flinching as his wings settled against his back, hidden by his cloak.

“Woah easy there bud” a unfamiliar voice says to his left.

He whirls around quickly his eyes locking onto a tall man with a green mask standing in the doorway. It wasn't like the watchers to employ someone else to do their dirty work for them. Something was… off about the man.

“Whats your name?” The strange man asks calmly.

Xelqua stares at the man silently for a moment before opening his mouth.

“My name is… Grian” He says his voice cracking from a lack of use.

The man gives a small nod of acknowledgement, his face hidden by his mask and visor.

“Now tell me Grian… would you be able to tell me how you got onto hermitcraft?”

The silence feels so loud as he stands staring back at the man, a look of fear flashing across his face before he shakes it off. He tucks his wings closer into his back wincing as he does so.

“Well?” The man asks his voice filled with apprehension.

“I don't know…” Grian mutters looking towards the ground.

“I highly doubt you just stumbled in here with the protections that are set up around the server” the man sighs.

Grian doesn't respond keeping his head bowed.

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Xisuma pov:

Xisuma was getting concerned from the lack of detail this strange player that had crashed into his server was giving him. He was wearing watcher robes no less! Without another word he sighed, turning and leaving the room. He had tried looking through Grian's code while he had been unconscious but had been unable to find anything. His code had been twisted and and corrupted beyond readability which only added to the suspicion over who or what this player really was.

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Grian pov:

The man left slamming the iron door behind him, the sound echoing around the small room. He let's out shaky sigh of relief as he glances around the room his eyes having adjusted to the bright glare of the lights.

The room is practically empty bar the single bed in the center of the room with a pair of bedside tables with it. The only other thing in the room was a heart monitor attached to Grian that softly was emitting a rhythmic beeping in the background. It reminded him so much of the room he had back in the void. The memory of the day he was taken etched into his mind.

He stood back watching his players jump through the portal to the overworld. Peal was the last one to jump through before he was left alone in the end. With a sigh he jumped in expecting to be transported back to spawn with everyone else.

“Welcome player” Echoed a unnatural voice from before him as he landed.

He looked up quickly staring straight at the unholy form of the beings that had tormented him and his server mates for the last year. A watcher.

“Where am I?” Grian asked a frown etched onto his face.

“You are home dear” the watcher responded no emotion in its voice.

“This isn't my home” he said anger growing in his chest.

A low rumble echos from the watcher.

“This is your home now Xelqua. You are one of us” The voice fades and Grian’s vision blurs as he begins to fall forwards loosing consciousness.

Grian shakes his head. It's easier to ignore those memories. The day he left his players was one of the worst days of his life. He not only failed as an admin but as a friend.

He stared down at the robes cloaking his body. Disgust covering his face. They had forced him to wear their uniform edited his code. Made him one of them. He hated them with every fiber of his being.

He fought against the heavy fabric that draped over him pulling it off as fast as he could manage. The robe crumpled to the floor with a soft thump. Grian stares at the pile of fabric triumphantly.

He picks it up gingerly tossing it as far as he can to the other side of the room before shuffling back towards the bed, sinking into it slowly letting his exhaustion take over

Chapter Text

Grian pov:

The week that he was stuck in that room was the most disorienting week of his life. Not once was he forced to give up information. When he had first woken up that second day the man, “Xisuma” he had said, hadn’t said anything about his wings and focused purely on making sure he was eating. Grian didn’t have the heart to tell him he didn’t need to and ate to ensure the strange admin didn’t stress. The food felt weird going down his throat but it was nice to eat something if he was being honest. 

The most confusing part of being stuck in that room was the strange lack of schedule. There was no set time that Xisuma or the strange man wearing a labcoat would show up and try to get him to talk. He’d given them as much information as he could without revealing who or more rather WHAT   he was. The only steady part of his day was that the few chests and cupboards around the room were stocked with food for him to eat. He had never had this much food for just himself before. The last time he had this much food was back on evo. Before they took him. He shakes the thought away quickly as the uncomfortable chill that accompanies the thought sinks into his bones making him shiver.

Grian looked over to his side and stared hard at the admins helmet. The faint glow on the darkened vizor showed his code. He grimaced as he looked before turning his head away and facing the wall once more.

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Xisuma pov:

It was weird. Grians code was… Unreadable. It had taken a while to convince the avian to let him look at the code itself and now he could see why. It was rough and hard to read. Each line looked like it had been taken, ripped apart and stuck back together again. Where his name appeared as though it had been scratched out and rewritten over and over again. He'd never seen anything like it before. From what he knows doing this to someone's code… it would hurt. He shivered at the thought of what Grian could have possibly been through to have had experienced that level of torture.

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Grian pov:

It felt like hours or days even before Xisuma stopped looking through his code. Grian knew he wouldn't have been able to find anything but at the same time there was a tight knot in his chest. He looked towards him and while he couldn’t see his face through the tinted visor, he could practically feel the confusion and worry radiating from the man. He lets out a relieved sigh as he feels X leave his code.

“Grian…” X starts before trailing off.

“Don’t. I won’t talk about it” Grian says sharply

He turns his head away, turning his attention to anything but the man next to him. The table, a chair, the chest. Anything but Xisuma.The room felt overwhelming, too big yet too small at the same time. It reminded him of them. A shiver rippled through his body making him wince as the movement tugged at his stitches. His body ached at the memory of hands grabbing at him, trying to pull him back into the darkness the first time he had tried to leave. He remembered the searing pain in his wings as they pulled him back to his cell. 

A hand on his shoulder makes him flinch, bringing him out of his thoughts. He glances up and sees Xisuma standing in front of him.

“You alright mate? You seemed a bit out of it…” He asks, worry lacing his tone

“I’m… It’s fine don’t worry about it” Grian says shrugging the hand off his shoulder

“If your sure” Xisuma says doubtfully

Grian watches him carefully as he pulls out a handful of fabric from his inventory. Xisuma holds it out to him.

“Here” Xisuma says “This is for you”

He reaches out carefully, taking it in his hands. The fabric is soft and a vibrant shade of red against the faded red jumper he was wearing. He unfolded the fabric and found it was a plush sweater. Unlike his own it had no holes or rips anywhere, The fabric was still plush and vibrant in colour. Dark spots appear on the fabric as he holds it. Bringing his hand up to his eyes he feels his face is wet. Oh. He’s crying.

“Hey… you ok? Xisuma asks, his voice laced with worry.

“Yeah… I’m… I’m ok” Grian mutters, wiping his eyes.

He tugs off his old sweater, wincing at the tug from the dried blood sticking his skin to the rough fabric. The old jumper gets dumped unceremoniously on the floor in the same place he had put that stupid robe. As he slips on the new sweater he lets out another soft sniffle. 

“Thank you..” He says softly “I- This means more than you could know”

A hand gently taps his head ruffling his hair making Grian let out a soft squawk.

“Your all good mate” Xisuma says

The hand on his head feels odd. 

“Yeah… I’m alright” Grian murmurs.

He can’t remember the last time he felt such a gentle touch, much less someone willing to comfort him.

The faint feeling of hands on his head ruffling his hair.
“It's alright Gri. We got this!” a soft voice chuckles

The sound of a portal lighting up comes from behind them.
“Everyone ready?” His own voice sounds foreign in his own mouth

The sound of feet shuffling and a rush of cold as he tumbles down.

He gives his head a quick shake before looking back at Xisuma. The man has removed his hand from his head and seems to be typing something on the communicator on his arm. He finishes sending the message and looks back at Grian.

“Well then Grian, Ready to go outside?” Xisuma asks

Grian gives a swift nod. He’s been stuck in this plain room for too long. He wanted to get out, stretch his wings, and feel the sun on his face. Xisuma turns towards the door, pulling it open and gesturing for Grian to follow behind him.

The soft tap of bare feet echoes down the empty corridors as he hurries along after the tall man ahead of him. His skin feels like its buzzing with excitement as it thrums though him. They pause at a large iron door.

“Ready?” Xisuma asks turning to glance at the man behind him

Grian gives a nod, watching every movement Xisuma makes. The sound of a lock clicks and the door swings open with a loud clunk. Bright light floods the hallway, making Grian squint to try and see out. Warmth spreads across his face as he steps through the threshold of the building. As his eyes adjust, Grian takes in his surroundings. His wings open slightly feeling the wind rushing through his feathers. The lack of eyes watching him doesn’t go unnoticed and he has never felt more free.