Chapter Text
Wemmbu was tired.
His identity was revealed, Parrot had disappeared, Flame was after him, and now the Law wanted the both of them dead. What a great day he was having.
Begrudgingly, Wemmbu and Flame walked through the mesa, making their way to Flame’s base. The Law was on their tails– literally and metaphorically –and they desperately needed a restock. Walking in, the two dumped their weapons on the ground as they began sifting through chests and shulker boxes for something, anything, that they could use in battle.
Gambit and Fragger lay haphazardly on the hard wood, blood still half-dried on the blades. A faint hum came from Gambit, one that shouldn’t really even be there. Of course, neither Wemmbu nor Flame paid attention to the low hum resonating from the weapon. They were too preoccupied, after all.
“Bro, how many sets of netherite do you have? ” Flame sighed, shuffling through the four white shulkers Wemmbu carries with him. “Enough.” He shrugged. Flame began angrily muttering to himself as he grabbed a set and started collecting other materials. The two bickered back and forth as they combined and shared their stuff, trading ender pearls and strength potions.
Wemmbu left to gather sugar cane, though quickly ran back. “Uh. You know how I said this would be the first place they’d look for us..” He trailed off, turning to glance through the door. Flame’s brow furrowed. “Shit.”
***
The land in front of Flame’s base was bloody and littered with loot from fallen players. Wemmbu slumped against a wall, letting his grip on Gambit loosen. He was tired. So incredibly tired. He figured Gambit had a good meal, though. The humming was calm and content, just like a human would be after eating a large dinner. The sound brought peace to Wemmbu as well–
Wait.
..Since when did Gambit hum?
High on alert again, Wemmbu stared at Gambit. The humming didn’t stop. He dragged the bloodied weapon into his lap, inspecting it. Maybe someone had done something to it? No. That wouldn’t have been possible, he was in the air too much for someone to do anything. Perhaps it was his imagination?
Yeah. It was probably just his imagination.
Ugh. His head felt like a truck had hit him at high speeds. The sound of Flame’s footsteps approaching didn’t help either. “Yo, Bro. Don’t tell me you got that beat up from that lame excuse of a fight.” He teased. The funny thing is, Flame barely looked decent himself. “As if you aren’t covered in gashes yourself.” Wemmbu giggled, rolling his eyes. Flame probably did the same, though it was hard to tell with that stupid blindfold. Fragger was still dripping with blood. The glint of the enchants on it were dulled almost completely from the amount of it caked on.
Silence fell between the two of them. The only sounds around them was the quiet whispering of the wind around them, the sugar cane rustling, and a satisfied hum from Gambit.
A satisfied hum from Gambit.
Flame’s attention was brought from the surroundings down to Wemmbu, then to his weapon, then back up to Wemmbu. He tensed as he realized what Flame was about to say.
“What the hell is that sound bro?” He questioned. Flame couldn’t tell if it was Wemmbu making that noise, or something else entirely. Wemmbu’s words caught in his throat. “..You hear it too?” His head cocked to the side. Meeting Flame’s eyes, or well, where his eyes would’ve been, the netherborn’s tail flicked into a spiral, presumably in confusion.
“What? Bro. What the hell are you talking about–” He started. Wemmbu knew damn well he’d have to cut in somehow. He didn’t want to listen to Flame question and accuse him of things for who knows how long.
Trying to gather his thoughts, Wemmbu stood up. Gambit fell to his front, both hands gripping the handle. The humming remained consistently content. “Listen. I don’t know what the hell is going on–” Wemmbu began. Flame cut in. “Really? Because you’ve lied to me before, how would I know if this isn’t just a way to trick–" "–Gambit won’t stop making this noise and I can’t figure out why.” He finished. Hefting his weapon in front of his chest, the noise persisted. Flame actually shut up this time, allowing for the two to listen to the sounds the mace produced.
It was a soothing sound, one that immediately made the silence around them comfortable and relaxed. Definitely not the kind of environment that would normally be found in the aftermath of a massacre. The aggressive, alert flicking of both of their tails came to a slower swish. Wemmbu’s eyelids grew heavy. Blinking once, then twice, Wemmbu snapped out of his trance.
Flame had already brought his attention away from the weapon. Meeting his eyes blindfold, the previous intense environment returned. Both fighters remained quiet. Wemmbu’s breathing was heavy in his chest. His ribs felt too tight, and his throat felt dry. Something about all of this was wrong. Wemmbu attempted to back up, though his path was blocked by the wall he just a few moments ago adored. Flame had opened his mouth, about to say something, but he must’ve decided against it.
The silence was finally broken by dark clouds starting to form above, rain beginning to hit the ground around them. Wemmbu snaked around Flame out into the open, letting raindrops soak through his hair. The blood that had covered his clothes and skin began dripping off, melting together with the rainwater.
Flame remained against the wall. He had built a small roof in the time it took for Wemmbu to turn around. With Flame being a netherborn, water wasn’t great for him. Wemmbu realized this, and took this as an opportunity to get the hell out of there.
Turning and spreading his wings, he crouched as his wings began to beat. “Yo! Bro where are you going?!” Flame called out. Wemmbu didn’t hear him over the sound of the rain turning into a downpour, and the ruffling of his own feathers. Taking a running start, he flew into the air and away from the now slightly less bloodied battlefield.
..
Flame remained quiet, staring out in the direction Wemmbu flew. Heavy rain swallowed up any thoughts he might’ve been able to come up with, the only thing he could recognize was his own sword, Fragger.
It was humming.