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Naib rolls his shoulders once, twice, three times before they finally pop in a satisfying way. He squints as he balls his hands into fists at his side, feeling the ghosts of old wounds surge back to life as the sedative leaves his system. The matches aren’t that bad; waking up for them is awful.
As he coughs to dispel the tightness in his chest, Naib looks around. He’s spawned in an alleyway in Eversleeping Town; good, good, he’s by a strong kiting area and a cipher. With the seclusion he can’t tell who the hunter is - quickly, he looks for rocket parts and cameras, but finds none, so he turns his attention back to the device in his palm to check on his teammates.
Cipher Machine Decoding Progress: 13% , pings Helena. It looks like she’s in the two story building, which is good - she’ll stay hidden and hopefully won’t be the first one found.
Cipher Machine Decoding Progress: 14%, Kevin pings from the exact same location, and Naib rolls his eyes with a smile. It’s good that he’s with her - if the hunter shows up, Kevin can distract them while Helena flees. It’s a smart choice, even if Kevin’s flirty nature led him to make it.
Cipher Machine Decoding Progress: 1%, pings Norton, though the notification bubble moves. He’s running, but not being chased, since he tapped a cipher. Maybe he’s intentionally drawing the hunter in, trying for first kite. Naib can imagine how he’d gloat to Vera if he pulls off two consecutive five cipher kites; he smiles at the thought of Norton’s success.
Focus on decoding! Naib pings to alert the others of his location, but makes no move to decode himself. He’s gotten better, he has, but it’s still so hard to hear the Morse code of the machine, beeping like a telegram sent in a desperate need of help. He will decode, his team needs him to, but he just has to take a moment to center himself.
He taps it once to avoid becoming the murder of crow’s next target, then backs off. Someone’s approaching.
“Hey Subedarling,” says Norton, sliding to a stop at the front of the alleyway.
He’s breathless from his run; Naib’s breathless from his appearance. Though his chest heaves, he smiles widely when he sees Naib. Black cape fluttering behind him, red suit glittering with each ragged breath, Norton approaches the cipher and immediately begins to decode it, tucking a golden magnet away into a bag at his side.
Naib certainly noticed the nickname, and he sends a sour look with a sweet aftertaste to Norton, but says nothing. Instead, he places a hand on Norton’s back; with the rest, he seems to be breathing better. Naib rubs small circles in between his shoulder blades, hoping that somehow it helps.
It’s a comforting pattern that they’ve found themselves in. Ever since that fateful match in Golden Cave ( he’d recognized that look on Norton’s face - hell, Naib himself had looked like that more than once in his life ) and the following nights where they bared their traumas after proving extensively that the other is trustworthy, they’ve reached a mutual understanding that’s blossomed into something more. Naib keeps Norton away from closed spaces. Norton keeps Naib distracted while they decode. In the mornings, they share inside jokes and sweet pastries, and in the nights they soothe away the other’s nightmares and count the stars above. Neither says anything about their arrangement; they both have an issue with accepting help, and the matches are too quick for words of thanks. They don’t need verbal confirmation anyway. They both just… know.
It’s a strange thing, being loved. Naib could get used to it.
“Any idea who the hunter is?” asks Naib, and Norton crinkles his nose in an adorable way.
“Not sure. I saw these weird,” he steps back from decoding to make a box shape with his hands, “devices across the map. Not cameras, not rocket parts, but box-like, with screens.”
“Box-like?” echoes Naib, and Norton hums in agreement.
Naib steps away from the cipher. Slowly, he peeks out of the alleyway, hugging the wall. Main Street is empty, so he steps out further, and… over there, about 10 meters out, is one of the devices Norton must’ve been talking about.
With a quick glance back to let Norton know his plan, Naib walks to the device. It’s just a pinch shorter than he is, and obviously built with care. The device is completely rust free, with bands of copper used to add flair, running in straight lines until they break into swirls that frame the screen. Naib runs his hand along the keyboard - it’s confusing, he’ll admit, but every survivor is an experienced decoder by now. He gets to work deciphering this newest device, poking the keys and examining the screen.
Behind him, Norton’s cry is drowned out by the screech of metal.
Naib spins, heart hammering. The alleyway is gone - no, not gone, the rational part of his mind screams, blocked . Norton grabs at the metal spikes that jut into the sky, eyes wide and fearful; Naib doesn’t register moving, but he’s at the wall in the next heartbeat, grabbing at the spikes, placing his hand on Norton’s and hoping that the contact is some form of solace.
Norton and Naib break apart as the symphony of screeching rises once again. Norton spins with a sound that almost sounds like a whimper. Another wall has risen up.
It blocks the only other way out.
Only now does Naib realize he’s just been watching, muscles frozen by a paralysing feeling of helplessness. Norton turns to him again, putting his hands on Naib’s.
“I think these bars move. On three,” says Norton, “we pull down, I climb out.”
He seems confident, but Naib sees through it. The spikes on the wall glitter in the moonlight. In his mind’s eye, Naib sees the silvery metal glistening with red.
That doesn’t matter; Naib can heal him. He nods, and Norton’s grip tightens.
“Ok. One, two - “
A chant replaces their three.
Norton turns just as Mad Eyes teleports to the cipher that Naib was supposed to finish alone. He’s truly a horrific sight. Ashy skin drawn taut over poking bone, every vein and vessel in his body is visible - even the veins he made himself and inserted into his body, curving through his fingers to fuze with the console in his arm and up into his back, twisting into the metal cylinder bonded with his spine. As if his thin legs can’t support the weight of his technology, he leans on his metal cane, the tips filed to three wicked points.
His head snaps and his black eyes fixate on his target, his sacrificial goat. Thin lips pull into a jagged smile.
Norton goes for a magnet but his shaking hands fumble with the tie of his bag. Mad Eyes thrusts his cane into the sky and brings it down with horrifying, impossible force. The sound of the impact is subtle, far too quiet, the slashing of a sharp blade against soft skin drowned out by Norton’s cry.
Norton stumbles, holding his wounded cheek, grabbing onto the locker for support. When he pulls his hand away, it’s wet and red.
With a strangled noise Naib tugs on the spikes. Mad Eyes looks at him, distracted for the moment Norton needs to grab a magnet. He throws it, and Mad Eyes is repulsed, but the space is so small that Norton can’t shake off his own stun before Mad Eyes is approaching again, cane up, moonlit shining on reddened steel.
Naib screws his eyes shut, the cold of the metal stinging his palms. He can only tell that Norton is hit when he hears him collapse.
“Naib, go, ” Norton says, his voice pained and uncharacteristically quiet, “He’ll go for you next, get out of here!”
As if to punctuate the unfairness of it all, Mad Eyes types on his console and the wall behind him falls effortlessly. Naib is left as a helpless onlooker as he picks up Norton’s limp form, carrying him away.
Finally, Naib stops being useless. He leaves the alleyway and sprints in the direction that Mad Eyes left in - he can’t take a shortcut, but he can meet him at the chair. And once he gets there, there will be no force on Earth that could stop him from protecting Norton. He’d never let him down like he just did again.
Naib hits the side of a house and elbow pads off it, the wind rushing by him. He can do it; they’re just up ahead, across the tram tracks. He’ll rescue Norton and they’ll head up the stairs. Kevin and Helena have two ciphers down, and he’ll bodyblock Norton for the next three if he has to.
Mad Eyes throws Norton into the chair; Norton wheezes with the impact, and protective anger floods Naib’s muscles, pushing him to go even faster. As Mad Eyes turns to look at him, his body impossibly quick under heavy machinery, Naib prepares his next dash. He’ll land right in front of the chair.
But Mad Eyes just smiles his same, sickening smile.
Naib only sees the wall when he slams into it.
Stone presses against his hands and cheek. The sky is above him - or, wait, is that the ground? Everything is mixing together like swirls of milk in coffee, leaving Naib helpless in the current. He groans as he rolls onto all fours. His mouth tastes metallic, and he spits out some red fluid.
Which way was he going? Left or right? Which way is left? He was rescuing, yes, but against who (hopefully not Bonbon)? Who’s holding him? Is the tram nearby? The bell sounds far awa - wait, he didn’t complete his rescue, he has to get before half. He wiggles and the person carrying him grunts before taking the hint and placing him on the ground. Naib tries to bolt up, but a hand on his chest, and the way that the world nearly spins off its axis, keeps him down.
He’s hidden by the graveyard. How fitting.
“Oh, goodness,” says a soft voice - Helena? “Is he alright?”
“He’s dazed,” yes, that was Helena and this is Kevin. They’re in Eversleeping - did he get hit by the tram? “That was a hard hit.”
“What did I hit?” he’s usually careful with his armpads, though he has slipped up before. Really, only while he was distracted -
Naib thrashes. Helena lets go, but Kevin is stubborn, so Naib grabs his wrist and growls at him, “I have to rescue.”
“I’ll rescue,” says Kevin, “You’re too close to him.”
“He needs me,” he flails again, nearly screaming from frustration when Kevin just won't relent, “Don’t patronize me! I can do it!”
“Naib, you sounded badly hurt,” says Helena, “You shouldn’t rescue if you’re injured.”
“I’ve done it before. I don’t care if I get hit, I can still run. You have no business telling a rescue, ” he tests Kevin’s hold, with no success, “how to rescue!”
“You don’t need to push yourself,” says Helena, gently patting his arm, “Kevin can handle it.”
And it seems Kevin has. Somehow, he snuck away - Naib tries to follow him, but the ground lurches out from under him and he collapses with a groan. He wants to go, he needs to go, but he’s just so tired.
“It’s alright, you can take your time to come back to your senses,” says Helena, and her voice is so soothing Naib feels himself relax, “We have two ciphers remaining. When Kevin gets Norton, they can work on the cipher by the west tracks and we can work on the cipher here. We’ll all be ok.”
Yes, they’ll be fine. Naib gets a ping - Kevin has successfully rescued Norton (without Tide, but he can’t grumble too much; it was Naib’s job, after all) and they’re both fleeing the chair, neither having been hit yet. Naib slowly shifts to a sitting position, Helena supporting him as best as she can. The longer he stays put, the straighter the horizon gets, until he can distinguish building from ground and his throbbing headache fades into a dull ache.
“I’ll help you decode now,” says Naib, and Helena smiles.
“Great! Hold onto my arm, and w - “
But that noise rings out in the quiet of the graveyard. Helena screams and lets go, falling backwards onto one side of the wall while Naib backpedals to the other. She looks up at him with wide, fearful eyes. Though the adrenaline numbs the pain, Naib can tell he was hurt - the spikes on the wall cut into his forearms, and he hisses in pain.
“Keep running!” shouts Naib as he stumbles to his feet, and she doesn’t hesitate, turning and running into the graveyard.
Naib checks his device. Kevin pulled off a flawless rescue - he pings Healing Progress: 37% . The hunter isn’t near Helena, thankfully, as she pings the progress of graveyard cipher.
Naib continues to run deeper into the town, holding his wounded arms close to his chest. Adrenaline fading, a harsh sting floods his veins with each pounding footstep; but he makes no move to stop. The alleyway is just up ahead. He doesn’t want to go anywhere near it, but it has progress, and the quicker they finish, the quicker they get to leave.
As he steps into the alleyway, he jumps over the mound of dirt that the wall receded into. Under the moonlight, the colours are strange, so Naib can pretend that the spatters of blood ( Norton’s blood - no, he can’t think about that) are just ink spilled across the locker and cipher. It’s just ink. He wills his breathing to slow.
Cipher Machine Decoding Progress: 26%, Naib pings, ignoring the return of his headache. By now, Norton’s been healed; a small part of him hopes he will appear by the alleyway again, perfectly fine, but he shakes that thought away. Norton is busy, and Naib can handle decoding.
So he pushes through, gritting his teeth and squaring his shoulders. He can’t tell where Mad Eyes is, but he’s not near his teammates for now, and that’s all he needs to know.
The cipher gets to 98% when the next wall shows up.
Naib screams, half in surprise and half in frustration, as he jumps away. The wall blocks off the cipher perfectly; Naib circles it, prowling, but he can’t reach behind it. It’s primed! Mad Eyes had to have known!
He has to abandon this cipher when the entrance to the alleyway is blocked off for the second time tonight. Now, Mad Eyes lacks the element of surprise; Naib armpads off the building and barely misses the next wall. He feels the bumps of the spikes under his boots.
Mad Eyes isn’t ready to give up. He summons another wall to block off part of Main Street, one that Naib narrowly dodges again. The next wall blocks off Naib’s escape route; he backs away as it tears the sky.
Naib checks his palm. They’re on one cipher. He looks over his shoulder, back to the alleyway, where the wall near the cipher had fallen.
Cipher machine primed! he pings, and runs back to the alleyway, jumping up onto the wall.
That must’ve surprised Mad Eyes; the walls stop, for just a moment, but they return in full force in the next heartbeat. The next wall barely misses Naib’s back, tugging at the fabric of his plaid coat, and he holds back a yelp as he climbs on the wall blocking off the alleyway.
The spikes fall just barely low enough. As he clambers over, the spikes claw at any flesh they can reach - Naib feels the sting, but he can’t focus on that. He collapses on the ground of the alleyway, panting and sore, before bolting up to his feet right as a new wall spawns in his footsteps.
Cipher machine primed! he pings again, and thankfully, Kevin gets his point.
Focus on decoding!
The sirens blare out through the town, the electrical switches glowing softly. Thankfully, the first wall falls and Mad Eyes is too distracted with protecting the gates to raise a new one.
Naib picks a gate and heads for it, hoping it’s not the one Mad Eyes picked as well. When he reaches the gate, he nearly cheers.
Norton smiles brightly. He looks awful, his red suit crumpled and torn, favouring one side, his hair matted, and one of his eyes swollen closed, but he’s ok . He’s here
Naib tries to restrain himself, to let Norton decode, but his efforts are in vain - gently, he runs his thumb along the curve of Norton’s cheekbone, avoiding the hastily patched wound. Norton leans into the touch as if he’s been starved for it, closing his eyes sweetly, exhaling. His breath ghosts across Naib’s fingers.
“It doesn’t hurt too much anymore,” Norton reassures, “Let’s focus on the gate.”
When Naib pulls his hand back, Norton turns to the panel. While he decodes, Naib watches his back, listening for the clink, clink of Mad Eyes’ cane.
Instead of the sound of his cane, Naib hears his chant. Norton hears it too, but the gate is almost open, so he stays put, even as Naib yells at him to get back!
The gates open the second Mad Eyes teleports. He swings and strikes Norton, who collapses, covering his face with his hands and groaning.
“Leave!” says Norton once he comes back to his senses, “I’m dead on chair! Go!”
It seems Mad Eyes knows this too. He doesn’t bother with Naib, who can take a detention hit and still run, and instead balloons Norton. Norton doesn’t struggle; he just looks tired. Worn down.
But Mad Eyes makes a colossal mistake. Naib turns on his last armpad and dashes away from the gate, intercepting his path. Mad Eyes growls, his wrinkled, thin lips pulling back to reveal jagged teeth, but he’s so distracted by the newcomer he doesn’t realize he’s walked right through a pallet.
Naib slams it down, the sickening CRUNCH of wood on bony flesh filling the night air, and Mad Eyes roars. Norton flails before falling, hitting the ground hard, a winded sound leaving his body. Naib takes his arm and lifts him, careful not to aggravate his wounds further or jostle him and make him dizzier than he already is.
Together, they stumble to the gate. The sound of splintering wood drowns out Mad Eyes’ roar of pure anger.
The gate is so, so close, but Mad Eyes is deceptively fast. He doesn’t bother with the walls, thankfully, but he raises his cane into the air, red eyes glowing.
He’ll apologize for it later; Naib shoves Norton ahead of him.
Instantly his entire back burns , the force of the impact sending him stumbling forward. Norton gasps - he looks like he wants to say something, his eyebrows furrowed, but he closes his mouth and instead chooses to act. Behind them, Mad Eyes cackles, lifting his cane into the sky, admiring how flecks of red fall from the metal and onto the stone below.
Mad Eyes readies for another hit, but they’re just a single step too far ahead. Norton grabs Naib, pulling him into his chest, and falls into the gate, cushioning the impact with his own body.
From his angle, all Naib can see is a shadow etched in silver light. The cane is raised high above Mad Eyes’ head, so high it blocks the Moon, but Norton simply smiles breathlessly and points to the chalk line on the ground.
His grip on his cane tightens, but there’s nothing he can do.
Defeated, Mad Eyes retreats.
As they lie there, catching their breaths, Naib checks his palm. Helena and Kevin made it out as well. A four man win… Naib smiles as he drops his head onto Norton’s chest, listening to his heart hammer. The adrenaline - and with it, his energy - flows from Naib’s body, a sigh leaving his lips.
Eventually, Norton shifts, and Naib gets off of him. Norton reaches into the pouch at his side, pulling out a wad of gauze and antiseptic ointment.
“I’ll heal you first,” says Naib, but Norton bats his hands away.
“I… I’m trying really hard not to be mad at you,” says Norton, turning to examine Naib’s wounds, “I know it’s stupid to be mad, but you should’ve left.”
“It worked,” says Naib, shivering as Norton’s gentle, practiced hands cover his lacerations with cold ointment.
“You got hurt, Naib,” says Norton, his voice tight, “You’re all scar tissue and selfless choices. You can’t keep doing that. ”
“I had to try,” says Naib, reaching out for Norton’s spare hand. Norton takes it, running his thumb along Naib’s knuckles, “I couldn’t save you the first time, so I had to save you then.”
“You can’t blame yourself, idiot,” says Norton, “He trapped me. What were you supposed to do?”
Norton’s right. Naib could’ve climbed over, but then he’d be injured, and then they would both be caged animals. What he did was probably the best thing to do, rather than have two downed in the first two minutes of the game.
But the emotional part of Naib’s brain takes over, “Help. I was supposed to help.”
“Well, you did help,” says Norton, tying off the bandages, “I thought of getting back to you, and it helped me win. So, there. You helped.”
“How uncharacteristically mushy of you, Campbell,” says Naib, and now that he’s bandaged up, he can turn to face Norton, who’s trying very hard to hide his blush, “Is there anything else you’d like to say?”
“Well,” Norton gently unlaces their fingers and holds Naib’s jaw, “Not say. Show.”
“Hm. Show me, then.”
And so he does. Norton closes the gap and gently presses his lips against Naib’s. It’s slow, and maybe the ground of a match is a strange place to kiss, but it’s oddly perfect, held in this moment with the only person he can go toe to toe with and not care if he loses. Norton’s a good kisser, but he lets Naib take the lead, chuckling when their noses bump. When Naib pulls away, he can see Norton’s stupidly handsome smile. Damn it, he’s so, so lucky.
“Thanks. You could’ve left me, and I’m still mad you bodyblocked, but thanks,” he says.
“Yeah, whatever,” says Naib, because he doesn’t trust that the butterflies in his stomach won’t fly up and block his vocal cords, “You got ointment on my face.”
Norton scoffs, “You look cute even with it.”
“I can’t stand you,” says Naib, and they both laugh.
The
I love you
goes unspoken, hidden behind quips with no bite behind them.