Chapter Text
This was definitely the strangest job you’ve ever had. You work at Markiplier Manor as an assistant to the many egos who live together trying to bring down the infamous Youtuber. It’s unclear on how it all started - one man split into many several personalities that took forms of their own, and for some reason or another they now all aim to take him down. They see him as their biggest enemy who is trying to take away their very existences, so it makes sense as to why they need a bit of outside help.
With a bit of prodding, you’ve discovered that there were a handful of assistants before you. Apparently you’re the only one who was able to stick around, willingly or not. The job was demanding, oftentimes maddening or infuriating, as you dealt with so many men of different personalities who all look nearly identical. However, you managed to get their respect and earn a comfortable place among them all. They even offered you free lodging, which you hastily took them up on. The most readily available room was directly across the hall from the boss’ office, which originally made you a bit uncomfortable but after a while you realized you had no true reason to be. Your boss - the one in charge of the anti-Markiplier operation - goes by Darkiplier. He is by far the most intense of the egos in the mansion, and the one who seems to hate Mark the most.
He was the first one you had met as he interviewed you for this position. Darkiplier is cold, calculating, and methodical in his approach to every decision he made and wanted to choose the new assistants carefully. The very first moment that you made eye contact with Dark, your body shivered involuntarily. Something about his gaze haunted you, but instead of pushing you away, it lured you in further. You were able to steel your resolve through his harsh questioning as he paced around you like a predator, watching your every movement and taking every word from your mouth into consideration. It was a terrifying experience but you survived, and got the job in the end. That was several months ago, and even though you interact with all of the egos - including Dark - daily, he was the only one who you weren’t on friendly terms with. Your relationship was strictly professional with plenty of respect going both ways, and although the others have all told you to stay out of his way, you couldn’t help but feel the need to get closer to him. He wasn’t making it easy for you, always keeping a respectful distance and speaking to you with strict formality. There were plenty of walls to break down before getting anywhere close to the person behind them.
However, it was obvious that he treated you differently from the rest. When something goes wrong or a plan fails, everyone except you are subjected to his wrath. The yelling, the glitching auras around him, and the threats fall to everyone around you, but whenever his attention is brought your way he redirects the anger elsewhere. When he is in a good mood, he actively tries to strike up a conversation with you and actually listens. You’ve never successfully been able to get him to speak about himself. He always changes the subject, and you decided it is best to leave it alone. He is also the only one who stays up as late as you do - in the deep hours of the night, a faint warm light shines from beneath his doorway. Sometimes you stand outside the door, seriously contemplating knocking and seeing what keeps him awake so late, but decide against it at the last moment.
The past few weeks, Dark has been gradually becoming more distant. He is more secluded than usual, barely leaving his office for anything that isn’t work related. You haven’t seen him eat something in days, and the light under his door at night remains on until the break of dawn. This began to bother you, making it hard to focus on work when you realized that something is wrong. You cared for Dark but had no idea how to approach him.
One morning, Googleplier brings you a stack of documents related to the most recent plot against Mark.
“Please deliver these to Dark posthaste,” he said as he dropped the pile of papers into your arms. You were already in the middle of two other assignments regarding the situation and let out a deep sigh.
“Can’t you do it? I’m already busy as it is.”
“Dark refuses to speak directly to me recently. The last time I made contact resulted in a negative outcome. He responds positively to your presence,” the robotic man said. Suddenly, an arm draped itself across your shoulders as Wilford Warfstache butted in on the conversation.
“Oh my, yes, old Darky boy has been in a real state lately!” You shrugged him off and pulled the papers closer. Wil was the most volatile and obnoxious of the egos, but you knew how to play his games so he no longer scared you.
“This wouldn’t be from something you caused again, would it Wil?” You glared at him and he feigned offense at your question.
“Who, me? Absolutely not, how dare you!” His pink mustache wiggled intensely when he spoke. Googleplier found this the perfect time to duck out of the conversation and leave his responsibility in your hands - literally.
“Okay, then why don't you deliver these papers?!” Shoving the pile into Wil’s hands proved ineffective as he shook his head and backed away.
“W-Well… the thing about that, see,” he started as he tugged at his suspenders nervously. “I tried to talk to the chap, but the moment I entered the door he tossed me out quicker than you’d believe, saying that Y/N is the only one allowed to enter. No ifs, ands, or butts about it!”
This news left a sinking feeling of insecurity in your gut, but you let out an annoyed sigh to not show your anxieties to Wil. It was unusual for Dark to request you specifically by name.
“So that’s how it is… I guess I’ll be taking these up to him after all,” you sighed again.
Wilford gave you a reassuring smile and a pat on the back as you walked upstairs and down the hall to Dark’s office. Part of you is just hoping Wil was being crafty and trying to get out of work, but very rarely did he joke or lie about Dark. As you stepped towards the door, the floorboards seemed to groan under your weight and the hallway darkened. The hair on your arms raised as goosebumps formed and a feeling of dread started to sink into your bones. Something was horribly wrong. Even though you had just walked by this door this morning, something seems to have changed. There isn’t even a light under the doorway. With a deep sigh, you put your anxiety to the side and knocked on the door. It creaked open slowly by itself just a crack, revealing an inky blackness inside.
“Dark?” You hesitantly called out.
“Come in, Y/N.”
The familiar deep timbre of his voice echoed from the darkness. It did not sound welcoming, but was also not particularly sinister. Against your instincts, you slowly push the door open and take a few steps inside. The light from the hallway was the only thing that guided you forward, but even that was ripped away when the door slammed itself closed and caused you to jump. The papers flew from your hands, scattering messily causing you to curse under your breath.
“Dark, where are you? I was supposed to deliver -”
You began to speak, but were cut off when in the blink of an eye, a man in a suit appeared before you. You’ve seen him use these powers before, but only in fits of rage when he couldn’t control himself. He stood in front of you, hands held behind his back with red and blue auras starting to seep out from his form. A faint, unnerving ring filled your ears as he stared into you with cold, black eyes. These were the tell tale signs of Dark being absolutely pissed, and you were with him all by yourself. Your eyes went wide and suddenly you had trouble speaking. He was genuinely terrifying.
“I… I’m s-sorry, I didn’t mean to drop…” you stammered as you bent down to pick up the papers you scattered on his floor. Before you could react, the papers vanished and teleported into Dark’s arms. He glanced at the top few pages briefly, then teleported them away somewhere into the darkness. Very slowly, you stood up and stared back at him.
“Y/N, may I borrow you for a moment?” His voice was splitting into echoes lightly, but he sounded relatively calm.
“Uh… y-yes, you may.”
The darkness in the room began to fade and the furniture and walls slowly became visible. The curtains were drawn over the windows and the lights were off, but you could still see. Dark sat at his desk and gestured for you to sit in one of the chairs in front of it. Legs shaking ever so slightly, you took a seat and faced the man. Being able to see helped reduce the fear that was boiling within you, and you couldn’t bring yourself to care about the rest of your workload at the moment. Two cups of steaming hot tea manifested on the desk from nowhere and Dark grabbed one, holding it in his hands without taking a sip.
“I appreciate your time, I know you are busy.”
He was being surprisingly calm and cordial in your presence, which made you feel even more uneasy. Normally when he was in a volatile state, the anger was always directed away from you. Now that you sit alone in his office, you can’t help but feel as though he will unleash hell onto you at any moment. The reason for such anger is unknown and completely irrelevant, you just wanted to be somewhere else right now.
“What can I do for you, sir?” You asked as confidently as possible, swallowing your fear and remaining stone faced. Dark sat back, his eyes meeting yours in a cold gaze of indifference. His auras slowly faded away and the ringing in the air lessened.
“You have been here for about… eight months, is that correct?” He asked, and you responded with a dutiful nod. “How has the job been treating you as of late?”
This question surprised you - an impromptu work review was not what you were expecting. Nor did you think it was necessary, since every time he does take the time to talk to you, you’ve always been honest about your time here and give plenty of feedback.
“Things have been going well… Everything is stable. Our goal hasn’t been achieved yet, but I think we are progressing steadily. I’m quite comfortable in my position.” He nodded slightly as you grabbed the other cup of tea and took a sip.
“What about your… relationships with the other egos? Are you getting along with them well?” His emphasis on the word ‘relationships’ caused your eyes to narrow cautiously. He was trying to imply something, but you weren’t quite sure what or why.
“We both know they’re all a handful, but they treat me well. Wil hasn’t pointed a gun in my face for at least a month now, which feels like a new record. Yancy seems to have started opening up and causing less trouble… Everything has been going fine. Why do you ask?”
Dark frowned, shifting slightly in his seat and returning the mug of tea to the desk. Perhaps he wasn’t satisfied with your answers.
“I have a confession,” he said simply. “I haven’t been… feeling well as of late, and wanted to speak to you about it.” His blue aura flashed before your eyes briefly with an image of Dark gripping his hair and shouting in agony. You flinched at the intensity of his words and the vision.
“M-me?” You asked, completely astonished. “Have you tried talking to Dr. Iplier about -”
“I can’t. I cannot speak to any of those idiots without being filled with unspeakable rage. You are the only one who doesn’t spark such emotions.”
A red aura began to seep out of his form, taking the exact same shape as Dark and staring back into you before fading away. It looked as though Dark was losing stability while trying his hardest to keep it contained and under control. You’ve never seen it get this bad before.
“Did I do something to cause this?” You asked, your calm façade slowly fading as you clenched your sweating palms together in your lap.
“I do not believe so. The problem lies solely within me, though I am not sure why.” His jaw clenched and his posture stiffened as he spoke. “I am so angry all the time. It has been getting worse…”
“Do I not make you angry at times?”
The question was honest, because you thought he usually was but decided to go easy on you. He stood up swiftly and slammed his palms to the table, the sound echoing unnaturally. The sudden movement made you jump out of your chair and you just barely caught yourself on your feet. The tea crashed to the ground and spilled, making a mess.
“No.” His voice somehow became darker, his eyes blacker as he stared at your shocked expression.
“You are the only one who does not anger me. In fact, I can’t stop… I cannot stop thinking about you. You invade my thoughts constantly, and when I cannot see you, I feel empty. And that emptiness frustrates me.”
His fingers began to dig into the surface of the desk, clenching with raw emotion. The man began to split into multiple images of red and blue, overlapping each other with different emotions and movements. It hurt your eyes, like multiple 3D movies being played together. His breathing grew erratic and the constant ringing sound that followed him became deafening. He was losing himself - he wasn’t even looking at you anymore, just into the far distance.
“Dark… Dark!” You called out to him, snapping him out of his dysfunctional state. “I think I know what’s wrong with you.” His gaze quickly met yours, eyes wide with disbelief.
“You… you do? Tell me. Please, tell me right now.” The auras began to fade and he started to relax, but looked on intensely. It was impossible to remain calm at the moment and your cheeks began to flush with embarrassment. You had to prepare yourself for the words you were about to say; if you were wrong, chances are you wouldn’t be staying at the manor much longer. A deep sigh left your lips as you spoke.
“I think you’re in love with me.” The heat rose to your face as the words left your mouth and you clenched your hands to your sides, awaiting the outcome of saying such an absurd thing to your boss.
All signs of his powers - the auras, the ringing, the darkness around him - faded in an instant. Now he was just a man staring back at you, silently processing the words you had just said. It was as if you had just extinguished a raging flame to ash with just one sentence. Not a moment later, he straightened his suit jacket and composed himself by removing all emotion from his face once more.
He teleported from behind the desk to in front of it, getting up in your face. This caused you to stumble back in surprise, but he quickly closed the gap to remain directly in front of you.
“Y/N… I didn’t think you were the egotistical type,” he said venomously as his face twisted into a grin.
“Do you think this is some kind of game? Is this a joke to you? Because I am not laughing.”
You continued to back up to get some space, trying to make your way to the door, but he followed with every step.
"That is the most ridiculous thing I have ever heard… are you trying to mock me?" If he wasn’t mad before, he definitely is now.
“D-Dark… I mean… I mean just think of it logically,” you stammered. “Everyone else is making you angry… I don’t, and you t-think of me all the time, so what else could that be? It definitely doesn’t sound like you hate me!” Your hands were up defensively as you tried to reason your way out of the situation.
“You want me to think logically?” he hissed as he continued to close in on you.
Your back bumped into the wall and he slammed his hands on either side of your head. A quick glance revealed the door to your left just a few feet away, but you weren’t confident that you could get to it before he could react.
“I have been logical this whole time, and it has gotten me nothing but pain and misery!”
You shrank into your shoulders, filled with mortification and fear as he was shouting in your face. You fucked up, and there was no going back from this.
“Dark… you’re scaring me. Please calm down,” you tried to plead.
A numbing sensation washed over your mind as your vision blurred for a brief moment. Dark’s eyes were completely black, whites and all, as the scenery around you morphed into darkness. It was a different darkness than earlier, closer to an empty nothingness. Wilford has told you about this before - he has teleported the both of you into the Void, the realm where he comes from and he has full control over. Wil had only been there once when he angered Dark to the point of nearly no return.
You regained your senses, but they were all filled with fear. He still had you pinned against a wall, but there was no wall; it was an impervious nothingness that held you there close to him. Absolutely nothing seemed to exist in this space besides just the two of you. Nobody could save you, or even hear you scream. This is it - he is going to kill you now.
“So much pain…” he repeated, leaning in closer so that your noses were practically touching. “I’ve been alone for so long…” The anger in his voice wavered and his eyes faded back to normal. “Y/N…” He said it slowly and calmly, looking deep into your eyes.
“Y-yes?” Your voice squeaked out, barely audible.
Time came to a grinding halt as you stared at each other saying absolutely nothing, simply waiting for something to happen for what felt like an eternity.
Dark brought a hand to your face to cup your cheek as his lips met yours for a passionate kiss. You froze up completely, unable to resist as he hungrily pulled your body against his. Although you were extremely confused and filled with conflicting emotions, you relaxed against him and waited until he was finished. There was no way you would even try to fight him right now. His grip on you was tight - your heart fluttered at the sensation as the anxiety and fear you were just experiencing made your stomach flip.
The moment was brief, and he pulled back to look at your reddened face. He seemed to snap out of his emotional state in an instant - his eyes went wide and he looked at his surroundings frantically.
“I… Y/N, that was… I am so sorry!”
The numbness took hold of your brain as he shifted the both of you out of the Void and back into his office at the manor. It was an uncomfortable transition, but went away quickly.
“I didn’t - I had no intention of taking you there, I don’t know what came over me!” He looked absolutely embarrassed, an expression you’ve never seen on him before. “I lost my senses! I couldn’t think straight and I did that without your consent. I sincerely apologize for my actions,” he exclaimed as he stepped back away from you to let you breathe. “Are you okay?”
You looked around, dazed and confused until your eyes locked onto the door. Your head was swirling with so many emotions and thoughts that you couldn’t even speak. A shaky hand reached for the knob and you pulled it open, stumbling out of the room. Dark didn’t even try to stop you.
“Y/N, I’m so sorry!” You heard him shout as the door slammed behind you, and you fell to your knees onto the hallway floor.
“Woah there, yous okay?” A familiar voice asked beside you. Right next to the doorway stood Yancy, along with Google and Wilford all looking at you in disbelief.
“My God, you’re paler than a ghost!” Wil exclaimed as you looked up at them.
“They appear to be in a state of distress. I will contact Dr. Iplier immediately,” Googleplier stated as he swiftly walked away down the hall.
“W-what are you all doing here?” You managed to ask as you stood on shaky legs.
“Well nobody saw you since you went upstairs to deliver those papers, and I started to get worried,” Wil said.
“I was just about ready to bust this ‘ere door down to get ya before yous came tumblin’ out of it,” Yancy chimed in. He reached out to touch your shoulder, but you shrank away, surprising both of them.
“P-please don’t… I just need to…” you gasped as nausea and dizziness began to make it hard to see. After limping across the hall, you tore open the door to your own room and began to close it behind you.
“Y/N, what happened?” Yancy called after you.
“I just need to be… be alone for a while…” you managed to stutter and shut the door in their faces. Immediately, Wil started pounding on Dark’s door and started to shout for him. You winced at the sounds, feeling extremely weak and barely made it into bed.
Two thoughts crossed your mind as you were about to fall asleep: One, you were still alive. And two, you were right.