Chapter Text
It had happened. Again.
They were transported without much reason or warning to fight in another death game. Another game of life. Joel groaned as he sat up, blinking away the last remnants of sleep. The aftermath of those games always left him groggy and sore, and his mind sluggish as his memories slip away once more.
It wasn’t as if it was the first time. In fact, for Joel, this was the fifth time? He’s lost count at this point. It was more of an annoyance than anything and he was soooo tired of it. Months of his life gone for some stupid game he couldn’t even remember.
Apparently only the winners remembered.
He didn’t let THAT annoying fact simmer too much.
Being a winner didn’t seem to be all that it was made out to be anyways. Scott… Well, Scott came back different after the second game.
It was a time he didn’t like to think about much, but returning from the games always brought it to the forefront of his mind. How Scott had changed and how their relationship would never be the same. It was after the second game when the reality of the games truly set in for him.
The sarcastic, confident, and charismatic guy that he knew had returned a shell of his former self. His friend’s whole demeanour had shifted from the Scott he’d known. The Scott that would be so carefree, smiling openly with his friends. The Scott that would spend hours on block palates to perfect his aesthetic, no matter how ludicrous it would be to collect the materials necessary. Scott, whose attention to detail was nearly unparalleled. The Scott that enjoyed the beautiful and whimsical things in life. He’d never expect to see the sparkle, the excitement for life, to leave Scott’s eyes, only to be replaced with hardened caution, mistrust, and paranoia. A testament to the hardships these so-called life games brought. Scott had new scars, both mental and physical. Most noticeable was the ugly slash across his chest.
It was a shock in more ways than one.
When Joel heard what had happened, he rushed to find his friend, despite just returning himself. Fwhip hadn’t told him much over his communicator, but he’d guessed it was bad from what was said. Mezalea was quite a bit away from Rivendell, but Joel had a trusty steed and a greater care for his friends than he’d ever admit. He’d made the trip in half the time it would usually take.
The site he found would haunt him in more ways than one.
Scott was huddled on the floor of his chambers, dull eyes unseeing those in front of him as he gripped his sword tightly with white knuckles. From his position on the floor, he stared wide-eyed at the entrance, the light from the open door illuminating his terrified expression. His breathing was rapid, uncontrolled, and panicked. He looked like a cornered animal, waiting for the others to make the first move.
Fwhip stood awkwardly at the doorway, a look of uncertainty crossing the admins face at the scene. Shubble and Gem stood by as well, evidently concerned but equally unsure with how to proceed. Nobody had returned to empires from the games with their memories intact before. Nothing could’ve prepared them for Scott’s reaction. It was only the second game, and they only heard glimpses of what happened to Grian once he returned. The Hermits weren’t very forthcoming about that information. They barely knew anything about the games at the time. They didn’t even think another game would even happen after the first one.
When Joel pushed his way through the entrance, Scott yelped, clumsily scrambling to his feet into a defensive position. Something akin to recognition flash in Scott’s as he immediately held his sword at the ready and his eyes narrowed. No words were exchanged as they stared at each other, Joel in the light and Scott in the darkness.
Joel was taken aback by Scott's defensive stance but held his hands visible in front of his chest before slowly and resolutely moving towards his friend. He tuned out the warnings echoing behind him. He doesn’t remember what he said. He doesn’t remember what set Scott off. All he knew was the next moment, he hit the cold marble ground with a sharp iron sword to his throat. Scott was on top of him, eyes wide with fury. Panicked shouts rang behind him as Gem, Shubble, and Fwhip tried to intervene. It was then he saw the large gash across Scott’s chest, something the man didn’t have before.
“Scot-” He didn’t have the chance to ask.
Piercing pain and Joel woke up back in Mezalea.
He wouldn’t bear witness to Scott’s haunted expression after he killed Joel, nor his breakdown afterwards. After the incident, Joel resolved to keep his distance from Scott and Rivendell. Clearly something about his presence had set the man off, something happened during those games. It hurt, sure, but whatever would help Scott heal. Joel would only come to regret the actions he couldn’t even remember.
Scott had apologised to him a few weeks after the incident, once he was in a more stable mindset. Once he finally realised, it was all over and he was no longer trapped in the game. It was stilted and awkward, but the genuine attempt was there.
Their relationship had never been the same after whatever happened. To this day, Scott still gave him wary looks. To this day, Joel had no idea how Scott got that large gash across his chest. He was only left to guess, Scott refused to talk about any of it. The game had stolen part of Scott away that he would never get back. That was the price of winning the games.
To say Joel wasn’t spiteful to whatever higher powers thought this was a good idea of a fun joke would be a lie. He was very spiteful actually.
Sure, he was an awesome deity with all this power now residing up in Stratos, but he didn’t go messing with people's lives and relationships. He could understand doing some unhinged things every once in a while, but even he had a boundary. These games were unfair and cruel.
Joel sighed, stretching dramatically before standing up. His muscles ached with the movement, but it was manageable. It wasn’t like he hadn’t dealt with it before. The soreness after the games was nothing more than that, soreness. He didn’t retain the wounds inflicted on him during the games, not like the winners did. He needed to check on Lizzie anyways. Sometimes Lizzie came with, sometimes she didn’t. They didn’t really know why. They didn’t know what constituted those who were selected for the games. It just was the way it is.
Quickly, he sent a message to Fwhip, letting the admin know of his safe return and plans to visit Lizzie. As funny as it would be to mess with Fwhip, this was something they didn’t mess around with. Ever since the Scott incident, the admin was adamant to check on every person who returned from the games. Both through comms and in person. Sure, some of the empires may have had disagreements, but at the end of the day they were all friends and cared for each other.
Ignoring his communicator as it pinged with a response, Joel descended from Stratos and set off for Animalia. He already messaged the admin about his return, any further questions could wait until he arrived in Animalia. Luckily, the empire was only a short distance from Stratos. He’d check back through his messages when he was reunited with Lizzie.
To walk among the mortals in the town, Joel shrunk down to normal human height. NO! He was not short as a mortal just for the record! His mortal form was of very average human height! He would love to grace the townspeople with his full 11ft awesomeness, but it wasn’t exactly the best to remain inconspicuous. Plus, Lizzie didn’t appreciate it when he’d scare the townspeople. Party pooper.
The empire of Animalia was bustling at this early hour of the morning with residents rushing to and fro. Joel hadn’t actually checked the day nor the time when he woke up, but it looked like the residents were preparing for the Saturday market. Maybe it would be nice to spend the day walking through the market stalls with Lizzie. It was a gorgeous sunny day and she surely would love the atmosphere. They could have a nice breakfast before setting off, Lizzie made the best pancakes. Joel smiled fondly at the thought.
Waltzing into the large building that served as the community centre, Joel began to call out, “Lizzie! Lizzie!”
Receiving no response, Joel continued walking through the base. The centre was uncharacteristically desolate and silent. The thin layer of dust coating the furniture didn’t go unnoticed by Joel. Lizzie would never let it get this dusty, she was very particular with her cleaning. That much was evident with how each plane of glass in her empire seemed to glimmer in the sunlight. It was something she took pride in.
“Lizzie, where are you?” Joel tried again anxiously.
Nothing.
Searching the community centre top to bottom, Joel found no trace of her. The dust indicated that she wasn’t around, and hadn’t been for a while. If she had participated in these games, then she too must’ve just woken up. He was sure she resided in the community centre, there even was a bed. Did she wake up somewhere else? Maybe she was in the process of moving and woke up in her new house? Joel purposefully ignored the feeling of unease that was crawling up his spine.
Stepping outside, Joel finally decided to check his communicator.
He had no new messages from Lizzie, but some from a few others, including Fwhip and Timmy.
He wouldn’t admit that he was worried. Pshhh tall men like him didn’t get worried! Not at all! It was probably nothing, maybe she was sleeping in! The soreness after the games was no joke, Lizzie should get some rest!
Joel decided to send a message to Lizzie and wait for her response. He was already in the area, so he could easily find her once she told him where she was. Couldn’t miss the opportunity to grace her with his presence! Plus, he really did want to spend the morning with and attend the market with her. Now just how to word it…
“Joel!” someone called out in the distance. “Joel, is that you?”
Snapping his attention from his communicator, Joel spotted Fwhip making his way towards him from the town square. The admin looked out of sorts, sweating and out of breath. He clearly had a stressful morning.
“Thank God I found you” Fwhip exhaled, laying a hand on Joel's shoulder, still catching his breath. Up close, Joel could see the signs of fatigue edged on the goblin's face.
“Woah man, calm down. I got back completely fine, see.” Joel grinned, doing an experimental turn and flexing his muscles. Fwhip gave him an unimpressed look. “Hold your applause, I know!”
“Did you even check my messages?”
“Well I was going to when I found Lizzie, which by the way have you seen her? She doesn’t seem to be here-”
“Well that’s exactly why I messaged you!” Fwhip cut him off, tail swishing in annoyance.
“Oh good, so you do know where she is. Well in that case-”
“Joel, I need you to be quiet for a minute and listen to me!” Fwhip said urgently, laying both his hands on Joel’s shoulders, steadily looking at him. The goblin’s tone caused Joel to snap his mouth shut. He was being serious, and that was not a good sign.
“Joel, I’m so sorry…” Fwhip began, pausing for a moment to collect himself. “...but Lizzie is missing”
The world stopped for a moment.
Missing?
Lizzie was missing?
How could Lizzie be missing?
“Fwhip, you’re going to have to tell me very clearly. What do you mean my wife is missing?” Joel replied slowly, deliberately stalling.
“After the…games” Fwhip hesitated, glancing around nervously. “She never returned”.
A thousand horrifying realities ran through Joel's mind as the blood drained from his face.
If Lizzie never came back, what did that mean? Nobody has ever not returned from the games before. Only the winners returned with their memories. What was different this time? What happened? What had changed? Why Lizzie? The most pressing question, where was she?
Is she safe?
“Woah, woah, woah! Take a seat” Fwhip urged, tugging Joel towards a bench nearby. Joel was so light-headed, he gave no resistance as the goblin pulled him to sit down. He barely registered Fwhips attempts to calm him. His mind was too busy racing with countless possibilities, each more distressing than the last.
He needed to get her back. He needed to find her.
The winners, they remembered right?
“I need to find who won,” Joel whispered, glancing towards Fwhip. The admin immediately tensed at Joel's earnest expression.
“I’ve already messaged the Hermitcraft server and a few others-”
“No, no, no! It’s not good enough! I need to go there myself!” Joel went to stand, only to be stopped by Fwhip grabbing his arm, pulling him back onto the bench.
“Joel you’ve just gotten back yourself! We don’t know what’s happened yet!-”
“So what, I’m just supposed to wait around? Fwhip, Lizzie is missing and if it’s related to these blummin’ games then the winner’s got to know something!” Joel glared at the goblin.
“Remember how Scott was when he returned? You can’t just rush in there and interrogate them! It’ll only make things worse!”
“I-” Joel paused because Fwhip was right. Even if he did find the winner, there was no guarantee that they’d be in the best state of mind. There was no guarantee they could even listen to Joel or respond reasonably. The winner needed time to recover. The only problem was he didn’t have time to spare. If he waited too long, who knows what would happen to Lizzie.
Would he be too late?
Is he already too late?
“Three days” Joel grumbled in frustration. “I’ll give them three days before I’m heading there myself”
The admin gave him a pitiful smile and patted him on the back. They sat on the bench in silence for a while, whilst the villagers of Animalia happily enjoyed the morning market, oblivious to the indefinite absence of their mayor. Oblivious to the torment inside Joel's heart.
It thundered the entire afternoon.