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Senshi had been gone for a while now, when Chilchuck got woken up earlier by him the dwarf told him he was going to the bathroom so he wasn't worried but after minutes of complete silence he got sleepy.
Chilchuck wills himself to wait another five minutes but he cracks before that, impatient to go back to sleep he decided to concentrate every part of himself in finding Senshi so he can nag him to do his businness faster, his first stop is at the dwarf's bedding but as expected it was empty, Chilchuck's bare feet can feel how cold the floor is near it. Senshi has been gone for maybe longer than expected, he's usually quicker than most, something is afoot.
Dread drips down Chilchuck's spine when he remembers the mimic he ignored on the way to their camp, after his past experiences he thought the best course of action might be to ignore it but now he wasn't so sure. Before he stepped out of the room he debated waking the remaining party but something stopped him from voicing his concerns to their sleeping figures, he looked at the rest of his clothes but he decided that the lighter he was the better it would be no matter the cold seeping in his bones.
it was during times like these, where the silence completely engulfed him and the darkness of the room spoke to him like a siren song that he wished to run; after a life of almost no privacy, noises and people the comfort never came from emptiness like it did when he was younger. He needed to find Senshi. Fast.
The bathroom was unused he could tell as much from the smells surrounding it, he still went in to check to make sure Senshi wasn't just sleeping in there or something, he wasn't the type to fall asleep randomly but they had been exausted by their encounter with... something he couldn't remember so it wasn't completely random, still, Senshi was nowere to be found.
On the walk back the hallways looked even longer than before, the dark more pronounced, the hallmarks he had etched seemed fewer and farther in-between but he chalked it up as his anxiety making him walk faster the first time around.
Chilchuck went to the water fountain thinking that Senshi might have refilled a waterskin, a loud thud made him quicken his pace, hoping nothing bad happened then he rounded the corner and was presented with an empty room, absolutely no traces of him, not a scent trail he is used to smell, not a long dark hair strand in sight, only water puddles on the ruined cobblestone.
Plip, plip Chilchuck heard the sound of water hitting the ground, the noise was getting echoed around, he had turned first towards his left then he stepped forward to get closer to the souce until he spotted a dark figure near the fountain bowl.
a black headless knight on a black headless steed. Chilchuck's left arm started to itch, but all it took to make them go away was one blink "a dullahan is a headless knight's spirit harbinger of death" Laios' voice provided once more obscure trivia, what Chilchuck wanted to know though was how was he able to recognize the knight when he had never seen one. He hadn't.
He reached the fountain bowl to wash his face, hallucinating wasn't his job. only to find that the sound of what he thought was water falling came from the blood of the horse creating a new puddle on the floor, he splashed his face, a throbbing pain started spreading from his forehead.
The darkness was creeping up on him faster than before, his breaths felt like sand got stuck in his windpipe, his hands had to grip the border of the water fountain to keep himself grounded; suddenly the room was too big, the cold felt unbearable unlike the feeling of a spectre hugging you but not too diferent either, the eyes of the lion's head on the wall suddenly didn't feel as dull as they did just instants before, the shadows were licking his feet and-- and a light appeared at the entrance something small on the floor, Chilchuck's fingers slipped on the surface of the fountain bowl touching the cold water, his gasps for air started reaching his ears the incessant booming of his heart suddenly felt like it was stopping.
Chilchuck took a staggering deep breath he shook his head trying to get rid of the ringing in his ears and in that first moment of clarity he promised himself to never wish again for his senses to be dulled. He focused on the small shining light and the more he did the more he could hear a small *pitter patter* coming from it, it was moving at a fast pace for it's size trying it's hardest not to drown in the joints between the stone floor tiles. Chilchuck closed his eyes before starting to walk towards it, it was a single coin bug, one of his favorites, as his eyes followed the small creature he didn't notice the shadows creep back to their place.
He followed the coin bug to the mimic hyde but he stopped before entering, blood was soaking the floor, there was no body in sight but on top of a sturdy heavily locked chest was Senshi's helmet, the dwarf's strained voice coming from the inside of the chest. That couldn't be a mimic those can't talk. For a moment he debated going back to alert the others but a creepy ass ambiance wasn't be something he was willing to cry about.
Mindful of his feet he started to carefully head towards the farther wall with the chest, thanks to his experience he knew full well how to not underestimate mimics; he was still salty about that one time he got killed because he thought they couldn't have locks.
Senshi's voice came again, startled Chilchuck turned but there was no one with him, he heard the dwarf's voice twice more in the process of lockpicking the chest but his words were too muddled to be understandable. With a *click* the lock opened and so did the chest, at the sudden movement Chilchuck jumped back reflexively covering his face but when nothing hit him he slowly uncovered his eyes only to see a tan coloured mimic as it slowly creeped out of the chest, it was staring back.
Beady eyes and sharp claws aside Chilchuck noticed that this one was... hairy if that was even the right term.
The inside of the chest right where the pinchers ended was tar black he was shocked to notice that the black substance weren't shadows at all but something akin to- "thank yer for freeing me Chilc-" Senshi's hair, his brain suggested just as the dwarf's voice reached him; it was coming from the mimic "why're you looking at me like that?" the mimic advanced and Chilchuck backtracked "Chilchuck, it's me Senshi, don't yer recognize me?" the half foot took a step back and then another, Senshi noticed his own reflection in the bloodied pavement "this is just a nightmare! yer don't have to worry about me!" Senshi pressed on, he thought the half-foot had stopped fearing mimics the day he ate one but maybe this was different.
"Chilchuck isn't as exhausted as Marcille was the first time we've met nightmares, it should be fairly easy for him to wake up" , Laios had told Senshi as much mere minutes ago but as time went on the tallman's words started to sound fake. Senshi had to understand the root of the problem to help Chilchuck. no easy feat that was.
Senshi put as much distance between himself and the half-foot in slow deliberate movements "Chilchuck, this is the sixth floor, there are no mimics down here, yer safe" after this the other man seemed to relax but only slightly, his theory was right: the mimic was a pretext.
Chilchuck's ears were ringing, nothing was making sense, the room has been shrinking from the moment the chest opened, he could feel the small vibration in the floor whenever the walls closed in, the furniture wasn't making any sounds even if it was moving with the walls, darkness was creeping up on him again and as much as he wanted to go away the only light source was Senshi's helmet, he wasn't ready to step back into the shadows, to acknowledge the nagging feeling of wrongness growing inside of him; his numb feet took a step forward, a small one, to test the waters, he didn't trust the mimic but there was no way he'd let it take such an important part of his friend away.
The mimic kept encouraging him to trust him, that he was safe, that he could come closer but Chilchuck has had enough mishaps with those ebeti, giant, rabid hermit crabs that he simply wouldn't make himself come from the front; too dangerous, the best course of action would be to either to flip them over or to reach them from a blind spot but there was no way to flip it in this room... or was there? Chilchuck clearly remembered some sort of spears that could do the job but there were none.
Senshi had noticed a change in the other's demeanor, in a blur he saw him running, red stained feet quickly reached Senshi from the left side; he couldn't see him as good as before in the position he was in but he didn't want to get out of the chest in case Chilchuck got startled, he hesitated for half a beat when he took the helmet off his wooden house but he jumped back quickly anyways.
Chilchuck was still in one piece, warm metal under his fingertips and a few paces away from the mimic again he faltered. The room had stopped, he could smell an oily smell in the air... the helmet was warm? it shouldn't be possible in such a cold room. There was silence between the two now.
"Why do yer need my helmet?" Senshi asked in a soft tone of voice that startled Chilchuck from his thoughts "it's not yours." "That doesn't answer my question" Senshi pressed on "He would look stupid without it." the half-foot replied with a sneer, knowing full well that it wasn't the truth.
Chilchuck started heading back to the camp, he walked backwards until he was sure that a mere sprint from his part would have him in advantage.
Being mistrustful helped him for this long, he wasn't going to give that up just yet not even when the mimic sounded so earnestly like Senshi with that worried voice he only assumed when he wouldn't eat or when he got injured. Chilchuck scratched lightly at his itching arm, even if mimics didn't talk this one sure sounded as decieving as one would.
Short stubby legs were trying to make as little noise as possible while their owner tried to remember any sort of crack in the half-foot's impenetrable walls, the first ever instance he remembered was during that same mimic night when Chilchuck told them his age but even back then that wasn't what Senshi could define a fear if not a mere worry for privacy.
As Senshi followed Chilchuck he noticed the gargoyles they changed with the changeling spores, the fountain one had its left arm halfway broken through and the hair on it looked chipped.
The second time he had seen Chilchuck crack was after they had encountered the orcs after eating the red dragon, something the orc girl Leed had told im must've shocked him quite a bit for him to admit so openly that he was worried about them all, but again, that looked just another way to convince Laios to go back no matter how genuine it really was.
Chilchuck slowed down to look around, he wasn't lost but he wasn't really following a path either. Senshi inched his way closer as he believed to still being undetected, mind still focused on his personal dilemma 'if only he told us more about himself I could've already helped him, does he not trust us?'
The last time Chilchuck ever revealed something to them was the true story about his family, it was taken out of him by force bit it was previously hidden because of shame, it seemed like he hated what happened with his wife and let that shape everything else about him too.
When Senshi looked at the full picture only one answer apperared to be the thread that connected them all Chilchuck to some degree feared trusting someone fully or, in some ways, give someone else control over his life.
When Chilchuck's stomach rumbled Senshi's shield appeared out of the shadows like it was summoned, along with it were some vegetables, when he took it in his hands he noticed one of Marcille's heat circles underneath, a pleasant surprise for his numb feet. "I'm not like Laios" he thought as a soft pitter patter echoed in the hall. Horror fills the half-foot, a single thought was in is mind just then 'I'm not.'
"Yer hungry, Chilchuck? I can cook for ye." The mimic's voice held a kind of regard he had heard from Senshi only once more, when he still thought he was a child. A desperate nurturing.
Even with the distance that separated them Chilchuck could feel the warmth held in those eyes. If the Mimic were really Senshi then as he cooked little habits would shine through.
Chilchuck placed the pot halfway between them still mindful of the mimic's attack range, he wouldn't have the same resurrection chance most would, not with his underfed body.
Seeing the unspoken challenge posed to him Senshi put the vegetables aside and hurried to the gargoyle water fountain he saw earlier to ready the pan, he didn't have most of his usual utensils but he would make do. He had to.
Minestrone was easy, all he would need was any kind of vegetable and it would be done, he also needed fire that wasn't being used by Chilchuck so to not spook his companion but he couldn't afford to make a heatless plate. Nobody likes raw potatoes after all.
After a bit of maneuvering Senshi managed to find a position around the fire that didn't bother Chilchuck too much, he had washed the vegetables before putting them inside the pot letting them simmer, the peel was the best for flavor and proteins.
Knowing he couldn't waste too much time in here or they would get trapped in the dream forever, he off-handedly mentioned how the minestrone would be done in moments hoping the dream sped along the cooking process.
" 'tis finish, regular vegetable minestrone" Senshi said, as he hoped that the trust the half-foot has shown thus far in his cooking skills may be something granted even to his mimic self.
Chilchuck looked down at the minestrone warm air filling his nostrils as he showed hesitancy in even dipping the spoon inside the bowl, just like any other Senshi food it smelled and looked fantastic although sometimes less than others.
Senshi couldn't help himself as he stared at his companion eating a dish that in no way filled his stomach, from where he was he could see the way Chilchuck's eyes shifted between the pot and the helmet.
Chilchuck momentarily put the bowl away as he stood, he held the helmet with gentle hands only to then place it on Senshi's chest "you look stupid without it". And in that moment it was more than enough.
They felt like falling deep deeper as the world faded to dark, warmer than before and then Chilchuck opened his eyes, there was a cold feelind on his side right where Senshi had been sleeping on moments before, he was sitting back facing the half-foot.
There was a sudden bout of noise as Laios tried to make sure Chilchuck didn't go back to sleep, he extracted the nightmares and prepared them for the day exhausted.
Chilchuck had felt something shift in him that day but he wouldn't know what until sometime later, when he found himself vulnerable to Senshi's concerned tone. Not that he would admit that.
senshi turned into mimic> chilchuck is such a ride or die that he would love senshi as a worm .. but would he love him as a mimic? (chapters 13 30 42 51 56-57)
Senshi had been gone for a while now, when Chilchuck got woken up earlier by him the dwarf told him he was going to the bathroom so he wasn't worried but after minutes of complete silence he got sleepy.
Chilchuck wills himself to wait another five minutes but he cracks before that, impatient to go back to sleep he decided to concentrate every part of himself in finding Senshi so he can nag him to do his businness faster, his first stop is at the dwarf's bedding but as expected it was empty, Chilchuck's bare feet can feel how cold the floor is near it. Senshi has been gone for maybe longer than expected, he's usually quicker than most, something is afoot.
Dread drips down Chilchuck's spine when he remembers the mimic he ignored on the way to their camp, after his past experiences he thought the best course of action might be to ignore it but now he wasn't so sure. Before he stepped out of the room he debated waking the remaining party but something stopped him from voicing his concerns to their sleeping figures, he looked at the rest of his clothes but he decided that the lighter he was the better it would be no matter the cold seeping in his bones.
it was during times like these, where the silence completely engulfed him and the darkness of the room spoke to him like a siren song that he wished to run; after a life of almost no privacy, noises and people the comfort never came from emptiness like it did when he was younger. He needed to find Senshi. Fast.
The bathroom was unused he could tell as much from the smells surrounding it, he still went in to check to make sure Senshi wasn't just sleeping in there or something, he wasn't the type to fall asleep randomly but they had been exausted by their encounter with... something he couldn't remember so it wasn't completely random, still, Senshi was nowere to be found.
On the walk back the hallways looked even longer than before, the dark more pronounced, the hallmarks he had etched seemed fewer and farther in-between but he chalked it up as his anxiety making him walk faster the first time around.
Chilchuck went to the water fountain thinking that Senshi might have refilled a waterskin, a loud thud made him quicken his pace, hoping nothing bad happened then he rounded the corner and was presented with an empty room, absolutely no traces of him, not a scent trail he is used to smell, not a long dark hair strand in sight, only water puddles on the ruined cobblestone.
Plip, plip Chilchuck heard the sound of water hitting the ground, the noise was getting echoed around, he had turned first towards his left then he stepped forward to get closer to the souce until he spotted a dark figure near the fountain bowl.
a black headless knight on a black headless steed. Chilchuck's left arm started to itch, but all it took to make them go away was one blink "a dullahan is a headless knight's spirit harbinger of death" Laios' voice provided once more obscure trivia, what Chilchuck wanted to know though was how was he able to recognize the knight when he had never seen one. He hadn't.
He reached the fountain bowl to wash his face, hallucinating wasn't his job. only to find that the sound of what he thought was water falling came from the blood of the horse creating a new puddle on the floor, he splashed his face, a throbbing pain started spreading from his forehead.
The darkness was creeping up on him faster than before, his breaths felt like sand got stuck in his windpipe, his hands had to grip the border of the water fountain to keep himself grounded; suddenly the room was too big, the cold felt unbearable unlike the feeling of a spectre hugging you but not too diferent either, the eyes of the lion's head on the wall suddenly didn't feel as dull as they did just instants before, the shadows were licking his feet and-- and a light appeared at the entrance something small on the floor, Chilchuck's fingers slipped on the surface of the fountain bowl touching the cold water, his gasps for air started reaching his ears the incessant booming of his heart suddenly felt like it was stopping.
Chilchuck took a staggering deep breath he shook his head trying to get rid of the ringing in his ears and in that first moment of clarity he promised himself to never wish again for his senses to be dulled. He focused on the small shining light and the more he did the more he could hear a small *pitter patter* coming from it, it was moving at a fast pace for it's size trying it's hardest not to drown in the joints between the stone floor tiles. Chilchuck closed his eyes before starting to walk towards it, it was a single coin bug, one of his favorites, as his eyes followed the small creature he didn't notice the shadows creep back to their place.
He followed the coin bug to the mimic hyde but he stopped before entering, blood was soaking the floor, there was no body in sight but on top of a sturdy heavily locked chest was Senshi's helmet, the dwarf's strained voice coming from the inside of the chest. That couldn't be a mimic those can't talk. For a moment he debated going back to alert the others but a creepy ass ambiance wasn't be something he was willing to cry about.
Mindful of his feet he started to carefully head towards the farther wall with the chest, thanks to his experience he knew full well how to not underestimate mimics; he was still salty about that one time he got killed because he thought they couldn't have locks.
Senshi's voice came again, startled Chilchuck turned but there was no one with him, he heard the dwarf's voice twice more in the process of lockpicking the chest but his words were too muddled to be understandable. With a *click* the lock opened and so did the chest, at the sudden movement Chilchuck jumped back reflexively covering his face but when nothing hit him he slowly uncovered his eyes only to see a tan coloured mimic as it slowly creeped out of the chest, it was staring back.
Beady eyes and sharp claws aside Chilchuck noticed that this one was... hairy if that was even the right term.
The inside of the chest right where the pinchers ended was tar black he was shocked to notice that the black substance weren't shadows at all but something akin to- "thank yer for freeing me Chilc-" Senshi's hair, his brain suggested just as the dwarf's voice reached him; it was coming from the mimic "why're you looking at me like that?" the mimic advanced and Chilchuck backtracked "Chilchuck, it's me Senshi, don't yer recognize me?" the half foot took a step back and then another, Senshi noticed his own reflection in the bloodied pavement "this is just a nightmare! yer don't have to worry about me!" Senshi pressed on, he thought the half-foot had stopped fearing mimics the day he ate one but maybe this was different.
"Chilchuck isn't as exhausted as Marcille was the first time we've met nightmares, it should be fairly easy for him to wake up" , Laios had told Senshi as much mere minutes ago but as time went on the tallman's words started to sound fake. Senshi had to understand the root of the problem to help Chilchuck. no easy feat that was.
Senshi put as much distance between himself and the half-foot in slow deliberate movements "Chilchuck, this is the sixth floor, there are no mimics down here, yer safe" after this the other man seemed to relax but only slightly, his theory was right: the mimic was a pretext.
Chilchuck's ears were ringing, nothing was making sense, the room has been shrinking from the moment the chest opened, he could feel the small vibration in the floor whenever the walls closed in, the furniture wasn't making any sounds even if it was moving with the walls, darkness was creeping up on him again and as much as he wanted to go away the only light source was Senshi's helmet, he wasn't ready to step back into the shadows, to acknowledge the nagging feeling of wrongness growing inside of him; his numb feet took a step forward, a small one, to test the waters, he didn't trust the mimic but there was no way he'd let it take such an important part of his friend away.
The mimic kept encouraging him to trust him, that he was safe, that he could come closer but Chilchuck has had enough mishaps with those ebeti, giant, rabid hermit crabs that he simply wouldn't make himself come from the front; too dangerous, the best course of action would be to either to flip them over or to reach them from a blind spot but there was no way to flip it in this room... or was there? Chilchuck clearly remembered some sort of spears that could do the job but there were none.
Senshi had noticed a change in the other's demeanor, in a blur he saw him running, red stained feet quickly reached Senshi from the left side; he couldn't see him as good as before in the position he was in but he didn't want to get out of the chest in case Chilchuck got startled, he hesitated for half a beat when he took the helmet off his wooden house but he jumped back quickly anyways.
Chilchuck was still in one piece, warm metal under his fingertips and a few paces away from the mimic again he faltered. The room had stopped, he could smell an oily smell in the air... the helmet was warm? it shouldn't be possible in such a cold room. There was silence between the two now.
"Why do yer need my helmet?" Senshi asked in a soft tone of voice that startled Chilchuck from his thoughts "it's not yours." "That doesn't answer my question" Senshi pressed on "He would look stupid without it." the half-foot replied with a sneer, knowing full well that it wasn't the truth.
Chilchuck started heading back to the camp, he walked backwards until he was sure that a mere sprint from his part would have him in advantage.
Being mistrustful helped him for this long, he wasn't going to give that up just yet not even when the mimic sounded so earnestly like Senshi with that worried voice he only assumed when he wouldn't eat or when he got injured. Chilchuck scratched lightly at his itching arm, even if mimics didn't talk this one sure sounded as decieving as one would.
Short stubby legs were trying to make as little noise as possible while their owner tried to remember any sort of crack in the half-foot's impenetrable walls, the first ever instance he remembered was during that same mimic night when Chilchuck told them his age but even back then that wasn't what Senshi could define a fear if not a mere worry for privacy.
As Senshi followed Chilchuck he noticed the gargoyles they changed with the changeling spores, the fountain one had its left arm halfway broken through and the hair on it looked chipped.
The second time he had seen Chilchuck crack was after they had encountered the orcs after eating the red dragon, something the orc girl Leed had told im must've shocked him quite a bit for him to admit so openly that he was worried about them all, but again, that looked just another way to convince Laios to go back no matter how genuine it really was.
Chilchuck slowed down to look around, he wasn't lost but he wasn't really following a path either. Senshi inched his way closer as he believed to still being undetected, mind still focused on his personal dilemma 'if only he told us more about himself I could've already helped him, does he not trust us?'
The last time Chilchuck ever revealed something to them was the true story about his family, it was taken out of him by force bit it was previously hidden because of shame, it seemed like he hated what happened with his wife and let that shape everything else about him too.
When Senshi looked at the full picture only one answer apperared to be the thread that connected them all Chilchuck to some degree feared trusting someone fully or, in some ways, give someone else control over his life.
When Chilchuck's stomach rumbled Senshi's shield appeared out of the shadows like it was summoned, along with it were some vegetables, when he took it in his hands he noticed one of Marcille's heat circles underneath, a pleasant surprise for his numb feet, he reminded himself not to get too close to it. A soft pitter patter echoed in the hall.
"Yer hungry, Chilchuck? I can cook for ye." The mimic's voice held a kind of regard he had heard from Senshi only once more, when he still thought he was a child. A desperate nurturing.
Even with the distance that separated them Chilchuck could feel the warmth held in those eyes. If the Mimic were really Senshi then as he cooked little habits would shine through.
Chilchuck placed the pot halfway between them still mindful of the mimic's attack range, he wouldn't have the same resurrection chance most would, not with his underfed body.
Seeing the unspoken challenge posed to him Senshi put the vegetables aside and hurried to the gargoyle water fountain he saw earlier to ready the pan, he didn't have most of his usual utensils but he would make do. He had to.
Minestrone was easy, all he would need was any kind of vegetable and it would be done, he also needed fire that wasn't being used by Chilchuck so to not spook his companion but he couldn't afford to make a heatless plate. Nobody likes raw potatoes after all.
After a bit of maneuvering Senshi managed to find a position around the fire that didn't bother Chilchuck too much, he had washed the vegetables before putting them inside the pot letting them simmer, the peel was the best for flavor and proteins.
Knowing he couldn't waste too much time in here or they would get trapped in the dream forever, he off-handedly mentioned how the minestrone would be done in moments hoping the dream sped along the cooking process.
" 'tis finish, regular vegetable minestrone" Senshi said, as he hoped that the trust the half-foot has shown thus far in his cooking skills may be something granted even to his mimic self.
Chilchuck looked down at the minestrone warm air filling his nostrils as he showed hesitancy in even dipping the spoon inside the bowl, just like any other Senshi food it smelled and looked fantastic although sometimes less than others.
Senshi couldn't help himself as he stared at his companion eating a dish that in no way filled his stomach, from where he was he could see the way Chilchuck's eyes shifted between the pot and the helmet.
Chilchuck momentarily put the bowl away as he stood, he held the helmet with gentle hands only to then place it on Senshi's chest "you look stupid without it". And in that moment it was more than enough.
They felt like falling deep deeper as the world faded to dark, warmer than before and then Chilchuck opened his eyes, there was a cold feelind on his side right where Senshi had been sleeping on moments before, he was sitting back facing the half-foot.
There was a sudden bout of noise as Laios tried to make sure Chilchuck didn't go back to sleep, he extracted the nightmares and prepared them for the day exhausted.
Chilchuck had felt something shift in him that day but he wouldn't know what until sometime later, when he found himself vulnerable to Senshi's concerned tone. Not that he would admit that.