Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Second skipped alongside Chosen, the two were on a relaxation day to enjoy the city. They'd gotten food (Chosen stopped to eat words off a poster while Second ate a corn dog), talked on a bench for a while, and now we're taking a stroll through the woods. Flowers and trees gave beautiful scenery and the warm sun showed.

“And then after I put the sandwich down the cow ate the beef sandwich!” Second exclaimed, retelling a story to Chosen.

“That's ridiculous, cows don't eat meat.” Chosen chuckled.

“But that one did! I swear Red's cows are-” Second stopped, so did Chosen. Something in the trees shifted.

Chosen protectively pulled Second a bit closer. The two eyed their surroundings, watching for whatever was in the trees. There was a rustle and they snapped their heads toward the sound. Then something ran up from behind them and knocked both on the back of their heads.

Chosen weakly spotted Second hitting the ground next to him, someone picking Second up and dragging them away. Then everything went dark. [:’)]

———————————

Green paced, the others sat nervously on the couch. It had been hours since the two Hollows had left and they still weren't back. They'd said they'd be back by 3, it was already 4. No texts or calls, not even an update from Alan who had another way of communicating with Second.

Just nothing. It was worrying that there wasn't any info on the whereabouts of the two. The four had almost gone to the city themselves to try to find them, but decided against it since it was so big.

Then Green's phone rang. It was Second's phone number! Green eagerly answered it.

“Second!? Why haven't you been answering us!?” He practically shouted into the phone.

“Sorry, but I'm not the owner of this phone. I found it on the ground in the middle of a trail in the woods. I was calling a contact to ask if you could come retrieve the phone.” An unfamiliar voice answered. Green's heart dropped.

“Oh… yeah, I'll come get it, meet at the park by the corn dog stand please…” He replied solemnly.

The stranger gave an okay and hung up. Green slumped onto the couch.

“What was that?” Red asked.

“It wasn't Second. Someone found their phone on a trail in the woods, no other stick in sight so it got left behind…” answered Green, everyone was overcome with defeat. There was no way they could contact them now.

They just had to hope there would be an idea on where the two were before something bad happened.

———————————

Something cold pressed into Second, and they started to become aware again. They blinked groggily and rubbed their eyes, the sounds of voices starting to peek through the ringing.

“We should have it finished by- oh! The orange one is waking up!” Someone said.

Second rubbed their head, everything ached for some reason. And why were they sitting on a metal floor? Weren't they in the woods?

Opening their eyes tiredly, lights blared into them. They slowly looked around the unfamiliar surroundings. They were in a cell of some kind, lights pointed at them like they were an exhibit. Glass blocked the people who had been talking from Second. One was a beige color, the other a greenish color.

“Good morning little one. I'm Viridian.” Said the greenish stick. “This is Beige, my assistant. You're going to be staying here with your other Hollow friend until we're ready.”

Second was fully awake now. They jumped to their feet and looked around in panic, attempting to yell at them. But they found their voice wouldn't work.

“Ah, yes, we disabled your speech, don't want you making a racket while we work do we?” Viridian explained. He sounded so nonchalant about the fact he stopped Second from talking.

“Beige, would you mind turning on the first experiment? I want to see the reaction so we can move on to our goal faster.” Commanded Viridian, Beige nodded quickly.

Second's panic rose even more when a whirring noise filled the room. Something shocked them, a strong shock too. They fell to the ground and screamed even though no sound came out. Their eyes squeezed shut and they shook in pain.

They couldn't see the bright green sparks that flew around the room. Lighting it up for Viridian and Beige to see. When the machine finally turned off, Second didn't have the strength to stand up. Instead continuing to just lay there and trying to regain their breath.

Viridian grinned. Now he knew that this orange kid was truly the source of light a few months ago. With that part completed, he could move onto the other one. The famed Chosen One was going to be fun to experiment with.

———————————

Chosen woke up with a start. Years of high danger kept his instincts from letting him stay unconscious for more than 3 hours. He immediately stood up and tried to light his fire, but nothing happened.

He looked at his hands. Some kind of metal clasp had been put on his wrists, it seemed to negate his powers. He tried to yell for someone, but he couldn't make any sound. Something had blocked his voice.

“Hello there, Chosen One. I'm Viridian, I apologize for disabling your speech and powers but I really don't need anyone knowing about this.” A dark green stick explained. Stepping out of the shadows.

“Beige.” Viridian said, looking towards a shorter stick who scurried out of view.

The room started to whir and Chosen looked around frantically. He felt his powers turn on, but instead of the willing switch he was used too, it was ripped out of him. It hurt too. Like he was being torn from the inside out.

He fell to his knees and barely held himself up against the floor. Fire surrounding him, lightning cracking, ice and pure raw power blasting this way and that. It was uncontrolled and different from anything he'd felt before. He hated it.

When it finally stopped he could barely hear anything. The cracks from the lightning echoing through his mind as he trembled. For once he was scared of his own powers. Because, oh man, that had hurt..

“Hm, similar reaction to the orange one but his powers seem to have more forms. Beige, take note of that.” Viridian said out loud.

Chosen snapped his eyes up. The orange one? What had they done to Second!? They didn't even know about their powers! It was dormant too! That must have been even worse than what Chosen felt…

“Open the doors. We need to make sure the connection is correct before we proceed.” Viridian said to Beige.

A sliding noise caught Chosen’s attention. Looking over weakly, an entrance had been made in the wall. Through it he could see… Second! They were collapsed on the ground trembling. Every now and again Chosen could see small green sparks come off of them.

He willed himself to stand and stumble over to Second. It took so much energy just to do that. He didn't care at the moment though, collapsing onto his knees next to Second. He quickly pulled them up into his lap and held them tightly. They wouldn't touch them again.

Weak hands gripped his shirt tightly as another shake went through them. He could feel the energy running through them, it had been pulled out of its dormancy for a moment and now was eager to release more. He held them closer as they trembled and flinched from it.

His shirt dampened as he felt them crying into him. There would've been sobs if they could've made noise. His eyes were watery from the pain too, but he didn't let himself cry. After a while Second seemed to fall asleep. Rest sounded amazing right now, but he had to keep them safe.

Crawling into a corner, he squeezed them comfortingly. The trembling stopped finally and he felt his eyes dropping. After doing a quick scan to make sure that Viridian and Beige weren't nearby, he let himself drift into sleep.

“I'll keep us safe. We won't be hurt. No one will hurt us.” He promised in his mind before drifting off.

Chapter Text

Viridian eyed the two from the cameras. He was right, they were the two with the perfect connection. The Chosen One seemed very intent to keep the small orange one safe now. But he could use that.

He should probably check the orange one's name… The Second Coming huh? Just another onto the list of connections. The more he looked the better his experiment seemed to be. If he could just learn a bit more about their powers, he could figure out the proportion he would need to remove so they wouldn't be too strong.

The Second Coming seemed more powerful than the Chosen One. But their power was buried and dormant so unless he figured out how to completely bring it out, it would stay the flashy lights he'd seen before. He could work with the Chosen One's energy though. Maybe he could find a way to jumpstart the Second Coming…

Ideas flowed through his head. So many possibilities, and with only two sticks! (He's talking like a fanfic writer now)

His main goal still lay just barely out of reach. He could complete it, but not before he made the proper calculations. Then he would be unstoppable, and then he could finally destroy that stupid Rocket Corp! Smiling, he called Beige to his office. It was time for part 2, this would be fun.

———————————

The four were frantically looking for any sign of the two Hollows. A whole day had passed and the only lead they had was Second's phone, which seemed completely normal.

Yellow was searching through the phone for anything strange while the others tried to think of places they could be. Then Yellow gasped.

“What is it!?” Green shot up from the couch he'd been thinking on.

“There's a tracker on Second's phone…” Yellow said, barely audible.

“WHAT!?” Shouted Red. 

“Someone was following Second… Chosen and them might've been taken by someone!” Yellow stood up quickly. 

“We need to go to the city now!” I'll leave a note for Alan!” Green ran out of the room.

“I'll see if I can find where the signal goes to.” Yellow sat back down, picking up the phone again.

Red and Blue began grabbing things they might need. Swords, potions, fishing rods…. The normal for adventures. Plus an extra med kit for something that needed more than a potion.

Green walked back into the room. He finished typing something and put his phone in his pocket.

“I just told Purp and MT about the situation. They'll both be on the lookout for anything.” Green said.

The others nodded. They didn't have time to dally, it was time to find them!

———————————

Second wanted their friends more than anything. Their body shook with pain, something that felt like electricity ran through them. Chosen’s firm hold on them was the only thing grounding them from going out of it and passing out.

They couldn't open their eyes, it hurt too much. They could feel Chosen’s silent words of comfort, it was in his grasp. The way he pulled them close once he got to them. How he made sure they stayed safe in his arms.

It was nice, they wished they could speak. They wished everything didn't hurt. What had that Viridian guy even done to cause this much pain? They never wanted to feel it again. Unfortunately it kept happening over and over, just smaller.

They would randomly convulse from the shocks, gripping Chosen as tight as they could and desperately trying not to pass out. They wished it would stop. It had died down at least, they could tell Chosen had fallen asleep while they were out for a bit. His breathing made it clear he was exhausted. They hoped Viridian hadn't done to him what he'd done to them.

But the way his breathing shifted unnaturally made it clear he had. Second pulled themself closer to Chosen, pressing into his warmth to try and stop their trembling. It helped a bit, but it didn't go away. At least they had Chosen. It would be terrible if they were alone. They wanted their friends.

The four must be worried sick… they hoped they wouldn't get into trouble. Unless that trouble was getting them out and to a hospital, they weren't interested. But that didn't mean they wouldn't enjoy seeing them and their chaotic fun.

They heard a whooshing noise and footsteps. Fear grew and they gripped Chosen tighter, pressing away from the noise. They barely peeked their eyes open and were still bombarded with light. Viridian stood before them, their fear grew even more. They didn't want to hurt anymore, that feeling was terrible!

“Don't worry little one… it won't hurt this time…” Viridian said softly.

Second began to try to shake Chosen awake, but Viridian grabbed the collar of their shirt and pulled them away before they could wake him. They scrambled and kicked desperately.

“Ugh, stop moving or I'll make sure it does hurt.” He threatened.

Second stopped immediately. They trembled and held their hands over their head for any kind of protection. They tried to speak, but remembered they couldn't.

“Don't worry… once we get to where I need you I'll let you talk again.” Promised Viridian.

Second continued to keep their eyes closed. They didn't dare look around out of fear and pain. Viridian dragged them along by the collar and they tried to get their legs to carry them so they wouldn't choke.

After a while of walking he had them sit in a chair, and by sit I mean forcefully shoved into the chair so hard they almost fell over. They curled in on themself, still trembling. The painful buzzing of something like electricity under their skin had increased.

“Open your eyes.” Commanded Viridian, his voice cold and sharp with an edge that scared Second.

They snapped their eyes open out of fear and stared right at him as he stood in front of them. He looked at them for a long time. Their eyes started to water and they looked at the ground, quickly wiping away the tears. But as soon as they finished he grabbed their chin and forced them to look at him.

Fear pulsed stronger than ever and in a rush of adrenaline they shoved him back and lept out of the chair, running the opposite direction from him and into a corner. Second sunk to the ground, staying facing the corner, too horrified to look at Viridian even with the sounds of footsteps behind them.

“Now now… that wasn't very nice of you little one… you can't be doing that if you want to stay painless.” His cold voice dug into Second despite him whispering softly.

“I-I…” They stammered, only to realize they could talk again!

“I told you I'd let you speak once we got here.” Viridian commented. “Now what do you have to say?”

“I-I want to go h-home… d-don't- P-please don't hurt m-me again…” they choked out, despite what they said everything hurt.

“But doesn't it hurt already? What more could I do?” Asked Viridian with fake sympathy.

Seconds trembling was so bad it almost looked fake. But it was simply out of fear and so much pain. They were being electrocuted inside their body and they couldn't tell where or what it came from.

“Just let the energy out… don't be scared… I want to see it…” whispered Viridian.

Something snapped inside of them and suddenly they couldn't see anything but green. So much green. It was loud too. Everything was just so-

GREEN SCREAMING GREEN LOUD HURTS RUN PANIC FEAR HURTS GREEN RUN HIDE RUN RUN GREEN GREEN HURTS PAIN HIDE FEAR GREEN PANIC RUN HIDE GREEN GREEN GREEN GREEN GREEN GREEN- nothing.

They woke up back in Chosen's arms. He's blocking them from something. What happened? Where were they again? Why did everything feel sore and their head throb? Why was everything ringing? When were there green sparkles everywhere? Where did those sparkles come from? What were they thinking of again? They felt tired… surely Chosen wouldn't mind if they slept a little longer… they curled up against Chosen a bit more, who noticed the movement, before drifting off again.

Chapter Text

Not more than as Viridian whispered the words into the Second Coming's ear did all the energy release at once. It was a huge bright green explosion that blew him back, it destroyed a wall too. The kid’s eyes were completely green, not a hint of normal in them. They almost seemed glazed with fear. They were glazed with fear.

This hadn't been an attacking reaction like Viridian thought at first, it was an escape reaction. Security ran inside and tried to pin the Second Coming down. But their actions only caused the Second Coming to become more violent and panicked. Vicious blast of energy hit the guards against walls.

The energy began to die down and the Second Coming didn't seem aware of anything, just sitting there with a blank expression after a while. Then they collapsed. Releasing that much energy was probably exhausting. Sparks still flew off of them in large quantities, but they seemed docile.

“Those who are injured badly, go to the infirmary. Those who can still walk and hold their weapons, help me bring this one back to confinement.” Viridian commanded, getting pained and normal yessirs.

He stood up, walking with the guards who held the Second Coming. They were limp and would twitch every now and again but did not wake. As the group approached the containment he could see the Chosen One frantically pacing.

The Chosen One spotted them and stopped moving, staring right at the Second Coming. The door opened and the Second Coming was thrown inside, quickly grabbed by the Chosen One who glared at them. He held them behind him protectively as he seemed like he could pounce any moment.

“Relax Chosen One. They should be fine. You won't have to worry.” Viridian said, a dark glare on his face.

Chosen tensed and simply stayed on guard. Viridian noticed movement in the Second Coming that wasn't twitching. Their eyes opened slowly and dazedly looked around before shutting again and rolling over into the Chosen One.

He noticed the movement and quickly checked the Second Coming. They made a small, weak movement before curling up on him. The Chosen One sighed, or would have if his voice wasn't still off.

He glared at Viridian intensely. But it didn't matter to Viridian. He didn't need the two other than for the main goal now. Viridian already knew how strong the Chosen One is, and now figured out how strong the Second Coming is.

All he needed to do now was extract some so that it would balance out when he… completed them… they were going to be the greatest weapon ever. And now all that was in his way were their power levels. But that could be easily changed. It wasn't much longer before Rocket Corp. fell and that hockey stick CEO bent to his will.

“You all can go to the infirmary for any injuries, I'll be in my office.” Viridian announced to the guards.

As he walked away he could feel the Chosen One's hatred filled stare in his back. It wouldn't matter the emotions of the two when it happened. They wouldn't have control anyways. At least he hoped they wouldn't have control. He'd rather not be killed by his life's work.

He entered his office and sat down at his desk. He noticed the monitor for the tracker was running again. It only turned on when something was giving information and he'd turned the tracker off yesterday! Unless someone turned it on from the other side…

Someone had to be looking for the Second Coming and Chosen One. He would just have to be extra careful about how he took care of this. If he could find a way to redirect the signal, maybe he could trap the sticks and use them…

Well that could wait. He had to finish these papers so he could move on to his final step. It was so close, he was giddy and excited. This was going to be spectacular!

———————————

Chosen was panicking really badly right now. Second was practically glowing with how many sparks were flying off them. Not to mention they'd been waking up and passing back out for a while. They weren't this exhausted after the fight with Dark! What happened!?

He assumed it was from the method Viridian used but he didn't know. Cursors above! He let his little sibling get seriously hurt! He promised to keep them safe and he failed! What did this guy even want from them!? Second didn't have a reputation around here like him or Dark, so how would they know about them and their powers!?

He shifted Second to lay on his shoulder. He wished he could promise them it would be okay. He wished that the others would find them and get them out of here. But he knew the chances were low. Those kids had some incredible things, but he didn't even know where they were or how easy it would be.

So he hoped that Viridian stopped needing them and let them free. Another low chance but Second always chose to believe in ridiculous things, why not try? For their sake. Chosen really hoped they would be okay.

———————————

The four wandered the city, hoping a signal from the tracker Yellow had dismantled would show them somewhere.

“It can't be much longer before we find something!” Red tried to cheer the group up, he was failing.

Everyone was stressed and worried for their Hollow friends. If the two got seriously hurt, how would they help them?

“We should head over to Purple's… it's getting late and we need some rest…” Green suggested dully. Everyone agreed.

The walk to Purple and MT's house was long and full of disappointment. Still nothing on the two's whereabouts and three whole days had passed. They feared for the worst if they couldn't find them soon.

Green knocked on the door and it was quickly answered.

“Oh! Hello you four.” Greeted MT.

“Hey… do you mind if we crash here for the night? Sorry to intrude…” mumbled Green.

“Oh course! Purple has been worried sick over Seconds disappearance, have you found anything?” He asked, letting them all inside.

“We thought we had a lead but nothing showed up. We don't know where they could be.” Yellow responded.

“Guys! There you are!” Purple rushed into the room, giving them all a hug. “Where's Second are they okay!?”

“We don't know where Second is. We're crashing here for the night, we're gonna get back to looking tomorrow if you'd wanna join.” Green explained.

“Yes! C'mon let's get some food before you settle down.” Purple said, leading them to the kitchen.

“Thanks Purp.” Green thanked them, everyone else said their thanks too.

As the four ate the small snacks Purple handed them, something dinged. Yellow looked at something in his bag and gasped.

“The tracker gave us a signal…” he said, everyone stood up.

Chapter Text

Second grunted and looked up at the bright lights above with bleary eyes. Shifting themself up they noticed that Chosen was nowhere to be seen. Their head hurt like hell and something was latched onto their wrist.

Trying to stand failed miserably as they fell over and were hit with a wave of dizziness. What had even happened? Their head felt fuzzy and their memory was faded. Wait… this wasn't the room they were in before!

There were wires and tubes going in and out of the walls. The glass wall that Viridian had watched them through was gone. Something in the air felt very, very wrong…

“Bzt… hello? Ah, there we go!” Viridians voice buzzed over an intercom. 

“Now, as you've noticed you have been moved to a different cell for the time being. There's another cell next to you that has your other friend in it so trying to escape might hurt them. In a moment the room will turn on, you will experience some… extraction… but don't resist, it'll only hurt more.”

The intercom buzzed to silence and Second was left to panic. Chosen was in a room near them, but which wall? And what did Viridian mean by extraction!? They had to find a way out before-

The room activated.

It was worse than before. So much worse. They desperately tried to hold onto whatever was being taken but their internal grasp slipped. Everything poured out of them, they would've blacked out but something kept them awake. It didn't stop either, it just kept going and going and going and-

They finally slipped away. It was blissful silence and calm for only a short period of time before they were ripped out of it again. When they came back to reality, Viridian was staring them in the eyes. Dark [;)] and judgmental and cold eyes that felt like they were looking into their very code.

They felt weaker than normal and almost threw up other than the fact that they realized they hadn't eaten in 2 or so days. Viridian dropped them to the ground with a thud. They almost felt like they were melting into the ground with how exhausted they were.

Viridian stepped through a doorway in a wall leaving Second alone for just a moment. When he entered Chosen was dragged behind him, he weakly struggled against Viridian’s grip but it was clear he was exhausted too.

Guards came in from somewhere else that Second couldn't see. The guards picked them up and dragged them away, Chosen not too far behind. They would have been horrified if they had the energy. They still were, but a fog of tiredness had settled thick over their head and stopped them from really thinking too much.

Entering another large, bright room that made Second squint their eyes. They blinked slowly, trying to take in the room through their haze. Machines were everywhere, and workers were running around with papers. It was so busy and chaotic Second simply shut their eyes again.

“Oh my! Is it too much for you little one?” Asked Viridian's cold voice with fake sympathy.

Second shrank in on themself as much as possible. Feeling a hard tug on their shirt that made them gasp. They opened their eyes sharply to find Chosen next to them being restrained. A worker walked towards them and restrained them as well.

They kicked and struggled from the adrenaline that started coursing through them from fear.

“Hold them down.” Commanded Viridian.

Guards held their limbs in place while the worker put more restraints on them than before. Chosen seemed to get angry at this and tried to pull out of his bounds. Viridian spotted him though and guards were adding more to Chosen in an instant. Once the two were thoroughly bound Viridian spoke.

“Now I'm not one to give monologues but I feel this needs at least a short one. In a moment I will finish what I need you two for, for you see you are not ordinary. Not only do you both possess incredible power, but you both have something in common. Your code. Half your codes are almost exactly the same, which means it would be possible to overlap your code.

“I am also in need of a strong soldier, such as a powerful combined stick… I think you see where I'm going with this…” he finished, an evil, sly grin on his face that made Seconds blood run cold.

They knew what was about to happen, and honestly? They wished they didn't. In the corner of their eye they could see Chosens expression. It seemed to be filled with raw anger. Rage boiling so strong it could've cooked a metaphorical egg.

Second was too terrified to even feel anger though. Only pure horror and fear ran through them. All their instincts were shouting at them to run. Run! Hide! Survive! Run! Escape! Live! Hide! Runrunrunrunrun-

A few deep breaths later, they were still scared but not full blown panic. And then it started. They could see Viridians face light up with pure, manic joy. They could see Chosen clench his jaw and look around frantically. They could hear the excited and unsure murmurs of the workers. They could hear their instincts kicking back up and telling them to run.

They could hear Viridian say two words.

“Good night.”

Chapter Text

The seven walked towards the signal. Purple and Blue were doing their best to keep everyone calm while MT was there to make sure nothing went wrong while they wandered the city. Yellow kept his eyes on the screen and Red and Green had gotten panicky a few times but now were calmer and silently walking.

Tense fear and anticipation hung in the air. There was also a light feeling of hope too. Hope that Second and Chosen were okay. Hope that nothing terrible had happened. The group couldn't shake the bad feeling though.

Purple and MT didn't have the feeling as much, but Red, Green, Yellow, and Blue all agreed that something was very wrong. The four didn't explain but something deep in their codes told them to keep going, because they knew, they could feel that Second needed them.

And so they continued. The trackers signal only getting stronger the closer they got. At one point while in the city they had spotted a bright, but faint green light somewhere in the woods. And the tracker led right to that area. Right to a building that neither Purple nor MT knew about.

The tracker showed the signal was in the building. So just as the seven were about to step in, half the building exploded.

—————————

It was excruciating for a moment. Then it faded away, but not leaving the feelings. Not the feelings of pain, but the feelings underneath. Fear, terror, horror. Things like that. They overrided Second's system. Panic shooting through them. They didn't know what happened itwashimrunhidesafepanic but they knew they had to get away from something.

It fogged their mind, nothing else was there to think but to run and hide and survive. They had to get away! SAFETYSAFETYSAFETY- They needed to find somewhere safe! They needed to escape! To run! To hide! To survive!

Something warm and comfortable wrapped around them. Holding them in place as their clouded, heavy mind struggled to process anything other than panic. The strings coiled and clutched at them. Keeping them trapped in the panic. Holding them in the fear.

With the lack of understandment coming from the panic, they failed to see their surroundings. The dark void of their mind clawed at them. Cold and unforgiving from the force from Viridian. And though they were too clouded to realize where they were, they still understood that Chosen was next to them. Who Chosen was and why he was there. He was safe.

But he was the opposite of panic, and not the opposite like calm, the opposite like aggressive.

—————————

After the pain died down Chosen’s mind filled and clouded with one intent. Fight. Fight whoever was deemed an enemy, or whoever did this. He didn't know what happened hedoesthoughhedoeshedoes but he knew he had to fight.

Something was there to be fought, something needed to be killed. Something needed him to rip it limb from limb. To destroy it and make it never come back. Despite the clouded nausea that filled his head with violent, angry thoughts a small voice told him “your acting just like Dark.”

He had a pause moment. But before he could truly think, it was like something made sure to cram more thoughts of destruction in all at once. The realization quickly buried deep underneath everything.

Strings wrapped around his arms and legs. They held him down from attacking, but not forcefully. It clouded him more because now it let him see Second. Poor innocent Second who was being hurt. A child who just wanted to enjoy their life, but instead was being used for sick experiments.

The rage fueled him. The only thought on his mind. ATTACK.

—————————

Viridian watched as the two's codes merged. Overlapping and mixing. Forcing the two into one being who would be the ultimate weapon. It would be so useful that it could maybe even help him rule the whole internet!

The stick in front of him glitched and convulsed. Stripes of orange and black alternated, some spots looked almost like they were melting. Other spots looked like sections of them hadn't been rendered properly. It looked at him with crazed and violent yet panicked eyes.

Eyes filled with swirling red and greens. It growled but he didn't flinch, even when it tried to lunge at him but was stopped by the restraints. It fought against them but he knew it needed some time to settle before it was ready to be molded into the perfect weapon.

“I-I-I-I H-E'LL F-FI…GHT R-UN” It's glitched voice managed out the small words, no doubt the two sides fighting for the speech.

He didn't think it'd be able to speak but it was a pleasant surprise. It'd be easier to train if it could talk and understand. He pressed a button on a small console a little ways away.

“Bring in the guards, I need to move our subject.” He said into the small microphone.

A few moments later a team of about seventeen or eighteen guards came in. He instructed half to make sure it didn't bolt and the other half to actually move it. But when the guards stepped close something happened.

It's eyes turned fully green and the creature pulled as hard as it possibly could on the restraints. Then once the guards took another step forwards the eyes turned bright red. Fire exploded from the creature and knocked everyone back.

“What!? I thought I drained their powers!? Unless… they amplified each other to at least their normal strength, maybe even more powerful!” He watched in shock after this revelation. The power now free to do whatever it pleased destroyed half the room. 

Viridian screamed for everyone to run, now aware of the danger of the situation. Like he suspected all guards were taken out with ease before the creature panicked and ran into the forest. He could still hear its sounds of destruction despite it moving very far very quickly.

He had to catch it before someone else found it. If they did, they'd have a monster to catch and a dead body to move. But it would be hard, he realized that the sections of the monster that didn't overlap were fighting each other. The being couldn't hold itself fully together. How could he have missed such a huge oversight!?

He spotted seven colorful sticks by the edge of the woods, he recognised them from when he was waiting to catch the two Hollows. He had to find his weapon before they did, he couldn't let anyone mess this up.

“Guards! Make sure those seven don't go after it! 8 of you, come with me!” He yelled over the commotion.

It was time to get back his weapon. He was so close now, once he sorted this out, he would be unstoppable.

Chapter Text

“Hey! What the hell!?” MT shouted over the noise as guards ran around and the building continued to collapse in areas.

Green spotted a glitching figure running in the woods. It was flickering between orange and black. He wasnt sure what it was at first, then it dawned on him.

“I think that's Second! Or maybe Chosen!?” He yelled, pointing at the stick.

Everyone turned so fast he could've sworn someone snapped their neck. They all stared at where Green was pointing and gasps were heard. Just then, guards surrounded them.

“What the- what's going on!?” Shouted Purple, pure confusion on their face.

“Please do not resist. We don't want more damage than there already is.” A guard said. “Prepare to detain them!”

Suddenly, a bright flash of red hit the guards square on. The entirety of the guards was knocked down, most unconscious or at least knocked down hard enough that they wouldnt be back up for a bit. The stick now standing in front of the six made them freeze.

It was the Dark Lord.

—————————

It hurt- but it had to fight! No, it needed to run. But what about- it needed to- how could it- IT NEEDS TO STOP.

Second gasped, mind clear for a moment. The dark, swirling void around them felt like it was trying to pull them back into panic. The strings that were tied against their arms and legs tried pulling them down too.

They gazed around confused, trying to figure out what happened. Chosen was next to them, but something was off. His eyes were glazed and vicious. He looked like he would pounce any moment if it wasn't for the strings.

Though when their eyes locked for a moment, the haze seemed to clear a bit before fogging back in. Second could feel it trying to seep back into their mind. The edges of their thoughts had become fogged and slow.

One more clear thought made its way through their mind, “you're not safe in the open.” then the panic set back in, the strings tighter and the darkness pulled. And back into the panic they went.

—————————

Something was off. He didn't know what, but something changed and he knew that he needed to go. Chosen was in trouble. He didn't know how he knew, but he did.

The Dark Lord had been recovering in an abandoned house that he'd fixed up for a while now. Ever since he was beat by that orange kid- no, the Second Coming. Their name seemed burned in his head from the blast. He had needed to stay covered and not try to take over the internet, but the strange thing was that, he didnt want anymore.

Something else had changed inside him too. A clarity had overtaken him when he awoke, no longer feeling the need to destroy. It felt more like a guilty pleasure, or a feeling from long ago. But not something that was needed.

It was a peaceful calm he had not felt before. It had always been there, nagging and pulling in the corner of his mind no matter how hard he'd tried to ignore it. But even that was gone. It was simply gone.

So when that tick, that pulling that something was off hit, it was clearer than anything. He knew immediately that he had to go. That he had to find Chosen. That he needed to help.

And so he ran. He flew when he had the energy, he was conserving his powers in case he had to fight. But mostly he ran. And he came across a whole building. Half was crumbling and smoking. Guards running around in a panic.

Then he spotted four familiar faces. Those kids. The ones he killed. Were standing there with two others. How were they alive!? What were they doing here!?

“I think that's Second! Or maybe Chosen!?” The green one shouted, pointing somewhere he couldn't see.

That caught his attention. He turned to where the green one was pointing, he couldn't see from his angle that well but he could make out a faint glitching form. He needed to get to it.

He spotted guards surrounding the group of colorful sticks. He didn't care for them but… Chosen might be aggressive towards him thanks to the last time he saw him. He needed the kids so things stayed peaceful.

So he attacked, he knocked down every single guard. It didn't take much effort, they weren't prepared to be ambushed after all. It didn't take that much energy either, which was a good thing. 

After all the guards were down, he turned to the sticks. All looking mortified at him. That made sense, he killed four of them and the other two most likely knew about his terrorist spree. But…

He couldn't bring himself to feel nothing about it.

It hurt to be feared now… he just needed Chosen back.

Chapter Text

No one said a word. The group stared at the Dark Lord in shock and terror. He stared back at them with an unrecognizable emotion. Though one thing was sure, they were running out of time to catch Second and Chosen.

“So, uh, I have no idea how you four are alive but I do need your help to get Chosen back so…” the Dark Lord (timidly?) said.

Green quickly shook off the shock. Prepared for an attack he responded quickly as to not waste time to let the Dark Lord fight them.

“What do you want with Chosen!? To try to kill him and us again!?” Green shouted, keeping his voice steady despite the terror in his head.

The Dark Lord's expression faltered. Almost like he was… guilty? No, he couldn't feel guilty, he'd cackled with glee as he'd struck Green and the others down. Stabbing them mercilessly. Guilt was not in his emotion range. Green refused to believe it.

“I know, I fucked up. But right now I know that if I- we don't do something, Chosen's going to destroy everything and then himself, along with that Orange kid. You don't have to trust me and I don't expect you to, but I have to get Chosen back, I… I can't lose him again…” The Dark Lord looked away in shame?

The others seemed to have shaken off their shock as well, staring in disbelief at the stick who killed hundreds, burned cities and websites to ash, and always looked proud and confident start to actually cry. Not sobbing but just small, quiet tears. Not to many either, just a few. Either the Dark Lord was an amazing actor, or he actually felt bad about what he did.

Green didn't want to let him anywhere near them, he didn't even want to talk, let alone look at him. But they wouldn't be able to hold Chosen (or Second) down by themselves. They would need someone strong enough to help, someone who might be able to keep them from hurting themself.

After a moment of silence, Green sighed. He glanced back at everyone else and met their eyes, he gave a short nod. Red looked particularly angry but got the gist, with everyone else having different levels of fear or uncomfortability ranging on their expressions.

“Fine. But don't try anything because we will fight back. I don't see any… deletion blades this time so I hope that means you either got rid of them or they broke.” He stated, eyeing over the Dark Lord as he spoke.

The Dark Lord looked up with a hope in his eyes that Green recognised from when he'd helped Purple. It looked calm and happy, grateful that they'd let him come along. It threw Green off, he never thought that someone like that could be so… lively.

He shrugged it off and didn't let himself lose his guard. He couldn't risk letting the Dark Lord get the better of them. The group started cautious steps towards the Dark Lord. Making sure to watch his every move in case he decided to try and do anything.

“We need to hurry, who knows how much further they've gotten.” MT said, stepping beside Green as if to block him from the Dark Lord.

“Agreed, let's go.” Dark said, and the group headed off in the direction of chaos.

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It ran. It hid. It attacked. It defended. It did everything it could. If something was deemed a threat, it attacked. Unfortunately most was deemed dangerous.

Sticks attacked it. Animals scared it. Loud noises caught it off guard. It needed to fond safety. Whether that was through blocking it or fighting for safety it would do that.

Only a few more miles and it would be deep enough in the forest. Something in the back of its mind told it that there was a safe cave not too far ahead. It didn't know how it knew, but it did.

The cave was safe. The cave would keep it safe. Everything would be okay. It would stabilize. It could then do its purpose. It didn't know what its purpose was but it knew it had to survive.

Survive at all costs.

Chapter Text

The group ran after it. It was easy to follow thanks to the destruction that it caused. Fallen, burned trees and small fires led the way. Running as fast as their legs could take them, the group avoided any possible danger.

It was a bit hard considering all the fire and crumbling surroundings they were moving through but they tried their best.

“Are- are we catching up with them yet!?” Called an out of breath Blue from a but further back in the group.

Green, who was in the front, strained his eyes to see as far as he could.

“I'm not sure! I can't see anything quite yet-” he started to yell back before something blasted past him.

It was a shot from a taser gun from more guards. This time, a dark green stick in a suit was with them. He had cold, dark gray eyes. The scowl etched in his expression made a shiver run down Green's back. It was so full of hatred it almost seemed to radiate the emotion, or lack of.

“You will not be moving another step forward. That weapon is mine and will be detained and brought back to my facility. It will not be in the hands of any civilians who do not have any right to take it.” He said, his voice sharp and piercing.

“That's our friends you crazy bastard!” Red shouted angrily.

“Not anymore.” The dark green stick said, before backing up a bit. “Detain them.” He commanded.

The guards sprung into action. Dark fought off the ones in front as easily as before, but no one noticed the other group coming from behind. Before anyone could stop them, the extra guards attacked Dark.

MT tackled one before they could hit. Purple attacked the other and knocked them down.

“Go! We'll hold them back!” Purple told Green, not going over a shout to not attract attention.

Green desperately wanted to shout no, to drag Purple away from the enemies and tell them that they were coming with the rest to save Second and Chosen. But he knew he couldn't, he knew this was their only option. So stared right at Purple, guilt and worry shining in his eyes as he turned and ran, instructing the others to follow.

The rest followed quickly, all looking distraught at leaving Purple and MT behind (except Dark since he didn't know the two). 

“Get them!” Screamed the dark green stick once he spotted the group running off.

But the group was already too far ahead. And without the element of surprise, Dark could handle any that came their way. It was pointless to keep chasing them as they entered thicker and thicker woods. The only thing stopping them from being lost was the trail of destruction they followed.

At one point, Dark got fed up with being chased and knocked two whole trees down just to block the guards’ path. This bought the group some time to get farther ahead and hopefully out of sight. Once a bit farther ahead the group took a short break, catching their breath.

“H-How much… farther?” Asked Red between gasps of air.

Yellow craned his head but the trail seemed to go forever. He shook his head, a grim expression.

“No idea. It looks like it keeps going for at least two more yards.” He said, prompting a loud groan from Red.

The group began discussing ways they would have to disable the- whatever they found of their two friends. Unbeknownst, something watched from the trees.

“We'll probably need Dark to-” Blue started before something interrupted them.

A stick lunged at Dark, glitched growls and screams filled the air as it knocked him over. Looking up all he saw were green and red eyes staring back at him with nothing but hostility.

It was Second and Chosen.

————————

It ran for so long it almost began to feel the illusion of exhaustion. It circled back around after a quick rest in the quiet cave. It had waited there for a bit after reaching it.

It didn't quite remember but something about the cave was familiar. It was safe. But at the same time it wasnt. It knew something else knew of this place and would be back to kill it. It couldn't stay for long but it did help it stabilize a bit more.

It didn't feel as much pain but it still felt incomplete yet too full at the same time. It was missing something, but it had too much. It needed to do something. Eliminate and survive. Kill and live. Stay safe.

It moved through the woods towards the sound of something that needed to be neutralized. It looked through the trees at five sticks. Four of the sticks made it happy for some reason. It knew those sticks weren't a threat, it should keep them safe as well.

But the other stick… something in its mind went haywire at the sight of the stick. It couldn't stop itself. A part of its mind screamed danger, to run and hide, to just stay away from that stick. The other side screamed that the stick had returned and must be here to finish the job, the part yearned to attack the stick, to destroy it for safety. But the side that wanted to fight also yearned for the stick to be okay, to have a new idea of what to do, to want to be close again.

But when it came down to it, its instincts won. It had to protect itself and the other four nice sticks. It had to attack.

Chapter Text

Second watched weakly from their mind. Unable to move more than slight shifting thanks to the strings that held them in place. The slow, sluggish fog that consumed their mind stayed thick and unmoving. Chosen still staying to their right, bound as well and staring forwards with hatred.

A small image appeared in front of them. It was their friends! They felt happy, the others were safe! The others were there to help them! They could go home and rest and be happy! And then they spotted him.

Despite the binding around them they almost stood up as fear took full control of them. The Dark Lord, the one who attacked them and their friends stood there. So close to their friends that he could, no, would attack the others once he knew Second was close.

They had to run. But Chosen had different ideas. His mind screamed danger as well. But more of the danger of an enemy, not a fear. He knew Dark was here to finish that fight. Kill the poor kids again and leave him and Second to die. He couldn't let that happen.

Though the small, barely there part of his true consciousness said that he wanted to see Dark. That was his best friend, his brother. He needed to make sure he was okay and safe. But Dark didn't need to be safe. Second and Chosen did. And Second's friends were right there as bait. The sick bastard. There wasn't time for nostalgia. It was time to attack.

—————————

It stared down at its enemy, who looked weirdly afraid. That was wrong. It knew this stick was arrogant. Any moment now a hoard of vira- of what…? It slipped away before it could grasp the memory. But something would appear and attack it.

But nothing happened. It growled, raising a hand to finish this quick but something, no, someone grabbed it. It pulled back, fear and dread now back. It was him. It was the dark green stick. It was… safe?

Safe, familiar green (not the bad dark green, a safe lighter green) and blue hands pulled it away from the enemy. Soft, safe red (darker than the enemy) hands waved gently, trying to get its attention or calm it down. Safe, familiar yellow hands held something that was new, yet didn't register as a threat.

It calmed down at these sights. And the voices coming from the safe sticks were relaxing. Though high pitched and panicked they were familiar. And that meant safe. Part of it relaxed. Part of it was so, so happy. Happy it was safe and in the arms of one's it knew.

The other still wanted to attack but was much more docile now. It didn't want to accidentally hurt the safe ones. So it stopped moving. It stopped struggling. It stared at the enemy with hatred but stopped resisting the safe ones. Because now it was safe. At least, it would be once the enemy was gone.

—————————

Everyone rushed to Dark's side as their friend(s) tackled him. Pure malice was in their eyes as they held him down. Panic raced through Dark's mind as he desperately tried to get out of their grasp, but to no avail.

Their hands were locked tight on him. His heart rate, already high from running, somehow started to go even faster as he lay there underneath whatever had become of the two other hollows.

The others reacted as soon as the shock wore off. Running to pull them off of Dark. It took some prying but their grip suddenly loosened. They let go after a moment. They stopped struggling at the sight of the others.

They stared intently at Dark, but didn't attack, instead, they relaxed. They let themself calm from the sights of the other four. Something changed, they didn't even seem to have a hint of the anger that had just happened. Instead they looked around with glitched eyes, now wide and full of a mix of relief, joy, and fear.

“Wait! I think they're reacting to us!” Red said suddenly, startling everyone.

“What do you mean?” Asked Yellow.

“They calmed down when they saw us, but wanted to attack Dark, that's cause they know we're safe, but last time any of us saw Dark he was trying to kill us.” Red explained.

“Hm, that would make sense. Reacting based on memories.” Dark mumbled.

“But they still seem out of it, and how do we even fix this!?” Blue asked, voice full of worry.

“They seem to have been forced together. Their codes overlap a bit, they would have too or it wouldn't work at all. But part of it doesn't go together. They're unstable, if we leave them like this for too long, they could basically implode and stop existing. Delete themself in a way.” Dark said.

“... what?” Asked Green.

“Ugh, they've fused but it isn't safe and they could die if they aren't unfused soon.” Dark said sharply.

“Oh… fuck.” Green swore.

“Green!” Blue hissed, prompting an eye roll from Green.

“Second and Chosen are gonna die if we don't find a way to help and your mad about me saying fuck?” Green asked, staring at Blue.

“It's just unnecessary but whatever.” Blue sighed.

“I know who we should get help from.” Yellow said suddenly.

“Who.” Dark asked.

“You won't like this Dark, but we need to get Alan's help.”

Chapter Text

Hey everyone! This isnt a chapter but it will be giving a brief explanation of why it hasnt been updated and the schdual for moving on!

I am so sorry that there has basically been radio silence for the fic for a while! Ive been really stressed lately and when unwinding jist never get around to writing, my motivations gone down and I havent had many ideas for things to hallen moving on.

Now, Im not saying that im discontinuing the fic, Im just say that there may be times where there wont be chaoters for a super long time, or multiple im qhick succession. Ive just had a lot going on in my personal life and my mental health has taken quite the toll.

I hope to give you all an official chaoter soon, but I litteraly cant promise anything as I just have no idea to when ill get around to finishing it, I really wish I could do this way faster and not have to waste time but I mentally cant finish this for a while.

Sorry if that doesnt make sense bur I just wanted to give everyone a quick update and explanation on whats happening

See you all in whatever comes next! Thank so much for your support so far and thank you ×10 for all your patience! <3

Chapter Text

“No.” Dark glared.

“We have no other option. Would you rather have Chosen and Second die a merged monster, or fix this before it's too late?” Yellow asked, with a lot of confidence in his voice despite talking to his ex-murderer/a mass terrorist.

“We can't- I don't- I just don't trust him.” Dark said, holding his ground.

“Well you may not be we do and Chosen has even started chilling out with him, so my question stands.” Responded Yellow.

Dark simply glared, scoffing before turning away from him. Meanwhile, the others and Chosond (dubbed that by Red) sat there. Chosond simply stared off into space as the other three watched in awe as Yellow shot down every one of Dark's reasons to not go to Alan.

“But what if-” Dark started but was cut off by Yellow shoving him in the face.

“Well that settles it. Green, Blue, help our little friends please. Red, help me with a certain spider back here.” Yellow directed.

Everyone just stared for a moment before hopping into action. Green and Blue gently coaxed Chosond to stand up, holding it in place while waiting for the others. Red nervously walked over to Dark who was pouting.

“Sorry Dark, but we don't have any options other than to talk to the person who made you three.” Yellow said, putting his hands on his hips.

“Yeah, I know… I just don't want to be around him or have him touch Cho.” He scowled.

“You don't have to be in the same area with him! You can stay on our website until Alan's finished or we can let you on one of our minecraft worlds?” Red suggested.

Dark though for a moment. Not a bad offer he decided, but he wanted to stay with Chosen. But when they get unfused, Dark might be the last thing the both of them want to see… he sighed.

“Fine. I'll stay on your website until he leaves.” Grumbled Dark.

“Good, now, the quickest way back to the PC is through the net, but we have to fly there… I can give you three elytras, I'll use the staff, and Dark can already fly and is the only one who might be able to carry those two.” Yellow said, talking half to himself.

Chosond growled at Dark. Dark looked on the verge of crumbling into a pile of anxiety and unidentified emotions. (Definitely not sadness. He isn't upset that Chosen is so aggressive against him, definitely. Not sad at all.) Blue soothed it and it relaxed a bit. Still eyeing Dark uncertainly.

But they were running out of time and had to go. Viridian had been lost for now but could be gaining on them every minute. Not to mention Chosond was becoming more connected by the minute. They had to leave now. So carefully, Dark grabbed onto the back of it's arms while the four younger sticks kept it calm until he was in the air. Yellow quickly gave Red, Green, and Blue elytras and a stack of rockets. Then he hopped on the staff and they were off.

It was a bit difficult to keep his grip of Chosond while in the air, but he didn't dare drop it. And only a little while later they spotted the way into Alan's PC. Swooping in, Dark was tense with the fear of coming face to face with him. But he didn't let it show, or at least not obviously. The end of the tunnel came into view, and he shut his eyes. Pretending that all this was, was his time leaving the PC, and that Chosen was right there, but not as this thing.

As Chosen. As his friend. As his brother.

Chapter Text

Viridian grumbled, the group had gotten away with his weapon. If he wasn't careful, then they might figure out how to mess with all his hard work. If they managed to reverse everything he'd been doing he would have the heads of those damned hockey sticks. But that didn't matter now. There were two sticks that interfered and now had to face consequences.

The two sticks had fought against his guards and delayed them long enough to make them just miss the weapon. He got annoyingly close to catching them and probably would've if the younger purple one hadn't put his lead officer in a choke hold. He'd see to it that the guards in the fight got medical treatment when he could afford planning time. Nothing was too serious other than the ones killed already so it could wait.

The dull orange one could be dealt with first, he was sure the adult would be easier to talk with than the annoying teenager. Besides a few threats go a long way in the world of blackmail. And he knew how to blackmail alright. A smirk crossed his face as he stepped over to the room where the dull orange stick was.

“Hello intruder.” He greeted, the stick scowled at him. “You have disrupted private matters. Do you understand what that means?”

“Your private matters were illegal and unethical experimentation on unwilling sticks who did not consent nor agree to anything regarding the matters of the circumstances.” The stick growled.

“Someone knows his legal stuff huh?” Viridian chuckled.

“I took law classes in college. Where did you put Purple?” the stick responded.

“The kid? Oh, they're next door. But what really matters right now is how you would like to deal with our little situation here.” He sat down and leaned his head onto his hand while smirking at the rage on the stick's face.

“If you leave now, and never set foot within 3 miles of the building, as well as never speak of what happened here ever again, unless to me or my men, you can go free! However, if you don't… I have… other ways of silencing sticks.”

“You're sick.” The orange stick spat, malice filling his voice.

“I'll leave you time to think. Don't worry, I won't hurt the kid… if you cooperate.” With a final smirk he shut the door, feeling the intense gaze of the stick behind him fade as he turned and walked to the next door down.

As he opened it, he saw the purple stick struggling in the binds that held them to the chair. They looked up at the noise of the door, and just like the orange one, started scowling. These sticks were hilarious! Looking at him like they had any say in this. The only say they had was whether to cooperate and make things easier or just choose the hard route, either way a win for him.

“Hello there, Purple was it?” he knew the answer was yes, the stick didn't respond anyways. “Lovely to meet the stick who put my head guard into a choke hold in person.”

“I'd do it again, but preferably you'll be the one choked next time.” The kid smirked, a confident smirk of someone who had a plan. He could shoot ideas down quickly.

“Now, now. If you get too hasty, something might happen. Y'know, I'm only here because I'm giving the adult space to think about my offer.” He turned away slightly watching Purple out of the corner of his eyes 

“MT? What offer would MT ever want to take from you?” Purple sneered. He took note of the name.

“Ah, well, I suppose deciding whether to let me do my business or risk you being… dealt with, can make someone reconsider.” He watched Purples eyes widened and face paled as realization set in.

“You're going to kill me?” They whispered.

“Oh I won't, but you might make some wonderful bait don't you think?” He laughed as the kid's face somehow turned paler. A beep on his transmitter, the orange stick, or MT, was ready to talk.

“Lovely talk but I must go now. Next time I enter here, it'll go one of two ways. Let's see which one, hm?” He laughed as he shut the door.

He may not have his weapon anymore. But it wouldn't be long until everything got back on track.

Chapter Text

The group tumbled out of the tunnel, everyone landing in a tangled mess of limbs. Dark stood up first, bringing Chosond along with him. His hands were stuck firmly locked onto its arms and he had to force himself to relax a bit. Part of him wanted to grab and hurt, to tear and claw, he focused on how the desktop had changed since the last time he'd been there instead. As the others wobbled to their feet next to him he shifted away from the group a bit, not wanting to be the main view when he showed up.

As if on cue, the familiar sound of a mouse sliding sounded throughout the PC. The cursor loomed over the group and Dark had to mentally repress his flinch. The four younger sticks greeted the cursor gratefully, even Chosond seemed okay around it. He didn't dare look over to the left and see the slightly distorted person sitting. The one who made him. Who created his very existence. The one who caused him to lose everything. And the one who might be able to help him get it back. 

The notepad opened up and the cursor began to type.

“Hi everyone, could someone explain why both The Dark Lord and a glitch are on here? I am confused and a bit concerned!” Was typed.

Oh right. To him he was just The Dark Lord. The villain. The one made only to oppose and destroy. The one made to kill Chosen. Not Dark. Not the one who wanted peace. Not the one who wanted to live. Not the one who wanted Chosen safe and happy. He knew he was nothing more to him but it still hurt. He wasn't that anymore, sure felt like it sometimes though.

Yellow hopped up onto the notepad and began typing himself. But honestly Dark didn't want to be near that thing anymore. He almost wanted to jump up to grab it, then throw it to the ground and smash it repeatedly. He shook away the thoughts as best as possible. He cautiously tapped Green on the shoulder, backing up almost instantly though, like he was trying to live up to the nickname and disappear into the dark.

“Can you show me to your website? I don't… want to be near him anymore.” He mumbled.

Luckily Green seemed to get the message despite how quiet it was. Green leaned over and whispered to Red what he was doing then they were on their way. Green led him behind the notepad and over to a different window. One that was open and running at all times. A small intrusive thought wondered what would happen if he closed the tab. Would the sticks disappear? Would they reset? Would they fully die? He shut that train of thought down soon after that.

“You okay?” He jumped, startled out of his thoughts, looking over at him Green looked a bit… concerned? Huh.

“Yeah, yeah, ‘m fine. Just… thinking…” He trailed off.

“Whatcha thinking about then?” Green asked.

“... you ever get intrusive thoughts? Like ones that tell you to do bad or violent things for no reason?” He asked, timidly. He honestly surprised himself at how small his voice sounded.

“Yeah, it's normal, some sticks got it real bad though. Red gets them pretty bad. It's left over from when he got possessed. Yellow a bit too but not as much. I think there's a difference between possession from a physical demon who runs a school and interacts with the world to the spirit of a small world inside a box when it comes to thoughts.” Green answered.

Dark stared at Green for a second (:P) in shock before deciding to ignore that for now.

“Yeah, I have it pretty bad too. I think that even though my main code to destroy was well, destroyed, some little chunks are left over. I still want to bite and tear sometimes.” And I'm scared what'll happen if I can't stop myself. I'm sorry, I don't want to hurt.

He couldn't choke the last part out. The words got caught in his throat. He knew Green wasn't mean, he wouldn't tease him and laugh and hurt. But he couldn't trust him. He hadn't trusted anyone but Chosen before. He trusted the cursor once, trusted the cursor to help him, to fight for him, to care about him if he succeeded in his job. He doesn't want to remember that.

 “Hey man, I may not still be the biggest fan of you, and I'm sure you can guess why, but it's fine. Try your best, okay? Knowing and recognizing that you don't want to is already a big step, so keep it up!” Green smiled at him, giving a small nudge.

Dark stared at him for a moment, before smiling ever so slightly back.

“Heh, thanks kid. Didn't expect any of you lot to be so smart.” He chuckled.

“Hey what's that supposed to mean!” Green acted offended but there was a smile on his face. It was genuine too. Huh, he really didn't expect this, when did this happen?

“Oh, here's the website. We have a guest room upstairs, it's up the second staircase and to the right if you want to go there. If not we also just have a table on the second (-^-) floor, one of us will come get you when we need, ‘kay?” Green explained.

“Yeah, and thank you.” He returned the nudge from earlier with a smile. He didn't have to force it.

“Great, see you later, Dark!” Green called before turning back and running off to the others.

He froze. Green was out of sight now. He knew that was his name, what he liked to be called. But something felt different about it now. Chosen had given him that nickname. Had explained to him that he was more than the villain. He didn't want to think about that right now. He walked up the stairs and to the table beside it. He sat down and shut his eyes.

He needed to think. Hadn't Green been skeptical of him not too long ago? He'd caught the glances at him while they were walking or talking. How did he manage to make the kid genuinely smile? Why'd he share advice and try to help? After everything the kid still tried to help him. He didn't deserve this. But when did he deserve anything? He wasn't like Green, someone who hadn't done anything like him, who hadn't been made to destroy.

But why did it matter? Why did it matter that he was and Green wasn't? If Green smiled with him and cursor forbid trusted him, wasn't that his choice? He needed a nap, his head hurt from all the loops his mind was doing. He needed to shut down for a bit. He could deal with everything when he woke up. Dark sighed, and shut his eyes. Hopefully when he woke up Chosen would be normal and waiting to talk. Hopefully.