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He doesn't really remember when it started, but he does remember where. The station for the metro, train station if you will. He was alone that night, he remembered that, one moment he was alone, the next… Something came out from the tracks and onto the platform, crawled… No, heaved itself.
It– no no, HE– He walks with a limp on his right leg, his left arm is practically missing once it hits the elbow, and the upper half of his face is always covered by hair, it looks kind of greasy, you could imagine why. He got to see this person's upper half of the face once, and he said “Yeah… Let's keep that covered…” “Wow, ok, rude.”
Do you remember Springtrap's eyes? That's what it reminded him of. He was torn to shreds literally.
And his hate never left, his grudge was never gone. Xandu watched him day in and day out never get better.
I mean… How does a ghost get better anyway?
He didn't really… Have a name? Xandu just called him Nameless, the two just kind of agreed. Or Namnlös or Anonym.
He just went through his online career with a shadow, literally, and as much as ‘Nameless’, we shall say, would tease and bully him…
Nameless was his biggest supporter.
“Oh, welcome back barcode!” He says, as if he didn't have the same damn problem. “Oh yeah, only I do that,” “Listen, you do it worse than me, I can scan you for a coke without having to scan the actual bottle! See it as a good thing!” Such a weirdo…
“I'm assuming you were useless and did nothing as per usual?” “I will have you know I protected your room from the bed monsters while you were gone!” He said, looking at Xandu upside down. “So nothing, could've used less words.” The red head nods and sits at his computer. “Fine, I'll stop doing that, see what happens then!~” Nameless sits on the bed criss-crossed.
It was strange.
“Will you ever get better at pronouncing things?” Xandu asks, “Hej! Din jävla… fan… Fuck you.” Nameless huffs and flips him off. “Not my fault I died– no, not even died, just straight got killed before I could actually perfect pronouncing.” He adds with a glare.
“Why do you make fun of me anyways? We're the same damn person!” Nameless's voice gets higher. “You make fun of me for self harm, I make fun of you because I'm better than you. It's a win-win!” Xandu shrugs without even looking at the poltergeist. “No, it's a lose-lose!”
Going through the years, life seemed actually somewhat tolerable despite how annoying Nameless was.
“So… What happens now?” He asks, looking over at a very tired looking Xandu. “We go dormant, I suppose. It was a dream of mine, after all.” “How long will it last?” “Forever, I hope… Well, a long time at least. I'd like to return again eventually but… This is nice.”
3 years.
Nameless waited patiently for 3 years. And in those 3 years, another formed. Another came around. “The fuck are you?” He asks, looking at the strange guy currently residing in HIS station. “I'd ask you the same thing.” He responds simply. This guy creeped Nameless out, he spoke with hardly any emotion, he was… Cold, cynical… He was venomous.
“You almost look like him…” Nameless mused, “Like who?” “Xandu… You've got the red like him, though you don't act like him…”
Unlike this guy, Nameless could leave this station, he'd often wave goodbye and board the train the stopped, and disappear with it. The guy never paid attention to how long he was gone, the first time he watched Nameless do it, he thought the ghost died…. again???
But then he returned. This one was… Too afraid to get on the train and see what happens, though he'd never admit that, much less to the annoying girl.
Nameless liked the girl, she was cool…She was badass… She was confident. She wasn't venomous, no more like poisonous… Don't ask what that means, Nameless doesn't know, it just… Works.
3 years.
Nameless eventually kind of wandered from the station, it was the venomous guy's now. He didn't mind, he liked going where he wished anyways.
But then it started crumbling, everything was crumbling. 3 years, he hadn't seen Xandu for 3 years. He suddenly returned to the station, this guy, who he never bothered to remember the name of, he seemed… on edge.
“Något fel?” Nameless asks, he looks over. “You said there was a guy with red like me, right?” Nameless nods. “I've been… Seeing someone with full red hair. I can't see that well, I'm essentially legally blind but… In the blur I can see it but… He's always on the far end,” He points across both sets of tracks to the other side of the station, “He never moved… He stayed on that side, but he's gotten closer… To the middle platform. He hasn't said a thing… Somethings happening, Ike is… falling apart.” The guy explains.
The red, he appears again. “There!” “Oh hey! Wait…” Nameless pauses, “Xandu…” “Yeah?” The red hair responds, Xandu. “What's happening.” It wasn't a question, it was a demand.
“I…” He looked down, and then the two were gone. The guy, the venomous one, he didn't know where they went. He didn't think he wanted to know either.
“I can't do it anymore.” Xandu says, “I'm… So tired.” Nameless nods, “Then stop.” “What?” “Stop. You have that option.” “But… Everyone, quilldren…” Xandu looks up, he WAS exhausted.
“I've told you what to do, you know what you need to do, you have the option. You have the option to leave, you have the option to return, I can't make you choose.” Nameless says, and Xandu nods. He knows, he knows what he needs to do but he doesn't know if he has the strength or energy to.
That day. That dreaded day.
Goodbyes are always the worst. I've never been good at them.
“Hey…” Nameless greets, the guy turns around. “Oh. Welcome back.” He responds coldly. “Someone would like to say goodbye, since they never had the chance due to… Circumstance.” Nameless says, and makes a gesture. There they are. Their eyes are red from crying, they look as tired as everyone else. “No more Evelands, huh?” They ask and the guy nods, “It had to end at some point…” “You say that as if you aren't upset at all?” They ask and he shrugs, “Why should I be? I was here most of the time, I wasn't attached to any of you.”
Fucking liar.
“But either way, I guess I'll entertain it.” He pats their head before pausing as they hug him. He was never keen on hugs, or any affection for that matter. “I miss you.” They said, “Goodbye, and take care… Killdren.” He said it so coldly, so simply, but it hurt. It hurt a lot.
But the way he said it didn't sound like it was ‘goodbye forever,’ usually goodbye's are forever, never a ‘see ya later’.
“Liar.” Nameless says simply when they aren't nearby, “It's best they believe I don't give a damn. It'll hurt less.” He says in response. “I don’t thing I ever got your name, or remembered…” Nameless comments. “... Eki. Just… Eki.” Nameless nods in understanding, “Hm… Interesting..” “Well? Don't be rude,” Eki says while crossing his arms. “Nameless.” “Excuse me?” “I'm just… Nameless. I've used that for decades now.” He says with a casual shrug.
“Decades…” “Yeah, I've been here far before you were even a concept.” Nameless grins and waves, “Vi ses!” He takes them to the next place. A library, and there she is.
“Well hej hej!” She greets with a smile, even she looks tired. “I have a visitor for you,” Nameless says as he walks over, pulling them out from behind him. “Ah… I wondered if I'd get to have you around one last time.” She says softly with such a kind smile. “Bye… I…” Their voice cracks, “I miss you,” “I'll miss you too, lovely.” She hugs you.
“Farewell, kära, and even if everything's been wiped clean, never forget me, never forget us. All of us. Even Eki.” She sighs softly and they nod. “See ya, Ivy…” Nameless smiles, it hurt for even him to say. “I hope it's a see you later… And on the chance it isn't… God morgon, god eftermiddag, god kväll och god natt.” It hurts. That hurts. A lot.
The last one. The last one and it's all over. The room is chaotic, everything's flying around, but he manages to quell it, “Stop wallowing. You need to say goodbye.” Nameless says as he trudges through the room, dragging them behind him. “What? I… Even after I left without a goodbye stream…?” He asks.
“Did you think you could make them hate and forget you? Fuck no.” Nameless tilted his head. Ike hugged them, he hugged them tight and he didn't want to let go. He regretted it but it was for the best, was it not? “I'll see you again soon… One day, maybe…” He says quietly, “Take your time, we've got an eternity.” They respond, “We'll be here. Be it 6 months, a year, 2… 3 years… We'll wait and the moment you return, we'll be here, we'll be waiting.” They continue, tears go down their face.
Nameless waited 3 years, if he can… So can they.
“They're gone.” “Not if you always remember them” He tells them as they return to where they came from. “Thank you…” They say quietly, “Now stop crying, he wouldn't want you to just wallow in sorrow. Keep moving, you'll be okay.” Nameless as he pats their head softly, “Just wait. Good things come to those who wait,” He gives a small smile and gives a little wave, and then he's gone.
Everyone waited, hell even Nameless didn't know what to do. Ike was gone, but Xandu was nowhere in sight. For a while.
So Nameless waited in his room. Patiently, as he had always done.
It gave him time to think, think about everything. The hate he had, the grudge, all of it. He should take his own advice, honestly.
“It's time to let go.” “HOLY SHIT?” Nameless jumps and falls to the floor, looking behind himself. “And here I thought you were gone?” It was Ike. “I'm still lingering, mostly seeing the things everyone's made to say goodbye, waiting for the letters. Once they come, then I'll go.” He says as he sits down. “It hurts. I know exactly what you're thinking about.” “Right… Since we're all the same person.” Nameless nods. “It'll never go away, and you don't need to forgive her. I wouldn't… But… You need to let go, you're falling apart because you hate her so much.” Ike says calmly, and Nameless nods, closing his eyes. “I know what she's done, it's horrible. She's killed the part of you and we only have him left. I won't ask how it works, I can't explain how Ivy or… Eki… Work…” “Are we all branches of him or…”
Or are they all branches of me?
The unfinished question.
“Letting go won't make ALL the pain stop, but… It can certainly help.” Ike says and Nameless nods. “It's about time I do… Almost a decade. God, where's the time gone?” He asks and Ike shrugs, “Not sure… It seems like just yesterday I debuted.” He responds with a light laugh.
“Will you ever go back?” Ike asks.
Back where? to what? Both are still figuring that out. “Not sure… I think I'm happy with Xandu being the one instead, it feels like my chapter ended ages ago.” He responds.
He'll go back, for him. It's time Xandu gets to rest for a while.
“See you again soon?” Ike asks, Nameless nods, “Yeah. I'll see you again soon.”
Nameless never really bothered to figure out how it all worked, how this universe worked, things are very strange, it always has been. But he had red highlights in his to remind himself.
He set a reminder. 6 months.
And those 6 months passed. He watched twitter, he watched everyone and he smiled, nobody forgot. Despite everything being wiped, no one forgot, and that was the power of content creation, of love, of fanbases.
“Anyone here?” He asks, floating above the bed. He's returned to how he's been for almost a decade. “Is it your turn now? Surely it's time for you to come back and take over… My arc ended ages ago, I shouldn't be leading the show, main character!” He called out, and Xandu peeked through the bedroom door. “And here I was thinking I'd never see your ugly ass face and your annoying self ever again, spoke too soon.” He said as he sat on the bed, looking up.” “You mean you didn't miss the selfcest jokes? You wound me!” Nameless gasps dramatically.
“You seem… Happier.” Xandu comments, “I could say the same to you.” Nameless points at the red head. “I've never seen you be willing to go back, you always stayed in this world.” “Well… Someone made me realize maybe it's time to let go, and maybe I should take my own advice. I took some time for myself, I forgot what it was like to hold a grudge over someone everyday, and think of different ways to hurt them. I feel lighter now.” Nameless explains, laying on the bed.
“In any case, Welcome back, Xandu.” “And Hello, again, to you too.”