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Infernus was falling.
The castle Cynnika meticulously built with her allies was crumbling down piece by piece, killing quite a lot of people as they fell down. The gruesome sight of people being impaled on falling rusty chains and soldiers tripping into the downward lava would be something none of the survivors would forget easily, if at all.
It didn't matter, thought. All of those dead people suddenly disappeared with the realisation that he had gotten away again.
Saps wanted to be sick. He could even think his name, how was he supposed to kill him?
Then he saw him, running down the side of the volcano chugging down what could only have been a fire resistance potion and throwing himself in the lava pits that had formed below. Saps ignored Schpood yelling for him to stop and just ran.
It wasn't enough, it would never be. Not when he was better than him in everything, especially escaping. Saps wished he could do the same with his feelings, hate him until everything that was left in his memory was a blurry face where once his best friend stood.
Saps barely recalled ending up in the wasteland that was the desert behind the volcano, the wind so strong that it was hard to see as all the sand and debris flew messily in the air.
"Flux! You fucking coward, you can't even face the consequences of your own fucking actions!" He screamed until his voice was hoarse and his throat dry. He stayed there until night, until the sandstorm had passed and he'd searched every inch of that desert.
"Saps!" Schpood catched up with him, his expression not being the one of someone who finally took down their biggest enemy.
"He's gone- he got away again." He told the emperor still out of breath.
"I know, the Cass Coalition has scouts all over the island both on and underground. He's not leaving this place unnoticed but right now we have bigger problems."
"No, I have to find him."
"I'm serious. Come with me or you die." There was an urgency and desperation in his voice Saps couldn't ignore. They made their way to what was now nothing more than a pile or stone floating on top of a volcano, the bridges connecting to the edges looking dangerously fragile and it left him wondering how it was even able to sustain the weight of so many people.
All of the remaining, alive leaders were standing in the main room, their faces looking as pale as ghosts. Cass stood at the centre, in front of what once was Cynnika's throne, her face seeming defeated despite the win they had just hours before.
"Attention everyone" She spoke loudly and clearly, as if she were the only person in the room. She was a natural leader, Saps always envied her that.
"Infernus is defeated, however we have a bigger enemy to fight now." Legacy handed her a leather bound journal with a gold C on its cover, leaving little room for interpretation for the owner of it.
"Queen Cynnika lied to us. She knew that the volcano was going to erupt, this castle was supposed to be a safety bunker so her kingdom would be the only survivor and she could have Island 1 to herself. Based on what she wrote we have less than a day before everyone who stays here dies." She held up the journal, her voice not faltering once.
"Island 2 is big enough for all of us, but we need to go. Every leader will be responsible for the evacuation of their own people and I have already sent soldiers scouting the area for anyone left. Some of the Infernus survivors are set on staying, don't try to change their mind, we tried;" Her voice broke on the last bit, the thought of leaving anyone behind eating her insides but she knew that her people were and always will be the priority. "Saps, are you coming with us?"
She turned to him, looking concerned as he didn't belong in any faction leaving him as a potential target especially now that he was gone.
"Westhelm will take care of him." Schpood put a hand on his shoulder, squeezing protectively almost daring anyone to question him. He knew Cass didn't fully trust him, but she didn't have time for diplomacy and she had faith he would keep his word.
"Alright," She said at last, "Everyone, start evacuating now before the water becomes unbearable even for our boats."
The leaders left the room one after the other, barking orders at their generals and some even disobeying Cass's advice and trying to persuade the Infernus survivors to leave yet they just wouldn't budge. They had faith that the volcano would spare them because of their devotion, they didn't know that that same faith would be their downfall.
Westhelm was one of the last to leave, mostly due to the large numbers but also because the emperor insisted on moving all of the most precious riches of his empire to Island 2 after firing multiple of his generals because they wanted to leave them behind ( and cursing them out while doing so ).
"Saps, come on." He told his friend, loading the last few rations they had left. Schpood looked confused as Saps remained still in his spot, his face looking just so fucking sad the emperor wanted to go find Flux right at that moment and throw him mercilessly in the Colosseum for hurting him.
"I'm not coming." He finally said.
"What? "
"I-" He hesitated, "I have to find him. I can't let him get away with everything again."
"He'll make it though like everyone else, we can hunt him down there. If he gets to Island 2 we'll know." Schpood tried to be rational about this, he really did yet if there was one thing the two of them had in common was their inability to let go of their feelings. He wanted to tie him up to the boat so he wouldn't be so stupid about his own life ever again.
"I know him, he'd rather die than be caught."
"So your solution is to stay and kill him?" Schpood almost yelled in disbelief, "Saps, you won't make it back."
"I know," He replied in a low tone like someone that had already long accepted his fate, "Don't try to change my mind, please."
Schpood just stared at him, almost waiting for the other to say that it was just a cruel prank he had decided to pull in an inappropriate moment. Saps thought, didn't strike him as the type. The latter stepped back and bowed as it was in the kingdom's custom as a farewell to the emperor, right before looking up smiling.
"Glory to Westhelm." He said. Schpood laughed too on the verge of tears, not knowing if he wanted to punch or hug him.
"You know, that's the last thing both of my seconds in command told me before they-" He trailed off, his fists and jaw clenching as the wound from their loss still stung.
"Then let's keep the tradition going." Saps smirked, then started walking away slowly. Some goodbyes didn't need to be spoken out loud, some his in between lingering looks and familiar phrases and gestures in unwelcome scenarios where you can almost taste the cruelness of the farewell.
"Saparata!" Schpood called after him one last time, "If you ever have change of heart-"
"I won't."
"If you do, Westhelm will always be home to you." He said softly, trying to control his voice from breaking. Even if Saps did change his mind the water by then would be impossible to travel even by boat. This would be the last time they saw eachother and they both knew it.
"Thank you, Schpood." Saps said quietly, begging that the man had heard as the Westhelm boats started sailing for Island 2. His home, to which he'd never return.
How did Saparata spend the last day of his life? Getting loaded, obviously.
He mined until the heat coming from the ground became unbearable and took everything that had been left behind that could help him. He stumbled upon some people from time to time, yet they more often times than not resorted to ignore him and go back to praying to the volcano. The day was spent in a blurry rush of trying to gather as many supplies as possible and looking for him. The sun was setting and so we're his hopes of finding him.
Saps was desperate, he climbed as high as he could to try and locate those familiar dark hair and cocky smirk but all the people he located were unwanted strangers. As he was coming down from the yet another high cliff, a sign placed conveniently on the only accessible path down.
Colosseum?
He recognised the shaky and messy handwriting immediately and his heart sank. The ground violently shook; there had been some movement throughout the day but this was the worst one yet. He had little time to kill Flux, luckily he knew exactly where he would be.
He had never personally been to the Colosseum and only ever admired it from outside, he inside was exactly as Schpood described with stains of dried blood on the ground from all of the duels that had taken place there. Then, on the highest point, he saw him.
Flux was facing the sun setting, sitting on a makeshift stone bench he had quickly built. He hadn't noticed his former best friend staring at him from below, not yet.
Saps immediately sprung to action and open a nearby enderchest, containing all of the supplies he needed. He first took off his armour and swiftly drank an invisibility potion as to not alert the other of his presence, then wondered on how exactly was he going to go about this.
TNT was a viable option, but too risky of being seen and accidentally blowing himself up.
Classic one to one combat would be off the table, as Flux would probably just run away with the dozed on enderpeals Saps knew he always kept on him.
A drip stone trap, as satisfying and ironic it would be, would give him away instantly.
He ravaged through his enderchest once again, hoping for anything helpful until he saw it. A small heart-shaped stone, tucked away under weapons and food not quite ready to be forgotten yet. Flux had made two matching ones for the two of them on the first day, their own mirroring the other's appearance. Saps' was made of blackstone and amethyst, Flux's made of diorite and diamonds.
He picked up the stone and stared at it and it was almost as if the little thing was mocking him and right on cue, another violent earth tremor hit.
Why did he even want to kill Flux? They were both going to die anyway.
He slowly made his was up the Colosseum until he reached Flux's bench. He looked tired, his eyes red as if he had been crying and a blank expression staring ahead. He didn't have any armour on and every weapon he owned was scattered a few metres away from them except for that damn stone he held tightly in his hand. He was harmless, killing him now would be so easy, but he didn't. Saps was still invisible but held his stone in his hand as to make Flux aware of his presence.
"You actually showed up." Flux's voice broke, only a bit louder that a whisper.
"Can't say no to a friend, can I?" Saps replied, his voice softer that he had intended it, letting the effects of the potion wear off as he became visible again. Flux looked briefly at him, not daring to meet his gaze and then immediately went back to admiring the sunset.
Saps sat next to him, resting his head on Flux's shoulder just like they had done thousands of times in the early days when they were tired from building or mining all day long. He closed his eyes and pretended they were still there, Flux complaining about having to watch his best friend build even though they both knew he loved it and Saps getting immediately tired whenever they had to gather resources and using Flux as his personal walking pillow.
Flux didn't seem to react and Saps worried for a moment that he was going to pull out a sword and stab his chest until Flux leaned into him, his muscles relaxing even as the earth shook once again.
"I'm glad you changed your mind on killing me." He muttered. Saps didn't know why the volume of his voice was so low and frankly wasn't fond of it. Flux was made to be the loudest person in the room, attracting attention like a beacon in the desert and not an insignificant grain of sad, quiet and undisturbed.
"You were following me, weren't you?" Saps asked and the silence that followed afterwards was enough of an answer.
"I'm sorry." Flux said, louder this time. Saps didn't look up at him yet he was fairly sure that if he did, he would see tears streaming down Flux's face, mirroring his. Saps hummed, gripping his friend(?)'s arm tighter.
It was too difficult to pinpoint exactly where their relationship stood.
They were too much to be friends, not enough to be enemies and not enough to be at peace with eachother. Apart they were nothing and together tragedy.
All that thinking made Sap's head spin, so he just shut off his brain and let himself take Flux's hand and squeeze it tighter every time a tremor hit.
"I love you." Saps whispered, as the last rays of sun fell over them.
"You shouldn't." Flux deadpanned, almost surprised.
"But I do anyway."
They didn't say much for the last hours of their life, just made dumb observations on their surroundings and made fun of all the people they saw praying to the volcano to spare them.
"I love you too." Flux mumbled later into the night, making sure the other heard.
And as the merciless heat of the eruption hit them, it didn't even hurt.