Work Text:
"you killed them, Malroth! YOU! Nothing whets the appetite more than a few freshly sacrificed souls, would you not agree?"
He couldn't believe the sight in front of him, All his friends- lulu, anessa, Rosie!- everyone was dead on the floor..
"I killed them? No... You liar! I would never... Never..."
They were- are his friends! He wouldn't do this! Right?
"Oh, but you did. Pity them not--the fools are more useful in death than they ever were in life. They died so that you may be reborn. It is an honour barely comprehensible to such base creatures as they."
This wasn't his fault! He wouldn't have done this to them, he can't have! It.. it's not his fault..
"You... You tricked me!"
It was hargon's fault, he did this!
"I'll make you pay for this... With your life!"
The coward responsible for this finally showed his face, smiling as he mockingly opened his arms, daring Malroth to strike, and strike he would. With the full force of his rage he charged and bashed his club straight through the monster!- only for the illusion to fade..
"Acorn!? How did you...!?"
Before him instead was his builder-his best friend-acorn, her arms were extended similar to how hargon was taunting him, but he could see what she was trying was anything but, a hopeful look was on her face, a small smile so different from her usual big dopey one. It didn't stay for long as pain forced it's way onto her face, getting rid of any smile as she fell to the ground, her body succumbing to his attack.
"No! I never meant to..."
He dropped his club-the one she made for him-and quickly tried to fix his mistake, arms stretched downward to her corpse- no! No she wasn't dead, she had to be okay, he shook her limp body, tears spilling out of his eyes
"Acorn! Get up! It's not funny! I can't... I didn't do this, please. I can't have done this again..."
It was his fault. He couldn't control himself, he should have remembered, he should have done anything else! He did this to her, the master of destruction did this!-
"Malroth... Why are you crying?"
He almost stopped breathing, opening his eyes he saw her, she was looking up at him, she was alive! Her arm reached up and he quickly and eagerly grabbed it, reassuringly rubbing the back of it with his thumb
"Acorn! You're gonna be okay, I'm here. I'm gonna fix this, I swear-"
Her hand suddenly gripped his tightly, painfully holding on with a death grip, as he looked down at her again he saw that this time her eyes were bleeding, she looked battered and beat as she started laughing
"Why are you sad? You did this, Malroth. You wanted this, did you not? You should be happy"
This wasn't right... That isn't acorn, she was smiling but it wasn't her dopey smile, it was twisted and morphed into something else
"Acorn? What's... This isn't funny! I didn't... I..."
She was standing now, he could fully see what his wrath had done to her, he didn't dare look at his handiwork across her body any longer, he tried to look away but his builder-no, this fake pulled his face to look at her
"Come now, master of destruction, look me in the eyes before you sacrifice me. You did it moments before, you can do it again! I believe in you, Malroth. Kill me. Become what you're destined to be"
Tears spilled out of his eyes as whatever this was spoke just like she did, using her dopey smile to encourage her own end, this wasn't right... This was... A nightmare.
And just like that, he was jolted up, his bed cold and wet from his sweat, no longer in the blood soaked void but now in his room, his shared room with- immediately he's out of bed, rushing to the other side of the room to see... Acorn, sleeping peacefully on her side of the room, panic filled him however as she layed still, the blanket covering where the wounds he made would be.
Without a moments hesitation he pulled the blanket off. she shuddered slightly at the cold air as he did so, he sighed in relief as he saw her uninjured and fine. He was shaking, he did it again... He hurt his builder again, that Could have been her this time, hargon might have done that for real this time, he couldn't let this happen again.
After a few seconds of terrifying silence he slowly got into bed next to acorn, holding her close, feeling her breathing and her warmth. She was alive, he hadn't killed her, he had to make sure that that would never happen to her, he had to protect her. He had to protect her from himself, he held her close as he finally drifted to sleep again, unaware of the small builder pulling him closer and hugging him back
"Oh Malroth.. it's okay. I'm here.."