Chapter Text
Everything that had just happened in the past few hours made no sense.
“It landed on green. You won your bet,” Parrot said, slowly.
Reddons shrugged. “I did.”
Parrot stared down at the roulette machine, which sat damningly on emerald green. “But you let them go,” he finished. The enslaved mining city that was supposedly one of Reddoon’s main sources of income had been freed on a whim.
Actually, now that Parrot thought more deeply on it, nothing from the past few weeks made any sense.
The vault they had come to steal from didn’t exist, it was a trap. None of Reddoon’s vaults had ever been protected, actually, despite the fact the city was crawling with guards. All of the buildings were empty and lifeless. Capital city was really just a painted, cardboard facade, with nothing of true value behind it.
Why, then, do any of this? What was Reddoons trying to achieve? How was this profitable to him at all?
Even as Reddoons began to explain, there were gaps that didn’t fill in Parrot’s brain. “I may be a greedy man, but it’s not always about diamonds, Parrot,” he said. “There’s more to life– there’s more valuable assets than diamonds. As of recent, you three. You guys stepped up to the plate. You organized an entire rebellion, essentially. You guys were the ones who did all the heists and you were the ones who tried to rival the guards. That is valuable.”
Mining city was valuable. Every player in it, who had worked so hard for their freedom, and stood by Parrot even when they were being interrogated on who had stolen from the vaults– they were valuable. Loyal. Strong, in their own way.
“I mean think about it. If at any time you three left the rest of the group, they would’ve been completely doomed. I mean they could have died today. I’m just making a point, that they’re worthless.”
Luigi had been valuable.
Clearly, Reddoons did not share his viewpoint, ignoring Parrot’s piercing glare to straighten his back and smooth out his suit jacket. “Are y’all ready?” he asked.
Somehow, Parrot’s frown deepened. “For what?”
“Yeah,” Wifies responded in his stead.
What?
He whipped his head to the side. Wifies looked as calm as always, expression stern and eyes set forward. Steady. Assured of himself. Usually, Parrot would find that comforting. Right now, when Parrot had no idea what was going on, and Wifies was answering questions as if he did, he only found it more unsettling.
“Come on. You guys are late.” Reddoons turned, gesturing for both them and the guard to follow. Wifies had already started walking as well.
Realising his friend was already halfway out of the building, Parrot hurried to catch up, his brain still lagging behind. “Wifies, what do you mean yeah?”
“What else could he be trying to say?” Wifies half smiled, talking like the answer was obvious. “There’s only one thing he could want. The city served its purpose.”
Once they were outside, Reddoons dismissed the guard, and continued leading them to… Wherever he was leading them, on his own. “You guys ready?” He asked once again.
“Never been a choice, has it,” Wifies remarked.
“It really hasn’t.”
Parrot was becoming more and more frustrated as time went on, and he continued to be left in the dark. Usually, it was him who was one step ahead, coming up with plans to get them out of impossible situations. The sudden switch up was… disorienting. He didn’t like the feeling of not knowing something. At all.
“Wifies, what are you saying, bro?” Parrot pressed, wanting nothing more than a straight answer.
“Why else would you think he’d keep Dean?” Wifies answered his question with a question. Notably, not a straight answer. “There’s only one person Dean is valuable to. Well, besides us,” he added.
Reddoons didn’t look back at them, but nodded all the same. “Quite astute, Wifies.”
Neither Parrot’s enemy nor his best friend were telling him anything. It was beyond frustrating, bordering on aggravating, but the only way he could get his answers was to just go along with everything, and pray that Wifies had a plan. Parrot definitely did not. The thought had him following closer behind, shadowing Wifies as if his friend could somehow shield him from whatever was about to happen.
Reddoons led them through Capital City, into what looked to be a sort of public garden, paved walkways lined with bushes and covered by trees. It would be a nice area to relax in, if not for their looming doom.
“Y’all are gonna like… is this an introduction? We’ll see,” Reddoons mused, before slowing to a stop.
They had arrived at a more open, plaza like area, with a set of steps leading up to a rather imposing building. That wasn’t important. The most imposing figure was the person standing on those steps, flanked by guards on both sides.
“Is that who I– is that who I think it is?” Dean stuttered.
Parrot swore could hear a smile in Reddoons’ voice, as the man spoke. “It may just be,” he said.
Dean instantly tried to make a run for it, bolting down one of the plaza’s connecting paths.
“Dean, come back,” Wifies commanded calmly, even as Reddoons shoved them forward. “It’s fine. He would have killed you already if he wanted to.”
The guy hesitated, looking back at them, before slowly trudging back. Wifies’ statement wasn’t comforting at all. However it was likely true, and enough to convince Dean that running away from four fully geared guards was probably a bad idea.
With a bit of pushing from Reddoons, all three of them stood before the person who truly owned Capital City, someone even Red answered to. It was the same person they had saved Dean from all that time ago. The one who had taken over Parrot and Wifies’ civilization. The leader of the Invisible Mafia, Ashswag.
“These are the guys,” Reddoons introduced them. “The ones who have been uh, taking the diamonds.”
Ash didn’t spare him a second glance. “That’s enough from you.”
“You–” Reddoons stopped himself. “...Alright.” He took a step back, letting Ash take control of the conversation.
Finally, Ash did something unexpected. He smiled. “Congratulations.”
“On what?” Parrot asked, suspicious of his intentions.
“On conquering your fear. Freeing those that you wanted to free. For owning up to what you believe is right. Isn’t that what this is all about?” Ash held out his hand. “Come closer.”
“Why?” Parrot stood his ground. “Is this about Dean?”
The smile on Ash’s face fell, becoming something more thoughtful. Contemplative. It made sense, considering Ash likely considered Dean a traitor, despite blackmailing him into the mafia in the first place.
“Dean… Dean is showing me a face of his I haven’t seen before. In fact, the fear– the conquering of fear you three have just shown me, gives me an idea.” With that, the mafia leader’s grin was back. “You three would be really useful in the mafia.”
Immediately, Parrot dismissed the idea, telling Ash just how little he thought of the man’s mafia. “Who are you bro? Ultimate yapper two thousand?” He laughed.
Any group that used fear as a means to control people was not one Parrot could respect. They had seen firsthand, with Dean, exactly how the mafia worked. Ash’s reaction to Parrot’s dismissal, however, was strange. Rather than get angry, or even annoyed, Ash paused, seeming to choose his next words carefully.
“Do you know what the mafia’s goal is, Parrot?” Ash asked.
For a second Parrot thought that was a rhetorical question, but Ash’s silence afterwards said otherwise. “To control people?” he said, because it was obvious. “To control the server, and everyone in it, by making them afraid for their lives?”
“You’re partially right,” Ash agreed. “And very much wrong. Fear is control, yes, fear is how I achieve my goals. But fear is not the goal of the mafia. It is not what we are working towards, not the cause of our mission. No. That cause is something far greater.
“Then what is it?” Parrot asked impatiently.
Ash rubbed his hands together thoughtfully. “Do you remember that exploiter… What was it, Spoke?”
Did Parrot remember Spoke? The same person who destroyed the Wonders, and chunkbanned his best friend? “I do,” he answered.
“I was the one who defeated him,” Ash proclaimed. “I took his allies into custody, and removed him from the gameboard, for the betterment of the server. That is what the mafia is here for. That is our purpose.” The mafia leader spread his arms out dramatically as he explained. “To create a fairer, juster world.”
“You enslave people,” Parrot said, bewildered. “You coerce them into joining your little– mafia, and then blackmail them into staying!”
The mafia leader just shrugged. “Of course. There are sacrifices that must be made for the greater good, because that is how this server works. To think anything can be accomplished without hard, brutal power, is naive. I’m sure you understand,” he said sympathetically. “Besides, it’s not as if I’m forcing them to work for me. They have a choice on whether they want to rank up. But, Parrot, they understand my mission. They learn, over time, why the mafia exists, and why it has to exist. Right, men?”
All the guards flanking Ash nodded, almost in sync, like they’d done this a million times before. They probably had. Even with how little Parrot knew about him, he was starting to catch just how egotistical the guy was. Definitely the type to surround himself with yes-men who only agreed and did as he commanded.
The worst thing though was… Parrot did understand where Ash was coming from. There was a reason Parrot had made their civilization so far out on the server. As soon as the Zam Empire lost even the smallest grip on their indomitable power, the entire city had been decimated. Clownpierce was untouchable and feared because he was powerful. Even now, Parrot and Wifies were about to be on the run once again, because they didn’t have the power to do anything else.
That was, they would be on the run again, unless they joined the mafia.
Ash clapped his hands together. “Tell you what, I’ll even toss in some benefits! If you join the mafia right here, right now, I will immediately promote you.” He was smiling, so assured in himself that he didn’t seem to doubt he would get what he wanted.
One of the guards stepped forward, handing Parrot a potion. Invisibility.
“I’ll give you a choice,” Ash said. “Make the right investment. For yourselves, and for the server.”
While Parrot had initially been ready to run, or even die before joining the mafia, now he began to second guess himself. Ash– to an extent– seemed to genuinely believe he was doing what was best for the server. He thought he was bringing peace through control. He had even taken down Spoke, who Parrot himself had seen only acted in his own best interest.
Parrot had always wanted to help people. Throughout all of his time on Unstable, that had been his goal. He went through all those trials to find Spoke’s “Secret” because he believed it could change the server forever, for better or worse, and feared what would happen if he didn’t. He attempted to build a safe civilization where people who sought refuge from conflict would finally be able to live freely. Even here, in Capital City, these past few weeks had all been spent working to free the miners Reddoons had enslaved.
In the end, however, Parrot had always failed. Time and time again he had failed. The Secret had never existed, and he had to spend the next months atoning for his mistakes and breaking out the unfairly chunkbanned players. The civilization had been taken over after he had failed to protect it. The miners had only been freed because it was all a ploy, a trap built to lure him in. Every single time he attempted to save the server he had failed because he lacked the power to do so. Ash was offering him that power, now. All he had to do was take it.
There was a ping from Parrot’s communicator, which he checked out of the corner of his eye.
[Wifies whispers to you: Parrot, whatever you do, I won’t let you die]
[Wifies whispers to you: I promise]
The tight ball of fear in Parrot’s throat loosened, just a bit. Wifies had a plan. If everything came crashing down in the worst way possible, Wifies would get them out. All Parrot had to do was make his decision.
Despite Ash’s self righteous monologuing, it was obvious the mafia was imperfect. Even if those were his true ideals, and Ash was doing what he thought was right, that didn’t mean he was right. However, if Parrot joined, he might be able to make changes from within, and use the mafia’s power for the right reasons. He could help guide them in the right direction. Change would be difficult, and come at a cost, but it would all be for the greater good.
A glaring issue with that plan was Dean. Their friend was absolutely terrified of Ash, and Parrot didn’t want to put him through something he had worked so hard to escape. That would just be cruel. If they were joining the mafia, Dean was not coming with them– they would have to split.
[You whisper to Wifies: can you get dean out of here?]
Rather than asking how or why, or even giving an explanation on what his plan was, Wifies messaged Parrot back a single word.
[Wifies whispers to you: Okay]
And Parrot trusted him.
Parrot grabbed Wifies’ hand, so he wouldn’t lose him while they were invisible. “We’ll join you,” he announced. “But only on two conditions.”
“And those are?” Ash asked, sounding mildly annoyed, but willing to hear them out.
Parrot took a breath. “One–”
[You whisper to Wifies: now]
“--You don’t go after Dean.”
With the familiar vwoop of an enderpearl, Dean was gone. One of the guards stepped forward, but Ash put a hand out to stop them. Parrot could feel Wifies lean in a little closer. So that was his plan, then. He had asked someone to pull their stasis chambers, anticipating something like this might happen.
“And two, we stay together. If you’re gonna promote us it’s gonna be to the same rank,” Parrot finished, gripping Wifies hand tight.
Ash tipped his head to the side, and grinned. “I think that’s a fair deal. Don’t you, Red?”
Reddoons shrugged. “Whatever you say.”
That was… surprisingly easy.
“So we’re just in? Just like that?” Wifies questioned, similarly suspicious.
“Just like that,” Ash said simply. “Come on, men. We have a long walk back to headquarters.”