Chapter Text
Ozo sprinted across boundless halls, the sounds of his frantic steps echoing through the glass walls. The surreal landscape behind the glass was mind boggling, but something called for him to rush somewhere, anywhere. He doesn't know where.
Spires, structures, all spawned randomly, crashing into eachother. There was one notable figure Ozo could make out; A robloxian with wings, a large black hoodie with yellow outlines on its seams. Eventually, he reaches the stairs and starts to climb up, bursting through the doors and there he saw it.
Voices echo throughout the destroyed Studio, yet ███████ pushed on. His ears rang, but his focus were all onto the Adversary. It was a helpless resolve, but ███████'s hope was immeasurable. It didn't matter ██w m██y t█me█l████ ██ h██ t█ ██ t██ro█h, ██████ w█n█ l█t ███ f██e█d█ ██ff█r a██ l█n██r.
It was such a pity █████ couldn't recognize him, and ██ saw it from the unfamiliar expression on Ozo's face. Yet, no words can be exchanged, many lives were already lost, and this ████████ is yet to start so ██'ll make the most of it.
Explosions boom across the shattered skybox, the deafening bursts of the artillery making it difficult to hear. Ozo was absolutely dumbfounded, stunned in place as he watched the winged person pierce through different buildings of the very city he lived in.
What the hell is happening?
The silhouette in the distance, of what seemed to be the yellow winged person's enemy was a spectacle to behold, yet Ozo felt nothing but shivers crawl down his spine. An enormous upside-down carousel, half way into turning upward. It spun so slowly because of its size.
Inside the gigantic merry-go-round were silhouettes, diluted by debris, who spun erratically. Each section had their own set of unique characters, yet all of them were bound to dishevel in an infinite loop.
███████'s wings fluttered weakly against the concrete, momentarily losing his consciousness. Ozo felt his body move at their own interval as he reaches out for them, “Don't give up!” The words slip past his lips before he could think them.
At first it looked like a helpless call, he was too far, yet before he registered his own actions, a burst of light suddenly beamed throughout. By then, the figure's battle spirit were sparked back on.
Ozo flinches awake, sitting up in a frantic shock. However, he seemed to have risen too fast, and quickly falls back as that burst of energy died out, replaced by a wave of nausea as he clutched his head.
"Fuuuuuuuck...." The pain throbbed harshly in his head, quickly reaching out for— something. He doesn't know either, covering his face from the blinding lights of the sun peeking through his curtains.
Ozo eventually reached for the curtains and brashly closes them, groaning as he finally recovers for a bit. He rubbed his eyes, before suddenly the door swings open and there goes the blinding lights.
"Oz!"
Jacob shouted, the older boy bursts through the door, which completely startled the younger one as he instinctively grabs a pillow and throws it at Jacob, screaming.
His older brother lets out an oof at the sudden throw, falling over.
"Oh— It's just you..." He huffed, taking a few shaky breaths. Jacob, on the other hand, sat up, upset because Ozo's throw was actually very hard. Felt like a rock, if anything. "...Sorry, Jacob."
"Mom says we have to go to school together." Jacob comments, reminding Ozo of today's start of school. As well as his, of course. "Alright... I'll get ready in a bit." He finally says, combing his fingers across his locs. This was going to be a long day.
Jacob rushed downstairs, to find his mom cooking breakfast. "Oh, Jacob." She turns to him, which the older boy waves. "Did you wake up your brother?" He nods. She smiles, "Good, good. Didn't I tell you not to scare him?" Jacob flinches, forgetting he accidentally scared Ozo.
"It's alright, dear. He's always been such a sleepy-head after all." She remarks, putting down the spatula as she grabs the pan, putting the now cooked food on the plate. Jacob only heads to the table, as his mom places the food down. As if right on queue, Ozo finally heads down, a towel around his neck still looking groggy.
"Moooorning mom," He mumbles, pulling a chair to take a seat on the table. Jacob had already put food on his plate, munching silently.
"Morning too, Ozzie." She greets. He slightly grimaces at his real name being uttered, sinking in his seat ever-so slightly. Ozo quickly puts his focus on the food on the table, his eye lighting up at the sight of the scrambled eggs.
Jacob gazed over towards Ozo, but no words come out his mouth. Ozo catches his gaze, licking his fork. "Oh. If you're gonna ask about dad, he said he's coming home in a week. Hopefully, anyway." He mutters that last part, averting his gaze. Luckily, Jacob doesn't catch it and only nodded, turning back to his food.
Ozo knew how close Jacob was to Dad, but he himself was more close to their Mom. He can't judge, after all. Everyone has different relationships with their parents. Eventually, the younger boy finishes his breakfast, and stood up, heading to take a bath now.
"You miss your dad, hm?" She looks over to Jacob, which he nods solemnly. "I miss him too. I'm sure he's working hard for us." She ruffles his hair, which he huffs in response.
Ozo puts on his shoes, Jacob standing over him as he waits for his younger brother. He finishes up tying his shoes, standing up with the strap of his bag hanging off his shoulder lazily. He glances over to Jacob, seeing the scarf drag around his shoulders haphazardly. "You... Gonna fix that?"
Jacob looks down at his scarf, then back a Ozo. With a huff, he tidies the messy scarf, looking a bit more presentable. As they're done with such, bursting out the front door, the two brothers sees Matt waiting by the door. They stop abruptly, before he could greet the shorter boy notices him first, he waves cartoonishly. "Ozz! About time!" Matt grins happily.
"Sorry, did I take too long?" Ozo smirked apologetically, which Matt shook his head to.
"Actually, I just arrived five minutes ago..." He admitted sheepishly than he'd like, rubbing the back of his neck. "This is... Jacob! Right?"
Jacob nods, looking away. "He's not the talking type." Ozo comments, patting his younger brother's head affectionately.
"It's alright! Wanna head to school now?"
"Sure, hope you don't mind Jacob." At that, Jacob snapped a glare at Ozo, tugging at a loc spitefully, earning a yelp from him.
"I swear, Ozo." Jacob mutters, letting go of the tugged loc as he crosses his arms infront of his chest.
Matt blinks dumbfoundedly at the two's banter, conflicted whether or not he should mediate.
"Don't worry about it." Ozo only says, before starting to walk. Jacob followed beside him, and Matt stammers a bit before following along.
"Err- If you say so." Matt sighs, feeling a tad bit guilty. At that, Ozo puts a hand around his shoulder, grinning widely.
"That's how older brothers are sometimes, ya know?" He tries to console, and Matt only pouts.
"If I was an older brother, I wouldn't treat my younger siblings like that." He says in a firm tone, closing his eyes.
Jacob, who was walking in front of them, could only glance back solemnly. Starting to regret a bit of his actions.
Ozo curls on his desk, already planning on going to sleep again. He flips his cap over to cover his face, already sinking into his arms. The sounds muffle so slightly, until—
"Alright class!" The teacher yells towards the class, startling Ozo out of his sleepy daze. He doesn't sit up, instead just groggily looks up from his arms.
"Before we start on our lesson, let us meet the new transferee," A boy with a black hoodie with yellow outlined seams enters the room, his hands clasped together nervously. "Would you like to introduce yourself?"
Ozo froze as he connects the dots. It didn't help that the other was staring right at him too, though he ordained a friendly smile, something about it felt so familiar.
He clears his throat, "I'm Brandon... It's nice to meet you all." He bows politely, before gently taking the marker the teacher kindly offered to write his full name on the board.
Matt glances over to Ozo, seeing his expression of horror. He reaches him with his foot to nudge him, raising a brow. "You know him?" He looks curiously, and he could see the other shake his head.
"No... Uh." Ozo stammers, looking back to the front to see Brandon looking right at him, yet the boy doesn't say anything as he walks to take his seat. Luckily, he was a little to the front. "I'll tell you later..."
Ozo's eyes never leaves the transfer student's, even as Brandon diligently listens to the lesson, that dream pops up into his head again. It was no doubt that person in his dream and the transferee were the same. But... That person had wings, Brandon did not.
Curiousity was practically prying at his nerves like crowbars, Ozo's leg bouncing repulsively the more he thought deeper into it. Recess eventually comes by, and there were many students flocking towards Brandon, curious for his backgrounds and such.
"Where do you come from?"
"That hoodie is so nice, where'd you buy it from?"
"Do you want one of my snacks?"
Brandon only nods politely, Ozo was too far to hear his responses, which frustrated him. He then sees Brandon put his hand on his forehead, letting out a breathless sigh.
"Ahh... I'm not feeling well. Can I head to the infirmary?" The surroundings students go nervous at his sudden words.
"Uhh... Who's the Nurses' Aide?" One of them asks, which Brandon answers-
"Isn't it Ozo?"
Ozo, in question actually froze up at the sudden mention of his name, but he quickly gathers himself. "O-Oh, yeah, yeah I am..." He peeps, standing up from his desk.
Brandon smiled politely as he stood up himself, already exitting the room. Ozo followed along, not expecting Brandon to just bolt out the room without even waiting for him!
The walk to the infirmary was silent, the only sound being their steps across the halls. Ozo clears his throat, "How'd you, uh... Know I was the Nurses' Aide?"
Without missing a beat, Brandon answers with an honest tone. "The teacher told me, of course."
Ozo chuckles lightly, rubbing the back of his neck sheepishly. "Right, right..."
He fidgets with the hem of his own hoodie, the silence deafening, the only sound being their steps that seemed to echo throughout the halls.
"I'm sorry for asking this," Ozo hesitates, tilting his head as he rubs the back of his neck. He can see Brandon subtly turn his head over his shoulder. "But... Have we met before?"
Brandon halts in his steps, Ozo almost bumping into him on the sudden stop in pace. Brandon felt his composure slip, and before he could stop himself, he turns around abruptly.
"Do you cherish the friends you have? the family you're in?"
Ozo blinks, before quickly stepping back, stammering. "I... Well... Of course I do." I mean, who wouldn't?
"Then promise me, Ozo," Brandon says his name like they were familiar, marching towards the other boy with an unreadable expression.
"If there ever comes an opportunity that seems too good to be true, no matter how tempting, don't give in to it."
As Brandon says that, he turns back around and heads to the infirmary by himself, leaving Ozo stunned in place.
"Whaaaat!" Matt takes a bite into his burger, perpetually muffling his next line of dialogue "He really said allat weird stuff to you?"
Ozo ruffles his own hair in frustration, still not touching his own lunch while Matt absolutely chows down on his. Jacob, who was seated next to him, looked curiously at him, as if wondering in the same way Matt was.
"Speaking of which-" Matt swallows, "What was that thing you were gonna tell me from earlier?"
He looked at Ozo curiously, which lets him retrace his original thought; the dream. How does he even start it without sounding crazy?
"I guess... This may sound weird, but uhh, I think I know him." The two boys stare right him. Flustered, Ozo quickly backtracks. "I-In a way! 'Cause like, I saw him in a dream. I'm certain of it. Except, like, he had wings."
Matt tilts his head, more confused than ever. He finishes last bits of his burger, licking his fingers in the process. "Wings? That's crazy..."
Even Jacob look at Ozo with concern. "It sounds weird, I know."
"Heard that stuff is like, foreshadowing. Or whatever!" Matt adds, which Ozo deadpans to. He knew the actual phrase, but didn't bother to correct the other.
"Ugh... Anyway. Jacob and I are gonna check out some videogames, wanna come along?"
Matt lights up. "Do I?!" Ah, figured.
Ozo then swirls the fork around the noodles, finally taking initiative to eat his lunch. "Right after I eat." He could see Matt visibly deflate from the corner of his eye, as well as Jacob who pulls up his scarf.
Brandon sprints across the empty parking lot, shotgun at hand as he pursues after the Granter. Even angelic in silhouette, Brandon was ruthless.
They could only run, barely able to dodge the harsh bullets of the shotgun. Their choices began to become more and more limited, that was until they saw line of connection.
"Help me."
Ozo immediately stops what he's doing, squinting his eyes as he looked around frantically. Was something calling for him? As seconds pass and nothing comes up, he goes on to return to shuffling through CDs, until-
"Ozo!"
The voice called again, and this time Ozo decides to actually listen for the voice, and Matt seems to notice Ozo's look of focus.
Before he could call out for him, Ozo suddenly broke onto a sprint, startling Matt. He looks back at Jacob, before he could chase after Ozo, he decides to give him a heads up.
"Meandozo'llbebackstayhereokaybyejacob!" He quickly shouts, breaking into a sprint after Ozo. Jacob blinks. Once, then twice before understanding as the words sink in. He turns his focus back on the CDs, a particular one catching his eye...
Ozo nearly slipped down stairs as he arrived at the empty parking lot, looking around for the voice. The sound of gunshots and a metallic screech, like something was thrown echoed desolately.
He felt fear hearing those, up until a halo-like figure slid through the concrete, riddled with blood and gunshot wounds.
"Ozo...." It called pitifully, its wings fluttering weakly against the pavement. Ozo dropped to his knees to the disfigured halo.
"Get away from that thing." A familiar voice yells, as Ozo looked up, he's suprised to see... Brandon? Not only that, but with his wings that curled behind his back timidly.
"Did you do this?" He hastily asks, taking the Halo in his arms cautiously. Brandon's expression hardens, his fists clenching at his sides. Ozo was surprised someone so gentle could be capable of ... this.
"That's none of your business..." His jaw tightens, taking cautious steps towards Ozo's cradled figure. "Drop that thing before it— Ack!"
Brandon's wing comes up to cover himself as the sudden gush of carbon dioxide is released at him, the foam obscuring his surroundings.
"Run, Ozo!" Matt yells, which breaks Ozo out of his daze as he stood up and ran towards the other boy. As the fire extinguisher finishes its fuel, Matt throws it towards Brandon before running with the other.
Brandon unfurls his wings, feeling the coldness subside, not until he can see the two run away from him. Before he could chase after them, the world distorts.
"Ugh... Now of all times?" He mutters, his wings folding behind his back before he goes on to chase the two. The world around them twists, as they enter an Entity's domain.
Matt and Ozo notices their surroundings contort, as they almost reach the exit, it disappears right before they grasp it. "What the hell-?"
"Where the hell are we??" Matt squints his eyes at this new scenery, watching as roots sprout from what used to be the parking lot.
The sound of a beating heart echoes faintly, though not physically present, each thump only beckoned nearer to the duo.
A branch sprouts from behind Ozo, spiking towards Matt. Ozo's eyes widen, unable to react in time until-
A hammer's hook came flying in before it pierced through Matt, the sound banging from the loud collision, which made both boys wince down.
"Oh crap! That didn't hit any of you did it?" A voice calls out, the hammer lodged into the dispersing branch recoil back towards this new figure. They catch it by the handle, walking towards the cowering two.
"Ha-ha, sorry for that." They laugh lightly. The hammer's interruption causes the distorted labyrinth to melt back into the real world. Before they could introduce themselves, Brandon comes on.
The two share cold glances, unbridled tension just from simple eye contact. "You should probably chase after it.."
Brandon's gaze is unrelenting, and the older boy's friendly expression turn a but more stern at the prolonged silence.
"I'm giving you a chance, Brandon." Brandon's wings lower, his gaze lying towards Ozo, even just for a second, before he turns around, wings spread and disappearing into feathers.
As he disappears, the stranger kneels down to Ozo, getting on to treat the injured creature. Matt and Ozo watched with fascination as the stranger heals the Halo.
"Ha... Thank you, Dragondudes3!" Dragon physically winces at the name, especially considering it was said infront of others. He itches the back of his brown hair sheepishly.
"Hey— Ahem... Daniel is fine." He mutters, "Anywho... Since that's out there, how about you two? what's your names?"
The two blink, before Matt decides to speak for Ozo. "I-I'm Matt, and that's Ozo!" Ozo nods along.
The Halo flew upwards, its wings fluttering happily. "Thank you so much, you two!"
Daniel hums. "Right! Thank you two for saving my friend."
Ozo fidgets with his fingers, feeling like a stick in the mud for his next words. "Uhh. Sorry, but what was all that?"
The Halo's wings flutter briefly, before it twirls around Daniel, beckoning him to do the explaining. Daniel deadpans, wiping a hand on his face. "Ahem... Since I'm being encouraged to reveal it, I guess it won't hurt."
A pause. Then, something clicks. "How about we take this to my place?" Considering they were in a desolate parking lot, of all places.
"Oh, sure... Wait, let me..." Ozo pauses, checking his phone only to see a message from Jacob, which reads 'Gonna go home first, found an awesome game I wanna try out. Have fun, you two'
He stares at the text before shoving his phone back in his pocket. "Ahem- Nevermind, actually."
"The Tutorialist has a better grip on this whole... Bloxxer thing, but I'll try my best to explain it yo you." Daniel smiles warmly, sliding Bloxy colas towards the other two. The Granter flapped its wings gently next to Daniel, since he was familiar to them.
"What you just entered in is called a Domain, and that thing that tried to take out Matt, was it? Is called an Entity. It's kind of like, unfamiliar to the world." He takes a sip of his Bloxy cola, looking towards Matt and Ozo.
"Unfamiliar to the world..." Matt mumbles, opening his own can of Bloxy cola with a fizz. "Errr.. Define unfamiliar?" He sheepishly asks, taking a sip.
"Like... Something totally alien, kind of stuff." Daniel adds, taking another sip of his cola.
Matt nods, letting the words sink in. He then points at Daniel, "Okay! What about that hammer you just saved me with?" He points at him like an accusation than a question.
Daniel leans back with a surprised grin, before realising he did just reveal himself to be a Bloxxer. He clears his throat, not long before taking another sip of his cola.
"Right, right..." He murmured, "To cut it short, I'm a Bloxxer. And-uhh," He points at the Granter, the floating Halo with wings with his thumb.
"I am the Granter; and I recruit Bloxxers!" It peeps, flapping its wings enthusiastically. Daniel lets his hand fall, leaning back carefreely.
"Aaand, what they just referred to me as earlier, Dragondudes3, is... Basically a username." Matt looked rather ecstatic as he listens to the both of them.
"Woah, really? That's so cool..." He blinks, "Wait, that doesn't answer my question on the hammer?"
Daniel deadpans. With his free hand, some green object materializes above, before rejuvenating into a hammer which falls graciously into his hand.
Matt's awe returns, and he can't resist to lean over towards Daniel like a child getting presented a candy. "That's so cool! So, you're like a superhero now?"
Daniel chuckles lightly, letting the hammer disperse into thin air. "You could say that." The Halo peeps.
Meanwhile, Ozo zones out once more, staring into the Bloxy cola, pondering. Daniel nudges him with his shoulder, which snaps him out of his train of thought.
"Actually, I've got a question of my own." Daniel's eyes narrow over towards Ozo, a subtle skepticism in his tone. "Do you know Brandon? I definitely saw him looking at you earlier..."
Ozo deflates, scratching the back of his neck, unsure of what to say. Brandon looked kind, but that ruthless expression on his face from earlier totally bugged him in a way.
"Well, we are classmates." He trails off, taking the cola towards his lips, taking a long sip. "C-Come to think of it, he's a Bloxxer like you, right?"
Daniel's carefree expression drops to something more serious, swirling the last bits of his drink, listening to the liquid sloshing.
"Yeah. He is." He glances away, taking in his next words carefully. "He's uhh, pretty weird I can say. Me and him don't get along very well."
That one was obvious, their exchange earlier was professional, even at their teenage age. The Granter hums, resting on Daniel's shoulder like a bird.
"I don't know what I could've possibly done to him for him to target me." Daniel hums to that, unsure of the reason himself.
"After all! I just grant wishes!" It adds, and Ozo felt something strike in him, familiarity. Like, something he should look out for. It never sparks to him, so he brushes it off, taking a sip of the Bloxy cola.