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Strange things had been happening lately. Not that throughout his entire life things hadn't already happened — the gods know how Quackity life had always been chaotic — but now they were more frequent.
Because of Cucurucho, Quackity felt like he had no friends. That no one trusted him, that everyone hated him. But he couldn't understand why Cucurucho wanted so badly to use him, to imprison him, to clip his wings and keep him almost like on a leash.
Quackity was not weak — he knew he wasn't — but there were people who would make better soldiers than him. Senpai, even young, was the best in combat. Gabe and Tubbo could build incredible machines. Ash was a tremendous manipulator, and even Quackity had to admit that guy gave him chills down his spine.
All of them would be of greater use to the federation than him.
But recently Quackity had once again been caught in the federation's claws. On his worst day — when he was sad after finding out that the meeting that was Juan wasn't meant for him, and feeling that no one could ever love him — Pepino showed up and said he would take him somewhere he could forget everything and simply relax. Quackity found it strange, of course he did. But Pepino, up until then, had been a good person to him.
Quackity went, and ended up trapped on an island in the sky with nothing but a chest and a stuffed bear. That was when Cucurucho appeared and began threatening him to earn the others trust and betray his own friends.
"Everyone trusts you" Cucurucho, who was on top of the chest with his arms behind his back, stated.
— The opposite. The opposite. I have no friends, no one trusts me. And it's all your fault! You put that into their heads, and now I'm alone!
"If you won't do it, I have other means. I really don't need you." It was Cucurucho's voice, but whoever said it looked exactly like Quackity.
Quackity felt he might faint.
—
Quackity was left on that island. Time passed — time during which he tried everything to survive and think of a way to get out of there. Until one day Pepino appeared.
— You! You brought me here! You traitor! — Quackity shook Pepino, taking out all his anger and frustration on the worker who had led him there.
Pepino seemed confused, not understanding what was happening or why his friend had suddenly become so angry and aggressive toward him.
Some time later, when they were working together to try to get out of there, Pepino managed a few seconds, which was enough to tell Ewroon and Multi about the kidnapping. But then he felt sad again watching Quackity yell at him.
— ¡Pendejo! Did you not hear him?! He said he would kill all my friends from the Norte and the Polski Cave if I told anyone! Do you want them to die?!
"I don't want anyone to die..." Pepino said, frightened and shrinking back from Quackity's outburst, with his robotic voice.
Later, when they had enough experience to leave and boarded the boat, Pepino thought he would finally be free.
But Quackity left, and Pepino was left behind. Alone on the island, with only the little stuffed bear as company and the sword Quackity had given him — back when he still thought Quackity cared about him.
Was it because Pepino had told the others? Had Quackity really left him behind on purpose? Did Quackity truly hate him?
—
When Quackity finally managed to communicate, he sent a message to Ewroon and they arranged to meet at the Zabka.
As soon as he teleported in front of the establishment and was about to enter, Ewroon appeared as well. And before Quackity could say anything, Ewroon was already jumping on him and pulling him into a hug.
— KURWA, QUACKITY! WHERE HAVE YOU BEEN?! WE WERE ALL WORRIED! DID YOU SEE THE MISSING POSTERS? I WAS LOOKING FOR YOU! ME AND ALONDRA TOOK A FRENCH PLANE AND WE CRASHED IT—
— Wait, calm down, Ewroon! A French plane?! What does the plane have to do with any of this?!
— It's a complicated story, you know how things are... But hey, how are you? Where were you? We looked for you everywhere!
Quackity and Ewroon went inside the establishment, looking for a more private spot to talk. Quackity walked back and forth, looking at the products for sale, while Ewroon — who also couldn't stand still for a minute — fiddled with the price tags.
— Look, it's complicated. I really can't talk about it, people would be in danger. It's just that...
They heard a noise and immediately stopped everything they were doing to turn toward the door. Haiper had just walked in through the automatic door.
— Hey, carry on with what you were saying, don't mind me. I want to hear.
Quackity blinked a few times, incredulous at his audacity.
— Ah, I'm not saying anything with you here, ha!
— Hey, I was worried about you too, Quackity! I want to know what happened as well. Tell me, or I can just use an invisibility potion and listen to everything.
— Ok, rude. I can just talk to Ewroon through books, you know.
— Why don't you just say it already?
— I have nothing to say! I wasn't even going to tell him anything, alright?
— If you weren't, then why did you bring up talking through books? What are you trying so hard to hide from me?
— I-I wasn't going to tell him anything! I was just going to say that I wasn't going to say anything.
Haiper found it suspicious, but decided not to press further. At that moment, Tubbo sent him a message asking about him. Haiper then left the store and teleported somewhere else, leaving Quackity and Ewroon alone again.
Quackity was about to start talking again when he heard a noise outside. He spotted Fariis through the window talking to a federation guard, and decided to go find out what was happening. Before they could get fully close, the guard who had been talking to Fariis looked Quackity over and then asked Ewroon a question.
"Who is this?" he said, asking about Quackity.
— Oh, he's my Zabka employee! Yes, an employee! He... — Ewroon started talking, cheerfully. But that conversation wasn't bringing good feelings to Quackity.
"We believe you may have a federation fugitive as an employee."
Everyone went silent for a few seconds. Ewroon let out a confused "What?", and Fariis an "Oh my god...", her mind piecing things.
Quackity took a few steps back, laughing nervously. How had he forgotten? He was a fugitive. Without explaining anything, he teleported away.
—
— Seriously, Quackity! You appeared in the forest and we were following you, shouting for you to stop. But when I caught up to you and you turned around, your face looked horrible! — Tina recounted, with a worried expression that also let slip the horror she had felt.
— They made an ugly clone of me?! — Quackity couldn't resist being dramatic.
— No, he was more pretty — Foolish commented, simply. And let out a complaint when Quackity kicked his shin. — Ow!
— Could the children please focus? This is serious — said Alondrissa, already tired of them — Quackity, there was a clone of you. It tried to take them somewhere, but they noticed in time and nothing serious happened.
— It's fine, Alondra. It's not like cloning me would be of much use. I'm useless to the federation, in the end.
—
Quackity wasn't giving up on finding Pepino. It took hours to reach the coordinates he had written down from the place where he had been trapped with the federation worker before managing to escape. When he arrived, he started climbing.
He just hadn't counted on the federation watching him. First came the lightning — which, even when it struck him, didn't make him bow his head, he kept climbing. Soon they tried to knock down the tower he was building, but Quackity kept rebuilding it.
At one point, when Quackity was at the top and everything seemed like chaos, it was raining and thundering. The surroundings began to grow even darker, and he felt a chill run down his spine. When he turned around with his sword in hand, Fatal Error was right in front of him, so close that Quackity involuntarily took a step back. Before he could attack, the monster shoved him off the tower.
— ¡Hijo de puta! — Quackity exclaimed. It didn't take long for him to catch himself and start climbing again.
He made it to the top with fire in his eyes and ready to fight anyone, but there was no one left up there. He stood on that tower, breathing heavily, with the heavy rain and lightning all around him.
Quackity was not afraid, and he would do everything to find Pepino. Even if they sent countless monsters, he would fight and defeat every single one that crossed his path.
—
The election was dull by Quackity standards of fun. He was sitting on the bench in front of the stage listening to the candidates for president of the Polski Cave, but everything seemed like a hum. He glanced to the side, saw Ewroon sitting in an adorable way, and decided to annoy his friend. All of this was boring anyway.
Quackity called out to Ewroon quietly and asked him to come closer, and when the polish man leaned in, he whispered in his ear:
— Ewroon, I stole your stuff. I'm going to burn all of it...
Quackity then stood up and walked quickly out of there, not wanting to disturb the event. Ewroon followed him, trying to call him back without speaking too loudly.
— Quackity, give my stuff back! — Quackity didn't know Ewroon could shout in a whisper, but wasn't surprised either way.
Quackity ran while Ewroon chased him closely, both laughing even while trying not to. Quackity hadn't actually stolen anything, but Ewroon didn't need to know that.
Quackity then ducked into a cave in the wall, and Ewroon followed right behind, managed to open a hole in the floor and pushed Quackity down into it.
— I'm not letting you out of there until you give my stuff back, you know — Ewroon exclaimed, looking down into the hole where Quackity had ended up.
— As if! Get me out of here, pendejo!
Just as Ewroon was about to respond with one of the few Spanish insults he knew, a federation worker appeared, looking irritated. Quackity was already climbing the hole to get out.
Ewroon was trying to hold back his laughter and whispered to Quackity, who appeared at his side:
— I stole his camera and now he's pissed at me...
— Give it to me! Give it! — Quackity asked, excited.
Ewroon passed the camera to Quackity, and they started messing with the worker, who also seemed worried. Maybe losing the camera was grounds for firing, he'd have to talk to Cucurucho about it later.
Quackity stopped in front of the worker, tossing the camera from one hand to the other.
— Do you want the camera back?
The worker nodded quickly. Quackity smile grew even wider.
— Then dance!
The worker froze, looking back and forth between Quackity, with that unsettling smile, and Ewroon, who found it all very funny and was trying not to laugh. But what choice did he have? He couldn't take the camera by force against both of them. So he did the only thing possible and started dancing, stiffly and unsure of what to do.
Quackity and Ewroon laughed, incredulous that the worker was actually dancing to get his camera back. But that wasn't enough for Quackity, something was growing inside him and he couldn't control it.
— Do you want your camera back? Say please! Say please, daddy. I'm your fucking daddy! I made you! You have your fucking job because I MADE YOU!
Quackity was no longer laughing, but smiling in an unsettling way. The worker had stopped dancing and was almost pressed against the wall, recoiled, fear reflected in his eyes. Ewroon had stopped laughing too, and his smile had gradually faded. He had never seen his friend like that.
— Uh, Quackity... I think that's enough. You're starting to say things that don't make sense...
When Ewroon touched his shoulder, Quackity spun around with a deadly look. But upon seeing his friend's serious expression, the Mexican seemed to snap out of that trance.
Quackity took a step back, looked at the worker cowering in the corner, and then looked at Ewroon again. He didn't like that look at all. He handed the camera to his Polish friend and hurried out of the cave.
—
Quackity went to look at his own statue, which people were always messing with and destroying. In that moment he could only sigh and grumble. He had already accepted they would keep at it regardless.
Then he heard a noise in the bushes and headed toward the sound. Out from the bushes came Pepino, who hadn't expected Quackity to be there. They both startled and pulled back.
Quackity couldn't make sense of it. Was that really Pepino? But Pepino was trapped on that island! Could it be another clone there to attack and deceive him?
He made sure his armor was on and took his sword in hand, ready for any confrontation.
But that seemed to frighten Pepino, who looked on with fear and took another step back.
— Pepino, is it really you? — Quackity asked, hopeful.
"Stay away from me" Pepino said, backing away further.
Quackity furrowed his brow and stepped forward. — Pepino? Are you a clone?
"Yes, I'm a clone! Leave me alone!" Pepino then started running in the opposite direction.
Quackity didn't think much and simply ran to try to catch up to his friend.
— Pepino, wait! When did you get back?! Why are you running from me?!
"Leave me alone!"
Quackity couldn't reach Pepino before he teleported away. And the last thing he saw were Pepino fearful eyes looking back at him.
—
Several weeks had passed since Multi had extracted his DNA and discovered that something was wrong. Multi had said there were only two explanations: either Quackity was dead, or there was more than one DNA strand inside him.
Quackity didn't like that information one bit — there had to be something wrong. Could it be the radiation that had affected and altered his DNA? There was no other explanation. Or was there?
So he started studying. He stole some papers from Multi lab while asking for a glass of water, which Multi promptly went to fetch. Now he was sitting at a makeshift desk in his underground room, trying to write and organize the information.
It was all so confusing. He couldn't remember anything. His wings would spasm after so long trying to connect the dots, having only confused flashbacks. Why did his head buzz? Why did everything hurt and he felt suffocated?
—
Quackity was with Alondrissa when Pepino suddenly emerged from a hole in the wall.
— ¡A LA VERGA! Hey, Pepino, where did you come from?! — Quackity jumped back and his wings spread open by reflex.
Pepino handed Quackity a book in silence and waited for him to read it first. The book said they might be being watched, and so he would ask quick, direct questions. Quackity nodded, waiting for Pepino to continue.
"Did you leave me behind?"
— No! Of course not, Pepino! I tried to come back for you! I...
"Weren't you angry at me?"
— Of course not! Pepino, I swear, I was trying to find you! I climbed a tower, fought a Wither...
"Do you hate us?"
That question left Quackity silent. He couldn't understand why it had affected him so deeply. But before he could even think, the answer had already left his mouth.
— I don't hate you guys, Pepino.
Pepino nodded, handed Quackity one last book, and disappeared through the same place he had come from.
—
He found a room. The door was locked, so Quackity forced it open. As soon as it opened, a smell of mold and dust seeped out. The place was dark and silent, except for a low hum that seemed to echo off the walls.
Quackity went in despite the darkness, looking around at what appeared to be a scientific experimentation room. There were jars with strange contents bearing unidentified names and flasks scattered across the tables. He approached what looked like a filing cabinet and started flipping through it. The names were strange, impossible to identify — and even opening and reading them, the information was too specific to make sense of.
Out of the corner of his eye he spotted a loose folder on top of one of the tables, and something inside him sent up a warning. He felt that something was wrong even before picking it up, and when he did, his mouth went dry and his heart raced. On the cover was a photo of himself. Small, without his cap and wearing a hospital gown. His expression was one of fear and unease, as though he had been forced to pose.
Quackity opened the folder. There were several pages of notes and photos, including of experiments. Including of when they had tried to tear out his wings, leaving his body covered in scars, and he had still been just a child. But much of what was written was illegible, as the moisture had blurred the contents.
Quackity felt sick. He dropped the folder and had to lean against the table to keep from falling, while his head buzzed and spun.
The nausea passed after a few seconds, but the buzzing remained — and now it seemed to point in a specific direction. Still leaning against the table, Quackity turned his gaze and saw a light coming from beneath one of the lab's doors.
Somewhat dazed, he walked toward the light like a fly drawn to a lamp. His head was foggy, and he only stopped when he had gotten too close to the structure emitting that greenish glow.
—
Quackity couldn't believe what he was seeing. He felt his legs give out and his head begin to buzz. It took a great deal of self-control not to fall to his knees and be sick right there. In that dark, practically abandoned laboratory, there before him was a kind of tank full of liquid. And floating in the middle of it all was him — an almost identical version of himself, naked and curled up.
— Beautiful, isn't it? Though not quite as beautiful as the original, if I may say so — Quackity turned at the familiar voice and furrowed his brow.
— Roier?... — His heart gave a flutter at seeing a familiar face amid that chaos. But something seemed off. — No, you're not him...
— Don't you remember me, Quackity? We grew up together! Me, you, Roier, Jaiden, Ash... Well, you were always the least loved one, regardless. I think when we were playing, they'd usually leave you locked in another room...
— Doied... — Quackity's eyes went wide and he took a defensive step back, not taking his eyes off the scientist. He didn't even know where he had pulled that name from. He didn't know this guy. Did he?
Pepino appeared for a few seconds, possibly looking for Quackity, and startled upon seeing Doied there.
— Ah, what a surprise. Hello, Pepino! I was just about to tell a story, have a seat! You know it quite well. It's told to all the workers. Though I'm afraid not the complete version...
— Long ago, when the islands that today belong to the federation did not yet exist, there was a god. This god, of an ethereal beauty, with shining black hair, eyes as dark as night, constellations across his face and splendid wings, created the islands we know today. Not only them: he also created the beings that inhabit them. Beings upon whom he focused not on appearance, but on kindness and the capacity to communicate and be receptive to another. — He looked at Pepino. — Cucurucho was his first creation. And then he created more beings, who could help in that purpose: to build an island where everyone was welcome, regardless of language or culture. As it happens, this god became corrupted. And Cucurucho had to do something he never imagined he would do, but which was necessary. Cucurucho stopped him and fragmented him in two, saving the island. — Doied finished as though telling a children's story, but then his smile widened even further, sending chills through Quackity. — That is the story he tells everyone, at least.
— The creator god was tremendously excited about it all. As it happens, he was kind enough not to see the evil within his own creation. One day, Cucurucho stabbed him in the back. The god, once powerful and joyful, was fragmented in two. If you like, we can call them "the good part" and "the evil part" of the creator god. But in truth, both are the same person, corrupted by betrayal, victims of the same being. Cucurucho made sure those fragments had no memory of what came before, and made the workers forget the kindness of the old god as well. He then created the fragments separately, dedicating more attention to the "bad" side while neglecting the "good" side. Deep down, he feared that both sides might unite against him.
Quackity could no longer keep himself upright. He stumbled backward, having to lean against the cylinder to keep from falling entirely. His mind buzzed, memories of his "childhood" mixed with memories that should not have been his, but rather belonged to "another Quackity." Suddenly, everything was so clear. He could feel everything: himself, the place, the emotions.
Multi had been wrong. His DNA did not contain more than one genetic code. His DNA was that of a fragmented god who was now complete. Quackity was not being affected by the radiation — he was immune. He. Was. A. God.
Doied then continued. — What Cucurucho did not expect was that, after a great explosion, this god would become whole again. The two parts no longer separate, now united. Ah, that is dangerous... What would Cucurucho do if the creator god rebelled? He who until then had been only half, with no memories and no powers, living among the mortals on his island and being attacked by his own creations. And if, suddenly, that god turned against them? Oh, no, no... That would be terrible.
Doied began walking toward Quackity in slow but steady steps. Pepino stood paralyzed, a distant look fixed on Quackity, as though he held memories of something he hadn't even witnessed. Quackity did not step back as Doied approached, he couldn't think of anything else. So when Doied brushed the hair away from his eye and took hold of his face, Quackity could only stare back at him.
— And how does one fight a being so powerful? Create another of him... Or at least try. — Doied turned Quackity's face so he could look once more at the tank behind him. — Those monsters out there? Failed attempts to recreate you. The clones with the disfigured faces? Same. Even that one behind you is a clone that, despite being almost identical to you, is flawed and acts like a idiota.
— Those monsters fear you, Quackity. Have you never noticed how almost every time they appear, something is connected to you? How you seem to control the weather? How the sky darkens and they attack and kill everyone, everyone except you. They can't kill you. They've tried, haven't they?
Doied turned Quackity's face back to look him in the eyes, and stroked his face with a kind of tenderness and admiration in his gaze.
— You are our god, Quackity. We serve you, our god.
Doied knelt. Pepino did too. And it was the last thing Quackity saw and heard before his vision went completely dark.