Chapter Text
He had to get back.
Avery sniffled as he slowly made his way back trough the strange cavern that led to the golden gates-
Derek was gone- had sacrificed himself to save the world and Avery himself, and now, all Avery could do was try and honor that sacrifice.
The slime made it back home, greeted by the happy barks of his two dogs-
Avery fell to his knees, allowing the dogs to excitedly greet him.
He needed the comfort they provided.
Avery was too tired to make much food for himself, but he had two steaks for his doggos- they were good boys and they deserved it and Avery would be just fine skipping dinner for now. He was… tired.
The sadness would come later, but for now the slime was still in a state of shock-
Reality would hit later.
It would hit him later that Derek had sacrificed himself for Avery.
…Oh gods Derek was gone- he was gone forever and-
A knock startled the slime, causing him to flinch and almost drop the item he’d been holding.
What- who? Avery was supposed to be… alone here, right?
Except-
Except he had never really been alone in this world, because Derek-
It was stupid, it was irrational, but the thought refused to leave the slime’s mind.
He had never been alone in this world, for as long as he had been there, Derek had also been present- which means- it had to-!
Avery sprinted over to the front door, opening it to see-.
Derek
He was… he was actually here.
He hadn’t died.
“H-hi… found you…” Came a familiar voice, though it sounded pained.
“...Derek”
“Yes…”
“You… you survived?”
“I… didn’t expect myself to.”
“You’re… you’re actually here-”
“I… can I come in? I am in a lot of pain”
Avery practically yanked the other inside, putting the knight into a tight hug.
“I thought I lost you…” Avery muttered, face buried in the other’s chest. “I thought- you’d. I thought-”
“I know.” Derek replied, wrapping his arms around Avery. “And… I’m sorry. I… I didn’t want to give you false hope in case it didn’t work.”
“You’re here…” Avery muttered, quietly. “You’re actually here.”
“...I am.” Derek replied. “I’m right here, Avery.”
Neither one of the two knew how long it had been- how long Avery was standing there, quietly sobbing as he held Derek, afraid the other would somehow be taken away from him if he let go.
But as the sun rose, the slime finally seemed to realize that this was real, and Derek wasn’t going to vanish again.
And with that realization, came another one;
Derek had said he’d been in pain, and Avery had just… stood there, holding the other for hours instead of actually helping him.
Crap!
“Ah- shit, sorry, hang on!” Avery spoke. “I- sorry, you’re hurt and-”
“Avery-”
“Hang on, go sit, I’ll grab my potions”
Before Derek could object he was pushed onto a chair with the slime quickly rushing off to rummage trough his chests-
Why didn’t he organize any of them?!
Occasionally, the slime glanced back at Derek, studying the other.
He.. did look a little worse for wear, his armor dented and the metal had been torn in some spots-
What could be strong enough to rip apart metal like it was paper?!
Finally, Avery found the regeneration potions he had, quickly taking an armful of them and bringing them back to Derek.
“Here, take these.” The slime spoke. “I’ll- uhh… focus on your injuries in the meantime.”
“Avery-”
Avery wasn’t listening, too focused on the singular task of making sure Derek was going to stay alive to pay much attention to anything else-
So when he removed one of the knight’s gauntlets and black smoke began to spill out from both the gauntlet and the place where Derek’s arm was supposed to be-
He freaked out just a teensy bit.
“Avery-”
The slime could feel Derek’s other hand on his shoulder.
“I don’t have a body anymore.” Derek spoke up. “I… I think I had to give that up in order to survive.”
“W-what…?”
“...I’m literally just my armor set now.”
Avery paused, torn between horror and confusion.
“What…?”
“....It’s a long story.”
It had started with a colleague; an axolotl hybrid who was just a little too chatty and had thrown Derek one look and decided to ‘adopt’ the introvert.
(Very much against the introvert’s will)
They had declared Derek and them were now ‘armor buddies’, as they were the only ones in the golem workshop to wear armor all the time, which Derek had begrudgingly accepted after months of forced social interaction.
(“Guess I got you properly socialized now!” “No you don’t”)
So when they one day entered the workshop not as themselves, but as an elaborate set of copper armor, everyone had been a little… unnerved.
The frills and tail were gone, and underneath the armor there was just… darkness, but it was still them- the same voice, the same personality, just…
They were copper armor now.
During a lunch break, Derek had dared to ask what had happened. This had been a big change, and while his colleague was still… themself, it was weird to not see the pink skin and bright blue eyes.
The former axolotl hybrid had chuckled, and simply stated that they had given up their body to preserve their homeworld, because they had almost lost it due to a stupid mistake.
Derek had never grasped the concept of hardcore worlds; why would anyone risk their life just for bragging rights? Why would they commit to a place that wouldn’t just be more harsh than most places, but also came with the risk of permanent death?
The knight still didn’t get it, but the memory had surfaced right as the idea of using the spell had made its way into Derek’s brain too.
What if… he could save Avery, the world AND himself, at the cost of his failing body?
With how much pain Derek had been enduring, it had been an easy choice to make
Avery quietly listened to Derek talk, quietly creeping closer and closer again- and putting the gauntlet back where it was supposed to be.
“So… you’re okay?”
“In a lot of pain, but that’s probably due to the damage to my armor.” Derek sighed. “If we can get that fixed I should be good.”
“So… we just got to find an armor smith?” Avery asked.
“or someone who sells mending enchants.”
The slime paused-
He knew someone who sold those books! one of the librarians in a village about 500 blocks away.
“Will you be okay on your own here?” Avery asked, concerned.
“I… think I’ll be fine- I can come along, too.” Derek replied. “Not as if I can bleed out or die from injuries like this. I just have to take it easy and not let the damage get worse.”
Avery was torn.
On one hand he wanted to make sure nothing could hurt Derek, and the slime’s home was cozy and comfortable; a safe place to rest. On the other it did kind of feel like Derek could vanish if Avery left him alone for just a little too long- like something could still go horribly wrong if the animated armor was out of sight.
“...I have an extra horse you can use” Avery spoke, the desire to keep Derek close being just a little stronger.
“...Thank you.”
Avery took Derek’s hand, guiding him towards the stables, where two horses were relaxing together.
Avery had tamed the first one easily, but after leading it to the stables he couldn’t help but worry about the horse left behind, so he took hours to tame the second horse and guided them to the stable to join their friend.
A choice Avery could now look back on and say ‘see, I totally knew I’d need two horses someday!’