Chapter Text
"It sounds like there might be a new killer soon."
Two Time overheard the words as they crept by the living room of the cabin on their way outside. It didn't matter much to them - sure, they'd be forced to adapt to yet another tormentor added to the roster - but they'd been put through so much since coming here that something like this wouldn't phase them too much.
They crossed the grassy stretch between the main cabin and their own, smaller residence. It was dimly-lit inside, just barely bright enough to make out the mark of the Spawn carved messily across the walls. It reminded them that it would be good to pray for guidance with the coming threat of a new enemy. They briefly considered lighting a candle or two, but decided against it. They were not fond of the flame itself… if only there was someone to light a candle for them. Once, there had been, but he was no longer here.
They knelt, as they always did, before the shrine they'd constructed that was dedicated to the Spawn. Fingers interlaced in front of them, they started with their usual prayers of thanks for all they had been given, before adding some requesting guidance with the upcoming threat. The Spawn would hear, and it would help them if they were deserving.
…They hoped they'd repented enough.
A knock on the door caught their attention. That didn't happen often. The other survivors rarely went out of their way to interact with them. This was probably important, then.
Two Time opened the door to find Noob standing there, staring pointedly at the doorframe. "Hey, Two Time… the others just thought you should know, we might have a new killer soon, so- just be prepared, alright?"
"Yes, I am aware. The Spawn shall guide us through this trial." They didn't stop smiling.
Noob glanced at them, looking away right after and shuffling in place. "Oh, and Elliot suggested you should come eat. It's good to keep your strength up, you know…"
"I will eat when the Spawn deems it necessary."
"…Okay, then. I'll- I'll just be going now."
Two Time watched Noob hurry off back to the warm glow of the main cabin. Just as they'd thought, it was nothing but a message delivered out of obligated cooperation. Friendly invites had been extended when they'd first arrived, but quickly stopped happening. That was okay. They didn't need the companionship of others.
They closed the door and returned to the darkness of their room. It would be a good idea to make preparations before the next round, just in case that is when this supposed new killer would arrive. They didn't know what they'd be facing, after all.
When Two Time once again found themself placed in one of the maps where the death games took place, they fell into the familiar rhythm of survival. The Spawn's mark etched into the ground in a hidden place so they could later resurrect if they needed to. Staying out of open areas, lurking where they wouldn't easily be spotted so they could quickly stun the killer and save a teammate if need be.
They didn't see the killer, or any sign of one, for the first portion of the round. All they saw was Chance flipping his coin while wandering around and Guest busy with a generator. But then they caught sight of something strange. Something that didn't belong, and they knew it didn't because they'd been forced to survive in this place for long enough to have the maps memorized.
They crept closer, rightfully wary of the foreign object. It was something dark in coloration, low to the ground, and…
no.
Two Time froze once they were near enough to see what it was. A nightshade plant. Just the sight of it brought back so many memories. Gentle, caring hands, endless rambles, warm laughter drifting through the air, starry nights in a field of flowers, the squelch of blade meeting flesh-
They staggered one step back. Two. More, until they were no longer in sight of the plant. Was it placed there to torment them? Or… perhaps there was another reason for its presence.
"Hey, you good there?" A hand fell onto their shoulder, and they glanced up to see Chance standing there. "You look like you've seen something."
Two Time's usual smile returned to their face. Now was not the time to fall apart. "Indeed. There is an unusual object up ahead. I would recommend not going near it until we know what it might be capable of."
"Hm…" Chance's hand fell from their shoulder and he glanced ahead of them. "I see. We should let the others know, yeah? I'm sure we'll run into the killer soon enough."
Chance was right. The round had been underway for long enough that it was likely they'd cross paths with the killer chasing someone nearby. It was their duty as a sentinel to preserve the lives of their teammates anyway, and they couldn't exactly do that if they didn't know where the killer was.
Two Time and Chance started walking, keeping an eye out for any disturbances. Quite soon after, they saw one - Noob was thrown against a wall from somewhere out of sight. Chance rushed to see if they were okay and to help them up, giving Two Time a look - it was up to them to stun the killer and provide their teammates time to escape.
They slipped into a crouch and removed their dagger from its sheath, ready to lunge forward and plunge it into the back of whoever came in chase of Noob. But when that person came into sight, they found that they were not ready at all.
It was, undoubtedly, Azure. He did not look the same as they remembered him. His hat bore a grinning, unsettling face, there were four tentacles writhing behind him, and his skin had turned the color of a starless night sky, yet there was no mistaking the shape of that hat, his muscular build, the Spawn symbol emblazoned across his chest.
The dagger slipped from their trembling fingers and clattered to the ground. There was no way they could stab him again, not when that night haunted their every waking and dreaming moment.
Azure's head snapped toward them at the sound, and his eyes narrowed upon seeing them. "Oh, look who it is," the hat leered. "The backstabbing little traitor."
Two Time couldn't deny the words stung, coming from the one they still held so dear. They rose to their feet and stepped closer to him. "Azure, you must understand! It was deemed necessary by the Spawn-"
A tentacle wrapped around their ankle and ripped their leg out from under them, sending them crashing painfully to the ground. "The Spawn?" the hat growled. "You still believe in that hoax you call a god? Don't make me laugh."
"T-the Spawn is not a hoax," they choked out, trying to stand back up. "How could you think that, when you have been brought back to me? Your existence is undeniable proof of the Spawn's divine will!"
They were roughly dragged closer to Azure and made to meet his gaze. "Of course you'd think that in your miserable, delusional head. Why can't you see past the lies they fed you?"
"Azure, please, they aren't lies-"
"Silence!" the hat spat. "I don't need to hear you giving out excuses like they did. You're just as bad as the rest of them, aren't you? Hopelessly devoted, brainwashed for a made-up cause that only serves to do harm. Heartless, selfish, just like Amarah and all the rest."
Before Two Time could even form a response, a tentacle wrapped around them and threw them at the closest wall, just like what had happened to Noob. Dazed from the impact, they lay on the ground for the few seconds it took Azure to walk over to them. He hauled them into the air by their throat, glowing purple eyes showing not a hint of mercy as they gasped for air.
"I'll make you feel the pain I felt when you stabbed me in the chest back then." Two Time was dimly aware of motion behind Azure's back. "A thousand times over. A traitor like you deserves to suffer."
A tentacle pierced through their chest, in the same spot they'd stabbed him during the sacrifice. They choked on their own blood, and couldn't help but think that this was how Azure felt in his dying moments. Except, perhaps, for the fact that their killer was determined to make their death as painful as possible.
He pulled the tentacle free, letting blood gush out of the gaping hole in their chest, only to stab it back in again and again and again. The pain was unbearable, and it was a relief to Two Time when their body finally gave out and they died.
They revived back in the main cabin as they always did, body whole again with phantom pains reminding them of the gruesome torture they just endured. They picked themself up off the floor, still breathing heavily. It didn't look like there was anyone else around, so either they died first or whoever did made themselves scarce already.
Two Time retreated back to their own cabin and locked the door. They did not want to be disturbed, not with all the things they had to think about right now, and they were sure that anyone who saw their interaction with Azure would have questions.
They curled up on their bed and let their permanent smile fall from their face in the privacy of their own room. Azure hated them. That fact could not be more apparent. They deserved every bit of his hate, too, didn't they? The final sentence he said to them had to be true. They deserved to suffer.