Archive of Our Own

Chapter Text

Forsaken: Afterwards

Chapter 1: Home

Shedletsky

Shedletsky was… awake? He looked behind him and got a faceful of… pillow? He sat up, and noticed that Brighteyes was next to him.

“Oh my god… I’m home.” He went out and touched her, just to ensure that it was real. She felt warm, then he noticed his sleeve. It was floppy and long, like the old robes he used to wear. Getting up he noticed that even the house was the old one he used to live in. He still managed to remember the layout, going into the bathroom he looked into the mirror. What he saw startled him slightly.

“What!?” He quite nearly yelled, but stopped himself due to the fact that his wife was still asleep. Who he was looking at wasn’t Shedletsky, it was Telamon. He stumbled back, he went up to pull down the hood. It felt nice under his touch, it was all real. He walked out back into his bedroom.

“Tela?” Brighteyes spoke up, Shedletsky then forgot that “Telamon” didn’t tend to wake up quickly, heck before Forsaken, HE didn’t wake up quickly, that was a habit he picked up due to necessity. He sighed, did he want to tell her that he wasn’t her current husband and that he was actually her husband from a future where he was stuck in an internal purgatory loop that her son was a killer for because he screwed up his son’s life by locking him in the banlands simply because it was the easiest way to not feel hatred, or did he want to try and be Telamon? He thought for a few seconds, trying to tell her would probably be hard, but trying to be Telamon would actually be harder, though he should probably still be “Telamon” no matter how much he absolutely despised that name.

“Hi Brighteyes!” Oh God this was already way too awkward for comfort. Brighteyes got a quizzical look on her face then spoke.

“Tela… are you feeling alright? I know you’ve been acting a little differently lately but, are you ok?” Brighteyes asked, finally standing up and walking to him.

“Um… about that.” Shedletsky said, suddenly the back of his neck was itchy. “I am going to need you to sit down” He said, he obviously couldn’t actually tell her about 1x, that would be it’s own can of worms that he wanted to go nowhere near right now, in fact it was less like a can of worms and more like Pandora's Box. So he would have to dance around the subject. She looked curiously at him, and then sat down on the bed.

“What’s wrong” She asked, Shedletsky knew she was being serious because she was worried, but he suddenly felt like he was in trouble.

“Ok… How do I say this…” He said, he was stalling suddenly, he took a breath. “I’m from the future and after a certain… event… I got teleported back here.” Shedletsky was confident it was the past, because he had physically burned these clothes when he became Shedletsky. She simply looked at him.

“How… What was the event? That caused you to come back from wherever?” Brighteyes asked, almost immediately Shedletsky got up.

“I would rather not discuss it.” he said as his robes fluttered around his legs. Brighteyes sat for a second, then  stood up and stretched

“Ok” she said, she seemed to understand that Shedletsky had said what he needed to say and went over to her dresser to get changed into normal clothes. Shedletsky walked out of the room and walked the halls of his old house. At one point he passed a room with a happy looking sign on it. “1x1x1x1’s room (^v^)” Shedletsky stopped and stared at the small oval sign, and something in his heartstrings were pulled. He then walked into the kitchen and got some food.

“Man, for once I miss that place… ok I miss Elliot’s cooking” Shedletsky said as he ate some slightly burnt eggs. After eating, Shedletsky went to wash his plate, yet another habit he had picked up from that realm. Turning around he almost staggered.

“Hey, Papa? I need to talk to you.” it was 1x, as a child. Shedletsky immediately noticed the domino crown, and had a hint of fear creep into his back, a hint of trauma. Shedletsky then realized that he couldn’t just explain, not only would 1x not understand, he also wouldn’t get it, but he also couldn’t pretend to be Telamon.

“What is it?” Shedletsky went over and knelt down to 1x’s level. Then he noticed something, a small patch of black under their white hair.

“I’m… scared, it’s hard to explain this but.” 1x took a deep breath, suddenly, Shedletsky knew exactly what this day was. “I-I can’t feel anything other than hatred and fear, I don't even know how I just… can’t!” 1x started wringing their hands in a nervous motion. “I… need your help.” Shedletsky was now faced with an easy choice, save his creation, or make the same mistake he already had. Shedletsky pulled 1x into a hug, a rare gesture for 1x at the time.

“It’s ok. I’ll help you out.” Shedletsky spoke quietly to his child, as he stroked their hair trying to soothe them out of being so afraid, though at the same time, Shedletsky himself was afraid, by taking back his hatred, however he would do that, he would still be Telamon. Perhaps his friends would help, no, not perhaps, Shedletsky knew that his friends would help him through this. 1x grabbed onto Shedletsky's robes with tiny hands and began… to cry?

“Th-Thank you dad” Shedletsky then felt them tense ever so slightly, then he remembered that he hadn’t liked being called “dad” and rarely was ok with “Papa” instead he just stroked their hair some more, a sort of grounding motion, and 1x un-tensed. After a few minutes, Shedletsky let go and took 1x’s hand; whatever would happen, he would save his child. There were a few different things he could do, maybe. 1) would be to simply destroy the crown, but that has the risk of damaging 1x physically, at that Shedletsky cursed Telamon for being selfish, 2) would be to use the ghost walker and free it, if that was even possible, 3) was to wear the crown himself, and kill his hatred, which was likely a suicide mission considering how much his hatred was, and it still held the ability of harming 1x. Shedletsky sighed and realized that option 1 was likely the best bet for both him and 1x.

“Ok. I think what we will have to do is take the crown I gave you, and destroy it.” Shedletsky explained when they had both gotten to the SFOTH ring, considering that it was an easy open space. 1x looked at Shedletsky confused.

“I thought you gave me this crown to enhance my strength?” They asked innocently, Shedletsky winced at that.

“Yes. But I believe it’s also what’s corrupting you” Shedletsky explained, dancing around the fact that it was his hatred that was corrupting 1x. 1x simply nodded.

“Ok, if you say so.” 1x seemed to have full trust in Shedletsky, which made him ache ever so slightly. Shedletsky then invited 1x to sit down. Then sat across from them, so that he could explain what would happen, or at least attempt to.

“Basically I’m going to have to remove the crown and destroy it, which has a high likelihood of hurting you. If it does, I need you to be strong, or else something could go wrong and damage you even more, no matter what happens though, I will be here for you.” He explained it calmly and gently, 1x was obviously nervous, no one enjoyed the idea of pain, but they seemed completely willing to follow Shedletsky’s instructions.

“Ok…” they said simply, shifting slightly. Shedletsky got up and walked behind 1x, who sat up slightly straighter. This was definitely going to be something.

“Ok, tell me when you're ready.” Shedletsky said. 1x paused for a few moments, obviously not anticipating being allowed to say when they were ok with this. After a deep breath they finally spoke.

“Ok, I’m ready” Shedletsky placed his hands on the crown and slowly lifted it off, though it was easy for him, 1x tensed quite a bit under the mental strain, they bit their lip, but a small whimper still managed to come out. After removing the crown Shedletsky took it, and smashed it, which immediately affected 1x as they quickly fell over, falling unconscious. Shedletsky prayed that it was simply the line being disconnected and the strain that it caused, and not any sort of mental damage. He quickly went over to them, and picked them up. They were fully asleep, Shedletsky held them gently and brought them to their room, and laid them down on the small bed they had. He then looked around the room, it had drawings all over, in some of them Telamon looked less of a man and more a large, imposing figure. Shedletsky handled the drawings with care, how could he have caused so much pain to a child? How could he give a kid so much strife? He looked at the pictures, drawing after drawing, and began to cry slightly, he felt awful about how he treated his creation, his child, he then put the drawings back and looked at the small child, who was now peacefully sleeping on the bed, he felt a lump in his throat and silently left the room. Closing the door he turned and came face to face with Brighteyes, who looked, upset.

“What did you do to them this time?” She asked, Shedletsky then remembered just how scary she could be, but this time, he truly had a good reason.

“I saved them.” he said, she looked angry.

“Telamon, if you hurt them again we will be talking.” She said, Shedletsky sighed at the use of his old name but spoke quietly.

“If you want you can check on them, but be quiet, I don’t want them to accidentally wake up.” He said, at that Brighteyes was surprised, he wouldn't have cared for 1x sleeping at this time of day, then she peeked in quickly, 1x was peacefully sleeping. Then she closed the door.

“What did you do?” This time she was less angry, and more just curious of what he did.“Actually, why are you acting so strange?” She spoke. Now Shedletsky really couldn’t hide anymore. “I get that you're from the future and all, but this really isn’t like you.” She said

“Why… don’t we go discuss it at the table.” Shedletsky said, walking towards the dining room, Brighteyes quickly followed behind him. Sitting down at the table, Shedletsky began his story.

“I don’t actually go by Telamon anymore, I go by Shedletsky.” He started with something simple, a good starting point for sure. “As for what I did to 1x.” Shedletsky then looked at the hallway that they had just come from. “I did actually save him, from hatred specifically.” He said at this Brighteyes tilted her head slightly.

“What do you… mean by that exactly?” She asked. Oh boy.

“Ok. You know that crown I gave them?” Shedletsky asked. Brighteyes nodded. “It was a sort of syphon to transfer my hatred to them, what I didn’t expect was for it to corrupt them.” Shedletsky said. It was the truth, even the not expecting part, that was an unaccounted variable that he hadn’t thought of.

“You… WHAT!?” Brighteyes yelled, Shedletsky winced “Why on Robloxia WOULD YOU DO THAT!?” She stood up slightly, then took a deep breath and sat back down.

“I… ok it was because I was being selfish.” He said. At that Brighteyes stood up, walked over, and slapped him as hard as she could.

“HOW COULD YOU DO THAT TO A CHILD!?” She asked. Shedletsky muttered slightly as he felt the sting.

“I deserved that” He then looked up and answered Brighteyes’s question. “Being 100% honest, I don’t remember, I think it had something to do with me being disappointed in them, but I actually don’t remember” Shedletsky spoke truthfully, Brighteyes scowled at him, then asked one last question.

“...Do you regret it?” She asked, Shedletsky winced for a moment.

“Of course I do, I had to sit with what I did for years in my time, in the original time I didn’t help them at all, I-” Shedletsky swallowed through his throat closing slightly “I locked them away in the banlands originally, though it was the worst mistake in my life” He didn’t feel like telling his wife that her child also killed him multiple times over in that timeline. Brighteyes was fully stunned.

“Ok. Let me get this straight. You got upset at 1x and gave them a crown to help them, but it was a trap that made them feel only hatred, that eventually got them banned, and you later regretted it?” She said, Shedletsky slowly nodded. “And you called it the worst mistake of your life.” She said, that part was less directed at him, and more at herself, after a few seconds she sighed. “I need some air” she said, and she walked out the front door. After a few seconds of sitting in the chair, Shedletsky sighed and walked back to 1x’s room. Looking inside they were still asleep, though their breathing was sound and even, a sure sign that they were ok. Shedletsky sighed and softly closed the door, then he thought of his friends.

“I wonder how everyone is doing?” He asked himself, at that he realized that he couldn't just leave 1x alone, so he would have to wait till they woke up, he had told them that he would be there. He eventually went and sat in the small library, grabbing a book to pass the time. After a while he heard the opening and closing of the front door, as Brighteyes came back, and she soon entered the room, Shedletsky looked up from his book.

“You said that you changed your name… was there any reason?” She asked.

“It wasn’t just my name, but it was because I didn’t want to see “Telamon” whenever I looked into the mirror.” He said, Brighteyes looked at him.

“Was it because of your regret?” She asked. Shedletsky closed his eyes.

“Yeah… it was… I didn’t want to see a monster anymore, so I changed everything about myself.” He said, when he opened his eyes, Brighteyes was looking right at him.

“You didn't want to see a monster huh?” She said, Shedletsky shifted slightly.

“Yeah. I was tired of seeing a man who locked his child away for his own benefits” Shedletsky spoke. Brighteyes then smiled, just a little. She could see that he wasn’t lying at all, he was being fully truthful and genuinely felt terrible about doing that to their child.

“I’m glad you got the opportunity to fix it.” She said, At that moment the door slightly opened, and 1x peeked their head into the room.

“Hey 1x. How are you doing?” Shedletsky said, putting his book away and walking over to 1x, who fully opened the door.

“My head hurts a lot…” They said. “But other than that, I’m not afraid. I feel happy!” They said, at that Shedletsky smiled and hugged 1x, who hesitantly hugged back, nervous of if this was a kind of test, it wasn't.

“I’m so glad that you're ok” Shedletsky said, Brighteyes then walked over and ruffled 1x’s hair.

“Would you like me to make you some cocoa?” She asked them, they quickly smiled.

“Yes please!” They said quickly as they followed Brighteyes out of the room, and into the kitchen. Shedletsky then looked at the robes he was still wearing.

“I”m going to have to burn these” He said.

A few weeks passed, and 1x’s persistent headache finally went away, Shedletsky was still waiting to feel any hatred at all, and yet he still couldn’t, Shedletsky had also changed back to Shedletsky. 1x and Shed were now at the fire ring for the first time in a few months.

“Hey 1x.” Shedletsky called out to 1x, who was holding a sword.

“Yes?” 1x asked, finally growing slightly more comfortable around Shedletsky. Shedletsky walked up to 1x slowly, then knelt down to their level.

“Do you actually want to be a swordsman?” Shedletsky asked, he was fully ready to stop training them if they didn’t want it, he had expected them to not want it, but to his surprise.

“I do!” 1x responded, at that Shedletsky was proud, even after everything he had put them through, they still persisted. Shedletsky smiled.

“Then I promise to take it a little slower, ok?” He said, it was a promise he was going to make sure he kept. 1x smiled.

“Ok!” They said, at that Shedletsky started teaching them, taking it slower, and helping them out more, it was pleasant. Brighteyes still watched from the side, but now she smiled more while watching. 1x went along faster, and quickly got better. Everything was good. Everyone was happy.

A FEW YEARS LATER

Shedletsky was reading in the library, he had finally stopped jumping so much when he saw anything that reminded him of that realm, sometimes he wondered if it was all just a horrible, long, bad dream, but it also didn’t make sense for it to just be a dream. Shedletsky  was calmly reading with a cup of tea, and Brighteyes was still asleep. 1x then entered the room.

“Hey, I need to talk to you.” They said, Shedletsky looked up from his book.

“Yeah? What do you need?” Shedletsky said, 1x leaned on the doorway.

“I want you to know… I remember everything now.” 1x said, Shedletsky was confused.

“What… does that mean?” He asked.

“It means I remember what you did, before you got taken back to this time. What you did to me, and what I did to you.” 1x explained. At that Shedletsky looked down, welp, there was his proof.

“Ah.” He said “That makes sense.” 1x kicked themselves off the door and turned to leave. But stopped slightly before closing the door fully.

“...Thank you for saving me.” They said before closing the door and walking away. Now Shedletsky was even more confused, did they hate him, or not? It was a question that would have to wait till another time. He shook his head and went back to reading, at least they thanked him? That was always something. Shedletsky later got the chance to ask, while Brighteyes was out, 1x and Shedletsky happened to pass each other.

“Hey, I have a question 1x.” Shedletsky asked.

“What.” 1x answered turning around to face him. He still looked the same as when they had gotten back, not his forsaken form, which was extremely pleasant.

“Do you still… hate me?” Shedletsky asked with probably the least amount of confidence he could. 1x looked surprised, then laughed, then he stopped and looked at Shedletsky.

“A part of me still does, but another part is thankful that you made it right. So in part, yes I do, but at the same time, no.” They answered, Shedletsky nodded.

“Ok.” was all he said.

“Is that all you wanted?” 1x asked, shifting to the side and putting a hand on their hip.

“Yeah, that’s all, you can go and do whatever.” Shedletsky said, and they both began to walk in separate directions, the next day 1x surprisingly still wanted to train, considering this was a version that knew how to be a swordsman, Shedletsky thought that it was simply more of a duel, thought he still asked, and was granted with the answer of.

“That, and it’s an easy way to weld swords and not have people be afraid of me” 1x said, which brought an interesting thought, could he technically just want to spar with people? Regardless Shedletsky decided that he would duel with 1x, standing there, Shedletsky was hit with an odd memory of that realm, and of that special round where it had been this area as a map, he shivered at the memory that he also ended up being the last one for that round.

“You ready for this!?” 1x yelled to him, asking if he was ready to start. Shedletsky took a deep breath.

“Yeah! Let’s do this!” He called out, and with that 1x rushed at him and the two began to duel.

Builderman and Dusekkar

Dusekkar was suddenly in his bed, looking out the window, he saw a familiar sight. Home. He thought back to the moment that they had left that realm, the last thing he could remember was entering a portal with everyone. Getting out of bed he looked at his calendar and noticed the date.

“The date Shedletsky was gone, hopefully this time nothing goes wrong.” Dusekkar murmured to himself. Exiting his house he smelt the familiar scent of fresh air from the trees, it was good to finally be home. As he floated around, he decided to go to the Roblox HQ, considering that Builderman was likely to be there. When he entered the large building he was greeted enthusiastically by its employees, he waved back at them as he walked into Builderman’s office, thankfully Builderman was there. He looked up from his paperwork and smiled.

“Dusekkar! Good to see ya!” He said, getting up and walking over from behind his desk. Dusekkar walked up to meet his friend.

“Quite good indeed, I hope you are not in need” Dusekkar said, Builderman scratched at the back of his head.

“Nah, I just kinda woke up here, forgot that I usually would fall asleep at my office.” He said, Dusekkar sighed.

“Good to know I’m not insane, for a couple minutes I thought I had dreamt down that lane.” Dusekkar said, Builderman sighed.

“Nah, that was all real, everyone we met were all real, everything that happened was all real.” Builderman said looking at the floor, Dusekkar looked to the side.

“Has Shedletsky been here recently? I remember he visited you frequently.” Dusekkar spoke, he needed to make sure he could protect Shesletsky in case 1x came after him. Builderman shook his head.

“No, but for whatever reason I’m pretty sure he still lives at the manor, at least in this timeline.” Builderman said, thinking on it, Dusekkar could vaguely remember that in this timeline, he still lives there, also a vague memory of seeing 1x after he should have been gone, regardless, that gave him somewhere to start.

“Ok, thank you Builderman, I will go retrieve our other admin.” Dusekkar rhymed as he left for the manor. Midway there Dusekkar had a realization, he could just teleport there. After casting a simple spell, he arrived at the Manor's doorstep, after knocking on the door, Shedletsky answered.

“Oh hey Matt! Nice to see you, what's up?” Shedletsky spoke carefree, perhaps he hadn't remembered yet, which seemed quite odd.

“I have a simple question, has your memory gone and lessen?” Dusekkar asked. To his surprise Shedletsky sighed.

“Oh thank Telamon you finally remember, yeah, I remember everything, I’ve remembered for a while.” Shedletsky said as he came out into the front yard and closed the front door. Dusekkar was confused, did he remember before him and Builderman.

“What do you mean by a while, how long? Could there have been something wrong?” Dusekkar asked. Shedletsky looked to the side.

“I “woke up” on the day that I had banned 1x, which gave me the opportunity to save them.” Shedletsky said, he looked at the front door then continued. “They still remember everything, but not being corrupted with hatred, they don’t despise me, but they definitely don’t seem to feel the safest around me.” He said, Dusekkar was still stuck on one part.

“You saved 1x? Does that mean you have evaded your death? Can you continue to take breath?” Dusekkar asked. Shedletsky smiled.

“Considering that we spar, and even when they win they haven't killed me, I think so.” Shedletsky said, and Dusekkar rejoiced.

“Oh thank lord! I was hoping I wouldn’t have to protect you from a horde” then he paused and looked at Shedletsky. “You still seem the same? How? Is this some sort of game?” At that Shedletsky smiled.

“I honestly don't know how this happened! I destroyed the crown and yet I still can't feel hate!” Shedletsky was smiling at that statement, it was confusing, destroying the crown, from what Dusekkar understood, which was surprisingly a lot, should have transferred Shedletsky's hatred back to him, was it a sort of unaccounted variable that caused this? Then again, Dusekkar didn't really care, what was done was done, and it allowed Shed to be happy, so Dusekkar was happy.

“Hey, Matt, I have a question” Shedletsky started to ask. Dusekkar turned his head to Shedletsky, a sign that he was listening. “Does Builderman remember yet? Or have you not seen him” Shedletsky asked.

“From what he told me he does, which is a faithful cause.” Dusekkar told Shedletsky. Shed quickly brightened up.

“That's nice, I haven't actually been able to talk to you guys since I got back,” he said, the two then decided to walk over and hangout with Builderman, get the group back together, and finally be able to talk.

After Dusekkar had left, Builderman had been going through files, looking at all of the employees and how they had been doing, most of them were just basic people, and then he stumbled upon two names that were familiar.

“John and Jane…” Builderman looked at a calendar, there was still plenty of time to fix things. He quickly did the transfer paperwork, probably the best thing to do, then gave them the day off, incase something went awry anyway, after it all he set his pencil down, “That oughta do it” Builderman said, at that moment Shedletsky barged into the room loudly, with Dusekkar quietly following behind.

“HELLO!” Shedletsky yelled out, it was painfully obvious that for whatever reason, he had decided to be as loud as possible. Dusekkar chuckled behind him.

“Hey there Shed! How are you doin’?” Builderman asked, he was unsure if Shed actually remembered anything, so he looked at Dusekkar, who seemed to understand what it said, and nodded at the look, confirming that Shed remembered.

“Much better than before” Shedletsky said, quieting down, and closing the door “Dusekkar told me that you remember everything, which is a huge relief because if it weren't for 1x also remembering, I would have thought I had gone crazy.” Shedletsky said, which confused Builderman, who had seemingly woken up this morning.

“Did you go back to a different day?” Builderman asked. Shedletsky nodded.

“Yeah, I went back to a day LONG before this one.” Shedletsky said, looking out the window behind Builderman. Builderman nodded.

“So then, it appears that we don't all come back to the same day “ Builderman said, tapping a pencil lightly on a piece of paper. At that moment, the door behind Shedletsky opened, and Taph walked in.

“✋👬❗❓🫵❓” (Hi everyone! How are you doing?) Taph signed, everyone looked at each other, Builderman finally spoke up.

“Taph, do you happen to remember… everything that happened?” Builderman asked, Taph nodded quickly.

Taph

Taph was on her bed, looking at the calendar, it appeared to be around the time that robloxians started to get mad at them. Perhaps they could avoid it if they were more careful with the jobs that they took up, but then again, maybe not. Taph shook their head, at the current moment, they needed to get to the HQ then they could probably discuss what to do with Builderman. They got out of bed, and went over to the HQ. They were never officially employed there, but they were definitely seen as such, considering they visited the place almost everyday. Walking into the office section, their body almost moved on its own towards Builderman's office. After everything that they had all been through Taph would definitely want to talk with everyone. Entering the room, they saw Shedletsky, Dusekkar, and Builderman all there.

“✋👬❗❓🫵❓” (Hi everyone! How are you doing?) They signed, Builderman, Shedletsky, and Dusekkar, were all quietly looking at each other, until finally Builderman spoke up.

“Taph, do you happen to remember… everything that happened?” Builderman asked, Taph nodded quickly. Shedletsky chuckled.

“Well then! Looks like we got 4 of 12 people down!” Taph was confused.

“🙋💭🧑‍🤝‍🧑🥱⬆️⏰❓” (I thought we all woke up at the same time?” Taph quickly signed, Shedletsky laughed then looked down at the floor intensely.

“Yeah… no. I’m guessing you guys all woke up together but, uhhh. No, I woke up a while ago.” Shedletsky then looked at Taph. “So how are you holding up?” He asked, leaning on the desk.

“🙋✅” (I’m ok) Taph signed. “☺️🧑‍🤝‍🧑🌄” (Happy we’re out) Taph continued. Builderman nodded, and Dusekkar sighed.

“Here, here.” Shedletsky called out. After that Taph smiled, though it was barely noticeable due to the hood and mask. “So what are you planning on doing? Still going to be a demolitionist?” Shedletsky asked, Taph looked down, they realized that the whole reason that they were there was simply because they endangered people, and were guilty by public opinion.

“🙋❌💭” (I don't think so) Taph signed, Builderman and everyone else was taken by surprise.

“Why not?” Builderman asked.

“🙋🛖🙋💼” (I was forsaken because of my job) they explained, thinking on it, Builderman and everyone else had been forsaken before Taph armed their house.

“Oh yeah, because you endangered NPCs right?” Shedletsky said, Taph nodded, Builderman looked at a calendar, on it was a date circled. Taph decided that the date could wait for another day.

“Well, then what are ya gonna do?” Builderman asked, Taph looked aside.

“🙋❌😃” (I’m not sure) Taph signed, Builderman nodded, then thought. The room was silent for a few minutes.

“You… could work here?” He asked, Taph hastily nodded.

“✅🙇❗” (Yes please!) Taph signed, Builderman nodded.

“I think having you as a demolitionist is still a good idea, but now there would be things in place to keep you, and everyone around you safe” Builderman said, and with that, there was some paperwork, some other things, and then Taph had a job, and one they were happy with.

007n7

7n7 woke up, he was staring at a ceiling, this time he looked over, it was almost the same as when he entered that cabin, Noli was right there, looking at him.

“Hey sev, how did you sleep” 7n7 just chuckled.

“I slept pretty good” he said, Noli nodded, 7n7 looked at the pc on his desk, the day was still the same as it had been, a few hours passed, 7n7 was reading a normal book, then Noli spoke up.

“Yo, I’m bored, you wanna do something?” Noli asked looking over at 7n7, who closed the book and looked out the window again, this time he looked at the arcade, but mainly.

“I wonder how everyone else is doing right now?” 7n7 thought looking at the HQ. Then he turned to Noli.

“Let’s go kick each other's butts at the arcade, my treat” Noli hopped up.

“Sounds fun” He said, 7n7 grabbed his wallet, then headed out the door, half expecting to be transported somewhere, but he wasn't, he looked down the hall, and suddenly it dawned on him.

“I’m really home” He muttered, a smile coming to him, he and Noli began walking over to the arcade, chatting about normal things, 7n7 felt really good just having his best friend back, on the way, 7n7 spotted Shedletsky across the street, and Shedletsky saw him, the two locked eyes, both looking at the other in a new light.

“Hey Noli, I need to do something, you go on ahead and I’ll meet you there” 7n7 said, Noli nodded.

“Sure, just don't take forever or I’m going to force you to play with disadvantages the whole time” 7n7 laughed and nodded his head.

“Sure.” Noli nodded and walked away, 7n7 walked over to Shedletsky. “Hey Shedletsky, how are you doing?” 7n7 asked, Shedletsky sighed.

“Ok you DO remember, good” 7n7 was confused, then Shedletsky explained. “From what I can gather, we all ‘woke up’ at different times, you, me, Builderman, Dusekkar, and Taph are the only ones who remember what happened as of now.” He said, then thought. “Well, scratch that 1x remembers as well” 7n7’s went wide.

“Does that mean that Noli and c00lkidd…?” He asked, Shedletsky shrugged.

“I don't know, 1x remembered a little while afterwards, but your two could be different, this is a weird situation” he said, 7n7 nodded, then looked at the arcade.

“I’m going to have to go, nice talking with you!” 7n7 said, Shedletsky nodded.

“Don’t keep a friend waiting!” He called, 7n7 entered the arcade, the lights and sounds gave him a sudden shock.

“There you are!” Noli called out, 7n7 walked over and paid for two cards, then the two went off.

7n7 later dropped out of college, deciding to rather take odd jobs, he waited for c00lkidd, he lived in the same place, and waited, it was soon going to be time, and he had been growing worried that maybe he had messed something up, maybe he had screwed over the timeline, causing c00lkidd to never arrive, he was anxiously awaiting the day he was supposed to arrive, anxiously waiting for anything, then he gave up hope, he went into his room, and just sat there, maybe he could call someone, not many people he could really talk to, in all of the years that had passed, Noli had seemed to remember bits and pieces, but not enough, and the only other survivors who knew were still just the admins and Taph, 7n7 didn't know what to do, he wanted to talk to someone, anyone, then his doorbell rang, he perked up, suddenly gaining hope, though he wished he wouldn't, as likely it would be stomped on, but when he opened the door, and no one was there, he looked down, and there in a box, was a pill baby c00lkidd, 7n7 wanted to shout with joy, it had been years since he had seen his son, but he didn't, instead carefully taking the box inside, being sure not to wake him, 7n7 had almost forgotten what c00lkidd had looked like as a baby, he was quiet, simply feeling fulfilled that his life felt whole again, then Noli came by.

“Yes? Oh hey Noli! Ummm… if you want you can come in!” 7n7 said, c00lkidd was in the back room that would soon be his room, once 7n7 actually furnished it, he hadn't due to the overwhelming anxiety that c00lkidd would in fact not come by and that the sight of the room would be too much to bear, Noli walked in, for some reason everything seemed awkward, then Noli explained.

“I’m not fully sure how to say this but, I remember now, I remember the Voidstar, I remember you, I remember that place.” He explained, then he turned to look at 7n7, who was now quite worried. Things were awkward for a few seconds. “But this time you obviously didn't do that, considering I can talk like a human being and wasn't coming back from getting the Voidstar, and from what I can faintly remember in this world, we… never even hacked?” He finished, 7n7 felt tense. Noli chuckled “Relax 7, as much as I would have wanted to hurt you back then, I’m not going to now.” Slowly, 7n7 released his tension.

“Yeah, that path was what got me in that place, and I regret doing it anyway” 7n7 said, Noli nodded.

“You have changed so much, it’s honestly admirable” Noli said, 7n7 sat down on his couch, Noli sat down with him.

“Are you going to keep hacking?” 7n7 asked, Noli paused.

“I don't know, you aren't doing it anymore, and it would take a while for me to build up my cult again” 7n7 sighed “But I do miss the thrill of it” Noli ended, 7n7 nodded.

“There are other thrilling things that won't result in you getting sent to the banlands if something goes wrong” 7n7 said, Noli laughed, then nodded.

“You are correct, there are other thrills in life” Noli said, 7n7 sighed.

“I don't know, I kinda just like how things are, you are still… the same as you were? I don't know how to say it without feeling like I’m going to offend you. I just got c00lkidd back, and things are… peaceful, and I want it to last” He said, Noli looked at him.

“I guess that makes sense, actually, while I’m here I have a question, considering now I remember everything, past and present timelines” 7n7 was nervous, but motioned for Noli to keep going. “Are we still friends?” He asked, 7n7 looked at him in surprise.

“Do you still want to be friends?” He asked, Noli nodded.

“Considering you haven't wronged me in this timeline yet, yes” Noli answered.

“Then we are still friends” 7n7 said, Noli nodded.

“Cool” He said, suddenly there was the sound of crying, 7n7 looked at the hallway.

“Excuse me I’ll be back” he said, then he went into c00lkidd’s room, where he was crying, 7n7 carefully picked him up, “shhh, shhh, it’s okay, I’m here, shhh” he talked quietly and calmly to his son, while softly bouncing him in his arms, slowly, c00lkidd fell back asleep, 7n7 then realized that he should probably get some furniture now that c00lkidd was here. Turning around 7n7 saw Noli in the doorway.

“Well this room is empty, besides the box” Noli said, 7n7 smirked.

“Wow, thanks Captain Obvious” he said as he carefully left the room, Noli raised his hands in mock defensiveness.

“Just sayin’, maybe go grab at least a crib for the kid.” He said, 7n7 sighed.

“I was planning to, just didn't want to get it before he got here.” 7n7 said, Noli looked confused.

“Why not? You knew the kid was coming” He said, 7n7 nodded.

“I was afraid that I would mess up the timeline or whatever and that he wouldn't be dropped here” 7n7 explained Noli nodded while laughing slightly.

“The only thing that you messed with that messed up the timeline was the fact that you fixed your mistake, did you even ever make the c00lGUI?” Noli asked, 7n7 shook his head.

“No, first time around I tweaked it for convenience, this time I realized that I can just make my own time work,” 7n7 explained, then looked back into the hallway. “Though it would be nice to have just so that I didn't have to worry about c00lkidd.” 7n7 said, Noli paused for a minute.

“Two options, 1) I could watch him while you go out, 2) I could go get the stuff for you” Noli said, 7n7 shifted.

“As much as I would prefer one, I’m probably just going to take him with me, actually never mind I need a car seat, I forgot about those” 7n7 said, Noli nodded, then headed for the door. “Wha- Are you just going to go out?” 7n7 asked, Noli threw up his hand.

“Yup, see you in a couple of minutes.” Then he paused at the door. “Actually let's make a list first” 7n7 chuckled at the enthusiast, and together, the two made a list.

Elliot

Elliot was back in his pizzeria, he didn't know how long it had been, he had vague memories of 7n7 and c00lkidd, but this time neither of them had ever hacked, sure there were still plenty of hackings, just not from them or the hooded group, the day went on as normal, and this time 7n7 came in with c00lkidd, Elliot immediately shot his eyes to c00lkidd, then remembered that the two of them had never done anything this time, 7n7 seemed to catch on.

“Did you finally remember everything?” He asked, Elliot was confused.

“What do you mean ‘finally’?” He asked, 7n7 chuckled slightly.

“According to Shedletsky we are all seeming to ‘wake up’ at different times, so far Taph, Builderman, Shedletsky, Dusekkar, 1x, Noli and I all remember” he explained, Elliot nodded, then looked behind 7n7, a line was starting to form.

“Ok, we can talk later after I finish work, but right now, as long as you don't mess up the place what would you like” Elliot asked, 7n7 looked a little surprised, but quickly ordered, then went to sit down and wait with c00lkidd, Elliot made the pizza and brought it out, all while still serving and taking orders for customers.

“Here you go, have a good day!” Elliot said, 7n7 nodded and left, it was weird to serve them and not end up with the place being a total mess, but Elliot was happy, eventually the day came to an end, and Elliot closed up. It felt nice to be back, and he couldn't wait to see his family again, he left the building, finding 7n7 waiting outside.

“How long have you been sitting here?” Elliot asked, looking at the man who was sitting on a bench, 7n7 looked at his watch.

“Around 30 minutes” He answered, Elliot nodded.

“So, you, the admins, Taph, 1x, Noli and I all remember what happened? What about everyone else?” Elliot asked, 7n7 shrugged, “Last time I talked with Shedletsky he said something about John and Jane coming to, but I don't really know about anyone else, from what I can assume, obviously take this all with a grain of salt, the war hasn't happened yet, so Guest still doesn't know, no one has seen Noob, Vee, or Two Time since we got out, same goes with most people, c00lkidd hasn't remembered yet, and if he has then he's being really good about hiding it, and Chance may have visited the admins once, but I honestly don't know where everyone is, you might find someone eventually though” 7n7 said, Elliot sighed.

“It was weird to have you guys come in again, and then leave and have everything stay intact, not that that was a bad thing, just that it was weird” Elliot said, 7n7 chuckled and nodded.

“Yeah, it was weird coming in and having you greet me like nothing ever happened for a little, then suddenly you know exactly what happened” he said, after that the two talked until 7n7 had to go home, Elliot went back to his house, it was late so he couldn't go and see his family, but he was hoping to soon.

Jane Doe

Jane was in the living room, looking over she saw John, and she almost broke into tears, she had finally fixed it, she finally stopped it, at least she knew how to this time, then she noticed some mail on her table, looking at it, it said that she and John had gotten the day off tomorrow because they had accidentally overstaffed the day, looking at it, she realized that “tomorrow” was the day the incident had happened, looking at who it was from, it had been from Builderman, Jane picked it up, trying to make sure it was real, it felt flimsy in her hands, just like paper should, tears came to her eyes, she would have to be cautious no matter what, looking at another letter, she saw two more, one of a movement notice for the two, although it looked to be around the same kind of stuff they had already been doing, Jane realized that it was probably to just prevent it in the future, and a letter specifically to her, the envelope had writing on it, “for when you remember” she opened it.

“Dear Jane,

    I tried my hardest to make sure that you and John would be safe from the corruption, hence the day off and the job moving, I hope this letter finds you well.

-Builderman”   

Jane looked at it carefully, then smiled, everything was going to be ok, John was going to be ok, she walked back into the living room, John looked up from his book.

“You look happy. What’s going on?” He asked with a smile, Jane walked up and sat next to him.

“I’m just in a good mood” she said, she put her head on his shoulder, and closed her eyes, if this was a dream, she never wanted to wake up. After that things went back to normal, John and Jane got used to their new jobs and occasionally Jane would see the admins, when she did, they would look at each other with a knowing look, and then continue their work, after a few months, John looked at her with a puzzled confusion.

“Is something wrong John?” She asked, he slowly opened his mouth, then closed it, then began to speak.

“I think… I remembered something, I remember you, and, this weird… black stuff, and, hurting you and other people. Am I going crazy or did this all happen?” He asked, Jane looked down for a second, then took a breath and looked back at him.

“Yes, that all happened, it was… a weird realm, but we all escaped.” She said, John looked down.

“Its all so… hazy, like I couldn't actually see, remembering it you just had a black square over your face and, wait, how did we avoid all that this time?” John asked, Jane turned her head a little.

“It’s complicated, Builderman had us move jobs, and we also got that day off, there was a little more that went into it I think, but that was the basis” She said, John nodded.

“Ok… yeah I… yeah”  John said, then he looked down, Jane was calm.

“Are you ok?” She asked, John nodded his head.

“Uh... yeah, it’s just a lot to take in at once” He said, Jane walked over and sat next to him.

“It’s ok, it is a lot to take in, I’m right here for you” She said, after that everything felt slightly odd, but still correct, they were both home, at long last.

Noob

Noob was on a beach, they turned and saw Sixer, they could see that this was before they had “fixed” everything, and so they did it again, laying out the same reasoning, and staying calm, afterwards, they held the hug for longer, they had missed their friend.

“I missed this” they muttered, Sixer looked at them.

“W@$ IT R£@||¥ TH@T B@D?” They asked, Noob suddenly remembered that Sixer did not remember anything.

“Huh? Oh! No no nonono it’s not you! I had an awful dream, that’s all” Noob said, Sixer nodded.

“@H, TH@T W0ULD £×P|@IN IT” Sixer said, then the two of them stood still, and Noob realized that they had no idea how they were going to help Sixer… get rid of the script. Sixer looked at himself.

“$0… 0NT0 @ M@TT£R 0F, WH@T D0 W£ D0 @B0UT TH|$?” Sixer asked, Noob shook their head.

“I have no idea.” They said, the two sat in awkward silence. Then Noob spoke up. “Why don't we just throw things at the wall and see what sticks?” Sixer nodded.

“TH@T $££M$ |IK£ @ G00D ID£@” She said, Noob nodded.

“What if we tried just… not using it? Maybe it works like a drug and will work its way out of your system?” Noob suggested, Sixer thought for a second.

“M@¥B£…” Sixer said, then there was another pause. “M@¥B£ W£ €0U|D $££ IF TH£R£ I$ $0M£ KIND 0F @NTI-$€RIPT THING?” Sixer suggested, Noob thought for a second, then slowly nodded their head.

“Maybe? I have never seen anything like that, actually.” They looked up at Sixer. “Why don't we go to my house and look this all up!” They said, Sixer quickly nodded their head. And so the two went to Noob’s house, most of the suggestions had varying results amounting to mostly nonsense, then Noob made a discovery.

“Seems like there is some sort of thing that looks like it will work, though I don't think you will ever look the same… simply just due to how things are.” Sixer nodded.

“IF IT W0RK$, IT W0RK$” They said, Noob nodded. After that the two looked further into it, it looked like a sort of program that would help Sixer recover, and so they decided that it would work, after that the two of them got ready, on one day, Noob went over to Sixer’s house.

“Hey! How's it going today?” Noob asked, Sixer looked at them, then themselves.

“H£¥ N00B…” Sixer said, Noob immediately felt that something was off.

“Sixer? What happened, is everything ok?” Noob asked, they began to walk over, Sixer backed up just slightly, a small sign that Noob saw and respected by backing up as well.

“IT’$ @ |ITT|£ FUZZ¥, BUT WH¥ @M I R£M£MB£RING THING$ TH@T DIDN’T H@PP£N? |IKE ¥0U |£@\/ING M£ 0N TH£ B£@€H?” They asked, Noob took a breath, they grabbed their arm, it was time to come clean.

“Because… that all did happen… just… not in this timeline” Noob said, Sixer looked at them, but the gears seemed to be clicking in their head.

“TH@T… F0R$@K£N R£@|M?” Sixer asked, Noob suddenly remembered all the blood and pain.

“Y-yeah, the… forsaken realm…” Noob said, then there was silence. “How do you feel?” Noob eventually asked, looking up at Sixer, who didn't meet their eyes.

“I THINK… I N££D @ F£W H0UR$ T0 M¥$£|F RIGHT N0W, P|£@$£, |£@\/£.” Sixer said, then they walked into a hallway leading to their bedroom, Noob stood for a minute, then left, they weren't going to invade if Sixer needed space. They waited around by their own house, waiting for a call or to see Sixer walking around, but they soon realized that maybe, they probably shouldn't wait only for it, they needed something to do, so they decided to take a walk, they walked into the city, a place they usually didn't hang around to often, they walked through some parks and fields, quietly thinking, they had hoped that they didn't ruin their friendship, but if they had they would have to deal with it, they didn't go and make things right when they had the chance and now they would face the ugly consequences. They walked around for a long time, it was nice to feel the sun, they looked around, and saw Elliot sitting at a bench, he turned his head and waved at Noob, so Noob walked over.

“Hey! How have you been?” Elliot asked, Noob sighed.

“I am afraid I just ruined my friendship” They said, Elliot averted his eyes.

“Ah… that doesn't sound fun…” He said, Noob nodded.

“Mind if I sit down?” Noob asked, Elliot moved over. “How have you been?” Noob asked, Elliot sighed.

“Someone hacked the pizza place again, though 7n7 and c00lkidd haven't hacked since we got back, c00lkidd finally remembered everything but this time around 7n7 is doing a better job of teaching him what to do and that stuff, I actually enjoy seeing them now!” Elliot said, Noob smiled.

“That’s good!” Sixer… recently remembered, hence why… I’m out here. How’s everyone else doing?” Noob asked, Elliot thought for a second.

“The admins are back on track it seems, Jane and John managed to avert their fate and are still happily together, Taph was actually employed by Builderman so they could be protected, I think Shedletsky said that 1x and him are chill now, though everything is still awkward between them sometimes, Noli seems like he also stopped hacking, and instead found a job working with 7n7, and c00lkidd is actually going to school.” Elliot said, Noob looked at him.

“What about everyone else? Vee, Chance, and Guest?” Noob asked.

“We, don’t know, they are out there, but they haven't found us, or they don't remember quite yet” Elliot said, Noob looked down.

“They don't remember?” Noob asked, Elliot nodded.

“Some of us… ‘woke up’ at different times, I have vague ideas of where we could find everyone, but I don't think searching for them would be a good idea” Elliot said, at that moment, Noob’s phone began to ring in their pocket.

“Ah! One second Elliot” Noob looked at who was calling them, it was Sixer. “Hey Sixer, What’s going on.” Noob asked.

“H£¥ N00B, I JU$T W@NT£D T0 S@¥ $0RR¥, F0R G£TTING S0 @NGR¥, ¥0U €@N €0M£ B@€K WH£N£\/£R Y0U W@NT.” Sixer said, Noob smiled softly.

“Ok, I'll be over soon” They said, after that, the two hung up, Noob looked at Elliot. “Sorry, I’ll talk to you when I next can!” Noob said, Elliot waved goodbye, and Noob ran back to their friend's house, they knocked on the door, then they could hear the shaking of the handle before it just stopped.

“¥0U €@N JU$T €0M£ IN, I €@N’T 0P£N TH£ D00R.” Noob could hear from the other side, they opened the door, looking at Sixer.

“Sixer, I’m so sorry about what I did to you, I really am, ca-” Noob was cut off by Sixer giving them a hug.

“I forgive you, it took a bit of thought and time, but you came back, so I forgive you” Sixer said, Noob tightly grabbed onto Sixer.

“I’m so sorry about what I did” Noob said, it was muffled by Sixer’s jacket.

“I am too” Sixer said.

Veeronica

Veeronica was back in the alleyway, she looked around, and realized that she really needed to get a house. She walked out and looked around, then decided to go and find some places to see if she could buy or find a skateboard, she walked around, and managed to find a sports shop, then she realized that she didn't have money, she sighed and looked around to see if there were any jobs available, there did happen to be one at the sports store, so she walked in and applied, afterwards she was supposed to wait, and so she did, by walking around, she noticed some people over at a different end of a field, she looked closer, and realized that it was Noob and Elliot, suddenly Noob ran off, so Vee decided to walk up to Elliot.

“H3Y ELLI0T! H0W 4RE YOU?” Vee asked, Elliot looked at her in surprise.

“Wow 2 in the span of 30 minutes, Uh, I’m doing pretty good, how about you?” Elliot asked, Vee shrugged.

“4PPLIED F0R A J0B AT 4 SP0RTS PLAC3 S0 I C0ULD BUY 4 SK4TEB0ARD” Vee said, Elliot nodded.

“How long since… you got back? I guess I can say it like that.” Elliot asked, Vee was confused.

“I TH0UGHT TH4T W3 AL1 W0ULD HAV3 C0M3 B4CK 4T TH3 SAM3 T1M3?” Vee said, Elliot shook his head.

“No, some of us came back at earlier times than others, well, okay we all technically came back at the same time, we were all just in various states of… sleep? I can remember things that didn't happen in the original timeline is what I mean, the others can too” Elliot said, Vee thought for a moment, she could remember that she didn't hear anything about Shed and Dusekkar going missing, or 7n7 hacking, or whatever March 18th was supposed to be.

“HUH, Y3AH” Vee said, she looked around, and noticed her old friends looking in the alleyway she stayed in, she turned her attention back to Elliot. “S0… WH0 3LSE IS H3RE TH3N?” Vee asked.

“Noob, 7n7, Shedletsky, Dusekkar, Builderman, Jane, and Taph, as for the killers we have Noli, 1x, c00lkidd, John Doe, and Guest 666” Elliot said, Vee nodded.

“IS TH3RE 4NYTHING W3 C4N D0 T0 H3LP?” Vee asked, Elliot shook his head.

“If there is then I don't know of it, 7n7 said that I didn't know him or c00lkidd till I woke up. So I really don't think that there is anything we can do other than wait” Elliot said, Vee stopped.

“GU3SS TH4T MAK3S SENS3” She said. “WH3RE IS EV3RY0NE ELSE?”

“They are usually in the city somewhere, I saw Chance once here as well but he didn't seem to remember anything quite yet” Elliot said, Vee nodded, she remembered that when everyone told their story they all came from around the city, except Two Time who lived in a forest.

“The war that Guest fought in should be going on at the moment, right?” Vee asked, Elliot nodded.

“If I remember right it began shortly after Builderman ‘vanished’ but, that didn't happen this time, maybe we avoided it?” Elliot said, Vee thought for a moment, then shook her head 

“L1KELY TH3Y ARE W4ITING FOR TH3 RIGHT TIM3” Vee said, Elliot sat for a second, then nodded.

“I guess you're right, unless we help both sides find common ground we really can’t stop a war” Elliot said, Vee looked at Elliot with the expression of, “you have just given me a stupid idea” to which Elliot quickly knew what it was, and shot it down. “Trying to help the two sides find common ground without a fight starting would be like trying to find common ground with oil and water” Vee looked sadly at Elliot.

“4WWWW… °^°” Vee said, Elliot sighed.

“I hope they do find common ground though, it would be nice if we could avoid war” Elliot said, looking up at the sky.

Guest 1337

Guest was, at his house, he sat up, his wife was asleep beside him he looked at her for a long few moments, then smiled, he quietly got out of the bed, and went into the living room, he looked around, everything was exactly the same, he smiled, then went into the kitchen, everything was so familiar, it was as if he never left, he looked at the calendar, and was confused, he should have been in the middle of the war, but, he wasn't, he racked his brain for answers, and found them, he could vividly remember the last few days, it seemed that the war didn't happen in this timeline, he was confused, but maybe that didn't matter right now, he decided to try and cook, he instantly remembered taking over for Elliot to cook, but he didn't mind, as he was cooking, he thought of everyone, where were they, how were they doing, how were they adjusting to being back, he heard small footsteps, looking behind him, he saw his daughter rubbing her eyes, his heart melted, and a smile instantly latched to his face.

“Hey Charlie, how’d you sleep?” he asked, Charlotte looked at him, and smiled.

“I slept pretty well, how about you?” She asked, He turned back to the food he was cooking.

“I had a rough night, but I’m glad you slept well” He said, he finished the food and got a plate for her, after that Daisy came out of the room, Guest smiled again, this was all he had wanted, he was finally seeing his family again, finally watching them alive and well for the first time in what felt like years, he almost wanted to cry, he walked up, hugged her, and kissed her forehead, she began to laugh.

“Ha ha! Where did this come from?” She asked, Guest looked distantly over her shoulder, then walked back.

“Just remembering how lucky I am to have you two in my life” He said, they all smiled, a few hours passed and Guest was sitting with his wife in the backyard on the step, watching Charlotte play, while he was sitting there, he was thinking, he didn't remember any war, and he was confused, maybe the war just wouldn't happen, maybe he wouldn't have to feel the need to help fight for his country, maybe he could be happy, he decided to take a walk, maybe he could clear his head, as he was walking he heard someone call out his name, well, more or less, turning around, it was 7n7. Guest turned around to look at him, he was alone.

“7n7? How are you doing?” Guest asked, 7n7 stopped a few feet away from Guest.

“Pretty good, pretty good, I got c00lkidd into school, so he’s over at a friend's house to ‘study’ and I managed to get my life on track again, how about you?” 7n7 asked, Guest pieces together pretty quickly.

“We did not come back into the same timeframe entering that doorway did we?” Guest asked, 7n7 seemed a little surprised, then answered.

“Yeah, no we didn’t, Shedletsky seemed to be the first one, then the admins and Taph, then me, then Jane, then Elliot who was saying something about Noob and Vee being here as well” 7n7 said, then continued “Most of the… killers… are here too, 1x, John Doe, Noli, c00lkidd, and Sixer to be exact” Guest listened and nodded.

“Well at least we all seemed to make it safe and sound, maybe, what about Chance and Two Time?”, 7n7 looked at him with an expression that gave the answer, then talked.

“I’m not sure where they are, Chance is probably somewhere in the casino area of the city, and Two Time is likely still in the forest somewhere, though where exactly is a good question, because I do not know” 7n7 explained, Guest nodded.

“I have faith that they will find their way to us when the time is right, or we will just stumble upon them maybe, who knows?” Guest said, 7n7 nodded, then looked to the side.

“You had said that one of the things you first wanted to do when you got back was see your family, how are they doing?” 7n7 asked, Guest smiled.

“They're good, it’s like everything was kept in a capsule or something, like nothing ever changed, it’s almost surprising” Guest said, 7n7 nodded, then checked his watch.

“I’m going to have to go and pick c00lkidd up soon, and I’m sure that you have places to go, so I’ll see you around!” 7n7 said while waving, and with that he walked out of sight, Guest waved back then continued with his walk.

Chance

Chance was back in his casino, with sounds, sights, and scents he dearly missed, he immediately felt at home, he didn't remember why he was in the walkway, but he decided to turn around and find one of his favorite machines to play, he could see people moving, but one suddenly caught his eye, out of the corner of his vision, he saw a figure with a blue torso, looking over, it was iTrapped, Chance quickly diverted his eyes, hoping not to attract attention, he finished with his gambling, and left the area, hoping that he could avoid ever meeting iTrapped again, he stepped outside, the air outside was crisp and fresh, the sky was lit up beautifully by the stars and moon, Chance looked at other places, outside the casino, most of them were small restaurants and bars, with a few stores squished in there, Chance looked at his casino, and suddenly thought of Spade, he decided to go home, and try not to think about iTrapped, walking along he could hear footsteps behind him, he turned around, no one was there, was he just being paranoid? Suddenly he could feel a blade on his throat, and heard a familiar icy tone.

“I know your family has a key to the banlands, where is it?” Chance began to panic.

“I don't know what you are talking about.” Chance said, and it was true, he didn't, the blade suddenly pressed against his neck harder, he breathed in sharply.

“Liar, I know that you do. Where. Is. It.” iTrapped said, Chance started to panic more.

“I honestly don't know what you are on about, please just let me go!” Chance said, it felt wrong to ask for his life, but he just got his life back, and he really wanted to see his rabbit. iTrapped carefully, cut Chance a small bit, the blade stinging into his skin.

“Last chance, where is the key rich boy?” Chance really was panicking now, maybe he could bide for time? But that would take too long and only endanger him more.

“Please, iTrapped, I really don't know what you are talking about.” Chance said, iTrapped faltered for a moment.

“How- how do you know my name!?” iTrapped said, Chance immediately realized he had messed up.

“I… It… It’s a long story ok!?” Chance said, iTrapped chuckled.

“Well then too bad I won’t be able to-” iTrapped was suddenly cut off, and the blade lowered, Chance hesitantly turned, and saw Shedletsky and Dusekkar, with iTrapped on the ground, out cold.

“Hey… sorry about that” Shedletsky said, Chance quickly gained his composure.

“Hey guys, how have you been?” Chance asked, Shedletsky widened his eyes then smiled.

“Oh good, you remember!” Shedletsky said, Chance laughed.

“Why wouldn't I?” He asked.

“We all awaken at a different rate, you have woken somewhat late” Dusekkar said, Chance nodded.

“That explains it, good to see you guys again, only wish it could have been under” Chance looked at iTrapped “better circumstances.” Shedletsky nodded.

“So… this is iTrapped?” Shedletsky asked, Chance nodded.

“Yeah, thank you again, for saving me.” Chance said, Shedletsky nodded.

“Anytime, though I think we should probably deal with… this.” Shedletsky nudged iTrapped slightly with his foot, leading iTrapped to wake up, Chance quickly walked out of range.

“Shedletsky, why did you do that!?”  Chance asked, Shedletsky shrugged.

“Didn't think that he would wake up.” iTrapped stalled and looked up, then tried to run, being caught by Dusekkar.

“You don't get to run that way, don't think that after all this we would let you get away” Dusekkar said, then he teleported iTrapped to somewhere, Chance did not know where though. Everything grew quiet, then Shedletsky spoke up.

“Hey Chance, Matt and I were gonna go grab some food and drinks, you wanna join us?” He asked, Chance thought for a second, weighing his options.

“I don't see why I can't, yeah I’ll come” and so the three walked off.

Chance finally got home, it had been a long night, and a stressful one at that, he opened his door, and walked into his house, turning on the lights he heard a large thumping sound coming towards him, looking over at it, he saw Spade, he went over and pet the rabbit's head, right in-between his ears.

“Hey Spade, I’ve missed you” Chance said, he just sat on the floor, lifting Spade into his lap, everything was ok now, no more loops of pain and suffering, no more fear, and no more iTrapped, Chance was free of it all, he was back.

Two Time

Two Time opened their eyes, and the first thing they saw was Azure holding a bouquet of flowers in a patch of moon light, they took a breath, he looked absolutely breathtaking, more so than when they saw him when entering that cabin, they then felt the dagger in their hand, quickly putting it away, they could never make the same mistake, never again, they walked into the circle, Azure heard them enter and turned around.

“Hey Timey! How are you doing tonight?” Azure asked, Two Time smiled, and looked at Azure.

“Never been better.” They said, Azure chuckled.

“That’s good.” He took a breath. “So… you are probably wondering why I called you here, well, you make me so happy, more than anyone could ever say, and I love you so much, so much more than there are stars in the expansive night sky, so I have a question.” He knelt down and held out the bouquet to them. “Two Time… Will you marry me?” He asked, Two Time smiled a bittersweet smile, he actually had been wanting to propose that night, Two Time took a breath.

“Yes, of course I will marry you.” They said, carefully taking the flowers, Azure almost jumped up, and Two Time went to hug him, this time, he didn't fade, he hugged them back, Two Time began to cry.

“Ha… ha ha… I’m really free…” Azure looked at them.

“Two Time? Are you ok?” Azure asked, Two Time looked up, tears welling in their eyes.

“I’m just so happy to see you!” They said, Azure smiled.

“I’m happy to see you too.” He said, the two stayed in an embrace for a long while, and then Azure pulled off. “You should probably head back, it’s getting awfully late.” Azure said, Two Time suddenly remembered that they could not in fact go back.

“Um… could I actually… stay with you? For the night?” Two Time asked, Azure looked confused, but accepted.

“Of course you may, but, why? You have never spent a night away from the church.” Azure said, Two Time didn't know how to tell him about the sacrifice, or the fact that they would be burned alive if they didn't kill him.

“If we are going to be married then I think I should sleep in your cabin at least once.” Two Time said, Azure shrugged and didn't ask any further questions, though it was quite obvious that he somewhat saw through Two Time’s lie. The two reached the cabin easily, Two Time looked up and down the pathways before going inside, trying to see if any of the spawnists would see them enter, there was no one, at least Two Time hoped, They entered after Azure, the cabin itself was small, but homely Two Time had always felt safe there, the two sat around for a little, Azure had a few things to do with his plants before bed, Two Time settled on his couch, they placed their head on the arm of the couch lying down and steadily fell asleep. When they woke up, the sun was shining softly through the windows, and there was now a blanket on them, looking down, Azure had fallen asleep on the floor, they smiled, and carefully got off of the couch so as not to wake him. They started to walk around lovingly looking at everything, then they got to Azure’s box of seeds, and looked inside, they saw a good few packets of bittersweet nightshade seeds, the exact ones that they had taken to finish themselves off, they could remember everything, and suddenly, they were holding their chest as it tightened, they put the lid back on the box, going back into the main room, Azure was no longer there, instead he seemed to be in the kitchen.

“Good morning Azure.” Two Time said, walking into the kitchen, Azure turned and smiled at them.

“Good morning my nightshade!” Azure said, Two Time smiled at the loving nickname, they then walked up to look at what Azure was making.

“What is that?” They asked, Azure went back to cooking.

“It’s some bacon I managed to get from the store yesterday.” Azure said, Two Time looked at the bacon, which was sizzling in the pan, remembering the nights that they were in that realm, the day that Elliot had come in with bacon and eggs when they were injured, they closed their eyes, then opened them again after a few seconds.

“It smells divine.” Two Time said, Azure blushed.

“Why thank you dear!” Azure said as he plated the small strips of meat, Two Time sat across from him, and the two began eating, suddenly there was a loud knock at the door, and Two Time knew exactly who it was, they felt their blood go cold.

“Two Time, Azurewrath, I know that you are in there, come out now lest we burn this cabin to ashes, and you along with it” It was Amarah, Azure looked at Two Time, who kept looking at their plate.

“Two Time, what is going on, do you know what’s happening?” Azure asked in a whisper-like tone, Two Time had to tell him now.

“I’m so sorry Azure, they- I was told to kill you, but I didn't, and know they are going to kill us unless we run.” Azure was taken aback.

“Kill… me…?” Suddenly something seemed to happen. “Two Time?” Azure sounded confused, then looked around, and got up. “Your tail and wings are gone” Azure said, Two Time suddenly realized what happened.

“You… remember?” Two Time asked, Azure nodded, Two Time took a shaky breath.

“I-” Azure was cut off by more pounding at the door.

“One more chance before you go up in flames with your cabin” Amarah called out, Azure swore under his breath, then he grabbed Two Time’s wrist and started going in a different direction.

“Azure? Where are you taking me?” Two Time asked, stumbling over their feet as they were pulled from their chair.

“I’m going to get us out of here.” Azure said, Two Time did not complain, Azure opened a window out back as the two heard glass break, and began to smell smoke, they quickly hopped out the back, grabbing some seeds by the back of the cabin before running through the forest so as to get at least a little distance in the worst case scenario, the trees were pretty thin in this part, allowing for a few of the cultists to notice the two, Two Time looked behind them.

“AZURE THEY SAW US!” Two Time yelled, Azure tightened his grip on Two Time, running slightly faster as the cultists began chasing them, they moved onto the main path, so that there was less to slow them down, they ran for a long time, and then managed to find a street, Two Time looked around, seeing a sign they didn't even read, any place would be fine as long as it could help them, this time Two Time grabbed Azure.

“Let’s go this way!” Two Time called as they turned into the parking lot, it was early in the morning, so the place was empty. Two Time yanked the door open and ran inside, seeing a familiar pizza man behind the counter, he looked up.

“Oh! I'm- Two Time? Where have you-”

“ELLIOTTHERESNOTIMEPLEASEHELPUS!” Two Time frantically yelled, Azure pulled away to look through the door.

“What? Two Time what are you-”

“ELLIOT THERE’S NO TIME PLEASE HELP US!” Two Time repeated in more coherent wording, Azure spoke up.

“Time I can see them!” Two Time looked at Elliot, who seemed to get the idea.

“Follow me.” He said, Azure and Two Time quickly followed him, ending up in a place with a desk and office chair. “Hide here, I’ll do what I can to send them off.” Two Time nodded and led Azure to hide under the desk, it was quiet, then Two Time could hear Elliot talking, and Amarah responding, though the voices were too quiet to hear the words, then the voices stopped, the two heard footsteps, then the door opening, then a voice.

“You can come out, it’s safe now.” Two Time peeked their eyes over the desk, Elliot was alone,

“No one’s following you?” Two Time whispered, Elliot shook his head.

“No, I promise you I’m alone” Two Time stood up and carefully looked into the hallway, Azure soon followed.

“Thank you so much Elliot, I am forever in your debt, if you need help, if there is a job I could do, I will do it.” Elliot nodded.

“I’ll let you know if there is anything I need.” Elliot said, after that the three left the back area, Two Time and Azure carefully looking around to make sure that Amarah had left, he in fact had, Two Time was entranced.

“What did you say to him to get him to leave!?” Two Time asked, Elliot looked at them.

“I told him to get out, and when he refused, I threatened to call the police.” Azure chuckled, and Two Time nodded, then looked at people who began to come by.

“We should get going, I will see you around Elliot!” Elliot nodded and waved.

“Have a good day Two Time, come by if you ever need help.” Elliot said, Two Time nodded, then walked out with Azure, the two walked along, then Two Time found a secluded place to talk.

“I need to talk with you, now that we aren't running for our lives.” They said while sitting in the shade of a tree, Azure nodded and sat down.

“Yes, yes we do” Azure said. The two took a breath.

“I know you can’t forgive me for what I did to you.”

“Why did you let me do that to you?”

The two had spoken at the same time, they looked at each other.

“You go first.” Azure said, Two Time nodded.

“I know you can’t forgive me for what I have done to you, so…” Two Time pulled out their dagger and placed it in front of Azure, who looked extremely confused, then they looked at him and closed their eyes with a smile “do whatever you please, I’ll accept it with open arms.” Azure looked confused, he looked to the side, then the dagger, then he took it and placed it behind him.

“I… Two Time… do you think I hate you?” Azure asked, Two Time let out a small laugh.

“Yeah, don't you?” Two Time said, looking down at their lap, it hurt more than words to finally say their fear out loud, to have it be realized. Azure reached out and took their hands, they looked into his eyes.

“Two Time, I don't hate you” Azure said, they could feel hope bloom inside of them like a flower. “I don't hate you at all, I know that there was a different reason than on the surface, you wouldn't have done that normally, right?” Two Time could feel the tears running down their face.

“No, I didn't… I didn't want to do it.” Two Time said, Azure smiled. “I was forced into it, I would have been labeled a traitor… and I believed in that… that STUPID LIE!” Two Time, pulled their hands to their hair in anger, Azure gently grabbed them and pulled them back down.

“Yes, but we’re here now, and you’ve learned.” Azure said, he hugged them. “It was all you ever knew, it’s no wonder that you believed it, don’t be so hard on yourself.” Azure said, Two Time sniffled and nodded. “Now for my question, why did you let me hurt you like that? Why let me take your life over and over?” Azure asked, Two Time scoffed.

“I thought that I deserved what I had given you, but you can't take the life of someone who will just come back, so I let you hurt me, and it saved my friends. I felt I deserved it…” Two Time said, Azure sighed.

“Did they not tell you? Or maybe they didn't see” Azure said, Two Time grew curious.

“What do you mean?” They asked, Azure nodded.

“There was one time, I believe it was the first, you managed to take off my hat, it released me from the control of, it, and the only thing I could see was you, bloodied and bruised, the light fading in your eyes, and you told me those things, that even though I hurt you, and even though I would ‘never forgive you’ you still loved me, and you touched me, I wanted to tell you that I still loved you, that I still cared about you, but I couldn't, and then everything went hazy again.” Azure said, Two Time looked at Azure, and then let out a small sound. Azure looked at them.

“Sorry, I’m just thinking about how neither of us got to say our feelings.” They looked down with a smile. “You died before I could say ‘I love you’ so I find it funny that you couldn't say that to me either, well, not funny, but, something” Two Time looked at Azure who nodded. The two looked at the sky, it was now around afternoon time, Azure sighed.

“We should find a place to stay for the night, also probably find some way to make money.” Azure said, Two Time looked up.

“Like… a job?” Two Time asked, Azure nodded.

“Yeah, I just wish that I knew where to look.” Azure said, Two Time thought.

“You would probably do well as a florist, you love plants, and are good at caring for them.” Two Time said, Azure laughed.

“If you can find a flower shop that is hiring, I’ll gladly accept it.” Azure said. Two Time nodded, then thought.

“I feel like I need a job as well…” Two Time said, Azure nodded.

“Your friend seemed to be a little short staffed, maybe him?” Azure said, Two Time looked at Azure.

“Azure, You know wholeheartedly, I can't cook, how would I be any help?” Two Time said, Azure laughed.

“You could work the register.” Azure said, Two Time sat for a second.

“That… could work… maybe.” Two Time said, Azure nodded.

“But we can worry about that tomorrow, let’s find a place to stay for the night.” Azure said, Two Time nodded.