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A sword was once more plunged into his battered thigh. He screamed out, piercing the eerie silence of the desert. Then it was pulled out, a maniacal laughter echoing behind him.
Everything hurt.
His lab coat was soaked in his own blood and caked in dust, trembling arms dragging his limp body against the scalding sand. He couldn’t see; he was choking on his own gore, and his mind was getting fuzzy.
But the worst of all was the coldness that slowly spread over his frame. Despite the desert heat, he felt himself shivering uncontrollably, his body shutting down with every lost drop of blood.
He was dying. And there was nothing he could do to save himself.
No one would come to his aid.
No one would come to collect his decaying remains.
No one would even know that he had died.
The clone that now stood above him, sword raised, would slot itself right into his place, seamlessly blending with the empire he had built. It was known for its mastery of deceit, easily fooling others, pretending to be the scientist himself. It had his knowledge, his face, his voice. The CNE system recognized them as one and the same. Its creator. Its master.
Distantly, he wondered if someone would notice. If anyone would pay attention to the small details that differentiated the two. A misplaced mole on his cheek, a red tint to his sky-blue eyes, an exaggerated disdain for all of humanity.
Will his faithful workers pay attention to such things, or will they be too preoccupied with their tasks to even acknowledge them?
Would Katie and Nacho recognize him as the doppelganger? Would they see those cold, unfeeling eyes and figure out that something was wrong? Or would they, too, be fooled?
No, he thought, they, of all people, would know.
But…
Would they be in danger?
What about Quackity? Would he barge into the lab, as usual, only to stumble upon a person who looked just like his friend, but held none of the warmth for him in his heart? The softness in his voice, the fondness in his gaze?
Was he even still alive?
With the last breath he took, he uttered his name, before the clone’s sword pierced his chest one final time.
———҉———
The last rays of the setting sun warmed his face. He distantly heard the finale of a robin’s melancholic concert, somewhere deep in the forest. He inhaled, a strong scent of pine and oak invading his senses.
It was calm. Peaceful. Serene.
So why was his heart hammering so wildly?
He finally opened his eyes, a familiar scene unfolding before him.
A lake, a sunset, a forest.
And beneath him, that lonely bench.
He didn’t realize it at first, his mind still fuzzy from the losing fight with his copy, but-
Wait.
He looked around. In the distance, he saw Quackity’s figure disappearing into the shrubbery. Just like back then.
Just like a few days before his very own death.
He frowned.
Was he in the afterlife?
Was his mind cruelly replaying their last meeting to toy with him, only to plunge him into eternal darkness right after?
Was it all… just a bad dream?
———҉———
The return to his lab only made the feeling of deja-vu stronger.
Everything was exactly the same, as if he was reliving the days leading up to his doom. The results of his experiments, the reports from his workers, his interactions with others. It was mind-boggling. He felt like he was going insane.
If it wasn’t for the blatant repetition, he would have thought that the timeline he’d lived through was just a nightmare. A figment of his imagination. One of his many hallucinations. But everything felt too real. The details were too precise.
Down to the spider that somehow made its way into his lab. The vial that fell off his shelf seemingly on its own. The pebble he tripped over at the Polski Cave’s pier.
Still, the probability of him going back in time was too absurd to even consider. So was the option that he’d somehow foretold his own fate. It wasn’t something science could explain.
As such, he decided to ignore it completely.
———҉———
That is, until he awoke on that bench once more, his heart hammering, his body still sore from the fight.
He opened his eyes. A lake, a sunset, a forest.
In the distance, Quackity, disappearing into the shrubbery.
What the hell?
One time was a coincidence. But two…?
It was as if fate wanted to tell him something. As if whatever entity kept on pushing him backwards didn’t want him to die that day. As if the world was giving him a second chance.
Well, third chance.
He furrowed his brows, eyes glued to the serene lake before him.
But what was it that he was supposed to do differently?
Not saving Nacho was out of the question. And he had no idea how to avoid handing his missile over to the Dark Federation. Or how to prevent the kidnapping in the first place.
Bringing Katie along to his confrontation with the clone was not feasible either. He still didn’t know what kind of power it used to gain the upper hand during their fight. He didn’t want to risk her life too, lest it not trigger the time loop. Lest he lose her forever.
It was still too early to contact Cucurucho about this strange occurrence. But he could discuss it with her.
“Wait, wait, wait. Hold on, buddy. You’re telling me that… you went back in time?”
Multi sighed, running his hand through his hair in frustration. “Not… exactly. I don’t think I have any control over it.” He glanced out of the window of the KTB HQ, his eyes resting on the ridiculous statue Katie had built for herself. “It’s like… Whenever I die, I just get sent back.”
She leaned against her marble table, scratching her chin in confusion. She was visibly puzzled by the whole situation, still trying to wrap her head around it.
“If it’s triggered by your death, maybe we could, you know, make you not die?” She then pointed an accusatory finger at him, raising her voice in annoyance. “And why the hell didn’t you bring me along in the first place? You fucking told me you’d be safe!”
The scientist rolled his eyes and groaned. “Katie, if I couldn’t win against it, there was no way you’d survive this fight either.” When she cleared her throat and glared at him, offended by his doubts, he explained, “It’s not that I think you’re weak. I’ve seen you in life-or-death scenarios. I know that you can pull your own weight.
“It’s just that… Its alliance with the Dark Federation gave it some sort of… advantage over me. And until I figure out how it works, I refuse to let you confront it.”
Katie sighed and rubbed her temples. Then, she suddenly jumped up. “Well, that’s easy, then! Let’s just make sure Nacho doesn’t get kidnapped in the first place!”
———҉———
He opened his eyes. A lake, a sunset, a forest.
In the distance, Quackity-
Kurwa.
He groaned and ran his hands over his face in frustration, his heart still beating wildly.
He should have known it wouldn’t be that easy to outsmart his own fate.
No matter how they tried to protect Nacho, somehow, the clone always found a way in.
At first, they thought that guarding their son 24/7 would be the way. They would simply work in two shifts, swapping every few hours and keeping a tight schedule so that Nacho would be under their constant supervision.
But then, the clone lured Katie away with a fake message, and their plan went to shit.
On another run, they involved Cucurucho. They didn’t tell him about the loop, simply informing him that they caught wind of the planned kidnapping and asking for help.
So, the Dark Federation managed to snatch Katie instead, holding her hostage until Multi gave up his missile.
Therefore, all three of them decided to wait it out in the Federation’s lab. That was a disaster, too, as the clone simply threatened to blow the CNE up. Multi couldn’t ignore such warnings and, in the end, perished under its hands once more.
Even with Aldo and Roier’s help, his two trusted bodyguards, the strongest people he knew, that damned doppelganger had somehow managed to take him down.
It wasn’t until the tenth loop that they decided to finally give Cucurucho all the details of their predicament.
“That is… unheard of.”
Multi barely resisted the urge to roll his eyes at the bear’s obvious statement, keeping his face professionally still.
Katie scoffed. “Well, we’ve heard of it like, what, ten times?”
Cucurucho stared at them for a moment, his expressionless face somehow emanating confusion and disappointment in their decisions. “Then why am I hearing about it only now?”
The scientist sent a small glare Katie’s way. That was supposed to be a secret. “I wanted to… confirm some things. See what triggered it and what I could do to avoid it.”
“And what have you confirmed?”
“...absolutely nothing. Aside from my own death being the cause, that is.”
The bear stayed silent for a moment. Multi and Katie exchanged a glance.
The Federation Researcher finally broke the tension. “We will prevent your death, then.”
———҉———
A Robin’s last concert of the day. A rustle of leaves. A sunset.
Immediately, he groaned.
He’d already lost count. He stopped tallying up their failed attempts when he passed fifty. He saw no point in keeping track after that.
What use did he have in ruminating over numbers? Either way, he was stuck. Trapped in that merciless loop, forced to relive his own death over and over again.
Maybe that was the afterlife he deserved? Having to see his child be taken away? To witness his family dying, one by one? To watch his copy replace him?
Maybe he was already dead?
Except, this time, something else had changed.
Usually, his attempts at cheating fate started once he left that godforsaken bench.
He wakes up, watches Quackity leave, then moves on to his lab, brainstorming a new plan.
But now, once he opened his eyes, he noticed his avian friend staring at him with worry, but hesitant to approach him.
“Multi…? Is- Are you okay?”
His eyes widened.
Was this it…?
Was this the reason why this was the exact moment he kept on looping back to? Was he meant to make change here, at that bench, before the sun fully set?
But, if so, how was he supposed to do it?
He stayed silent for a moment, eyes glued to the little bird’s confused face, mind wildly running through all the possibilities.
Then, he finally realized.
His greatest regret. The biggest mistake he’d made that day.
He grabbed the avian’s arm, pulling him closer in desperation.
“Quackity… What exactly are you planning?”
And so, under some pressure, he received a tearful summary of his unfair deal with the devil himself.
They were lying on Multi’s abandoned lab coat, further stained green from the grass. The sky above them was slowly growing dark, the sun long gone, making way for the moon and the stars. It was getting chilly, but neither of them paid it any mind.
Instead, they focused on each other’s steady breathing. The rustle of trees. The scent of pine.
“I failed, then.”
Quackity’s quiet voice broke the gentle silence that enveloped them.
Multi sighed. “Cucurucho survived. And I have no clue what happened to you afterwards. You simply… disappeared.”
The avian moved to lie on his side, choosing to stare at the scientist instead. Multi mirrored him, the constellations of moles on his face far more pleasant to look at than the twilight sky.
“What should I do, then…? I’ve already signed a contract with Oscurucho. I can’t back out now…” He rubbed his face, his eyes still red and swollen from crying, the dark shadows underneath more prominent in the low light. He looked so… tired. Defeated. “And why didn’t he protect you? He swore…”
“If he didn’t keep his word, maybe you shouldn’t either? We’ve both learned that neither Cucurucho nor him are to be trusted with their promises.” Hesitant, Multi reached out to hold his hand, covered in burns and bruises. He felt a pang of guilt deep in his gut. “The Federation was supposed to leave you alone… And yet…”
Quackity laughed joylessly, his fingers curling over Multi’s palm, squeezing gently. “We both got played. Like two pendejos.”
The scientist stared at their hands for a moment. It felt comforting, in a way. He only wished he’d reached out sooner, mourning all the moments of closeness he had lost. The hugs he’d avoided. The warm words he’d shied away from.
If only he could go back in time further than that day. He would have appreciated their blooming relationship, nipped in the bud too soon, to the fullest. He would have prevented that unfair deal from ever taking place. He would have kept Quackity safe in the CNE’s lab. He would have chipped him, making sure he would never go missing aga-
He sat up, getting dizzy from the sudden movement and scaring the avian a little. “I… I think I know what to do.”
———҉———
“Are you sure you’re completely fine with that? I… I don’t want to force anything onto you.”
Quackity nodded. “You’re not forcing me. I was the one who brought it up in the first place, wasn’t I?”
“Okay, okay… yeah.” He anxiously checked his tools for the nth time. Everything was, obviously, neatly in its place. “And are you comfortable? I don’t want it to be painful, though there still might be some discomfort-”
He groaned. “Multi, pinche cabron, it’s fine. I’ll be fine.”
The scientist stayed silent for a moment, his eyes downcast. “I… altered it a little. I promise I will have no control over your actions. All it will allow me to do is track your location, see and hear-”
The avian grabbed him by the collar and pulled him close, their faces mere centimeters apart. Multi’s breath hitched.
With an annoyed scowl, Quackity gritted out through clenched teeth, “You could put me under, cut me apart, and inject me with anything you want. Because I know you wouldn’t do it to hurt me. I trust you, pendejo.”
After a moment of stunned silence, only able to stare into the deep void of Quackity’s eyes, Multi finally exhaled a shaky breath.
Gently, he nodded and replied in a hoarse voice, “Yeah… Okay. Kurwa, I-”
Tired of his nervous rambling, Quackity closed the distance between them and sealed their lips in a chaste kiss. Once they parted, he giggled, amused by the scientist’s confused and bashful expression, his cheeks tinted crimson.
Cute.
“Focus, lindito. Gather all the information you can and use it in the next loop. This will be the last time you die. I swear on my life.” He brushed his finger over Multi’s lip, a playful smile on his face. “Then, you will get a proper kiss. As a reward.”
Finally, the scientist got right to work without another word.
———҉———
A Robin, singing. The trees, rustling. The sun, warm.
Just like the lips he caught in a kiss so full of longing and sorrow. All his regrets, all his hopes to break this merciless cycle poured right into it.
Quackity stumbled away, shocked by the sudden display of affection.
Multi took a deep breath and began his explanation for the last time.
No more dying. No more pain. It was time to put an end to this.
It was painfully easy, really, once every piece of the puzzle was collected and put into place. Almost like a child’s play.
Quackity’s mission provided the one key thing they needed to fulfill their plan. The coordinates of the Federation’s main lab. Cucurucho’s whereabouts. And, soon, his grave.
The avian held his hand as he launched the missile. And right after, pulled him into yet another kiss.
A kiss that did not end, even as they heard the hatch above the projectile open. Even as the ground shook beneath their feet. Even as it blasted off into the sky, ending Cucurucho’s reign once and for all.
———҉———
“Are you sure about that?”
The avian rolled over onto his stomach, twirling a wildflower between his fingers. A buttercup, yellow just like his wings. Still, its color paled in comparison to his golden feathers, glistening in the warm setting sun.
The wind was gently rustling the pines and oaks in the forest nearby, bringing forth their scent. A Robin’s song was reaching its peak, the loud crescendo accompanying them, yet not disrupting their peace. That sentimental bench stood close by, overlooking the lake, yet abandoned for the sake of soft, dewy grass.
Multi laughed and caressed his cheek, resting his thumb on one of the countless freckles that peppered his companion’s face.
“We could try… What’s the worst that can happen?”
Quackity hummed softly, then put the flower behind the scientist's ear. He allowed himself to stare at him for a moment, a playful smile on his lips.
“With Aldo, Katie, and Roier on board? Anything is possible.”
Another carefree laugh. They’ve been growing more frequent lately, to the avian’s delight. He reveled in the sound and rested his chin on Multi’s chest.
“As long as we don’t crash midway there, everything should be fine. I’m sure Falco can withstand even the three of them.”
Distant footsteps and loud voices interrupted their serene moment of solitude. The Pole sighed with a fond smile.
“O wilku mowa…”
“Hey lovebirds!” Katie called out as she ran up the hill, the other members of their small family following closely behind. Roier picked Nacho up to catch up to her, his other hand clutching Aldo’s and pulling him along. Tomate’s pace was much slower, leisurely as he made his way toward them.
Katie threw herself onto their blanket, right between the two, separating them and jamming her elbow into Quackity’s stomach. He groaned and pushed her off.
“Way to ruin a date, dejo…”
She pulled Multi into a hug, squeezing him with all her might, then sat up. “I just missed my babydaddy and his sidepiece! You guys aren’t avoiding me, are ya?!”
“Oh my God, Katie, you’re so clingy… If I’d known, I wouldn’t have included you in our plans.”
Roier sat on the patch of grass next to them; Nacho settled comfortably in his lap. “Spill, Multas. What plans?”
Multi shared a meaningful look with Aldo.
They’ve been discussing it for a while now, making the necessary preparations and gathering supplies in secret. Upgrading Falco and making sure it would not fail them. Making a surprise.
Quackity stood up and stared at all the members of his new family, the sight of so many people pulling at his heartstrings. He never would have guessed that, one day, this would be his life. So full of trust, love, and support. Of beings so different, yet so chaotically harmonious. A bunch of misfits, finding comfort in each other despite the stark contrast.
He sighed and, with a smile, announced:
“We’re finally getting out of here. Together.”