Chapter Text
Two Time had been drawing in a sketchbook at the table winning survivors spawned into when they won a round. Suddenly, they heard commotion. What appeared to be a woman wearing a suit and fedora was laying on the floor. A new survivor perhaps? A shame, really. No one truly deserved this purgatory. They didn’t want to meet this new person. They never liked meeting new people, really. They had struggled with connecting with the other members of the Spawn cult, and they were no different now. The only reason they tried to talk with the new survivors previously was because they had wanted to spread the Spawn’s teachings. Now they were less than eager to meet new people. They would inevitably have to get into their false beliefs, as well as Azure’s sacrifice. This had been the first new survivor since Azure had shown up and forgiven them. They decided to peek their head around the corner to watch. They wanted to get a feel for this new person before actually introducing themself. Their tail twitched slightly. Elliot had been the first person to speak with the new survivor, offering a hand to help her up.
“Hey, I know you’re probably confused right now, but we’ll help, promise.” Elliot was always so kind to every new person that showed up in this horrible place. It was one of the many things Two Time admired about him.
“Where- Where am I? All I remember is a spawn point symbol, falling, and waking up here…” She shifted her arm slightly and winced.
“Fuck- that hurts like a bitch- Sorry, am I being too vulgar?”
“Oh, not at all! We have people here who swear way more than that!” Chance had walked in, flipping their coin.
“Anyways, the name’s Chance, and this here is Elliot! There’s a lot more of us, and there’ll probably be more people for ya to meet once word gets around that there’s a new survivor and whatnot.”
“Hang on, survivor? What are you talking about? Where am I??” Iris sounded less distressed about somehow being alive when she really shouldn’t be, and more confused.
“Ah, I heard the name of the spawn point. May I inquire about your name, dear new one?” Dusekkar had floated into the cabin with Taph.
“Investigator Iris, at your service! Dusekkar, it’s good to see you! You’ve been missing for a while- Care to explain what uh, what was it- Chance, right? Would you care to explain what Chance meant by ‘survivor’?” Two Time finally had a name to the face. They would have to draw her later so they could actually remember. They referred to other survivors previously as ‘Gambler’, ‘Pizza Man’, ‘Hacker’, and ‘Admin’ not only out of respect, as they were taught to refer to people by their titles, but also because they were terrible with remembering names. They would often rely on hearing other people say names and learning that way. Asking was embarrassing. It showed you didn’t hold any respect for that person. That their name wasn’t an important thing. They never wanted to seem disrespectful.
“Woah woah woah, you know this guy?” Chance pointed at Dusekkar. “How’d you get all close with an admin? Impressive.”
“Oh, well, I’m a detective! I worked for the admins before they all disappeared. I was actually in the middle of an investigation before being brought here- But that’s a story for later!”
“Yup, Iris is a detective. And a pretty damn good one at that.” Builderman was here now, walking in with Shedletsky, Veeronica, and Noob.
“And to answer your questions about ‘survivors’, you’re gonna want to sit down for this one…”
Builderman explained that this was an infinite torture game of death, and she happened to be a part of it now. Iris was silent for a little after that.
“Wow. That’s… certainly a lot to take in. So this is where all the missing people have gone then?”
“Yes, unfortunately.” Jane had emerged from her basement to not only meet the new survivor, but to also find and check on Two Time.
“You’re Jane Doe then, correct?” Iris asked.
Jane nodded.
“I see… I’m sorry about your husband.”
Jane only smiled sadly. She had been working on finding possible solutions to John’s corruption. Two Time had greatly helped in that regard. Not only did they make connections to different pieces of data incredibly fast, they had also helped break Spectre’s effect on a different killer: Azure. That change had given her new hope for John.
“It’s nothing you need to apologize for.” Jane said. “I was wondering where Two Time was, has anyone seen them?” She added. Two Time, hearing their name, stepped into the room. They wrapped their tail around their legs, something they often did involuntarily when stressed or anxious. Veeronica looked at them inquisitively.
“You’ve never been this timid around new people before, you know this person or something?” Vee asked them. Two Time shook their head no. They honestly just wanted to retreat upstairs or outside to where Jane’s basement was. Before they could move to the door, something Iris said stopped them.
“Hang on, are you..?”
Two Time whipped around to stare at her. Did this person recognize them? How is that possible? She wasn’t a member of the Spawn, that’s for sure. They noticed she was looking at their face, down to their tail, and back up to the Spawn symbol on their shirt. They had started wearing a bright purple hoodie instead of their robes in an effort to completely cut away their association to the Spawn, but it wasn’t fully zipped up, allowing the symbol on their shirt to be exposed.
“I apologize, may I ask who you are? You appear to recognize me, and yet I have never met anyone with your face nor your voice.” Two Time spoke with the same formal language they used around people they weren’t close with. They still spoke like that to the admins, but as of late they haven’t been as formal with Shedletsky in particular. Perhaps it was their changing views of him thanks to 1x1x1x1’s perspective of him.
“Oh, yeah, this uh, may be a little weird. I’m a detective, like I said. We’ve never actually met face to face before, but I’m pretty sure I recognize you from what I was investigating before ending up here.” She spoke carefully.
“That tail of yours is quite… recognizable, to say the least. Were you perhaps a member of the Family Home of the Reborn?”
Two Time’s heart dropped to their stomach. That was what the Spawn cult was known as by its followers.
“You see, I was investigating that cu- er, religion, and someone who looked like you happened to be one of the main people of interest.”
“...You may refer to it by what it is.”
“Pardon?”
“You cut yourself off, replacing what I assume to be the word ‘cult’ with the word ‘religion’. I am guessing you simply wanted to avoid calling the faith you assumed I followed a cult.” Two Time was ready to leave the cabin at that, but the other survivors stopped them.
“Woah woah woah Twoie, ya gotta elaborate!”
“I see no reason for me to elaborate, Chance.”
“No, please stay, I have a lot of questions for you.” Iris didn’t want them to leave. She needed information. Was this person actually individual-a? What about the other people she observed? She needed to know what she had missed just before ending up here. Two Time shook their head.
“I am truly sorry, dear investigator, but I’m afraid I cannot answer any questions for you.” Their tail twitched apprehensively. They desperately wanted to run to the safety of Jane’s basement, or perhaps attempt to make their way towards the killers’ side. Azure and 1x would understand.
“Two Time, I believe it is important for you to stay. Perhaps more of your past will be explained.” Dusekkar gestured for them to come sit on the couch to talk.
“I- I am truly sorry, but I do not wish to answer questions about my past. I have only recently come to terms with my false faith-”
“So you are the same person!” Iris exclaimed. “Please, I’ll show you my notes! I need to know who the other people who were a part of your faith are!”
Two Time hesitated. They glanced at Jane.
“How about we don’t? They shouldn’t have to answer questions if they don’t want to. Plus, like they said, it’s still all very recent and raw for them.” Elliot thought it would be cruel to force them to talk about the Spawn like this, especially since they were even more uncomfortable now than they were before Iris recognized them.
“Yes, I agree with Elliot. They don’t owe any explanations or answers.” Jane noticed Two Time’s worried glance and immediately shut down anyone else trying to protest.
“I do believe it is in both Iris’ best interests, as well as Two Time’s, to have a proper conversation,” Dusekkar started. Jane glared at him.
“...But only after Azure shows up. Iris would likely also want to communicate with him as well.” Dusekkar may have been one of the most powerful people to ever exist in Robloxia, but even so, Jane’s protective death glares were terrifying.
“Azure? Like, one of the killers you mentioned?? I don’t think I can do that-” Iris was less than thrilled at the idea of meeting one of the violent killers Builderman had mentioned.
“Oh don’t worry, Azure’s really great!” Vee cut into the conversation. “Yeah he’s technically a killer, but he doesn’t really have a choice, y’know? Plus, he visits so often for Two Time that he’s basically an honorary survivor at this point!”
“Yeah, I was apprehensive at first too, but…” Noob started. “He really is nice once you get to know him. Plus, Two Time really likes him.”
Two Time simply nodded.
“It’s settled then. Two Time, you don’t have to answer anything until Azure shows up. Once he does, you two can answer Iris’ questions. For now, we should probably all get some sleep.” Builderman said in an even tone. “And Iris, you should have Elliot look at that arm. It isn’t common for people to show up here with injuries, so you’d better have that checked out.”
Two Time was tempted to thank the Spawn that they had been allowed to leave to return to their nest of pillows, blankets, and books before stopping themself. They didn’t want to do that anymore. They refused to acknowledge the fake cruel god that had hurt both them and Azure. As they descended into the basement, Jane followed after them.
“Just making sure you’re alright,” Jane began. “I’ll be in my cabin if you need anything. Please feel free to wake me up if needed.” Jane wrapped her arms around Two Time in a hug before turning to leave the basement. Two Time curled up underneath their pile of blankets, pulling close to their body a plush of Azure’s nightshade golem. Azure said that he and 1x had taken turns carrying it around so that it would smell like them.
“For whenever we can’t be there.” Azure had said.
Two Time always liked wrapping around stuff when they slept, whether it were pillows, plushies, or partners. They weren’t exactly looking forward to Iris’ questions, but they knew they’d be fine as long as Azure and Jane were there. Maybe they’d ask 1x too. That would be perfect. They finally drifted off into sleep.