Work Text:
“Your failures run deep, for you have failed the ones who relied on you.”
“Your failures run cold, for you have left the one that trusted you to rot.”
“Your failures make you weak, for you have failed to support the ones who needed you.”
Face your sins. Face those you have h̷̻̝͂͋͌̌̓͝͠u̵̙̹̖̙̻̹̪̫̳͍͊̽͛̈́̅̍͗̇̂̌̆͋͜͝r̴̹̱̄̀͌̇̈́̓̍̂͑͐̓̔͜͝t̵͚̞̍̃̇͛.̸̖̹͙͚̙̣͍̎̎
…
Dear God, Taph was too tired to deal with anything at the moment.
This place was supposed to be purgatory and full of suffering, but things were slowly but surely becoming far too difficult to deal with. It started with Dusekkar getting paranoid about the survivors’ whereabouts outside of rounds, which prevented Taph from going into the woods and interacting with… them. They, who Taph did not dare to name in the privacy of his own mind due to the feelings that they caused him to feel. The two of them had fought each other in rounds often. The admins hated them, especially Shedletsky, as they had targeted him exclusively and mauled him any chance they got. Taph should’ve hated them. He shouldn’t have let them into his life outside the rounds (if one could even call it a life..).
But, they forced their way into his heart by the way they looked at him. And when Taph had let them get close enough to touch his wings. And when he had allowed them to fly once more on his wings.
They had looked at his face with attraction instead of repulsion. They were a rebellion against everything he believed in, or at least, thought he believed in.
Taph hated himself for meeting with them again and again after rounds. The admins would never approve of what the two of them had together.
Taph hated himself in general, but he hated it more that he couldn’t visit them.
Then, more things changed around the cabin.
The food was suddenly very unpleasant for Taph to eat. He got sick of eating only pizza for multiple days on end, of course. Since Shedletsky was so insistent on everyone eating, Taph was forced to choke down at least one slice of that God forsaken food every single time they all came together to eat. Just the thought of it made Taph nauseous.
This was why Taph was standing outside of the main cabin, his back to the cabin wall. At the very least, he was away from everyone else. That was all he needed. Really. He was considering sneaking out when Builderman walked out the cabin door with Shedletsky and Dusekkar. Taph slowly and quietly moved away from the three of them at the entrance, going down the ramp. He wasn’t all that noticeable most of the time so long as he didn’t make noise. This allowed him into a lot of “fun” situations, such as when 1x1x1x1 didn’t notice he was there and ripped off Shedletsky’s wings right in front of him. Fun times!
The goddamned floorboard creaked.
“Aye! There you are, Taph! Why don’tcha go with the rest and have dinner?” Builderman greeted.
Taph turned to look at him slowly.
‘Not hungry,’ Taph signed.
“No way, LOL. Everyone has had something to eat but you. Get inside,” Shedletsky said.
Taph’s eye twitched. What was he, five? He knew himself better than these morons… no, Taph liked his coworkers- he couldn’t say that about them! He knew himself better than they did.
‘Leave me be,’ Taph signed.
Taph walked down the ramp. He was about to walk to the other cabin when a large flash of light flashed from the woods. Within seconds, a large tower fit for a princess rose from the woods.
“Is that a tower? How curious,” Dusekkar commented.
Shedletsky, Taph, and Builderman turned to look at him. He hadn’t rhymed. Something terrible was about to happen within the next few moments.
“We should see what power is causing this to-” Dusekkar began.
Before Dusekkar could continue his sentence, he was turned into a horse. Taph snorted. Builderman and Shedetsky glared at him. Dusekkar made a strange looking horse. His entire head and neck was engulfed in flames, and the fur was blue.
“This ain’t funny, Taph. Now why in Robloxia would Dusekkar be turned into a horse?!” Builderman asked.
Shedletsky went up to Dusekkar the horse and pet him. Dusekkar the horse moved away from Shedletsky, clearly not appreciating being treated like the animal he was transformed into.
Without reason, Shedletsky’s sword was summoned and deposited into his hand. In the next few seconds, he was suited up in armor fit for a knight. Shedletsky toppled over due to the weight of the metal. He groaned in pain. Taph did not feel bad for him in the slightest, but he probably should’ve.
Builderman was not spared from whatever was causing this. With a flash of white sparkles, his clothing was changed from a simple pair of jeans, a shirt and an overcoat to a white cleric-like robe with the fire ring halo on it. Builderman still had his tool belt and construction hat, which now looked out of place. He looked like a worshiper of Telamon, which was quite the contrast to the God that he was.
Taph noticed a flash of pink sparkles around him. He attempted to move away, but it was already too late for him. A bright pink tutu-like dress appeared over his robes. White opera-length gloves appeared over his hands and the sleeves of his robes.The sleeves seemed poorly stuffed into the gloves, as the excess fabric spilled out of the top of the gloves. His hands and arms felt more exposed than usual, as his sleeves had usually obscured the outline of how his arms looked. To top it off, Taph noticed that a princess’s hat had appeared on the top of his head over his hood. At the very least, his whole outfit hadn’t been transformed like Builderman’s or Shedletsky’s.
“Who’s laughing now?” Builderman asked teasingly.
Taph would’ve been fine with wearing a dress, but pink wasn’t his color. He also looked ridiculous.
Shedletsky took off his helmet and put it to the side. He looked at Taph and laughed. Taph would’ve flipped him off if Builderman weren’t right there.
“A knight, a horse, a princess, and whatever I am. Wonder what kinda event the Specter is throwing on us,” Builderman commented.
Builderman was clearly refusing to acknowledge what he was. Oh well.
“IDK man. I’m just wondering why Taph’s the princess,” Shedletsky replied.
Taph raised his hands to sign, but was interrupted by a loud rumble of thunder directly behind him. He flinched, nearly falling over. The four of them looked at the cause of the sound, and all of them were greeted with a frightening sight.
1x1x1x1 rushed towards them riding a flying drakobloxxer. Taph was surprised to see that they were roped into this as well. They looked the same, so whatever change that was imposed onto them was probably ripped off. Or, perhaps they had agreed to be a part of whatever was about to happen.
‘What are you doing here?’ Taph signed.
“Feel my ENTANGLEMENT!” 1x1x1x1 said sharply.
Before Taph could react, 1x1x1x1 tossed their chains. Taph’s waist was ensnared with chains, leashing him to 1x1x1x1. His hands were chained together as well, which effectively muted him. 1x1x1x1 looked at him and grinned. They pulled hard on the chains, pulling Taph forward. He tried to resist by digging his heels into the ground, but he didn’t weigh enough for it to actually do something. Taph was pulled onto the back of the drakobloxxer by force. 1x1x1x1 attached the chain to their left wrist, tethering the two of them together.
“What the?! Let ‘em go!” Builderman gasped.
“I don’t have to listen to either of you, or that stupid horse,” 1x1x1x1 spat.
The horse snorted in annoyance.
“What did he even do to you?!” Shedletsky asked.
“He knows what he did,” 1x1x1x1 replied.
Oh, was this about him not seeing them in a while…? It was a surprise that they genuinely cared about that.
The fact that 1x1x1x1 cared about not seeing him for a while felt nice.
“He’s not yours for the taking!” Builderman yelled.
“Then why didn’t you try harder to stop me, Builderman?” 1x1x1x1 asked rudely.
Shedletsky stepped forward with his sword threateningly. 1x1x1x1 didn’t stand down.
“You won’t get away with this!” Shedletsky yelled.
“Watch me. I’ll do whatever I want with him,” 1x1x1x1 laughed in his face.
The drakobloxxer began to take flight again. Taph kicked his feet angrily and made a few grunts over being muted, as he was unable to do anything else. He watched as Builderman, Shedletsky, and Dusekkar the horse began to become farther and farther away from him. The two of them were heading towards the tower that had arisen out of nowhere. This had to have been the Specter’s idea. The whole dress up thing was humiliating for all of them, especially Dusekkar and Builderman. There were probably more intricacies to this that Taph didn’t know about to maximize suffering for Shedletsky. Taph didn’t understand why he was the princess of all survivors to be picked. He didn’t need saving and he never needed saving. He swore to himself that he had never needed saving. His problems pre-forsaken were his to deal with alone.
The incident with the protesters… if he had tried harder, he could have escaped.
Out of everyone, 1x1x1x1 hadn’t changed. The only thing that had happened to them was them acquiring a drakobloxxer with wings, and probably the tower Taph was being taken to against his will. If this were a traditional fairytale with a princess in a tower and everything, 1x1x1x1 would be the big bad that the heroes needed to defeat.
He really did wonder how they felt about that role being forced on them. The Specter truly was oblivious to what was going on between him and them. In all normal circumstances, the kidnapper would not have such a relationship with the one being kidnapped.
Taph tried to ignore the fact that he didn’t know what he and 1x1x1x1 were.
Once 1x1x1x1 flew to the entrance, they picked him up in a fireman’s carry and carried him into the tower.
The interior of the top of the tower was decently furnished. There weren’t any traps for protection, but there was a bed, a closet, a rug, a bookshelf, a mini kitchen area, and a bathroom. 1x1x1x1 dumped him on the bed. The chains from his wrists vanished, allowing him to speak. 1x1x1x1 stood over him, seeming frustrated with him specifically.
“YOU,” 1x1x1x1 started.
Taph pointed to himself in confusion. This was not the best way to start a conversation. Did they know that?
“You haven’t visited me in DAYS! WEEKS, ALMOST!” 1x1x1x1 cried in anger.
Taph raised his hands to sign, but 1x1x1x1 pushed them down.
“WHAT has been keeping YOU from ME?!” 1x1x1x1 demanded.
‘Sorry, I didn’t know you cared that much,’ Taph signed.
1x1x1x1 hesitated. They rubbed their eye angrily, somehow. As if one could rub one’s eye angrily. There was always room for firsts.
“That doesn’t answer my question,” 1x1x1x1 complained.
‘The admins said that I could not go to the woods,’ Taph signed.
1x1x1x1 tilted their head, still annoyed.
‘What can I do about that?’ Taph signed.
“Are we being dead### right now?” 1x1x1x1 asked.
Taph groaned in frustration.
‘You can live however you like. I cannot,’ Taph signed with great irritation.
1x1x1x1 rolled their eyes, which only annoyed Taph more.
‘I could leave if I am causing you this much annoyance,’ Taph signed.
1x1x1x1 reacted long enough for Taph to know that they certainly did not want that. They huffed, seemingly now annoyed with themself.
“FINE. I get it,” 1x1x1x1 said.
They walked away from him, saying something that he couldn’t catch. They forgot that they had tethered themself to him, so when they moved far enough away from him, he was pulled off the bed and dragged with them. When they stopped moving, Taph got up. He glanced over what they were doing. 1x1x1x1 had materialized a crystal ball from seemingly nowhere. They turned to look at him.
‘What is that?’ Taph asked.
“It’s a thing that will let us watch those idiots,” 1x1x1x1 replied.
‘Where did you get that from?’ Taph asked.
“The Specter, obviously. Just like how you got that princess dress,” 1x1x1x1 replied.
Taph was bitterly reminded of it. He still felt he looked ridiculous. It wasn’t fair. Taph didn’t understand what point was trying to be made here.
“Stop asking questions and look at this,” 1x1x1x1 ordered.
1x1x1x1 tugged the chain, pulling him closer. He stumbled over to look into the crystal ball, and was met with the scene of Shedletsky, Dusekkar the horse, and Builderman. None of them were cooperating. Shedletsky was drenched in sweat, so much so that it was coming off the armor. He was trying to pull the armor off and failing miserably. Dusekkar the horse was refusing to let Builderman mount on his back. Builderman seemingly tried this a few times before due to how beat up he looked. 1x1x1x1 pulled out a blue panel and hit a button, which spawned a massive rat with a glowing nose and disgusting blue eyes before all of them. It reminded Taph of one of the things he had blown up in those unmoderated experiences… probably. Taph didn’t know. It reminded them of something he regretted. Shedletsky shrieked in raw terror.
Taph snickered at the sight as quietly as he could. His scream came out high pitched and shrill. 1x1x1x1 glanced over at him, an eyebrow raised, which made it harder not to laugh.
“Oh? Is something amusing you, Taph?” 1x1x1x1 asked.
‘No,’ Taph lied.
No way could he admit to finding Shedletsky’s suffering funny. All of the admins seemed to be poisoned by the rat, as they all started coughing. Even Dusekkar the horse did, which was weird. Taph wasn’t sure whether horses could cough.
1x1x1x1 hit the button a few times, spawning more rats.
“That should keep them distracted for now…” 1x1x1x1 hummed happily.
The crystal ball vanished. Taph’s stomach growled loudly. 1x1x1x1 looked at him.
“Did you eat something recently?” 1x1x1x1 asked.
Taph shook his head. 1x1x1x1 seemed to take that as a prompt to do something about it.
“Of course not,” 1x1x1x1 groaned.
‘Do you… want to make something together?’ Taph asked.
1x1x1x1 looked at Taph, considering it for a moment.
“I don’t eat food. What’s the point?” 1x1x1x1 replied.
‘Have you tried food?’ Taph asked.
“Yes. I hate it,” 1x1x1x1 replied.
How on earth could they hate all food? Taph was pretty sure that there had to be some food that they liked. The Banlands probably didn’t have any options, and Taph knew that they were trapped there for a long time.
‘What foods have you eaten?’ Taph asked.
“Turkey and chicken. Both are disgusting,” 1x1x1x1 replied.
‘There are other foods out there that don’t taste like either of those things,’ Taph signed.
1x1x1x1 blinked.
“I know that,” 1x1x1x1 said.
No, they did not, but Taph wouldn’t comment on that for the sake of their dignity.
Taph went over to the kitchen. He looked around in the pantry and the fridge, trying to find something to eat that wasn’t pizza. The mere thought of that god forsaken dish was already making him feel ill.
1x1x1x1 walked up behind him, watching as he rummaged around. They reached under his arm to grab a lime from the fridge, their hand brushing on the stupid pink tutu he was forced to wear. The fridge was stocked with chicken and turkey, but it also had some milk, eggs, butter, limes, and lemons. 1x1x1x1 grabbed a lime.
‘I thought you hated food,’ Taph commented.
“Limes are better than other fruits,” 1x1x1x1 replied.
They took a bite of the lime, skin and all. Taph tried to ignore that as he continued to look around. He shut the fridge and went to the pantry, which was stocked with flour, sugar, vanilla, cocoa powder, salt, and baking powder, along with other things.
Taph realized that he had all the ingredients he needed to make brownies. This was perhaps one of the best things that had happened to him, excluding him finding some comfort with 1x1x1x1. There weren’t enough words out there to express how much he felt he was starved of such a delicious baked dessert. The admins had banned him from the kitchen in fear that he’d get his hands on baking soda and create something that would do worse than just flashbang one when detonated; as a result of this, he was banned from cooking or baking. He had hungered so desperately that he had dug out a recipe from his memories, somehow. Maybe that was just the Specter taunting him. Either way, he now had the resources and recipe to make his favorite food.
‘Have you ever had a brownie before?’ Taph asked.
“What do you think, Taph?” 1x1x1x1 replied sarcastically.
Taph tilted his head to show that he didn’t know what they meant.
“No. Of course not. The Banlands don’t have those,” 1x1x1x1 clarified.
Now, that was some scary information. Taph felt obligated to make the brownies now. Maybe, just maybe, they’d like them. If they didn’t, it left more for him.
Taph gathered up flour, cocoa powder, sugar, vanilla, salt, baking powder, and two eggs and butter. After a few moments of searching, he found bowls, a pan for the brownies, and measuring cups. 1x1x1x1 watched him quietly as he got to work, preheating the oven and trying to push up the sleeves of his robes despite them already being pushed back by the stupid princess gloves he was being forced to wear.
Taph measured ½ of butter and melted it. He mixed it with a cup of sugar, two eggs, and eyeballed about a teaspoon or two of vanilla extract. 1x1x1x1 hovered around him as he worked, watching him mix the ingredients together silently.
“...I can mix. Let me mix,” 1x1x1x1 said.
Taph passed the bowl over to them. They mixed until everything was integrated and passed it back to Taph. He then added ⅓ of a cup of cocoa extract and ½ a cup of flour. Taph knew that the brownies were more sugar than flour; he did not care. They tasted better that way. Taph eyeballed a pinch of salt and about ¼ a teaspoon of baking powder. Taph passed it over to 1x1x1x1 to mix, and they did so. When they were done, they set down the bowl between the two of them.
“Is this it?” 1x1x1x1 asked.
Taph shook his head. He put the batter into the pan and put it into the oven, setting the oven timer for twenty-seven minutes.
1x1x1x1 raised an eyebrow.
“What is sticking that mixture in the oven going to do to it?” 1x1x1x1 asked.
‘Make it become bigger and more delicious,’ Taph signed.
1x1x1x1 glanced at the bowl. They stuck a finger into the small bits of batter that had stuck to the bowl instead of going into the pan and licked it. They were silent for a moment, deciding whether or not they liked it. Taph let them go figure that out.
Taph sat on the bed once more and waited patiently for his delicious dessert to be ready. 1x1x1x1 paced around the tower, also waiting. Taph knew that 1x1x1x1 wasn’t exactly a very patient person, but they’d have to wait for this.
To pass the time, 1x1x1x1 pulled out their crystal ball and inspected the scene that was going on. Taph got up to join them in watching what was going on, too.
So far, Shedletsky, Builderman, and Dusekkar the horse had not gotten very far in their quest. They were stopped at the first roadblock of many that was seemingly set up by the Specter. There was a massive fence that blocked them from going. The only thing Taph could think of doing in that situation would be to probably blow it up, but he knew that none of the admins knew how to use tripmines or explosives like he did.
Shedletsky was laying down, being tired from wearing the armor. Evidently, he was not strong enough to withstand the armor. It was almost like it was trapping him. Builderman was trying to mount Dusekkar the horse, but Dusekkar the horse clearly did not want that.
‘What is the Specter trying to do here?’ Taph signed.
“Trying to show them the magic of friendship or something. I don’t know,” 1x1x1x1 replied.
They continued to watch. Dusekkar the horse kicked Builderman so hard that he broke through the barrier and left a hole inside. 1x1x1x1 glared at the crystal ball, probably glaring at Builderman.
“That’s not how it was supposed to be solved!” 1x1x1x1 complained.
‘What are you going to do about it?’ Taph asked.
Before he had time to stop them, 1x1x1x1 was already spam clicking the button to add rats. Taph watched quietly, watching as the three admins rushed to get away from these evil creatures. The rats seemed bigger than last time. They were as large as refrigerators, but their legs were as long as rules and their heads were normal sized for a rat. These things looked so easy to defeat. 1x1x1x1 grinned with pure malice, letting out a soft giggle as they continued to spawn more. Taph felt he should’ve been concerned, but truthfully, he wasn’t.
At that moment, the admins looked like fools. If they had just worked together or something, they wouldn’t be terrorized by these rats. They were all so much smarter than this! Especially Builderman!
Maybe the rats were spitting out poison that was making them all act like this. Builderman was far better than a few horribly proportioned rats. He was a lot better than him, that was for certain. Builderman was just so…
“Stop that,” 1x1x1x1 demanded.
Taph blinked.
‘Stop what?’ Taph asked.
“Fanboying. Stop it,” 1x1x1x1 ordered.
‘How do you know I am doing that?’ Taph asked.
“You do that thing with your hands, and you have that look in your eyes,” 1x1x1x1 huffed.
‘You cannot even see my eyes,’ Taph signed.
“I just know, okay?!” 1x1x1x1 said.
Taph was annoyed that they were right.
Then again, it showed him just how much they knew him. That was nice. Most of the other survivors couldn’t tell what he was feeling on a good day.
The oven dinged, signifying that the brownies were done. Taph rushed over excitedly. 1x1x1x1 came over as well, probably not getting why he was so excited. He attempted to pull the brownies out of the oven with his gloved hands, but it burned. Taph didn’t understand why that was the case, as the gloves he wore usually were his demolitionist gloves. Those gloves could handle temperatures over 800 degrees.
“What’s wrong? Why can’t you get these things out?” 1x1x1x1 asked.
‘I thought I had my normal gloves on,’ Taph signed.
“You’re not fireproof?” 1x1x1x1 asked, sounding surprised and disappointed.
‘Did you think I was?’ Taph
1x1x1x1 seemed to realize something unknown to him. Their face scrunched up into one of pure hatred for a moment before clearing.
“Never mind,” 1x1x1x1 said bitterly.
1x1x1x1, before Taph could interfere, grabbed the brownie pan from the oven with their bare hands. Taph wanted to rush to stop them, but they seemed to be uninjured somehow. They set it on the top of the oven.
‘Are you fireproof?’ Taph asked.
“Of course I am,” 1x1x1x1 said.
Taph glanced at their hands. There were no signs of their skin being damaged from the heat. Taph was tempted to take off the princess gloves from his hands, but it seemed like they were sewn on the sleeves of his robes. The Specter seemed to really not want anyone to get out of character.
“How long do you wait for these things to cool down?” 1x1x1x1 asked.
‘10 minutes,’ Taph signed.
1x1x1x1 nodded. They turned off the oven. Despite it only being around 6 or 7 minutes since they had last terrorized the admins, 1x1x1x1 pulled out their crystal ball and looked at it once more. Taph glanced at it too.
As it turned out, spawning more rats made Dusekkar the horse willing to be mounted. Shedletsky had managed to stand up. He was shivering in his armor, but he was still standing. They all had managed to defeat most of the rats. Builderman must’ve figured out what to do, of course. He could be very persuasive. Besides, he was at once the God of Robloxia, so who wouldn’t listen to him?
“Damn it… they learned the magic of friendship. I need more rats,” 1x1x1x1 complained.
1x1x1x1 spawned even more rats, but the admins had managed to figure out a way to kill them before they could even hit the ground. That was quite impressive. Builderman seamlessly did so, not getting a single stain on his robes. Dusekkar the horse was getting quickly agitated from all the grime on him, but Builderman was practically spotless. And, he was so radiant… well, radiant until a rat spawned on top of him, which threw him off of his horse and onto the ground. The rats swarmed and swooped down on him while he was down. Dusekkar the horse ran off.
“FINALLY. This should keep them distracted for some time. They’re getting too close to the castle,” 1x1x1x1 complained.
‘How long are you keeping me here?’ Taph asked.
“Long enough for them to realize that they’re failures who can’t do anything right. Not even able to save their little demolitionist from the one they hate most,” 1x1x1x1 said, grinning.
That, surely, was not going to work. Taph was doubting that very heavily.
‘I am little?’ Taph asked, raising an eyebrow.
1x1x1x1 blushed in embarrassment.
“No. Of course not. Whatever! The brownies are probably cool enough to eat by now,” 1x1x1x1 said quickly.
Taph glanced down at them. They were probably right. He was so hungry.
Taph grabbed a knife from somewhere in the kitchen and quickly cut himself and 1x1x1x1 a piece. He pulled the small slice out for 1x1x1x1 and offered it to them. He felt his wings shifting under his robes, but he tried to ignore it. 1x1x1x1 took it from his hands carefully. They stared at it and then him. Taph waited.
1x1x1x1 took a careful bite. They chewed and then swallowed. Taph waited for their verdict.
“...It tastes good,” 1x1x1x1 mumbled.
Taph internally cheered. 1x1x1x1 finished their small piece. They cut themself another piece. Taph took the piece he cut for himself and quickly scarfed it down. The taste was heavenly, likely due to the fact that he was deprived from it for such a long time. The chocolatey flavor melted on his tongue.
“Are you going to take off your bandana?” 1x1x1x1 asked.
Taph shook his head. He didn’t feel comfortable enough to do it today despite the fact that they already knew what his face looked like. 1x1x1x1 shrugged, letting him be.
Taph cut himself another piece. 1x1x1x1 ate their own piece before doing the same.
The floor of the tower suddenly shook, and then shifted. It leaned to the side. Taph snatched the brownie pan before it could fall on the floor, but the force of the movement caused him to trip. 1x1x1x1 was still chained to him, so when they fell on the floor Taph slid down with them.
Shedletsky appeared on the window sill, standing proud like some kind of hero. He wasn’t; Taph was quite annoyed that he dared to show up while he was finally getting to eat some brownies. He felt like shoving Shedletsky off the sill, but he suppressed the urge. 1x1x1x1 did not. They tried to shove his feet off the sill, but Shedletsky took them with him as he fell. Taph was forced to drop the pan of brownies. Taph, 1x1x1x1, and Shedletsky fell out the window and to the ground.
The ground happened to have Dusekkar the horse and Builderman standing there on it, so Taph, 1x1x1x1, and Shedletsky used them both to break their falls. Dusekkar the horse let out a cry of pure wrath and anguish, being crushed by 1x1x1x1 and Shedletsky. Taph, however, had fallen on Builderman, who let out a muffled groan of pain.
Immediately, Taph rushed to get off of Builderman. He helped him up as well.
‘Sorry for falling on you,’ Taph quickly signed.
“You better be. That hurt,” Builderman groaned.
1x1x1x1 unearthed themself from under Shedletsky, somehow. They glared at Builderman.
“You have this idiot to thank for that, mind you,” 1x1x1x1 said.
“Aye, I didn’t…” Builderman began.
1x1x1x1 flipped him off. Builderman gasped in offense.
“Don’t flip me off!” Builderman gasped in offense.
1x1x1x1 rolled their eyes defiantly. They moved away from the three of them. Shedletsky was struggling to get up. Dusekkar the horse had somehow managed, but he was quite injured.
1x1x1x1 yanked the chain that tethered them to Taph. Taph was pulled forward, causing him to stumble and fall to the ground. Before 1x1x1x1 could continue, however, Dusekkar the horse charged at them and began to attack. Taph was forced to watch as 1x1x1x1 tried to fend off a very angry Dusekkar. Builderman, likely not wishing to get his hands dirty in this nonsense, didn’t intervene. Shedletsky was too tired to move.
After a bit of fighting, the chain that tethered 1x1x1x1 and Taph was broken by Dusekkar the horse’s hooves. The chains vanished immediately.
“Screw this and screw you all,” 1x1x1x1 complained.
1x1x1x1, instead of continuing to fight, fled the scene. Just before that flying drakobloxxer came to pommel the four of them, it vanished into thin air.
It seemed that 1x1x1x1’s exit had ended the game that was going on. Within a flash of sparkles, all of them were transformed back into their usual selves. The tower that had appeared vanished as well, dropping Taph’s pan of brownies onto Dusekkar’s head and successfully knocking him out. Taph swore that the Specter hated Dusekkar for no particular reason.
It was silent between the four of them for a moment, mostly because Builderman and Shedletsky were adjusting themselves and Dusekkar was knocked out. Taph couldn’t speak, but that was already known.
“...Well, glad that’s over with,” Builderman said at last.
“Yeah. Taph, can you carry Dusekkar? We should prolly go back to the cabins,” Shedletskly said.
Taph didn’t want to… but fine, whatever. He went over to Dusekkar and picked him up. He followed Builderman and Shedletsky with Dusekkar over his shoulder, walking towards the cabin and hoping that there wouldn’t be any problems traversing the woods.
(spoiler: there were problems. Taph grew tired of carrying Dusekkar a lot faster than Builderman or Shedletsky would’ve wanted him to. Still, he carried Dusekkar all the way to the main cabin before going to his own cabin to sleep.)