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tunastime · 1 year

Text

Cream of Turkey and Wild Rice, by VintageBeef

this is a gift for our lovely 🍂 anon, of whom i learned was their birthday today! i learned this yesterday. from laurie. thanks laurie. anyway—i hope you enjoy!

(1886 words)

(read it on ao3!)

Etho huffs out a warm breath and he can see it in the air in front of him. There’s a blanket of frost covering nearly every surface of the spruce forest he’s found himself in. The snow in the banks below is knee deep, and it covers the top half of the trees above him. Wedging the last of the brown mushrooms free from the coarse, gravely dirt below him, Etho stands. He brushes falling snow from his shoulders, pulls his hood a little further over his head. Luckily, his face is covered by a patchwork-colored scarf, tucked around his head and ears, a warm barrier between the cold and him. Bdubs insisted on it—it still smells like the pine tar soap he used to wash it.

Trekking out of the treeline, Etho makes his way back through the packed snow, careful not to punch his boots through anything loose. The bag on his hip is full of brown mushrooms and wild onion, the few bits of wild garlic he was able to find, chicken of the woods, bundles of pine straw for kindling. He marches back through the snow, reaching a ridge where he slides down, onto frost and dirt, rather than more snow. In the distance, over the patchy field and hills, he can see the monolith. The sun’s still 3/4ths of the way through the sky, with a bleak, white cast through the clouds.

The monolith is a warm shape against the horizon, despite it being stone. Maybe it’s the off-white shade of aged and weathered diorite, the flecks of other minerals intermixed. It fills his chest with something just as warm as the idea of stepping into the foyer of the house. He crests another hill and tries not to crush viola or primrose under his boots. The field along the edge of the birch forest usually hosts lily of the valley and tulip and daisy, but the snow’s all but snuffled them for now. In the spring, Bdubs’ll want to plant more. But for now, he points out the purple flowers every time he passes, and Etho stops to look.

Finally rounding the backside of the monolith, Etho stops at the threshold of the front door. He knocks the snow from the bottom of his boots, shakes it from the hood of his jacket, and pushes open the door.

He was right. The warmth floods him almost immediately, sinking into his bones.He unwinds his scarf, feeling the warm, dry air hit his face. No mask–the scarf had been enough as is. Plus it’s only Bdubs here, right now. He shrugs off his jacket, hanging it on the rack. His bag stays on the floor until he’s unlaced his boots enough to toe them off. As he does, he calls up to Bdubs.

“Bdubs?” he says.

“Etho?” Bdubs’ voice carries down the stairs. “I’m in the kitchen!”

“The kitchen?” Etho repeats. He cocks his head to the side, as if Bdubs can see it.

“Yeah!”

Etho snorts.

“Why?”

Bdubs sounds a bit defensive when he replies. Etho starts up the winding stairs, tracing the banister with his hand that isn’t supporting the bag.

“What’s it to you?” Bdubs says.

“What’cha makin’?” Etho asks as he pauses at a threshold. “Smells good.”

“Well come up and see!” Bdubs taunts. Etho rolls his eyes.

“Okay!” he calls up. Then, quieter, to himself, laughing a little. “Okay…”

He winds his way up the stairs, following the curve, until he meets the shrouded kitchen. He pushes past a particularly friendly vine and into the kitchen. Bdubs is standing at the stove, brow furrowed over a large pot on the burner. It smells fantastic. Onion. Chicken. Some other spice he can’t place. He sets his bag on the counter, rubbing his hands together to warm them.

“Hey, stranger,” he says. Bdubs turns. His face lights up all at once, softening as he sees Etho. Etho pretends like a pang of longing doesn’t stab through his chest. He laughs it away. Bdubs sets the spoon in the soup.

“Hey, you,” he says, smiling as he wanders over. Etho’s smiling, too, eyes crinkled at the corners.

“‘S cold out there,” he jokes. Bdubs snorts.

“Don’t I know it, sweetheart. C’mere—”

Etho draws himself closer to Bdubs. Bdubs’ hands come up to cradle his face, slotting around his jaw. Etho’s hand falls to Bdubs’ hip, the other gracing the back of his head. Etho leans down to kiss him. Just once, rather quickly. But he stays when they pull back and smiles at him and scrunches up his nose.

“Hiya, B.��

Bdubs laughs. He pulls away, patting Etho’s cheek.

“Hey,” he laughs, drifting back to the stove, but not without his hand around Etho’s wrist, pulling him with him.

“So,” Etho says, peering over his shoulder at the pot. He swears his stomach grumbles. “What’re you makin’?”

“Hm? Oh, it’s Beef’s recipe—” he gestures to an open cookbook next to the stove. The pages have all been handwritten, handbound by Etho and Bdubs themselves. Some of the older pages are starting to come unsewn, and they’re clipped in with pins and paperclips. Etho glances over.

“It’s not his pumpkin soup he stole from me, is it?” He reads it over, just a cursory glance. Carrots, onion, oil, celery–it’s not, not that he knows of, unless it’s changed that dramatically.

“No, no,” Bdubs shakes his head. “It’s chicken and manoomin.”

“Oh—” Etho blinks. He has a memory of sitting in a clear patch of snow, canvas tarp pulled taut next to a tree. Pause is sitting next to him by the fire. Beef is asleep under the tarp, burrowed in his bedroll. Pause is writing on the back of a scrap of paper, spoon in one hand. He waves it a little.

“What’s in it?” He asks. “Chicken, milk, that wild rice we found…”

Etho hums. “Broth.”

“Well duh, Etho—”

“Onion and parsley,” says Beef, voice heavy with sleep.

Etho snorts. He leans his head on Bdubs’ shoulder.

“I remember this one.”

Bdubs shrugs. Etho’s head moves with him. Bdubs turns his head and his nose bump’s Etho’s cheek. He laughs a little, especially when Etho leans into him and buries his face in his shoulder. His arms coil around his ribs. Bdubs leans back into him reflexively.

“I knew you would,” he says, patting Etho’s hands around his sternum. “That’s why I made it.”

Etho laughs against his shoulder.

“Ah, you caught me,” he says. Bdubs laughs, too.

“Get the kettle down before you get comfy, okay?” He gestures to the cabinet with his spoon. “I want a cup of hot chocolate ready before I go anywhere with you while the soup finishes.”

“With me?” Etho says, lifting his head. He unclasps his hands as Bdubs beckons him forward to try the soup. Let me know what it needs, it says. It’s good—more flavor than Beef ever put into it. He wonders if it’s sauteing the onion that helps? More salt and pepper than Beef would use? He hums, frowning.

“Yeah,” Bdubs says, not about the soup, but to answer Etho. “I always figure you have some idea in your head.”

Etho snorts. “It needs more parsley. It’s missing the base flavor.”

Bdubs nods, eyebrows raising.

“Snowball fight?” Etho says, after a beat. He’s moved to fetch the kettle, filling it in the sink. He sets it on the stove-top and makes sure the burner isn’t on. He’ll put it on when they come back, himself triumphant, and Bdubs covered in snow.

“Of course you would–” Bdubs snorts. “Yeah, yeah, alright.”

Etho watches him untie his apron and set the ladle next to the soup. When he meets Etho’s eye, he grins, then shoos him off down the stairs. Etho bolts—he can’t help the excitement that’s just decided to chug through his veins. He skips a few steps, but he makes sure Bdubs is following him as he trails down.

He’s halfway to putting his coat on when Bdubs finally gets down. Bdubs moves around him, pulling on his coat, lacing his boots. He steals Etho’s colored scarf, twisting it around his neck, before he finds another, and motions to Etho to lean down to wrap it. He tucks it around his nose and mouth. Effectively masked.

Etho smiles at him from under it. Bdubs takes his hand. And now he’s pulling them out the door and into the backyard of the Monolith, where the snow cover is a bit thicker. He leaves him for a moment to trail a few steps away, so that his vantage point is better. He’s making sure not to step on any flowers peeking through the snow when—smack.

Snow falls down his open collar. He yelps.

Bdubs is laughing.

“Bdubs!” he gasps in mock offense. Bdubs snorts.

“Gotcha!”

Etho gapes at him. Then he leans over, packs a snowball, and chucks it. It whizzes by Bdubs head. Damn it!

Bdubs yelps in glee.

He’s packing another one. So is Bdubs. Bdubs throws and misses him by a long-shot. Etho throws and just barely clips his shoulder. He sprints side to side, trying to get him to miss. Bdubs is giggling like nothing in the world could be better.

They keep missing. Nothing’s really colliding aside from the one Bdubs managed to smack into the back of his head. They keep ducking at the opportune time. Etho’s fingers are pink with cold, starting to stiffen as he rolls another snowball in his hands. He peers with his good eye, tongue caught between his teeth, aims, and throws.

It hits Bdubs smack in the chest, enough to catch him off-guard at the least, before Etho dissolves into laughter. Bdubs falls over backward, dramatically, as the snowball hits him, falling into the half packed snow with an oof.

“Etho!” he drawls, his complaint full in his voice. Etho giggles.

Bdubs pulls him down. He flails, swinging his arms and legs out before he collapses next to him, nearly face first into the snow bank. Bdubs cackles, swatting at him as Etho’s arm and leg pin him in place. He sounds like he can barely breathe.

“Etho!”

“Bdubs!” Etho says, incredulous and out of breath. He’s laughing, too, unable to unstick himself from his wedged place next to him. Bdubs thwaps the back of his head.

“Ow!”

“That’s what you get,” Bdubs says, but his expression softens as Etho weasels his way up to kiss his cheek.

“Sorry, B,” he says, apology dripping with triumph.

Bdubs snorts. Then he kisses him, still covered in snow. His lips are cold.

He lies there for a moment, still pinning Bdubs into the snow, when Bdubs shivers, and Etho feels the snow in the back of his hood start to melt down his neck. Ick.

“Can we go eat soup, now?” he asks, mostly into Bdubs’ cheek.

“Only if you help me up,” Bdubs complains, whacking his shoulder. Etho giggles.

He does. And he helps him knock the snow off his shoes, and he helps stick paper into them so they dry, and he helps finish the soup (and definitely doesn’t taste it again), and he sits across from Bdubs at the table, his heart full to bursting.

There’s still snow in his hair. He decides he doesn’t care.

#ethubs #ethoslab #bdoubleo100 #hermitshipping #hermitcraft fic #hermitcraft #fics #text #mcyt #mcyt fic #its christmas ok #well its winter but still #i get to have dreams of winter < lives where it doesn't snow #i just think that soup and snowball fights have a very special place in my heart #bc i have done them just not in a long time #also if you guys want the soup recipe.. lmk..#ANYWAY HAPPY BIRTHDAY LEAF #ILYSM!!#🍂 anon

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a-plethora-of-peters · 2 years

Note

NHO :D

Sorry I didn't see this until this morning but yes NHO the beloveds 💙

*digs into my bag for NHO Lore*

I will admit I don't have too much about Etho or Beef's pasts outside of them being friends for a very long time along with Pause and the rest of the NHO

Extended info under the cut

Uhhh warnings for kidnapping, child abuse, illegal experimentation, implied drugging, grevious injury, altered mental states (Doc did not have a happy childhood for the most part), bullying mention, blood, & mild violence (Bdubs is a good older bro that protects his baby bro)

Doc

Doc is an Anthro Creeper Hybrid. This means that in appearance he looks a lot like a bipedal Creeper. He's got digigrade legs and large clawed hands tho one is inorganic now. He's covered in short to medium length mossy fur (depending upon the time of year) that he can photosynthesize as an extra source of energy and can produce flowers if he feels safe and happy enough. He has no external nose and uses his tongue to smell instead like a lizard (usually licks his lips to hide this). His ears are large and mobile, capable of independently shifting positions to help him hear things better.

Something to note is that Creeper Hybrids are among the rarest of hostile mob hybrids. So because of this he was kidnapped as a very young child and sold to a facility that ran experiments on hybrids.

Doc - known as Creeper-Male-77 or just 77 for short back then - was raised isolated from the other hybrids in the facility which is why many hybrid traditions and cultural things are unknown to him. Most experiments preformed on him had to do with the limits of his physiology and his instincts as a Creeper hybrid. To help keep him from lashing out at them when he grew older, a thick iron collar with a reservoir filled with a potion of weakness was fastened around his neck.

When 77 was 13, they started tests to see how his Creeper instincts made him react to hybrids of other mobs. For the most part he ignored and was ignored in turn by various hybrids unless he or they were deliberately provoked.

And then they introduced a Passing Panther Hybrid into the test chamber.

77 immediately went on the defense while the stranger lashed out at him. 77 ended up losing his left eye to the Panther hybrid's claws and his right arm was ripped nearly fully from it's socket, held in by only a few ligaments. The damage was to the point that the people in charge thought that if he tried respawning it may glitch and he'd end up permadead.

So they gave him rudimentary prosthetics to replace the parts that they had to remove from him and retired him from physical experimentation. They didn't let him go however since again, Creeper hybrids of any type were rare and they could still run tests on his mind.

So they taught him advanced technology and in doing so gave him the keys to launch an escape that freed all the hybrids that they had imprisoned when he was 16.

In the process of fleeing though, 77 took enough damage both physically and mentally to make him go Feral.

Bdubs

He lived in a Feral state for 2 years before Etho found him. Etho is the one to give him the name Doc after seeing how intelligent he is and helped him out of his Feral mindset, and gradually helped him adjust to living amongst humans and other hybrids.

Hybrids that included...

Bdubs is a Passing Phantom Hybrid. This means that he looks human aside from having a pair of large bat-like wings coming from his back, a long bony tail, and sharp fangs. His wings can be folded around his shoulders and the thumb claws hooked together to make it look like he's wearing a weird shaped cloak. His brown eyes turn pure green when he's around people that haven't slept in 3 days or more. He can and will deafen people with his shrieking.

Being a Passing Hybrid, Bdubs looked human until he reached puberty. Then his instincts and internal structures changed first before his outsides shifted to match his new instincts/insides.

One time while he was in the process of changing, he stood up to some bullies for Pungence - also a Phantom hybrid though he's a Centaur and not Passing like Bdubs - and one of them punched Bdubs in the mouth. He had already been losing his human teeth to get ready for his fangs, so he just spat out a mouthful of blood, and 3 human teeth before baring a bloody smile which was a mix of Phantom fangs and human teeth at the bully and beating the tar outta them.

#me stuff #peter speaks #IACBHAH #nho backstories ftw #doc is baby #etho is his dad... sorta... more like a brother? it's weird #bdubs can and will fuck you up for badmouthing pungence #felicityphoenix5

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cd-head · 3 years

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- Appearances -

- HERO’S WEAR -

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Xisuma -

Hero Outfit - Helmet that covers head completely with a purple tint in the front, large bulky metal, actually quite easy to move and breath in, armor all around and he has a belt to hold his weapons. (basically just picture iron man's suit but black and instead of that helmet thing, its just like that but with a purple visor thats glass-)

Casual Wear - Long black hair thats held up in a bun on the top of his head as well stubble. Bright purple eyes, pale skin, scars littering all over - most prompt is a scar across his face that seems to be a ‘X’. Tends to wear a mask over his face when he goes out in public as it makes him feel safe Big pointy ears. Normally wears a jean jacket, a black button up shirt, ripped jeans, and combat boots.

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Mumbo -

Hero Outfit - A light blue armor that covers his body, although it looks thin its actually quite thick and is a bit hard to move in if not used to it. He wears a helmet sometimes but most of the time doesn't unless necessary. There's markings of hearts, clubs, spades, and diamonds on each of his arms and legs - Like the card symbols.

Casual Wear - Normally a hoodie of any color and any kind with jeans, sometimes wears the sweaters that Grian made him. Has jet black short hair that looks well kept and taken care of as well with a well kept curly mustache. He has forest green eyes. Has freckles and a few scars but the scars arent to noticeable, hes actually quite pale.

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Grian -

Hero Outfit - He has a ant-man like suit (Just in shrinking department) but unlike ant-man's, his suit can bend and change quickly on whim based off of the form that Grian takes. Its a toned down red color and you can only see his eyes through the gray tinted glass. The suit is quite bendy but thin due to it having to change quickly to match Grian’s shape shipshifting.

Casual Wear - A red sweater, either thin or thick - Depends on the weather honestly. He has curly unkempt but taken good care of blonde hair that bounces around on his head. Bright big blue eyes. Freckles cover him as well as scars but the scars aren’t to noticeable. He’s a bit tan to be honest, he also has pointed ears.

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Impulse -

Hero Outfit - A bright yellow and white suit with lightning patterns running all around as well as ‘wind’ like movements mixing in with the yellow as a white. His helmet has yellow stained glass that's hard to see through, you can barely see facial features. His gloves are a pitch black, as well as his boots.

Casual Wear - Has long blonde hair that he keeps in a man bun normally, brown eyes that look bubbly and happy normally as well as faint stubble - not to noticeable. He wears dark colored shirts normally, doesn't matter to him if its long sleeve or short sleeve. He normally wears ripped jeans with them. He has lightning like scars on his body all over as well as random strach white patches in his skin as well as his finger tips being stained black from eletrictly.

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Tango -

Hero Outfit - A bright red with orange and yellow blinding in, a faintness of blue at the bottom of the suit and his gloves - Mimicking a fires colors. He has a helmet that has a area in the top that is a different texture than the others to handle his fire hair. Has a red tinted glass in the front of it but its still quite hard to see his facial features.

Casual Wear - Has red hair thats on fire, but its normally more toned down and only floaty a bit when hes calm. Dark red eyes with a yellow sclera that hold a look of kindness and chaos. His skin is charred black in some pales on his yellow skin.

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Zedaph -

Hero Outfit - A light green color with designs of what seems to be plants weaving around every part - as well as actual plants doing that. A dark green visor but you can see his facial features easily. Vines and plants cover the suit mostly but it moves as if its good as new.

Casual Wear - Fluffy blonde hair that has some plants here and there. Light blue eyes with a splash of green in them. Goat ears and small nubs of a horn + a small tail. Normally wears a brown sweater with a v neck and buttons, ripped jeans, and fingerless gloves as well as a few necklaces. Has a lot of scars but they're only noticeable if you focus on them.

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Doc -

Hero Outfit - A dark green suit with gray around the edges of the part; the sliver color is around his wrists, ankles, neck, and chest. Red, green, and gray visor that makes it difficult to see his facial features. Red side is quite small and only takes up about 1/4 of it, only in place of where a eye would be. The green and gray and split down the half.

Casual Wear - Brown wavy hair that looks neat and well brushed. One red eye that has cybernetic parts and one black eye thats just normal with a few splashes of red in it. Green skin as well as pointy ears. He has a cybernetic arm as well. He normally wears a short sleeved black turtleneck with jeans and a lab coat.

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Ren -

Hero Outfit - A red suit with some gold here and there, theres a area for his tail, its made of the same thing that Grian’s suit is made of so it can move around easily. His helmet as that as well. The helmet has yellow tinted glass which makes it easy to see his facial features.

Casual Wear - Brown hair that is very unkempt. Big blue puppy eyes. Has tanned skin with dog ears in place where human ears should be, as well as a dog tail. He normally wears a red shirt with cargo pants or jeans, sunglasses are a normal add on, as well as fingerless gloves and a few necklaces.

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Joe -

Hero Outfit - A toned down gray color as well as it being able to fade with him. Has black tinted glass, as well as black gloves and boots. Nothing really stands out about his suit and thats how he likes it. Its a bit flimsy and confusing at first but once you get the hang of it, its easy to maneuver and control.

Casual Wear - Soft black hair with a few strikes of gray. Pale sickly gray skin, as well as pointed ears. Normally wears a blue hoodie and ripped jeans, as well as a few necklaces here and there.

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Cleo -

Hero Outfit - A dark purple color with dark blue shading around her joint parts. A tinted black glass that makes it impossible to see her facial features. Fingerless gloves so you can see her sharp nails.

Casual Wear - Blonde hair that she wears down normally. Green skin thats sewed together in some places. Light blue eyes on a yellow sclera. Normally wears a black long sleeve turtleneck with ripped jeans and a leather jacket as well as necklaces.

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Stress -

Hero Outfit - A bubbly pink color with a hot pink shading in the joints. Pink tinted glass that makes it quite easy to see her facial features. Hot pink gloves and boots. She has string wrapped around her arms but it doesnt seem to bother her none.

Casual Wear - Fluffy wavy brown hair. Brown eyes that always hold a sense of happiness. Wears dresses or fluffy sweaters with baggy jeans. Has a bit tanned skin.

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False -

Hero Outfit - Camouflage outfit. Dark green tinted glass that makes it impossible to see her facial features. Worn leather fingerless gloves and army boots.

Casual Wear - Light blonde hair that she wears up in a ponytail. Light blue eyes. Wears goggles on her forehead and wears a short sleeve short with a plaid jacket tied around her waist as well as ripped jeans. Covered in scars and has a sense of danger to her.

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Bdubs -

Hero Outfit - A light yellow color with a more toned down red splashes/swirls. Red tinted glass that makes it a bit tricky to see his facial features. Boots and gloves are a yellow with red stained fingertips. Has a sword and grenades attached to the belt of his suit.

Casual Wear - Curly brown hair thats quite long and is normally in a man bun. Brown eyes that hold a tinge of chaos and kindness. A red bandana is normally tied across his forehead, ripped jeans, a trench coat, and a white shirt. Normally has a cheeky grin and has tan to his skin. His fingers are stained yellow.

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Jevin -

(I had fun making him-)

Hero Outfit - A bright blue that just. Pops. Dark blue is made to shade where the joints are. Blue tinted glass!

Casual Wear - He has wobbly blue gel like hair. His skin is like a slimes although its blue! Everything. Is. BLUE. White hoodie is the only difference, but he wears blue ripped jeans. ALMOST EVERYTHING IS BLUE. TAKE BLUE AWAY FROM THIS MAN-

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

TFC -

Hero Outfit - A muted gray color that looks like its been through a lot but is still held together amazingly well. A pretty classic suit, normal glass, and such. Its pretty old fashioned.

Casual Wear - Gray fluffy hair + big santa like beard. Normally wears a nice warm sweater and normal jeans. Has sweet brown eyes and just a calming look to him.

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Scar -

Hero Outfit - A darkish brown color with a bit lighter brown in the areas with joints. Glass isnt tinted. Fingerless gloves. Helmet as little cat ears and tail area made out of same stuff as Grians suit

Casual Wear - Fluffy brown hair brown hair with little cat ears poking out. Wears a white shirt with ripped jeans and a plaid jacket normally. He has green eyes that have a shine of kindness and chaos. Normally has a bag on him with everything he needs/wants in it. Large noticeable scar right across his face

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Hypno -

Hero Outfit - A dark purple color with yellow swirls all over. Gloves + Boots are this color as well. Yellow tinted glass. Theres a small drawing of a yellow swirl right in the middle of the forehead of his helmet.

Casual Wear - Blonde hair thats quite long and held in a small loose low ponytail - he has a bandana that he normally wears. Bright yellow eyes and grayish skin. Wears a black t-shirt normally as well as ripped jeans and fingerless gloves.

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Keralis -

Hero Outfit - Lime color with some a light green shading the area where his joints are. His gloves are grippy so he can grip easier. His boots have springs in them so he can jump far higher. Green tinted glass.

Casual Wear - Brown hair thats almost always in a man bun and he has stubble. His eyes shift between green and blue based off of the temp of the room hes in. Wears whatever he feels like, his outfits dont really have a ‘habit’.

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Wels -

Hero Outfit - Gold and white fully armored and bulky thing but he makes it look like it weighs nothing. Swords/blades rest on the belt of his armor. Has gray tinted glass. Gold linings.

Casual Wear - Short well taken care of light blonde hair. Wears armor no matter what - as well as constantly having a sword on him or a metal rod. Wears ‘elegant’ like clothing.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Etho -

Hero Outfit - A dark blue-gray armor/suit with gray tinted glass. Golden linings that actually doesn't stick out to much. (BECAUSE THIS MAN DESERVES IT) Boots have a spring in it but he cant jump nearly as high as Keralis.

Casual Wear - White spikey hair with two mismatched eyes - Left eye is red and right eye is blue. Massive scar over his left eye. Really pale and has pointed ears. He wears a mask (like you should when you go out), a white button up shirt with a green winter jacket. He has golden earrings. Wears fingerless gloves. Has a friendship bracelet with Beef and Pause - His bracelet is a soft brown color with spikes of black here and there and the other is a blue with brown. Has hearing aids.

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Gem -

Hero outfit - Very easy to move around in. Not buckley or metal. Made out of fabric. A light brown natural color with a hood. Has a belt around her waist to hold her guns and arrows.

Casual war - Dark ginger hair with light green eyes that sparkle with chaos. Very few scars can be seen. She has deer ears and antlers. Wears warm comfy clothing, light golden earrings, brown thumb gloves, and a necklace with a two feathers and a locket.

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Pearl -

Hero outfit - Slightly gray metal with dark blue glass. The metal is aged and dented. Boots have a slight spring.

Casual wear - Black hair thats normally neatly braided and light brown eyes. Pointed ears. Her fingers, ears, nose, and toes all are black at the tip and spread throughout a bit till it reaches the base of a body part.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

- VILLAIN’S OUTFITS -

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Cub -

Villain outfit - A sandy like yellow with yellow tinted glass and all. Theres some brown around his finger tips and his boots are stained brown a bit. He carries a kanata.

Casual wear - Long blonde beard that he braided. Hes bald. Skin is a bit yellow in color and his eyes are brown. Wears a black no sleeves turtleneck with a leather jacket and ripped jeans.

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Evil Xisuma -

Villain outfit - Blood red color with a black helmet and red tinted glass. Carries a sword on him at all times - even if just partolling. Armor looks a bit worn but works fine.

Casual wear - Long black hair that he wears in a man bun as well as a beard. He has red eyes and grayish skin. Normally wears a dark blue shirt with jeans or just a hoodie and jeans.

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Green eyes Beef-

Villain outfit - A vibrant green color with some black splotches here and there. Black tinted glass. Carries a sword and two guns.

Casual wear - Curly brown hair thats short, has stubble. Bright BRIGHT green eyes. Normally has a cocky grin. His outfit choice normally changes a lot but he normally wears a leather jacket, ripped jeans, and a black undershirt.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Skinless Beef -

Villain outfit - N/A

Casual wear - Soft brown hair with a stubble and he has brown eyes. From his chin down theres massive burn marks but you cant really notice them. Normally has headphones around his neck. Wears a big puffy sweater, sweatpants, gloves, and boots to hide the burns.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Hels -

Villain outfit - Pitch black with red swirls and red tinted glass. Roughed up gloves and boots. Carries metal rods with him.

Casual wear - Ginger hair that he wears down, its around shoulder length. Blue eyes. Skin looks a bit charred. Wears whatever he thinks is comfortable. But its normally a jean jacket with comfortable pants and a white undershirt.

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NPC -

Villain outfit - A light brown color with gray tinted glass. Springy boots and he doesnt wear gloves

Casual wear - He doesnt have hair. Hes sliver as hes a robot - everything bout him is robotic. He likes to wear thin clothing so he doesnt overheat.

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BeetleJhost -

Villain outfit - A gray color with some green here and there. Black tinted glass. Armor looks ripped somehow even though its not.

Casual wear - Gray hair with some green strains. Gray skin with green eyes. Normally wears a blue hoodie with ripped jeans and a hat.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

AngelCleo -

Villain outfit - A light golden like yellow. Yellow tinted glass. Her joints are shaded by a darker yellow. She carries a gun on her.

Casual wear - Long blonde hair that she keeps in a bun with a halo floating above her. Angel wings. Very pale skin that looks to be glowing almost. Blue eyes. She typically wears ‘royal’ clothing. (Mostly just wears elegant clothing, like flowy ropes, etc etc)

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Badtimes -

Villain outfit - Dark blue armor/suit with black stained glass. Armor is a bit ripped in some parts. He has the same material as Scar/Ren/Grian for where his tail + ears are.

Casual wear - Fluffy brown hair with dog ears + tail. His dog parts make it easy to tell what kind of emotion hes feeling. Normally has a cocky grin. Typically wears a leather jacket, ripped jeans, and a random undershirt + sunglasses.

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- NORMAL PEOPLE -

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Iskall -

Powers(?) - Diamonds and emeralds form on his body, they look like freckles even up close. As long as you dont pay close attention to the ones on his face, they pass as freckles. he can also weld pretty easily due to him being able to summon sparks in his hands!

Normally wears - He has rough brown hair but its pretty well taken care of. He has one brown eye and the other is replaced by cypro tech. His fingertips + toes are frosted a light blue and emerald green. Random patches of diamonds/emeralds. Normally wears a baggy green shirt, ripped jeans and roughed up leather fingerless gloves.

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Beef -

Powers (?) - N/A

Normally wears - He has short brown hair and a long beard. Has a friendship bracelet with Etho and Pause- His bracelet is green and black and the other is brown and blue He has bright brown eyes and hes pretty tanned. He normally wears whatever he thinks is comfortable.

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xB -

Powers (?) - N/A

Normally wears- Long brown hair he wears up in a man bun with faint stubble. Wears a white shirt, zip up hoodie, and ripped jeans. Has a dagger on him a lot. Baby blue eyes.

A/N: HOLY SHIT ITS FUCKING DONE AT LAST-

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writing-the-end · 3 years

Text

LoL Chapter 23- the Labyrinth

Masterpost

A Wizard Hermits tale (AU and Red belongs to @theguardiansofredland )

So close to the end, so close to winning the entire championship. Only one more challenge, one more maze- and one more corrupted beast to prove themselves as the best in the entire kingdom.

________________________________________________

“Are you sure Magistrate Dolios is the dark wizard?” Keralis questions, tilting his head. “I mean, what he did was pretty mean, but...to practice dark magic?”

“It’s him.” Zedaph hisses, his fingers curling in the fabric set on his lap. “He had a crystal in the antichamber, he had a horrible collection of parts used for spells.” Zed clenches his fists and jaw, struggling not to burst out. Tango and Impulse try to ease their friend’s worries. “He… I read through his log. He killed our guild. We were just the first, the opening act. He used our friends, our family, to start his path of destruction.”

“But why? Why would he need dark magic? He’s the godsdamned Magistrate of Lairyon!” False looks around, leaning forward in the tavern they’re huddled in. It’s not the inn, but one closer to the stadium. They have a labyrinth to defeat soon.

“Absolute power corrupts absolutely.” Doc growls, tapping his fingers together into a triangle shape. “Regular magic just wasn’t enough. Regular power just wasn’t enough.”

“So he’s using the crystals to gather energy. Like what we saw in Gildara, with the grey landscape. And when the crystals sap energy for him to steal, it leaves those husk monsters behind.” Cub is slowly piecing together the puzzle, coming to understand everything he saw with the others in the heist.

“And he’s using the Chimaera’s championship to sap more energy. That’s why we feel so tired when we finish an event. He’s stealing our power, my dudes.” Ren shivers at the thought. His energy being drained, taken by some creepy crystal and fueling Dolios’s insatiable thirst.

“And we’re going back in soon.” TFC hums. “We have the labyrinth challenge.”

“We don’t have to go in- we got what we needed. We can leave, make a plan with this knowledge we have. Tell the king, tell the people. They’ll take care of it.” Etho leans back in a chair, tipping till it nearly dumps him backwards.

“But we’ve come so far!” Grian whines. “We could win the whole games, prove to Dolios that he never should have messed with us! Wouldn’t you love to see that smug smile of his wiped off when we win?”

Agreements rise around Grian, and even Etho can’t help but want to prove that bastard wrong. Xisuma steps in. “At least we know why we’re getting so exhausted. We’ll know to rest, calm down while we’re in the labyrinth. And...we can warn Team Crafted.”

“And then we’ll tell the king, tell the people. They’ll have to listen to us, we’ll be the champions!” Iskall grins. They’ve got this labyrinth challenge in the bag.

The group rises, walking out of the tavern and back to the stadium. All around them, Milliara is buzzing with excitement. The final challenge of the Chimaera’s championship, the end of the games, has come. A river of people flow along the raised streets, flowing like the canals beside them. Rushing towards the stadium. They pass by other guilds, who sneer and turn away. Angry they lost, especially to a team. Do any of them know that the Magistrate practices dark magic? That he’s killed entire guilds in his search for power? For what? Surely he doesn’t keep all of it.

It’s no matter to the hermits. They found the truth, and once they pass on this knowledge, it’ll be out of their hands. Entering into the bowels of the stadium, the locker room they sit in is empty. Once full of dozens more teams, now only two teams remain.

The entire guild sneers at the sound of Dolios’s voice welcoming the crowd. It’s muffled by the thick stone walls, but they can hear him tell of the harrowing journey ahead. And the grand prize that awaits for the team that defeats the labyrinth. All they need to do is pour a single bowl of water over the statue at the center of the labyrinth.

But between that and both teams were beasts, traps, and spells designed to slow them down. Perhaps even kill them, if they aren’t prepared. Across the way, Grian can see nerves crease across Quentin and Jerome’s faces. He can hear Mumbo muttering next to him. Anyone can walk into the labyrinth, but only the best teams can walk out. Grian isn’t going to let anyone die- not on his oath as a healer. Not from the hermits, and not from Team Crafted either.

Grian stands, walking across the locker room and coming face to face with Sky. The leader looks up, an easy and golden grin meeting Grian. “Hey, you here to wish us luck?”

“Not exactly.” Grian wrings his hands, looking over his shoulder, before dropping his voice. “Listen, Sky, we hermits discovered something… the reason we’re always exhausted?” Sky leans forward, his eyes looking out over the rim of his sunglasses. “The magistrate is doing something dark, and he’s taking our power for his own. If you see a crystal that’s pitch black, or a creature with soulless white eyes and ash grey bodies- run. It’s dark magic.”

Sky’s eyes widen, and behind him Grian sees Jerome and Mitch coil and look out at where Dolios’s voice can be heard. But Jason looks less convinced. “Why should we trust you? You’re trying to get us to fail, huh?”

Grian’s sighs, collapsing his head into his hands. “No, we’re trying to help you. Us illegal guilds have to stick together.”

Team Crafted’s faces all exhibit a mix of shock, surprise, and hints of defiance at Grian’s suggestion. But he’s smarter than he lets on. Jerome is the first to speak up. “Thank you for the warning, I knew that man wasn’t to be trusted. Good luck, hermits.”

With that, the stadium erupts in a roar. Team Crafted stands, and disappears into the field, disappears from view. A few moments later, the hermits are called into the spotlight. Just like the opening ceremony, TFC leads them out onto the pitch.

Or, what was the pitch. Massive hedges of writhing vines and ivy twist around the guild, engulfing them into a thicket that fills the once open arena. A dark, misty haze swirls, thickening where the hermits know the crowd is watching. Despite no eyes, no bodies visible, they can feel being observed. And yet the entire field is eerily quiet. They feel alone, no voices or light, only the sensation of sight.

In the distance, a grumbling roar pierces the mist. Captured by the damp air, it hangs and echoes around the hermits. Iskall hides behind Stress while False, Wels, and Etho draw their blades. But TFC is the one to break the silence. “No use standing here. Team Crafted already has a headstart, and I’m not letting them get any further. Cleo and Jevin, take point. If anything looks suspicious, or even if it doesn’t, Cleo can search for a soul. Jevin, can you whip up slime warriors to be our...ahem, bait?”

“You got it boss.” Jevin draws his circle, blue light dappling the misty grey and green. Blue bodies of slime morph to shape, awkward steps pushing the hermits forward. Deep into the maze. The mist engulfs the comforting stone wall of the stadium, and they were only among hedge and haze.

They push past traps set off by the slime warriors, around chimaeras and banshees soothed by Zedaph and Cleo, and over illusionary spells meant to turn them back. At each intersection, Scar marks off the way they came by plowing a giant X in the ground. When they reach a dead end and turn around, he blocks it off completely.

“I don’t remember the field being this big.” Impulse groans, feeling his body ache at the feeling he now knows to be the work of dark magic. They haven’t seen a crystal or a husk, which only makes the feeling worse. It’s coming from everywhere.

“They must’ve used expansion magic to make this place bigger.” Xisuma hums, kicking his boot at the feeling of something on his head. And again. He turns around, glaring at BDubs. “Would you quit trying to flat-tire me? It doesn’t work on boot, ya know.”

BDubs’s face causes X’s head to spin and his heart to drop. His eyes are wide, confused as to why X is yelling at him. “Tha-that wasn’t me, X. That was-”

One moment, BDubs is clear in Xisuma’s vision through his mask. The next, he’s disappeared. However, it’s not hard to find him with all the screaming. Writhing on the ground, mist and vines wrapping struggling in a fight with the plant mage. No matter how many times he casts his magic, it doesn’t shake off the ivy that crawls and drags him towards the hedges.

“Help! Help it’s got me!” BDubs screams, digging his fingers into the ground and rooting himself there He groans, the vines still pulling on him despite being an immovable object. “It’s gonna rip me in half!”

False swings her sword, the sharp steel biting into the vines and severing it from the briars snaked around BDubs. From the split branches, a red ochre spills out. Blood. The entire hedge rumbles to life, two eyes appearing in the mist. A branch breaks through the fog, colliding with a shield held aloft by Wels. The limb of the plant monster crushes the steel, tossing the shield aside and depositing the paladin onto his rear.

Glowing white eyes draw closer, and the twisted grey vines of the plant monster’s face appears in the dark mist. Vines grab for any limb the hermits aren’t watching, engulfing arms, pulling on tails, wrapping around heads. Xisuma traps a few of the thousand limbs in a blackhole, rolling away from the beast. Grian takes to the sky, dodging around the shoots that threaten to skewer him. He whips a blast of air, clearing the fog to get a better view below.

It’s not the whole labyrinth, but the beast has spread it’s vines in an intricate system among it. All which are slithering over the ivy, like snakes in search of the hermits. What he also sees in the sky, beneath the plant monster’s perch and dug into the ground beneath the pitch, was the one thing he’s learned to despise.

A dark crystal. It’s controlling the plant monster, black smog wrapping around the roots of the beast like chains. It’s practically bursting with energy, all the power and strength taken by the crystal during the entire course of the games. Even flying this high, he can feel the effects of his magic being siphoned from his body. “There’s one of those-”

Swatted from the sky like a bug, Grian crashes into the ground with a sickening thud. Scar and Mumbo race to help him up. Mumbo nearly throws up, hearing the sound of bones cracking under Grian’s feathers and skin. But nothing can keep the sky angel quiet. “The plant thing...it’s protecting the crystal, or powered by the crystal, I dunno.”

“Where is it?” TFC questions, eyes flicking across the battling guild. Stress freezes the blood and vines solid, while Cub severs the limbs with portal after portal opening and closing.

Grian grabs his head, trying to steady the spinning sensation. The moving hedges of the false maze, the limbs of the beast, don’t help to ease his confusion. He points a shaking finger at about 2 o’clock, relieved to have support from Mumbo and Iskall back to his feet.

“Should we run away from it? Obviously it’s going to try and take our energy- shouldn’t we stay as far away as possible?” Joe raises an eyebrow. His quill rushes across the pages beneath the tip, a rushed spell spouting forth. A million beetles emerge from the aged paper, tiny pincers digging into the plant monster and ripping it apart. Keralis plucks one from the sky, swallowing the beetle whole and feeling reinvigorated by the bug.

“If Dolios placed that there, he obviously intended for us to get close to it. If he knew we’d be going that way, that means the statue must be this direction.” Xisuma proposes, sending a ball of void into the chest of the many limbed vine creature.

“We should...we should destroy the crystal.” Grian hisses, grasping at his ribs and gasping for air. “So he can’t steal any more magic from here.”

“How?” Doc growls, despite plowing ahead. Towards the monster. Towards the crystal. “We could hardly put a dent in it last time!”

“We’ll figure it out. We’re pretty clever.” TFC hums, hopping over a whipping vine. He grasps a thin rod of corundum, steeling himself when another attempts to toss him into oblivion. The hermits battle their way through the shifting maze, but with each vine they cut down, more seem to spring from the bloody limbs and misty air. The attacks only grow more aggressive as they near the body of the beast, near the dark crystal controlling it. The air grows thick, hard to breathe and pressing down on the team. In the distance, they can hear the roar of a chimaera. Team Crafted. Hopefully they’re safe, as far away from this beast as possible.

The crystal comes into view. Ashen roots are planted firm around the massive crystalline structure, the gem pulsing with energy. Energy it’s stealing from the hermits and Team Crafted. Right on cue, black mist swirls around the opaque crystal, natural defenses going up. The hermits leap aside, avoiding the crushing blow from a twisted cable of vines by a narrow margin of time and air. From across the writhing greenery, TFC’s voice booms out commands. “You guys on the other side distract the monster- or better yet, try to kill it! Us over here will do our best to break the crystal.”

A cacophony of acknowledgements lets the guildmaster know they heard him, and he wastes no time scrabbling to his feet. He ignores the sound of fighting behind him, the cracks and groans of the beast or the screams of his guildmembers. He needs to focus on this crystal first and foremost.

TFC is a mineral mage. He knows gemstones- but not corrupted gems. His stomach clenches as his fingers brush against the smooth surface, and his head aches at the mere thought of how it controlled him before. He still feels horrible, snapping at his friends. It’s too dangerous to use, even in regular magic. This twisted, barbaric magical conduit needs to be destroyed.

But if there’s one thing he knows, all gems can only take so much energy before they cleave. And this crystal is practically brimming with stolen magic. “Let’s feed the beast then.”

“Have a snack, you mega crystal of doom!” Iskall shouts, bolts of radioactive energy crackling from his magic circle to the crystal. He doesn’t stop, doesn’t slow his attack until he can hardly stand. The gemstone remains standing, half buried in the dirt. But then False steps up, the multitude of cinquedeas summoned around her imbued with magic by Wels. A flick of the wrist, and the blades dig into the crystal. Rusted, but protruding from the gem like spines from a dragon.

“Yes! Focus the strikes on False’s swords! Use them like conduits!” TFC grins, leaping free as a rooted foot rips from the ground beside him. For a brief moment, he turns his attention back to the fighting hermits. He clasps his hands over his ears, the telltale shriek of Cleo’s banshee scream almost rupturing his eardrums. Impulse is on his back, protected by a weak bolt of lightning shot from Mumbo’s stuttering magic. But otherwise, they’re holding their own just fine.

“We’ve almost got it!” Wels cheers, noticing the cracks forming along the gem’s surface. Black smoke pours from the fractures, grasping at their feet and attempting to steal their magic. Attempting to keep control of the plant monster that protects it.

The ground beneath their feet rolls and rumbles, the dirt and hedges shivering and bucking against the hermits’ feet. Wels turns around, grinning when he sees what- or who- is the cause of the earthquake. Like a geyser of stone, a spike of rock pierces through the heart of the dark crystal. The mist around the hermits’ dissipates like morning fog chased off by the sun. Above the team, the plant monster erupts into ash, raining flakes of the husked creature with one final creak of wood and vine.

And the dark crystal shatters. It blows the hermits back, sending them tumbling among the shards of gemstone. The black aura fades with the color- it’s just a regular quartz crystal, albeit destroyed into a million tiny conchoidal pieces. The depressing weight on their bodies, that left them struggling to breathe and their magic weak, falls away like shed skin of a snake. None of them have felt this invigorated since the start of the games.

“Guys, there’s the statue!” Grian prods Mumbo in the back, both wincing as pain ricochets through both wounded hermits. A lush garden at the center of the labyrinth, gardenia and lilac flowers growing around a tall statue rising from a fresh, crystal clear spring. Carved in stone from the Lionheart mountains, the statue features each and every god in the main pantheon of Lairyon. From Echol to Limal, and Artyne- god of water.

Water, the symbol of life and magic in Lairyon. Water flows fresh, clean, and pure from the spring surrounding the stone gods. Two bowls rest untouched at the spring’s edge, carved from the very cyprus trees that inspired Milliara to be founded. Ren steps up, pausing and looking back at his teammates. Bruised, battered, broken. But urging him not to waste another second. This is it.

Ren dips the bowl in the spring. He swears he can feel energy, deep ancient magic within the cool water, chasing away the aftereffects of the crystal. In the distance, he can hear shouts of encouragement from vaguely familiar voices. Team Crafted is almost here. He doesn’t waste a second, wading across the water and pouring the bowl over the stone statue.

The mist disappears, and the statues move, as if brought to life by the mystical spring. Merkal, the god of mischief, moves his cloak to the side. Deliss brushes away the lilacs and gardenia. And the stone rendition of Artyne smiles, revealing the chalice. Crowning the hermits as victors of the Chimaera’s Championship.

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