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viostormcaller · 4 years

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Stringbound Chapter 3

A/N: I really really hope this works... sorry if it’s formatted a bit weird! EDIT: ohmygod I forgot the fucking taglist I am so sorry XD EDIT 2: I forgot amidst my frustration of trying to post this here that I was supposed to edit in all the italics. So I did that. Whoops!

[TW: nausea/vomiting mention, blood, death mention]

Chapter 2

The first thing Marvin noticed behind the darkness of his eyelids was the headache, its ever-persistent pounding and squeezing against his skull as agonizing as it had been since the fight, if not more so. Next was the stomachache, not enough yet to be nauseating, mostly just sore for the time being. Third was the heat; he could tell blankets had been piled on him again -- the same ones from before, no doubt -- and despite how much he was sweating, he also found himself shivering. It was harder to breathe, as well, though it wasn't because of the blankets. However, he didn't feel the need to worry -- he could feel a mask against his mouth and nose and felt significantly cooler air entering his body when he inhaled. Henrik must have put him on an oxygen machine. He also felt that one of his arms was outside of the blankets, and while he couldn't feel it he could tell by the way his arm was positioned that there was an IV there. He could tell he was on the couch instead of in a hospital bed, and he could hear soft murmuring close by. After he felt like he'd done enough assessing of the situation, Marvin slowly opened his eyes, squinting and letting out a quiet, pained groan as the bright daylight entering the room agitated his headache further.

At the noise he heard, Henrik quickly turned around from the crouched position by the couch that he had placed himself in, eyes wide and curious. "Marvin?" he prompted. "Are you awake?"

"Y-yeah…" Marvin got out. "Yes, I'm awake…"

"How do you feel?"

"Awful," Marvin stated plainly. It had been years since he'd felt this sick.

"What symptoms are you having?" Henrik then asked, grabbing the notepad and pen from off the table.

"Headache, chills… I feel warm and cold at the same time. And it's still a bit hard to breathe."

"Any lightheadedness?"

"No."

"Dizziness?"

"Thankfully, no."

"Are you having any pains in the chest at all?"

"No. Aside from it feeling a bit tight, of course, but it doesn't hurt."

"Do you feel nauseous?"

"No, not… not yet, anyway. I'm unsure if I'll be feeling sick later, though…"

"Hm, alright… I will keep the eye on it, and the bucket will be close by, just in case." Henrik proceeded to write all of Marvin's answers down on a piece of paper. He would transfer them to a proper document later, but this will do for now. Actually, while they were on the subject…

"Oh, Marvin?" Henrik spoke up, not looking up from his paper quite yet.

"Mmh?"

"I have some more questions for you, about your reaction to the medicine, yes? Would you mind if I asked them now, or do you want to answer them later, when you are feeling a bit better?"

"We can…" Marvin took a moment to think. It didn't take long to come to a decision. "We can answer them now, but… can you dim the light in the room a bit? It's… making my head ache horribly…"

"Oh! Oh, of course! I apologize, I did not even consider that! Jackie, do you think--?"

"Yup, one step ahead of you," cheerfully replied Jackie, who had been standing by this whole time. He pulled all the curtains closed and dimmed the kitchen light some. "How's this? This good?" he called to Marvin.

Marvin fully opened his eyes, finally able to see without painfully squinting. His headache hadn't gone away, but this was definitely an improvement. "Much better," he sighed. "Thank you."

"No problem, just doin' my job."

Henrik just chuckled, shaking his head as a small grin tugged at the corners of his lips. Then he cleared his throat and adjusted his glasses, refocusing himself. "Right, yes. The symptoms. What did you notice after you had taken that medicine?"

Marvin hummed, thinking for a moment. "I remember feeling… nauseous first. The ironic part about that is, after you injected me, it actually helped to ease the nausea. However, when I was talking with Chase, it… came back. The headache followed."

Henrik nodded, writing this down. "Alright, what else?"

"While I was, er… being sick, I remember looking up and the room was spinning. Everything was blurry -- I couldn't tell you if I was seeing triple or more than that. And then I found it harder and harder to breathe in, and from there I began to experience what I can only describe as delirium…"

"Ah, yes," Henrik interjected, looking up. "I remember you mumbling nonsense at me. Do you remember what it was you were saying? Or, well… trying to say?"

Marvin just shook his head. "My guess would be just as good as yours. I haven't a single idea. Heh, I am at the very least grateful I wasn't mumbling any spells. That could have made things a bit… chaotic."

Henrik hummed in agreement, nodding, before continuing. "The only thing I did understand was when you said you felt as if you were going to pass out."

"Ah. Yes, I remember saying that," Marvin confirmed. "I felt very lightheaded seemingly out of nowhere and I was almost positive that I would pass out. Though in my half-conscious state, I couldn't tell if my warning was in my mind or if I'd spoken it aloud. I'm grateful it was the latter."

"Was that all you felt?" Henrik inquired, looking up from his notes once more.

"No, there is one more thing I remember… every vein in my body seemed to ache not long after those first symptoms appeared. At the time I'd no clue what was happening to me, but looking back it could have only been a side effect of the medicine."

Henrik nodded, continuing his furious scribbling on the paper. Finally he let out a breath and put the pen and notepad down on the coffee table. "I thank you for your help, Marvin. One, for being so cooperative, and two, for being my unintentional test subject. I am glad we did not give this to any patients… I am not sure a higher dose of this would be very safe."

"So… does that mean our original plan is a no-go?" Jackie spoke up, a concerned look in his eye.

"I am afraid so," Henrik replied sadly, turning back towards the hero. "The dose I gave Marvin was small, and you can see what it had done to him. In a higher quantity, it could potentially kill someone, and we are trying to avoid that, yes?"

Jackie muttered a curse under his breath, looking away.

"What are you going to do now?" Marvin asked, glancing between them both.

"When Chase returns, we are going to talk more deeply about this. We need a new plan."

Marvin's eyebrows furrowed. "Chase is out? Where did he go?"

"Oh, just to pick up some supplies. Non-perishable food items, medicine… that sort of thing. Is good to be stocked up, yes? Especially now that we have a new person on board."

Marvin slowly nodded in understanding. Yes, that was a smart move. He then looked up, seeing Jackie nearing closer with a grin on his face. Uh oh.

"Hope you didn't lose one of your "nine lives" while you were fighting the effects of the medicine, because we're gonna need you for this. You think you're up for it?"

Marvin just narrowed his eyes at him. "Are you always this utterly idiotic?"

"Hey, be nice!" Jackie protested, placing a hand on his chest and feigning hurt. "I'm the one who saved your life, remember? You'd probably be dead right now if it weren't for me! You better be grateful I stayed home, too, Sourpuss. Had I gone on patrols, there'd be no one to carry Schneep's medical equipment up to you. So there!"

Marvin rolled his eyes and looked away. He'd cross his arms, but one of them had the IV sticking out of it, so that wouldn't be the best idea. Henrik could only laugh to himself, shaking his head. It was easy to forget how much of a child Jackie still was, until they had moments like this.

"Do you need anything, Marvin?" Henrik asked, pulling himself from his thoughts.

"A… a cloth over my head would be appreciated," Marvin admitted.

"I'll get it!" Jackie announced.

"No, I will get it," Henrik quickly interjected, rising from his spot on the floor. "You have bothered Marvin enough for one day, I feel."

As Henrik turned to stretch, Jackie stuck his tongue out at him when he wasn't looking.

Just then, the door swung open, startling everyone in the room. It was no other than Chase, of course, carrying a few bags of groceries, but… he was covered in splatters of… blood?

"Before you ask, no, the blood isn't mine," Chase spoke up, gently kicking the door shut behind him and setting the plastic grocery bags down on the floor.

"Holy shit, what happened?!" Jackie exclaimed.

"Dude, it's like a war zone out there!" Chase said. "Have you seen the news? God, there's fuckin' people everywhere! All scramblin' around tryin' to stock up. He's got his puppets on the loose. I was fuckin' lucky to get outta there alive…"

Jackie let out a curse, quickly snatching up the remote sitting on the coffee table and turning on the TV, switching it to the news channel. The four of them watched as the woman on the TV explained the scene unfolding downtown, showing an aerial view of what was going on. There weren't that many puppets, but just enough to cause havoc.

"I gotta go," Jackie got out, tossing the remote down and already heading for the door. He was grateful that he was already suited up.

"Jackie, wait," Chase called, reaching a hand out to him.

Jackie paused in his tracks, turning to face Chase with a hum. The determination and urgency in his eyes was unmistakable.

"Are you… sure it's safe to go out there? Like… alone, I mean?"

Jackie just huffed, almost like he'd laughed. "I mean, it's not, but who else is gonna do it, if not me? Marvin's out of commission, and you know as well as I do that the police do fuck-all."

Chase just looked away with a thoughtful hum. Jackie had a point, he couldn't deny that.

"I gotta go. See you in a few hours, alright?"

"Stay safe, Jackie," Henrik said.

"Yeah, man… be careful out there. Shit's a mess." Chase agreed.

Jackie huffed, a smile growing on his face. "No need to worry, guys. I'll be fine, trust me." And with that, he was out the door.

Henrik turned the news off with a sigh, recalling his ever-present fear of watching the news on a late night only to hear that the city's famed vigilante, Jackieboy Man, was dead. Every time he left the house, he mentally prepared himself for that day, and every time he hoped it never came.

"Well…" Chase spoke up, breaking the uneasy silence. "I'm gonna go shower. Gotta get this blood off me."

"Yes, good… good idea," Henrik nodded, clearly preoccupied.

"Um, Chase, if you don't mind my asking, how did you get blood on you in the first place?" Marvin asked.

Chase looked to Marvin with saddened eyes. "Had to witness a puppet killing someone… was too close when it happened. I'm never gonna forget that… the look on their face… the way they screamed…" Chase could only sigh, hugging himself. He shook his head, turning towards the stairs. "I… I need to be alone for a while…" With that, he left to go grab some clean clothes and a towel from his room so he could get cleaned up.

There was a heavy silence lingering in the room after Chase left, thick as the blankets covering Marvin and twice as suffocating. Finally, letting out a breath as if to push away some of the fog-like tension to give himself a little breathing room, Henrik turned away from the TV and headed towards the closet under the stairs. "Marvin, you said you wanted a cloth for the head, yes?"

Marvin perked up at his name, looking towards Henrik. "Er, y-yes, uh… yes, that would… help…"

Henrik nodded, fetching a small washcloth and heading towards the kitchen sink. He turned on the faucet and let the water run over his hand, adjusting the temperature between hot and cold until he was sure that it was cool and not cold. He then grabbed a spare bowl, filled it with the water, and headed back over to the couch. He took great care in dipping the folded washcloth in the water, wringing it out, and placing it over Marvin's forehead, though Marvin expected nothing less from a doctor.

"How does that feel? Good?"

"Yes, thank you. I appreciate it," Marvin answered with a nod.

"Is there anything else you need?"

"No, not at all. Thank you, though." His answer was honest, but even if he did need something, he wouldn't dare ask. Not right now.

With a simple nod, Henrik rose, heading for the basement. He wasn't gone for very long, but when he came back up, Marvin noticed that he was now wearing gloves. He watched with intrigue as Henrik went about setting down some paper towels on the kitchen floor. Then, Henrik began to set the grocery bags on the paper towels, carrying as many over as he could at one time until all the bags were moved. It was only then that Marvin was able to see the blood splattered on some of the plastic bags. He'd been previously confused, but now what Henrik was doing made sense. He continued to silently watch as Henrik took off the gloves and set them aside, grabbed a new pair from his pocket, and put them on. He began to sort the groceries, putting away the food items and setting aside the medicines and Band-Aids and the like to be stored downstairs with the first-aid supplies.

Once the food was put away and the medicine separated, Henrik grabbed as many medicines as he could in his arms and headed for the basement stairs. It took him two trips to get everything down, though when he came back up he brought with him a biohazard bin. All the plastic bags, paper towels, and the first pair of gloves were tossed in. He then grabbed some more paper towels and a bottle of some sort of cleanser Marvin didn't recognize right away and began to spray and wipe down the area by the door where Chase had dropped the bags. Once everything was clean and put away, he headed back downstairs with the bin, and when he came up he was empty-handed and no longer wearing his gloves. He settled himself into the armchair with a sigh, letting himself get lost in his thoughts. Not a word was spoken between him and Marvin. Eventually the pair heard Chase come out of the bathroom, the opening and closing of one door, and then the opening and closing of another. Chase didn't come back downstairs after that. Eventually Henrik, too, excused himself, mentioning he was going back downstairs to check on Jack for a bit, leaving Marvin alone in the living room.

That thick duvet of silence never truly left, but as the number of people within the room dwindled, it grew ever heavier, threatening to swallow everything that remained there, Marvin included. With a heavy, tired sigh, however, he decided he wouldn't let it, instead allowing his mind to wander, to silently fill the space with his own muted noise. And he simply waited, waited for Henrik to return, for Chase to come back downstairs. For Jackie to come home.

Taglist: @jade-orade @taizu-lazure @bupine @innocent-angel3 @immabethehero @wowowgoodurl @n-anon @g-rexthedino @scarletender @coconutpillow05 @friezzzboiii (Ask if you would like to be tagged!!)

#nausea mention tw #vomiting mention tw #blood tw #death tw #jacksepticeye #marvin the magnificent #jackieboy man #chase brody #dr. schneeplestein #antisepticeye #stringbound #stringbound chapter 3 #vio stormcaller

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grimsidious · 4 years

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StringBound update:

I’m going on hiatus for a week or two due to health concerns and bad scheduling. StringBound will return in the end so don’t fear.

I’ve recently picked up another project with aHiT: a small OtH! fic and an au of my own (probably..) Im excited to work on new stuff but with that comes time and I barely got that as of right now.

To update on chapter 3 and 4(4 and 5 on AO3), I have them on the editing board right now but I’m trying to work ahead so I can keep that constant Wednesday update.

Thanks for supporting me thus far!

#stringbound #ahit au

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angelselene · 3 years

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Boundless - An EraserMight Soulmate AU

Because I don’t literally have a dozen other fics I’m working on, I needed to start another one. That said, I’ve been wanting to write an EraserMight Soulmate AU, and the discord provided the spark I needed. Blame Thank them.

Teaser:

~~**~~~**~~~**~~~

Yagi Toshinori was born without a stringmate. He still likes the old term, soulmate over stringmate, even if he understands that soulmate has all of these romantic connotations that aren’t necessarily applicable. Stringbound people are neither common nor uncommon. Whereas about 80% of the population has a special ability known as a quirk, only about half of the population has a soulmate.

Some theories say that statistic should actually be higher. After all, only people who are stringbound can actually see their strings, and the strings do break and disappear when the stringmate dies, and most children don’t realize they have a string until they’re three or so, and they won’t understand what it means or really wonder about it until about seven, for most children. At least, that’s what the research says. Children don’t ask about the string until they’re about seven, but they usually recall it being there much earlier than that. The math people think that if your string breaks before you turn seven, it just fades away and the child forgets. A rare kindness the universe has given.

A stringmate isn’t necessarily romantic, for all that they’re so often romanticized. Studies show that a full quarter of twins are stringmates. It’s rarer for other siblings to be stringmates, but not impossible. It has led to some… problems though, and thus the more recent nomenclature.

Even so, as someone who is boundless (never stringless or unstrung or, worst of all, blank—words that always made him feel less or lacking), Toshinori still secretly enjoys romanticizing the bond, as long as, you know, the stringbound in question aren’t related. Just like he was born without a quirk, he was born without a soulmate, and wanting others who have one to be happy together is a harmless fantasy.

Boundless Chapter 1 on AO3

#erasermight #yagi toshinori #aizawa shouta #soulmate au #boundlessfic #angiewrote #bnha

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truthandglitches · 4 years

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"They had been fighting for a long, long time." Mo giggles. "Nouveau, my Ink, didnt like Flare very much. Even though he made him the way he was."

"I killed him, you know." Mo says with a bright, bright smile. "He wasnt one of the nice Inks. He was actually really evil! Can you believe he'd actually make Errors? And then he'd kill them whenever they stopped doing what he wanted, like oh let's say, they decided they wanted to be protectors instead of destoyers..."

Mo takes a step forward, something dark pulling itself out of his back.

"He liked feeding me them so I could get stronger! Isnt that just so funny?"

"Hey..." He tilts his head to the side, the thing towering over him, a slavering, glitching, stringbound mass of snarling mouths and red eyes.

"Arent you an Error?"

Template narrows his eyes at the mention of an evil Ink, looking frustrated. He opens his mouth to retort-

-then goes still at the mention of him.

Glitches start to eat away at his bones, creeping up his scarf. He pushes himself to his feet, the rest of the world seeming to momentarily fade away into a shifting, static-filled blur. From his point of view, anyway.

He takes a step back. Then another. And another. His voice is trembling, full of glitches and overlaid with painful, crackling static, containing a thinly-vieled dose of mania.

"̷̢̖̼̲͂̂̽̓̔͐̆ͅǏ̵͍͚̌͊̚'̵̛͇͇̂̐́̽̏m̷̛̯̞͈̫̲̆͌͌̈́͊͐ ̶̹͙̄̐̑̏̏̚n̸̩͉̰̫̻̳̔̈͊̓̆͝o̸͖̳̒̒̇͐͊t̸̠̖̥̂̾ ̸̗̝̻̖̋̎̿̓͠h̶̲̺̩͖̼̔́́̂͂̏͝i̴̦̓͛͒̕̚m̴̤͙͗͛͛̈́̓͊͝.̵̨̪̭͙̟͚̽"̶͖̭̌͌͠

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velvctmotel-a-blog · 7 years

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* ;; -- STARTER FOR @stringbound

“aish! do not take everything in such offense, jumin!” the younger girl snaps towards her older sibling, allowing a roll of her eyes to come afterwards. “it’s a halloween costume shoot. my agent picked this one. so what if it’s a bit short, i am a adult, after all.” although the slutty witch is a bit much for the twenty year old, she just wants her sister to see that this is just a photo shoot, and it's not the end of the world.

#i dont have gifs because i still do not have internet at my house.#i'm using my hotspot #and it's a piece of shit.#stringbound #❝ call me pretty and nasty. — jisoo.

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teamunityetsy · 6 years

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#vintage #photo album #retro #etsy

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englishmodernism · 6 years

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Mammut Bogen Sikker Hansen string bound folio sized book of stone lithographs of prehistoric animals from Sikker Hansen. He’s probably better known for the fabulous travel posters he designed but this is a rather wonderful beast of a book. #sikkerhansen #stonelithography #extinct #mammoth #mammut #stringbound

#sikkerhansen #mammut #mammoth #stringbound #extinct #stonelithography

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viostormcaller · 4 years

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Stringbound Chapter 2

[TW: nausea/vomiting, near car accident, needles, fainting (ask to tag if I’ve missed something!)]

AN: This has been ready for a good while, actually! I just haven’t posted it since I’ve been away. However, since it’s Marvin’s birthday, I thought it fitting to post this today. So, happy birthday, Marvin, and I duly apologize for the awful things that happen to you in this chapter. Now, without further ado, here’s chapter 2!

Read Chapter 1

As the tension finally dissipated from the theatre, Marvin could finally feel that the threat was gone. It was just them now. At first, he let himself calm down and relax while Jackieboy Man called whoever it was he needed to call and informed them on the situation. But then, it hit him all at once, just as the adrenaline from the fight wore off. A dizzying, blinding headache accompanied by ringing ears and followed by a nosebleed. His body began to ache and he felt nauseated and overwhelmed, skin prickling all over. He overdid it, he definitely overdid it. Normally he would take a moment to rest after a show because he needs to recharge after expending his magical energy, despite the amount he uses never being a significant amount. His shows not only never take much out of him, but they also never involve combat, especially when it's an overpowered, unkillable enemy. He actually hadn't fought anyone using magic in a long, long time. Hadn't needed to. He fell to his knees with a grunt, holding his head and groaning.

Jackieboy Man startled when he heard the thump, looking behind him to see Marvin doubled over on his knees. He cursed to himself and put whoever it was he was talking to on hold. "Shit, you alright?!"

"Overdid it," he got out. "Too much-- ngh! Energy…"

"Are you injured anywhere else?" Jackieboy Man asked.

"Nn-nnh," Marvin shook his head. Instant regret. His body lurched and he clapped a hand over his mouth, his eyes beginning to sting. He swallowed thickly and slowly exhaled. "Don' feel well… gonna be sick…"

"Okay, shit, uh… you'll come with me, you can lie down and rest, um… D'you need anythin' else or are you alright?"

"Lie down… 'n a shower… 's it…"

"Alright, gotcha."

"I'll give you… my address. You c'n take me home…"

"Ah… no, can't do that. Sorry. You'll have to stay with me. Not safe with Antisepticeye after you now."

"I can... handle myself," Marvin forced out, his frustration making his head hurt worse. "'m a grown adult. Don' need protecting."

"No, trust me on this one. Please." Jackieboy urged. "I know what I'm talking about. I'm not having anyone else go missing or fall deathly ill under his control, not on my watch. And you're weakened, on top of that. You have to come with me. I've rigged the house in a way where he can't find me or anyone else who stays there. You'll be safe there until the heat's off you."

"...fine," Marvin agreed begrudgingly. Jackieboy Man sounded sincere enough, and the hero did appear to have more experience with Antisepticeye than he did. But mostly, the sooner he could lie down, the better, and at this point he would do anything to speed things along.

"First, though," Jackieboy began, fishing through one of his satchels.

Marvin groaned. Ugh, what now, he thought to himself, clearly annoyed.

Jackieboy Man held out a tissue to Marvin. "Your nose is bleeding."

"Mmh." Right. Aside from the metallic taste coating his lips, he'd nearly forgotten. He pressed the napkin to his nose and pinched it, tilting his head back. His nosebleeds never lasted long, thankfully, so as soon as it stopped a moment later, he was able to shakily rise onto his feet. Though, the dizziness struck back hard, nearly causing him to fall over again.

"Woah, careful! You alright?" Jackieboy asked, rushing over to steady him.

"Mmh… thanks."

"No problem. Y'know…" Jackieboy couldn't help but smirk, "considering you seem to have a connection to cats, I assumed you'd have better balance than that!"

Marvin furrowed his brow and narrowed his eyes at Jackieboy Man, giving him a "what the actual fuck are you talking about?" face.

"Your cat mask?" Jackieboy supplied.

Marvin rolled his eyes and sucked his teeth, turning his gaze away from the hero. "Shut up."

Jackieboy snorted. "Alright, let's get you somewhere safe. Friend of mine should be waiting outside by now. He'll drive us. You don't get carsick, do you?"

"No."

"Good. Alright, easy does it, now… slow steps."

Jackieboy Man slowly led Marvin out through the exit door he sawed open earlier on. They headed through the hallway leading out to the main doors and were hit with the cold night air as they stepped outside. The bright city lights were glaring, making Marvin's eyes hurt. He hissed and shut them, feeling his head pound harder. The cold air was cooling down his overheating body, at least, but he could tell he would be shivering before long.

"That white car over there is where we're headed," Jackieboy Man informed. "My friend -- his name's Chase -- he'll be taking us back to the house."

"Mmh."

"You're really clammy," Jackieboy commented. "Sure you're not comin' down with something?"

"Jus' overdid it…" Marvin got out. "I'll be fine."

"There's a doctor that lives with us. He can check you out if you want?" Jackieboy Man offered.

"Mmh." Marvin really didn't feel like seeing a doctor, nor did he need to, but he also didn't feel like talking anymore. He figured the hero would shut up if he just nodded and agreed. Plus, the sooner he stopped talking, the better, because the nausea was hitting Marvin full force and the last thing he wanted to do was open his mouth to speak, lest more than words came out.

Finally, the pair finally made it to the car. Jackieboy Man helped Marvin in first, who scooted all the way towards the left-most seat, while Jackieboy sat on the far right. Marvin took the opportunity to pull his mask off his face and set it down in the empty space between them.

"Yo, Jackie, everything good?" asked the driver, who Marvin assumed was Chase. "And who's this you got with you?"

"Yeah, Chase, we're fine. Oh, and this is Marvin," explained Jackie. He then turned to Marvin. "Wait, your name is Marvin, right? I was just goin' off the sign on the theatre."

"Yeah, name's Marvin." he mumbled, trying not to open his mouth too much.

"Ah, okay. Good. Yeah, he was targeted at his show tonight. I'm takin' him back with us to stay 'til the heat's off 'im."

"Yeah, alright." Chase sighed. The house was big, sure, but if Jackie kept taking on new people like this… well, he supposed it was for the best. "So, uh… we heading straight back? Or d'you need to stop anywhere first?"

"Nah, just head straight home. Marvin needs to lie down and rest. But drive slow, alright? He's not feeling well."

"Yeah, alright. He injured?"

"No, no. Thankfully he's not. I'll explain later, but he just needs to find someplace to lie down."

"Alright. Everyone buckled in?"

"Yeah, I am. Marv, you buckled?"

"Mhm," Marvin hummed.

"Alright, starting the car now."

Chase pulled out of his parking spot and began to drive off. True to his word, he kept his speed slow, but Marvin could still feel every jerk and bump of the car. He had his head leaned against the window, taking slow, deep breaths, his eyes closed.

"Hey, Marvin?"

"Mmh?" Marvin slightly turned his head towards Jackie's direction.

"You see that pocket on the back of Chase's seat? There's paper bags in there. Keep 'em there just for situations like this. If you feel like you're gonna be sick, don't be afraid to take one, alright?"

Marvin hummed in acknowledgement, going back to closing his eyes. He was trying with all his willpower to settle his stomach as much as he possibly could. He didn't want to resort to using a bag, but he'd be mortified if he threw up in someone else's car. Gods, he hoped he could lie down soon…

Chase was paying close attention to the road, trying to watch his speed and make sure he wasn't driving too fast and not too slow, that he was in the correct lane, when suddenly a car from the complete opposite side of the freeway came barreling at him from his left. He spotted it just in time, largening headlights near blinding him.

"Holy shit!" Chase cried. He rapidly turned the wheel, speeding up to try and get out of the way. Jackie cried out from the back seat and held on tight to the handle on the roof of the car as it swerved and collided with the guardrail, the screech of metal on metal filling the car. Marvin groaned and hissed as his stomach flip-flopped and his head bumped hard up against the window. The other car thankfully missed, and aside from the car scraping against the guardrail, nothing was damaged and no one was severely hurt. He turned on the hazard lights and quickly pulled over, trying hard to catch his breath and calm his heart. His entire body was trembling.

"Shit… you guys… you guys alright back there?" he got out between pants.

"Yeah… think we're good," Jackie said. "Shit, man, what happened?"

"Dude, someone tried to fuckin' hit us."

"Shit, you serious?"

"Yes!" Chase turned around in his seat to face Jackie, eyes wide with fear. "Dude, I swear to god, this car came from the other fuckin' side of the freeway and came charging right at us, like it was trying to hit us. Coulda killed all three of us if I didn't move out of the way!"

"You… you don't think it was a drunk driver, do you?" suggested Jackie.

"Nah, man, that felt way too deliberate to be a drunk driver. It looked like whoever was driving was targeting us."

"...Well, then we better get home fast," Jackie said. "If the road's not safe, then we gotta get outta harm's way."

"R-right, right…" Chase turned back around to slump in his seat and took a deep breath, calming himself. He was still shaking, but he knew he had to get everyone home. They couldn't sit there forever. He reluctantly turned off the hazard lights and, after waiting for all the cars to pass, slowly veered the car back onto the freeway.

Marvin, meanwhile, had a hand over his stomach, feeling it turn and bubble. Throughout Jackie and Chase's conversation, he was desperately trying to fend off the nausea with little success. As the minutes passed by it only became worse. His breathing grew quick, jaw clenched as he tried with all his willpower to keep whatever wanted to come up, down.

"Marvin?" Jackieboy asked frantically, turning to Marvin with a worried look in his eyes as soon as he'd noticed his breathing had picked up. "Marvin, are you okay?"

Marvin didn't answer. His brow was furrowed, sweat beading on his forehead. He hated feeling this way. He hated nausea, the way his entire body prickled with it. He swallowed thickly and tried to steady his breathing, but swallowing triggered his nausea further. He gagged once and then finally his stomach lurched, bile rushing up his throat. Marvin quickly sat upright, clapping one hand over his mouth and using the other to reach out and open up a paper bag. Against his will his stomach lurched again, body convulsing, more bile filling his mouth and spilling out into his hand. He got the bag opened, and no sooner had he done so did he heave, vomiting into it.

"Get it up, Marvin, it's alright. I've got you," Jackie supported.

Marvin felt a hand on his back, rubbing in slow circles. He almost wanted to shrug him off but didn't have the mental energy to, not while also focusing on expelling whatever it was his body was so kind as to reject.

"Marvin's throwing up back there?" Chase called from up front.

"Yeah. Don't worry, none got in the car if that's what you're worried about." Jackie answered.

"Is he okay?"

"Uh… gonna say no on that one. He doesn't look like he's doin' too hot. How far are we from the house?"

"Uh, give or take twenty minutes?"

"Alright. Hang on 'til then, Marv. Okay?"

Marvin groaned, breath hitching as he was stopped up short by another wave of nausea. His head felt like it was being squeezed by a really tight rubber band, only worsening as he coughed and gasped. He wanted nothing more than to lie down somewhere, curl up into a ball and just sleep. When the nausea for the most part subsided, stomach empty of all it had and then some, he went back to leaning against the window, taking slow breaths as he tried to calm his heart and his breathing down.

Finally, Chase was pulling into a driveway. Marvin couldn't see as his eyes were closed, but he felt the car slowing down and heard the sound of tires against gravel. The engine whirred to a stop, the car filling with silence. Finally, there was the sound of Chase unbuckling his seatbelt and the silence was accompanied by cold air as his door was opened.

Chase naturally went outside to inspect the damage. It looked pretty bad… but it could have easily been a whole lot worse. He tried to be grateful for that. He could only force out a breath, running his hand through his hair. He knew he couldn't afford to pay to fix this right now, so he only hoped that this was all the damage that was done.

Jackieboy simply watched Chase from his window for a moment before turning towards Marvin. His eyes were closed and his breathing was awfully… still. "Marvin…?" he whispered. Was he asleep?

"Mmh?" Marvin hummed, not looking up.

"We're home."

"Mm…"

"Need me to help you out of the car?"

Jackieboy didn't get an answer. He hummed to himself and got out, going over to Marvin's side and opening the door. He unbuckled the seatbelt holding him and went to help Marvin up.

Marvin allowed himself to be helped up, but as soon as he moved, the world began to spin dangerously. His vision rapidly blurred and darkened and he collapsed, feeling a quick burst of pain shoot up his arm and through his side as he collided with the pavement beneath him, and then nothing.

"Shit, Marvin?! Marvin, are you okay?" Jackie cried out, bending down. He began to shake him. "Marvin? Marvin! Shit… Chase, Marvin's not responding. Go inside and get Schneep. Hurry!"

"Fuck, dude… yeah, on it!" Chase quickly locked the car before dashing towards the house, nearly tripping on the front steps and almost dropping his keys trying to unlock the door.

"Henrik!" Chase called into the house. "Henrik, where are you, man?" He was met with silence. With a slightly-annoyed huff, he headed straight towards a door on the right side of the hallway ahead of him and quickly threw it open, hurrying down the basement stairs. He finally reached the basement door at the bottom and burst through.

"Henrik," Chase repeated.

"Hm?!" Henrik startled, looking up from the paperwork on his desk and quickly swiveling around in his chair.

"Hen, we need you outside. Someone we're helping fuckin' passed out on the ground."

"Oh, für die Liebe zu…" Henrik huffed and rolled his eyes. He didn't hesitate in standing, though, immediately pulling on his white lab coat that was hanging nearby and grabbing a fresh pair of medical gloves. "Take me to them," he directed.

Chase nodded. The pair of them rushed back up the stairs and out the door, and Chase led Henrik over to where Jackie was, leaned over Marvin's unconscious form.

"What happened? Who is this?" Henrik asked, crouching down beside the stranger's limp body.

"His name's Marvin. He's staying with us until the heat's off him. He was attacked at his show tonight. By you-know-who."

Henrik hummed and slowly nodded in grim understanding. He had no qualms helping this stranger now, now that he had context. "What happened before he collapsed? What symptoms was he having?"

"Uh… he was really clammy, he was nauseous…"

"Was he vomiting?"

"Yeah, he was, though I should mention that was only after the car swerved. Uh… he said he had a headache and his nose was bleeding earlier. I think he said he just overdid it and used too much magic energy? But I still hoped you would check him out anyway, just to be sure."

"Magic? You serious?" Chase asked disbelievingly.

"Yeah, man, another magic user. You shoulda seen it, though. Marvin's powerful."

"Ugh, enough of the chit-chat," scolded Henrik impatiently. "Help me get Marvin inside. Is cold out here and I do not want him getting hypothermia."

"Right, right. Sorry." Jackie apologized.

The three of them lifted Marvin, and while it was awkward, they managed to safely get him inside. After removing his cape, suit jacket, and shoes, they set him down on the couch for now, piling blankets over him and setting pillows underneath his head. Afterwards Jackie and Chase sat themselves at the kitchen table and Henrik heated up the food he'd been saving for them -- he'd eaten his own plate earlier.

"So," Henrik grunted as he sat down in his chair. "You had said the car swerved while you were driving, yes? What happened?"

"Someone… someone tried to hit us," Chase replied.

"Tried to hit you? Are you certain?"

Chase grimly nodded, swallowing what was in his mouth. "Yeah, pretty certain, dude. Car came at us from the opposite side of the freeway. I had to swerve outta the way. Car hit the guardrail, dunno if you saw the damage."

"Yes, I… I saw." Henrik fell silent, mulling this over. "I assume you did not get a license plate, did you?"

Chase shook his head sadly.

"I figured as much. Did you get a look at the driver, at least?"

"No. Headlights were so bright that I couldn't see anything. I mean, shit, it was dumb luck I was able to get us outta the way at all!"

"If the damage is bad enough I might have to be called in to help clean up debris and help the survivors, if that car hit anyone else," Jackie said, his voice having a serious edge to it.

"No, I think you are fine, Jackieboy," Henrik said with a shake of his head. "If they needed help cleaning up, they would have called earlier. Maybe the car did not hit any other drivers?"

"I can only hope."

The three fell silent then, Henrik simply watching over Chase and Jackieboy Man as they ate. Finally, Chase spoke up, setting his fork down.

"...I'm pretty sure there's only one person who would have it out for us enough to try and hit us."

"It… it couldn't have been him," Jackie said. "I dunno where he fucked off to, but… we did really heavy damage to him."

Henrik blinked. This was news. "You… you did? What did you do?"

"It was…" Jackie huffed, laughing silently. "It was mostly Marvin, if I'm gonna be honest. He's really fuckin' powerful, you guys have no idea. Who knows how long he's been eyeing Marvin for, with that kinda strength…"

"Mm, we could use someone like him, then," Henrik said.

"At one point, um… I thought he killed him."

Both Henrik's and Chase's eyes widened.

"Dude… you serious?"

"Swear on my Ma. He was… he was out for a good minute. Had a hole blasted through the center of his skull. But, uh… apparently, he can't die."

Henrik's brow furrowed. "What… what do you mean, "he cannot die?""

"I mean that… he's not alive in the first place. I guess he… never was. Which means I need to look at a different approach to taking him out."

Chase just silently cursed to himself, slumping back in his chair and dragging a hand down his face.

"I do have good news, though!" Jackieboy quickly added. "You know those prototype bullets I've been workin' on? They work! They're pretty effective! If I make 'em a bit stronger, who knows how much damage they'll do!"

"Good, good! So we have a starting point for building defense, then," Henrik said with a relieved smile.

"Seems so, yeah."

Finally, Jackie looked over to Marvin, who was knocked out on the couch.

"So… what are we doing with Marvin?"

"...Well, the only option is for him to sleep on the couch," Henrik said. "Chase has his room, you are using mine, and I sleep down in the lab… the only place left is the living room."

"Guess you're right…"

"I am going to watch over Marvin for the night, make sure he is alright. Are either of you injured, by the way?"

"Nah, I'm good," Jackie shook his head.

"Same here," agreed Chase. "Little shaken up, but I'm all good otherwise."

"Good, good."

"Wait, shouldn't you be by Jack?" asked Jackie.

"I mean, yes, but as of right now, Marvin is the priority. If he is sick, I need to be there in case he gets any worse."

"I can go watch Jack," Chase offered.

"Are you sure?"

"Yeah, man. I mean…" Chase laughed, "I'm probably not gonna be sleeping tonight, anyways. Might as well do something useful, yeah?"

Jackie nodded and rose. "I'm gonna head upstairs and write everything that happened tonight down, and then head to bed so I can get an early start tomorrow. Gonna head out on patrols in the morning instead of at night just in case his puppets are on the loose. After tonight, can't be too cautious."

"That is a good idea, Jackie. I will be in the living room. Chase, if you notice anything that is not right with Jack during the night, we will swap places. I will go down to be with Jack and you will watch Marvin. Does that sound good?"

"Yeah, sounds good to me." Chase rose as well, grabbing his plate.

"Oh, do not worry about the dishes. I will do them. You two both go."

"Thanks, dude," smiled Chase.

"Yeah, thanks, Schneep. Owe you one." Jackie was about to head upstairs, but a final glance at Marvin reminded Jackie of something important. "Oh shit. Chase, wait, need a favor from you."

"Yeah? What's up?"

"Go down to the car and grab Marvin's mask. It's in the back seat."

"Yeah, got it." Chase pulled his keys out of his pocket and headed for the door, pulling it open and stepping outside.

Jackie headed upstairs while Chase was gone, while Henrik proceeded to wash the plates and utensils. When Chase came back, he set Marvin's mask on the coffee table and headed downstairs to watch over Jack. Once the dishes were done, Henrik headed to the living room to get comfy in one of the reclining chairs opposite and to the right of the couch and proceeded to watch over Marvin during the night. Eventually, though, he fell asleep.

⁂

Marvin groaned as he awoke. His head was still throbbing, his body ached, his middle was sore… He always felt like shit after expending so much energy. This was normal, but it didn't make it any less unpleasant. He went to move his arms so he could sit up and hold his head, but the first thing he was made aware of was the pile -- not one, but an actual, literal pile -- of blankets covering him. He opened his eyes to find that he was on a couch in an unfamiliar living room. Off to his right, he detected the faint sound of someone snoring. It was someone he didn't recognize, sporting skewed glasses and a white lab coat, still detectable despite the darkness of the room. A scientist, perhaps? Or, wait, Jackieboy Man mentioned they lived with a doctor. This must be him. Marvin reasoned he was responsible for covering him in so many blankets. He made a mental note to thank him when he woke up.

Marvin pushed the blankets off of him and pulled himself up off the couch. He spotted his mask sitting on the nearby coffee table. He wondered who brought it inside, considering he didn't grab it before he passed out. Well, better here than in the car, he figured. He couldn't afford to lose that mask; it meant a great deal to him. Pulling himself from his thoughts, he headed out of the living room, trying to make his way around this new environment and memorize its layout so he knew where to go should there ever be danger. Also, it was helpful to know where the bathroom was, considering that was where he was heading.

He was still dizzy, so he made doubly sure to keep one hand trailing against a wall or against a piece of furniture at all times as he (rather slowly) explored this new place. The other was kept against his head. Despite the headache, he tried to take in as many details as he could. From what he gathered so far, the living room and kitchen were right across from each other, with the staircase separating them and the front door located at the point where they meet. Past the staircase was a hallway leading straight ahead from the front door, and there was a windowed door at the very end of the hallway that appeared to lead outside. There was a sole door on the left side of the hall, halfway down, and two doors on the right, one under the staircase and another a few feet down. The one under the staircase was a bit smaller, so given its size Marvin assumed it to be a closet of sorts. The left door, evidently, led to the bathroom, and for now that was all the info Marvin needed. He ducked in, flicking on the light and locking the door behind him.

It took a while for his aching eyes to adjust to the harsh light of the bathroom, but he at least had stopped squinting by the time he washed his hands. He leaned against the counter, taking deep breaths. Everything hurt. As he kept telling himself, feeling like shit was normal after expending too much energy, especially since he hadn't engaged in combat with anyone in a very long time. However, he really didn't feel very well and it was noticeable enough for him to tell that something wasn't right. The dizziness wasn't subsiding and neither was the headache. His stomach was caught between being sore from exertion and a genuine, slightly nauseating ache. What's worse, he still felt weak and shaky, as if yesterday's battle happened an hour ago. Did he really push himself that far? He knew he was slightly out of practice, but something wasn't adding up. He knew he needed to look into it as soon as possible, but for now he simply opened the bathroom door and stepped out, remembering to turn the light off as he did so.

The room looked so much darker now that the light was off. It was hard for Marvin's eyes to readjust. He kept a hand on the wall, feeling his way around and trying to keep himself upright as his vision slowly began to pick up the silhouettes of furniture. Anything large and stable he leaned on until he made his way back to the couch.

Or, well, almost.

It's hard to tell just how much the room is spinning when said room is pitch-black. All Marvin knew was that suddenly, he felt really lightheaded. And then, in a stroke of bad luck, he stubbed his toe against the coffee table and fell with a strangled cry, his right side colliding with the floor.

"Nnh?!" Henrik jerked awake at the noise, sitting up and adjusting his glasses and looking around with wide eyes. "Wh-who is it? Who is there?!" he demanded.

Marvin tried with all his might, but he was too weak and too dizzy to get up. Gods, what's happening to me?! he mentally panicked. He took a deep breath, exhaled, and then attempted to speak. "Hh… h-help me…" he got out.

Henrik quickly rose, adjusting his glasses and moving to flick on the living room light. Marvin hissed in pain as he was once again momentarily blinded by the drastic shift in brightness. This made the headache all the much worse and he whimpered.

"Marvin?" Henrik questioned near-disbelievingly. "Marvin, are you okay?"

"Help… please, help me up…" Marvin begged.

Henrik nodded and quickly got to work, moving the coffee table out of the way first before reaching down to help support Marvin and get him onto his feet. However, he was having a hard time trying to lift him up. It was like he was going completely limp in his arms!

"Ghh-- M-Marvin -- that is your name, yes? Y-you have to-- hhh…! Work with me here! I cannot-- ngh! C-carry you on my own!"

Marvin was trying everything within his willpower to get his limbs to cooperate with him, but they seemed to flat-out refuse. He felt numb from the chest-down. It was getting harder and harder to suppress the growing panic.

"I-I can't move my legs," Marvin quickly got out, eyes blown wide. "Gods, I-I-- I can't move anything! I can't move! What's happening to me?! Gods, what's happening to me?!"

Paralysis? Henrik mentally questioned. That is not a good sign. "Okay, okay, I am setting you down now." True to his word, he propped Marvin up against the couch and crouched down beside him. "Take deep breaths for me, yes? You will be fine. Just relax," he soothed. He even went as far as to take deep breaths along with Marvin -- which actually helped to clear his own racing mind. Once he saw that Marvin had calmed some, he nodded and hummed. "Good, good… now, can you tell me what symptoms you are having?

"I-I can't move my arms or my legs. I feel numb everywhere," Marvin explained, residual panic still present in his voice.

"Are you in any pain?"

"My head… and my stomach, but it doesn't feel sore anymore. It feels more upset than anything else... M-my foot should hurt because I fucking stubbed it on the table but I-I can't even feel that."

"Any other symptoms?"

"I'm still dizzy… the room's spinning. It's… it's making me feel nauseous, actually…" Marvin closed his eyes and took labored breaths. Keeping his eyes shut helped quell the dizziness, which thankfully also aided in easing the nausea, and he'd much prefer it if he could avoid throwing up again by any means possible. Especially since for the time being, he was unable to move.

"Hm…" Henrik reached out, feeling up Marvin's neck. "Lymph nodes are not inflamed…" he mumbled to himself. But then, he stopped up short. "Marvin, are you aware that there is a… a cut on your neck?"

"Hm? No, I was not..." Marvin's brow furrowed in confusion. "That's a bit peculiar… I didn't notice any sort of wound, or even any marks on my neck while I was in the bathroom."

"Well, is very small, so it would be hard to notice unless you looked closely. I… normally I would not pay any mind to small cuts and bruises but... a cut on the neck is not a normal place to have a cut…"

"Hm…"

"Jackie mentioned you were attacked…" Henrik brought up, worry flashing ever-so-briefly in his eyes.

Marvin knew immediately what Henrik was alluding to. And after a very short moment of recalling the events of Antisepticeye's ambush, he knew exactly how it happened.

"That… glitch. He had me at knifepoint. Pressed the blade to my neck and threatened to give me a matching scar if I moved even an inch."

"So he cut you, then?" Henrik asked, shifting as if he were about to stand up.

"Not intentionally, no. When Jackieboy Man took out the glitch's... puppets, I had a brief window of attack. I took it, and in the process I believe he nicked me when his arm swung away due to the recoil."

"Alright, so was not planned… good." Henrik nodded, looking away. He actually rose this time, letting out a breath. "Marvin, I… I have something that may help. Is an experimental drug and I have not tested it yet, so I need your consent to administer it. But I believe it is our best bet."

"Whatever you plan on giving me, I'm certain I've drank far more dangerous potions," Marvin huffed humorously. "Hit me with whatever you have. If you think it helps, I'm completely fine in taking it. Just, please… help me regain the feeling in my body."

Henrik nodded wordlessly before heading for the hallway and rushing down into the basement. Chase jumped as he heard the door suddenly swing open and pulled back the curtain shielding him and Jack, peeking out to see Henrik frantically rushing around the room.

"Henrik? Woah, dude, what's wrong?"

"Not now, Chase!" Henrik snapped. "I explain later!" He made a beeline for a cabinet filled with medicines of all sorts. He sifted through bottles and vials, growling when he couldn't find what he was looking for. He cursed under his breath, mentally scolding himself for losing such an easy-to-spot drug, when he remembered where he put it. With a roll of his eyes and a smack of his palm against his forehead, he sought out a small cooler by one of the desks in the room. He opened it and pulled out a vial with slightly-glowing green liquid in it. Closing the cooler, he set the vial delicately on the desk, steadying it so it wouldn't fall, and went to grab a clean needle, a disinfectant wipe, a band-aid, and a fresh pair of medical gloves. Now that he had everything he needed, he grabbed the vial of medicine and hurried back up the stairs, praying to whomever that might be listening that this worked.

"Alright, Marvin, I have it," Henrik notified, quickly crouching beside him. He set the needle and vial down on the coffee table and began to unbutton Marvin's shirt. Once one of his arms were free enough, he opened the pack of wipes and began to wipe down his upper arm, right below the shoulder. He then reached behind him to replace the used wipe for the medicine and needle and stuck the syringe into the vial to fill it. Finally, he set down the now-empty vial on the coffee table and flicked the syringe a few times to make sure there were no air bubbles in it.

"Alright… I would tell you to hold still, but…" Henrik huffed humorously, "Well, it seems you have no choice, yes?" He stuck Marvin with the needle, slowly injecting him with the medicine.

Marvin watched (or at least, tried to, as he was still dizzy) as Henrik administered the medicine. His eyes then widened as he saw every vein in his body begin to pulse with a green glow.

Henrik placed the band-aid over the area where the needle had stuck Marvin, then rolled up his sleeve and looked down at his watch, softly counting the seconds. Marvin closed his eyes to combat the dizziness and listened to him count, and as Henrik did so, slowly he felt his body begin to regain feeling. At around fifteen seconds he could move his fingers and hands, and by thirty he was able to move his arms and legs. By then, the glow had subsided.

"How are you feeling, Marvin?" Henrik asked.

Marvin swallowed thickly. "Still… still nauseous and dizzy and my head still aches, but I can move again. Thank you, er…"

"Henrik," he supplied. "Henrik von Schneeplestein, but "Henrik" or "Schneep" works fine."

"Right. Thank you, Henrik."

Just then, Henrik and Marvin turned their heads at the sound of the door to the basement stairs opening.

"Hen…?" Chase asked reluctantly, nearing closer. "Everything good up here?"

"Yes, everything is fine now. I am sorry I snapped at you, I was in a rush."

"What happened?"

"Marvin was suffering from paralysis. At first I was afraid he hit his spine on the edge of the coffee table when he fell, but it turns out he had a tiny, little cut on his neck from you-know-who's knife."

Chase slowly nodded, growing wary. "He's… he's not gonna turn, is he?"

"No, with the medicine, he is fine. I had to act quickly before it could advance any further in stage. You know how short the window is, yes?"

"Y-yeah, uh, that's why I asked."

Marvin silently absorbed all this information. It made sense; before Antisepticeye gained control of his "puppets," they all had fallen limp onto the ground. Whatever he'd done to them caused instant paralysis. Because the nick he'd given Marvin was small, however, it took a lot longer for him to be affected.

"Henrik, are you at all versed in alchemy?" Marvin inquired.

"No, I am not, actually," Henrik answered. "But we, um… used to live with someone who was. He was kidnapped and we have been looking for him since. He is the one who came up with the formula for the medicine I just gave you. One of the ingredients was a plant only he knew how to grow, and he would not tell us the name of the plant in case the information got into the wrong hands -- at the time, the house was not fully protected and we could never know who was listening."

"I see."

"Yeah, our plan was to fuck around with the medicine's dosage and the ingredients to make something to wake Jack up. You-know-who is responsible for Jack being in a coma," Chase interjected.

"Er… who is Jack, exactly?"

"Jack is our close friend," Henrik answered, his voice having a slight tinge of sadness to it. "He is also our "patient zero," as it were. He was you-know-who's original host before he took on a physical manifestation of his own."

"So… he's like a parasite, then?" asked Marvin.

"That's the thing. We dunno what the hell he is," Chase said. "Fuck, we just learned today that he isn't even alive!"

"Plus, as of recently, he no longer requires a host to survive. He has evolved himself past that. He is always changing in some way, shape, or form."

"How odd…" Marvin mumbled.

"Yes, very," agreed Henrik. "Jackie's mission once you-know-who is taken out is to take with him a large enough batch of an improved version of the medicine I just gave you and give it to everyone who has become his puppet."

"What's wrong with this version?"

"It is not strong enough, to put it simply," Henrik answered. "As I mentioned before, this is an experimental batch and I have not tested it. However, based on the formula, the dosage I gave you is only supposed to be enough to fend off the beginning stages of his corruption. Had I let it progress any farther, I would not have been able to save you. The window is very, very short, only about five minutes or so after you start displaying the initial symptoms. That is, if you have managed to escape him alive at all. But usually the wounds he inflicts are enough to kill, anyway. Apparently, however, the smaller and more shallow the wound, the more time his "toxin" needs to act. I would do a test study on this, but is far too risky."

Marvin simply nodded, understanding, absorbing all the information presented to him.

"You are lucky I had some of that medicine. The batch is very small and we are trying to conserve as much of it as we can until we can find our missing friend."

"What is the name of this friend of yours?" Marvin asked.

"JJ," Chase answered, his expression matching his voice. Grim. "Jameson Jackson. He was… he was like a son to me." He rubbed his arms and sighed, looking away. "I wish I could do more to help look for him…"

"Chase, I keep telling you that you do plenty!" Henrik argued.

"Yeah, and you and I both know that that's bullshit," Chase shot back, eyes narrowing at him. "I can't fight. I don't have any strength. I don't have powers like JJ did or Marvin does or medical knowledge like you do or intelligence like Jackie has. I have nothing to offer except my fucking car. But god, I swear, if I had powers, you bet your ass I'd be out there every single fucking day looking for JJ."

Henrik huffed. "Then maybe it is for the best that you do not have powers. That way you do not get yourself killed searching day and night."

"You do not need powers to make yourself useful," Marvin spoke up. He swallowed, holding a hand over his stomach. It felt fine for a little while as they were speaking, but now it seemed to be upset again. He took a slow breath and continued. "Maybe it is a bit... hypocritical for someone with powers to be telling this to you, but… my words have truth to them. Sometimes it is… it is those who have no powers that are the most helpful. Usually, they are the ones behind the scenes, keeping everything afloat. If…" he took another breath, shutting his eyes. His headache was worsening. "If all you had was everyone on the front lines and no support, your team would go down rather fast. Take my shows for example. Yes, I'm the one doing the performing, but without the crew behind the stage, I would have nothing."

"I… yeah. Yeah… I understand…" said Chase finally, rubbing his arms and looking down at his feet.

"Are you okay, Marvin?" Henrik asked, watching his change in demeanor.

Marvin had gone to taking slow, deep breaths, a hand slowly rubbing his stomach. He shook his head. "N-no… I feel sick… D-does that medication have any side effects?"

"I do not know. Like I said, I have not tested it."

Marvin just groaned in response, clenching his jaw slightly.

"Do you need a bucket?"

Just the thought of throwing up made Marvin's stomach protest. He lurched a bit and one of his hands rose, suspended in midair, waiting to see if he needed to cover his mouth, eyes wide and almost confused. He quickly nodded.

"Scheisse." Henrik quickly moved, as if he were going to rise, but Chase stopped him.

"No, you stay put. I got it." Chase hurried over to the closet under the stairs, searching for the mop and bucket. Once he found it, he left the mop behind and rushed over with the bucket, handing it to Marvin. He took it gratefully.

"Thanks," he muttered. He adjusted himself, leaning over it and closing his eyes. He took deep breaths, shuddering as the faint yet potent odor of cleansing chemicals slightly stung his nostrils.

"Yes, that's it. Deep breaths, Marvin, there we go…" Henrik comforted him, slowly rubbing his back. Chase stood by in case he needed anything else.

After a few minutes or so, simply swallowing his saliva became near impossible. Between labored breaths he spit up into the bucket and soon his stomach finally started to revolt. His entire body tensed as he gagged, his free fist clenching, and shortly after did he actually begin to be sick.

"Shhh… yes, that's it, Marvin… just get it up, you are alright…" Henrik soothed. Meanwhile his mind was racing. If this medicine had side effects, he needed to know and mark them down for future patients. So far nausea seems to be one, but at the same time, Marvin was already feeling nauseous beforehand. Still, he figured it would be smart to write it down just in case. "Chase," Henrik spoke up. "Can you do me a favor?"

"Yeah, sure. What's up?"

"Bring me a pen and some paper? I need to make a list of potential side effects this medicine might have."

"Oh, gotcha. Yeah, on it. Be right back."

Marvin felt awful, if he didn't already feel awful before. On top of the returning nausea and newly-worsened headache, his entire body felt sore, every nerve filled with a deep-seated ache. He felt out-of-it and as he lifted his head slightly and looked around the room, he found he was seeing triple. He mumbled something unintelligible before dipping his head back down over the bucket and heaving again.

"Marvin?" Henrik asked. "Are you okay, my friend? Can you repeat that?"

Marvin mumbled again. Even he didn't know what he was saying. He was panting hard, he was having a difficult time breathing, he could barely keep his eyes open… he felt shaky and weak and he didn't even have the brain power at the moment to contemplate what could possibly be wrong with him.

There was the sound of someone coming up the basement stairs and Henrik turned his head in time to see Chase come into view, pen and notepad in hand.

"Yo, got your-- holy shit, what's wrong with Marvin? I was gone for, like, two seconds!"

"I-I do not know, Chase!" Henrik replied, eyes full of worry as he turned back to Marvin. "One minute he is vomiting and the next he is mumbling nonsense at me!"

"He looks, like… really fucking out-of-it," commented Chase. "Is he gonna be okay?"

"I-I…" Henrik hesitated. He honestly didn't know, but… "Yes, I… I am sure he will be fine," he replied, turning back to Chase. "If his breathing issues and nausea persist I might have to administer more medications and have him rest in a bed down in the lab instead of on the couch, just to be on the safe side."

Henrik and Chase both sounded so far away to Marvin. Their voices were muffled so he couldn't understand them at all. He set the bucket beside him. He felt insanely lightheaded, and something in him knew that he wouldn't remain conscious much longer.

"M'gonna pass out…" Marvin mumbled.

Henrik stopped up short, turning back to Marvin with slightly-widened eyes. Did he hear that correctly? "Marvin? What was that you said?"

But Marvin couldn't hear him. He could feel his body giving out on him. Finally, his eyes rolled back in his skull and he slumped to the side, causing a loud thump as his body hit the carpeted floor.

"Marvin?! Marvin!" Henrik scrambled closer and tried to tap his cheek to get any sort of reaction out of him, but he got nothing.

"Holy shit, what are we gonna do?!" Chase cried.

"Chase, go wake up Jackie! Hurry! Have him help you bring my medical equipment up here. Oxygen tank and mask -- he needs more oxygen! Go!"

"O-on it!" Chase threw the notepad and pen on the coffee table and hurried up the stairs, yelling for Jackie on the way. Meanwhile, Henrik stayed with Marvin, trying to get him to wake with no luck.

If the medicine in that small of a dosage was this unsafe to use, then they needed another plan, and fast.

Taglist: @taizu-lazure @bupine @innocent-angel3 @immabethehero @wowowgoodurl @n-anon @g-rexthedino @scarletender @coconutpillow05 @friezzzboiii @jade-orade (some of the tags aren’t working and/or are missing, so I apologize for that. lemme know if you wanna be added to the taglist!)

#jacksepticeye #marvin the magnificent #vio stormcaller #stringbound #stringbound chapter 2 #jackieboy man #chase brody #dr. schneeplestein #nausea tw #vomiting tw #near car accident tw #needles tw #fainting tw

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grimsidious · 4 years

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Just an update I forgot to mention:

I will be updating StringBound every Wednesday unless something happens to me.

#stringbound #a hat in time au #dont want to wear myself out

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viostormcaller · 4 years

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God writing Stringbound has been a wonderful exercise for me so far. Learning strategies for drafting and editing stuff and finding things that Actually Work for me and working on building plot... I'm just having a lot of fun with this.

I can only hope that it'll be as long and as good as Missing.exe would have been, had I finished it (Idek if I ever posted any of those chapters on here lol but they are laid peacefully to rest in my google docs). I haven't been this motivated to write a multichapter fic since then, so I have high hopes :D

#vio stormcaller #stringbound #jacksepticeye #it'll be a while til chapter 4 is out probably #im not gonna bother setting a schedule for these things either #just gonna take my time and make sure every chapter is the best it can be :)

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viostormcaller · 4 years

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StringBound -- Chapter 1

Bright lights. Red curtains. Soft murmurs of an anticipating crowd -- a full house. He had the pre-performance jitters, as he always gets; no matter how many years of doing these shows has gone by, he always gets them. But his excitement shone through clearer than anything else. You could see it in his bright blue eyes alone.

Mask adorning his face. Hair tied back. Cape hanging freely off his shoulders. Deep breaths. In, out. In, out. Curtains drawing back. His cue. He takes a few strides forwards and, in the dim light of the theatre, he sees every face in the crowd. Full house, indeed. Every seat taken. Pride swelled in his chest, a large grin spreading from ear to ear. Entirely in his element. He lived for this.

He was ready.

"To my esteemed and humble audience," he announced, his voice filling the still air surrounding the theatre, stirring up excitement, "I am Marvin the Magnificent. Now, as you all are clearly aware, you are all here to see a magic show. Well, of course you're getting a magic show," he chuckled, walking back and forth across the stage, meeting as many eyes as he can, "but I can promise you, you'll never see another show akin to this one."

Another chuckle passed through his lips as he folded his arms behind his back. He began to take a few steps backwards, positioning himself back to the center of the stage. "No siree," he continued, unfolding his right arm and, with a quick snap of his fingers, producing a blue rose out of thin air, "no "sleight of hand" tricks here tonight, folks."

By now the crowd was murmuring, sharing similar expressions of surprise and, occasionally, apprehension. But it mattered not to Marvin. He exuberated confidence, it practically dripped off of him, spilling onto the stage beneath his feet, full self-assurance following in every step he made across the polished wood. Another snap, and the rose was gone.

"Now, how many times have you paid good, or at the very least, decent money to see a magic show, only to be fed the same boring routine? Rabbits pulled out of hats, volunteers being "sawed" in half, a seemingly endless chain of handkerchiefs being pulled from a sleeve or pocket. Of course, these all have their charms, but… wouldn't you want something… more?

"Now real magic," Marvin continued, his grin widening, mischievous, "is dangerous. Wondrous. Astonishing. Magnificent." He put emphasis on that last word, his sly, wicked grin widening further as he leaned ever-so-slightly forwards, hands gripping his elbows behind his back. After a moment of looking through the crowd, he stood himself upright, his expression more concentrated, serious. "Magic -- true magic -- is not something to be trifled with. It is something only few people could ever achieve, and for good reason. Because with magic," he held his hands in front of him, magic rushing through his veins, palms slightly cupped and facing one another, "one alone holds the power to bring life into this world," a new, different rose appeared, this one red, hovering in the space between his hands, "or, take it away." And right before the audience's eyes the rose wilted, petals falling to the stage underneath him. There were gasps in the crowd, and Marvin smiled. Oh, they ain't seen nothin' yet, he thought deviously to himself. He clapped his hands together, and the rose as well as the wilted petals, were gone. He showed the audience his hands, completely free of any remnants of the rose, before folding them once again behind his back.

"Now, it is for this very reason that my shows are "adults-only." True magic is something only a mature audience would be able to handle. But, in that same vein, as I tell every audience, if anyone feels unsafe or unsettled at any point, the exits are there," he pointed to the door at the end of the left aisle, "there," he moved his arm to point at the door at the end of the right aisle, "and there are two exits on each side of the stage," he finished, jamming both thumbs behind him as he walked backwards, once again repositioning himself at the center of the stage. Once his obligatory emergency-exit spiel was over, he gave the crowd a moment to familiarize themselves with the exits, and the few who felt they needed to leave had the chance before the show got going to do so. Once it seemed like the crowd had settled, he clapped his hands together.

"Now then, let us start the show, shall we?"

He always loved this part.

Every vein throughout his entire body began to pulse with magical energy. A golden, glimmering magic circle formed beneath his feet. He felt a heat begin to form behind his eyes as they started to glow bright blue. Arms outstretched, he began to lift himself into the air. Magic swirled all around him, filling the theatre, dusting over the stage and wisping into the crowd. And he felt it. That familiar mental click. That sign that everything had aligned and fallen into place. Around the edge of the magic circle, grass began to form right there on the wood, and from there grew a ring of flowers in a rainbow of colors. Above his head, six cards manifested, each card containing the letters of his name, black and ornate against the white, glossy paper. M-A-R-V-I-N. He remained suspended like that for a moment, allowing the audience to take it all in, before he lowered himself down to the floor again. The cards dissolved into golden, glittery dust, the flowers and grass reverse-sprouted until there was nothing, the magic circle beneath his feet dissipated, the glow behind his eyes dimming, but not petering out entirely. The crowd was shocked, stunned into silence. He gave them a moment to process what they saw, pride once again filling his chest. Finally, he spoke.

"I am Marvin the Magnificent," he announced, "and I will be your host tonight." And the crowd went wild. Whistles and hoots and hollers echoed throughout the theatre. Marvin stood upright, arms once again folded behind his back, a bright, toothy grin adorning his face as he watched the crowd lose their minds. As he waited for them to settle, he could already tell...

It was going to be an excellent night.

⁂

Everything was going according to plan. It was just about that time to start wrapping up the show. So far, the crowd has been really into everything he's done. Highly interactive. And out of every audience he's had, there was no contest that the most interactive audiences were the best ones.

"Well, my wonderful audience, like all good things, this show, too, must come to an end." Marvin got a few "awws" from the crowd and chuckled. "I know, I know. But worry not! We started strong and we'll finish strong. As with every show I do, they always go out… with a bang!" There was a wild flurry of colors spouting from his open palms as he said that, earning some soft "oohs" and "aahs" from the audience. But that small display of colors was nothing compared to the spectacular performance they had already witnessed. Displays manipulating life and death, illusions and tricks of the eye, dizzying patterns and flashing colors, teleportation and levitation, the air filled with the glittering remnants of magic dust. But Marvin knew better than anyone that these were all just show tricks, simple little spells he taught himself for the sake of a performance. The actual magic he uses is far more dangerous than anything he would ever expose a crowd to. And there is a lot less glitter involved. It also expends far more magical energy than these show tricks. His magic is spectacular in its own right, but for a different reason aside from it being eye-catching. His magic is powerful. His magic… is deadly.

"Now, as every good show host does, I, of course, saved the very best for last. The performance I am about to show you will be far more astounding than anything I have shown you previously here tonight."

And that's when he felt it. A chill, running straight up his spine. This wasn't nervousness, no… something was wrong. He suppressed the shudder that ripped through him and silently stood, eyeing the crowd, acting as if he were only trying to meet eyes and keep attention on him and not surveying the area. The threat was not on the inside, not within the audience, but he could tell it was coming. He steeled himself, but continued on with the show regardless, appearing completely unfazed.

With a breath, he took a few steps back, slowly outstretching his arms. He allowed the magic to flow through his veins, and he closed his eyes. "Bear witness," he spoke, "to the most powerful display of magic you will ever see."

And then, the lights flickered and went out. Gasps sounded through the crowd, followed partly by worried, murmured whispers. But it was all part of the act, right?

"Hm, this isn't right," Marvin mumbled to himself, keeping his voice low enough so the crowd wouldn't hear him. He stood still, allowing the magic to pool in his veins, not letting it go anywhere else. It took a moment for the backup power to kick in, emergency lights coming on so people could see.

Suddenly, a laugh rippled through the air, echoing throughout the theatre. That same cold chill crept up Marvin's spine once more. This was the threat he'd been anticipating.

"This," he announced to the crowd, "is not part of the show. Please, remember where your exits are and make use of them. Quickly, now." Quite a few people began to make their way out of the theatre, but not enough did. Most of the audience, still apprehensive, still believing he was just acting, remained behind. Marvin grit his teeth. "I'm being serious! Evacuate! Now! Get out of here, go! All of you!"

"Now why would they do that? The show is just getting started!"

"Who are you?" Marvin demanded, allowing another surge of power to rush through him, adding to the residual magic already in his veins. "Show yourself!"

"If you… insist."

A figure of a man appeared -- glitched into existence, more like it -- levitating far above where Marvin stood. He wore a black t-shirt and dark ripped jeans to match. Held in his right hand was a sharp kitchen knife, the blade gleaming even in the dim lights. But what struck Marvin the most, aside from the way this man -- this being -- was glitching, was his neck. A deep, bloodied cut stretched across the entirety of his throat. Clearly, whoever this was, he was not human. No normal person could just walk around casually sporting a wound like that without them dying either of infection, suffocation, or blood loss. The being wheezed with every breath, no doubt because of his slit throat. That alone made Marvin shiver, not out of fear, but of disgust.

"Who are you?" Marvin asked again.

The glitch just laughed. "Let's not waste the time this broken clock allots us on introductions." He shot a hand out and the emergency exit doors slammed shut, locking the last few remaining members of the unlucky audience in. He turned around and swept a hand across the audience, making a fist, and then jerking it back towards him. Every person in the room aside from Marvin fell to the floor. He lowered his hand and slowly raised it up, palm outstretched. It was like a scene from a movie, like a necromancer raising the dead.

Marvin looked on as this happened, silently observing. There was no way to stop what was happening if he intervened now, he reasoned. Hell, he didn't even know what this being was doing. If he knew, however, he could figure out a way to stop it, he was sure of that. But as of now he just silently looked on, taking in all the information being presented to him. He didn't believe the audience members who were now being controlled by him were dead, per se, but they were definitely lifeless, as if their very souls were taken from them. The glitching figure commanded them all forwards, and Marvin saw that each person moved slowly, but their movements themselves were quick and jerky. As if they were all being strung along like puppets. Marvin nodded to himself, filing that information away for later.

"Now then," the imitation of a man grinned, his smile in and of itself toxic. He glitched, disappearing from the air and reappearing right behind Marvin. The sharp blade of the knife pressed against his throat as he was forced into the glitch's grip. Marvin didn't outwardly express any emotion, but he couldn't stop his breath from hitching upon feeling the knife's edge against his skin. "Another word, another movement, and I'll give you a gash just like mine. One you won't survive from."

Marvin didn't speak, didn't move. Instead he let the gears turn in his brain, thinking things through, taking in his surroundings. Trying to come up with a plan. He couldn't help but notice how the glitch's touch made his skin feel like it was coming into contact with the static from an old TV, hairs raising on end. Marvin wondered, if this abnormality was electronic-based, then maybe he could find a way to make him "short-circuit," as it were. Marvin tried hard to suppress the shudder that threatened to overtake him, hearing the glitch's wheezing right by his ear. Fucking disgusting.

Suddenly, there was a noise. A loud buzzing of a saw coming in contact with metal. Sparks were flying off of one of the emergency-exit doors. Light from the outside hallway filled the room as the door was busted open.

"Finally found you," the newcomer said. A man clad in an armored red suit, a blue mask donning his face, his hair an illuminated, electric green, visible even from a distance, stood before them. The city's hero, Jackieboy Man. He grinned. "Antisepticeye."

"Puppets," he announced. Every former audience member's head turned from the newcomer's figure to the glitch's. His eyes went black. "Destroy him."

Just like that, suddenly each "puppet" was filled with alarming strength and speed. But Jackieboy was one step ahead, as he always was. From a bracelet on his wrist he shot out a grappling hook, aiming for the beams in the theatre's ceiling. He rose overhead, swinging, pulling a gun from his belt and aiming below. This gun, a masterpiece of technology developed by Jackieboy Man himself, was not a normal gun. It shoots beams of electricity instead of bullets, just enough to shock and incapacitate the target, but not enough to kill. That way, no puppets, who were otherwise innocent bystanders that became victims of Antisepticeye's control, would be killed.

Marvin just watched, remaining still and silent, as Jackieboy moved around overhead. Marvin couldn't help but wonder why Antisepticeye wasn't doing anything. Wouldn't he have puppeted, or at least killed, him by now? The knife was still firmly pressed to his skin, there was nothing stopping him from slicing his throat open… but then he felt it. Antisepticeye was twitching. Ever so slightly, his muscles were jerking. As Marvin watched the puppets move, he realized the twitching of Antisepticeye's muscles and the jerking movements of the puppets were lined up perfectly. He was controlling them. A hivemind, concluded Marvin. He must not be able to do two things at once. At the moment, Antisepticeye was technically vulnerable. But any movement from Marvin, and his concentration would break. On the one hand, that means that every puppet in the room would cease, but on the other, that would leave nothing stopping him from killing Marvin on the spot. And if Marvin were puppeted… no, he couldn't let that happen. Far too dangerous, to let his powers lie in the hands of a sinister threat. And so Marvin chose to wait, to see what Jackieboy Man would do once the puppets were out of the way.

Jackieboy swung from beam to beam, pulling the trigger at any puppet who got too close. There weren't that many, not as many as the crowds of puppets he's had to stop before, so it didn't take him too long to take them all out. As he fired his last beam, he landed on the stage and pressed the gun to Antisepticeye's forehead.

"Your move, glitch."

Anti no longer had control of his puppets. This was his chance! It all happened in a matter of a few seconds. Marvin muttered a spell under his breath, using his built up energy to summon an electrical current. He had to move fast, because the blade of Antisepticeye's knife was metal, a conductor, and Marvin himself could be shocked if he wasn't careful. As Antisepticeye screamed, Marvin jammed an elbow into his chest. His arm, by a stroke of luck, swung out and away, the knife now far from Marvin's throat. As he gripped his head, Marvin swung around and outstretched a hand. Whispering another spell, a magic circle appeared underneath the being's feet, and vines quickly sprouted from it and entangled him. He couldn't move. Marvin pressed two fingers to the glitch's forehead, staring him down with glowing eyes. As magic energy redirected to his arm, pooling and charging, he uttered a single word. The energy shot from his fingertips, firing a blast that traveled right through his skull and connected with the far wall behind the stage. The recoil was enough to make Antisepticeye's head snap back, and the glitch went limp.

"Holy shit…" whispered Jackie, eyes widened in awe. Had this person he never met, this mage, just kill him? Is Antisepticeye… finally dead?

Marvin just stared the glitch down, eyes still pulsing with light. He refused to let his guard down, not yet.

"Did… did you just--"

"Shh! Shh…" Marvin interrupted, shooting a hand out in Jackieboy's general direction but not looking away. "Stay… still…"

The air was quiet, far too quiet, and yet that tension never dissipated. The threat was not gone, Marvin could feel it.

Finally, a chuckle bubbled from Antisepticeye's throat, picking his head back up. His sclera remained blacker than pitch, his grin bearing teeth too sharp. There was blood dripping down his cheeks, coming from his eyes. "How cute," he taunted, "for you to think I can die."

Unkillable? Marvin wondered to himself. Immortal, perhaps? But, no, immortal beings can't die of natural causes, they can still be killed…

"I am eternal! I don't die! After all, you can't kill…" The vines trapping Antisepticeye began to wilt, leaves withering and breaking off from the plant. "...what was never alive."

Marvin steeled himself, but he knew that he wasn't going to be the target. As soon as Antisepticeye twitched, Marvin shouted, "Look out!" In the matter of a second, Marvin had his arms up, fists clenched, a magic shield covered in runes forming. The vines now barely holding Antisepticeye snapped and he rushed forwards, colliding with Marvin's shield, Marvin himself moving at the same time he did to block Jackie from being hit.

Jackie, recovering from shock, finally willed himself to move, pulling his gun from its holster. From a satchel attached to his belt he pulled out a small box of ammo -- special ammo, a prototype Jackieboy Man had been waiting to use, charged with electrical energy. He loaded up the gun and stepped to the side, taking aim. He took a breath. "Hope this works," he mumbled. And, just before Antisepticeye could notice was he was doing, Jackie fired.

Marvin was keeping the glitch preoccupied, keeping him distracted as best he could while he waited for the hero, the one who's better acquainted with and more well-equipped to fight this enemy, to take action. His magic blasts weren't doing much damage, but they were enough to slightly wear Antisepticeye down. His shield was most effective. He's spent years practicing and perfecting that spell -- it's practically impenetrable now. No matter what Antisepticeye did, he could not break through. Finally, the glitch stepped back, holding his shoulder and screaming.

"Holy shit, it worked…!" Jackie whispered to himself. Pulling himself from his state of disbelief, he began to fire again and again, giving Antisepticeye no mercy, until Jackie was out of bullets. By now the glitch was on one knee, shaking, panting hard.

Antisepticeye may not be able to be killed, but he can be weakened. That would be enough. When he realized this, looking up at Marvin and Jackieboy Man with eyes filled with seething rage, his body glitched and vanished. His puppets, as well, vanished with him. Finally, his laughter once again rang out throughout the theatre.

"This isn't over… No, it's just the beginning. Your end is coming, whether you want it to or not. See you soon…" There was one final, bone-chilling laugh, and his voice faded out, leaving Jackieboy Man and Marvin standing alone in the theatre.

(Here it is! my most recent fic I’ve been working on! Like I said, chapter 2 is already in progress and I’ll most likely be working on it soon. I’m so proud of this and I hope you all like it too! If you would liked to be tagged, just send me an ask and I’ll write your url in my phone so I don’t forget :D)

#jacksepticeye #jse fanfic #marvin the magnificent #jackieboy man #antisepticeye #jse ego fic #jse community #vio stormcaller

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