Chapter Text
Darkness consumed everything, loud sirens and flashes of red and blue fading away.
So this is it.
Their thoughts were painfully loud in the emptiness.
I'm going to disappear now... aren't I?
A smile crept onto their lips, for once, the thought didn't scare them. In fact, they welcomed it with open arms in the darkness. They had never imagined their death would be this peaceful. Even as they lost consciousness they felt no fear, instead, warmth spread through them.
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"We can't just leave them here." A voice pressed into their consciousness, stirring their mind.
"We're still being hunted, Tommy." Another one drew their attention, though they couldn't quite make their eyes open. "How do we know this isn't some trick from Schlatt?"
"I don't think it is, Wil." The other voice was quick to press on. "I don't want to risk being the reason this person loses their life."
Light finally registered in their mind and they groaned, lifting their hand to shield their eyes from the piercing shine. Not a moment later, the sound of a sword unsheathing and the press of cold metal against their throat reached their senses. Their body went rigid and as the sunlight cleared from their vision they could see two men standing before them. Both were lean yet muscular in stature, the one holding the blade to their throat was slightly taller than the other, side swept brown hair nearly fell over his left eye and he looked down at them with caution, though he lacked aggression. A long brown coat contrasted the iron chestplate underneath it, the sheath his sword had left moments before laying barely in view underneath it.
The other man - more of a boy, really - held a bow at rest, an arrow nocked but not pulled back. Blonde curls hung down to his blue eyes as he looked nervously between the stranger and the brunette. A similar iron chestplate donned his shoulders over a mostly white t-shirt, though the collar and sleeves were a bright red. Silence stood between the group for a long moment until Y/n cleared their throat.
"Uh...You can put the sword down now." Their eyes traced the long blue blade. What is this thing made of?
"Yeah right." The brunette didn't budge. "First, who are you?"
"And why are you-" The blonde cut in but lost his words as he glanced down at them.
For a moment Y/n looked at him incredulously, before letting their eyes follow where his went. There, a large blanket had been placed over them and they realized, in horror, that there was nothing underneath. Quickly holding the blanket to their body, they shot accusing looks at the other two. "Why don't you tell me who you are first!? And where we are for that matter! And why for all that is holy am I naked!?"
"You can't be seriou-" The brunette started but the other stepped forward.
"I saw you collapse."
Their anger didn't fade. "So you just-"
"We didn't undress you." He sighed. "You were already that way when I saw you."
"You expect me to believe that?" Y/n huffed, scooting backwards away from the blade and the two men.
"Tommy, this is a waste of time." The brunette looked away with disinterest, finally lowering his blade. "Clearly they're fine now. Let's go. We still have to meet up with Techno."
The blonde, Tommy, looked back at him. Then to Y/n once more. "Are you alright? Can you stand?"
Slowly nodding, they accepted his outstretched hand, using their other to hold the blanket against them. Once standing they fixed the blanket to wrap around themself and, finally taking in the surroundings, they found themself standing in a lush forest. The grass a bright, almost unnatural, green, the trees large and swaying gently in the breeze like nothing they'd ever seen before. Letting out a breath, they looked to the two men once again with bewilderment. "Seriously... Where are we?"
The brunette looked at Y/n, for a moment genuine confusion crossed his face but suddenly he shook his head. "This is ridiculous. I refuse to fall for any of these ploys. Come on, Tommy."
Tommy went to follow him and Y/n panicked. "Wait!"
Both paused, looking back at them.
"Take me with you, please! I don't know how to get home!" They took some steps forward, causing the brunette to lift his sword once more. Thankfully, Tommy stepped in.
"Wilbur, wait!" He held his arms out to protect them. "They're unarmed. Even if they do turn out to be a spy or something it wouldn't hurt to at least give them some clothes."
Wilbur shifted his gaze between Y/n and the blonde. Jesus, where did this guy get his trust issues from? Y/n huffed, annoyed.
"Fine." He spoke tersely, turning around and beginning to walk once more. "You're keeping an eye on them though."
Tommy nodded before turning to you with a small smile. "Come along then."
They followed the two men down the path, nerves and confusion filling their mind. The last thing they could remember was standing on the roof of their school building, then a cold, overwhelming darkness. The soft grass felt nice on their bare feet as they saw what seemed to be a door embedded in the side of a hill up ahead. Wilbur walked straight to it, pushing it open and leaving it that way for the others to follow. Once inside, Tommy gestured to a crudely made stool for them to sit. Y/n did as they were told and Tommy began digging through a chest against the far wall. Finally, he emerged with a dark blue hoodie and some grey jeans.
"Here. These might be a little big on you but they should do fine." He handed the clothing articles to them with another smile and Y/n gave him a thankful nod. "You can go change in there."
They followed where he gestured and ended up in what seemed to be a small bedroom. Dropping the blanket, they donned the clothing quickly, thankful for the feeling of protection. The main room was empty when they finally exited the bedroom, the shelter was small and looked to have been made in a hurry, barely tall enough for them to fit inside comfortably. Looking around, they opened the door to the outside, stepping out and taking a deep breath in an attempt to process everything.
"Already planning to leave are we?" Wilbur was leaning against the door frame Y/n had left mere moments before.
They turned to him slowly, a look he couldn't describe on their face. "Where are we?"
The pause that followed left Y/n believing they may never get an answer until after what seemed like forever, Wilbur stood up straight. "...You really don't know- do you?"
Y/n shook their head before turning to look out at the woods once more, pretending not to notice the sigh that left the brunettes lips as they did so.
"To the east we're maybe 29 kilometers away from L'Manberg." He stated simply.
"L'Manberg?" They looked back at him to find him holding what seemed to be some form of communicator, though now he stared at them with genuine shock.
"You don't know about L'Manberg?"
They shook their head. "Am I supposed to?"
"I suppose not but I figured anyone within this land had at least heard something about the war."
"War!?" Their jaw dropped and now Wilbur looked even more confused than before, if that was even possible.
"Hey you guys!" Tommy leaned out from behind WIlbur. "I made some food. Would you like some..-"
"Ah, it's Y/n." They smiled gently, their e/c eyes meeting his blue ones.
"Well, nice to meet you Y/n. I'm Tommy and this is-"
"Wilbur." Y/n nodded, finishing for him.
Tommy hesitated, looking at them with nerves now. "How did you?"
"You said his name earlier." They shrugged. "Back where I woke up."
"Oh." He pressed his lips together in a firm line, seeming more guarded than before still.
"Here Y/n. Catch." Wilbur tossed a golden apple to the other and they caught it.
"Wil-" Tommy whispered, though not very well. Y/n could hear him clear as day. "Is it really a good idea to-"
"Shh, Tommy. Look."
Staring at it with bewilderment, Y/n turned the strange fruit in their hand. "What the hell?" Looking back to the other two, both stared at them expectantly and they let out a sigh. "What is this?"
"No way." Tommy now looked as confused as Wilbur had a moment ago. "You're joking right?"
"They don't know about L'Manberg either. And I don't think they're lying."
"Are you going to answer my question or not?" Y/n turned to them fully now, still holding the fruit.
"It's a golden apple." The blonde stated like it made it obvious.
Now, Y/n was seriously starting to get annoyed. "And?"
"And you eat it. It'll heal you." He clearly was not used to explaining this, acting as though it was common knowledge.
"Heal me?" Y/n paused. "Why would I need to be healed. I feel fine."
Wilbur looked at them, raising an eyebrow. "You've got a huge burn mark on your neck. Don't tell me you haven't noticed."
Y/n stared at the two for a moment before lifting their empty hand to their throat, letting feeling guide them as they found the patch of harmed skin on the left side of their neck. They pulled their fingers back seething as pain shot through them at the contact. Nothing but the thought of relieving the pain motivated them as they brought the apple to their mouth, biting into it eagerly. It tasted good, like a regular honeycrisp despite the faint metallic taste. They licked the remaining juice from their lips as they finished the apple, they hadn't realized how hungry they'd been until that moment. Once the apple was gone, they lifted their fingers to their throat once more, the burn mark had shrunk it seemed, now in a strange shape they couldn't figure out by feel, though it didn't hurt anymore.
"That's odd." Tommy stated, earning a slight elbow from Wilbur.
"What is?" Y/n looked at them expectantly.
Wilbur seemed to consider the burn mark. "Usually wounds go away after you finish the apple."
"It's not that big of a deal."
"Sometimes it takes awhile for it to fully work so maybe it'll go away after a few hours."
"Then why is this so odd?" Y/n now looked to Tommy, hoping he'd be less cryptic.
"It's just the way your burn healed." The blonde looked at them.
"The way it healed?"
Wilbur nodded. "Your burn healed into the shape of a crescent."
"A crescent? Like a crescent moon?" Y/n looked bewildered and Wilbur nodded once more.
"Oh. That is odd." Y/n pressed their lips together before taking a deep breath. "Well you said it may take some time to fully go away right? Maybe its a coincidence."
"Maybe." Wilbur didn't seem sure.
"Anyways." Tommy cleared his throat. "Are you hungry?"
"Yes!" Y/n blurted out, not bothering to feel embarrassed as they eagerly followed the two men back into the shelter.
Sitting on the poor stool once again, they were handed a bowl of stew. They consumed the meal quickly, momentarily forgetting their confusion and allowing themself to indulge in how surprisingly good the food was. As they finished the meal, the other two looked at Y/n with caution, having a silent debate between themselves.
Y/n sighed, setting the bowl down. "Just say it."
"Where are you from? If you don't know about L'Manberg or the war, are you some kind of traveler?" Wilbur sat up, setting his half-finished stew aside.
"I'm from t/n. (town name)" They looked at the two, neither showed any sign of recognition.
"Is that another country?" Tommy gave them an awkward smile, trying to understand.
"No- Well I mean- I suppose it's in a country." Y/n pursed their lips. "Wait- what country are we in right now?"
"It's not necessarily a country, per-say," Wilbur paused. "But since we're outside of L'Manberg, this is technically Dream's territory."
"Dream?" Y/n looked at them.
Now, the two took Y/n's lack of knowledge in stride. "He's kind of a tyrant around here. He originally claimed this land and has been trying to keep control of it since. L'Manberg rebelled and ended up as it's own country."
"Wow... I really am far from home." Y/n looked down, their bare feet cold against the stone floor.
"Seems so." Wilbur nodded. "I've never heard of t/n."
By now they'd assumed they were either dreaming or were lost in some foreign country. Though the whole thing felt like something they'd read in books back home. A strange land with strange people and what they called 'monsters'. It sounded like something from an isekai manga. Then they hesitated, why had they never at least heard of L'Manberg? According to Wilbur, the war was at least pretty widespread knowledge so why? Not to mention they'd woken up here naked and now they had a brand in the shape of a moon on them. Not only that but their body felt different...
"Wilbur." They lifted their head quickly, eyes wide. "I need a mirror."
Wilbur looked back at them searchingly, then reached into his pocket. "Will this work?"
A dagger was handed to them slowly. The blade was particularly reflective, like the weapon was never used. Y/n nodded and held the blade so they could see themself. They looked...different it was very clearly still them looking back, h/c hair, e/c eyes, and s/c skin, but something was off about it. They looked stronger, more intimidating, yet surprisingly attractive. It felt unnatural. Their hands began to shake and they quickly shoved the weapon back to Wilbur hilt first, who was drinking in their every detail with curiosity.
"Are you okay?" He looked at them hesitantly.
Y/n was breathing unevenly, their body trembling. "What the hell."
"Y/n?"
"That's not... this is not..." Dizziness clouded their thoughts and they stumbled.
"Y/n!" Wilbur sounded more panicked now, concerned as they swayed dizzily.
"No. No." Y/n shook their head, recovering. "That's not that big of a deal. It doesn't mean anything."
"Is that... not you?" He spoke slowly, unsure how to approach the situation.
"No- Yes- I don't-" They took a shaky breath before looking at him once more. "I mean, it's me but- different."
The brunette looked perplexed, pressing his lips into a tight line. He seemed deep in thought. "You really don't know how you got here?"
They shook their head slowly, closing their eyes to stop the constant assault of colors.
A ping rang out and Tommy lifted an identical device to the communicator Wilbur had earlier. "Crud, Wil, Techno's almost at the wall."
"Techno?" Y/n looked up.
Wilbur was quick to respond despite not even sparing them a glance. "An acquaintance of ours."
"Do you think it's safe to send him our coordinates?" The blonde looked at Wilbur. It was clear who was in charge here.
"Hm..." Wilbur considered the options for a moment. "It might be safer to go get him. We still don't know where he stands with all of this so it'd be bad if our coordinates were leaked."
"But we're still being hunted. You said it yourself earlier."
"What if I went and got him?"
Both men paused, looking at Y/n and they were met with two different reactions they probably could've predicted despite the little time they'd spent with the two.
"You would do that?" Tommy smiled.
"Why?" Wilbur looked at them skeptically. "Why would you offer to help people you just met? How do we know you aren't tricking us?"
"Let me prove I'm not." Y/n looked at them. "Let's make a deal."
"What kind of deal?"
Y/n smiled. "Really simple! I help you get this Techno person, you help me get home."
Wilbur kept his skepticism, considering them for a moment. "Do you know how to fight?"
"Uh... I took boxing classes back home." Y/n offered up. For a moment they almost gestured to the callouses they usually had on their knuckles, but now they were nowhere to be found.
"Boxing?" Tommy looked at them confused.
It was Y/n's turn to take the two's lack of knowledge in stride. "It's a type of fighting style. Using your fists."
"Okay, but do you know how to use a sword?"
"I'm afraid not. But I shouldn't have to worry about that anyways, right? Whoever's hunting you doesn't know me. I'll be fine." Y/n reassured them.
Wilbur sighed. "I'm not worried about the people. I'm worried about the monsters. It's a day's walk from here so you're bound to encounter some."
"Monsters!?" Y/n looked at him wide eyed. Under normal circumstances they would have immediately laughed in his face and told him to stop messing around but these circumstances were anything but.
He looked at them. "What's the last thing you remember before you woke up here?"
"Standing on the roof of my school building." Y/n responded promptly. "Then darkness. And then you."
"Are there monsters where you're from?"
"I assume you mean literally rather than metaphorically, so no." Y/n looked away.
Wilbur tapped his chin with thought and finally looked at them fully. "Okay. We'll accept your deal. You should set off for Techno tomorrow. As for tonight, we'll teach you the basics of wielding a blade and show you the monsters here."
"Sounds good to me." Y/n smiled.
Tommy smiled. "Alright then! Welcome to the team Y/n! I'll let Techno know to stay put for now." He left the room promptly, typing on the communicator.
"We might as well get started before the monsters come out." Wilbur stood, walking over to the chest Tommy had dug through earlier and pulled out a dull looking stone sword. "It's not much but we're a bit short on materials right now, sorry."
Y/n shook their head quickly. "That's alright."
"Follow me."
They left the shelter quickly and Wilbur drew his sword. "I can walk you through the basics, I'm not the best swordsman but knowing something is better than knowing nothing."
Y/n nodded, it felt strange to already be so comfortable around someone they'd just met, but it wasn't like they had any other options. Figuring out the land and finding a way home had to be their top priority, so making a deal with the two - who didn't seem unfriendly - would be beneficial to them. They were sure they didn't have time to be surprised or scared of what was going on, taking everything in stride was their only option. Wilbur handed them some sturdy looking boots, dark brown and thick soled they fit surprisingly well on them. The setting sun sent different hues of orange and pink awash over the darkening sky and they couldn't help but stop to appreciate the beauty of the unfamiliar land, the way the trees became blackened silhouettes, the bright green grass deepening in color with the shadows cast over the land. Wilbur stood beside them, taking a fighting stance and they did their best to mimic his positioning.
"Widen your stance a little bit more, you need to be able to step back quickly."
They didn't speak, focusing on their task. For the next few hours, Wilbur did his best to teach them safety with the weapon and the basics of how to use it. Soon, he took a stance in front of them and the two sparred carefully, Wilbur giving them a tip every now and then. By the time they stopped, Y/n was still extremely bad at it but it couldn't be helped.
"That should be enough for now." Wil looked out as the final bits of sunlight disappeared behind the horizon. "The monsters will come out soon. Let's get Tommy before we go."
Not long after, the three set off. They walked for a long while before ending up at the top of a hill, looking down at an open field full of lumbering shadows.
"Alright so here's the basics." Tommy pulled Y/n down to crouch with him. "There are five main types of monsters you're most likely to encounter. Skeletons, zombies, spiders, creepers, and endermen. These aren't the only monsters we have out here but they're the most common."
Y/n pursed their lips, their brain screamed that there was no way this could be real but when Tommy pointed out across the field to one of the figures trudging through it, their breath caught in their throat. The creature was just barely visible as their eyes adjusted in the darkness. Though the rotting flesh and exposed bone rang true in Y/n's mind. Zombie.
"Zombies can be taken down just as easily as a normal person." The blonde explained. "A good strike to the heart or head will take them out of commission. That or they'll burn in the sun when morning hits. Zombies tend to be quite stupid so they aren't hard to get rid of. Though they're most threatening in large groups."
Wilbur pointed to a different figure now, one that moved a lot more smoothly than the zombie had. "Skeletons usually carry weapons. Their trademark being a bow. They tend to be quite cunning, keeping a good distance if they have a long range weapon and smart enough to find shade when the sun rises. The only way you can really kill them is by breaking their skull."
"Is that a massive spider!?" Y/n whisper yelled as the large black creature moved its disgusting mass of limbs through the grass.
"I did say there were spiders didn't I?" Tommy looked at them, genuinely wondering if he'd forgot to mention it.
Gagging, Y/n looked back at him. "You did but I didn't think they were huge!"
"How big are the spiders where you're from?"
"Usually pretty small." They made a circle with their fingers to indicate. "There are different types that get pretty big but I've never seen any that big."
"Ah well, as disgusting as they may be they're pretty easy to deal with." The blonde shrugged. "They die like anything else after a few good hits. Not to mention they aren't aggressive during the day."
"Oh, cool."
Tommy nodded. "Then, there are endermen. They actually tend to be fairly peaceful but they're very nervous creatures."
"Are there any down there?" Y/n looked over the field, trying to make out any unfamiliar shapes in the darkness.
"Not that I can tell." Wilbur scanned the treeline with them.
Tommy shifted from his crouch to sit in the grass. "A good thing too. They're pretty difficult to deal with. Endermen can teleport and can do a good amount of damage if you aren't careful. Run to the water if you're in a tough spot with one, they hate it. Luckily, they won't attack you unless you look directly at them. Scaredy cats, they are. Tend to leave people alone as long as they're left alone too. Though the occasional item stolen isn't uncommon."
"And creepers?" Y/n looked at the two, adjusting to sit down as well.
Wilbur leaned forward now, pointing far across the landscape. "You see that thing with no arms?" A nod was his response and he went on. "Those things like to run right up to people and explode."
"You're kidding."
"Nope." He shrugged back.
"That's stupid." They looked at the creature. "How is that good for their species at all?"
"Ah, that's the thing. They can't reproduce anyways." Tommy piped up. "They're artificially made by witches. Same with skeletons."
"Oh." Pursing their lips, Y/n added 'witches' to their growing collection of differences from their home.
"The best way to deal with them is to keep a distance. Bows are preferable but it's possible to kill them with a sword." Wilbur gently rested his hand on the hilt of his own sheathed sword. "I suggest taking a strike and then backing up, they won't explode if you're not close enough to be in the blast range."
Y/n nodded. Taking everything in felt easier than it should have been, they were far from home yet they didn't feel like they didn't belong where they were at. Not like they'd ever felt very welcome back home anyways. Pulling their knees to their chest, they looked up at the sky. At least here, the stars are visible.
"Wanna try killing a few?" Wilbur finally spoke up, standing.
Following his lead, Y/n shrugged. "Sure."
They started with the zombie, the other two stood back to let them handle it themself while being close enough to get them out of trouble if they needed it. Y/n took an awkward stab at the creature before ducking out of the way of a swipe from it's gross fingers like Tommy had said, it was slow and dumb. The sword pushed through its flesh easily and it went limp on the blade. Letting the corpse drop from the blade, they turned and gave the others a smile, feeling more confident about what they were doing now. Tommy came to stand with them when they began trying to kill the creeper, holding a shield.
"I'll let you handle it, I just want to be able to jump in if it looks like it's going to explode."
Nodding in response, Y/n stepped forward. The creature immediately took notice of them and charged forward at surprising speed. It was clumsy, but they managed to take the creeper down without it exploding. Tommy backed away when Y/n moved to kill a nearby spider, but the sound of clicking bones didn't process in his mind until it was too late.
"Y/N!" Tommy lunged forward at the same time the arrow let fly, though he was much too far away from them to stop it.
Eyes widening, they turned, putting their hands up quickly to defend their face and pinching their eyes shut to brace for the impact but it never came. Instead, a loud clink rang out and the arrow rebounded onto the ground. Y/n's hands were twitching uncontrollably and their neck stung like the burn there was fresh. Opening their eyes slowly, they found a wall of what seemed to be crystals in front of them, the arrow laying on the other side of it, tip broken. The other two stared in bewilderment as Y/n slowly put their hands down, the wall of crystals melting with the motion.
"What the- did I just-?" Y/n didn't have time to process as another arrow came flying at them.
They barely moved out of the way of the projectile. Striking down the spider, they ran for the skeleton that was hiding in the tree line quickly, kicking it down before it could nock another arrow and crushing its skull beneath their boot. A gross green liquid leaked from the broken bits of its skull and they breathed heavily. This would take some getting used to. Looking back, both men still had their eyes fixed on them.
"Are you a witch?" Tommy was the first to speak.
Y/n shook their head quickly. "No. I don't know how I did that."
Wilbur was skeptical, because of course he was. "I keep thinking I believe what you're saying but then something new happens that makes me doubt how trustworthy you are."
A sigh was all Y/n could muster up. "Well it's not like that matters anyways, I can prove I'm not your enemy over time. I don't even care if you watch me like a hawk. I just wanna figure out how to get home."
"Fair enough." Tommy shrugged. "I don't know if we even have room for you though. If you couldn't tell the place we have now was kind of a rush job."
"Actually," Wilbur cut in, a small smile forming on his face. "I found a ravine beneath our little cave when you were talking to Techno earlier."
Tommy's eyes lit up. "Really!?"
"Yeah. I figured we'd make it our base of operations."
"Base of operations?" Y/n looked at them. "For what?"
"Ah, right." Wilbur turned to look at them. "We were exiled from our own country."
"What!?" Y/n looked at them. "Like- the country you were living in or?"
"Nope. The country we founded."
Y/n stared in stunned silence, the two in front of them. The strange, tired looking man, and the practical child in front of them had founded a country!? Then been exiled from it? "How?"
"We made a mistake." Wilbur sighed. "Held an election we thought we'd win, and the absolute worst person possible won it."
"Only because Quackity gave his votes to him." Tommy spat bitterly, quite a contrast to the mannerisms Y/n had gotten used to from him. "Technically, we won the vote."
"Anyways the new president, JSchlatt, chose to revoke our citizenship the moment he was in charge." Wilbur pressed his lips into a thin line, clearly irritated by this.
Y/n considered this before looking at them. "So you're trying to get your country back?"
"Pretty much." He nodded solemnly.
"And you need this Techno guy to do that?"
"Technoblade is the best warrior we know of." Tommy stood now, stretching. "He offered to help us, but he's a bit of a loose canon."
The three began walking back in the direction they'd come, the two men continuing their explanation of what was going on to Y/n while still being very obviously cautious not to reveal too much. By the time they'd gotten back though, Tommy was exhausted and immediately went to sleep. Wilbur found an extra blanket and brought Y/n down to the open ravine he'd tunneled down to. They picked a spot near one of the walls and set up the blanket, thanking Wilbur before he went back up to go to sleep himself.