Chapter Text
‘You are nothing’
“I am nothing” Avery repeated the words.
His eyes glazed, dull, devoid of all emotion. Slowly but surely, he walked out of the church.
The slime mindlessly moved. A blur of blue caught his attention. Right… he should start to get to work. Pick up the blue orchids, pay respect to the dead, fill the well, clear off the fern. Surrender yourself.
And repeat.
‘I am nothing’
Repeat.
‘Everything is meaningless’
Repeat.
‘All was for nothing’
Repeat.
‘I am wasting effort’
Repeat.
‘I will never find….’
‘...’
‘What was I doing again?’
Blue orchids.
Graves.
Well.
Fern.
He didn’t know how long had passed. He didn’t know what was the purpose of all these. He didn’t know anything
His steps were slow and heavy. His movements rigged, unnatural, like his limbs were tied to strings, guiding him towards…nothing. Avery was nothing. Avery isn’t anyone. Avery is… empty.
“...” His surroundings seemed to pulse in response. A confirmation.
Avery is nothing except an empty body. Perfectly empty for-
Water once again invaded his lungs, pressure bloomed in his head, causing his consciousness to blur but he didn’t bulge. This was what he should be doing. Cleanse himself from all sins, completely clean, completely empty-
“...Ave-” There was a muffled sound.
His eyelids remained shut. Any other things didn’t concern him, it was none of his business-
His eyes snapped open at the sudden contact. There was a pressure on his arm. His vision blurred of gold and red, there was something gripping his arm. Suddenly, he was dragged toward the surface. Light illuminated his vision. It was harsh, it pained his eyes. The sudden shift in environment overwhelmed him. The sparkling glim of the water surface invaded his vision. He was dragged to the ground, out of the lake. No.
No no no no NO! He wasn’t done cleaning. He wasn’t free of filth. He NEEDS to get back to the cleansing-
He lunged forward and crawled towards the lake. He had- he must get back.
“Avery!” The foreign name shocked him. Why did he flinch at that call? Two armored hands grabbed his whole body and pulled him back. He was held hostage by someone.
He looked back at the unknown intruder. A man in golden amour. His face fully emerged in the shade of his helm, only his left eye visible amidst the void. Something churned in his stomach when he looked at this man.
“...?” His eyelids fluttered, unable to focus when the lake’s surface kept glimmering, taking over his attention.
“Avery? Are you well? What are you doing down there” The man gripped him firmly, trying to get his full attention.
“Who…?” The question escaped his mouth deliberately.
The unknown man seemed to freeze at that word, his gestures suggested his disbelief.
“Who- Avery- you read my warning didn’t you. That’s why you are here, right? It’s me! It’s D3rLord3!”
“...D3r…lord3?” he mumbled.
“Come on, you have to remember” the man pleaded.
A moment of silence. His eyes remained dull. Remember what?
What did he forget?
“I found this weird notebook in my world”
Who is this mysterious man?
“D3rlord3”
Why…is he here?
“Don’t you worry, D3rlord3, I’m coming for you”
Noises, images, memories drifted in his mind. The notebook. The warning. His journey. His goal. His mission.
Something snapped in his brain. Realization hit. He remembered. Avery remembered.
Avery gasped. His eyes opened widely, like he just woke up from a daydream. His vision directed at the figure hugging him. There he was. The one he had been searching for.
“D3rlord3? Is that you?” Avery inhaled sharply, he felt like he hadn’t been breathing for a long time. Then he coughed harshly.
“Avery?” D3rlord3 asked worriedly but Avery waved him off.
“I found you!” Avery’s gasp for air turned into a chuckle of relief. He did it! He found him.
D3rlord3’s grip loosened when Avery laughed. His composure relaxed.
“That you did” D3rlord3 answered softly.
Then he was pulled into a tight hug by Avery. The knight in gold heard a faint sob and apologies. He awkwardly patted the slime’s back, mumbled a few ‘It’s okay’ to reassure his friend.
After a long moment of reuniting, D3rlord3 broke free and started leading Avery towards the golden gate.
“Where have you been?” Avery wondered while walking through the darkness of the gate. “I saw your moss trail back in the mountains. Are those yours?”
D3rlord3 nodded.
“After I sent you the warning, I decided to go back and explore the gate myself. And I got wind up into this confusing place just like you.” he explained.
“Were you stuck in that world like me?” Avery asked.
“...Something like that” D3rlord3 responded.
“I am glad you found me, if you didn’t I don’t know how long I would have stuck there.” Avery chuckled nervously.
“I am glad I found you too”
They continued to walk in total darkness.
Finally, Avery caught sight of a golden glow in the dark, the exit. The sight of the golden gate relieved Avery a little. But a thought resurfaced his mind when he saw the yellow hue coming closer.
“What did you see behind that gate?” Avery asked.
D3rlord3 froze.
“...”
“D3rlord3?”
When the knight stopped walking, Avery bumped into him. The slime caught himself and regained his balance. He glanced at the man in front of him. Waiting.
D3rlord3’s shoulders slightly shook. Avery heard his breath hitch. Realizing his friend’s distress, Avery jumped in to calm him down.
“Hey hey- I’m sorry for asking, it must be a hard topic for you-”
“No no no…no I’m fine… what I have seen is… beyond human understanding. It… is horrible, it’s hard to describe…”
A pause. Avery heard a sigh.
“I saw an entity. It called itself…the King in Yellow.” The surroundings once again pulsed in response, as if the name rumbled the whole area. “I don’t know what it is or why it is here but I know one thing. It want to rule”
“Huh? What do you mean??”
“This world… my world and yours, it wants to rule everything. Everything its”
Avery’s mouth went dry, like that statement drained every last drop of water out of his body.
“S-so what will we do?” Avery asked.
“...” D3rlord3 turned back and stared straight into Avery. A sudden move that caught Avery off guard.
“You don’t have to do this, you know?” D3rlord3 said. “This is a suicidal mission, just turn back and act like nothing happened.”
“And left you here alone with that King in Yellow thing? Hell no bro”
“Avery…Just leave. Please”
D3rlord3 averted his eyes, avoiding Avery’s gaze. That only fumed Avery even more.
“I didn’t go through all this just for you to tell me to leave you here, dealing with eldritch horror alone. We are in this together. You and me.”
“You don’t have to do this for a stranger…”
“I may haven’t known you yet but the fact you left a note to warn me says a lot. You care enough to warn me, you care enough to try to keep me safe. I’m just stupid enough to ignore that and go find you.”
That earned a chuckle of amusement from the knight.
“Besides, if this thing wants to rule our world, why wouldn’t I want to stop it?” Avery held D3rlord3’s hand, squeezed it hard to reassure him. Avery knows D3rlord3 was a good guy.If D3rlord3 would even bother to warn a stranger like Avery, there was no way he was a bad guy. There were loads of acquaintances of Avery who would be less caring than D3rlord3.
His eyes instinctively directed at his phone and the empty mailbox. He scoffed softly. It’s New freaking year eve, yet he was here, rotting on the chair, playing this stupid game, alone. It’s the same every year, no invitations nor a text. At least D3rlord3 cared. At least he cared.
The knight stood still for a moment. Then he let out a sigh.
“Alright dude, you can go with me, but you gotta listen to me ok?” Avery nodded enthusiastically.
D3rlord3 continued to the gate and Avery followed suit.
The light illuminated Avery’s eyes. When he readjusted his vision, he was once again in the hallway. It was eerie as always but this time, he was with a friend. He firmly moved forwards with D3rlord3 into the next world.
They travelled together, through the realms, against challenges. The puzzles were tough, that’s for sure, but the presence next to him, D3rlord3, eased his anxiety. D3r told him not to worry about the tricky things, Avery just gotta keep his eyes on the incoming enemies or just look for the exit. Easy peasy.
It’s nice that his friend solved all the puzzles for him. Avery wasn’t that brilliant with puzzles. It’s so great to have D3rlord3 by his side. It’s so great to have a companion.
After all the challenges they went through, they made it. The pair had reached the final gate at the end of the hallway. Right when Avery was about to push the gate open, a firm grip on the shoulder stopped him.
“Avery, wait” D3rlord3 said.
“What is it?”
D3rlord3 re-directed his gaze back at the other side of the hallway. Another gate. They hadn’t explored that one yet.
Avery hesitated. He wasn’t sure. Their goal is this gate and what was behind it. Exploring another gate could potentially put them in another danger. But they had come so far, they couldn’t risk dying and restarting the journey.
“It will be quick, I promised” D3rlord3 nudged him.
Avery thought for a moment. Ok, just a peek.
They both headed toward the gate. This world was… well, as weird as the others. It was just an abandoned town, the ground was… trippy. Like a see-through glass, beneath it was endless void, Avery wasn’t sure. At this point, an empty town on a see-through glass was probably the least confusing part of this adventure.
The pair split up to look around for something at least useful. A weapon would be nice. A giant sword to slice the dork in yellow in half would be the best, Avery thought. He was fantasizing about how the epic ending was gonna go before D3rlord3 called out for him.
“You found something?” Avery rushed over.
D3r nodded, revealing a barrel hidden under a layer of glass. D3rlord3 handed him a book.
“Read it” he commanded.
Avery opened the book and flipped through pages. The arrangement of words, the content were hella trippy. The most noticeable detail was a page filled with red ink letters. A spell of sorts?
“What’s this?”
“I think it’s a chant," D3rlord3 responded. “This might be the key to defeat the King in Yellow”
“Really?” Avery exclaimed. “We just gotta cast this spell and we win?”
D3rlord3 nodded.
Avery couldn’t believe it. He was a bit disappointed to know the ultimate weapon turned out to be a worn out book. But that’s alright, maybe when he casted this spell, it would blow the king up.
“What are we waiting for? We got a king to defeat!” Avery pulled D3rlord3's hand, leading the knight out of the town and heading back to the gate.
They once again stood before the final golden gate. With the ultimate weapon on the hand, Avery was more confident than ever. This adventure was coming to an epic ending. That…
That made Avery’s heart sink a little. This adventure would end soon. Does that mean he and D3rlord3 had to say goodbye? Be separated and never meet again-
“D3rlord3, I”
“Derek is fine.” D3rlord3 said.
“Whu-what?” Avery stumbled with his words.
“My name is Derek, I- uh thought I have been calling you by your real name then would be nice if you- call me my actual name- Is that cool?” D3rlord3 or Derek muttered his last words as his cheek turned into a darker shade.
“Pfft-” Avery burst out a small snicker.
“Whu-what?? What you laughing at?” Now it’s Derek’s turn to be anxious, the dude’s face was all red.
“Dude, what was with that face?” Avery laughed out loud. “Of course it will be cool. What got you all tensed up?”
“I-I don’t know- I just-” His last words turned into intelligible mumbles. That only made Avery snicker louder. The cool composed warrior in shiny gold armor turned out to be a dork after all.
“Alright Derek” Avery emphasised on the name, "Let's do this!” Avery put his hand over Derek’s shoulder and let out the biggest grin. Derek only stayed silent, his hands fidgeted his cloak.
“...Avery.” He finally said. Avery perked up, waiting.
“... I… You- Do you want to meet up…after all this?” Derek blurted it out.
Avery eyed his companion. He looked like a shy high school girl confessing to her crush(How cute)- what is that process of thoughts?? He could feel his face heating up.
Avery shook his head clean and cleared his throat.
“O-of course, l-let’s exchange contact- y-yeah?” Now it’s his turn to be nervous.
“That will be nice” Derek said, voice soft with a hint of pleasure. I can’t wait to meet you”
Avery smiled. “Me too”
After a moment of preparation, the pair of friends pushed the grand gate open, ready to face what’s ahead of them.
Behind the awaiting last gate was a tall, empty hallway. Far away was a throne- Oh it’s a throne room. The ground was carpeted, guiding the knight and the slime towards what was waiting.
Sitting on a golden throne was The King in Yellow, in a mess of golden silk and fabrics, Avery couldn’t make out where its face, body or any body parts were within that robe. Its head(?) adorned with a huge spiky crown. Surrounding it were floating eyeballs with yellow irises. Each step of the pair caused the eyeballs to refocus their direction upon the miserable, unfortunate souls dared to approach the King.
It shifted slightly, face completely covered in the shade of its hood. But Avery swore he could have seen its smile. He shivered when it, more accurately, thousands of eyeballs locked sight on him.
“You hath come"
It spoke in a low rumbling voice, each echo felt like a wave of gravity surged through Avery, forcing him to kneel down. But he held his stance
“Then let us begin”
The king shifted from its throne, standing tall and authoritative. Just a single movement could literally suffocate Avery. The hand holding the book of his started to tremble. He was not built for this. He had underestimated this.
Clank
A sword collided with the ground
Avery looked at his companion. Derek had drawn his sword and positioned into a fighting stance. What braverity, Avery couldn’t help but admire
A soft rumble sent across the room. The king…was laughing?
“Adorable effort, you really think you can defeat me, little lord?” The king took its first step toward the couple of friends. It raised its slender hands slowly and with a flick, countless of tendrils caught Derek’s limbs and forced him down onto the cold ground. The knight gritted his teeth, struggling to break free but it’s to no avail
“Derek!” Avery yelled out and ran to help his friend but a tendrils halted his steps. Another came and Avery couldn’t do anything but dodge them. “I’m coming".
“AVERY! THE CHANT” Derek shouted before the tentacles shut him up.
Right! The ultimate weapon, how did he forget about that? Avery trembly flipped through pages. His eyes lit up when the red ink came into sight.
“I STAND AND GIVE MY EYES TO YOU”
Avery can feel a strange power surge through him.
“ONE BY ONE”
The floor was lit up with a strange symbol.
“SHADOWED SHORE FAR UNDONE”
The yellow hue was now swallowing Avery whole.
“TO YOU I POUR CORRODED SUN”
“WAKE ME AS ONE”
The yellow light blinded the room and Avery heard the shout of The King in Yellow. His heart skipped a beat, did he make it??
Suddenly, his head hurt like someone hit him with a hammer. He held his head and groaned in agony. What was happening??
He tried his best to lift his gaze and observe the surroundings. The king- its whole body was crumbling, he made it! He defeated the King in Yellow!
“D-Derek!” He struggled to make a sentence. “We made it!” His eyes teared up from not just the pain but the relief as well.
Avery looked around to find his friend.
“Yes, Avery, we made it. I give my thanks to you” Derek broke free from the crumbling tendrils and stood tall. But something wasn’t right. Avery felt it. A strong, authoritative presence coming from his friend. It felt just like-
Derek approached Avery. He stood tall, casted his shadow on Avery’s pathetic form on the ground.
“Derek?” Avery asked, weakly.
Then Derek kneeled down, bowed his head as low as possible.
“Welcome home, my king.”
What?
What???
What was going on??
“Derek? W-what are you talking about, what is happening?” Avery struggled to sit up but his friend shoved him back to a lying position.
“Don’t force it, the transferring process can put you in a weak physical state, any strong movement can damage the vessel” Derek, or something said.
“Transferring process?”
Derek didn’t respond. The room rumbled again. Avery directed his gaze back at the source. The king, crumbling away, was laughing.
“You are really a perfect vessel. So clueless til the end”
“Just tell me what’s going on already! What did you do to Derek?!” Avery snapped.
“I didn’t do anything to your dear friend there. Once he lay eyes on me, he has already been mine"
Even in its dying state, the King still moved towards Avery, asserting its dominance.
“His fragile mortal mind couldn’t handle the infinite knowledge I bestowed upon him, he completely cracked under my influence. Now he is nothing but my faithful knight. OUR faithful knight”
Derek remained still, waiting for his command.
“No… no, no no NO! All this time- I-”
“...Have been tricked? Yes, my dear lamb, you are nothing but a puppet, dancing along with my string.”
“No… why… why?”
“Why you? Of all people, why are you in this mess? My dear Avery. You are perfect. Perfectly clean of mind, Perfectly hollow of a shell, Perfectly empty for me. A perfect vessel.”
The King in yellow’s sharp finger lifted Avery’s chin up so his eyes could see it. Avery could feel his head about to explode, too many things are happening in his head, too many things are in his head. He knows everything. He knows.
“I thank you for your effort in my play, lamb”
With the final laugh, the remains of the King vanished into thin air. That only made Avery’s head pound even harder. The King’s temporary form had gone, meaning it was moving into Avery’s mind.
Tears were welling up in his eyes. His heart ached, even more than his head. All this time, he thought he found him, but it was just a shell of his former self. He clenched his fist. How could he be so stupid. There were so many signs. He was too blinded to realize.
“Don’t torture yourself” Derek finally lifted his head, his eyes as brown as every. But Avery could see a tint of yellow deep in those eyes. Avery gritted his teeth, this imposter kept mimicking him, mocking his legacy. He isn’t him.
“But I am him.” Derek said as if he had read Avery's mind, at this point he might have. “I am Derek Hutchins, the one and only”
“NO! YOU are NOT! You killed him, you are just wearing his skin-”
A warm sensation on Avery’s cheek. What’s wrong with him, this man in front of him was not his friend. He never was. But why… Why was Avery leaning into that touch of him? He jerked his head off immediately. Despite the hostile demeanor, something inside Avery couldn’t help but…believe. Believe that this imposter really was him.
The hand once again caressed Avery’s cheek.
“You still don’t get it, Avery. I am him, really. I am still Derek, I am your friend” Those last words didn’t echo in a strange presence anymore, for a moment it did sound like…him.
“I wasn’t lying, you know that.” Avery does. “I am really Derek. When I was bestowed with infinite knowledge, I… saw it. The King opened my eyes. I saw a future, together, we rule a better world.” His voice soft.
“Derek…”
Derek held Avery’s hand firmly.
“I saw us, Avery. I saw a future where me and you, together, ruling over what’s ours” Derek’s face lit up with excitement. “It was beautiful”
“You know it is… wrong-”
“Is it?”
Avery flinched at that question. He knows the answer, he didn’t want to agree.
“Is it wrong to finally claim what’s yours? No one ever validates you, no one ever sees you as your worth. Avery, no one has ever cared for you. I do”
Avery’s stomach churned, he kept denying this fate but somewhere in him, it is agreeing with Derek.
“Avery” Derek pleaded. “Join us”
“Accept your destiny” Voices chanted in Avery’s head, blurring his own mind, making it harder to think, he didn’t know what’s right what’s wrong anymore. He just wanted this to be over, he just wanted to…rest.
“Ok” The sound that escaped Avery’s mouth seemed foreign. He didn’t feel like himself anymore. He felt… Something shifted in the air.
Derek waited.
“My king?”
…
…
“...”
Avery sat up. Frozen still for a solid minute.
Avery’s mouth moved slightly.
“My knight.” He finally said. It came out hoarsed.
Derek only bowed his head lower. Avery couldn’t help but grin at that sight. His hand instinctively reached for Derek’s head. The cold sensation of the amour met his skin, good, that could ground him a bit better after the transition. Derek leaned closer towards the touch. But he immediately retreated.
“My apology, your majesty, it wasn’t right of me to act in such a close manner-” His mouth was shushed by a finger. Avery smiled.
“Don’t be distant, Derek. Stand up.” Avery commanded.
Derek rose, guiding a weakened Avery to stand on his own legs. Avery struggled to keep his balance but after a moment, he finally stayed stable.
Derek’s face shifted into a worried expression.
“Derek”
“Yes, my King?” So eager. So obidient.
Avery liked that.
“Behind" The voice didn’t come from Derek’s headphones, it didn’t come from his game anymore. It was real. It rumbled in his head and it came from his behind. Derek removed his headphones and spinned his chair to face the source of the call.
There he was. His king.
"You found me" Derek whispered.
"That I did"
Avery stood firm and authoritative. Derek rose from his chair and kneeled.
Avery didn’t move, only smiled.
“Come forth, my faithful knight. We got a world to rule” Avery grinned.
“...As you wish, my King”