Chapter Text
The first time it happened, the day started like any other day. The sun shone high in the sky, waking Xisuma from his slumber. With a smile on his face he got out of bed to start his day, with a look out of his window he predicted that this would be a nice, calm day.
Oh, how wrong he was.
With a warm cup of tea he sat down in his most comfortable reading chair. The soft pillows caught him as he released a sigh, opening the book that he'd chosen to read precisely for a day like this. It was a cold April morning, the perfect moment to kick back, relax and read.
It was after he'd taken the first sip of his tea that his peaceful morning was ruined by a loud knock on his door. The book was lowered immediately, as were Xisuma's eyebrows as a frown took his happy smile away. The knock sounded once, twice, and then he stood, realizing that it wouldn't stop any time soon.
With a sigh he abandoned his tea and book, starting the journey to his door. The knocking only stopped when he'd opened the door. The action revealed none other than Joe Hills, a very panicked looking Joe hills. Xisuma straightened up, immediately sensing the seriousness of the situation.
“Xisuma, Cleo.” Joe tried to say in between heavy breaths, sounding as if he'd ran there.
“Woah, Joe calm down. Take a deep breath.” Xisuma said, he took a deep breath for Joe to copy. It took some tries but Joe eventually succeeded in getting the amount of oxygen he needed. He took a few more breaths on his own, slowly calming. “Good, now slowly tell me what’s going on. Is something wrong with Cleo?”
Joel straightened up, “Yes, I can’t find them, they have disappeared. We- we had plans to meet up yesterday but they never showed up. I checked their whole base, she wasn't there. I asked the other hermits but none of them have seen her either.”
Xisuma brought a small smile to his face, hoping that it was calming. He reached out and placed a hand on Joe's shoulder. “Maybe they just went resource gathering or something, the people on this server are very good at losing track of time.” He said with a chuckle.
“Xisuma, you know Cleo. You know that this isn’t like them, you know that they would tell someone if they were planning on going somewhere. Can you please just do your admin thing and tell me where they are, I’m worried.” Joe said, desperation and worry in his eyes.
It was hard to deny the truth, this wasn't like Cleo at all.
“Of course, just give me a second.” He decided, already pulling his communicator out of his pocket. It wasn't often that he used his admin powers to find someone unless there was an emergency. This situation didn't qualify as an emergency yet, but it was weird.
The admin panel opened in front of him, a panel that could only be seen by him. His fingers moved over the keyboard as he typed Cleo's playername. He waited a couple seconds as it loaded, quickly growing inpatient. He froze when the result appeared, revealing that Cleo wasn't there.
"She- she’s not on hermitcraft.” Xisuma said, pulling out of the panel and quickly opening the chat. He searched through the last couple of days, searching for any message that could explain Cleo's absence. But there was nothing. Not a single indication that she'd logged off.
There was no notification of anyone leaving.
Joe moved to stand next to him, looking over his shoulder at the chat still displayed on his communicator. “What do you mean she’s not on hermitcraft? Where else could they be?” Joe asked, he was starting to panic again, taking deep breaths as his hands shook.
“Joe, hey, calm down. I’m sure this is just a mistake. And wherever Cleo is, they can take care of themselves.” Xisuma assured him. He was trying to stop Joe from panicking but the truth was that he was starting to panic too. One of his players had disappeared from the server and he had no idea where she'd gone.
“I know that they can take care of themself but she can’t just have disappeared, right? You should be able to find her anywhere, the fact that you can’t is worrying.” Joe said, he made a worrying good point. Xisuma's hands moved before he could register the movements he'd already typed Cleo's name again and again.
It was no use though, every time the same result would show up.
No player under this name was found.
He stepped backwards, entering his home again but keeping his eyes on Joe. His heart was starting to beat faster as worry arose in his chest. “Joe, keep searching for Cleo on the server. I’m gonna keep searching for them through the admin panels. Maybe their code just glitched out, there is a chance that they're still here.”
After saying this he looked down, quickly opening the main chat once more. This time to send a message.
Xisumavoid: One of the hermits, Cleo, has gone missing. If anyone knows anything about their whereabouts please inform the rest of us. For now don’t panic. I would appreciate it if all of you could keep an eye out for them.
After this he placed his communicator back into his pocket, he turned and walked further into his house. When he'd woken up that morning he'd promised himself to stay away from his computer, he spent too much time behind the damned thing anyway.
But now he needed it. He took a seat behind it, his book and tea long forgotten. His fingers were moving, searching for Cleo again, nothing. He put in her playername, number, even their code. But every single time he was met with the same result.
No player under this name was found.
It was like Cleo had never even existed, but they obviously had. They were out there somewhere, Xisuma just knew it. And they might be in need of help, with that thought Xisuma turned back to the keyboard. He typed the name again and again, waiting for a different result.
The only thing that stopped him was a loud knock at his front door. Another sigh escaped him as he pushed himself up. He quickly walked towards the door, praying that some good news was waiting for him behind it. Three hermits were standing in front of him when he opened it.
All of them wore an identical look of concern.
“What’s going on?” Xisuma asked the second he registered their expressions. In front of him were Mumbo, Cub and Doc. They shared a look with each other, talking in a way that Xisuma couldn't understand. Mumbo eventually spoke up, it was only a few seconds of silence that he allowed to pass, but those seconds felt like forever.
“We can’t find Grian, Scar or Ren anywhere.”
The words echoed inside Xisuma's head. “What do you mean?” He asked, fearing the worst.
“We decided that we would go looking for Cleo in groups of two. We all paired up with someone, Mumbo with Grian, Cub with Scar and me with Ren. But when we went over to their bases to start the search, they were empty. All three of them were nowhere to be found.” Doc started explaining.
“We looked all over and even messaged them but it's like they've disappeared. None of them even answered our messages. With Cleo also missing we decided to immediately tell you, please tell us that they are just hidden somewhere.” Cub continued for him.
“I-" He hated that he couldn't be sure. His hermits were looking at him with so much hope, he didn't want to take it away. "Let's hope so.” He mumbled, pulling the admin panels up once more. He typed the first name, searching for Grian.
No player under this name was found.
He typed in Goodtimeswithscar.
No player under this name was found.
He typed in the last name, a little bit of hope left in him as he searched for Renthedog
No player under this name was found.
Xisuma felt the urge to punch something, maybe a pillow, maybe a wall. How was it possible that four hermits had disappeared out of nowhere? He looked back at the other three hermits, he loved being an admin but he hated to be the bringer of bad news.
“They- I'm sorry, they're also gone, wherever they are I can’t find them.” He hated to admit it, but it was the truth. Lying to his hermits, to his friends, it simply wasn't an option. Even if the truth was so much harder. He took a deep sigh and went into admin mode, they needed to find the missing hermits.
“Okay, we now have four missing people. We have to make sure that they are the only ones missing. I’m calling an emergency meeting.” He announced, already opening chat. New messages had appeared since the last time he'd checked, most from concerned hermits searching for Cleo.
Xisumavoid: Emergency meeting at spawn, everyone please be there. This is important.
“Let’s go.” He said to Doc, Scar and Cub with a nod, already passing them. Four explosions could be found as fireworks were launched. They flew over to spawn in silence, scanning the ground wherever they were. It didn’t take too long before they arrived, still as clueless as they had been before.
Xisuma looked around, taking a deep breath to calm his beating heart, waiting for the rest to arrive.
They waited thirty minutes before most people had appeared. It felt like enough time had been given for everyone to make the journey over. Xisuma checked the chat, searching for anyone allerting them that they were going to be late.
The chat was empty of new messages.
Xisuma did a headcount, there were 26 hermits this season, only 18 showed up to the meeting. His heart dropped as he counted again and again but the numer never changed. The missing hermits were Cleo, Grian, Scar, Ren, Etho, Impulse, Tango and Bdubs.
Xisuma started the meeting, informing everyone about the number of missing hermits. He told the other hermits to stay calm, he also told them to stay together. A buddy system was introduced, Xisuma didn’t know what had happened but he needed to make sure that it wouldn’t happen again.
He paired up with Keralis, a decision he didn't get a say in but also didn't mind. Keralis simply said that he would need someone to ensure he wouldn’t overwork. Once everyone was paired with someone the meeting ended, when it did Xisuma shoved himself into the air.
There was no reason to look behind him, he already knew that Keralis would be right there. Once home he walked in, leaving the door open as he hurried towards his computer. Cleo, Grian, Scar, Ren, Etho, Impulse, Tango and Bdubs. Those were the missing hermits, he typed their names in one by one.
One by one he received the same answer.
No player under this name was found.
No player under this name was found.
No player under this name was found.
No player under this name was found.
Xisuma hit the desk with his fists, eight people couldn’t have just disappeared. He had to find them, but he had no idea how. Keralis placed his hand on his shoulder from behind, reminding Xisuma of his presence. He turned to look at the man. “It’s gonna be okay, we’re gonna find them,” Keralis assured him.
The next few weeks were spent looking for his players, day in day out Xisuma sat behind his computer searching for them. If it hadn’t been for Keralis, he would have worked nonstop. Keralis made him take breaks whenever Xisuma lost track of time.
He couldn't help it, if he wasn't searching he wasn't doing anything to help. There was no telling where the missing hermits were, there was no telling what was happening to them. He couldn't relax knowing that his players could be in trouble.
After weeks of searching the only thing that Xisuma found was a message from a woman saying something about her husband having disappeared just like his players. She didn't offer a solution, didn't offer an explanation, she simply searched for help in the same way he was.
It wasn’t until a month later that a player returned, the player who had gone missing first was also the first person to return. Xisuma had been sitting behind his desk like every other day, he'd zoned out a while ago, simply staring at the blank computer screen in front of him.
The sound of his communicator going off is what brought him back to reality. He took it, slowly turning it on. A private message from Joe had been sent to him, he opened it.
Joehill: Cleo is back.
Xisuma shot up in his chair at the words, his thumbs flew over the screen as he left his base, calling to Keralis over his shoulder to inform him that he was leaving. His speed picked up with every step he took, he was forced to pause though when he realized that he had no idea where he was going.
Xisumavoid: Where are they?
Joehills: Back at their base.
The rocket had been fired before he got his communicator back into his pocket. Xisuma flew up and made his way over to Cleo’s base. He had never gone as fast as he was going now. He arrived and walked into Cleo’s main building where he spotted Joe, standing next to the bed.
There Cleo was, peacefully asleep.
“I’m scared that if I move they’ll disappear again.” Joe whispered, without turning. Xisuma moved towards her, he had to know where they had been. And if the others were still there, if they needed help. He shook Cleo’s shoulder carefully.
Her eyes opened slowly, they blinked a few times in confusion. “Xisuma, what are you doing here?” Cleo asked. Joe shot forwards before Xisuma could get a word out, the man immediately wrapped his arms around Cleo, pulling her close. Cleo looked confused but hugged Joe back. “What’s going on?”
“Cleo," Xisuma started calmly, "You and seven other hermits have been missing for over a month.” There was no other way to say it, no way to soften the blow. He watched Cleo closely, waiting for their response.
“Xisuma, that isn’t funny. You’re not really the pranking type but kudos for trying I guess.” Cleo replied casually. Joe looked up from the hug, pulling away slightly so he could look Cleo in the eyes.
“He’s not joking, about a month ago I went over to your base and you were gone. Even Xisuma’s admin powers couldn’t find you.”
Cleo scanned the faces of the two in front of them. “You- that’s not possible I didn’t go anywhere. You two have to be pranking me, this really isn’t funny.” They said, pulling out of the hug entirely. It seemed like they were getting angry now.
“Cleo what date do you think it is?” Xisuma asked carefully.
“I don’t know, like the 20th of April or something.” Cleo said.
Xisuma took out his communicator and showed her the real date, the first of June. Cleo looked at it, blinking in confusion. She opened her mouth, clearly about to say something but Joe showed her his communicator, successfully shutting the question down.
His communicator showe the date, the same date that could be seen on Xisuma's. Cleo took out their own communicator, her eyes went wide as she looked at the date. “This really isn’t a prank? If this is a prank I’m gonna kill the both of you.” Cleo said.
“This really isn’t a prank, seven hermits are still missing.” Xisuma said, he had been checking his communicator the whole time, maybe other hermits would be returning too. “What is the last thing you remember?” He asked, hiding his disappointment when no new messages could be seen.
“Nothing weird, I just went to bed one night and woke up today,” Cleo said. Right before Xisuma could ask another question his communicator sounded, he took it and read the message that was sent “Etho is back too.” He announced, a sense of hope came alive inside of him.
Were all of his hermits returning?
“Joe, stay here with Cleo, I’m going to Etho.” Xisuma said before leaving. He could hear an 'You got it' from Joe and an 'I don’t need a babysitter from Cleo.' The start of a smile appeared on Xisuma's face, it wasn't a full smile yet, but it was something.
He flew to Etho's base, finding the man asleep in his bed in the same way Cleo had been. He, also like Cleo, didn’t remember a thing. One by one his hermits started returning. After Etho Tango returned, then Ren, then Impulse, then Bdubs and after Bdubs Scar returned.
Xisuma went over to all of them, not a single one remembered what had happened. After his tour around the server there was one last person that had yet to return. Grian. He flew there at lightning speed, finding the bedroom empty apart from Mumbo.
The man had been waiting ever since he learned that people were returning. Xisuma joined him, sending him a quick smile before focusing on the bed. It didn’t take long before Grian spawned in, but there was something different about his respawn.
Every single hermit had returned asleep, every single one except Grian. The man appeared laying on his bed, his eyes wide open. Xisuma jumped up from where he was leaning against the wall, hurrying towards the bed. What was worrying were the tears that burned in the corners of his eyes.
“Grian? Are you okay?” Xisuma asked softly.
Grian shot up in bed, his eyes falling on Xisuma. For a few seconds they simply stared at each other then he pulled his gaze away. The man spent a couple seconds taking his surroundings in before moving back to Xisuma. “Your eyes are purple.” He said.
The words surprised Xisuma. “Uhm yeah they are.” He responded, unsure of what to do with this kind of information.
“They're not green, not yellow, not red.” Grian mumbled, he repeated the words a couple times. Mumbo and Xisuma shared a look, both equally concerned and confused. Mumbo took a step towards Grian, taking a seat on the bed next to the avian's feet.
“Are you okay Grian?” Mumbo asked just as softly as Xisuma had. He reached for Grian but pulled back in hesitation. Grian turned towards Mumbo, he started crying. For a second Mumbo looked surprised, the next he shot into action. He sat next to Grian, wrapped the man into his arms and pulled him to his chest.
“What's going on, Grian? What happened?” Mumbo asked, using one of his hands to stroke the avian's back. He searched Xisuma's face for an answer, but Xisuma had no idea.
“I’m sorry, I’m so sorry.” Grian said, his words muffled by Mumbo's shirt but audible nonetheless.
“Sorry for what?” Xisuma asked.
“I killed him, I killed Scar.” Grian said through his tears, a heartbreaking sob escaped his lips. His whole body was shaking at this point but his words simply didn't make sense. “What do you mean you killed Scar?” Mumbo asked, keeping his words calm.
“He- he was on his red life an- and we fought to the death." Grian explained, he squeezed his eyes shut for a couple of seconds before opening them. He pulled away from Mumbo and looked directly at Xisuma before continuing in a whisper. "I won.” His words were so soft, Xisuma almost didn’t hear them.
“Grian, Scar is fine. He respawned right before you did. Do you- do you remember where you were?” Xisuma asked. Grian's eyes widened, “Scar’s okay?” He asked, searching the room as if the man would suddenly appear.
“Yeah of course he’s okay, he’s in his base.” Mumbo said.
Grian shot up from his bed, already sprinting towards the door before anyone could stop him. Xisuma and Mumbo shared a look before following him. It wasn't hard to figure out where Grian was going, the why was confusing though.
At Scar's base Grian walked directly into the man's main building, quickly finding Scar in bed. By the time Xisuma and Mumo got there he was in bed with the man, his arms around him as if his life depended on their contact. Apologies kept leaving his mouth as tears spilled from his eyes.
Scar was trying to comfort him, carefully shushing him while running a hand through his hair. "Hey, buddy, it's okay." Xisuma heard right before he entered. Scar's eyes caught his, only a singular look was necessary for Xisuma to realize that the man was as confused as he was.
After Grian had calmed down enough to properly talk, he explained what happened. He told them that he, Scar, Ren, Bdubs, Tango, Impulse, Cleo and Etho had been transported to another world.
In this world they had three lives, three lives before you were permanently gone. The world was dangerous, it was filled with mobs that attacked any player at sight. But that wasn't the only danger, the players were meant to attack each other too.
They had to fight each other to the death.
It was some kind of game that could only have one winner.
Grian didn’t explain anything in too much detail; he just told them about the game and about how he and Scar had been the last two. They had fought to the death and Scar had lost, making Grian the winner of this ‘game’. He had no idea how they'd gotten there, had no idea who made this 'game'.
No one else remembered anything and Grian didn't want to share what had happened. He'd pleaded to keep most of what he knew a secret. After some convincing, Xisuma was allowed to tell everyone the basics, but he didn’t say anything about Grian killing Scar.
They assumed that Grian remembered because he had been there the longest. Grian didn’t talk about the game after that, he stayed with Scar a lot after he had returned. The two seemed attached at the hip. Every once in a while Grian would get this look on his face, a look of fear.
Then he'd look at Scar and everything would be okay.
Xisuma wasn't told much, but he knew that the man was having trouble sleeping. He knew that he was being plagued by nightmares. Nightmares of this world where he'd been. Xisuma didn’t know what had happened but he sure as hell hoped that it would never happen again.