Chapter Text
The timer hits zero and the last survivors teleport back to the cabin. Noob, who was sitting by the TV spectating the round, letting out a breath they were unconsciously holding. Rushing down the stairs to greet the others at the table; Dusekkar gliding after him.
At the table sits a total of five successful survivors.
At the end of the table is the last Guest; he leans back against the chair, shaking off the adrenaline still running through his veins. He rolls his shoulder back, working out the tense muscles, letting out a groan when he cracks his neck.
He won but it didn't feel like a win. In his eyes, he wasn't strong enough to protect everyone. He failed to save Dusekkar after he missed his charge. The image of 1x1x1x1 grinning over him, mocking him, feeding on the self-hatred that radiated off of Guest as he watched the glowing pumpkins fire die out. He understands that they all respawn at the end but It doesn't help him swallow his disappointment.
On the opposite side of the table Shedletsky celebrates in the next chair over with Chance. He stretches his arms over his head and sighs in satisfaction before he speaks. “I totally kicked 1x’s ass lolololol, you would’ve been toast without me, Elliot”.
“Yeah… thanks Shed,” Elliot says, gratefully, but with a hint of annoyance in his tone.
Shedletsky notices the shift in his tone. He brushes it off since he gets that relying on others to protect him all the time must be tough. If he were in the delivery boy's shoes, he’d also be a little peeved.
Dusekkar puts a hand on Guest's shoulder. He tenses at the touch, being put at ease once he sees the admins face. He attempts to comfort the man that tried his hardest to save him. “For all you've done and for all you will do, my heart calls out a thanks to you.” He thanks the soldier.
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A few hours pass by, the old clock outside the dining room begins to tick. The sound echoes off the wooden walls of the large cabin. A dreadful sign that a round will begin shortly. Guest walks back and forth, trying to recall patterns he’s memorized from killers in past rounds, Elliot busies himself with baking more pizzas, throwing the dough in the air like second nature, and Noob digs around in the back of the fridge. Grabbing the last of their bloxys and taking a fresh burger off the stove that 007n7 made him.
The survivors gather upstairs, crowding around the old tv in the corner. Hesitation washes over their tired muscles. Thinking about the horrors to come. Their eyes snap towards the screen as the TV turns on. Beginning to play the cutscene of the upcoming killer.
“The killer is… pursuer.” The screen reads. The preview takes place in a dark forest as a group of robloxians holding flashlights look around nervously.
Two of them drop to the ground with the sound of a sword cutting through the air. Only one remains, their expression fearful as a large beast appears out of thin air behind them. its joints snapping back into place as it becomes visible. The beast is covered from the neck down in thick black fur. Its face fully white with large eyes and sharp teeth, both a tealish green. It stares down at the last player before the screen goes black; the ending implied.
“Is that a new killer?” Noob murmurs apprehensively, in his beanbag; looking up at the group to see their reactions.
“It looks more like a new skin,” 007n7 says. Squinting his eyes at the screen. His skin prickles, feeling the group's gaze on him, looking up from the other bean bag to see them all watching him, he accidentally meets Builderman’s gaze. They both look away quickly. The awkward tension between his past foes still hasn’t been resolved even after so many years.
Taph tugs on Dusekkars sleeve, signing too quickly for the admin to understand. He attempts to calm down the mute so he can translate what's wrong, but before he could figure out what Taph was trying to say the clock strikes. The chiming of bells rings loud and aggressively throughout the cabin, the sound echoing through their heads as everything goes black.
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They wake up in a map they have played in before, Glass houses, but something is different about this map. It's bright outside, If they had to guess maybe sunrise. A stark difference from the pitch black sky they’re used too.
Chance rubs the back of his neck, letting out a chuckle as he looks up at the sky. “Seems like the Specter wants to give us a break, huh buddy” He laughs looking over at Elliot.
“Your sunglasses won't go to waste now” Elliot remarks.
“Oh yeah you’re right! They really just blocked my vision before in all those dark maps,”
“If that’s true then maybe this time you’ll actually land your stun”
“Yeah- hey wait are you making fun of me?” Chance glares and shoves him playfully.
The survivors can’t really be mad about the difference either. It's a nice change from the darkness that’s hard to navigate. Guest stays quiet. Mouthing numbers as he does a head count of everyone. He pauses when he stops at Taph, and then starts to count again. This time out loud.
“Eight, Nine, Ten.” This gets the attention of everyone else.
“....We’re all here” Guest pauses, before counting again confused. His voice barely over a whisper as he puts a hand on his chin. Looking down at the grass. It looks real, and not something the Specter made to resemble the outside world.
That was another thing. They all spawned together. Something that never happens; they are always scattered around the map. Builderman and Shedletsky look at each other a bit confused.
“Thats impossible, the maximum is nine” Builderman says “007n7 and Two-time were supposed to sit out his round”
Somehow though, the rules have changed, they’re all here.
Before they can collect their thoughts 3 cards appear in front of each of them. A strong gust of wind blows by, words being carried along with it. “May one of these blessings prolong your fate.”
A few of them shudder in discomfort from the cold air of these words. Others look around to find out who said it. Shedletsky squints his eyes to read his cards.
“What are these funny little pictures?”
Puzzled, Builderman also looks down at his own cards, “One of mine has a fist.”
Shedletsky shrugs and grabs the most appealing one from the three, figuring he might as well take the first leap. The card turns into a cloud of smoke, surrounding the man. Once the smoke clears, the group watches closely in anticipation; curious as to what will happen next.
Shedletsky stands there with a yellow bowtie and a matching clown nose. This takes the attention away from the fingerless gloves that have appeared as well.
The group tries to hold back at first but chance breaks first and begins to laugh rather loudly at a disgruntled Shedletsky. Not long after, Elliot starts to laugh behind his hand, failing to muffle it and quickly there are snickers everywhere. Shedletsky looks over at his oldest friends and colleagues. Dusekkar and Builderman looking at each other before Builderman breaks the tension by letting out a loud laugh. The kind where you hold your stomach and hunch over. Dusekkar falls victim soon after. His flares grow larger and more illuminated. He lets out a deep laugh from the gut, his flame crackling along with it.
An uncommon sight for the retired admins to be laughing so freely. Seeing the old friends enjoy themselves instead of worrying about everyone else was nice. Their laughs become more contagious as everyone finds themselves beginning to laugh freely.
However, Shedletsky wasn’t as amused. Raising the bazooka that had appeared in his hand a second ago, his brow furrowing as he focused his aim on the past CEO, who was currently holding onto Dusekkar as if he were about to keel over from laughter.
He pulls the trigger, launching a banana at Builderman. It causes him to trip and slip into the air, the sound of trumpets playing while Builderman falls onto his back. Shedletsky points at him, letting out an over the top laugh, mocking the creator on the floor before genuinely letting out a light snicker. The bazooka gets tucked away as he offers the old friend a hand.
The laughing comes to an abrupt stop as the group hears an intimidating voice behind them. “Ahh… Fresh meat…”, the voice laced with a dark excitement and hunger. Causing a visible shiver to running through Elliot. “Did you guys hear that?” He says, trying to warm himself up.
The group looks at each other nervously, Guest and Dusekkar scouting for where the voice came from.
“Oh, spawn blessethed me with thine cards” Two Time praises, closing their eyes as they pick a random card. It disappears, turning into a puff of smoke as it wraps around their body before a dramatically large nurses hat spawns on top of their head.
They spin around, giggling happily. “How do I look?” They say, winking playfully. Taph lets out a low whistle, clapping before Dusekkar looks over at him unimpressed.
From a distance a terrifying scream is heard. Not one that's caused from fear but the kind that injects it into those that hear it.
“We don't have time to chit-chat, everyone pick a card.” Builderman says, taking initiative. He grabs one of the cards, everyone else following his lead. Thick clouds of smoke fill the area around them. Noob looks around at everyone, as a “great helm” covers his face. The medieval style helmet makes it hard to see as he struggles for a bi. He’s not the only one with his vision blurred. Builderman struggles as well, trying to adjust the helmet to see better.
As Noob's vision becomes clear once again, he struggles to move; feeling nails dig into his shoulders. The warmth of another person becomes apparent behind him as the sound of a harmonica hums through the air. Noob could recognize the sound of sudden music anywhere. The only thing every killer has in common.
A chase theme.
Before Noob could shout out for help; the large beast looms over him. Making himself known. The survivors’ ears pick up on the music, recognizing it just like Noob did. They turn to look at the survivalist, and before anyone can do anything the beast impales him. The sword enters from his back side, piercing through his chest. Leaving the man skewered.
He lets out a gut curdling scream.
The survivors pause in horror, not expecting the sudden attack at all. They’ve all watched each other die before; It never becoming easier to watch, but what happens next is new. Instead of finishing him off. The beast unhinges its jaw, its green teeth glistening in the sunlight as it clamps them down onto his cranium, the sound of metal grinding. Its teeth treating the material as though it were just a crunchy dessert.
The beast begins to feast ravenously, as if it’s been starved for days.
“RUN!” Shedletsky yells, taking the others out of the state of frozen terror. The two admins rushing the others to safety as Shedletsky stays behind.
His voice rings through the large beasts' ears, raising its head. Its eyes focusing on the man in front of him. A large toothy grin grows across its face before it rises from its meal, stepping over the mutilated corpse as it begins to run after the retired Admin.Shedletsky digs his feet into the ground. Curling his fist as he swings.
He misses.
“NOW?! damn it Shedletsky you always miss your stuns why now?!” He curses to himself as he watches the predator lunge at him.
But as Shedletsky accepts his demise, the killer's eyes widen. Experiencing the unmistakable feeling of a banana peel under its feet before slipping into the air, comedically falling face first into the dirt. Shedletsky opens his eyes to see Taph in front of him. Wearing a matching clown nose and bow tie.
“TAPH! Oh thank you, you saved me!” He cries out, tears forming in his eyes from the fear he’s still experiencing. Taph gives him a thumbs up as he grabs Shedletsky's wrist. Dragging him away from the apex predator.
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Far away from the crime scene, Dusekkar is trying to float away from the chatty cultist. The glowing pumpkin rolls his eyes at Two time. His back to them as they rambles on and on about how their prayers have been heard from the spawn to grant them the power to heal others. “Save” is the word they use however. Just the sound of their voice annoys Dusekkar; the noise about that make-believe cult adds pressure to the never ending headache that forms whenever he’s within 5 feet of them.
The sound of footsteps stomping through the grass is heard, it sounding closer and closer. Instantly the two of them stop in their tracks to listen.
“Do you think-” Two Time attempts to continue their tirade but Dusekkar slaps a hand over their mouth, a little harder than necessary but he can’t be bothered to care.
The confused and cautious pair try to stay silent as they hide behind the short yellow wall. The steps becoming heavier.
The footsteps pause on the other side of the wall. The duo can hear their hearts beating, pounding in their ears. A bead of sweat rolls down Two Times' face as Dusekkar squeezes his staff, without the knowledge that he can no longer use it to protect himself.
Builderman's head peaks out from around the corner, “Hello?” He calls out, looking at the nervous pair who had somehow ended up holding on to each other rather tightly. The pumpkin and cultist look at each other and then look away as they jump apart. Dusekkar begins to clean his glasses with his robe, clearing his throat awkwardly. The other pulling out their dagger, whistling as they inspects the now-dull blade in the sun.
Builderman just frowns at the pair as 007n7 lingers behind him. growing tired of this round already.
“Where may we find the ones unseen? We must regroup and intervene.” Dusekkar coughs into his fist, attempting to divert their attention to the others missing.
“Yeah you’re right, where are they anyways?” Builderman replies looking around.
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On the other side of the map is the trio, Guest1337, Chance, and Elliot.
“How come we can't find a single generator?” Elliot says, running ahead of the two. Turning the corners sharply. He lets out a groan as he’s unsuccessful again. “I’ve looked in all the usual places!” He shouts, becoming frustrated.
“Well they did change the map” Guest reminds him as they inspect the now torn down glass building.
“It could be worse, we could have run into that beast again…” Chance says, looking over his shoulder anxiously, remembering how It appeared out of thin air. The gambler can’t get the image of Noob's decapitated corpse out of his head. If he had reacted quicker he would have saved them.
Guest sees the guilt in Chances eyes. Knowing the feeling far too well. “It's not your fault” He says, looking at him in his eyes. The soldier's gaze serious and tone stern, wanting Chance to understand that he means it. “We all wish we could have done something but there was no time to react.”
Chance nods, but doesn't meet his eyes, instead focusing too much on the cuff of his sleeves. Readjusting them as he mutters a “yeah…” Not feeling much better at Guest words but appreciating that he tried to help.
Elliot jogs around the corner meeting back up with the two. “No luck at all, It doesn’t look like there are any gens. It’s so weird!” He sighs, wiping the sweat off his forehead with the back of his hand.
“Seems like there are some cons that come with the sun” Chance says looking up to the sky, Grateful for his sunglasses for once.
“Better than how cold the night can get” Guest shrugs, crossing his arms as he keeps an eye out.
While the three continue to chat, another howl is heard; however it sounds louder, closer. The booming sound scraping their brains as they all quickly go to cover their ears. Chance looks over where the sound came from “It’s the Killer!” Chance shouts, attempting to be heard over the demanding roar. The predator looks at the group with a grin whilst he begins to run towards them, Its sword already drawn.
Guest gets in front of the two, pushing Elliot behind him. “Run. I'll stall” He says grimly, not waiting for a response.
Guest is used to always putting himself on the front lines. If it means he can protect the people he cares about, it doesn’t matter what needs to be sacrificed. Even if that thing is himself. Guest runs towards the killer. Getting ready to use his ability, however it slipped his mind that the game has changed. Instead of charging at the beast, he slides onto his knees,a hammer appearing in his hands as he begins smashing random parts together into the floor.
“Guest, what are you doing?!?!?” Chance shouts calls out in a panic.
“I-I don’t know!! I can't stop!” He shouts. The Pursuer stands in front of him, pausing as he looks down at the Guest before a cruel smile sprouts onto its face.
Guest struggles, trying to hurry, but he physically can’t stop himself from building. The predators intentions makes itself known, before Guest can panic any further a violent crack of bone against bone cuts through the air. When he looks up he sees the pizza boy throwing a nasty left hook. The beast covering its face in pain, looking up at the sky stunned.
Guest gapes like a fish, no longer building.He takes the hand Elliot is offering, a worried look on the delivery boy's face.
“You’ll have to teach me that move,” He says, letting out a chuckle in disbelief, looking proud of the man.
As Guest gets up, his feet hit the blue tile, a burst of energy shoots through him. A gust of wind blowing his hair up before the blue strands fall back down.
“Woah” Chance says as he takes a step on the tile as well. Having to hold his hat down, not wanting to lose it.
“It makes us faster” Guest comments as he steps on it again.
“Now is not the time guys” Elliot reminds them “Lets just get the boost and go!” He shouts, running over the tile. Not wanting for the others to respond.
Guest nods as he follows behind, hearing Chance let out a panicked “Oh shoot!”
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“So…How long do you think we have left?” Shed asks, leaning against a dilapidated wall. The mute points towards the sky, a giant timer scene counting down. Only 10 seconds left. The numbers a bright red. Impossible to miss for anyone without feathers for brains.
“Oh, yeah, duh.” Shedletsky scoffs as he looks away, not wanting to admit he completely missed it.
As the timer hits zero, celebratory music begins to play as they all gain a blue protective shield.
“This is new…” He says confused, Taph nodding in agreement before doing a little victory dance.