Writing Championships #6

Sapphire Simps

Prompt: "Don't worry, they wont get to you here." (From Amber Antags)

Ren remembered the day that they came.

It was a cloudy day.

You know, one of those days that it's sorta uninteresting, grey skies, the whole world seems like a palate of bleh and random scraps of color.

It wasn't a great day, it wasn't a rainy day.

It was a normal day.

It started on a normal day, and Ren and Doc were on a walk.

A normal day, a normal walk through the streets.

Well, actually this was rare because Ren could barely get Doc out to see sunlight, but still.

A normal day, a normal walk, a normal life.

It all was so incredibly normal, it almost seemed like to Ren that it was too normal, too perfect. He wasn't used to things like this. It was silly, he knew. 

The worst part was that he was right.

Lightning struck the middle of the street.

Doc pulled Ren behind him instinctively.

"That was a close one, guess a storm's coming on, huh-"

Doc didn't get to finish his sentence.

A figure with a purple cape struck the ground harder than the lightning.

Ren could feel electric shivers down his spine as the figure looked up, trident embedded in the street.

The figure didn't have eyes.

They were covered.

Ren couldn't see their eyes.

Doc's eyes met Ren's for a split second.

Run.

And suddenly Ren's shoes were slapping against the pavement, and Doc's hand was pulling him roughly.

They didn't know if the figure was right behind them, or already lost, but they kept on running.

Then they heard the screams.

Ren recognized those screams from jumpscares, from mobs scaring them in the night, from nightmares that Ren would comfort them from.

"ISKALL!"

Ren stopped, almost making Doc fall over as he turned back.

"ISKALL!"

"REN!"

Iskall's eyes were filled with pain, as the figure's seemed to try to restrain them, trying to force something on their face. Iskall fought and fought, their voice screaming hoarse and raspy.

"REN! REN!" Iskall's voice was cracking in and out. They were scared. "REN HELP!"

"ISKALL!"

Ren rushed forward desperately, but Doc restrained him.

"LET GO OF ME!" Ren tried to loosen his grip, but he didn't listen. "LET GO OF ME I NEED TO HELP HIM!" 

"You're going to die if you help him." Doc's red-eye was steely as he looked at him. "I swear on my life I will not let you die."

"But Iskall-"

Doc looked around, scanning the city that was already being slowly decimated by bolts of lightning.

Ren didn't know how he wasn't scared

Or maybe he was.

He just didn't show it.

Doc took his hand again, leading him to a nearby shop. He dug out a hole quickly with his pickaxe.

"Don't worry, they won't get to you here."

Before Ren could protest, Doc lifted him into the hole.

"Aren't you coming in here with me?"

Doc didn't look him in the eye.

"I'll be back here soon, ok?"

"Doc, you can't go out there and fight whoever those people are alone." Ren kept a hold on his wrist. "You aren't invincible, as much as you try to convince yourself you are."

"I swear on my life I will not let you die." Doc's eyes hardened. "And I swear on my life I won't let anyone else die."

"But I don't want you to die, Doc! You're my best friend!" Ren could feel tears start to form in his eyes for whatever reason, an his heart was rushing. "We have so much left to do, to build, we have so many games to play and things to see and-"

"I'll be back soon."

Doc started to cover up the hole with cobblestone.

"Doc, Doc listen to me, you can't go out there alone."

Doc kept his face steely.

"DOC! DOC PLEASE! DON'T LEAVE ME HERE ALONE!" Ren pounded against the cobblestone "DON'T LEAVE ME HERE ALONE, YOU SAID YOU WOULDN'T LEAVE ME ALONE-"

And the lightness left. And Ren was alone.

"I'm scared."

---

That was five years ago now and Ren was probably the only surviving hermit in the burning world that was once Hermitcraft. He kicked the sand in frustration and watched as the sand blew away. It has been five years and he hasn't seen any of his old friends since that day and honestly, Ren was starting to think that perhaps it would be better if he just gave up and accepted the fact that fate has decided to tear apart Hermitcraft and there was nothing he could do about it. It's not like you could defy what's written in the stars, right?

The brunette violently shook his head. No, he couldn't start thinking thoughts like that. Not after he had vowed that he'd find the other hermits, especially Doc.

Ren kept walking in a random direction. He had to keep going, keep moving and find the others, find Doc.

He's said that so many times, repeating it over and over again in hopes that maybe it'll happen, that maybe he'll find them.

He's said it so many times that he started to lose hope. Maybe he'll never find them, never see Doc smile and laugh with him-

The brunette violently shook his head again, gripping his head.

Keep moving, find them, Ren thought.

Keep moving, find them.

Keep moving, find them.

KEEP MOVING, FIND THEM.

KEEP MOVING, FIND THEM.

Snapping out of his mental chanting, Ren noticed a tall black structure protruding from the ground in the distance. There was no questioning who built it, the building style didn't resemble any of his old friends and Ren most certainly didn't build it.

The brunette started sprinting, charging towards the building. Perhaps they'll be there and even if they weren't, at least there'll be loot and things that he'd find useful.

As soon as Ren reached the structure, he felt a weird feeling in his guts. The type that told him something was going to happen, for better or for worse.

Maybe Ren shouldn't enter.

What if the hermits were in there? Maybe he should just take a peek, after all, he had nothing to lose at this point.

But as soon as he went in, his heart started to beat a thousand times a second as he froze.

There stood right in front of him with his back turned towards Ren was Doc. His old friend.

He couldn't believe it, after five years he's finally found someone!

However those thoughts quickly dissipated as the Doc turned around to face Ren, and his heart plummeted.

Doc was wearing a mask, and not just any mask, but one of theirs

"Nice to see you here, old friend."

Score: 11 (Spectators' Favourite)