A Glitch of Magic - a Hermitcraft (and third life?) Fanfiction

Chapter 8

Me: casually writing the previous chapter 

My brother: what are you writing?

My parents and grandparents also in the room *listening*

Me: *internal panic* 

Me: a story?

Also, what's this chapter actually going to be? 

Ok, another interruption, but EVERYONE CHECK OUT THE 'AM NOT' HERMITCRAFT AU ANIMATIC SERIES ON YOUTUBE. IT'S SO FRICKING AMAZING. 

PART 3.5 IS  L I T E R A L L Y  ABOUT THE CONVEX AND IT'S AMAZING. 

Oblivious to everything slowly going wrong, Tango landed in Boatem village. It didn't take him long to spot Impulse's starter base, and he dashed towards it, knowing his friend was out and he could leave a surprise. But as he was about to enter, he heard Mumbo's voice. 

'Impulse isn't in.' The moustached hermit explained. Tango turned.

'Exactly! I want to prank him.'

'A...are you sure he'll take it the right way?' 

'Of course he would! Why do you even need to ask that?'

'Do you... know... what's been going on recently?'

'What do you mean?' Tango frowned. Now he was properly paying attention, he noticed Mumbo looked more stressed than normal, with his prized moustache unkempt and eyes red from crying. 'What's happened? I know no one saw Scar for ages, and then he suddenly appeared...'

'Grian, Bdubs, Cub and Scar have all gone missing. And Scar's... turned evil, basically. He broke the Boatem pole, turned really weird, murdered Impulse, and no one's seen him since.'

'He asked me where Bdubs was and he seemed perfectly fine then. As in, just the other day.'

'Really?'

'Yeah... I'll keep my eyes out for anything weird. And I'll tell you if I see Grian at all.' 

'Thanks...' Mumbo walked off again, and Tango entered Impulse's starter base, pulling out some redstone and pistons. A simple fall trap would work well. He began setting everything up, and it didn't take long for it to work. With a smile, he tested it, and the pit opened right next to Tango, almost making him fall in. 

Surprised, he crashed back, landing on the ground. His hands lit on fire, quickly setting the floor alight. 

'Crap!' He burst out, getting to his feet and trying to stomp it out. 'Crap! Crap! Crap!' The fire spread quickly across the room, and up the walls. Tango grabbed a bucket of water, chucking it at the worst of the flames. It didn't do anything to help, and his panic was making everything worse. Stupid magic! Stupid, stupid blaze magic! Why did he go to Gem's base?! Why did she curse him with this?! 

It didn't take long for it to reach a point of no return. Tango ran out of the burning remains of his best friend's starter home, hoping no one was watching, hoping no one knew it was him. 

Might've burnt down your base! I will repair it later.

He left a sign, hoping Impulse would be alright with it, before flying away. Almost as soon as he'd landed in his base again, the message appeared in chat.

ImpulseSV: someone burnt down my starter base!

ImpulseSV: I spent so long building it! 

ImpulseSV: :(

Mumbo Jumbo: I saw Tango there not too long ago. But he wouldn't something like this, would he?

ImpulseSV: was it Scar? 

Pearlescentmoon: I can see it from my base. It's awful. Why would someone do something like this. And isn't firetick off?

ImpulseSV: should be...

Tango bit his lip, knowing he couldn't tell Impy that this was his fault. 

So he resolved to hide it forever.

'Scar? Are you there?' 

'Cub? What are you doing here?'

'I was worried about you. Are you alright?'

Cub turned the corner, seeing his friend sat in the corner, trying not to crying. He rushed over, sitting next to Scar. 

'What happened?'

'It hurts...'

'What? What hurts?'

'The magic. The scars. Everything. Cub, I can't do this anymore.' 

'Don't worry, Scar. Everything will be alright.  It was the same for me. The magic just comes in bursts, and you really want to let it out, but you know you can't.' 

'I can't do this. I just can't. And I know that one slip will lose everything for both of us. Cub, I don't want to let you down.'

'Everything will be fine. I promise.' Cub replied comfortingly. 'You'll get through this.'

'When will it end?'  

'I don't know. But it will end.' 

Footsteps. Scar looked up, trying not to panic. His eyes flashed blue for a moment, and a pair of skeletal wings tore free of his clothes. It was almost impossible not to scream from the pain. Cub watched, wishing he could do more than just say everything will be fine. He took his best friend's hand, promising silently to himself that he would do whatever it took to keep him safe. Scar collapsed, exhausted, practically in Cub's lap. The wings disappeared, all signs of magic gone. Cub let him stay there, falling asleep. The footsteps grew nearer, and nearer, until they turned the corner. 

'What is going on here?!' 

'Nothing. He was just working too hard and couldn't get to bed before falling asleep. He wanted me to stay here and explain.' Cub lied easily. His boss narrowed their eyes. 

'You two have been messing around here a lot recently. And I don't care how tired your friend here is, or how hard he's apparently been working, because this is the last straw. You're fired. Both of you. You can tell him when he wakes up.

Cub watched silently as his ex-boss left again. This was it. Their cover was blown. Scar wouldn't last a week outside the safety of this place. They'd be found, and taken to whoever controlled the rest of the vexlings. As the truth set in, he began to sob. He'd blown it. He'd ruined everything. And Scar would make himself take the blame, even though this wasn't his fault. Tired, stressed, tears down his face, Cub closed his eyes and fell asleep.

The darkness was a shock when Cub woke up. The previous day flashed before him. The Evoker. Facing Scar... no, Herobrine. This wasn't Scar's fault. His friend would never do something like this. 

No, this is your fault. 

The sound of Grian's peaceful snoring reached Cub's ears, and he sighed. At least he wasn't alone in here. He and Grian could keep each other company. And as selfish as it sounded, he was glad that Grian has been trapped too, just for that reason. 

Time passed as he sat there. Cub couldn't hear anything from outside. Even if it still worked, he couldn't see his communicator to send a SOS to the other hermits. He had no idea if it was morning, afternoon, or the middle of the night. All he knew was that he was alone, trapped, helpless, with another friend he would give his life to protect. 

Finally! It is done!!