~The First Step~ a Hermitcraft AU

Chapter 42

wc: 1729

Grian awoke to shouting.

He wrenched his door open, eyes wide and brows furrowed as he surveyed the scene. Listeners flew and ran, smoke filling the halls. Screams of "fly away" and "code violet" flooded the entire place; in the distance, Grian could hear swords clash.

The Staff materialized in Grian's hand as he shrugged on a coat and slammed open the doors of all the Hermits.

"Get up! Follow me!" he yelled, making sure that any sleeping Hermits were awake and any awake Hermits were up and following him. Once all the Hermits had been gathered, he ran down the corridor, leading them down the stairs for people who lacked wings. It still hurt to know that he couldn't join the ones soaring down from upper levels to join the battle, and he couldn't just leap over the railing and leave the Hermits stranded.

"Grian!" X shouted, and Grian turned to him as the group descended the stairs. "What's-"

"We've been discovered," Grian replied, grinding his jaw. "Someone had to have sold us out."

"Where are we going?!" Scar asked, and Grian realized he was flying, vex wings on his back, a sign of his status as a nature faerie.

"I don't know a location, but I'm fighting," Grian growled. The group was silent, but Grian could hear the sounds of swords being unsheathed.

The group burst from the stairs. Grian did not hesitate to join the Listeners fending off soldiers in steel armor, broken rectangles carved into their helmets. The Hermits were quick to follow, and Grian felt relief knowing that the brash determination of these silly people would come in handy, but afraid for their lives.

Grian moved faster than he thought, swiping out the legs of three soldiers with his staff in one fell swoop and letting the golden magic flow through his veins. One golden blast after another lead soldiers to fall before him.

A clang resounded to his left, and Grian whipped his head around to look. He saw Mumbo, who'd been eerily quiet as of late, holding off a soldier's sword. The only reason his hand hadn't been completely severed was the heavy metal communicator that he had never bothered to remove. Grian immediately reached over, cracked the man's neck, and tossed him away, eyes blazing.

Mumbo stared at him, eyes shocked.

"Don't stop," Grian shouted over his shoulder. "If you stop, you die."

The scene unfolded before Grian's eyes. There had to be at least hundreds of troops, invading or ready to invade; he couldn't hold back.

"STAND BACK!" he roared, and the Listeners obeyed, retreating from whatever battles they were currently in. The moment the last Listener had moved out of peripheral vision, his staff slammed the ground.

Golden lines extended from the point of contact with the floor, cutting off the Watchers from the Listeners and Hermits. Walls rose towards the ceiling, amber glow bouncing off the ceiling. One unlucky soldier who hadn't been able to stop his momentum crashed into the barrier, and Grian lashed out his staff. The Watcher slumped to the floor.

"Grian-" someone shouted from behind him. The wall had not only served as a way to keep the Watchers out but also as a way to keep the Listeners and others in. This isn't a battle you have to fight, Grian thought, but let it serve as an example.

Grian no longer possessed wings, but the power thrumming through his veins did not require physical limbs. His feet rose off the floor, and he loomed over the army that had seemingly been frozen. No, this wasn't Grian, this was the Xelqua the people had heard stories about, and the golden glow that had overtaken his eyes was proof.