Artiifex sends you right on over to the palace coords, and you have to take a moment to just... take in the change. Kipper hadn’t been exaggerating about how different it looked since his... half death? Ascension? Your friend and crush is now some type of god and if you don’t think about that too hard maybe you can avoid panic.
Part of you thinks this is a terrible idea, and has a lifetime of solid reasons why.
The other part of you is distracted by all the pretty flowers covering everything.
Scratching nervously at the one arm that isn’t stitched together, you step forward. Kipper said he was in his block, so you head there. A guard falls in behind you as you go. At the very least, you don’t have to worry about getting lost.
> You make it to the theatre room, immediately easing yourself down onto the big couch in front of the television. It takes some extra wriggling to get yourself comfortable with the beast legs. Kat sprawls out on the floor, Fex curls up in your lap.
> You didn't think to look in the mirror before leaving, which is unfortunate, because the fact that you haven't been sleeping is really showing. Whoops.
> Fidget while you wait. Eventually Fex is bothered and hops down to join Kat.
Karkat huffs as he runs to keep up with his mate's stride, watching for potential trouble as she talks. Nepeta had an idea where Sollux might be barely a minute after getting Kankri to cough up his logs with the clown that scared him into frying his palmhusk, and an hour and a half later they're getting close to where he could be.
An entire underwater, secret bunker, was quite the surprise to learn about. It was down deep, and Nepeta theorizes it has wards and technology to prevent it from being picked up on scans and such. She found out about it some time ago and had been preparing to slip in soon-- meaning she already had the necessary security hacks.
(Nepeta is so good at pursuing her curiosity. Karkat loves his mate. Has he mentioned he loves his mate? He loves his mate.)
Nepeta slows to a walk, Karkat slows to a jog. He nods when she glances his way, confirming that he's listening.
"We're either gonna find Sol in the residential blocks or the dungeons below, and in either case we're gonna have to pass through the dungeons anyway. I think this is where your witch friend has been spending most of her time, by the way."
SHE HAS A NAME, YOU KNOW.
"What is it?"
Karkat squints, slowing down a bit. SHIT. He shakes his head, picking up pace again. ANYWAY, THE PLAN. YOU GET US TO THE RESIDENTIAL BLOCKS AND THE DUNGEONS, I FIND SOLLUX, THEN WHAT?
"The dungeons lead to the main access point for all the hidden tunnels through this place. We can get in there and take the long, out of sight way around. There's a small bay with emergency escape pods below the bunker. We slip into there, get Sollux back on land, and help him lay low until he can find a new hiding place. We come back before anyone realizes we're gone and say we got in a mood for a wild night in the woods. No one will question it."
Karkat coughs a bit at the woods comment. AND WHAT ABOUT THE WITCH?
Nepeta grins, pointing Karkat into a side room. No cameras in here. "Two seconds of confusion is all the time I need."
She is a leading huntress. Karkat doesn't doubt it. He catches the hat tossed to him, covering his horns and pulling a kerchief up to hide his face. They're both in a bit of a rush, no time to be fancy. Nepeta still somehow had time to grab weapons.
NOT TO QUESTION YOUR TACTICS, BUT GRENADES IN AN UNDERWATER BUNKER?
"It's sleeping gas, Kitty, there's bound to be guards outside where Sol's being kept."
RIGHT. Karkat gestures to the vent he's going to crawl into. Nepeta is about a meter too big to fit. PASS IT OVER, THEN. I'LL SEE YOU SOON.
"Fuck 'em up, babe."
NEPETA, PLEASE, I GO OUT FOR DRINKS WITH MOST OF THESE TROLLS. Karkat gives Nepeta a kiss before she hoists him up on her shoulder, placing him within easy reach of the vent. He hands her the panel, she hands him the knockout gas, and Karkat crawls up into the vents. From here it's up to him staying subtle, locating Sollux, and not crawling right into a hundred meter drop. Vents are hazardous like this.
Kanaya has taught Karkat patience. Otherwise his rising apprehension would probably be a full-blown panic by now, forty minutes of vent-crawling later. He catches glimpses of guards and basic staff, is that Hayloh Dollee, from the kitchens, sir? Definitely him. Karkat frowns and tries to follow the vents back in the direction he's coming from. Who down here would be getting Dollee food? It's a bit high-end, even here in the palace.
Shit, that's Jolyre. That's Jolyre, The Bonebite (title pending). One of the trolls Karkat goes drinking with, and one of the more intimidating clowns he knows. Jolyre is accompanied by four bluebloods-- Paloos, Zzaner, Sitano, Friesi. Is that to keep him from going out of control? Where's his signmate, Jolras? The two are generally inseparable.
That has to be Sollux's block they're standing by. Karkat has never witnessed it, of course, but Sollux just... has the air of someone who would cause enough trouble that a clown and four bluebloods would be needed to watch his door. The potential has always been there. Karkat sighs, kicks the grate out of the vent, and throws the canister of sleeping gas into the middle of the group.
It doesn't kick in right away, of course. They're highbloods, and Karkat isn't sure if it will even work on Jolyre. But it's causing a ruckus and clouding up their views, which means none of the five are prepared for Nepeta to emerge from the shadows. She'll deal with them. Karkat drops to the floor, snatches keys off the already-unconscious Paloos, and rushes into the block. Sollux is nowhere to be seen. But there's a piano, a guitar, a whole prepared pile... even with what Karkat doesn't recognize, this block was tailored to Sollux. He has to be in here somewhere.
But where? Karkat doesn't rush through the room searching, startling Sollux could mean claws to the throat. He closes the door and the block falls silent. He listens.
Shallow, panicked breathing. Sollux is hiding in the pile.
Karkat walks over, unfortunately muffled by the carpet, and crouches a couple meters away. He pulls the kerchief down from his face and knocks on the table. The pile jolts. He knocks again. And again, and again, and again, when is Sollux going to get curious...
"KK...?"
Karkat smiles, starts to sign a response as Sollux cautiously emerges from the pile, but he falters when he actually sees him. Sollux looks awful. Like... well, like a gang of highblooded trolls beat him to shit. Karkat swallows his rage, makes the anger untwist from his face. Sollux looks terrified. Even more than he did when Karkat forced him to realize that Eridan Ampora murdering him was inevitable.
LONG TIME NO SEE, SOLLUX. LET'S GET YOU OUT OF HERE.
"No," Sollux whispers, backing away. He's crying. "No, go back, KK you have to go back now, they'll-- the witch-- she'll kill you too, KK, you have to go--"
Someone already tried to get him out. Sollux is still backing away, panicked, and Karkat claps his hands together to get his attention back.
YOU ARE NOT GETTING LEFT HERE. WE HAVE A PLAN, SOLLUX. YOU'LL BE SAFE SOON.
"We?" Realization dawns. "Nepeta..."
EXACTLY. WE'VE GOT SHIT HANDLED, SOLLUX, TRUST US. Karkat reaches for him, but doesn't follow. He can't force Sollux into a rescue. WE HAVE TO HURRY.
Sollux follows Karkat's lead, and immediately stumbles over his own legs. Those must have been fucked up by the beatings, too. Karkat doesn't hesitate, picking the taller troll up and rushing to the door. In the hallway, Nepeta drops the now-unconscious Jolyre from a chokehold. She snarls when she sees Snips, and immediately takes off down the hallway. Karkat follows.
"Dungeon's two floors down!" Nepeta calls back. "Karkat, should I carry...? No, no you're right, I'm the better fighter. You've got this."
"She got big," Sollux mumbles, and immediately goes back to gritting his teeth as Karkat carries him. He tries not to think on how extensive the injuries might be. He tries very hard. One of Sollux's hands fumbles to pull the kerchief back up over Karkat's face.
Someone above must have their backs, because there's no one between them and the dungeons. But approaching the main chamber, where Nepeta says the tunnel entrance is, they hear voices-- three, and two of them sounding seadweller. Neither of them are Feferi Peixes, so who...? Karkat hangs back, ready to bolt with Snips, while Nepeta creeps forward. She's out of sight for a few moments. Karkat tries not to grind his teeth.
"So are you guys magic or something?"
Nepeta is talking? Karkat and Sollux exchange confused looks. Well, more like Karkat gives Sollux a confused look while Sollux stares dully back.
"Well, that's a dead witch I'm seeing right there, and to kill a witch you have to be either very, very sneaky, or magic yourselves. None of you really strike me as sneaky."
The witch is dead? Sollux reacts to that with first disbelief, then fear. Three magic users could be a lot worse than one. Karkat tries to make out the other trolls' words.
"I take offense to that, I'm sneaky as shit!"
"You wvere just asking if you could plant a bomb."
"A bomb?!"
"I said no bombs..."
"It wwas just a question."
Sollux's fingers dig into Karkat's shoulder when the third speaker lisps his part of the conversation. He tries to stand and Karkat immediately pulls him back. He has a bad feeling. He has a bad, bad feeling. Who are these trolls?
"Anyway," Nepeta growls. "You guys have killed the witch, you're not planting a bomb, so can you just move the fuck on along? Because I have a rescue to be doing and you are directly in my way."
"Wwhat a coincidence, wwe're just finishing up our owwn rescue!"
"I'm not leaving without my sword," the lisper speaks up again. Sollux looks like he's been stabbed. "We need to get Snips out, too."
"Oh shit, Snips is here?"
"Yeah."
Sollux is grabbing at Karkat again. "That's me," he chokes. "I'm Snips. Artiifex is..."
He faints. Passes right the fuck on out, and thuds very loudly to the floor. The bickering in the dungeon falls silent. Karkat hears Nepeta's claws unsheath, her growling at the strangers to stay back. But if Sollux is Snips and the lisping troll in the dungeon is meaning to get him out...
Karkat picks up his friend and runs into the dungeon. Nepeta, two Amporae, and a goldblood stare down at him. One Ampora looks relatively unscathed, the other is nursing obviously fresh wounds, and the goldblood looks... even worse than Sollux, actually. He looks like Sollux, actually. An real gold Captor, but it seems he failed to develop the secondary set of arms. His wrists look like something tried to melt through them. Something probably did. Karkat cringes.
Nepeta utters a soft hiss of Karkat what the fuck. Karkat gently sets Snips down on the floor and signs.
HE'S SNIPS. LISPER CAME TO RESCUE HIM?
II diid. diid you?
Karkat squints in surprise. He wasn't expecting a stranger to sign back at him, but it makes things a little easier at least. He snorts. OBVIOUSLY. YOU SAID YOU NEED YOUR SWORD?
He looks at Nepeta, She frowns, then picks up Snips herself. He looks a lot less comically oversized carried by her, more tragically beat down. The bombsy Ampora looks... homicidal. Nepeta frowns at Karkat again.
"Your sword is likely to be locked up towards the top of the bunker, near Megido's office," she tells the goldblood. "Twenty floors up, head east. That's the best estimate I can give you. Now, if you'll excuse us--"
The trolls do not excuse them. The trolls are actively blocking their paths. Karkat braces himself for trouble, Nepeta is already growling, but the goldblood speaks up again.
"Cae, I'm taking Nadaya with me. Get them out of here."
Cae, the more somber looking Ampora, doesn't seem too pleased with the situation. But he nods, moves forward, and does the most obnoxiously polite little nod at them that Karkat has ever seen. He can't decide if he feels respected or patronized.
"Wvould you be wvilling to let me take you vwith me?"
"We already have a way out," Nepeta answers, glaring less at Cae and more at his horns. "Thanks."
"Meaning no disrespect," Cae says, nodding again but this time more at Nepeta. Karkat squints. "But teleportation is faster. I'd like to offer you my servwices."
He can tell a poor who now. Nepeta stares at him. Karkat continues squinting, looks questioningly at his mate, then slowly nods. SAY YES.
In another second Karkat finds himself, Sollux, and Nepeta standing in a completely different location. Someone's quarters? A tiny white meowbeast sprints under a couch when they arrive. Cae then sets out an aid kit, a tray with bottles of beer and water on it, tells them to make themselves comfortable, and promptly vanishes.
"Wai--" Nepeta huffs. Looks at Karkat. "What the fuck just happened."
SNIPS HAS MADE NEW FRIENDS.
"So, he goes by Snips now?"
GUESS SO. Karkat shrugs. SET HIM DOWN ON THE COUCH, I'M GOING TO SEE WHAT I CAN PATCH UP.
"Pass me a beer, too."
Karkat shakes his head and proceeds to open the kit up and check the damage himself. He tries not to think too hard about the obviously tortured goldblood and the... very evidently magical Amporae that came to rescue him. There's also the matter of that clown harrassing Kankri, the whole reason Karkat and Nepeta ever found out about Sollux. Hopefully Sollux will wake up soon and explain what he's been up to these last few perigees. He's made some... interesting new friends.
Friends apparently willing to jump into the not-exactly proverbial fire for him.
> The migraines are honestly worse than everything else in your stockpile of injuries. > ...Also you feel a little upset because Kip hasn't messaged at all tonight, and a part of you thinks that he was supposed to. Or are you just being tired and clingy? > (You aren't his diamond. This is a mutual crush and a lot of confusion. Calm down.)
Kipper is still asleep, and has been for a while. He must’ve nodded off sometime during the third movie, but honestly, you didn’t notice until it was over. That was embarrassing. And awkward, what were you supposed to do with a suddenly sleeping, human version of your friend?
Plus, Kat was pretty happily cuddled in, and would whine if you tried to move either of them.
You’d nudged the pizza box away so it didn’t get kicked, settled back, and watched more movies. Kipper would wake up again soon, probably. Might as well binge a few things in the meantime.
