#game arch

[ajarofhoney]

ACT I: ENTER THE MEDIUM

======> Introduce yourself

Your name is Tobias Lifera, and you have a BAD FEELING.

Its not all there, its just been in recent days that this BAD FEELING has wormed its way into your chest and started growing. You have just stepped outside to try to relax while you waited for this NEW GAME to install onto your grubtop. You are one of 12 players, whom you have talked much about the NEW GAME in depth.

======> Survey Surroundings

You are currently on the roof of your hive, looking over the plot of land dedicated to the beehives and the GIANT LUSUS BEES at the base of the cliff in the distance. You are quite fond of BEEKEEPING and SWEET CONFECTIONARIES made with the STICKY SWEET GOLDEN HIVE SAP that the bees produce in abundance. In fact, it’s all you have ever known. You have lived on this NATURAL HONEY FARM all of your life, alongside the 25 other trolls who also manage both the CAFÉ and the NATURAL HONEY FARM with you. You have never felt a part of them, due to your GENETIC HIGHT DISADVANTAGE, and are often bullied harshly for the favor you have with the MANAGER.

Currently, they have gone to the BIG CITY for a month-long trip to the FEAT OF TROLL BODIES GAMES. Being Hive alone has given you peace, for now, as you take care of the bees and keep the closed CAFÉ clean.

======> Jump off the roof

You will not jump off the roof. That’s reckless and just asking for trouble.

You will, however, use your PSIIONIIC ABILITIES to float gently off the roof and over to the closest beehive. The honeybees have always been kind to you, landing on you and accepting offerings of SWEET CONFECTIONARIES and STICKY SWEET GOLDEN HIVE SAP. Right now, they seem nervous, buzzing in such a way that makes your insides twist. No matter how much you sooth them, the buzzing continues.

======> Answer your messages

The dings from your bedroom alert you to your messages, and so you pull yourself away to go answer them, slipping through the window and sitting fully on your RESTING PLATFORM on which your grubtop is perched THE GAME seems to have finished downloading, and the messages from your server host seems to have started.

practicalHoofplay: Hey

PH: Hey

PH: T00bias

PH: St00p messing with y00ur bees and c00me answer me

PH: We need t00 get started

PH: T00bias

PH: Get up Here

PH: We need t00 t00ucH base

PH: T00bias!

jarredHoney: Im heeree

JH: How did you know I wa2 with my Beeee2

JH: I wa2 out2idee

PH: Y00u’re kidding right?

PH: It’s the game

PH: I can see y00u

PH: And m00ve y00ur shit ar00und

JH: No way;

JH: That2 again2t the law2 of Eeveerything

PH: I’ll pr0000ve it t00 you

======> Stay Safe!!

You barely manage to dodge your personal safe as it flies towards your window, crashing through and landing in the garden below. The alarm in your chest jumps into your throat in a startled screech. Your computer dings and you float into the corner with it as the next messages come in

PH: 00H fuck

PH: S00rry

PH: Im n00t u2eed t00 this yet

JH: what thee FUCK

JH: How in heeveen2 did you do that

JH: I could have dieed

PH: It’s the game

PH: this is what it is

JH: I thought it wa2 a 2imulation

PH: n00, its in real life

JH: Weell I can 2eeee that

PH: We Have stuff t00 d00 s00 let’s talk

JH: okay, okay, then talk

======> What was that?

You float by your window and peer out, gazing down at the fate of your safe, crushing this odd gremlin looking thing. It squeals for a long moment before poofing into a handful of ELONGATED HEXAGONAL BIPYRAMIDS in a black puddle. Upon further inspection, there seems to be a sudden appearance of many of these dark gremlens, of various varieties and sizes, including larger Ogres figures you’d swear are taller than the hive. Your heart flutters and you float away from the window, breathing getting heavy as your back hits your door and slides down to the ground, grubtop landing in front of you.

======> Look at Zokouh’s messages

Its just about the only thing you can do right now, so you might as well

PH: alrigHt, s00 t00 start 00FF we b00tH need t00 start grinding immediately, wHicH means getting rid 00F tHe enemies. Y00u kn00w H00w t00 kill, rigHt? Well y00u sH00uld start learning at least.

PH: T00 d00 tHis y00u need t00 pick a striFe specibus. It can be anytHing, but 00nce y00u use it as a weap00n, tHat’s tHe 00nly tHing y00u can use. 00nce we Have en00ugH grist we need t00 place tHe AlcHemiter, Cruxstruder, and T00tem LatHe. THat needs t00 start as S0000N as p00ssible

PH: D00n’t w00rry ab00ut remembering all 00F tHis. I can d00 tHat F00r us. Just be sure t00 d00 wHat I say s00 tHis can g00 sm0000tHly. We need every00ne t00 get t00 tHe next stage.

PH: s00 F00r n00w, Find a weap00n and start FigHting.

PH: ill alcHemise s00metHing easier F00r us t00 c00mmunicate 00n s0000n.

{practicalHoofplay went idle}

======> Examine your Server menu

It seems to be true what Zokouh said, you could see right in to his apartment, where he was easily tearing apart the weird goblin looking things, collecting the strange shapes, making a “Grist Cache” increase. This feels surreal for you, You shouldn’t be able to do this. This is unnatural. Finally you close your grubtop and stand up, preparing yourself for the next step.

======> Get your safe back

You walk over to the window and let your hands stretch towards the safe. Closing your eyes, you cup the safe with your PSIIONIIC ABILITIES and lift it off the remains of the gremlin, pulling it through the window as it zaps with your energy. You set it down and open it with a ZAP, stowing your laptop for safety and leaving a note on top of it saying “Don’t touch, Laptop inside”

======> Tobias: Find a Weapon

[ajarofhoney]

Act 3: Investigation

Time is normalized as you get used to the day to day again. With the planet saved you could now safely focus on the game, building up Zukouh's hive to reach the first and second gate. It seems with your time difference you had gained enough grist and experience to level up, gaining half the achievements the day you got out. Now, with all the supplies you collected, you build up your own hive, creating a honeycomb structure to build to the gate. You weren't technechally supposed to, but Zukouh had pushed you aside long enough.

You also began searching for the answers to what was wrong with your session, searching the void for secret doors or things that you could investigate, using it to pick up secret conversations. Meditation brought to your knowledge secret chat logs between two persons. You couldnt tell who was who, only that one was in the session and the other seemed to be guiding them. The outsider was telling your session mate how to program the sprites to create the most powerful ring, and you noted the frustration that they shared in the random programming of the sprites later in the conversation.

Eyes opening, you ponder on this new information, someone inside the game was being guided by someone outside. It was a start, and you tuck the records onto a private drive you had created, only accessible to you via your ports on your head, and tuck it into your stash in the void.

[ajarofhoney]

Act 2: Personal Quest

Isolation pt.3

The last months of his isolation found Tobias beginning to learn the nature of the game session he was in. As he listened and learned from the void and the terrors, he heard whispers of 'trapped', 'tainted', and 'corrupted'. The constant whispers of this were lost in the past, a constant din in the background. Something to drown out. But now, as you meditate, listening to the whispers, you hear them clearly. More clearly now than ever.

"Trapped, cut off, exhiled, doomed", "tainted code. Tainted game. Not right. Not right.", "Corrupted, Corrupted session, the scratch"

Tobi pulls himself from his trance, skittish with the new context to the game. Something wasnt right with the game. The horrorterrors knew this, and now so did Tobi. Asking Nix about this proved cryptic, as the enormous entity stated simply, "the time to learn grows short. The time to act will be upon you shortly."

With nothing left to learn, Tobi throws himself into training, gaining in skill with every passing day. Changing secret items, opening rifts in the darkest shadow, communing with the shadows, and using all his skills to complete puzzle temples.

With the final day coming to a close, Tobi held tight the much more worn bear, coming to the door of his sanctuary for the last time. Nyx spoke to him, in a voice that leveled the seriousness of her words.

"Your journey in isolation is at a close, Tobias Lifera, however your journey on this path extends before you. As you have heard, the game you play is not how its supposed to be. You must continue to play, but you must discover the secrets hidden from you by your fellow players, and above all, you must fix the game without triggering the scratch. Have faith, Tobias, in yourself."

On that note the door opens, and stepping through, Tobias returns to real time, to the cave he left so long ago. He flys up and out of the cave, feeling that familiar feeling that something belongs in the empty. Setting the bear beside a tree on the cliffside, he feels through the veil and grips the silky not-material tight. With a deep breath, he heaves back and pulls, unveiling a lively kingdom of consorts, and freeing a large cloud of pollen and rain as the veil that was hiding them dissolves. The pollen and rain spread over the planet and from the epicenter of where the empty used to be, radiating over the trees and filling the forest again with this space-like light from every single leaf as it comes alive.

This path is complete, But for Tobi, the journey has just begun

[ajarofhoney]

Act 2: Personal Quest

Isolation: Pt 1

Time is relative. Thats what they say, whoever they are, but they usually refer to the perception of the steady passage of time, how, as you get older, a day is a smaller percentage of your life. Time for Tobias, however, was drastically skewed. While for most users, a day had come and gone since Tobi's radio silence, for him, a full four months had passed.

Upon walking into the void portal, the gold blooded troll found himself floating in the void itself. The whispers, once something only in his head, now came from all around him. Where once he only caught snippets of phrases, now an upset din stirred around him, a cacophony only he could hear. From this chaos, the voice of Nix emerged, giving him his first, impossible seeming task. "Tobias Lifera, you must open a door. This door will lead you to where you will rest, but you must reach and open it."

Tobias took nearly a month to produce this door to somewhere, pulling various objects through the veil between the void and the real world. The bigger things got, the harder they were to pull straight through, however the smaller objects got easier and easier with each passing day. With nothing to see but the bear and his hands, he grew almost desperate for this door to somewhere. His only marking of the passage of time was Nix, repeating his task on what he assumed was a daily basis.

On the twentieth day, he discovered his ability to manipulate the fabric of the void, reveiling the objects he was pulling through before they were in his hands. This new technique found him searching for this door, rather than grasping at straws, trying to randomly find the door. Finally, after twenty-nine days, he pulled back the veil to reveal a familiar apartment door. Grasping the knob, he yanked it open and pulled himself through.

The sudden appearence of gravity caused him to collapse to the ground as he struggled to adjust to the change. The apartment he found himself in was Branwen's, though, at the same time, it wasnt. It had all of her things, the furnature, the blankets, the rugs, it just lacked her scent. Tobi found himself almost crying at this fact. "But honestly," he thought aloud, unused to the relative stillness and silence around him, "what did i expect."

He struggled to stand, and as he did he found himself feeling exausted. For the first time in what felt like forever, he felt the need to sleep, and so he stumbled into the living room and collaped into the blanket pile, a replica of one his morail made for their cuddle and jam sessions. He took the bear from the safety of his shirt and snuggled it, passing out shortly after.

What commenced in the passing months was a routine. Tobias slept in this replica apartment, and every day, he would wake to the Voice of Nyx, instructing him on his next task. With no one to talk to, and no other physical entities, Tobi threw himself into training. The days passed quickly with this routine as he learned not to blindly reach in the veil, but rather, to manipulate the veil itself, and then to make it show you what you wanted to see.

The teaching method of the void was very 'trial and error'. "Manipulating the void is something that must be practiced, it cannot be shown to you, every void user experiences it in their own way." Nyx had explained, on a frustrating day where Tobi felt like he couldnt 'get it'.

The start of the fourth month marked the start of his mental training. His coping with lonliness had driven him to voice his every thought out loud. There were times when he would pretend to be others he knew, holding full pseudo conversations with himself. His mental training, while it was mostly to listen to the void, it was also to ground and stablise him. Meditation, alongside a 'vow of silence' marked the end of his fourth month in the void. While the lonliness made his heart ache for any company at all, he refused to cave to it.

[ajarofhoney]

Act 2: Personal Quest

The Choice pt.2

It was a long while before you picked up the wherewithal to face Nix. To decide. To make your choice. It was made easier with the gift from Branwen, a physical representation of your promise to her. Her stuffed yellow bear in a little bowtie. It smelled like her and if you held it long enough it comforted you, if only a little. It was enough. You needed to get it back to her, so you needed to choose.

As you float into the chamber Nix resided in, you clutch the bear to your chest, keeping as calm as you could. You take a moment to find your voice, shifting nervously. A deep breath, and the teddy bear floats beside you, bolstering you as you straighten your back, head up tall. "I need to master my aspect. I choose the Path of Knowledge.... uh... please" you shrink a tad as you speak, glancing up at the figure for a responce.

The Void Denizen tilts their head, holding up their right hand as the cloud that displayed your choice appears in a swirl of the symbol on your chest. Their voice synchronizes with the voice of the whispers, "Tobias Lifera, the Path of Knowledge is open to you. Come forth, and obtain whats yours." The vision shifts and a portal into void forms, beckoning you in.

Steeling yourself, you float upwards to meet the hand, landing on the gigantic palm in front of the gate. Your hands tremble, clutching the bear tightly but gently. Gaze shifting one last time to the Denizen's face, you lock your bicolored eyes onto the void, stepping deliberately into your Path of Knowledge.

[ajarofhoney]

Act 2 Personal Quest

You're given a choice, or rather, THE choice.

"There are two paths to take", Nix explains in a distorted way, similar to the voice of the whispers. You have a feeling its the same ancient language, the language of void. They raise a hand, displaying a vision in a cloud, "You may take the Path of the Ignorant, reach into the void, take the queen back now, and leave, never to return, never to know." The vision displays such an act, an act of you pulling the queen from the void in the chamber, and taking her to the surface. It seems ideal. The sooner your quest is complete, the sooner you can get out.

Before you can raise your voice, however, a caveat is introduced. "To take the Path of the Ignorant is to take the path of denial. Your Consorts will perish on this path, as will a part of you." The vision shifts to sick and dying Consorts, their bodies lining the paths of their town and the whole planet vanishing. The jarring imagery makes you take a step back. Shaking your head, you find your voice, "What's the other choice?"

Nyx tilts their head, dropping the one hand to hold up the other, producing a similar cloud. "The Path of Knowledge. Those who take this Path gain mastery of Their Aspect. You will be trained in the full range of the abilities granted to you." You see in this vision, yourself pulling things out of the void, larger things than thought possible. Hiding yourself and others from perception, discovering secrets known by no one. Mastering these powers ould grant you safty, you felt, and perhaps some leverage against those who seek to control you.

Once again, Nix raises their voice, "However," they pause,  leaning down closer to you, "The knowledge you will gain must be learned over time. The outside world will have no knowldge of this passage of time, much like they have no knowledge of your passage of time. To them, it will be a day. To you, an half sweep."

A feeling of dread passes over you as you stumble back, towards the tunnel you came from, tripping over your feet as the feeling overwhelms you. Nix straightens as you retreat, holding up both hands as they display the visions they have shown you. "The choice is yours to make, Tobias Lifera. I will give you a day to think, but then you must choose."

Their voice resonates through you as you get up and half run, half fly down the tunnel, tears streaming down your face. You cant choose. You cant.

[ajarofhoney]

Act 2 Personal Quest

You arent sure what you expected

You fall for a good long while, head over heels over head again. To the point when you feel the fear, past the point where you see the cliffside disappear. Where gravity disappears but you still feel like you're falling so fast.

You want to go back, to spread your wings and fly to the safty of the edge so far above, but the whispers say a little longer. Just a little longer. You're almost there just trust us. The wind whips around you and you imagine rushing towards the ground, to splat like an egg on that ground. To leave nothing but a gold splatter, and you want to pull up, pull up and stop falling. You need to slow down. You need to stop!! YOU NEED TO STOP!!

As you are about to fly the fuck out of there, you feel tendrils snatch you from the nothing, stopping your descent and pulling you through the familiar feeling of velvet that the void's veil is. You're set on your feet and beconed onwards through the cave-like structure you are suddenly in.

Old honeycomb litter the walls looking like the dying trees far above you, filled with the emptiness of space. The cave tilts down as you float along the path. Finally, you reach a large antichamber, housing a large being, a robe flowing in and out of several cave systems, wrapping around them like a shroud of nothingness

Nix, the denizen of Void, gazes down at you with a peircing, all knowing gaze

[ajarofhoney]

ACT 2

======> Get a Hold of Yourself

HoneyBeeJarSprite approaches your form, pulling you into their glassy embrace. "Noot reeaadyy. Preepaare yoour queest beed." Pointing upwards, they indicated going above the canopies to find your quest bed, whatever that was. You just wanted to drown out the song, even as it ate at you, but you nodded, giving a hug to your kernel sprite before standing. Taking deep breaths, you willed yourself to suck it up and move on. Pacing back and forth to build up will, you slowly feel the song subside.

With that done, Your psi scooped you up, and you floated yourself above the canopies, high above, you could see the illuminated pathways amidst the dark foliage, alongside the brightest spots marking villages. It was with very little difficulty that you found the "quest bed", towering above the foliage close to The Empty, further along the chasm. Its color was the deepest blue, accented by an almost black color, and were it not for its architectural shape it would have blended right in.

 ======> Get to your Quest bed

((violence, gore, character death, horrorrterrorrs, mind control (kinda) below))

The trip to the Quest bed was largely uneventful. With no husktop to chat on, the journey was silent and long. The song of loneliness ate at your soul as you flew yourself towards the large, overgrown structure. Even HoneySprite was weirdly quiet, not even the faint buzzing could be heard in their body. But with everything on your mind, you elected to ignore it.

Upon entering, the first thing you noticed was the silence. The ringing in your ears ceased as you crossed the threshold of the stone obelisk. The stone structure more closely resembled a recoopracoon than an actual bed, but you didn’t mind. It was a nice change. In the center of the structure, a circular platform rose up, marked on top with six waxing crescents, circling a perimeter around the center of the circle. You hop up onto it and lay down, asking honeysprite in a casual manner. 

"So... what now..... at the quest bed, do we take a nap? Meditate? Ruminate on our loneliness?"

HoneySprite is silent for a long while. So long that you sit up from your position to look at them. The glass bee is holding one of the weapons you made, a long hive tool, with pointed spikes along the side. Deemed worthless, you hat chucked it aside. How did it get here? Come to think of it, why did HoneySprite have it? And why did they look so.... off like their glass was smoky and the honey inside.... was black

"HoneySprite? You okay there?" You sat up, worried for the only friend you had during these trials. The glass containing them darkened more.

"̮̦̣̫͔̖̐̂̊̉I̳ͬ̀̂̊͊͒ ̤͐ͣ̔͒͗̎a̳͖̬̜͉ͪ̍̂̔̂̚ͅm̮͇̉ ̯̯̮̟̰̈ͅf̪̗̼̖̞̝̽̃ị̹̜͓͔͓̯͑͒i͈̘̮̘̱̺̿ͤͣ̔̂ͅn̼̫͎̂̒̊ͤͨe͉̞ͯ̿̐̐̌.̰̗̣̰̰̃̆ B̝͍̋̉̊̅ͪ͆e̼̮̜̪̩̣̤͌ͥͮ̒ͤ̃̄ṯ̠͋̂ͫ͑ͥt̯̣̬̯͚̞̉̔̏̓ͨͅe͇̖͓͖e̫͇̱̹ͤ̅rͣͮͩͧ͐̚ ̄̊̅t̹͎̤̰̘̝̪̒͋̎ͤ̏̔̈h̯̘̳͙̳̪̻ͦ̓̋ã̝̅̆ͯ̌̄̏a̳̬̰̬͐ͭ̈́ͦͮ͗ṉ͎̭̙̥̗̂ͅ ̈͗e̪̹̩ͫ̈́ͭ͋eͦv̏ͯ͂ͭ̒̑v̹̙̹͚̰̟̾ͧ̃̓e̫̜̪̬͂̈ͧͬ̓͒e͎̹̠͍ͪͧ͑͌̚r̜͂̆̋̄͑ͮ̚,͇͔̙̩͉ͧ ̊̀̃̌i͔̙̮̦̫̍̑̓ͬi̗̅͋̋͂n̪̖̣͕͇̻̣n̤̜̫̖̿̐̑͆ͪͪ ̫̣̯̙̙ͦf̙͙̬̘̓ͅa͕͓̭̦̜͆̽͑a̞̭͇̜̲͓͆̎̍̉c͍̻͕̝̥ͩ̓ͪͮ̓ͪ͌t̜̙̤̦ͩ͊,͇̲͉ͤ̌"̹͎̘ͮͤͦ ̗͇̇͊̊Their normally sweet multi-leveled voice sounded eerie now, the different pitches creating a dissonance as they spoke, that somehow sounded distorted and... not normal. They raised their weapon and turned it on you, swinging down and narrowly missing your feet. You scramble upright and start backing away, tears welling at the betrayal from this helper and friend. "What... what are you d-doing?"

The sprite advances, swinging at you casually as they talk, voice grating and buzzing on your eardrums. 

 "̱͉̥͎̺̭̃͊̓̓̔̔A͇̭͚̮̭ͭͫ̈́l̜͐̿ͪl̝ẘ̹̱͔̖͒͌ͮͣ̑͑ͅa̻͎̘̮̭͈̐a͍̳̱̽͋y̋̏͆͆͋̄s̅̔̑ͩ̏̇̎ ̼̘͍͍̳̩̋̾ṡ͈̪͇͎͙̻s̭͔̍̓͒ṓ͉̟̅͗͒o̝̦̦̩̘̐̐̉̎͆̚ ͍̳̣ͅw̫͚̝̠̉̃̾̀ͭ̏̊h͖͍̥̦͈̱̉ͣ̈́̚i͆ͥ͐͂̏́̀n̰̺ͤ̿ͯ̓e͈͚̤͐̄̉̍̓̐e̤͕̳̟̘͕y͕̗̗̰͆ ̪̻̼̆a̖̖͌̽ͮ̿n̙̰͉͙̣͎̦̎͒d͖̥̦̬͕̰̮̽ ̭̣̩̹̥ͅd͓̳͚̪̱̩ͅe̬͇͍̜͆̐ͫ̒̐ͩ̚ͅm̱͋̂͒̍ͣa̩͒ͮa͇̝̪͓̽ͧ͗̆̈n͋̅̚d̪̺̗̑̓̃i͓n̓͋ͪ̌͋̅ͣg̜̠̗̺̝ͨ̍ͧ͑.̜̝̖͉͇͍̭"̖͙̭̭̿͂

 You scramble upright and back as a second blow lands where your feet were mere moments ago. Your heart starts to race as you realize their corrupted intent.

 ̬̯̲̰̲̜"̺̣̓̋ͥ̿̊̂H͎͈͓̲̑̌o͈̗̎ͅon̖̯̻̲͚̣ͩn̋ͤ̄̎e̹͊̆̿͛̏e̼̽̂y̤̼ͩͨͩͭS̗̪̊̀ͯ͗̇̀ͫp͉̔̒ͤr͍̅ͣͦ̐̃̓i͈̪̝ṱ͇̯̣͔̲͂ͤ͆̊̽è̯̞͙͉͎͎̈́ͥ ̰̦̟̥̚t͉̥̟̱̬̹̆̇̓̆̾ḫ͚̜̦̖͇͂̚i͇̻̔ͥi̮͉͈͙̔̃̒2͓̱̣̯̦͍̮͑ͥ ̙̜̔ͩ̓͆ͬ̋͐a̺͋̃̌̊n̹̗ͪͯ̓͆̅͑̓d̘̈̐ͪ͊ ̥͓̜͎̟̏͗̆ị͔̫̻̲̏ͬ̽͋̃̈́ ̫̑̈́m̗͆̇̇ͧ͆͒̈́i͔̹̟̍̔̋̉i͈̭̯̠ͦ̐͋ͤͤ2͇͓̜̭͈̭̌ͣͅ2̻̣̹͔͌̉̒̔͛̂̆ͅͅ ̝͈̙ͩ̎̈́ͧ͗h͚̟͐͊͒̃i͕̹͍̊ͅͅi̯͚̟̯̊̈́ͩv̖͙̤̦̟̖e͕̜͈̜͕̦ ̭̺̰̝͙̥͔ͫ̓͛͐̃̎̈țh͙̱͚̻̟͙̘ͣ̃ͨ̆̓ͨ̌a̬̥͓̜ͭ͑̽â̞̳̥͈̠͖͛̈́ͫ̉̔ͅt̫̬̙̖͓ͪͫ͒ͪ.̹̽ͤ

 Tears welled up as you listened to their tirade, hands fumbling to get out your weapon in time to block the next swing. The blow is blocked by the shitty bat you had grabbed, spikes puncturing through the wood before being yanked away

 "͔͎͕̆N̦̭̞̰̟̻̮͋ͪ̓ͭ͒ͧo̩̯͕͆ͦ̎̔ͣ̚ ͕͂̈́̎w͖͕͋ͯ͂ͬͣͩͩo̹͎͓o̯̥͙̰̣͓͊n͎̰̭̘̺̍͌͊ͣ͂́d̯͔͎̭̘̓ͥe͉̥̠͖̽̅e͇͙̼͇̖̊̊̑r̗̳̞̥͉͑̇̓ͪ̈̑̂ ͉̗͚̦ͅn̺̞͎̥͚o̻͇̞͉͖͔̦̒ͩͥo͎̟ ̖̣̩̖̫͉͖̊o͚o̞̬̲̟̫͛ͅn̰̊̀ͥͬ͛ͤn̝͍̤ͪ̄e̯ͥͭ̾ͣ ̅̉̀͂͋t͖̝̥͗̽͆̅͐̈́a̤̥͓̳̪̰͂͐ͮ́ͅa̱̪̓͐̂̉l͔͉̝̲̪̩̬ͥ̈́͑ͬḳ̮͔̯̦̼̦̏͋͋s̫̟̦̳̗̜͒̌̋̉ ̯̹̮̭t̗ͥͯ̿̐̚o͉̺͕̪̹̱o͎̐ ͖ͨy͚̤̞̻̙̺̗͆̎̋͌o̦̜̖̾͆̽͐̆̓oͤ̋̆͌̑̉u̙̳̍̒ͣ͑͆̓.̬̬͎̥͔͎ͯ͊ ̣͙͎̌ͅͅY̻o͆̈̐͌o̘̭ͯu̼̳͓ͪ̓ͫ'̣͎͋ͬ̉ͥ̿͒͊r͋ͣͪ̑ē̼͌̔e̥͙͈̰͈͍̰͒͆̀̋̇̿ͩ ̘̘̪͔̽͂̒̀̂̈̿ň̜̹͇̝̹̜̻ͮͧͩ͐oo͖̭ͬ̏͛̔ͭͅt̺͚͈͒͋͊͋̉h̋ỉ̲͓͙̪̂ͬ̅͂̈i͎̲͚͙͖͈͎ͫ̉̏͗ͬ̀̾n̖̆̊ǵ̹͎͔̱ͣ̊ͅ ̂̊̌̆̈́b̙̯͇̤͍̠̳̂ͣ͗͒͂ͥù̩̉ǘ͕͚̣̗̈ť͎̳͍̫͇̣̰͆͊ͬ ̫ͧä͈̞̰͇͇́ n͇̗͍̲̪ͤ̆u̹̱̹̬̱̓͋u̠ͯ̓ͨc͈̠̝̻̣͌ͫ͑ͩ̈e͉͖̳̓̌̏ẹ͈̭̲̓̿̇̈ͧͥn̝̈́̇͐͒̅̀cͭe͉̼̗̜̓̌ͮ͂̐́ͤ.̮̠͚͎ͪ͊̑ͭ"͕͈̔ͯ́ͤ̚

 You barely manage to pull out your metal bat to deflect the next two swings, the sharp spikes catching and tearing up the back of your hand like a cheese grater. Golden blood oozes out of the gore, swiftly forming rivulets down your hand and arm.

 ͕̦͎̝͈͎͎̙̓ͧͫ"͖̩͔̪͍͍͗̌̆̐͂̈Ạ̙͓̽͑ͦͮͤ͊̓ ͎͖̠ͧ̋͒̀̄̾̚p͉̤͓̬̬̲ͣ̏͌͋ͅa̼̝̎a̗͈͙͔̾̋̀͂ͮ̾ŵ̱̥̱͈̦̘̳͊͛̀ͯn̮͚ͨͣ ͕̤͕͉͕̓̾i͍̖̔̈ͩ͆͐͆͊n͍͎̣̭̻̖̬̒̓ͣͯͭ ͙̺͇̥͂a̲̼͙̰̰̞̫ ̻̞̟̠͕̝̎̅g̺̱̘̻̲̖ͮͣͪ̔ͅaͩa̝͈̦ͧ̇̍͋̃̚m͔̍͛̓̔̃͌̎e̺̟̭͉̺̮͍͑̒.̼̪̬̖̚ͅ"

 The spiked implement snagged your bat, yanking it away along with a chunk of the skin on your hand. You scramble back and fall down, grabbing the Decapper 9000 and barely blocking a downward swing. The blades of the weapon dug into your hands as you held it up to ward off the impacts

 ͕͈̻̰̖͚̫ͧͥ̎̓"͖͎̖̲̿A͇̻̖̺̗ͭ̅ͦ ̺͆̓͂ͬ̃ͮͪt̔̽ö̫̯̬̗́̉̾̈́̑̿̚ŏ̹̥̩̝͕ͩo̱ͥ̃͐͗̎o͖̤̹̟lͩ̿ ͍̪̬̘̯ͨt̯͔̼͔̲̥͛o̯̪̘̝̹̥̅͒̏͌̓ͮ͂o͇͉̝̤͋ͮ͒̇̐͑ͣ ̳̦̯̜̘͚͕͌ͯ̚ũ̠̰̣̥u̮̺̦s̹̖̻͔̒̓ͯͅë̮̞̞̞̘͉͚̄ͩ͑̆ͯ ̜̲ͬ̐a̟̫͔̼̽ͫͥ͋a̲̪̱̺̬̺̫ͥͭ͗̑n̮̲͇̗̫̩ͯd̼̟̹̗̝͊͐͆̌̍ͪ ͧ̈ͭͭ̆ͫt̰͇̟̉̈̃ͅh͓͍͔r̖͇̖͔̎̿̑̂̏̓o̮̬̪̤̙̍o̊ͧ̅͗̄ͪw̮͚̓͊̓̾̿ͯ̚ ͓̘̪̥̀̓̑̽ͤͣͅͅȃ̤̖w̱͕̜̫͚̰ͬ͛ͩ̅̓aȁ̝̹̠̜̙̖ͤ̚y̘̞̞̬̳͙̭.̲̺̣̪ͭ͆͆̚"̮͕͆̃͗̄

 HoneySprite changed tactics and swung to hit you in the side, causing you to scream in pain as the long spikes entered and exited your torso roughly, rending tissue easily. With your guard dropped, the swung at your weapon, ripping more of the flesh off of your hand as they rend the Decapper 9000 from your grasp.

 ̳͖̐ͧ̇̌̊"̖͎̟̑̄ͤ͑ͤI ̳̍̾̌à͕̝̩͖͚̤͂̈́ͩ̉̎a̰͍̳̭͖̗̟m̲̠̗͚͚̼̫ ̞̹͈̱͔s͈̟͚̊ͦ͌͒͊̒̎t̞̭̼̹̠ͭ͌ͭụ̩̟̫ͅụ͙̝͎̾͋c̤͈̼͕̗̣̐͐̾ͬͯ̍k̹̾ͬ̎ͧ̓ͭ̉ ̲̚h͖̙̭̀̽̌͛e̘̤̟̼̯͌ͮ͑e̮̲̘ͯŕ͚͔͇̭̺̥e͉͐̎͂̃ ̰̽̉̌wi̖̼̯̯̖̥ț̣̼̘ͬͧͫ̔̿ͅh̩̳̲̪̝͚̣ͯͨ ͙̖͍̬̟y̗̎ͤ̉͌̽o̙̘͉̥̳̯ͪ͗̀ü͚̯̭̙ͮ

 Defenseless, you raise your arms, choking out sobs of pain as the weapon bashes completely through your arms, surely breaking them along with piercing through the skin. The spikes embed into your ribs, and as the weapon is lifted, so are you. Through pain and shock and tears, you see HoneySprite produce a decapper, holding it like a shiv as they hold you up by the spikes.

 ͖͉̪͇̂͆̍ͬ̿"̆a̠̥̮̘̦̮̹̍͗̄ͥnd͚̱̺̝͖ ̫̝͍͚̭͙̻ͥͦi͇͉͓̳̼ͥͦt̝̺̭͉s̙͇̝̞̳͎̔ ̖͕̮̮̦̩ͫ͑͆̈̔̚a̫͙̓a̰̬͉̠̫͆̑͋l̥̣̩̱̚lͫ̾ͭ"̺͖̲͓̈ͩ̍͑ͅ

 The shiv is driven into your stomach, piercing up into your diaphragm, puncturing a lung at least, causing more damage on the way out. You head is blinded with pain and its starting to get hard to breathe, almost feel wet and sticky.

 ͉̫̬̮̇ͤ̒͋ͪ͂"̤̯̟̙̦̥̐y͙͇̤̟͙͋̈́̇o͍ͪ͆ǒ̰̲̤̜̈ͬ͂͂ú̺̻̜͕͔͗̂͗ŕ͕̮̘͆̒̂͒ͅ"͉̬̝̞͓̈̉

 The second stab is your left lung, and by now, you taste metal  on your breath as you feel your lungs deflate. The physical pain is nothing.

 ̙̬̼̃̏"̈ͪf̝͈̪̩͖͗͗̉ͣa͇̤̟͙ͬa̪̍ͧuͭ͑ͫ̿͐l̞͙̝̞͂͛ͦ̿ͦ̔̐t͇̹͓̮͐̅̓ͬ̈́̍ͅ.̼̥̲͇͔̘̺̊͋"́ͤ̒

 The final stab is the deepest, plunging up the center and into your heart. What hurt more, was the hurtful words. As you struggled to breathe, to live, tears flowed down your cheeks. You were a pawn. A disposable piece to this puzzle. No one really cared.

Your breath gurgled as you felt yourself be lain down, the spiked weapon and the decapper removed from your body. You saw vaguely as HoneySprite faded back to normal and fled.

Alone, bloody, crying, you choked and gurgled for a while, before everything slowed, and death overtook you with one last rattled breath.

A good way away, HoneyBeeJarSprite hid itself in the dark canopies, listening as the Quest Bed exploded into a billion pieces, and the remaining insect bees swarmed to the explosion.