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Wemmbu's breathing ran ragged. His heartbeat was so strong he could hear it pumping blood through his injured body.
The battle was tiring, scary, and it was horrifying how many people he killed—how much blood was on his hands.
But, in everything, it was exhilarating. It was messy and chaotic. His soul screamed for more.
He was hurt, but it didn't matter in the face of victory.
His eyes felt too heavy to keep open, so he closed them, leaning on the side of the wall. He would've brought a hand to his head if he didn't feel dizzy with every movement.
He may have forgotten to heal himself, yet, the grin on his face grew larger. This, this is what power felt like.
Being able to win, crushing players like bugs—...
PrinceZam's voice appeared, whispering in his ear.
"My sweet, sweet Wemmbu. You're no better than me."
His smile faded alongside the adrenaline. His shoulders tensed before he forced them to relax. PrinceZam was no more and Wemmbu was everything.
Flamefrags was still down there. After killing Ven, he flew down to find Lettuce. Frankly he didn't care about Lettuce; he doubted the lawman could bounce back after this, even if he proved time and time again he could rebuild the Law. As long as he was left alone, it didn't matter.
Just as PrinceZam left his mind, a hand landed on his shoulder. Wemmbu turned casually. He didn't think Flame would find Lettuce that quickly.
"So how'd—"
Something along the lines of a gasp and a growl tore out of him as PrinceZam entered his sight.
No matter how much time passed, the emperor had always tormented him. But this time, Wemmbu was strong enough to finally end things. Destroying the empire wasn't enough it seems.
He had betrayed Wemmbu during the Empire's days and had betrayed Wemmbu when they were trapped together. He was a threat.
Wemmbu rushed forward without thinking, his sword clenched in his hand.
Burning pain shot through his entire body but he carried on, bringing down karma (hah, get it? Karma?) unto PrinceZam.
He missed.
He.. missed?
His blood flowed down to Karma's handle from his forearm. He didn't know how much of the blood on his sword was his and not the lawmen's.
PrinceZam stood there like nothing happened.
"Silly Wemmbu," PrinceZam chided, clicking his tongue, "You didn't win. You just survived."
His body ached and screamed with pain, but he needed to kill PrinceZam—he couldn't, he couldn't loose again.
Then another voice. Softer than PrinceZam's but still wrong.
"Wemmbu." Rejoice?
Wemmbu turned his entire body towards Rejoice, an actual gasp escaping him.
The sunlight that hit Rejoice's hair seemed to make the man shimmer. In the darkness of the abandoned civilization, Wemmbu wasn't able to get a clear look at him. But in that moment he just took Rejoice in, trying to memorise his face, his hair.. just everything.
"What?— How?—" Wemmbu took a step forward before nearly crumpling over. He winced as his spine cracked in a way that didn't sound good.
He wrapped his arms around himself, raising his head to look at Rejoice.
Rejoice was suddenly closer, just a step away. He looked uninjured, not even a single scar.
"You're alive?" He sounded so hopeful, he was so hopeful. Maybe that death message down there was wrong, and Rejoice survived.
He nearly threw up at the thought that he might have left Rejoice to die by accident.
"Oh Wemmbu.. I'm dead. You know that."
What? No. What was happening? What..?
"Please.." Wemmbu pleaded. He accepted Rejoice's death when it happened, but, how could he see him now if he was dead?
He didn't know what he was pleading for. Everything just felt so confusing. He could feel his blood running down his body, the way his clothes clung to him, and how his barely holding on armor stabbed him in some places with shattered netherite.
"I'm sorry."
How was PrinceZam here? And Rejoice?
Flame.
He needed Flame.
His unlikely ally would help him, surely.
His head hurt so much.
Man, maces really do hurt.
He searched his inventory for golden apples, trying to ignore the two figures. He could go to the nearest enderchest for some, but his body didn't seem to like moving much.
He shut his eyes as PrinceZam whispered something else in his ears.
It took him a minute to actually find his stack of golden apples, and even longer to find the strength to actually eat them.
When he did, though, he could feel the pain in his body intensify before slowly dying down—the sign that his wounds were stitching and knitting themself together.
The two had disappeared.
Wemmbu found himself standing back at that hole in the wall, just waiting to hear Flame's footsteps.
Soon enough, the demon did appear. Flame was restocking his gear, taking from Wemmbu's shulker boxes.
On any other day, Wemmbu might have found himself trying to stop Flame from stealing from him.
"Man, they really messed up this whole area." He said to himself, as if he didn't start the destruction by using three nukes.
He had to admit some of those lawmen were decent players, he even recognized a couple from Merchant City and a few as guards from Capital City.
Flame lit up a fire behind him and the sound of an item being burned reached Wemmbu's ears. If he had to guess, it was the mace he had given the demon.
Another mace might be convenient, but the two he had already were both liability and a blessing.
It was best to destroy any other mace.
"This place is cooked forever—"
Flame broke a strength pot, and Wemmbu could only turn to block his sword at the last moment.
"Alright."
He held a totem tightly in his hand, spreading his barely healed wings and flying down to the battle field to escape another blow.
Flame smirked, following him down.
Wemmbu matched Flame's movement: when Flame tried striking him down he'd bring his shield up, when Flame tried sweeping his legs he'd dodge out of the way and create space with his sword, whenever Flame attacked, Wemmbu would be there to intercept.
The fight drew on.
And..
Wemmbu kept defending himself. Sure, he could hold up against Flame, but Flame kept pushing and Wemmbu couldn't push back.
It was like trying to tame a candleflame with water. You could handle a bit of fire with water, but when the fire spreads all around your house and really starts to fuck it up, well, there wasn't much you could do.
Gambit was cracking, and his armor had already broken. With every strike, he hoped Gambit would hold up.
Flame even called off the dogs he summoned just so Wemmbu could have a chance at fighting back.
"I don't really need to kill you. I mean, I can if I want to." Flame said. He sounded different from the other times when he'd tease Wemmbu throughout their fight. He sounded sincere.
"I'd rather you live, knowing I'm better." It was an out. He could live his life in peace like how he wanted to. He could live that stupid dream Egg always had, where they'd be fishermen with a stupid little cabin.
If he gave up now, Flame would let him go.
Perhaps after the fight, they'd regear together again. They'd heal and bandage each other up before going their separate ways as #1 and #2 respectively. Then after that he could find a way to free Egg and they'd go on another journey—
PrinceZam appeared behind Flame, snickering. "You really believe that? No wonder it was so easy to betray you."
Betrayal.
Everything boiled down to betrayal. PrinceZam, Minemanner, Manepear, they all betrayed him.
"If you let your guard down, he'll only strike you at your worse."
Rejoice whispered. It was so unlike him to say so, but if even the most forgiving man Wemmbu knew could recognize the predicament, then clearly he was right.
Wemmbu gritted his teeth and kept fighting.
They made it to the edge of the hole Wemmbu's stab shot created. Wemmbu tried to fly down, get some new ground to regear and heal but Flame was too fast in grabbing his wings and throwing him down to the floor.
The tip of Flame's sword nicked his throat.
He couldn't loose.
No.
He can't have lost.
If he looses, Flame will surely kill him.
But he did. His armor was gone, he was out of pots, and the injuries he failed to block were slowly bleeding him out.
"Okay bro, just admit I'm stronger." From this angle, Flame towered over Wemmbu. Was this how he felt like when Wemmbu stood high above him at the Mafia base?
They were both panting, shoulders rising up and down as they caught their breath in that single moment of stillness.
All his life, he'd been branded as unreliable, bloodthirsty, and as someone who couldn't be trusted.
All his life, he had to put his trust into someone to survive. He trusted so many people, and only one of them deserved it.
Egg.
He wondered what Egg was doing right now. Would he dedicated an entire page of his lorebook to Wemmbu when he finds out? He hopes so.
If he was gonna die here, he wasn't gonna die because he turned his back and trusted Flame.
He looked at the bow in his inventory. One last chance.
"Do it. Prove yourself." Manepear said, voice as clear as the day Wemmbu left.
Wemmbu flinched back, eyes searching for Manepear.
He wasn't a lost cause. He'd prove him wrong.
"Yo bro—"
"Nah, I'm the strongest."
He brought the bow out, and pulled back,
He could escape this, he could survive, he could win—
A strong force pushed into his chest before he could shoot an arrow.
Then came pain.
Excruciating, splitting pain.
He could only manage a choked scream before blood traveled up his throat.
Flame's eyes narrowed before widening in panic. He let go of his sword, still embedded in Wemmbu's chest, pinning him to the ground.
The totem meant to save Wemmbu's life had fallen out of his hand when Flame pulled him back from the hole.
"Wait—wait bro!—" Flame sounded scared. Isn't this what he wanted?
Everything hurt.
He couldn't breathe.
His eyes focused on something to the side, Manepear had finally shown himself.
"What was the point of training you if you were just going to die like this? You were a waste of time." Manepear hissed, voice full of venom and hate.
"Wemmbu! Open your eyes bro! Look at me, you can't die!—"
He tried his best. He really did.
It was never enough, was it?
There was a flutter of wings, it sounded strangely like home.
A totem was shoved into his hand, popping immediately. Some of his wounds healed, but the sword lodged into his chest kept the worst open.
"Look at yourself bro." Eggchan sighed beside him, reaching his hand out to close Wemmbu's eyes.
Egg was here. And Egg was safety. He could go with Egg and everything would be fine.
The pain slowly started to wane, even as Flame pulled out his sword. The sickening sound of flesh ripping filled the silent arena. Wemmbu didn't react, his body feeling strangely numb.
"I'll be back, okay? I'll get totems, and healing pots, and.." He bit his lip before breaking into a sprint, searching for the nearest body. Flame stuttered slightly, not that Wemmbu noticed. The other voices drowned out Flame.
He was cold and Egg was warm.
Wemmbu reached out for Egg, but the angel pulled back. His wings stretched out in irritation.
Although no words were said, Wemmbu broke completely. Wounds could heal and loot can be regained as long as he had Egg.
And now he didn't even have that.
He let out a sob, but it came out as a gurgle as his own blood choked him down.
When Flame returned, Wemmbu was still.
"Wemmbu, wake up, bro!—please."
"You can't die, who else.. who else will be here with me?"
"Please. I'm sorry."
"You can be the strongest. Just wake up."
"You wouldn't leave Egg, right? Please—"
"I didn't mean to. I was just bluffing."