Chapter Text
He seethes as they push him down again. But his cooperation is required, unless he wants them to take out their ire on another, and that he can not live with.
Even if Gem is crying silently in the shadows, semisheltered in an open tent, trussed and gagged after screaming at him to fight back.
She is already bruised and not unharmed, but she was the first to fight. Enough that she had already been splashed with health potions - along with those who had tried to force her. And more importantly, enough that they’re not eager to touch her again, even as they turn their unwanted attentions to him.
He doesn’t let himself drift - it’s too easy to fall away and miss anything that could help them escape. But he ignores the concerns of his body; the pain in his knees, the ache in his jaw, the sharp sting where nails and knives have caught his neck and back and hips. He uses it instead- keeps his eyes moving as they yank at his head, keeps his fingers free by not fighting back and only keeping at what balance they allow him. His clothes are torn and ripped away already, there’s no helping that. He just needs to survive, to keep their eyes and hands on him, and away from their best chance at getting out of this.
Namely, GeminiTay. She’s too upset and furious to be thinking clearly, still struggling against the ropes keeping her safely out of their captors’ crude attentions. She’s the better pvp’er between them, and will be more so after he tanks this particular battle. Still, he marks the armed members, the pile where they discard their gear before taking their turns with him, the tent where the sated assholes retire to in drunken, laughing clusters.
She’ll be furious with him later, for giving in, for offering himself in her stead. He’s okay with that, even if this must be just as scarring. But he’ll do whatever it takes to keep his friend safe, and if that means enduring some rather juvenile name-calling and the use of his body, then he will give them what they want.
They leave him laying in the dirt and mud, a filthy blanket thrown over him, long after the sun has set. Tethered by only a single lead around his neck to a stake hastily stomped into the ground. He offers only a feeble twitch when one kicks at his arm, letting them believe he is too weak or despondent to move for the remainder of the night. Gem has cried herself to sleep, and thank the void below, they do nothing but mock her dried tears before discarding any other horrid care for them both.
Two remain awake, and go about a half-hearted cleanup while ostensibly on guard duty. He takes care not to move where they can see him, but in the spaces between their sights he works at simple calisthenics, loosening sore muscles and encouraging blood flow to his limbs. And moving the palm-sized dagger that he’d ground into the mud earlier up towards his hand. Waiting for the setting of the moon, and the bobbing head that comes to a rest before joining their fellows in reckless slumber.
A knife across their throat makes certain it’s a permanent one.
But even that movement unbalances him, and he curses himself silently for being weak and shaky, hoping he hasn’t woken anyone else as he stumbles back to his bruised knees.
A sword sweeps over his head, narrowly missing him. A following hot spray of liquid across his shoulder doesn’t. There’s only a startled gurgle, and then a second body slumps to the ground in a rapidly growing pool of blood.
And then Gemini is beside him, pulling him up and swiping her hands through the blood coating him.
“X? Oh, are you-”
He shushes her, grateful for the help and steadying hands, but very, very aware that they are still in danger.
“Take his sword,” he whispers, already moving for the small chest he’d seen them pull potions from earlier. “More weapons to your left. Whatever you can carry.” There are a scant handful of potions, and hardly what they need. He needs something to put them in, before anyone else-
“These are crap, X,” Gem whispers furiously, and he turns in time to see her shatter a sword over her knee. “Wood would be more useful.” She starts tossing pieces into the fire, careless as embers fly.
He doesn’t have the heart or mind to stop her. She’s taking what little control she can, over their untenable situation. At least, he muses as he strips the jacket and pants from a slain guard and stuffs the pockets with meager potion offerings, those weapons will be useless to anyone else once they’ve melted to ingots in the fire. His boots are long gone, and there are few options to choose from. He shoves his feet into the first even vaguely fitting pair, not wanting to leave a bloody trail of footprints to follow.
The pile of armor isn’t much better. Much of it is broken and torn, poorly kept and badly mended. Nothing small enough to fit Gem, and only the largest pieces able to fit over his ill-fitting coverings. None of it is enchanted, and he curses the now-obvious fact that they had been captured by such unprepared incompetents.
A shout makes him turn around, and there is a tent on fire and people are coming out of the tents and there’s no more time-
Gem has a sword in each hand, an axe in her belt, but there’s too many here to fight. “Run!” he hisses at her, ducking into the best chest plate and snatching up a thankfully whole shield. She waits until he’s with her, and he spends moments they don’t have to check that she’s hale enough to flee.
His hand is batted away with the hilt of her sword. “I’m not leaving without you,” she hisses right back. “And I have no idea which way to go.”
They’re far from home, but only so far that it is improbable, not impossible to reach on foot, with pursuit. He orients them, and presses her forward before him with the shield.
They run into the night, fleeing first from the bright flames and louder shouts, and then from the sounds of pursuit, curses and threats of worse to come, should they be caught again.
He won’t let that happen. Once was negligence on his part, confident that the area was safe and a failure to fully protect his companion when danger had found them.
When he stumbles again over pinched toes and too-tight boots in the darkness, Gem pauses for him beside a large oak tree, swords out and glinting in the dappled moonlight.
“You should keep going, X. One of us needs to reach the Hermits.”
He shakes his head, grabbing her elbow to keep her from heading back towards their pursuit.
“We stay together.” He keeps his voice low, still listening to the woods around them.
"They'll catch us both.”
He has his bearings now. “You have no armor, and I have no weapons. We stay together, and fight together, if needed.” He points the way with his battered shield. “North and east, we can use Cub’s bridge to get to the mainland.”
Gem frowns, but turn in the right direction, pulling him along as she starts to jog. “That’s Cub’s farms and factory - we’ll be on the wrong side to find anyone to help.”
His side burns, and he curses the old damage to his lungs as he finds the breath to keep up. “Fireworks at the entrance,” he reminds her, with as few words as possible. “Alert whoever’s awake.”
There’s always someone awake, it’s not like any of them tend to keep any sort of regular sleep schedule. And he knows where most of Cub’s traps are, if they’re followed that far. He digs in his pockets for the two strength potions, and passes them to her.
“Normal duration, save for a fight.” he gasps out as they move.
She nods and hooks them onto her belt, neatly ducking under a low hanging tree branch. She still moves gracefully, no sign of her earlier injuries tripping her up. Gem turns her attention back to their path, and he downs one of the three resistance potions. He’ll need to not slow her down, or cause further injury to himself that would make her hesitate.
He’s glad that he did, hardly moments later when an arrow flies through the darkness. He lifts the shield, catching it squarely in the center before Gem can even flinch.
“I’m your shield,” he bites out, eyes on another arrow. “Keep going, don’t stop.”
“They’re flanking us,” she darts to the side, towards the sounds of movement.
He refuses to stumble, stomping to put himself in front of her. “Sheild,” he insists. “You’re double-weilding.” She’s a great pvp’er, but he’s better with strategy. “Let them see me first, then you take the kill.”
There’s a moment when she finally understands, and then her bloodthirsty grin floods her face. “Okay,” she breathes, and takes a step to his right, placing them into position. “You’re my shield, I'm the sword.” She holds an axe in her off-hand, hidden behind him now. “Let’s do this.”
He leads them now, aches and pains forgotten in the rush of adrenaline and the deadly intent to see them both home safely. The shield is held firmly, and he has two poison potions ready in hand, should they be overwhelmed. He hates to use her like this, to make her into the killer of men, but they have no other options if he wants them both to survive. He recognizes the woods, and they’re closer than he’d thought, hardly an hour’s walk from Cub’s border, and he can guide them towards a few traps on the way.
He doesn’t have to tell her to stay close. She moves more gracefully than he does, adapting to his strides with a loping jog, and at the first crack of a sword against his shield she moves forward, quick successive hits on the almost-stunned attacker knocking them back and then down, never to move again. A neat, dancing circle, that brings her back into place a half-step behind him, guarded once more.
“Perfect,” she nearly purrs, and they’re off again.
Through the dark woods, skirting the edges of full-dark cover and open moon-lit clearings, they avoid the night-mobs and rush at the single players they find. He keeps to the front, lets those players see wide eyes and think he fears them, lets them bash against his shield and watches the confusion turn to clouded sightlessness as Gem completes her deadly dance. There is blood on both of her blades, leaving a trail too easy to follow, but they can’t afford the moments to clean them as they continue to run towards relative safety.
He hears the groans of the first trap he’s aiming for as shouts call out behind them. “Stay close,” he warns her, and Gem is right on his heels as he carefully skirts the edge of leaf litter, and whirls to meet their pursuit.
His shield is raised with a carefully timed wobble, and met with fierce, mocking smiles.
“Aww, lookit the pretty slut,” one of them calls to the other. “Thinks he can still protect his friend.” Their weapons are raised, and he has nothing but the shield to cover them both, as Gem pretends to cower behind him and takes their measure. “Gonna bash me with that little piece of wood, slut?”
“I got a better log for him to suck on,” the other one leers, low and mean. “And maybe after we can get your cock wet, make you fuck your little girl friend there. Bet she won’t fight you nearly as ha-”
He takes a growling two quick steps forward, and their tormentors hastily back away, weapons raised. It doesn’t save them from the hidden redstone ores that activate the trap beneath them. They plunge downwards as the ground pulls away, dumping them into a deep pit of milling zombies.
He doesn’t wait for their screams to stop. “East,” he snaps, and trusts Gem to follow.
“X, I-”
He shakes his head, downs a second resistance potion and watches the ground carefully as they move. He only knows some of Cub’s traps, but thinks he can spot them if he’s vigilant. “Later. Home first.” He doesn’t need nor want her apologies, nothing was her fault.
A wolf howls in the distance, the night almost at its end. They’ll be easier to spot in the daylight, and he thinks he can see the edges of the woods ahead.
They run almost over another pair - they must have heard them coming and ducked into a shallow ground-cave. He turns into the center of them, catching the enchanted iron sword on the shield, and taking the side blow to his ribs from a chipped and rusted blade.
Gem shouts, a wordless angry noise, and strikes at the unprotected chest of the closest player. He can’t watch beyond that, spinning to meet the second and catching another blow that could have met Gem’s unprotected back. His shield splinters at the edge from the next, and then Gem is there. Her leading ax-strike nearly takes off her opponent’s arm, the following sword neatly severs head from neck.
Hot blood splashes against his face, and there is still no time to react to the brutal display of violence. He’s running as soon as she is behind him again, and they’re close, they have to be close. All that they need is an open space to run, to be spotted by any Hermit that may be watching. They’ve been gone long enough, someone had to have noticed, and be looking for them.
He hears the whistle and spins, pushing Gem down and almost bashing her back as he catches another arrow. Too close, they’re at the edge of the woods now. And Gem is still moving forward, she ducks beneath him and clashes with another blade. Unprotected, he needs her to be safe, but there’s another volley of arrows and he can’t see the shooter-
A back meets his and he’s yanked around - his shield is held close and it’s the only thing that saves him. The sword sticks for just a moment in the rough wood, but it’s enough for Gem to stab around him, her front pressed to his back and then that one is down but there’s another coming-
Another wolf howls, answered by more. They’re not going to make it. He’s slowing her down. He slams the shield into someone’s face, taking an armor-breaking hit below it before Gem’s sword slips around to gut them in a sick squelch. She’s pushing him forward, towards the rising howls, and they won’t survive a pack of wild wolves- please let them be wild, and not tamed by the bandits.
He hears the growl before he sees them, and lifts his shield for a lunge, hoping he can stun at least one or two before they whirl on Gem. Who slams into his back with a furious “Down!” shouted in his ear, as they both roll into the edge of the open field.
A blazing pain ricochets up his arm as he falls on the shield, Gem a heavier weight on top of him. Furry bodies rush past, too many to count, and something cracks as he spins them both to put her beneath him, the shield flopping awkwardly over his chest. Something bounces off of it, knocking the breath from his lungs and driving the edge into his stomach.
Shouting surrounds them. They’re out of time, out of space, and this isn’t what he wanted, not like this-
And then the noise and bodies are past them, swords and shouts and barking, biting, growling wolves going back into the tree line. Gem sits up, and he struggles to help, but his vision is spotted and his ears are ringing and he can’t understand what she’s saying beside him. She’s standing, hauling him to his feet, and yes- he’s still with her, he’s her shield and she’s still in this fight, so he is as well.
And now she guides him, with elbows and chest and hips, and it’s all he can do to keep the shield up, both hands to keep it steady as she continues her deadly dance. Calls and shouts and barks all blend into a cacophony of senseless noise around them. Gem laughs and spins, and he’s alone for a breathless moment before she’s back, her ax lifting his arm into another block, her sword sliding beneath the shield to stab and slice away.
The weight falls forward, and Gem’s arms are around him as they stumble back in a tangle of limbs. Her laughter is high and glorious, and he wants to continue hearing it for years to come. She buries her face in his neck, her arms winding over his torso, empty of weapons. This is the end then, his shield and himself as her last defense-
“-Suma. X!” A tap on the shield, like a knock, and he flinches back from the hand that reaches over it- tries to pull it away.
A playful yip and a whine, and then Tilly is squirming beneath the shield, stepping on his stomach and licking his face, licking Gem’s head and prancing over the both of them as his shield is taken. Pearl is right behind her favorite wolf, dark cloak thrown back as she leans down to envelop them all.
“That was amazing, you guys!” She’s a little out of breath, and so warm as she shoves her head against theirs, squeezing Xisuma and Gem in an awkward hug. “You fought so well together, you’ll have to show us that trick.”
Trick? Are they-
“I think it’s called ‘fighting for your life’,” Cubfan says dryly, and he and Impulse are standing nearby, both armored up and putting weapons away. “Give ‘em space to breathe, Pearl.”
“Oh, yeah.” Pearl pulls away, and there’s just the warmth of Gemini left at his back, until she wiggles to be free as well. “You guys were supposed to be back before sunset, and we saw the wildfire, figured you might need some help.” Tilly bounces back to her, circling until she can wedge herself beneath Pearl’s arm.
Impulse offers a hand, and he stares at it for a beat too long. “Fight’s over, X, come on. Let’s get you both back to base, yeah?”
He’s pulled upright as soon as he puts his hand in Impulse’s, steadied the instant he stumbles.
“Who were those guys, anyway?” Cub asks, holding Xisuma’s battered and almost broken shield, eyes on the woods behind them.
Pearl and Gem stand, and Tilly circles their feet playfully, sniffing at Gem’s pants and discarded bloodied weapons.
“Bandits caught us in the woods,” Gem tells them, and gods below, he doesn’t want to think about that right now. “They took us back to their camp by the big lake, you know the one, just south of the Woodland mansion? And they-”
Xisuma doesn’t meet her eyes. “We need to get home, warn the Hermits. There were at least twenty, maybe more. Their camp was only a few days old- we can get a full party together and chase them completely out of our lands.” The woods aren’t technically Hermit lands, but no one else claims them, and he is not about to let thieving, rapist, bandits move in anywhere nearby. He’s already moving towards home, following the subtle landscaping that marks the boundaries of where the Hermits travel often.
He trusts them to follow. He’s already warned them of their numbers, they won’t go searching for the bandits without proper preparation and a larger group. He’s already making plans; which Hermits to bring, how many totems and ender pearls to cover them, who will need to enchant their armor, and which of their farther-off allies will need to be warned.
He skips over a decorative ditch, and hesitates on the other side as his knee threatens to give out on him. The pause is a mistake - he stops moving, and the others catch up to him as his body abruptly decides he is going no further.
The world fades to a sickening black before spinning, and he shudders at the bile that rises into his throat at the nauseating whirl. He’s not going to throw up, he doesn’t want the questions that will follow. He blinks into a faceful of grass, and when he blinks again Impulse is hauling him upright, and his other arm is a line of fire down his side.
“Geeze, X.” Cub chides him. “Could’a told us you were injured.”
He shakes his head and immediately regrets it. “Home. Don’t have the time-”
“They raped him. Beat him and raped him, and he let them do it to protect me.”
Impulse freezes against him, and he stares at the dewey grass. He didn’t want it out like this, but in Gem’s defense, he would have done the same. At least Impulse doesn’t pull away, or leave him on his own.
“You guys had a really rough night, then.” Pearl says, dangerously lightly. “Also, I wish I’d brought tnt with, for no particular reason.”
Cub’s smile also promises no mercy. “I’ve got a half-stack, if you-”
“No.” He hates to deny them, but he can’t bear any of his friends to be in danger right now. He can’t. “Please, let’s- let’s just get home, and at least get backup before you go hunting.” He meets Cub’s defiant stare, and Pearl’s sullen one. “Do it safely,” he pleads, knowing he can’t stop them if they leave. “Not outnumbered.”
Pearl looks away, but Cub holds his gaze for a beat too long. And then grins, relaxed and easy-going again.
“Sure, sure. Been meaning to try out Etho’s firework launching crossbows anyways.” Cub shrugs, fooling no one. “More fun hunting with a party, too.”
They won’t wait for him to recover, but Xisuma’s okay with that. He’s already gotten his reward by Gem’s safety.
He tries to take an unsteady step away from Impulse’s embrace, and is scooped off of his feet instead, jarring his arm again.
“Nope, you’re with me now, mister.” Impulse grins down at him. “Pearl, if you wanna send Tilly ahead, we can race home in time for breakfast.”
Impulse breaks into a steady jog, Gem at his side as Cub laughs at them. Only moments later Tilly outpaces them all, streaking towards the fortifications highlighted by the rising sun, and then Pearl and Cub and a small multitude of wolves are behind them, guarding their rear and tossing back and forth guesses as to what will be served in the community kitchen. And whether or not they’ll bring their own milk, because Joe and Zedaph are cooking today.
He puts his head down against Impulse’s shoulder, hugging his totally-not-broken arm to his chest, and focuses on the heady feeling of being nearly safe again, after so many hours of holding down stark terror. Gem glances over at him as they jog, her hair and clothes bloodied, but hale and in fair spirits, Pearl’s cloak around her shoulders and Pearl herself and her pack of wolves running along beside them.
He didn’t fail her. No more than being caught and overpowered to begin with, but they had been out to gather building materials and flora, not geared for a confrontation in the first place. And now they were free- they did that, together- and nearly home, and he succeeded where he meant to. He could rest soon, and know that he protected her when it counted. Made it possible for her to survive- for them both to make it this far.
The time passes swiftly, or he fades in and out, though the sun is still rising in the eastern sky when there are hailing shouts, and the rumble of Impulse’s chest beneath his ear, and Gem’s hand against his forehead as he’s lowered onto one of Bdubs’ plush couches by the central kitchen.
“Suma?” she asks, oh so careful. “We’re home, we made it.” Her hand is cool where it draws across his face. “Thank you, Suma. You’re a very good shield, even when you don’t have to be.”
He leans into her hand, even though it makes him shiver. “Deserve it, Gem. Didn’t want you hurt.” It’s easier now, to let the numbness creep in. She’s safe, he did that. Didn’t matter the cost. Someone calls for potions and tea, and he’s so tired, but it’s not time to rest just yet.
Gem shifts back, makes room for Hypno and his bandages, for Zedaph’s basket of potions, and the horde of Hermits drawn to the noise and commotion. She’s asked about her own wounds, and she shakes her head and points them to him before Pearl and False start fussing over her anyway. Someone starts wiping him down, but it makes the hurts return. He can’t get the purloined jacket off with so many bodies pressing near, and he doesn’t care about it anyway except that Bdubs is already yelling about needing more potions, and everything is just a little too much, too loud, too close-
“Every body, calm your titties, please and spank you. Yes, even you, Princess.”
xB laughs, and it feels like the sun is suddenly shining on a perfect day. “K, I just got here.”
“No, no, every titty. Every butt. Whose butt? Who are we-”
His eyes close at the gasp, and in the expectant silence he can hear the running footsteps, and knows that Keralis is already ignoring Cub’s quiet reassurances.
“Shashwammy? Sweet girl, wha-wha-what happened? No, no, nevermind. We get you into a nice warm bath, and get you all fixed up, and ‘den you tell Papa K all ‘bouts it, m’kay?”
He doesn’t have to look, to lunge forward and fall into Keralis’ arms. He made it, he’s home, Gem and his Hermits are safe. And here, with Keralis wrapped around him, xB and Hypno at his sides, and the Hermits surrounding them, now he is safe.
He is safe, and can finally give in to messy tears, and the distant pain of injuries, and cleanse himself of the humiliations endured for another. He no longer has to be a shield, even if he was a good one. He can lay that burden down, and just be, and be taken care of.
A sword doesn’t need a shield. But they function better when cared for. When paired with their scabbard, their case.
And a family that will tend them both, even when they are laid down to rest and be mended.