Chapter Text
It was an open secret among the survivors that all the admins were a little uncomfortable with 007n7. When the ex-hacker had first been found, and the treatment noticed, it was assumed that his past was the reason why. Admins tended to dislike and distrust hackers in general after all, and 007 had been an infamous one.
But there was some deeper aspect that a few of them began to pick up on.
It was especially clear that there was something going on when it came to Shedletsky in particular. He was the admin that visibly held the least ill will toward the man for some unknown reason, so it wasn't uncommon for the two to hang around each other occasionally. Although it was a little strained, that wasn't something too out of the ordinary for their perceived dynamic.
What was noted to be out of the ordinary, however, was when the avian tended to simply stare at 007 in silence. It wasn't a common event, but it happened enough for several others to take notice, including the former exploiter. When Chance tried bringing up the topic up one time, the avian had frozen in place before muttering something about doppelgängers and walking away.
The mystery was seemingly unsolvable, until today that is.
007n7 let out a hiss of frustration when he fumbled a puzzle again. He was exhausted, to put it lightly. He had been pulled into a round the exact second he stood up from his bed for the day. Which meant that getting himself to actually functioning levels was more of a challenge than it would usually be. He was just glad he fell asleep fully dressed, the last survivor that had happened to was Chance, and he'd been teased relentlessly for a week for showing up to a round in his pajamas.
Thinking about that didn't comfort him any though, and what didn't help was the strange silence around him. He had checked their status' on his c00l.gui, and they all read fairly normally. Elliot and TwoTime had apparently taken some damage, but nothing a medkit or pizza wouldn't fix up. It didn't seem like the current killer was targeting anyone yet– so they were probably searching for someone. Someone they haven't found yet, or who wasn't in the round, so there weren't any hints as to who they were. Admittedly, while he was glad that his fellow teammates weren't being attacked, this only made him more nervous.
With a relieved sigh at the finished generator, Seven leaned back onto his hands. Taking the pressure momentarily off his knees and onto his arms. Just as he was about to get up from his spot on the ground, he heard a heavy crunch of grass behind him. Startled, he flipped around to see who it was, ready to break into an immediate run.
Unfortunately, his exhaustion was getting to him, and he only managed to register that none of his teammates had a green and black color scheme a whole two seconds late.
He let out a startled yelp as a sword came into view. Quickly, 007n7 leaned, relaxed, and let his back hit the ground, his eyes squeezing shut at the force with which he fell. Distantly, he registered the air shift, and the sound of a blade now lodged in earth somewhere behind him. Their swing probably went wide and, with the absence of a target to get stuck in, slipped from their grasp.
He knew he had only bought himself a second or two of time, so he braced for his inevitably quick end. 1x had two swords, after all, and –aside from his son– the killers hated when he was the LMS.
What came next was a surprise however. It was not the cold bite of a sword cutting through flesh. But the faint feeling of someone leaning over him, and then the sudden warmth of a gentle palm caressing his cheek. Shocked, 007's eyes fluttered open, and he froze at the face he saw.
The face that was looking down at him was not 1x1x1x1 like he'd expected.
"Shedletsky..?" His voice cracked, and his brow furrowed in confusion as he stared up at the man.
The thumb pad that had been gently touching his eyebag flinched for a moment, but the hand didn't leave, it simply went back to stroking his face gently. The strange version of Shedletsky seemed to simply stare at him with a weird look on his face, his headwings fallen limp, and his eyes pin-sized with interest. As 007 gazed into eyes that seemed to search for something more in him, he swallowed roughly, hoping that it wasn't too bad.
The man above him looked like he was having some sort of world shattering revelation. He almost didn't want to know what it was about.
"BrightEyes..?"
007n7 was incredibly confused by this turn of events. First, the killer didn't kill him. Then, the killer turned out to not be 1x, but instead was some weird version of Shedletsky who dressed like 1x. And now this strange variant of his teammate was practically straddling him, holding his face, and questioning if 007 was his wife of all people.
'What the hell?' Seven thought as he wriggled underneath the mans clawed hold. 'Did I get dropped into an alternate universe or something? What is happening?'Unbothered, the admin simply took his other hand and grabbed both of 007's wrists, pinning them above his head to still him. 007n7 was mortified at the new position, and his faced flushed in embarrassment, "I– I'm not–"
The weird Shedletsky interrupted him, "I can't believe I've found you... sure you're... you're different now... but I know it's you, beloved."
Those words were said with such conviction and confidence that they froze 007 for a moment, but he quickly snapped out of it, willing himself to calm down. Shakily, he spoke up despite knowing his next words might end him- but to tell the truth; he didn't care for dying this time if it got him out of this strange position.
"My name's not– I'm not BrightEyes, Shed, I'm–"
He was once again cut off, "no... no I suppose that wouldn't be your name anymore would it..." Seven couldn't believe what he was hearing, honestly. How far would this man go to keep living in whatever delusion this was?
The Shedletsky simply took a taloned finger and traced along his features, "after your rebirth you have experienced a few more... major changes, yes. But you're still you, aren't you?"
'Major changes?? Is that what he calls the fact that i'm a grown ass man and not a woman? A major change? More like an astronomical one?!' 007 thought hysterically.
"I would recognize you anywhere, my love. From the arch of your nose, to the creases of your eyes... you look as astonishing as the day I lost you. Yes, your hair may not be purple, and your gender isn't the same, but I know without a doubt that you're still you," the talons on his face curled in, possessive in the way they didn't break skin, but how one wrong move could make it so they would. "You must be. I won't believe anything else."
"Rebirth?" 007n7's voice cracked again, a high pitch of sound that betrayed his calm facade. Rebirth wasn't usually talked about among robloxians. Not many tended to believe in it, aside from a few religious sects that weren't based on admins like Telamon. He didn't think that Shedletsky of all people believed in such a thing, it was more up Two Times alley.
"But of course, how else could this be explained? Truly, I hadn't believed in such a silly thing myself until I saw the evidence infront of me..." the avian stopped for a moment to stare again, the claws relaxed from their hold and went back to tracing, "but, well. It's practically undeniable, I mean, look at you."
Suddenly, a crunching sound hit 007's ears, heavy footsteps drawing nearer. 'Please let it be a sentinel, oh my admins, PLEASE let it be a sentinel–' he pleaded internally.
When the former exploiter caught sight of blue shorts, wings and a white shirt he took back everything he thought previously, 'ANY SENTINEL BUT THAT ONE SPECIFICALLY–'
Brandishing his sword as he walked into view, the Shedletsky 007 was familiar with called out, his voice teasing, "007? What in the world are you doing with 1x–"
As soon as his voice reached them the man pinning 007n7 to the ground shot up and drew his sword, "you." He spat with a glare.
The sudden lack of contact was jarring, and 007 let out a relieved huff of air at the lack of pressure. Honestly, if wasn't as tired as he was he would have bolted then and there. Currently, however, he could only find it within him to sit up slowly and rub his wrists with a wince. Looking up at the scene in front of him, his eyes widened.
Both the avians were now posturing, they had their wings fully spread out behind them in some weird show of aggression. Now that he could have a good look at the both of them the differences were surprisingly stark. The first thing he noted, aside from the obvious outfit differences, was that his Shedletsky was a little more chubby compared to the weird one, who instead had more muscle tone. The second was their faces, his Shed didn't have much facial hair visible, his eyes were a brown color and they weren't as baggy as the other Sheds, who had a little beard and glowing green eyes. The third thing he noticed was how tattered the green one was in comparison.
His headwings were a deep brown, feathers more chipped and a few crooked, while the survivor's wings were a lighter brown, like his hair. His wings had a healthy shine, and were visibly well taken care of.
This didn't compare to the differences between the wings on their backs, though. While his Shedletsky's wings were clean and a strange shade of golden-brown, they were smaller in comparison to the other Shedletsky's wings; which were a darker hue, tattered, and crooked. A few actually fell out when they emerged from the weird coffin that contained them.
"Hacklord," his Shedletsky's voice was cold, mirth forgotten as he took in the actual situation. 007 could see the skin of his knuckles whitening between the scales as the swordsmans grip grew tight. He'd never seen the avian so wary since the first month they'd all been there, before things got more predictable.
'Hacklord?' He thought, glancing between the two, 'is that who this is?'
He pursed his lips, worrying the cracked skin between his teeth as he looked between the two. He slowly got up, making as little noise as he could, neither seemed to hear him, which he took as a good sign. But just as he gathered the courage to bolt, Hacklord suddenly reached out to grab his shirt.
007 let out a yelp when the man suddenly held him against his side by his waist. He found himself stilling at the sharp talons piercing through his clothes, as if warning him what would happen if he tried to escape.
Hacklord didn't look down when he spoke quietly to 007n7, his gaze still locked on the now startled Shedletsky, "don't worry, dearest BrightEyes, I won't let him get to you."
Frustration hit 007 hard, and he started trying to squirm away from the man, "for the last time, im not–"
Shedletsky's face grew grim, "let him go, Hacklord. I know he looks like her but he isn't. Whatever conclusions you've come to are false."
'Look like her?' 007's brow furrowed in confusion. He hadn't realized that the whole facial similarity thing was universal. A thought hit him, 'IS THAT WHY HE STARES AT ME SOMETIMES?'
"Don't try to convince me otherwise. I know what I think is true," Hacklord's voice growled, "all the signs that this man is simply her reincarnation are there. Surely even you can notice the similarities between them."
Seven expected some sort of retort from Shedletsky, but when he was greeted with silence and a strange look on the mans face he didn't know what to think. He's not agreeing with Hacklord... is he?
Seven's face dropped a little as he watched Shedletsky's eyes avoid his own.
'No fuckin' way.'
The admin took a moment to speak quietly, "doppelgängers appear every so often, Hacklord."
The killer began to laugh in response, his tone was almost taunting as he spoke, "You know deep down that a doppelgänger can't account for all the similarities they share. I've only been in this man's presence for but a few minutes and I can already see it all myself. The facial similarities only scratch the surface of it! Surely you've noticed the other parallels?"
Hacklord suddenly pulled 007n7 between himself and the sentinel. The ex-hacker squeaked in surprise when a hand was on his face yet again, this time a talon grazed his lip. 007 flushed in embarrassment at the position, Hacklord was... really unintentionally handsy... it was already inconvenient and mortifying to be held by the waist, but by the face too? By Telamon and the other admins, he hoped no one else saw this. He might actually pass away from embarrassment otherwise.
Both avians were seemingly oblivious to 007n7's plight. Hacklord prattled onward, but he wasn't really listening, it was something about his bad habit of biting his lips, the way he yelped when scared and yadda yadda. Honestly he was more focused on the position he was unfortunately in and was currently looking to see if anyone was nearby to witness it.
The monologue was broken by something Shedletsky said, given how 007 was busy playing look out, he hadn't heard it. But when he was suddenly swept off his feet and abruptly placed on the ground by Hacklord he realized that the avians were probably going to actually fight now and he began paying attention again.
'Holy shit,' he thought, watching the fight progress, 'I'm freed.... I should probably get out of here now that I can pull out my c00lgui, huh.'
Opening the panel he noticed that there actually wasn't much time left, so long as Shedletsky didn't die within the next 12 seconds left. Glancing up, he noted that the battle surprisingly looked pretty even so far, and he relaxed.
'Might as well watch...' with a shrug he put the panel away, stretched out his legs and leaned back on his hands. 'Wish I had popcorn.'