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Leaving Zam was hard.
Not because the trio of brothers wanted to stay, but because the ruler wanted to go with them. Or - really - just Wemmbu.
Zam had dismissed Mane and Flame as his guards when they asked to leave, wanting to go home or on an adventure with their newly returned brother. Zam didn't really seem to care that two of his most competent guards wanted to leave, but he also didn't seem to realize that Wemmbu would be going with them.
"BUT WHY?!" Zam wailed, the ruler embracing his friend tightly, "WHY DO YOU HAVE TO LEAVE ME?!"
Wemmbu sighed, "Zam, I can't stay here! I would get bored eventually!"
Probably not the best thing to say, but oh well!
Zam froze before suddenly brightening, "Then I'll go with you!"
Mane and Flame narrowed their eyes behind their blindfolds while Wemmbu sighed, "You have a whole empire to look after!"
"I DON'T WANNAAAAAAAA!" the aquatic hybrid wailed theatrically.
Wemmbu finally hugged his friend back, "I'll call you every day and come back to visit, okay?"
Zam suddenly stopped crying and beamed, "Okay!"
Mane felt a drop of sweat run down his neck, 'That was a little too easy…'
But in the end, the trio of brothers finally left the Zam Empire.
~
"Minute says that this 'Spoke' guy is in Capital City, apparently he's close with the potion shop bird guy!" Wemmbu relayed to his brothers, typing away on his communicator.
Mane pulled the youngest away from a hole in the ground with a sigh, "Watch where you're going! How have you survived this long on your own?!"
Wemmbu stuck his tongue out at the lion, "I was only alone for a little bit! I normally had Egg with me!"
Flame ruffled Wemmbu's hair, causing the younger to put his communicator away and fix his ponytail with a hiss, "You're dumb as hell."
"I know you of all people are not talking!" Wemmbu's tail swayed in irritation.
Flame's eye twitched beneath his blindfold, "Oh you little-!"
Mane pushed himself between the two with a hiss, "Don't start!"
His two younger brothers both pouted up at him, causing Mane to sigh and smile. As much as the two were annoying when they were rage baiting each other (which is honestly most of the time), the lion had missed this. He hadn't heard his brothers hiss at each other like frustrated kittens for over a year and it made him think back to the little kids that would scrap with each other on the floor of their living room.
"This is taking forever!" Flame whined.
Wemmbu huffed, "If you would just use an elytra, we could have been there by now!"
"I don't need an elytra!" Flame crossed his arms with a hiss.
"Alright, alright!" Mane placed his hands on each of his brothers heads, "let's cool it! We'll be in Capital City soon enough! Let's just enjoy our time together."
Flame huffed and looked away to hide a smile as Wemmbu purred and rubbed up against his hand.
These damn kids, bro…
~
"Well, well," the old stall owner drawled, "look who finally remembered to come visit!"
Wemmbu groaned, "Sorry it took so long, Granny."
"Long time no see, Granny!" Flame grinned at the familiar old lady.
"It has," she agreed before standing up and smacking the back of the tigers head with her cane, "you knew where I was and never visited!"
"OW!" Flame hissed and rubbed the back of his now aching head, "I was busy! And Mane didn't visit either?!"
Mane grinned, "Yeah, but I still sent letters!"
Wemmbu snickered at his older brother, "What a loser!"
"Oh I'll show you-!" Flame hissed before jumping Wemmbu, the two starting to roll around and play fight right in the middle of the city.
Mane sighed and bid farewell to the old lady over the sound of hissing before grabbing each brother by the backs of their shirts and dragging them off in the direction of the potion shop.
~
"We have to do something!" Spoke stressed, pacing the shop floor.
Parrot's eyes followed as he gripped his spyglass, "I know, but we don't have the man power! If we want to go against Ash-"
"Hellooooo~?" a voice called from the doorway before a purple face came into view.
Parrot and Spoke froze at the sight of the demon(?) and two large cat hybrids behind him.
"Oh!" Parrot gasped, "Mane and Flame? And your brother too? Wemmbu right? Ahh… how can I help you guys?"
Wemmbu grinned, "I'm looking for a voidling named Spoke? Minute said he'd be here."
"Minute?" Spoke tilted his head, "Why has Minute sent you to look for me?"
Wemmbu's tail swayed happily, "He said that you were an expert in glitches and exploits! I need your help!"
"My help?" Spoke blinked, this had never happened before, "With what?"
Mane placed a hand on Wemmbu's head, stopping him from skipping over to a stranger, "His friend is trapped in the end. He set his spawn out in the Farlands, so if he leaves, he'll be stuck there."
Spoke stared at the lion. Mane and Flame were quite famous around the Mainlands of the server, being Prince Zam's most prized guards and well known PVPers. This could give them an edge over Ashswag, if he played his cards right.
"Well," he started with what he hoped was a friendly grin, "of course I can help you! But it's going to cost you!"
Parrot stared at him in confusion before realization flashed across his face.
Flame hissed lowly, "And what's your price?"
Spoke tried not to shake in fear at the guy who was known to be one of the strongest on the server, "I just need you and Mane to help me take someone down!"
The trio of brothers tilted their heads in unison - which was a little creepy in Spoke's opinion - and Mane questioned why with narrowed eyes.
Parrot cut in to explain, "A player named Ashswag has gathered hundreds of players to form what he calls the 'Invisible Mafia'."
Wemmbu perked up, probably sensing a future fight, "Tell me more!"
Parrot felt a bead of sweat run down the side of his face as Flame smacked the younger over the side of his head, "He forces these players to be invisible at all times and if they're not, he pulls their stasis chambers and they fall into the void."
"I fail to see how this concerns us." Mane frowned, pulling Wemmbu back over to him as soon as the boys interest in the conversation started shifting and he tried to run off.
It was a little strange how quickly the old instincts came back.
"Ash wants the whole server under his control!" Spoke cut in, "He's already targeting us because we refused to join!"
"I mean… what's so bad about joining this mafia? So far it seems the only downside is having to constantly be invis?" Flame questioned.
Before Parrot could explain Wemmbu jumped in, "Prolonged use of invisibility potions can cause multiple different health issues including - but not limited to - migraines, trouble breathing, weak limbs, constant fatigue and - very rarely - loss of colour in both the skin and hair."
The other four players stared in shock at the boy who seemed more entertained by Mane's swinging tail. Wemmbu was startled back to reality by Parrot's cough, looking over to see everyone staring at him.
"What?" he tilted his head to the side, "Egg talks in his sleep! And it's only about boring things he's read!"
Mane sighed and patted his brothers head, "Okay, I see now how this could be a problem. But what you're asking of us is too much for just some information. The deal isn't fair."
Flame frowned, "You're asking us to put our lives on the line, we could always just go the long way and travel to the Farlands ourselves."
Wemmbu wondered if he should mention that he's not exactly welcome back in Farlands but decided against it.
"WAIT!" Parrot begged as they turned to leave, "I've raided the mafia multiple times! I can give you anything!"
"Anything?" Wemmbu turned back with a grin, causing his older brothers to groan.
Parrot lead them to a basement with chests lining the walls.
Wemmbu opened one and giggled at the sight inside, "Oh, I'm sure we can work something out!"