Chapter Text
The screen taunted Avery with its glaring absence of a respawn button. His eyes bored into the void in place of where it should be, and he could vaguely see his own reflection.
A past anger that was running through him so viscerally just minutes ago had left tear tracks on his face, a tingling sensation between his brows, and a shaking in his hand that moved the cursor slightly.
He looked up at his ceiling, feeling as if he was falling. Falling, falling into a pit of deep kindling fire. He gripped his chair as the shock subdued and everything came rushing back.
Derek was gone now. He was completely out of Avery’s reach. There was nothing he could do to save him. There was nothing he did do.
Looking through the void back at himself, Avery felt that fire surge to his throat. What right did he have to look so pathetic right now? He would live to see the new year. Derek wouldn’t, because he fell for the oldest trick in the book.
He wanted to grab the laptop and throw it against the ground, shattering into a thousand pieces until he couldn’t think about what he did anymore. Stomping it out until all he could feel was a pain in his foot.
But that was a bad idea.
Avery roughly pushed himself away from his desk, very pointedly no longer looking at the monitor. His hands longed for something to tear, smash or even hold, but he settled for digging into his palms as he began to pace around the room. It didn’t do much for the burning that spread like it was supposed to, to his feet that began moving faster and faster, all the way up to his forehead that began to hurt again as it twisted.
It burst and with a roar and powerful wind up, he headed to the bed and kicked it with all his might.
Ow.
His throbbing toes reminded Avery that he was apparently Bad Idea Central(™), today.
He laid in a pitiful heap on his bed, groaning into his sheets. Avery allowed himself to be enveloped in a darkness that didn’t have a reflection, and listened to his noisy neighbors. Unlike him, they had invited over people for New Year’s. Unlike him, they seemed to be having a good time. He let himself get lost in their muffled chatter. In the darkness that didn’t judge.
As he was drifting, he heard them begin to chant.
Ten! Nine!
He pulled a pillow over his head as they got incessantly louder.
Eight! Seven!
It didn’t help much.
Six! Five!
His head pounded with the sound.
Four! Three!
He wished that he’d done things differently.
Two!
He wished he’d been smarter.
One!
He wished he could try again.
Happy New Years!!
And as the first firework went off, everything fell silent.
Avery opened his eyes to a familiar ceiling. Unlike last night, he was enveloped by the sheets. He must’ve done that at some point before he fell asleep. Avery tried to let himself slip back into the darkness once again, but the fire of last night refused to be ignored again. It crawled up into his throat, and soon he was hiccuping on tears.
Avery didn’t know how long he lay there, but he did know that when he gained some semblance of calm, his pillow had a large wet spot, his throat hurt, and he still was shaking, albeit slightly. He dragged himself out of bed, noting that he had PJ’s on. He must’ve really been out of it last night to not remember changing. Which… wasn’t that surprising. With the way his body felt almost foreign to him right now, it wasn’t a stretch he’d blocked out some of last night. He wasn’t sure whether or not to thank his brain for making him forget changing into pajamas instead of any of the other stuff, though. Part of him wanted it to just all go away, but he knew that was a selfish desire. He didn’t deserve to forget. Derek didn’t deserve to be forgotten.
The chill from the fridge that had been opened on habit made Avery’s body feel a bit more like his own. He reached for a Pepsi (the superior of the two) and had downed half of it when he paused. He swore he’d drunk the last one yesterday. But here it was, in his hand, his stomach grumbling about his attempt at chugging soda. He was probably misremembering, and he’d left one in the fridge.
Avery reached for the crackers he kept for mornings he didn’t feel like making much. They had too much sugar and salt to be healthy, not like he cared. As long as he didn’t get scurvy, it was fine. The food was a bit too grounding however, and Avery was suddenly very aware of how awful he felt. He let himself slump onto the counter, trying to focus on the cold surface rather than the tightness in his throat and the shivers that racked through his body.
His phone buzzed with a notification, and he pulled it out of his pocket, welcoming the distraction. It was from his mom. He clicked on the message, reading ‘Happy New Year's Eve! 😁🥰😘,’ accompanied by fireworks in the background of the message.
Eve?
Something nasty squeezed Avery’s heart as he turned his phone off. He tried to squash it, telling himself that he’d already screwed up his one chance. He wasn’t special, he couldn’t possibly have another try. He couldn’t fix things. Yet, it refused to be quelled, and Avery kept his eyes glued to his phone as his lockscreen lit up.
December 31st stared back at him and his hope leaped.
He quickly unlocked his phone and navigated to the calendar app, a chockfull of halfhearted reminders of assignment deadlines and exam dates. December 31st again.
Scrambling across his apartment, Avery practically leaped to his computer. He tripped on his shoes– putting them by the door just didn’t feel right– and ended up needing to grab onto his desk for leverage. He wasn’t sure which god had smiled down on him, or was more likely laughing at him, but if he really had another chance, the only way to really know was by checking the world.
Minecraft loaded painfully slowly, in contrast to Avery’s racing thoughts. He impatiently tapped his fingers against his desk. He just needed to get to D3rlord and figure out a way to defeat the King without the self-sacrifice. Maybe he could… blow up the King? If it existed within Minecraft, then what’s it going to do against a full stack of TNT? At least it’ll piss it off long enough to stall for Derek. He’d probably come up with a better plan.
He grabbed one, on second thought, six stacks of TNT and a flint and steel from the creative inventory. He paused in his fervor for only a moment as he approached those gates, the ones standing in between him and Derek. Thoughts of what if it’s too late, what if he’s already gone, what if something’s wrong whirled through his head. But he couldn’t let himself spiral. Avery would find him no matter what.
<TheMostMayo> im coming d3rlord
With that he walked through the gates. There was nothing on the other side. Frowning, he walked back through, and there were the corridors. Avery took a deep breath and channeled his inner speedrunner. That stupid music echoed in his head as he ran through the first gates.
The world he entered as he turned back around was familiar. The islands with an entity (Hassur? That was what Derek had said, right?) that deleted islands on random like a kid with no direction. Except– dammit, which way was that stupid tree again? Avery considered just bridging until he found it, but 64 x 6 = not enough blocks. He decided on placing enough on every bridge and island to parkour back if needed and started sprinting.
Thoughts started to crowd his brain, doubt grappling Avery as he continued through the world. What if d3rlord had looped too? Would he already be sacrificing himself? What if that thing knew he was looping and kept him from Derek? What if this was all a dream? (He pinched himself at that; it hurt, so one worry was resolved.) What if this was his second chance, and after he failed this, there was nothing after? What if he failed again and again and again and–
The ground below his avatar disappeared, and Avery pulled off a clutch that would have had him cheering with glee a few days ago. Now, he could barely keep himself from facepalming at forgetting that this island has disappeared last time, too. D3rlord’s yellow blocks, his saviors, stared back at him through the screen. D3rlord. Derek. His savior needed him, and like hell Avery would let some stupid thoughts stop him from doing so.
Avery bridged to the next island with a renewed fervor, and before long he saw the tree. He’d spent more blocks than he’d have liked to in his endeavor. He should bring another stack, next time. He glanced back at his path and realized something glorious. He’d accidentally made a TNT trail. With a gritted grin, he switched to the flint and steel in his hotbar, and lit the nearest TNT. He sprinted the last distance as explosions went on in the background, and he only paused once he’d reached the doors.
<TheMostMayo> boom bitch.
And with those words on the screen and on his lips, Avery left the world, TNT still going off in the distance.
That stupid song still hadn’t left Avery’s head. In fact, it was now looping on the most. Annoying. Part. The spirit of that morally dubious speedrunner seemed to bless his progress, however, as he found himself in the library in practically no time. He ran through the halls, heart pounding at the prospect of seeing Derek again. What would he tell the guy? What could he even tell him that wouldn’t screw everything up? Definitely not the self-sacrifice stuff. Or the hitting Avery off a ledge part. But… Derek needed to know what Avery could tell him. He was so smart, surely he could figure out another way if he knew the future, too. He had to be able to. He would, if Avery could find him. Derek, where the heck– oh.
Derek was definitely the smarter one.
<TheMostMayo> d3rlord? where are you?
Avery had forgotten he could just straight up ask the man. Unless he wasn’t here, he should be able to respond. Unless–had Avery been too early? Maybe–
<d3rlord3> What’s the superior of the two?
Uh.
<TheMostMayo> what??
<d3rlord3> The drinks.
Well, Avery didn’t get the relevancy, but–
<TheMostMayo> ????
<TheMostMayo> Pepsi
…Derek wasn’t responding. Had Avery said something wrong? Not that Pepsi was the wrong answer, but maybe he’d misinterpreted the question? Avery hoped not, he really needed to tell Derek—
<d3rlord3> 2517, 217, 520
Oh. Well, that’s convenient.
Avery pulled up his rarely-used coordinates screen and confidently headed in the wrong direction. He readjusted, still the wrong way, readjusted again, and then started sprinting.
Correction, coordinates were only convenient when you’re Derek Hutchins. It somehow took Avery 5 whole minutes to find the lectern. It probably would have taken less time to just run around based on memory alone, but, whatever. When the lectern came into view, his breath caught in his throat. He had a second chance to help Derek, and he wouldn’t mess up again. “Coming, Derek.” Avery muttered.
He started mining the block beneath him, dropping down with a barely concealed fervor that was quickly tampered by the distinct lack of Derek.
<TheMostMayo> im here
He started wandering around the area when his attention was drawn by a damage sound from above. And then Derek was here. Not actually actually here but here nonetheless. They were just two screens away from each other.
<d3rlord3> What are you doing?
“Derek! Oh my god, Derek hi.” Avery paused for a second to type his sentiment into chat.
<TheMostMayo> youre here
<TheMostMayo> ok
<TheMostMayo> ok one sec
All Avery knew was the clack of the keyboard as he tried to summarize the most crazy part of his life.
“Okay.. so.. explanation time. I’m doing this.” Avery paused. “I’m doing this.” Once Avery started, the words don’t stop.
“Book first, well technically video…” He shook his head. Best not to overcomplicate.. especially not admitting he needed a Youtuber to figure it out for him in front of the d3rlord. “Nah, book first.”
Okay planted stuff was a start but a lot more had happened. At the same time, “…Yeahhhhh, I’m not thinking about that place no more.”
“Like a King would be eyeballs. No one would want a king whose just eyeballs. Ew.”
<TheMostMayo> i got your book and came here, found a golden block instead of the king, went through a bunch of worlds and like planted stuff and then you were here and you explained the king or wtv and then it came and i blacked out and i came back and we tried to figu
Avery internally cursed the character limit—actually screw that—“fucking stupid” he muttered as he sent the first part. He started on his second message and hesitated on the third word.
“Oh. Can’t tell Derek about the sacrifice stuff.” Even if he believed him, who would trust Avery over themself?
<TheMostMayo> out something. and now im back.
He tapped his fingers against the desk while waiting for a response, already internally drafting another message. do you think five stacks of tnt is enough or am i lowballing it
<d3rlord3> The King came here?
<TheMostMayo> yeah
<TheMostMayo> my head genuinely hit the desk
<TheMostMayo> and when i woke up it set me back to the first door
The messages slowly faded until no text remained. The lack of text on the screen really bugged Avery.
<TheMostMayo> so suffice to say i got speedrun exp
<TheMostMayo> wait no
<TheMostMayo> thats stupid sorry
Avery had two wolves inside him. One was demanding he pace across the room, but the alpha wolf told him to keep his eyes glued to the screen. He was still bouncing his foot though.
<d3rlord3> Follow me
<TheMostMayo> ok
Avery guided his crosshair to follow d3rlord’s avatar. Derek seemed to know where he was going, and they were sprinting to get there, so it must be important.
They’ve been running for a bit. Okay, it was actually less than a minute but Avery couldn’t help his mind wandering. Derek’s avatar was fitting. I mean c’mon, the man was a knight in shining armor, mysterious anime shadows under the helmet and all. (Avery may have looked at some art.) It made Avery endlessly curious at what Derek could look like under the metaphorical helmet. He had to wear glasses. Right? Either those or shades.
<d3rlord3> You didn’t find anything else about the King?
<TheMostMayo> nope
Oh, wait.
<TheMostMayo> do you think tnt would work
<d3rlord3> Against a formless, supernatural being?
<TheMostMayo> right right right
<TheMostMayo> tho it looked pretty formful to me
Derek took a bit longer to respond to that one. Avery could melt into the floor at this point.
<d3rlord3> Perhaps as a distraction. Its true form is not something anyone survives
<TheMostMayo> you survived
The yellow gates of this world, the exit ones, were approaching. They were all dramatic, at the end of a fancy staircase and allat. Derek headed for them, and Avery’s statement faded off his screen. Derek’s character disappeared into the darkness behind the door when he entered, which was creepy, but probably just meant he was going through to the other side. Avery followed, and soon enough his theory was confirmed, as the two were standing back in the corridors. Derek paused, hurriedness quelled for some reason.
<d3rlord3> I have a theory. Respond to my next questions with yes or no, and only those until I say otherwise
Avery frowned at that. He would do that, sure, but that was some horror movie shit. Which… considering everything he knew now, probably wasn’t far off the mark.
<d3rlord3> The entity appeared not long after I mentioned it to you, correct?
<TheMostMayo> yes
<d3rlord3> Did I call it by name, not just its title, when I mentioned it to you?
Avery didn’t like where this was going. Was Derek implying this was a Bloody Mary situation??
<TheMostMayo> yes
<d3rlord3> Its name probably catches its attention. A sort of summons
<d3rlord3> From now on, we will refer to it as “the entity”, not its title or name, in both game and out loud
<d3rlord3> Agreed?
<TheMostMayo> sure
<TheMostMayo> yes
<d3rlord3> Alright, you can speak freely
<d3rlord3> I have some questions.
Yeahhh… Avery should’ve expected an interrogation, but he was still surprised at the absolute slew of questions Derek flung at him. He started with a recap of how Avery knew he was here, in this world, which Avery said was a sum of outside help and some guesswork (he refused to go into the video, and worse, the fandom.) Then they moved on to an exact, step by step retelling of what the first time Avery lived through New Year’s Eve was like.
Something to know about Avery is that he is not a good liar. The fact that a computer screen separated the two helped quite a bit in Avery’s efforts to deceive, but Derek being Derek meant that Avery had no hope in hell to leave out his time in the church. This wouldn’t stop him from trying.
<d3rlord3> So you managed to find the exit
<TheMostMayo> yeh
<d3rlord3> What happened next?
Avery frowned at that. He knew what happened next, but Derek didn’t need to. He mused, “Howzabout we just… skip the church.”
<TheMostMayo> the netherite room
<TheMostMayo> the one with the greek statues and chains
Derek fell quiet at that. The lack of a response was starting to feel uncomfortable before he decided on a reply.
<d3rlord3> Well if my theory is right, I just skipped a few doors by finding a different exit
<d3rlord3> So it’s odd that you’re not mentioning the world I ended up in after the shortcut
Avery felt his heart sink. Derek had seen right through him.
<d3rlord3> Did you forget to mention that?
But of course, he was also kind enough to give Avery an out.
<TheMostMayo> oh yeah i forgot about that
<TheMostMayo> mb mb
<TheMostMayo> it was pretty uninteresting it was just plants
<TheMostMayo> well i mean there was a church and a lake
<TheMostMayo> but it was like
<TheMostMayo> super normal
<TheMostMayo> so i forgot
Nice one, Avery.
<TheMostMayo> is that the same one you went to
He tacked that on very lamely, still trying to save his terrible lie. But as he typed it out, the implication of Derek going to the church world set in. He lurched forward to send a slew of messages.
<TheMostMayo> wait
<TheMostMayo> you went there?
<TheMostMayo> were you okay????
<TheMostMayo> did you read the book
<TheMostMayo> it didnt get you or anything did it
<d3rlord3> Avery
<d3rlord3> Slow down
<TheMostMayo> sorry
“I’m so stupid.”
Avery dropped his gaze from the screen for the first time that day. Shame burned at the back of his neck from getting caught lying, doubling down, and then almost immediately proving there was more to it because he panicked. Over a video game.
<d3rlord3> Yes, I read the book
<d3rlord3> It was a small fraction of what the entity showed me
<d3rlord3> I know everything, remember? It wasn’t anything I hadn't already thought of
<d3rlord3> It was an unnecessarily cruel oversimplification of things that are technically true
<d3rlord3> I left those signs for you because I knew it’d be different for someone who didn’t already take in everything there was to ever know
Derek.. was the one who left the signs. Of course he was. Avery’s chest felt tight. He was always saving him.
<TheMostMayo> thank you
<TheMostMayo> it probably seems like nothing to you
<TheMostMayo> like its literally just a book
<TheMostMayo> and you had all that stuff
<TheMostMayo> but thank you
“How can I ever repay you for all you’ve done for me?” He muttered, blinking away the embarrassing tears forming in his eyes.
<d3rlord3> It’s not nothing, Avery.
<d3rlord3> What happened?
He typed out his response pretty quickly, but once he got to the end he just sat there and watched the cursor-line blink. When did this become about him? He didn’t want to leave Derek waiting, but.
<TheMostMayo> i really dont want to talk about it
<d3rlord3> I know, but I need to know what the entity is capable of
<d3rlord3> You don’t have to go in detail, just a cursory summary
Avery steeled himself to try and explain whatever had happened in the church. It wasn’t exactly something he had the clearest recollection of, but the foggy memories still made him shudder. The nothing he found when he poked for more detail felt haunting in a way that was hard to describe.
<TheMostMayo> i mean okay yeah
<TheMostMayo> i read the book
<TheMostMayo> and then i wasn’t like
<TheMostMayo> me anymore
<TheMostMayo> i did do some gardening and uh other stuff
<TheMostMayo> tho i think doing that for uh 8? ish hours straight is concerning
<TheMostMayo> a bit
Derek seemed to pause at that, probably crafting some intelligent response.
<d3rlord3> Do you mean you dissociated?
<TheMostMayo> oh
<TheMostMayo> maybe??
<TheMostMayo> i felt like it has something to do with the
Avery had almost typed ‘the King’. That would’ve been the icing on his bad decision cake.
<TheMostMayo> “entity”
Avery paused when he almost followed that up with ‘not whatever i got going on’, and deleted that before he sent it.
<TheMostMayo> not in a normal way
<d3rlord3> Interesting.
<d3rlord3> Thank you for telling me.
And with that, Derek turned to head down the bridge to the next door. He did that weird disappearing thing again and for a moment, Avery was alone on the bridge. He allowed himself to take a shaky breath before following.
Avery would Avery all over this king. It’s gonna get mayo’d.