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After traversing countless different biomes, the terrain dropped off and turned into a vast ocean.
Water was all the eye could see, the only variation being the water temperature. The sea was too deep to see the coral reefs hidden beneath, a shame if you asked Egg. Wemmbu was too busy enjoying the dolphins that would occasionally jump up next to their small boat to listen to his complaints.
Wemmbu had never seen so much water before and he was enjoying the change in scenery. Sure, he and Egg had traveled through lakes and oceans - even exploring ruins along the way - but they had never been in an ocean that was so long it seemed to never end.
Overall, the two friends were enjoying their travels. The warm sun during the day and the bright moon reflecting on the waves at night, it acted like a peaceful rest for the duo.
After passing multiple small islands, they finally found a large civilization that they could rest in. As lovely as sailing the seas was, both boys' arms were tired from all the rowing and some time off was very much overdue. The whispers in Wemmbu’s mind seemed to agree as well, which was a welcomed relief.
The large city was embedded deep into the ocean, surrounded by thick walls to keep the water from drowning everyone. In the center of the city was a tall building - no doubt where their leader lived - with a dragon statue curling around the top, its mouth open as if it were roaring.
“Holy aura, dude!” Egg grinned as Wemmbu sighed at the phrase.
“Hurry up,” Wemmbu walked ahead after they were let into the city, “we’ve got shopping to do!”
Egg jogged to catch up with him, “Can we fish for a bit?!”
Wemmbu laughed quietly, “Sure, why not?”
Egg cheered as they explored the multiple levels of the giant city. They repaired their gear and restocked their supplies before running off to find accommodation for the night. They finally found a hotel (after passing several fish stalls) and started the check in process.
While Egg was paying the manager, Wemmbu stared at a large poster above the hotel reception area. It was a picture of a man in his early 20’s. He had long black hair with a hue of blue tied in a low ponytail and pulled over his shoulder. He wore a blue pirate outfit and held a trident tightly in his hand. His eyes were a deep brown that seemed to border on black.
Huh, he looked familiar…
Wonder why?
“Oh? Are you interested in the portrait?” the manager questioned Wemmbu.
Wemmbu slowly nodded his head, “Yeah… is that this place's leader?”
“Correct!” the manager cheered, “That’s JadenMan, the founder of this pirate civilization and some would even go as far as to call him the king of the Great Sea!”
Even the guy's name sounded familiar but Wemmbu just couldn’t figure out why.
Egg dragged him off to their room, eager to sit down on an actual bed. They didn’t often get to sleep on a bed - or indoors - as they normally just set up a camp wherever they find themselves. This was a luxury for them.
(Wemmbu can’t help but think about his brothers. Did they even know that they were alive? He wished he could fix his communicator so that he could at least hear their voices. It’s times like this that Wemmbu really feels his age.
…
He missed Mane and Flame.)
Egg slumped onto the large bed with a content sigh, “This is great! Oh how I’ve missed real beds!”
“Okay, bro,” Wemmbu chuckled, “I’m going to take advantage of the hot water.”
Egg watched his friend with his real eyes, finally comfortable now that they were hidden behind closed doors, “Are you alright?”
Wemmbu froze in the bathroom doorway, “...yeah, why?”
Egg hummed, “You’ve been spacy since you saw that portrait.”
“It’s just…” Wemmbu trailed off with a sigh, “The guy in the picture looks familiar and I can’t figure out why.”
“With your memory, we may never know.” Egg rolled onto his back.
Wemmbu rolled his eyes but left his friend to relax, heading towards the shower.
~
“I REMEMBER!” Wemmbu crashed into the room, his hair still wet from his shower.
Egg shot up from the bed and swung his head towards his friend, “What?! Remember what?!”
“The picture guy!” Wemmbu jumped on the bed next to the angel, black and white feathers mixing in the air, “Flame tried to kill him!”
“Flame tried to do what?! Why?!”
“Jaden stole Lomedy’s mace! Flame tried to get it back but Jaden managed to escape!”
“Wait… does that mean Jaden knows who you are?” Egg started to panic.
“Hopefully not, we didn’t exactly meet each other. Like, he knows I’m Flame’s younger brother, but he doesn’t know my name.”
Egg hummed thoughtfully, “We should leave early tomorrow to avoid a confrontation.”
“Yeah,” Wemmbu agreed, “I don’t need him coming after me just because I’m Flame’s brother.”
~
At the top of the center tower of the Pirate Civilization, a tall man glared down at the entrance gate. A blob of colour that was a very familiar shade of purple stood out among the dark coloured walls. An image of a young boy clinging to the pants of a vicious tiger hybrid invaded Jaden’s mind.
“No,” he growled as the wind swept past his hair, “I can’t let my location slip to Flamefrags. Not when I’ve come so far.”
He turned to one of his subordinates that came to the roof with him, “Capture the purple demon and his angel friend. I want them alive.”
The nameless man bowed respectfully, “Yes sir, I’ll send a ship right away.”
~
“Egggggggg…” Wemmbu whined, “we can’t keep stopping just so you can fish, the voices are getting aggressive from the hold up!”
Egg sighed mournfully and reeled his fishing line in, stashing the rod back into his inventory, “I guess we can head off now…”
Just as Wemmbu began to row again, they found themselves suddenly surrounded by large ships. Voices shouted over the waves, demanding they hold still. A glance up showed pirate flags, causing Wemmbu to grit his teeth.
“Seems Jaden does know who I am.” he growled, pulling Gambit out.
The amethysts on the weapon sparkled in the sun, blinding light shining off the metal carvings. Wemmbu’s wings spread as the boat rocked before a wind charge threw him into the air, Gambit coming down on the head of a pirate, killing them instantly.
Egg flapped his own wings and took to the air, staying a good few blocks away from the ships so as to not get caught in the crossfire. He pulled his bow out and took aim, firing and killing pirates while keeping himself safe from aerial attacks.
The two friends fell into a familiar rhythm, a song and dance they knew all too well. Over the months they had been away, they had been in many battles. The first few ones mainly focused on Wemmbu attacking and Egg hiding, but the angel had been taking a more offensive role in their (Wemmbu’s really…) conflicts.
After a while, the ships were void of pirates. The duo decided it best to take the time to loot the ships and regain what supplies they lost. While exploring the bedrooms, Wemmbu came across a journal.
The Great Sea: Islands and Civilizations - by Linnwyrm
Flipping through it briefly showed a list of interesting islands and civilizations with description of their histories. It even had a map folded in the back of the book. It was actually a little interesting and Wemmbu stashed it away to give to Egg later. His friend had been complaining about the lack of reading material they’ve had on their journey.
Once they met up back on their own little boat, they got ready to sail again.
Only to be stopped by more pirate ships surrounding the.
“Argh!” Wemmbu stuck out his tongue, “I don’t want to keep fighting them!”
“Let’s just fly, it’ll be faster than rowing.” Egg sighed.
The two shot into the sky, leaving shouts behind them.
~
They had to land eventually. Wemmbu’s wings were still too small to keep him in the air for very long without the assistance of rockets and they were starting to run low. The island they landed on had a large building in the middle of the terrain but no pirate flags, so they assumed it was safe enough to land on the outskirts to rest.
Just as they were about to explore the island, they heard voices from the building. Wemmbu dragged Egg to crouch behind a wall and listen in.
“This place is so boring…” a female voice whined.
“Loppezz…” a male trailed off, “we have to wait for more orders from Jaden.”
Loppezz groaned, “He wants us to stay here in case some demon shows up! What can we actually do against a demon, Lettuce.”
“They have weird names…” Egg whispered.
Wemmbu rolled his eyes, “You’re one to talk.”
“Did you hear that?!” Lettuce panicked.
“Hear what?!” Egg and Wemmbu froze in place, not expecting the duo to hear them.
“I heard whispering! Someone’s here!”
Loppezz hissed in frustration, “Gear up! And whoever you are! Show yourself!”
Egg pulled at Wemmbu’s arm as the dragon started to stand up, “What are you doing?!”
“They’re just some chungies,” Wemmbu wasn’t even trying to be stealthy anymore, “we’ll take them out easily.”
He turned away from his friend and stared at the two cat hybrids. Or he was pretty sure they were both cats, Loppezz might be some sort of alien. It’s not like he’s one to judge!
Lettuce gasped, “You’re the one Jaden wants captured!”
“Yeah, bro! That’s me!” Wemmbu grinned maliciously, “What are the two of you going to do about it? From the sounds of it, neither of you are fighters.”
“We’ll show you!” Loppezz hissed before lunging at the dragon, Lettuce not far behind.
Wemmbu dodged the attacks, leading them away from Egg. The two were so focused on Wemmbu that they didn’t notice the extra person. Loppezz swung her sword wildly, getting more frustrated as Wemmbu continued to dodge.
Wemmbu had to be honest, her swings were strong. They just lacked accuracy and thought. If Wemmbu had ever swung his sword like that, Mane and Flame would have made him train all day to get rid of the bad habit. It was likely that Loppezz had never been formally trained.
Lettuce switched between swinging an axe and shooting a crossbow at the dragon. He seemed to have the accuracy and thought that Loppezz didn’t, but lacked the strength to back it up. Wemmbu wondered if this was the first time they had worked together in battle, as they didn’t seem to be able to work together to cover each other's weak spots.
While Wemmbu was pondering, Egg shot both Lettuce and Loppezz with weakness arrows, startling them and giving Wemmbu an opening to attack. He swung Gambit between the two cats, sending them flying in opposite directions and giving him and Egg time to run inside the building.
With shouts behind them, they descended a staircase and ran down a corridor. At the end of the hall was a runway of ice.
“You got a boat?” Wemmbu questioned.
Egg huffed, “Yeah.”
He placed the boat down on the ice and got in, letting Wemmbu jump in behind him before he started rowing. Wemmbu held on to the sides of their vessel tightly, claws marring the wood. He wondered if Egg was the best person to put in the driver's seat as they swayed around.
Wemmbu cackled as shouts got closer, “Dude! Let’s just run on foot!”
This was actually kind of fun.
~
This was no longer fun.
Wemmbu pouted as he was dragged towards JadenMan, who was sitting on a throne. They had been jumped by pirates that Loppezz and Lettuce must have called when they were chasing them on the ice track. Although Wemmbu was strong, he wasn’t able to defend both himself and Egg from a surprise attack by some many people.
Jaden smirked under his mask down at Wemmbu, “Well, well! What do we have here? Flamefrags’ little shadow.”
Wemmbu rolled his eyes, “Yeah, okay buddy. Let’s skip the dramatics and get to the point.”
“Okay then!” Jaden scoffed, “I can’t have you running off to your big brother with my location, so you’ll be staying here.”
“But not me, right?” Egg asked.
“You’re his friend,” Jaden deadpanned, “you’re staying imprisoned as well.”
“NOOOOOOOO!!!!!!” Egg whined as Wemmbu stared at him blankly.
This happened a lot more than he’d like to admit.
Wemmbu turned his head back towards Jaden, “Yeah, sure bro. We’ll definitely stay in prison. Totally.”
“You’re very cocky.” Jaden raised an eyebrow before waving a subordinate over, “Take them away.”
~
After watching Wemmbu and his friend being taken away, Jaden turned his attention to a sweating pink cat.
“Loppezz…” he started, “I’m very disappointed.”
“Sir, I can explain-!” she started, only to be cut off.
“I don’t want to hear it! In fact-” he signaled to one of his subordinates subtly, “I think you need time to reflect.”
“What-” Loppezz began, only to be cut off by her own scream as she fell through the floor.
Jaden watched with disinterested eyes and yawned. He stretched on his throne before standing and walking outside. The weather on this island was always lovely, the sun shining and a light breeze carrying the scent of seawater. The only person that could ruin this was Flame and that had been handled.
He was at peace.
He was at peace, but no more.
A purple and black blur shot towards him, metal glittering in the sun he had just been praising. He let out a very manly shriek and just barely equipped a totem before being smashed into the ground, life ending injuries being healed as he ran away from the demon, trying to keep distance.
Fuck his life.
~
Wemmbu cackled as he brought down Gambit in another violent attack, cheering as another totem popped.
“I’ll kill you and bring Lomedy’s mace back to Flame myself!” he grinned.
What better present to give to your brother after not seeing him for so long than his best friend's missing weapon!
“How did you even escape my guards?!” Jaden gasped, dodging another blow and pulling out his own mace.
Only to be hit with an arrow.
“SLOW FALLING?!” Jaden screamed a very specific scream that only mace wielders scream when hit with slow falling.
“It actually wasn’t that hard, “ Wemmbu grinned as Egg loaded another arrow, “You really need better security!”
Wemmbu swung his mace down once more and Jaden pearled away and rushed towards his throne. Wemmbu and Egg ran after him, but stopped when he smirked at them, a button under his hand.
“Say hello to Loppezz!” Jaden shouted as he pressed down on the button.
The duo gasped as the ground beneath them disappeared and they began to fall. Wemmbu - an extremely vengeful person - quickly swung a fishing rod out and caught the corner of Jaden’s pirate jacket, pulling him down with them.
Darkness consumed them as the opening closed.
~
“Holy shit!” Wemmbu grinned, “This place is massive! Do you see all that?”
It seemed like some kind of abandoned civilization. It was dark and had very little sources of light, but the ruins of the city were still visible. Amongst all the buildings was a large castle and the entire thing was surrounded by large mushrooms.
Egg’s real eyes squinted into the darkness, “I don’t see nothing.”
Wemmbu rolled his eyes, “Use the big eye, Egg.”
“Oh…” Egg closed his real eyes and opened the large eye above his head, “Yoooooo! This is so cool!”
Wemmbu shook his head and sighed before noticing something, “We have mining fatigue.”
“Huh, so we do…” Egg didn’t seem very worried about their situation.
“SHIT! JADEN’S GETTING AWAY!” Wemmbu grabbed Egg's hand and dragged him over in the direction of where Jaden was towering up.
Egg sighed as he realized how much energy this was all going to take.
~
Wemmbu was about ready to pull out his hair.
First he was trapped in some old civilization, then Jaden gets away (multiple times) and to top it all off, Loppezz had decided to attach herself to them! He just couldn't catch a break!
His frustration at the situation is what lead him to split off from the group to attempt to find Jaden himself. Egg would be fine with Loppezz and could use her to escape if Jaden came after him.
Whispers urged Wemmbu in a direction and he subconsciously followed them.
They lead him passed numerous abandoned buildings and through winding pathways. It felt like he was in a trance, but not like when he was being lead to Gambit. Probably because he wasn't trying to fight it this time.
Eventually, he entered a run down courtyard and the whispers calmed. He spun around on the spot, trying to see what they wanted him to find but he wasn't having much luck.
Until a kind voice sounded behind him, "Hello?"
A sunflower. That's the best way Wemmbu could describe the person in front of him. His skin and hair were a bright yellow and he wore a long blue and red cardigan over a grey suit, which was honestly a bit of a weird combo but it somehow works on him. He had sunflowers scattered in his long hair and his entire being seemed to shine in the dark.
Literally.
Like- actual light was being emitted from his body.
Cool!
Wemmbu tilted his head, "Hey, bro???"
"Hi!" the man beamed, light surrounding him becoming brighter, "It's so nice to see another person!"
It was then that Wemmbu realized that the whispers had stopped, "Have you been down here for long?"
"Probably!" the man smiled, "I'm a guard for the civilization! Although, that was when we were still above ground…"
Wemmbu blinked, "This place was above ground?"
"Yes, but after an attack, the city sunk and was covered up. Most people couldn't handle the change and died not long after being sealed." the man's smile turned sad.
"Why didn't they just leave- wait. Why haven't you left?" Wemmbu questioned.
The man sighed, "With all the elder guardians, there was no way to break through the surface. Mobs stopped spawning so we couldn't get gunpowder for TNT and the only livestock we had was pigs so we couldn't use milk to clear the effects."
"Huh…" Wemmbu hummed in thought, "Wait… who are you?"
The man perked up, "Oh! How silly of me! My name is Rejoice! I am a guard for this city and the only remaining resident."
That was a bit morbid, "My name is Wemmbu. I'm here with three other people."
"More friends!" Rejoice lit up.
"Maybe…" Wemmbu coughed, "Come with me. After I've done everything I need to down here, you can come up to the surface with me and my friend."
"I would love to see the sun again!" Rejoice gushed, linking arms with Wemmbu, "Lead the way, friend!"
~
Egg took the extra person pretty well and Loppezz was slightly less annoying with another person to bother. The only problem was Jaden.
He had been chasing Jaden through the city for about a month now. It was tedious and frustrating. The only thing that made him happy during that was becoming better friends with Rejoice. The whispers liked him and Wemmbu guessed that Rejoice was what they wanted him to find. He didn't know why they did, but it was fun nonetheless.
The only downside to having Rejoice join the team was his overly positive attitude.
"Maybe we don't need to fight!" Rejoice tried to mediate a standoff between Jaden and Wemmbu, "Forgive and forget!"
He started to sweat as Jaden and Wemmbu stared blankly at him, "Guys - please - I just want friends!"
Wemmbu would have been okay to do that if Jaden didn't try t imprison him because of Flame, so Rejoice wasn't getting what he wanted anytime soon.
Although, Jaden and Wemmbu have been able to come to a compromise and have managed to take some time not attacking each other and actually working together to escape. This made Rejoice overjoyed and the smile on his face brought one to Wemmbu's as well.
Egg had said that it was good that Wemmbu was making friends with other people, his shit-eating grin reminding Wemmbu of Flame's back when he became friends with Egg himself.
Asshole.
Both of them.
~
Wardens.
At least twenty of them.
Not even Rejoice's subtle light could break through the blindness that surrounded them. Deafening roars pushed them in every direction. Wemmbu was busy trying to keep bother Egg and Rejoice safe. He could hear Jaden in the distance macing Wardens and he was pretty sure that Loppezz had run off when the first Warden appeared.
Egg took to the sky to hide above and Wemmbu was very grateful for that. Now all he had to worry about was Rejoice.
He smashed Gambit down as hard as he could onto the heads of the Wardens that had started to surround his yellow friend.
"Rejoice! Run!" Wemmbu shouted of the roars.
"I can't! They're everywhere!" he cried, "This is it for me, Wemmbu!"
Jaden rushed over to help, "Chorus fruit, Rejoice! Use the chorus fruit to teleport out!"
"We'll mace them off of you to give you a chance!" Wemmbu cried out.
"There's no point," in the darkness, Rejoice's sad smile seemed to shine like the sun, "this is it for me. I appreciate everything you have done for me, Wemmbu."
"REJOICE!"
~
With the Wardens now taken care of, Wemmbu rushed to the still body laying on the ground in a puddle of blood.
"Rejoice…" Wemmbu's eyes filled with tears, "here, a regen potion."
Rejoice weakly shook his head his soft smile starting to fall, "It won't work. This is it for me. And I'll die happy, knowing that I've made so many new friends in life. You brightened up the dark that I had known for so long and I thank you for that."
"No. No no no no!" Wemmbu desperately shook his head in denial, "I promised to take you to see the sun, you can't die now!"
"I'll see it with you," Rejoice whispered, "although I will die, I'll still be there. You wondered why you were brought here right? Why the voices lead you to me?"
Wemmbu blinked teary eyes at his friend in shock, he'd never told Rejoice about that.
"Fate brought you to me for a reason, I will always be with you. Remember, Wemmbu," Rejoice's body started to shine brighter than it ever had, "forgive and forget. There's no reason to hold grudges for so long, they'll only hurt you."
Wemmbu watched his friends body shine and transform, until a mace lay where he once held Rejoices body. Sunflowers were carved over the surface of the metal and yellow jewels scattered over the designs, a reminder of his dear friend.
Breach IV
Fire Aspect II
Unbreaking III
Mending
Crucible
Tears dripped from his eyes freely as he held the remains of his friend. He hadn't known Rejoice for a very long time, but in the short time they had together Rejoice had become a great friend to him. Not like Egg was, but in his own way.
Wemmbu sighed, "Let's go to the surface."
Jaden raised an eyebrow, "Not going to kill me first?"
Wemmbu was silently for a minute, "Forgive and forget…"
"…Forgive and forget." Jaden agreed, helping Wemmbu up as Egg landed and hugged his grieving friend.
Wemmbu held onto Crucible as tight as he could, he'd show Rejoice the sun one way or another.
~
"So you'll be off?" Jaden asked as Wemmbu and Egg load their boat.
Wemmbu turned to him in the new cloths Jaden had given him, "Yeah, we have another destination to stop by before we head home."
Egg chuckled from his spot at the front of the boat, "And don't worry, Flame won't hear a word from us about your location."
Jaden let out a sigh of relief, "That's good. Come back and visit every once and a while, okay?"
The duo grinned at their new friend, "You couldn't get rid of us if you tried!"
Jaden shook his head and waved them off, "Go away. Go on your little adventure!"
Wemmbu jumped into the boat causing it to sway and Egg to grab onto the sides, "See ye, Jaden!"
Egg began to row, waiting until the ocean was all that could hear them, "So, are you going to tell me where we're going?"
Wemmbu grinned as Crucible glowed in the sunlight, "The Farlands."