Chapter Text
Telamon gently traced the edge of a small green blanket, which encircled a tiny form. Small wings, small everything. He felt unworthy of having created something with such innocence. His own hands were stained with ichor. A clawed hand moved to cradle their cheek. He marveled at the soft grey skin and the snow-kissed hair. That innocence was shattered the second they opened their blood red eyes, and Telamon saw the putrid hatred he had infected them with.
Shedletsky stared at the creature in front of him, a child torn apart by malice and hatred. He knew it was his fault. All of it. Telamon did not feel such loathsome things as guilt, but Shedletsky felt all of it. Each sword through his gut was a new wave of agonizing sorrow. Yet there was only one person to blame for all of this. And that person was the one who stared at him each and every time he saw his reflection.
Another day passed like always, an endless cycle of ending the lives of survivors and going back to the killer cabin with the other cursed souls. What had once been a blessing to 1x1x1x1 now felt like more of a chore, a prison even. What a joke for an executioner to get tired of the very thing they were designed to do. Everything seemed like a joke these days, a joke the killer was growing quite tired of.
“c00lkidd, go bother Noli or John, I am very, very busy at the moment.” 1x sighed as they rubbed the bridge of their nose. Usually, the child would be a breath of fresh air, but lately the small one had been grating on their nerves, especially when they were trying to concentrate on cooking. With a hiss, they brought the knife down onto the chicken. They hated chicken. Hated it with a passion. Yet it was what the child had requested.
“But they won’t play with me! Only you play with me!” c00lkidd complained loudly, tugging on 1x’s sleeve gently as he held up a small toy sword. The kid looked so earnest that the usual snappy response from 1x was quieted.
Looking down at the child, 1x resisted the urge to pat their head. “I’m busy, kiddo. I’ll play with you later, I promise.” No matter what, they would never be like him. Even if c00lkidd was not their real child, they were taking responsibility. That was more than their ‘father’ had ever done. 1x’s face darkened as they brought down the knife harder onto the chicken.
They moved with precision, seasoning each piece of chicken before dipping each one into flour, then egg, then bread crumbs, before putting them into the oven. After the nuggets were cooking, 1x moved to wash their hands, staring into the sink as the darkness melted off their hands in patches, which they immediately covered up as if burnt, the pale gray patches of skin almost making them wince. The darkness returned just as quickly as it had been washed off, but the sight of that unmarred purity still shook them. That weakness, potentially being in sight of the others, was something that terrified them. Anybody seeing that weak part of them was terrifying.
Once the nuggets were ready, 1x made sure c00lkidd was content, fed, and under Noli’s watch. Then, 1x went up to sleep. It was not as if they did not want to put the kid to bed tonight. It had just been a long day, more draining than usual. Really, they were sad to be tired after only two rounds. They slowly ascended the stairs and went to their room. There, they collapsed onto their bed. They barely bothered to move the covers or change, and closed their eyes. When they did, visions of slaughter, death, and pristine white wings met them. Wings that had been torn from their vessel and tossed down a cliff like trash. It was pathetic to feel that sorrow claw at their chest each time they felt that weightlessness on their back. They deserved to fly, yet their wings had never even grown big enough to lift them off the ground. Their soft hands scraped against the ground, clutching for any sense of warmth or safety, yet there was none. Only cold glares that felt like blades scraping against their skin. What use was an avian without wings?
There was a tiny knock at the door as c00lkidd peeked in, holding his Drakobloxxer plushie and fuzzy blanket. The little demon rubbed the tears from his eyes, gently trying to look brave. 1x heard a clap of thunder and quickly realized why the child was here. They sat up and held their arms out gently, and not a second later, the little demon was barreling into their outstretched arms. With a soft huff, the killer smiled as they gently rubbed the smaller one’s back comfortingly. There did not need to be words; that was something 1x had learned early on. It was more than enough to just be there, to just comfort. With a gentle tug, 1x pulled the demon child closer, enough so that they could gently rock him back and forth as the tears died down, replaced with sleepy yawns. In another life, 1x would have loved to be a parent, to gently lull a tiny life to sleep with little wings to match the ones torn from their own back so early on. They had never even gotten to fly. But 1x would never let that happen to a child of their own. c00lkidd was not their own, but it was enough. Enough for them to dream. 1x looked down fondly at the now slumbering child, gently laying him down before lying down himself. So much has been taken from them, but at least in the end, they would always have dreams. Dreams of a better future.
Bright light awoke 1x from their slumber. There was never this much light in that hell they were trapped in. With a groan, they sat up slowly, looking at their hands, which were that same pristine gray that made them feel sick. They looked around, almost panicked as they took in the surroundings and their much smaller hands. Their childhood bedroom. Complete with the cloud decorations and SFOTH sword decals on the walls. They sat up quickly, falling with a tiny thump from the sudden smallness of their limbs and the lack of coordination in each one. When they stared into the mirror, they were met with a tiny face, chubby and cute, with soft curls of white hair. They were a child again. A weak pathetic toddler. But what shocked them most was the tiny wings on their back and head, pristine and cherubic. It had been so long since that familiar weight was on their back like an itch finally being scratched. Reaching a tiny hand back, they felt the downy little feathers akin to a baby bird just hatched. 1x then reached a hand out to their arm and pinched the skin, again, and again. Yet they never awoke.
The door behind 1x opened slowly, and they froze in place like a deer caught in headlights. In the mirror, they could see the familiar grey and gold robes and large brown wings like those of a hawk. They could see the sparkling Illumina, the same sword that had chopped away their wings and sealed their fate of darkness. With a shudder, they turned around, meeting those shadowed gold eyes that bore into their smaller emerald ones. 1x knew the approximate age they were just from looking in the mirror, five. Before Brighteyes had entered the picture. She had not been their salvation, but in a desert, one dying of thirst would take any drop of water, in this case, any drop of love. It was the worst age because they were entirely alone, against their “father.”
“What was that crash 1x1x1x1?” Telamon spoke coldly, his gold eyes boring into the smaller one, his usual grin turning into a colder glare. Which then seemed to imperceptibly twitch once he saw 1x’s terrified expression and how they were shaking as if he were a monster. Telamon did not understand much about small ones, but he knew that a sudden change from a happy child, who would usually run at him and tug at his robes, trying to show him their newest drawing, no matter how many times he turned them away. Into a child who looked utterly enraged was usually a bad sign. He had never given the creation much care; regardless, in the end, they were just a means to an end. A vessel.
“It was nothing.” 1x suddenly snapped. It was more cute than anything in their current form, like a tiny angry puffball with unruly curly hair that Telamon had yet to attempt to tame. Of course, Telamon was surprised by the sudden hostility from his own creation. Part of him was offended, while the other, more vocal part was confused. As it was often told, Telamon’s curiosity was the only thing that could overpower his pride.
“Telamon is curious about your sudden hostility, creation. Will you inform him- Or must he inform himself?” He spoke with curiosity as he stalked closer to the tiny one who seemed to have realized their mistake. He barely waited for a response before lifting up 1x by the scruff of their neck like a misbehaving kitten. Carrying the little squirming child out of the bedroom, they passed through the halls of the house. With an unceremonious plop, Telamon dropped 1x into a chair at the dining table before moving to sit at a chair opposite them. His eyes darted over them as if he were a surgeon taking apart their expressions piece by piece.
“I already told you it’s nothing.” 1x1x1x1 moved to stand up and retreat back to their room until they were pinned in place by Telamon’s glare. Sanctuary would have to wait. The scrutiny was something 1x was used to, after dedicating a childhood to trying to be perfect, yet the feeling still clung to them like wet bandages, weighing them down little by little. That was how it always was.
“Well, Telamon wishes to know what this nothing is and how it pertains to the sudden increase in fear.” Telamon probed studying them with golden hawk-like eyes. With this sudden angsty streak, they were showing maybe he would have to read the parenting books Dusekkar had given him… He had skimmed them of course, but he hadn’t been expecting the creation process to produce a baby instead of an adult. Thus far, balancing work with making sure the creation did not die had taken up most free time.
“…You never make time for me. And when you do, you are always dismissive, cold even.” 1x spoke gingerly after a moment of tense silence. What was the worst honesty could do? If they were truly back in time, then maybe it was better to get the truth out early rather than watch a parade of failure replay in front of their eyes.
Telamon was silent, deathly silent as the gears turned in his head. Was the creation unhappy with his treatment of them…? He tilted his head to the side. If the creation was unhappy, then he should attempt to fix it to avoid more problems later. And what was more fun than Roblox HQ, and he had a meeting with Builderman anyway. With a huff, he scooped up the little creation into his arms, ignoring the protests and angry squawking.
1x1x1x1 was pissed. More pissed than if Telamon had just ignored them like usual. It was worse being manhandled and dragged around like a doll. They had only flown with Telamon occasionally, and usually it would have been enjoyable if they had not been aware of everything that could happen on this seemingly innocuous trip. It was not supposed to happen this way. 1x was not supposed to be introduced to the HQ until they were 8. An age that felt lifetime ago. When their tiny hands had clutched Telamon’s robes, and they had hidden behind him, scared of the world and everything in it. All of this still felt like a dream. In a few minutes, they would awake to a tiny warm weight against their back and a feeling of emptiness.
They arrived at the Roblox HQ quickly. Instead of going through the entrance they landed on a windowsill which led into Telamon’s office. With a flutter the brown wings folded in and 1x1x1x1 was placed onto the ground. They were small but that did not stop them from investigating the office. Noting the neatly sorted documents and the inkwell just begging to be knocked over. In a way he had just made it easier for 1x to cause destruction.
“You will stay here and behave while Telamon goes and talks to someone.” Telamon spoke with a wave of his arm, opening the door and stepping out, leaving the creation alone in the room. Said creation immediately knocked over the inkwell onto the stack of papers and promptly left the room
1x1x1x1 wandered through the halls of the HQ, a place that should have been familiar but felt more like a graveyard. They were not exactly sure what they were looking for. Maybe it was their crown, yet they had no chance of getting into the vault, especially at this age. The library would be a good idea as well, to figure out why this had occurred or prove the utter stupidity of themselves.
“What is a child so young doing alone? Where is thou ’st parent for they should surely have shone.” The pumpkin-headed admin spoke from behind 1x as he stared at the small child wandering the halls. Not very many admins had children, especially ones who were brought to the office. And one so young at that.
“I was looking for the library.” 1x1x1x1 mumbled, clenching their fist as they were caught. “But I couldn’t find it.” There were much worse people to be caught by, of course, namely Doombringer or Clockwork, both of whom would simply ship them right back to Builderman and likely their creator.
“You must be Telamon’s creation, and though the thought gives me trepidation, I shall allow you entrance, but your father will be notified of your attendance.” Dusekkar sighed as he floated over and gently took the child’s hand, noting just how small they were. Flame eyes looked down, trying to figure out exactly why they were alone yet seemed perfectly content to be so. Maybe it was from Telamon, the bird-like god always seemed so serious, but even he cracked jokes from time to time.
The doors to the library were quite nondescript despite holding a large wealth of knowledge behind them. Dusekkar slowly entered, making sure 1x was still with him; it would not do to lose the child. With a flourish, he sat 1x at a table near the front of the library across from Dusekkar’s desk.
“Now then, small one, what knowledge do you seek so I may give thee a peek?” Dusekkar’s flame-like eyes flickered in excitement, shuffling to pull up the search command. “Of course, if the subject is appropriate for young minds.”
1x hesitated slightly. The last time they had seen Dusekkar was when their blade had pierced through the flesh of his pumpkin head and rendered him dead, over and over again. Now they felt almost guilty being treated with such kindness. With the lack of hatred cloying at their very being, it made it easier to feel things, painful things. They regretted it.
“I will not judge, young one.” Dusekkar smiled as much as he could with a pumpkin for a head as he patted 1x’s head gently. “The pursuit of knowledge should be fun.”
“Is there any sort of magic that could allow someone to go back in time- Or anything that could rewind time?” 1x tried to frame their question as childish curiosity and not a calculated probe for knowledge, yet their curiosity was not without truth. Magic had always been something they had wanted to learn about, but it was yet another thing that had been squandered.
Dusekkar stopped flipping through the search menu as he stared down at the child thoughtfully. Such interesting thoughts for someone so young. It would be expected of someone tarnished from years of hardship or one torn by loss to be asking such a thing, but a child? One so young no less. He gently placed his staff down, moving to sit next to 1x on the bench before pulling a book out of the search menu, a heavy tome with the spawn symbol etched into it.
“Your curiosity has piqued my own, so let us find what you have sought.” The pumpkin-headed admin flipped through the pages of the spellbook. Spawn spells were one of the most difficult to learn, as was the case with otherworldly presences in Robloxia. Dusekkar had learned from the source once upon a time, back in a long-forgotten era at the beginning of Robloxia, when the admins were just created, and the Spawn was not just a concept but a god. Now, all that was left of a once great bastion was a forgotten book and the spawn system. Embers of a once bright flame.
1x1x1x1 watched with rapt attention, studying each worn page of the book. Some of the spells they remember from their past life, used on them or otherwise. Eventually, the flipping pages stopped on one that should have been there, one that tickled at the back of their mind, much too foggy to recall. They watched as Dusekkar’s confused hand traced the ripped-out page and the way he suddenly flipped through the rest of the book, yet only that page was missing. Such blatant destruction of Robloxian history was punishable, but 1x had a feeling the perpetrator would not be found, and a feeling that said perpetrator was the supposed one who had caused whatever this was.
It took Telamon a while to eventually burst into the library wings, fluffed out like a vengeful chicken, followed by a thoroughly exhausted Builderman. They both were greeted by the sight of Dusekkar eagerly explaining the fundamentals of Spawn magic to 1x, who sat patiently listening. 1x had realized how important a resource Dusekkar could be. The admin had vast amounts of knowledge of both history and magic. Magic that would undoubtedly be of benefit to them. What could a sword do against magic, especially when said magic was made up of protection spells?
“1x1x1x1! Telamon told you not to leave his office! Yet he finds you taking lessons from the pumpkin!” Telamon seethed as he stalked over and plucked 1x up easily with a clawed hand. With a scoff, he gently checked the smaller one over for any injuries, yet noticed a tiny splotch of ink on their tiny hand.
Dusekarr glared as his hand tightened on his staff. “If a child shows interest-”
“Ah, so you were the cause of the destruction of Telamon’s documents, too.” The god interrupted as his eyes darkened with even more anger, his grip tightening on 1x before a hand clapped over his shoulder.
“Tela, we talked about this. The kiddo probably just wants attention. Regardless, you should take into account what we talked about.” Builderman spoke, his voice ringing with authority as he looked down at the tiny white bird in Telamon’s arms.
The admin chuckled softly, patting 1x on the head, being careful of their wings. “And you must be the little one, right? What’s yer name, kiddo?” The gentleness only served to make 1x more guilty. Maybe if things had happened in this way, it would have turned out differently. It was sad, really, that one small change could have entirely stopped one of the worst hackers in Roblox history, but 1x knew themselves better than anybody.
“My name is 1x1x1x1.” They spoke softly, staring up at Builderman. In a past life, the answer would be different. 2x2 was who they had been. That was then, and now there was only 1x1x1x1.
With a flourish, Telamon landed back at the steps of the temple 1x1x1x1 in hand. The two barely talked as 1x was swiftly deposited back into their room. They had a feeling he was still angry about the ink, which filled them with vindication. He should feel angry, annoyed even, and helpless to do anything since 1x was too young to fully be blamed, and now Builderman was aware of their existence. In the past, nobody had been aware that 1x had ever had wings. Maybe it was better that way. But now at least, someone would notice. Someone would care. Dusekkar would care, especially after they had arranged with Telamon to teach 1x once a week.
1x reached into their pocket, pulling out a book they had managed to grab, one on the history of Robloxia. Sitting down on their plush bed, they began to sift through the pages past Telamon and Builderman until something caught their eyes. There was a page about them…? A page about the real them, the one from a lifetime ago. As they moved through the pages, they saw more figures who should not be present yet, namely Noli and John Doe. From what they knew, John should be around their age at this point in time, the same with Noli. Staring down in confusion at the book, they marveled at the tangible proof of some sort of time reversal, yet showing somebody this would be detrimental to the ones in it. 1x would not have done such a thing anyway; giving this boon away would be a waste.
It could all be fake, an illusion conjured by the Spectre, but 1x was not one to squander blessings. This was a chance. A chance to live how they wanted to and to get revenge on the one who had destroyed that chance. They smiled, hugging the book closer to their chest, staring at the sky with its painted stars. Yes, this time they would win.