"Now, Slotty, I expect you to do much better than last time." Master Hennessy's boots echoed against the cobblestone floor as the black-cloaked man paced around the boy, who was kneeling down. Slotty was clutching a staff made out of obsidian with a glowing Ender Crystal floating on the top. "You are improving your control over the body and have managed to last for much longer than before, but your results are still unsatisfactory and you still need a staff to use your magic properly."
"I- I promise that I'll do better this time!" the equally-clothed boy chirped. "I promise I'll please you, Master!"
The man stared down at the boy coldly, pursing his lips in disappointment. "Prove it to me."
"I will, Master!" Hope filled the boy's crimson eyes as he stared up at the man. "I'll be the best servant for you! I'll slaughter everyone who displeases you!"
"Empty words mean nothing to me. I want you to prove it to me with your actions. That is the purpose of this test, which you have taken before with poor results."
"I've improved since then, Master! I swear it on my life! I'll make you proud, I promise! I promise I won't disappoint you like Seto does! I'm better than he is! I promise!"
A frown crossed the man's face as he began leaving the room. "We'll see about that..." he muttered, closing the door.
Slotty stood up slowly, clutching the staff. He took several deep breaths as the lights dimmed slightly. He could barely hear the sound of the camera focusing on him, compelling him to straighten his posture and look around.
All of a sudden, he heard the familiar growl of a zombie approaching him from behind. Without even looking, Slotty whirled around and aimed the staff, blasting the zombie. The zombie howled as it flew several feet away before hitting the ground, a bloody mess. Slotty grinned victoriously as he stared at the fallen zombie.
His grin did not waver one bit as he heard more monsters approaching him through the darkness. He knew what to do. He knew he could do it. He knew he could please Master this time. Confidence and adrenaline coursed through his veins as he swung the staff again, firing a volley of blows at the monsters who hadn't stood a single chance against him.
The monsters kept coming at him and Slotty continued attacking viciously in turn. Every move Slotty made was mechanical. Instinctive. Second-nature. Monsters littered the ground around him, yet Slotty continued his rampage. As he began succumbing to the frenzied glee that was consuming his mind, his chest began to burn. Surely, surely he was pleasing his master-!
Slotty suddenly stopped and shut his eyes tightly, clutching the staff as the burning sensation in his chest grew. The shadows themselves seemed to swirl around him as he rose in the air. The Ender Crystal glowed a brilliant red. Slotty's crimson eyes shot open, revealing his now-slitted pupils, and he grinned to reveal sharp teeth. A roar tore through his throat as bright red dragon wings magically formed on his back.
He collapsed to the ground on all fours, dropping the staff in the process, and screeched. The humanoid dragon lunged at the nearest monster, a hapless spider, and tore it apart with one swipe of his claws. He roared again as he tackled another zombie to the ground, ripping it to bloody pieces. The only thing racing through his mind was "kill, kill, kill" over and over again as he attacked every moving thing with savage brutality...
Abruptly, he dug his claws into something that actually screamed. It was so unexpected that the killing machine stopped his mad rampage and actually assessed the situation. The boy blinked as he stared at the thing he was pinning down. The "thing" was actually a man wearing a white shirt and a red-and-gray checkered hoodie that was now torn to shreds and stained with his own blood. His torso was covered with deep, gushing claw marks. His square glasses were shattered, covering his eyes that were wide open with tortured anguish and fear.
"S-Seto..." the man coughed out in betrayed disbelief. "Wh-Why... Why did you... I trusted you..."
The boy's red eyes immediately shifted to brown as the now-adult Seto scrambled off of him. "T-Tyler?!" Seto shrieked, hovering over him and examining the wounds. "No- No no no-! I thought- I didn't realize-! I-!"
"You... monster..." Tyler whispered.
"No! I'm sorry!" Seto cried out, looking around for something, anything, that could stop the bleeding. "Don't die- Please don't die- I'm sorry-!"
"I hate you... I thought I could trust you..." Tyler continued, glaring at Seto with an anger that Seto had never seen in him. "I didn't realize you were a cold-blooded murderer!"
"I can fix this!" Seto insisted hysterically. "Please- Trust me Tyler-!"
"All you do is hurt people!" Tyler yelled. "You hurt everyone around you!"
"No- That isn't true-!"
"Oh, but Seto..." Master Hennessy said as he stepped towards them. "He's right..."
"Get away from him!" Seto shouted, cradling Tyler's body in his arms and instinctively trying to shield the dying man with his wings. "Don't you dare hurt him!"
Master Hennessy chuckled. "I think you already did an excellent job on that part..."
"No- That wasn't me-! That was Slotty-!"
"You're two halves of the same soul. There's really no denying it. Look at all the others you've already hurt."
Seto looked around. "No..." he whispered, realizing who they were. The torn, gory bodies of Jordan, Steven, Jason, Bonks, Annie, and Bodil were strewn about on the floor amongst the monsters. "No- No this isn't happening- They can't be dead- No! NO!"
"You've hurt all of them and so many others," Master Hennessy continued, his green eyes gleaming. "It's naturally in your blood to hurt. You're my nephew, after all..."
"I'm my father's son!" Seto tried to argue. "And my father was nothing like you!"
"My twin brother? He was no angel himself, even though he tried leaving the Order after 'gaining a conscience'. But no one can escape what they've done in the past, no matter how far they run away. And look what you did to us in the end... What kind of loving son drives their father to commit suicide? What kind of devoted nephew brutally kills their uncle?"
"No..." Seto said softly, tears streaming down his face. "I'm sorry, I'm sorry..."
"You're sorry? My dear Seto... Empty words mean nothing... You'll always be a failure no matter what. You failed your father. You failed me. You failed eight of your friends. And now you'll fail everyone else..." Master Hennessy grinned crookedly before disappearing.
"No- No that's wrong- No-"
"I hate you..." Tyler whispered, still glaring at Seto with contempt.
"I'm- I'm sorry Tyler-" Seto choked out. "I'm sorry- I didn't mean to- It was Slotty-"
"Who cares if it was Slotty?!" Tyler shrieked. "I'm still dying, aren't I?"
Seto's eyes widened in horror.
"I can't believe you're so damn selfish! You never take the blame! 'It was Slotty, it wasn't me-!' THAT DOESN'T BRING ALL THOSE PEOPLE HE KILLED BACK TO LIFE, DOES IT?! WHY DON'T YOU TAKE SOME DAMN RESPONSIBILITY FOR ONCE IN YOUR PATHETIC LIFE?!"
"...I'm sorry..." Seto whispered, his voice reduced to practically nothing. "I'm... sorry..."
"Sorry doesn't do anything," Tyler hissed, spitting out blood. "You should be sorry it wasn't you who died instead of everyone else. I can't believe I ever called you a friend. I wish you were dead. I wish you had the decency to kill yourself for everyone else's sake. That's what you really deserve... You monster..."
Before Seto could react, Tyler closed his eyes and went limp.
"Tyler-? TYLER!" Seto shrieked, shaking the body to no avail. "No- No no no-! COME BACK! DON'T LEAVE ME! PLEASE DON'T LEAVE ME!"
A little boy's voice giggled. "You know how much I hate you, right?"
Seto looked up and saw a winged boy with red eyes staring at him. "...Slotty...?"
"You may think you're in control now, but I'll come back. I always do. And when I do, I'll make sure you suffer. I'll make all of your friends suffer if that's what it takes!" The boy bent over and laughed hysterically, blood dripping from his fanged mouth. "This is what you deserve! This is what you get! Every tear you shed is a reason for me to cheer! Because that's how much I hate you! I hate you even more than you hate yourself, monster! I'll take away everyone you love and slaughter them one by one and there's nothing you can do about it!"
Seto broke down into heartbroken sobs as he clutched Tyler's still, lifeless body closer to his chest. It didn't feel right that there was only one heartbeat between them...
"I'm sorry... Please come back... Please don't be dead... Please Tyler..."
"Didn't sleep well either?" Jordan inquired, observing Seto curiously as he sipped his morning coffee.
"...Yeah, you could say that..." Seto muttered groggily, resting his head on his crossed arms as he stared down listlessly at the table.
Unlike both of them, Jerry was sleeping peacefully on Jordan's lap.
"Wanna talk about it?"
"...Not really. No."
"Well, do you mind if I talk about mine?" Jordan asked softly. "Sorry, but it won't stop bothering me..."
His voice sounded so uncharacteristically vulnerable, it made Seto look up in surprise. Jordan's face was strangely weary. There were dark bags under his eyes and his face was paler than usual. "Um, of course. You can tell me anything, Jordan."
Jordan took a deep breath. "Okay then, here goes..." He cleared his throat and stared down at Jerry. "Do you... ever have dreams where you're running in the darkness? You can't see a single thing but you're running like your life depends on it."
"...Yes," Seto mumbled.
"Well- Well do you have dreams where you're trying to find someone? You can hear their voice, you can feel their presence, but... you just can't reach them. They're always one step ahead of you and no matter how loudly you call their name they just get farther and farther away and you have to keep chasing after them and begging for them to come back..." Jordan stopped and flinched, blinking rapidly, before looking away. "Y-Yeah. That's my dream."
Seto thought for a few moments. "...Who are you trying to reach?"
Jordan stayed silent before finally muttering something.
"What did you say?"
"...Seth. I'm trying to reach Seth."
The name caught Seto so off guard, he didn't know how to respond to it.
Jordan looked up at the ceiling. "It's only been two weeks or something... Probably even less... But it feels like he's been gone for centuries..." He took a long, shuddering breath. "I still forget he's gone sometimes. It just doesn't seem real. Someone like him, gone forever? That... That's just too unbelievable..." He swallowed. "It doesn't seem real," he repeated in a hollow voice.
"...I'm sorry," was all Seto could say. "I miss him too..."
"He was always putting others before himself," Jordan recalled. "His lifelong dream was to make machines that would help millions of people. He poured his heart and soul into his projects, but he was so bad at taking care of himself. I had to remind him to eat, stay hydrated, take breaks, and sleep. He was just so devoted to helping others..." Jordan paused. "He even died trying to save us..."
Seto stared at the table, the memory flooding his mind.
"...Like I said, he was always so bad at taking care of himself... I tried telling him that he was more important than those creations of his, but... I guess he never listened..." Jordan closed his eyes. "And now... He's gone..."
Seto gazed at the memorial, lost in thought.
"...What would he think of us now?" Jordan asked.
"...I don't know," Seto mumbled. He knew he was being incredibly unhelpful with his responses, but he couldn't think of anything else to say.
"He gave up his life for us, yet here we are. Half of us are dead because they murdered each other." Jordan paused. "What would he think of me?" he asked softly.
"What do you mean?"
"He had the courage to try saving us. But look at me..." Jordan laughed bitterly. "All I'm brave enough to do is watch us die."
"That's not true-"
"Isn't it?"
"MonoWither is in control here."
"It doesn't have to be that way."
"You could get yourself killed, like Seth."
Jordan pressed his lips together. "And I just sat there and watched him die, too."
"There was nothing you could have done, you couldn't have known-"
"I know I couldn't have known, but..." Jordan sighed. "The thought won't leave me alone. And it sounds stupid, but it feels like Seth won't leave me alone either... Like his ghost is following me around or something... I can just feel his presence and I keep thinking he's there even though it doesn't make sense at all...!"
"...I don't think Seth would want you to think that way," Seto murmured.
"I can't help thinking that he's still there-"
"No, I meant thinking that you've failed him in some way. Seth wouldn't want you to believe that. It's not your fault at all."
"...I still feel like I should be doing something, but thank you..." He took another long sip of his coffee and went silent. "Changing the subject, there's something else I've wanted to talk about."
"What?"
"You know how we got here? We were going to meet these 'Diamond Broadcasting Station' people and be part of this reality TV show, right?"
"Yeah."
"Is that really what happened, though?"
Seto frowned. "What do you mean? We had those letters-"
Jordan coughed. "I don't remember ever receiving a letter or coming here myself."
Seto's eyes widened. "You don't?"
"No. Not at all. Maybe it was the gas or something that screwed up my memories but I don't remember anything like that. I think I just went with it when I saw the letter in my pocket and assumed that was the case because that was what made sense..."
"...Well, Steven mentioned accidentally leaving his letter at home. Sky mentioned losing his. Mitch and Jerome were the ones who reminded me about it. And Bodil mentioned having to look up what his talent meant-"
"Well, do you remember anything like that?"
Seto went silent, his mind churning desperately.
"...And that 'Henri Rennet' guy wasn't even real. I just can't imagine all 16 of us agreeing to go to meet some guy for a TV show deal without doing any of our research."
"But what about Jade? Why else would she be there if it wasn't because of the lottery?"
"I don't know, maybe I-" Before Jordan could finish his sentence, the whole building shook violently.
"Shit! Earthquake!" Jordan cried out, grabbing the now-awake Jerry tightly. They all dove underneath the table and shielded their necks.
"This seems too strong to be an earthquake..." Seto murmured.
The tremors ceased just as suddenly as they had started.
Jordan glanced at Seto nervously. "What... What was that all about-"
A huge explosion sound and a loud metal clang filled the air, cutting off Jordan's question. Seto hesitantly peeked out from beneath the table and saw...
"...Sunlight...?" Seto whispered in disbelief.
"What-? Sunlight-?" Jordan stammered, crawling over to where Seto was to see for himself. "Holy shit..."
A metal plate that had been covering one of the windows had been blown away and was lying on the opposite side of the cafeteria. They could see a bright blue sky through the opening.
It all seemed too good to be true. Jordan and Seto were paralyzed in shock, unable to figure out what to do. Was this even real?
That was when four men wearing black suits and dark sunglasses climbed inside. They raised what appeared to be tasers in a defensive stance as they looked around. One of them turned and stared at the two ducking underneath the table. Seto flinched and started crawling backwards in an attempt to hide, but Jordan stopped him.
The man's expression was unreadable behind his sunglasses as he placed a hand to the microphone on his ear. "Two captives found in the cafeteria. No sign of enemies. All clear."
Another man with tanned skin who looked to be in his late 20s or early 30s promptly climbed inside. Despite wearing the exact same gear as the rest of them, it was apparent from his authoritative stance and strong build that he was the leader. "Move quickly! Get the others before we lose control of the system!" he shouted in the microphone.
More explosions filled the air as the rest of the metal plates were blown off. Dozens of identically-dressed people filed inside and headed towards the bedroom hallway.
The four original men and the leader ran towards Seto and Jordan. "Get out from under there! This is a rescue mission! We are here to rescue you!" the leader shouted at them.
"How- How can we trust you?" Seto asked fearfully.
"Well you're going to have to, kid!" the leader replied as two of the men grabbed their arms and roughly pulled them out. "We don't have time on our side, we have to get going now!"
Left with no other choice, Seto and Jordan (who persisted in clutching Jerry tightly) were surrounded by the men and hustled towards the open window. "Name's Tristan Rey, by the way!" the leader said, jumping through the hole. "I'm the leader of Hope Organization!"
Seto and Jordan were quickly helped through the opening by the four others. Seto almost couldn't believe it when he felt his shoes touch real dirt. He looked up and saw a giant glass dome surrounding the vicinity, through which there were blue skies and white clouds...
"Don't get distracted, kids!" Tristan barked as the men pushed them forward. They all started sprinting across the grassy field. "We can't waste any time! We only have a few more minutes before whoever's keeping you here regains control over the system! And it took forever for us to break through the defenses!"
"You don't know who's keeping us here?!" Seto exclaimed.
"No! Not a clue! But that's not important, kid! Focus on reaching that Nether Portal over there!" Seto looked forward and saw a Nether Portal quite a distance away from them near the edge of the dome.
"Why- Why did you guys put it so far away?" Jordan huffed.
"That was the only place we could put it safely!" Tristan replied. "The Puppetmaster has got 99% of this place under tight control!"
"What about our friends?" Seto demanded, trying to look back at the building while running.
"We're getting them out too!"
"Even Bodil? He sleeps in the infirmary on the second floor because he's injured-"
"Yes, yes, we know! We've been forced to watched the entire damn thing since Day 1! Now focus on the Portal!" Tristan snapped.
The authority in his voice was enough to silence Seto for good. They were forced to watch us?
"If it'll make you stop getting distracted, all we know is that whoever put you there is a lone wolf who refers to themselves as the "Puppetmaster". They were once associated with the Order of the Ender Dragon somehow but turned on them. They don't have a specific goal, all they want is to bring despair to the entire world and have the greatest damn time while doing so."
"So were we really chosen because of a show?" Jordan asked.
"The show was real but filming hadn't officially started yet. It appears that the Puppetmaster altered the original cast themselves. That's why some of you distinctly remember being chosen while others not so much."
"Then what about Jade?" Seto asked. "Was she meant to be there?"
"...There was never a real lottery. Whoever chose Jade chose her specifically for reasons unknown. A personal vendetta is the most likely reason."
"What?! A personal vendetta against Jade?!"
"That's all I'm willing to tell you so far, now concern yourselves with reaching the Portal! That's the goal! It's not much farther now- What?" Tristan pressed the microphone to his ear. "Joey, repeat what you said!"
Seto had a horrible feeling about all of this...
"Joey?! Joey, can you hear me?! I'm losing you here! Joey?! JOEY!"
"Sir, all connections to HQ have been lost!" one of the men reported.
"Shit!" Tristan cursed. "How did the Puppetmaster regain power so quickly?!" He quickly regained his senses. "Whatever, we must continue the mission! Get all the captives to safety at all costs and reach the Portal-"
"AGH!" one of the men behind Seto and Jordan cried out as he collapsed to the floor. Jordan let out a cry of horror when he saw the arrow sticking out of the dead man's back.
Seto stopped and looked behind to see a black-and-white robot version of a skeleton aiming its bow and arrow towards them. The three remaining men immediately raised their tasers and fired dark-blue electromagnetic waves at the MonoSkeleton, which buzzed with electricity before exploding.
"There are more robots, sir!" one of the men shouted. "Hundreds of them!"
"We have to go, now!" Tristan ordered, grabbing both Seto and Jordan and tugging them away. The three men surrounded them, firing more shots at other robots to deter them.
"Wait- I can stay and help with my magic-!" Seto tried to say.
"No! Our mission is to rescue as many captives as we can!" Tristan shouted back. "We are not putting you in any more danger!"
"TAKE COVER!" one of the men yelled. Seto saw a shadow looming over him and looked up to see a huge MonoGhast flying towards them. It screeched and shot a bomb towards them. Seto raised his arms to cast a shield spell but was beaten to it by Tristan, who had pulled out his own taser. He fired a large, light-blue wave that deflected the bomb back towards the MonoGhast. The robot was blown back somewhat and it screeched again, but it didn't explode like the MonoSkeleton had.
"LOOK OUT!" another man shouted. A large MonoSpider with three rectangular heads lunged at them, fangs bared. The men all fired, but their blows bounced harmlessly off the MonoSpider. The robot tackled all three to the ground at once and sank its fangs into their chests as they all screamed in agony.
"NO!" Seto cried out, running towards them, but Tristan and Jordan pulled him back.
"Focus on the damn mission!" Tristan ordered again. "The Portal is right up ahead!"
The MonoSpider raised its three bloodstained heads and leaped towards them. Tristan aimed and fired a dark-blue wave at the middle head's gleaming red eye. The robot howled and stopped in its tracks as the middle head exploded.
"Look out for the MonoGhast!" Tristan shouted. The same MonoGhast as before swooped down behind them, almost at ground level. "What- What the hell is it doing-?"
Jordan suddenly screamed and fell forward, hitting the ground hard. Seto and Tristan stopped, realizing that Jordan and Jerry were trapped in a silky net that was attached to the back end of the MonoSpider, whose two other heads were still functioning.
"HELP ME! HELP ME! SETO!" Jordan shouted, writhing desperately in the net but unable to break free as the MonoSpider quickly pulled it back.
"I'M COMING JORDAN!" Seto cried out, chasing after him. He dove and grabbed onto the net, refusing to let go even as it dragged him across the dirt. Finally the net slipped from his grasp as the MonoSpider jumped onto the MonoGhast's side, sticking on it. The MonoGhast rose in the air, taking the MonoSpider and its captured prey with it.
The last thing Seto saw was Jordan holding on to Jerry and pushing against the net, his eyes wide open with fear as he screamed at Seto for help, before the MonoGhast flew away.
"No- No Jordan- No no no-" Seto stammered, his mind numb with shock. Still lying on the floor, he looked around, noticing how dozens of bodies were littered all over the rampaged field. Blood stained the once-green grass and explosions shook the ground at every other second. He could see Bonks, Bodil, Steven, and Jason in a similar predicament as Jordan as they were each flown around the building to an area that was out of eyeshot.
Someone grabbed the back of his cloak and pulled him up. "WE HAVE TO GO!" Tristan shouted, shaking him out of his thoughts, before pulling him away.
"No- No please- I'm sorry-" Seto whispered to himself, barely able to walk. He looked up and saw the purple glow of the Nether Portal. "No no no NO!" Seto shrieked, wrestling himself out of Tristan's grasp. "No- I have to help my friends-!"
"Listen kid, your friends aren't in real danger!" Tristan yelled, wrapping his arms around his waist and pulling him back. "The Puppetmaster wants them alive. This mission may have been a failure, but we can always try and rescue them again! Now get in the Portal!"
"No! NO!" Seto cried out, struggling against Tristan's iron grip. "They- They need to be free! I need to help them-!"
"And you can help them, but not in there!" Tristan replied. "If you're safe with us at Hope Organization, this mission won't be a complete waste of time and lives!"
"No," Seto sobbed, refusing to listen. "Please- Just let me try to save one other person- Please..."
"Listen, kid!" Tristan snapped, grabbing his face and peering straight into his eyes. "I get what you're thinking. You've been through total hell with these people and you don't want to leave them back there again. If I was in your shoes I'd probably be saying the same thing. But you're not the only one who's lost friends, so forgive me if I sound heartless, but just forget about them for now and think about yourself! I've lost a bunch of mine from this mission alone, you hear me, kid?! You think I want them to die in vain?!"
"...Then I guess you'll understand why I'm doing this," Seto murmured, his brown eyes hardening.
Tristan's eyes widened. "What-"
Seto's hands glowed purple before he blasted Tristan backwards. Tristan yelled as he fell into the Portal, disappearing from sight.
Seto breathed heavily before staggering away. "Please... Someone... Anyone..." he whispered desperately, forcing back tears as he stepped over several dead bodies. "Don't let me be alone, please..."
The only ones left as far as he could tell were Annie, Tyler, and...
Seto halted in his tracks when he saw two familiar mobs. Bart was passed out on the floor, bleeding from his head. Dave was shaking the Enderman desperately when he turned to look at Seto. Seto swallowed, realizing that they had been separated from the captured Steven...
Seto wasn't sure if he could understand human language, but it wouldn't hurt to try. "Come- Come on, Dave! I'll get you out of here... We just have to go through the Nether Portal!" he said, reaching his hand out.
Dave stared at him for a few moments before tentatively raising his arm to accept his offer. Their hands almost touched when all of a sudden a rumbling sound filled the air. Before either of them could react, the ground beneath Bart and Dave gave way. Dave waved his arms wildly as the two mobs plunged down a deep, dark hole until they were out of sight.
"NO!" Seto shrieked in horror, reaching out to no avail. His heart pounded in his chest. Had he just witnessed their deaths? He knew that the Puppetmaster would want to keep Steven alive for the show, but Bart and Dave were different stories...
He'd been so close to saving Dave...
"HELP!" someone shouted in the distance, startling him from his thoughts. "SOMEONE! HELP ME!"
Seto quickly followed the sound and saw Tyler struggling to free himself from a net that had only trapped his lower half. His fingers scrabbled desperately at the dirt as the MonoSpider dragged him backwards. "NO! NO! LET GO OF ME!" Tyler shrieked, kicking his legs in vain.
Seto gritted his teeth in pure anger as he shouted, launching a harsh volley of magical blows at the robot. It took several before the machine finally released one last death screech and exploded, dropping the net.
"Seto!" Tyler gasped in relief. "You- You saved me!"
Seto rushed forward and helped Tyler wriggle his way out of the net. "Come on. We're the only ones left," he mumbled as he grabbed Tyler and pulled him away, breaking into a run.
Tyler's eyes widened. "No one else managed to escape?"
Seto blinked away tears. Now wasn't the time to lose it. He had Tyler, and that was better than nothing. "I don't know about Annie, but we have to hurry. The Portal isn't that far away-"
"LOOK OUT!" Tyler shrieked, shoving him to the ground. Seto heard the cry of a MonoGhast right before a bomb soared past them and exploded, making his ears ring.
"We have to hurry!" Seto repeated as he scrambled to his feet. They clutched each other's hands as they kept running towards the Portal.
Tyler suddenly started to cough and covered his mouth, staggering forward. "Gas-! It's a gas bomb-!"
Seto smelled the familiar, sweet scent and also started to cough. "Shit-! Keep going-! It's not much farther!"
They could hear the clambering of MonoMonsters behind them, chasing them down. Tyler's knees buckled as his legs gave way. "Go- Go on without me-!" Tyler choked out. "I'll only slow you down-!"
"NO!" Seto replied through his coughs as he continued dragging Tyler with him. "I... I'm not leaving you... I'm not leaving you behind... I'm not..."
The Portal was just a few feet away when another explosion shook the ground, knocking them both down face first.
"Tyler?!" Seto asked desperately. "Are you- Are you okay?!"
"S... Se... to..." Tyler mumbled, his eyes half-lidded. "I'm... so... rry..." His body struggled for a few more moments to stay awake before going limp.
The exploding sounds in the background were a distant fuzz. Seto clenched his jaw with determination as he continued holding onto Tyler with his left hand, despite his quivering muscles. He fought the overwhelming urge to succumb to unconsciousness. He could barely breathe, but he had to keep moving...
Still lying on the ground, Seto fought for control of his other arm as he struggled to raise it and reach forward. The swirling purple particles in front of him danced in his whirling vision, almost beckoning him. He was so close... So tantalizingly close... They could make it... He could save at least one person...
His fingertips were only a few inches away when all of a sudden red filled his vision and everything literally exploded in his face. The purple particles of the Nether Portal fizzled out as the obsidian blocks blew apart, sending up dust and dirt in their wake.
Seto's brown eyes were wide with shock and disbelief as he heard the almost-victorious cry of a MonoGhast behind him. His trembling arm was still stretched out to where the Nether Portal had just been only a few seconds ago.
No... This isn't... happening... We were so... close... So close... Why...?
Tears streamed down Seto's face as his eyes began drifting shut.
You utter failure! a boy with red eyes chanted gleefully in his mind. You failed! You failed!
Seto's arm limply dropped to the ground.
This is what you get! This is what you deserve! You couldn't even save one person!
Seto collapsed, staring listlessly to the side. He could feel something pull Tyler away from him but didn't have the strength to react...
I guess you shouldn't have gotten your hopes up like that, huh?
The last thing Seto registered was something tugging at his legs and dragging him away before his eyes slid shut and he thought no more.
MONOWITHER THEATER
They say that when your life seems to be going nowhere, it's time for a change of environment. Don't you agree? We certainly do! But we think that the same philosophy also applies to reality TV shows, so you'd better stay tuned! Don't you dare change that channel (although there aren't any others left at this point)! If you do, we'll find you!
What's next after this, you ask? All we can say without spoiling anything is that after this dreadful cliffhanger, many things are about to change for our lovely characters...
(A/N: hey um I don't want to sound whiny or anything but I barely get any reviews on here... I would really appreciate it if you left a little comment? Unless no one's reading this fic anymore then in which case never mind haha.)