"Dig dig dig, we dig! Dig-ging a hole!" Sung Billy and Marshall cheerfully in unison as they dug a hole in a desert with giant shovels. "Dig dig dig and put things inside!"
Billy put a hand on his chin. "Hey, Marsh, why are we digging a large hole in the middle of nowhere again?" He asked curiously with a smile.
"Because I want to put some easter eggs from my past life inside." Replied Marshall, wearing a grey and dark blue sweater and black pants cheerfully as he continued digging. "I've already made a hundred other holes filled with these stuff this past week."
"Woah, how many holes do you plan to make?" Asked Billy cheerfully with genuine curiosity.
"A thousand holes or so holes for now. All filled with cool stuff from my old life." Said Marshall happily as he conjured a crystal from nothing and stared at the bottom of the hole. "My thirst for references can not be quenched."
Billy raised a brow. "What does that do?" He asked curiously, laying on his belly to peek into the hole next to his friend.
"It sings a song." Replied Marshall with a smile before activating the crystal and quickly throwing it in the hole before Billy could make out all of it, only hearing 'we are the crystal'. "What do you think?"
Billy narrowed his eyes. "I think..." He said calmly as he stood up. "We're gonna need another shovel. Let's go dig some holes!" He continued, throwing his hands into the air.
"Yeah!" Exclaimed Marshall in response as he created another shovel for Billy before the two headed off into the distance.
The two headed out on a quest, a quest to make a million holes and put one object inside each one. It was a stupid, but fun way to pass the time. The two traveled through forests, mountains, deserts and caves all to dig holes with giant shovels and put cool stuff inside each one. But with each new hole, something odd happened. Marshall's magic began acting up the more excited he got.
"Marsh? Marsh?" Billy called for his best friend who was in a trance flying above a forest for hole number 999. "MARSHALL!"
Marshall, who was floating in the air with some kind of snake monster above his head turned to Billy who pointed towards the creature. Marshall looked above him before quickly killing the creature by slicing it into quarters with a laser.
"Stupid magic!" Grumbled Marshall as he landed onto a tree with a deep frown and curled into a ball. "Ugh, can't even be excited without breaking something."
Billy heard this and headed to his friend before sitting next to him. "You okay?"
"No. I hate how easy it is for me to lose control." Replied Marshall grumpily as he turned to the giant. "I get just a little too emotional and BAM! Chaos!"
Billy shrugged. "Everyone does stupid stuff when they're emotional." He said cheerfully. "Remember when I got really excited and tried swimming in lava that one time?"
Marshall frowned. "Yeah, that was a terrible idea and you burnt all your hair off." He agreed immediately. "But this is different. You were in control, I'm not. It's like driving a car from the backseat using a couple of greasy brooms! Everything goes out of control so fast and I can't keep up."
"Hey, I'm sure you'll get it down soon. You're doing great right now." Said Billy with a smile as he put his hand behind Marshall's back. "You wanna go finish number 1000?"
Marshall paused and hugged his knees. After a few seconds of silent thinking, he shrugged. He didn't know anymore.
"Wanna explain what a car is?" Asked Billy raising a brow.
Marshall was about to think about it before the realization hit him. "Wait- you don't know what a car is?" He asked in surprise.
The giant paused. "Is it some kind of wild bull you ride and steer with brooms?" Billy asked curiously as he gave himself bull horns with his hands.
"No. It's like a motorcycle, but has four wheels." Replied Marshall blankly.
"A worm motorcycle?" Asked Billy narrowing his eyes in confusion.
Marshall snorted. "I'll just show you one later." He said with a smile as he floated into the air. "Let's go home."
xxXxx
At Marshall's.
The half demon wizard layed in bed absentmindedly staring at the ceiling. His room was filled with all kinds of nonsense ranging from laser burn marks all over the walls to burnt snake flesh littered on the floor to adorable plushies sitting in the corners to trees that now just existed in his room.
"I should dig a hole," He said out of nowhere, ignoring the chaos in his room. "riiiight in the middle of that forest...yeah, that'd be good."
Marshall got out of bed and changed into a black open jacket with a white button up undershirt shirt and black pants. He also had Billy's nose gem earring dangling off his ear. After changing, he waved his hand and reverted his room back to its original, non chaotic form and headed downstairs with a mug filled with coffee.
He silently passed by OC reading his comic book on the couch and headed into the kitchen for breakfast. OC, noticing his presence, decided to head to the kitchen and sit with him.
"Did you sleep well?" She asked cheerfully as she climbed onto the dining table.
Marshall, who was eating in the middle of eating an egg, turned to OC and nodded.
"Any plans for today?" She asked cheerfully as she put down the comic.
"Digging a hole." Replied Marshall calmly as he continued eating his food.
"Cool. I'll be at Canyon's." Said OC cheerfully. "She invited me to taste her new sushi recipe."
Marshall raised a brow. "Since when does Canyon make sushi?" He asked curiously after he gulped a bit of food.
"Ever since I told her about it at two days old." Replied OC with a big smile. "It's her favorite food."
Marshall hummed at the new piece of information as he finished his food. He made the plate disappear into nothingness and stood up to leave.
"I'll go dig that hole now." Said Marshall calmly as he left for the door.
"Have fun!" Exclaimed OC encouragingly.
"You too!" Replied Marshall before he ignored the door and teleported away to his destination.
And so, the most powerful wizard in the universe decided to go and dig a hole...with a shovel.
xxXxx
In the middle of some forest.
Marshall hummed as he stabbed the earth with a shovel he created with magic. "Number 1000. I wonder what I should put in this one." He said as he threw some dirt to the side.
As the wizard king continued to dig without using magic, he noticed a figure watching him from some nearby bushes. He decided the to ignore their stares and put up a magical barrier to protect himself just in case before going right back to digging.
A few minutes later, something slammed into his barrier prompting Marshall to turn around and check on the one watching him. The moment their eyes met, the figure scurried away in fear.
Marshall sighed before waving his hand in front of his face, causing his little watcher to teleport to his location. They were a short figure wearing a black robe. They stood in front of Marshall shaking in fear which confused the wizard king. He wasn't particularly intimidating.
Then the figure spoke. "O great darkness! Please spare me!" They said as they planted their head in the dirt. "I shall do all that I can to remedy my mistake!"
Marshall paused in confusion before removing the hoods off of the figure to reveal... Peppermint Butler? Marshall stared at candy butler in confusion for a few seconds before deciding to ask a question.
"Uhh, Pep, what are you doing here?" He asked raising a brow. "And what do you mean 'great darkness'?"
Peppermint Butler laughed uncomfortably at the question. "O great darkness, surely you jest." He said before noticing the serious look on Marshall's face. "Hehe, your magic is the most undiluted form of dark magic I've ever seen. Almost primordial. Only the most evil could hold such power."
Marshall took a deep breath. "You sound like my dad." He said calmly as he got back to digging the hole. "Just because my magic somehow qualifies as super dark magic, doesn't mean I'm evil."
"But that kind of power is meant to bring misfortune upon others!" Exclaimed Peppermint Butler in surprise.
"Been there, done that." Said Marshall in exasperation as he continued to dig without stopping. "Not very pleasant."
Peppermint Butler, feeling as if he had made a mistake started backing away slowly and silently. But before he could escape, Marshall spoke.
"What are you doing here, Pep?" He asked calmly as he continued to dig.
"Me? Uhh, nothing. Nothing at all." The butler replied with a nervous smile. "I was just passing by."
Marshall frowned as he stopped digging for a second. "Are you afraid of me?" He asked dejectedly.
"Of course! You're the wizard king! The prince of the Nightosphere! AND the only one to inflict genuine suffering onto the Lich!" Said Pep Butt before noticing that Marshall looked upset. "You don't like being called scary, do you?"
"No. But you're right, I am scary. I nearly killed PB on accident because I got angry." Marshall said dejectedly as he started to dig again. "I could snap at any moment and kill you right now."
Peppermint Butler burst into laughter upon hearing that. That laughter slowly, but surely died down as Marshall kept digging silently. "Yes, that is the case." The butler said cheerfully.
Marshall kept silent as he dug while thinking about Peppermint Butler. The butler was loyal to Bubblegum, but knew to keep a secret. He also had a few anti vampire weapons for his sister in case she went wild. Did he have something for him too?
Interrupting these thoughts, the butler cleared his throat. "Uhh, I know this is late, but why are you digging a hole?" Asked Peppermint Butler curiously as he peeked inside Marshall's hole before the wizard king shrugged. "And why aren't you using magic to dig instead?"
Marshall paused. "I guess digging the hole by hand is part of the experience?" He said with a shrug. "I don't know. I just wanna dig a hole and put a thing inside "
"What thing?" Asked the butler curiously.
"I haven't decided yet." Replied Marshall calmly as he continued to dig. "And you still haven't said what you were doing here."
"Playing the questions game, eh?" Asked Peppermint nervously with a chuckle. "Hehe. How about we focus more on the hole? What's so special about it?"
"... it's a quest I failed to complete a long while back." Replied Marshall with a frown as he stabbed his shovel into the dirt. "I lost control of my magic and had to stop that day. But I really wanted to do it."
Awkward silence filled the area as Peppermint Butler didn't reply.
"It makes me wonder sometimes, what's the point of this? What's the point of my life and this insanity? Why am I here?" Marshall asked dejectedly as his digging got slower. "Am I just a tool made to entertain some audience? Am I just a copy of someone else? What am I even supposed to be? You ever ask stuff like that?"
"...not really." Deadpanned Pep with a shrug. "But I see your point. Life is a confusing mess sometimes."
"Don't let Death hear you say that." Replied Marshall cheerfully.
"Heh! Yeah!" Replied Pep cheerfully.
"Maybe I'll find an answer when I finish this hole." Added Marshall with a shrug as he continued to dig.
"You're thinking of it the wrong way." Said Peppermint Butler shaking his head with a smile. "The answer is that there is no answer. Just like how the multiverse only exists so long as it's being perceived. Your purpose only exists for as long as you perceive it."
Marshall paused. "Can YOU perceive your own purpose, Pep?"
"Of course. It's serving princess Bubblegum-" said Peppermint Butler with a smile. "-and obtaining great power."
Marshall nodded silently as he continued to dig. He already knew everything that Peppermint Butler said. He heard that whole speech one too many times to bother. It never really made sense to him knowing the true concept of this world.
If the multiverse was just a show and he was just a character inside, then he would have a purpose. Finn had a purpose, Jake had a purpose, PB had a purpose, Canyon had a purpose and Marceline had a purpose. Was he here just to replace Billy? Or was he there to make things better? Or make things worse? Was he a hero or was he a villain? Or was he a supporting character? Was there an answer? Did it even matter? Did anything matter? Did HE matter? He had friends and family who loved him; that was something, right? His life had meaning, right?
When did he start thinking of these things?
"Uhh, are you okay?" Asked Pep raising a brow. "You've been silent for quite a while."
"I think I know what I'm putting inside the hole." Said Marshall calmly as he created a second shovel for Peppermint Butler. "Wanna help me dig?"
The butler paused before shrugging and taking the shovel. The two began to dig and dig until nightfall when the had a grave shaped hole that was deep and large enough to fit a body inside.
"Uhh, this hole is suspiciously your size." Said Peps in concern. "You're not planning on throwing yourself in there, are you?"
"Kinda." Replied Marshall calmly before conjuring something.
He conjured his Nightclad armour and threw it inside the hole.
"Woah, the Nightclad armour." Said Peppermint Butler admiring the armour. "A suit that can protect its bearer from dangers of all forms. Are you throwing it away?"
"Yeah. I realize now, I'm probably never gonna escape what my magic did to me. I still have trouble going to sleep and closing taps because of the anxiety." Said Marshall in a chillingly calm tone. "But if I wanna find out what I'm supposed to be and move forwards, I need to start over and NEVER look back...and that means he has to go."
Before Pep could ask what he meant, Marshall fired a blast at the armour that blew half of it to bits.
"You could have given it to me!" Exclaimed the butler angrily as he stared at the ruined armour.
"No." Deadpanned Marshall as he used magic to fill the hole back up. "And don't try to take the remains."
Peppermint Butler frowned at the order, but begrudgingly accepted before he and Marshall both headed back to their respective homes leaving the grave of Nightclad and his one thousandth hole alone save for a single snail as company.
xxXxx
Tell me how I did. Leave a review.
Toodles.