what does unc mean

“I’m.. sorry, for everything.”

“Don’t apologize, John. None of this is your fault, and you know it.”

The couple walked through the field of withering flowers and rustling grass, Jane Doe holding her husband’s dark corrupted hand just as tight as she did all those years ago.

“I’m just.. happy that I get to see you again, even if you aren’t the man you used to be.” She spoke softly, looking up at him. Tilting her hat up a little to get a better look at him; all of him.

John Doe’s eyes saddened, looking down away from her gaze. “..I’m barely a *man* anymore. All that remains is just..” He looked down at the corrupted spike which took the place of his arm, his expression hardening with frustration.

“..Regret.”

“John.” Jane stopped in her tracks, bringing her husband with her. Grabbing his chin and forcing him to look her in the eyes, letting her hand move to cup his cheek after. “Truth be told.. It doesn’t matter if you came back a hideous monster. It doesn’t matter if you came back a scrambled blob of human organs, or an incomprehensible eldritch horror, or even a damn *worm*.”

“No matter how you come back to me, in any shape or form.. I will always be waiting with open arms, my love.”

She spoke softly, leaning up to give him a quick kiss. The feeling of his arms around her the same as it was all those years ago, even with those sharp edges attached.

The smile on John’s face was beginning to hurt, yet it could barely visualize the sheer amount of love he has for this woman. His arms wrapping back around her as if it was second nature, as if she was made to be in them…

..And even if he remembered every single little detail about his wife, he seemed to forget one little thing.. which was that he should NEVER leave himself out in the open around her.

Poor John couldn’t see the smile which spread on Jane’s face, but he could definitely feel her fingers begin to gently scribble up his sides. The black hatted woman chuckling softly seeing how fast her oh-so-scary killer husband was reduced to a giggling pile in her arms.

“Ihi haven’t even started yet, hun..” *She giggled out, dragging her fingers up his sides and ribs before settling back on his sides to squeeze. The sound of his dark distorted giggling next to her ear melting her heart..

“L-lohohove, plehease..” He squeaked, however he truly was all bark no bite with how his arms stayed wrapped around her. Could it be because he was a little intimidated by his wife? Perhaps… or perhaps, he wasn’t in such a dire situation after all.

Jane decided to let her hand slip to his back, gently poking an exposed vertebrae on his spine. Her eyes widening when the simple action earned a squeal from John.

“Are you okay? Did I hurt you, love-?” She pulled away from the hug and looked up at him with worried eyes. However instead of being met with a pained or angry expression.. all she saw was a giggly flushed grin on his face.

“N-nononoho, ihit just.. tickles a lot..” He scratched the back of his neck nervously with a grin, her concern faltering.. and instead shifting to an evil expression.

“..Oh, *really*?”

“..Actually forget what I sahaHAAID-!!”

An embarrassing shriek escaped John as Jane slid a finger up his spine, smiling at the satisfying reaction. The pink haired lady continuing to drag a finger over his spine and gently poke at each vertebrae, following her husband to the floor like a hawk when he decided now would be a good time to let his knees loose.

“JAHAHANE!-“ John cackled, producing a snort in his laughter and hiding his face.

“Ahahawww.. I missed your silly noises.” She chuckled, squeezing his sides repeatedly and watching him flail on the floor like a fish out of water. However, he was still able to keep his spiked arm locked on the ground to avoid hurting her…

Eventually after a few more moments of fun, Jane let up and gave John a moment to breathe. Gently rubbing his side with a smile on her face, the sound of his giggly breaths reminding her why she adored this man so much…

“Ihi love you so much..” She giggled, hugging him tightly. The big smile returning to John’s face when he responded by immediately hugging her back just as tight, moving her hat to kiss her forehead and cheek.

“I’m.. sorry, for everything.”

“Don’t apologize, John. None of this is your fault, and you know it.”

The couple walked through the field of withering flowers and rustling grass, Jane Doe holding her husband’s dark corrupted hand just as tight as she did all those years ago.

“I’m just.. happy that I get to see you again, even if you aren’t the man you used to be.” She spoke softly, looking up at him. Tilting her hat up a little to get a better look at him; all of him.

John Doe’s eyes saddened, looking down away from her gaze. “..I’m barely a *man* anymore. All that remains is just..” He looked down at the corrupted spike which took the place of his arm, his expression hardening with frustration.

“..Regret.”

“John.” Jane stopped in her tracks, bringing her husband with her. Grabbing his chin and forcing him to look her in the eyes, letting her hand move to cup his cheek after. “Truth be told.. It doesn’t matter if you came back a hideous monster. It doesn’t matter if you came back a scrambled blob of human organs, or an incomprehensible eldritch horror, or even a damn *worm*.”

“No matter how you come back to me, in any shape or form.. I will always be waiting with open arms, my love.”

She spoke softly, leaning up to give him a quick kiss. The feeling of his arms around her the same as it was all those years ago, even with those sharp edges attached.

The smile on John’s face was beginning to hurt, yet it could barely visualize the sheer amount of love he has for this woman. His arms wrapping back around her as if it was second nature, as if she was made to be in them…

..And even if he remembered every single little detail about his wife, he seemed to forget one little thing.. which was that he should NEVER leave himself out in the open around her.

Poor John couldn’t see the smile which spread on Jane’s face, but he could definitely feel her fingers begin to gently scribble up his sides. The black hatted woman chuckling softly seeing how fast her oh-so-scary killer husband was reduced to a giggling pile in her arms.

“Ihi haven’t even started yet, hun..” *She giggled out, dragging her fingers up his sides and ribs before settling back on his sides to squeeze. The sound of his dark distorted giggling next to her ear melting her heart..

“L-lohohove, plehease..” He squeaked, however he truly was all bark no bite with how his arms stayed wrapped around her. Could it be because he was a little intimidated by his wife? Perhaps… or perhaps, he wasn’t in such a dire situation after all.

Jane decided to let her hand slip to his back, gently poking an exposed vertebrae on his spine. Her eyes widening when the simple action earned a squeal from John.

“Are you okay? Did I hurt you, love-?” She pulled away from the hug and looked up at him with worried eyes. However instead of being met with a pained or angry expression.. all she saw was a giggly flushed grin on his face.

“N-nononoho, ihit just.. tickles a lot..” He scratched the back of his neck nervously with a grin, her concern faltering.. and instead shifting to an evil expression.

“..Oh, *really*?”

“..Actually forget what I sahaHAAID-!!”

An embarrassing shriek escaped John as Jane slid a finger up his spine, smiling at the satisfying reaction. The pink haired lady continuing to drag a finger over his spine and gently poke at each vertebrae, following her husband to the floor like a hawk when he decided now would be a good time to let his knees loose.

“JAHAHANE!-“ John cackled, producing a snort in his laughter and hiding his face.

“Ahahawww.. I missed your silly noises.” She chuckled, squeezing his sides repeatedly and watching him flail on the floor like a fish out of water. However, he was still able to keep his spiked arm locked on the ground to avoid hurting her…

Eventually after a few more moments of fun, Jane let up and gave John a moment to breathe. Gently rubbing his side with a smile on her face, the sound of his giggly breaths reminding her why she adored this man so much…

“Ihi love you so much..” She giggled, hugging him tightly. The big smile returning to John’s face when he responded by immediately hugging her back just as tight, moving her hat to kiss her forehead and cheek.

--

John Doe knew it wasn’t completely out of the question for 1x to have won a round in such a short amount of time. Sometimes the survivors had bad days, whether it was a result of bad communication or just a few unlucky misses. And any day, a killer could do exceedingly well– which 1x did, more often than not. The manifestation was often unyielding in her efforts for any form of victory. Naturally competitive.

Yet, her expression as she leaned against one of the walls in the main room of the cabin was nothing but poisonous and bitter, a stark contrast to her usual ‘winning face’. A few seconds ago should have cued the detailed description of how she had achieved victory or at least gotten extremely close, but nothing came. Not even a word out of her.

It amused Doe. This was new.

“Something happen, 1x?” Other than to glance once at the crown-bearing killer, he kept his attention on what he had been doing before: reorganizing the few books the cabin had. He was the only one who cared about them, anyway.

“No.” She snapped at him, crossing her arms. One of her hands still tightly gripped both of her swords. She already knew her denial was pointless, but chose to follow through with it anyway.

John Doe made eye contact with her, tilting his head slightly. She looked away almost immediately. Despite being a calculated killer, she was terrible at lying, or hiding anything for that matter. That’s when it ticked– her lack of usual post-round commentary was an obvious indicator she had not, in fact, won the round. Given that and the timeframe of her turn, she most likely hadn’t been able to kill anyone at all. Doe simply chuckled, eyes following hers even when she didn’t look back. How long had it been since she’d lost like that? Weeks? Months?

“Be quiet.” It was almost more of a whiny plea than a growly demand, her entire body turning like it would shield her from the corrupted killer’s doubtful, amused gaze.

“I didn’t even say anything.”

“You’re laughing at me, idiot. It’s not funny.”

“It’s not my fault you lost, 1x.” The corrupted killer said dismissively, returning his attention to the bookshelf.

“No clue what you’re on about, Doe.” She hissed out, trying to backtrack the conversation from scolding the other to denying she had even lost in the first place.

“Can’t decide how to defend yourself, hm?” Despite having most of his attention on something else, Doe still managed to catch on to every little tactic the crown-bearing killer used. Maybe it was because they were so used to each other, probably being the most intelligent ones in this hellhole.

Just as Doe predicted, she became defensive. “Oh, you can’t be talking, Doe. You lose significantly more than I do, it’s not even a debate–”

“Trying to deflect the conversation to me?” He resisted the urge to say ‘again’, knowing it would just stray the ‘argument’ away from the original topic. Her lack of responsibility for her own habits was just a little concerning, but he could address it later.

“Are you really that embarrassed over losing once?”

Her breathing audibly hitched with a snarl as she stopped leaning on the wall. There was brief silence before the loud clattering of two swords tumbling across a table reverberated throughout the cabin, at 1x's fault. The sounds of rattling metal were followed by loud footsteps, creating an angry discord of noise. Might have struck a nerve.

“I know you are not teasing me right now.” That’s my job…

John Doe didn’t even look up at the other, not giving her the satisfaction of his attention. He was clearly unintimidated. “I’m not. Just saying you could use a little humility, Ms. Salty…”

She tried to ignore the nickname. “Me? Needing humility? That’s foolish, Doe. Sounds like something a coward would say…” She yanked the book Doe was holding out of his hand, harshly. It was almost like she had forgotten the other was also a killer, perfectly capable of ripping apart just as many people as she did on average.

The corrupted killer scoffed as he closed his hand around empty air, reaching for the book in the manifestation’s hand. “... Don’t push it, 1x”

“Or what?” She let him take it and set it to the side, taking a step closer like it would have any more effect than it had before.

And then she shoved. Maybe losing the round was clouding her judgment on what was a good idea, because that definitely wasn’t. Doe caught her hands, shoving back as much as she did, so they pushed at each other with a somewhat equal force. Like a two-handed arm wrestle.

“You should stop, you know. It would suck for you to lose something twice in a row, wouldn’t it?” Doe remarked, honestly.

She sneered, sharp teeth showing. “Are you implying I can’t win in a squabble against you? Not going to happen.” Despite the confidence, her eyes narrowed with… something, as her hands uncomfortably shifted against Doe’s. Every time they had a physical quarrel, playful or not, the slight buzz of his corrupted hands bothered her. It was hard to describe, but it was distracting, for one thing.

Doe hummed. “You just got done with a round. And if you killed absolutely nobody, even with your all put into it. You must be at least a little fatigued, yes?” 

“Just because I put effort into rounds doesn’t mean I get tired after them. Don’t think I’ve ever gotten tired after one, actually.” She took the opportunity to brag, continuing to push against him.

… Hah. That wasn’t even close to believable. 

He scoffed. “You are such a liar, 1x. Are you always going to pretend like you have no weaknesses whatsoever?”

“ ‘Pretend’? Don’t make me laugh, idiot.”

The ‘idiot’ in question raised his eyebrows. On second thought, maybe it was a good thing she picked a fight with him. Someone needed to be knocked down a bit. It was true there was a sort of loose hierarchy between the killers, but this was just getting a little out of hand.

Speaking of getting out of hand..

The crown-bearing killer pushed just a little harder than she meant to, accidentally leaning too far forward and putting them both out of balance. If it had been anyone other than 1x, John Doe would have probably just brick-walled it. But she was almost as heavy as he was, and even more fierce. Consequently, Doe tumbled to the floor, taking 1x with him. Neither were startled by the sudden elevation change; only a slight hiss from 1x was audible when they hit the floor. The corrupted killer still wasn’t super used to fighting someone so equally matched, but this wasn’t the first time the green-themed killer had gotten into a scuffle with him.

They both managed to get half off the floor when Doe shoved 1x back down, seeing an opportunity. “What are you even trying to prove with this?” 

She stopped trying to push herself back up with her arms, instead rolling over to throw the other off her. It was only somewhat successful, because each time she tried to get up, she was forced back onto the floor. The thought that picking a fight with Doe might have been a bad choice only ghosted across her mind. “That you don’t get to ridicule me, fool.”

“That’s unfortunate, because I do. You are not above everything, 1x. Especially not here.”

1x only glared, reaching up to swipe at his face. She made contact with a reasonable amount of force, making Doe’s expression scrunch in annoyance, and like clockwork, Doe smacked her face back directly after. The interaction would have looked so incredibly stupid to an outsider, with how pointlessly petty it was. It had no effect on either of them, anyway.

At least it wouldn’t have had, if Doe’s hand hadn’t left the annoying buzzing feeling on 1x’s face from the corruption. She growled, quickly taking her hands from pushing and shoving at the other and raising them to her head to quickly try and rub off the pesky sensation. 

Doe tilted his head to the side, confused about how being smacked once distracted her so much that she temporarily yielded. However, the confusion was short-lived as it was quickly replaced by focus, taking advantage of the moment to think. He wasn’t stupid, he knew she would just burn him and herself out roughhousing until she either ‘won’ or got completely spent, one way or another.

One way or another…

“a-AgH–” 1x yelped, her arms crashing back down to grasp at Doe’s, trying to pry them away from her. Embarrassingly, she missed the first time she tried.

John Doe’s hands barely moved against the force, staying in their position. Halfway dug into the sides of her torso. Interesting. “Hhuh... Quick question, 1x–”

She didn’t even allow him to speak. She already knew what the question was, and Doe already knew the answer. “I will rip your heart out.” The threat was sharp, yet panic seeped through the rough cracks of her voice. Subtle, but noticeable. This wasn’t how it was supposed to go.

Doe held onto her alarmed state, fully planning to use every bit of it. Just for a moment, he let her push his hands away. “Ohoho… Will you now? You sound awfully unsure for someone willing to carry out such a threat…”

She didn’t know how to respond to that, too focused on how her arms suddenly got… weaker, after the comment. Eugh, why did they feel like that? “... Stop that.” She demanded, as if it were his fault that nervousness was plaguing her usual strength.

He smiled as he felt the force on his hands become weaker. “Hey, you’re the one who brought this upon yourself, not me.”

She gritted her sharp teeth against each other, trying to backtrack again even though it was far too late for it. “Well then, I… changed my mind. You can go back to your stupid books–”

“... No, I don’t think so.” Doe deadpanned, trying to move his hands back to where they were before. He knew 1x wouldn’t make it easy, but the nerve she had to ask him to stop and insult one of his interests at the same time was… incredible, for the lack of a better word. 

“If I’m being honest, I've become a bit sick of your entire demeanor lately. Like I said, you’re not above everything, even though you act like you are.” Doe paused just for a moment to study the other’s expression. Nervousness, barely masked by a glare.

“And you’re certainly not above this.” He yanked his hands out of her grasp, before bringing them to her sides again and roughly digging. If she were a survivor, it might have hurt. And for a second, it almost looked like it did, from the immediate reaction of writhing. However, the assuring audible response came only a few seconds after.

“I sWEHear I’ll-” The half-baked threat died in her throat, but her uneven, panicked laughter certainly didn’t.

John Doe chuckled. “You swear you’ll what?” He repeated the question when 1x didn’t respond, momentarily slowing to just grazing the area around her ribs. “You’ll what, 1x?”

Refusing to speak in such a ‘pathetic’ manner, 1x tried to stabilize her voice. She didn’t even bother finishing her previous threat. “Don’t- Do NOT laugh at mehe.” She smacked his hand away, like it had done anything before. She could feel the slight tremor of the other’s corruption being left in circular paths over her torso. The buzzing was a little bit more than just distracting now.

Doe chortled at the demand. “Why not? You’re laughing. Why can’t I do the same?”

She huffed. “No I’m nohot.”

The denial was met with a scoff. “Yeah, okay 1x. Whatever you say…” His voice trailed off, and his hands paused for a second.

1x saw it as him zoning out, attempting to get up by scrambling backwards while he was ‘distracted’. Only to collapse and start loudly cackling as Doe jabbed at the space in between her ribs with one hand, and scribbled over her sides with the other. She’d only made it to the wall next to the bookshelf, but at least now she was sitting up against something.

“Really? Trying to run away? Seems like something a coward would do…” Doe emphasized the word ‘coward’, lightheartedly indicating his discontentment with how she had name-called him earlier.

“I’M NOHOT A- UGHUHHG, I HAHATE YOHOU–!”

Doe flinched, a little surprised at how noisy the response was. He adjusted to it pretty quickly, though. The claim was a complete lie anyway. “You hate me just about as much as you hate dehydrated limes. Might be your obvious natural abhorrence to things not going your way that’s talking…”

1x complained, once more. “I’M NOHOT THAT SOUR, DOE.”

Doe was very thorough in lightly scratching around every single one of the others’ ribs, the task made significantly easier by the fact her torso was partially transparent. Safe to say, the action was maddening, especially with the feel of the corruption. It was also completely foreign to the domino-crowned killer, how she could feel so powerless yet so… giddy. Not having control over a situation meant danger, not whatever this was.

“1x, you started an entire fight with me because you lost a round. I genuinely don’t wanna hear it.”

She had nothing more to say as she continued to shove and pry at his persistent hands, although her efforts became increasingly more desperate and less effective. Plus, Doe just laughed at her attempts to free herself. 

“And to think you were so overly confrontational, for what? This?” He sighed in between sentences, half disappointed, half amused. “I told you it would suck to lose twice.”

Clearly, 1x was too unfocused to form any more verbal response to everything the corrupted killer said to her, because if she weren’t hindered like this, she most certainly wouldn’t have tolerated that type of mocking. From whatever she had left in terms of retaliation, she attempted to kick at him before bringing her legs closer to her. Like most of the other shoves, it made contact with him, but was too weak to have a significant effect. Doe rolled his eyes, removing a hand from her side to gently skitter it on the back of one of her knees. It was originally just a silly way to ‘punish’ the kick, but Doe was rewarded when she threw her head back and wheezed in reaction. It was all a little… unexpected, from the literal manifestation of hatred. But very welcome. 

Doe leaned back slightly, removing his hands. 1x couldn’t get up, even after a break. “Oh, so your knees, too?”

She growled out a response as soon as her voice steadied, but it was huffy. Unserious. “No.” 

The corrupted killer scoffed. Well, at least she looked a little defeated. “Next time you lose a round, don’t pick a fight you can’t finish.”

That stupid fucking bird... Slashing his sword at me and running away seconds after...What a bold yet also cowardly chicken.

They hissed, running towards where the swordfighter had ran off to which happened to be inside that shambled hotel

They weren't a fond of sprinting for long distances. No one did. But they had to, for the sake of catching up to those pesky survivors and killing each and all of them brutally before the timer struck 0:00

Plus, seeing the terror on the survivors' faces before they meet their demise is quite amusing to them, is it not?

They were simply fed up with all this stunning, and punching,, and.. Did something just grab their leg?

They had forgotten one thing that made the hotel.. unique, for lack of better term, which were those zombie hands that somehow managed to dig their way out of the creaky wooden floorboard. How did they get out? No fuckin clue, other than some resilience (and.. maybe logic)

They tripped, dropping both of their swords in the process.

"FUCK! Khghht..Stupid.."

When they stood up and brushed themselves off, they suddenly felt a hand prod their almost slime-like torso. God, can't those things put their hands to themselves?? Why's it playing with them?

The feeling, while it was annoying, elicited a very very faint smile that they tried to fight back. They're supposed to be a killer made of pure hatred, not some stupid child whos smiling like they were taken to a playground!

The other hands then drew their attention towards 1x, whos still trying to reach the daemonshanks that just had to slide out of their reach. They played and poked around with their midsection, somehow interested in its gooey texture

It didnt help that two were holding their arms and legs, so moving through became a challenge of strength and power

"Khek- S..Stop thahat..!"

They tried to swat the hands away, but that only caught the attention of more of those stupid zombies

"I'm- khk- n..not afraid to slice ALL of you into m-mohohorsehels! Hahahah!!"

Alas, they weren't conscious enough to register that as a threat. For the only thing they know is to grab onto anything that walks right through them, hence why they were considered a small annoyance that hinders escape plans

"Kheh..heheh... S-Stuhupid ahass..- Lehet me gohoho!"

They held back a few giggles and a snort, trying not to catch the eyes of any survivor. The last thing theyd EVER want to happen was being known as a "stupidly ticklish killer with a slimy-textured tummy"

God forbid that the killers learned of this info. Well, they probably already did ever since that one incident where they let C00LK1D climb onto them

They tried to tug their body away from the hands around thrice now. Why's its grip so strong??? No wonder the survivors became easy targets the moment they pass through these things. Not that they complained when it was just the survivors getting grabbed, since it simply made killing a little more easier. Them being the one getting slowed by the decayed mitts is a different story

It didnt take long until one hand decided to dig through the goo and reach for their ribs, which was a spot that they would rather DIE than to reveal it being a stupidly ticklish spot

The shriek that 1x had let out was far too unlikely of them to ignore

"FUHUHUHUHCK!!" They cursed through barks of laughter, clawing at one of the hands and trying to trudge away from them

Meanwhile-

"Was that 1x??" Elliot paused as he passed the pizza to Guest

"Sounds like 'em." The soldier replied, his expression deadpan while he helped himself to some pizza that Elliot gave him

As for the Adversary..

They bucked their way out of its grasp, breaking free from the hands and finally managing to pick up their swords and catching a few breathes after the most humiliating thing had just happened to them of all people

"Hhhk..Heheh.....huugh..fuhuck."

They did NOT just get tickled by some hands that have are not capabie of forming a coherent thought. Not that they had a brain in the first place..

They sighed, looking at every direction so no one was there to witness that whole ordeal. There wasn't anyone close by, save for one person-

Shedletsky.

"Took ya long enough. See ya, loser!!" He bolted away once more, but not before waving at the killer as a small taunt. His wings fluttering lightly as he sprinted

They looked back at the still moving hands which were still confusedly grabbing at where 1x used to be then back at where Shedletsky had ran off

"I'm severing all of you later. I'm busy with a specific ex-admin right now"

They pointed one of their daemonshanks at them as if they were threatening to use Mass Infection at it. Despite everything however, they didn't really mind the tickling. It was just that they just had to do that during a chase

Maybe they'll go back there again if no one's watching and theres a bit of free time there. He has the strength to break free at any time anyway soo...

Shedletsky grinned smugly as he ran, unaware that he's the next target

———————

semicolon Explode me

dies

as a sidenote i finally see myself in the search oh my god finawy woo cheers

Doombringer stepped closer, letting his hammer clatter to the ground as he readied himself. Successfully catching Telamon for what he planned to do wasn’t going to be an easy feat.

“Step back, Doombringer. Cease this foOLERY-“

Telamon backed up as well. His tone raised an octave as he narrowly dodged a pounce by Doombringer, wing feathers puffing up slightly in a defensive stance.

This went on for a second time. Telamon only truly stayed because he knew (or rather, thought..) he could stay out of Doombringer’s grasp. He hadn’t teleported away or forced away Doombringer’s grip purely because he wanted to play into this childish situation.

“Uff.. really playing around here, arent’cha?”

Doombringer grunted, taking a moment to catch himself as he lost yet another ‘pounce’ attempt on the feathered god in front of him. Telamon was practically glowing with smug energy.

“Yes. Unless you’d like for me to go away? Or are you wanting to continue this game of cat and mouse?”

While Telamon was monologuing, Doombringer pounced. Telamon didn’t notice until it was a fraction of a second too late.

The two tumbled to the ground in a mix of feathers and fur, scuffling for a solid minute or two. Telamon became slightly irritated, trying to teleport away.

That is.. until something happened. He felt a jab to his side, which caused an unfamiliar tingling sensation to flood his nervous system. He jolted, hiding the involuntary starts of a smile with one of his head wings.

“So it’s true! The mighty Telamon, god of The Heights and holder of the Illumina.. possesses ticklishness!!”

“I do NOT!! SHUT YOUR TRAP—“

Telamon snapped, trying to force himself away from Doombringer. He did NOT like this. He hated that feeling—how it sapped his godly strength away—how weak it made him feel. He tried kicking Doom away, but it didn’t work. He hated Doom’s brute strength and how he couldn’t get out of his grip.

“Calm down there buddy.. it’s not like I’m gonna hurt ‘ya or anything. It’s all just in playful fun.”

“By making me look like a FOOL? This is almost as stupid as that BUCKET on your head.”

“The one that you gave me. Right.”

Telamon scoffs. Doom was right. He did give him the bucket, but.. THAT DIDN’T MATTER RIGHT NOW!! HE WANTED OUT!!

“I don’t care. Let me freHEE—“

Telamon almost glitched as the foreign sound forced itself out of him. A giggle. When he was in the middle of talking, Doom had poked him again. How rude!

Then again.

And again.

And again.

Telamon struggled to contain himself as the poking continued.

“GHK—relEASE me!! You foHOOL!!”

Another giggle. Telamon covered his face with his head wings, nearly burning up with how embarrassing this was. How dare Doombringer think he could do this?!

“I fear not, Tela. Like I said! You need to lighten up a bit. Laugh, maybe!”

…

“Besides, this is only poking! Imagine how you’ll react when I actually start.”

‘Actually start’. The words bounced around Telamon’s head as he froze up slightly. It could get WORSE?! And he thought this was bad already..

Before Telamon could say anything further, it started up. Relentless but steady scribbling along his ribs and sides. Helpless giggling bubbled out of him regardless of what he did, the god trying to curl up into a ball in a useless attempt to get away from the offending hands.

“YouHUHU baHAHASTaHARD!! StoHOHOP!!!”

Telamon squirmed like a stubborn worm, wings flapping about the platform the two were positioned on like something that just refused to stop moving. No matter what he did, he just couldn’t seem to get away. Doombringer’s hands just kept squeezing away at his sides at that infuriatingly gentle pace.

“Nuh uh, Tela. I’ve come aaaallll this way to make you happy! And I don’t plan on stopping now… hehe.”

Doombringer’s tone was maddeningly teasy, as if he knew how much he was affecting Telamon. It didn’t take a genius to see it, though..

He drew out the ‘all’ by dragging his fingers slowly up Telamon’s sides, then scribbling them all the way back down.

“OHOHO MY HEHEIGHTS—YOUHUHU IMBEHECILE!! IHI’M GONNA KILL YOU!!“

Doombringer brightened slightly at the musical sound, giggling to himself as he continued.

“Wow, Tela!! I didn’t know you were this ticklish.. so cute.”

“IHI AM NAHAHAT CUHUTE!!!”

“You sure? Because you’re sure acting like you are.”

Telamon made a sound of both laughter and frustration at Doombringer’s words. It infuriated him how easily this affected him and how weak he became at the very thought of it.

But he couldn’t deny this sort of.. giddy feeling starting to rise up inside his innermost core. He tried to ignore it—to push it away—but it only came back stronger.

“C’mon Tela, lemme see your face! I wanna see that smile of yours.”

Doombringer moved a hand toward Telamon’s head wings. He only planned to gently nudge them aside. Even with the wings covering the god’s face, he could see how flustered he was.

A sudden pain to his side. Doombringer winced slightly, looking down in confusion. ..ah. A kick. Telamon had managed to muster up enough energy and strength to kick Doombringer in his side.

“Kicking me now, Tela?? How rude of you. I might just have to teach you a lesson about niceness for once.”

“FUHUHUHACK OFF!!”

Doombringer was still unused to seeing (and hearing) Telamon laugh uncontrollably like this, but it wasn’t unwelcome. In fact, it was as welcome as it could be. It was an adorable sound (according to Doombringer).

“Wow.. now you’re cursing me!! That isn’t a way to treat your friends..”

“YOUHUHU’RE NAHAT MY FRIEHEHEND!!! I HAHATE YOU!!”

Telamon continued his squirming, wings nearly smacking Doombringer upside the head as the other’s fingers pressed into a tender spot on the ribs.

“I’ve had enough of your rudeness!!”

Doombringer takes a deep breath. Telamon tenses. He didn’t know what he was gonna do, but it wasn’t going to be any good—especially if Doombringer was looking at him like that.

The next ten seconds were chaos. Once Doombringer drew in as much breath as he could, he blew a raspberry on Telamon’s stomach. And BOY did that work.

“wHAHAHAHA—stAHAHAHAAAHAP!!”

Telamon shrieked. Actually shrieked. He himself didn’t even know why he reacted this severely. He felt the feeling of Doombringer’s raspberries a handful of times more. Each time, he responded with peals of shrieking laughter.

His feathers were ruffled and unkempt by all the squirming he was doing. And for once, he didn’t care about how he appeared. He only cared about getting away from Doombringer and his stupid tickles.

“How CUTE! Truly, Tela. You should laugh more. Maybe the civilians would approach you more if you did. Makes ‘ya look more approachable.”

Doombringer couldn’t help but giggle at the flurry of half-broken words that escaped the other beneath him. It was no doubt he was frustrated, but he could tell this was having a positive effect on Telamon.

“GEHEHET OHOFF OF MEHEE YOU OHOAF—“

He was flailing and kicking, all sense of dignity lost. Luckily they hadn’t drawn any attention from any nearby players (they were far too absorbed in their own battles), which made Telamon feel a slight sense of relief.

“Nah, I don’t plan on getting off just yet. I have one more spot I plan on getting.”

“..?”

“Say, your wings look a lil’ messy…”

Oh.

Oh no.

This isn’t good.

“DON’T YOU DARE TOUCH MY WINGS!! I CAN GET THEM MYSELF!!”

“Gee, I can always count on you for explosive reactions. C’mon, Tel! You know I’m not gonna actually do anything negative. Just.. THIS!!”

Telamon felt an overwhelming sense of this tickly feeling as Doombringer’s hands dove into the pits of his wings. You would’ve thought he was being MURDERED by the shriek he let out.

A flurry of threats and curses tumbled out of his mouth, head wings and back wings alike flapping and flailing like crazy as Doombringer’s fingers scurried all across the most sensitive parts of his wings he didn’t even know he had.

“Hehe, I didn’t know you could get this loud! I know I said this would be the last part, but.. I wanna try one last thing!! Then I’ll let ‘ya go, ‘Kay?”

Oh how he hated that stupid teasing tone.

“IHIHI DOHOHON’T CAHAHARE!!! GEHEHET IHIT OHOHOVER WIHITH!!”

Normally, he would’ve fought tooth and claw to get out of this. Normally, he wouldn’t allow ANY of this in the slightest. Normally, he wouldn’t even be in this situation in the first place.

But this wasn’t a normal situation, was it?

Doombringer took a deep breath again. Telamon froze, and everything seemed to be going still. Before, he wasn’t familiar with this tactic. Now? He was more than familiar with it. He HATED it. He hated it when it was just on his stomach, but his WINGS? He was in for a whole world of pain (or rather.. ticklishness, heh).

“waITWAITWAITICHANGEMYMIN—“

He blabbered out, putting his hands in front of him as if that would do anything. But before he could finish his pleading, he felt it. That torturous feeling. Raspberries.. that was the name. It almost slipped his mind before Doombringer oh so helpfully reminded him.

It tickled. It tickled ALOT. Telamon fell into another fit of shrilly laughter, his body and mind completely on autopilot as he failed to defend himself from the offending tickles.

Then something interesting happened. A squawk. Then a chirp-like squeak. The two of them froze, and Doombringer looked as if he’d stop for a second.

“Did you-.. did you just squawk?? And chirp??”

“NO!! NOW GET OFF OF ME, YOU FOOL!!”

“How CUUTEEE!!!”

The raspberries continued for about 5 minutes or more. Telamon was in shambles by the end of it, the god a flustered and unkempt mess of feathers on the ground.

“..you okay? I didn’t go too far, did I?”

“I..Ihi’m FINE. I am a god, I will not be taken down by something as inferior and childish as tickling.”

“Heheh, alright. Although you looked like you enjoyed it kind—“

“SHUT UP!!”

“Fine, fine!!”

It was obvious Telamon was kind of irritated, but it was also equally easy to tell he was much calmer than before. He sat on the ground, wings twitching slightly before getting up. After a moment of catching his breath, he snaps his fingers. His appearance changed to that of the one before this whole tickling incident happened.

“Farewell, Doombringer.”

“Bye, Tela!!! See ‘ya later!!”

Telamon went back to surveying The Heights. Nothing much had changed, just a few new players. He felt calmer, whether he liked it or not. Maybe Doombringer’s childish strategy did truly work.

But now that this ‘tickling’ concept had been brought to light before him, he was already planning. Planning for something he knew would work.