#tlai

Pebbles woke up, slow as ever, to find himself decidedly not inside the shelter. Instead he was somewhere in that dreaded swamp with the Rot-lookalikes and murderous fireflies. He stayed still on the ground for a long moment, antenna twitching and swiveling towards any hint of noise. But there was nothing.

Belatedly, he realized his connection with his Overseers was severed. He tried to reach for the link, flinching as he was met with nothing. Not even a phantom feeling. Just like when he was severed from his can. Pebbles shuddered- He wasn't sure what happened. Why was he out here again, why were his Overseers gone?

The Iterator stood up, brushing off his pants from the dirt and shaking his head lightly. Glancing around the swamp, it was... darker. No longer did distant yellow light flit through the trees. Bioluminescent spots that dotted the terrain and creatures was absent. Not a single lizard. Not an idling bug. Nothing. Even more silent than it was beforehand.

Like this, the silence felt as if it was trying to consume him. Pebbles shuddered again. He wanted out, and quickly. He wanted his friends back.

He began walking, slow and careful, stepping over the brush and avoiding the trees and puddles as much as he could, ducking away from looming branches.

Pebbles was remarkably careful, flinching whenever he even thought there was a noise, only to discover nothing in it's place than his own body brushing against some stray leaves or stepping on a flimsy twig. And when something did happen, it was the last thing he wanted.

He found himself tripping over an outstretched tendril of that Rot-lookalike. As quick as he could, Pebbles stamped his foot onto it, causing the thing to fall limp as he backed away, antenna quivering as he stared at it, eyes wide.

Gone was the knotted branch-like thing mottled with green. No, instead it was more bulbous than normal, squirming and squelching, bright blue X marks across it's cysts popping and glowing.

In an instant, the entire swamp lit up. Bright blue and glowing, tendrils of Rot extending from the trees and roots and leaves, reaching for him, grasping at his hands and legs and antenna, it was coming from the water and the sky and the ground it was everywhere.

If Pebbles had the ability to throw up, he was sure he would've. As it were, a sort of robotic gagging noise forced itself from his voice box as he ripped himself away from the disgusting texture and backed away, a high pitched buzz accompanying his stress.

And as if it couldn't get worse, a long tendril of Rot wrapped around his arm and torso, pulling him to the ground with a thump. The dirt under his hands and feet felt like it was corroding, crumbling under every touch, squishy and moist. A glance down confirmed his strangled thought- It too was marked with various X's of all kinds.

Pebbles watched with shaking limbs as a form approached from the shadows, illuminated in blue and pink, the stench of burning and melting flesh meeting him. Peach lay coated in cysts, one of their back legs deformed and mangled, outstretched beyond it's abilities, lifting the large creature up as their tail swayed, black scales parting and cracking under the strain of tumors ever shifting within their body. Their head was dimmed of color, not a single noise or hiss or growl escaping their throat.

And their eyes. Lizard eyes were typically black in color barring a few species, but this? This blackness was dead. He could tell, with just a glance that grew far too prolonged, that they were dead. Dead dead dead, his mind chanted, just like he would be.

Following came Clover, lumbering on all fours, jaw twisted and broken, every joint and bone popping and cracking with movement. Black acidic liquid dripped from their mouth, gurgling and steaming, as the soft shamrock color that typically emitted from Clover's head faded, as did any light behind their eyes.

The buzzing in his voice box grew to a wail as in came Cherry, her normally spikey fur was matted and rippling as cysts shifted underneath, breaking out and leaking pure darkness from her one good eye, staining the white coloring. Her scarred eye had a tumor growing right over where it once was, bright red X's marring her fur. Three tendrils held her up, one having been her tail, now popping and spluttering every few seconds with weak sparks, the smell of gunpowder far from comforting.

Following just behind the red slugcat came Angel and the pups, Angel reverted to the form the group had found her in, albeit more... consumed. The Rot had progressed, sprouting two new tendrils, her scar bubbling with acid. And the pups- One walked nearly the same as they had before, with one leg twisted and broken, dragging behind them, their mouth open in a silent scream. The other was turned over, large pulsating tumors erupted from their chest, right where their heart would've been.

Cream and Sugar, then, just as mangled as the rest. Sugar looked half-mauled on top of the cysts clinging to its side, one ear gone and an arm reduced to nothing but decayed bone. Cream’s head was completely overtaken, not even his dead eyes visible.

Pebbles began struggling, sparking like a tesla coil, thrashing against the Rot that held him down, but it prevailed it didn't burn, why wasn't it dying- Everything felt like it stopped at once. Pebbles looked up, meeting someone's eyes.

Moon. Moon was there, she was there, he began shouting her name, voice so overlayed with static that he wasn't even sure if he was saying the right thing. But she was there, she could save him-

His voice gave out into strangled cries as he realized.

Not Moon. Not alive. Dead, dead, she's dead, she's gone, she's dead, she's not coming back she's not here to save you youkilledheritsyourfault-

He woke with a high-pitched shriek, body still sparking. He looked around hurriedly, reaching for the ties to his Overseers-

Everyone was fine. Cherry, Angel, and Cream were right where they had been before. Clover and Peach were curled up in an odd little lizard ball. The pups were sleeping on Cherry's tail, tiny breaths shifting her fur.

There was no Rot. They were all okay. Moon was probably waiting for Sugar as the rain cycle passed.

It was just a dream.

Pebbles let out a soft sigh, trying to ignore the electronic whining his voice box still insisted on producing as he curled up in the corner, pulling his knees to his forehead.