Grian shivered. After Doc- no Sam had confronted him, everything had been a blur. He remembered smoke, a lot of it, and people's voices. He remembered Iskall hugging him, and then rescuing him from Xisuma's base along with Stress and Tango. He remembered Stress fussing over him before Tango helped him limp through the Nether portal.

He vaguely remembered catching eye contact with Doc in the Nether hub, and seeing how disheveled and quiet he was.

Then he was in the shopping district, the other hermits asking around for more information. Stress and Mumbo took him aside to make sure he was okay while Iskall climbed up onto a shop and cleared his throat for attention.

"Okay guys! I'm sure many of you are wondering what the heck just happened. While I can't say much, I can tell you what I know." The swede spoke calmly, addressing the hermits. "First, I will confirm your suspicions. Xisuma is missing, probably taken by the stranger from this morning. The stranger was able to pass the firewall, but not without a lot of hacking. Second, shortly after Xisuma went missing, his base caught on fire, with Grian and Doc trapped inside. As for now, that's all we know for sure. I ask of you guys, to please not panic." Iskall nodded and jumped down.

Doc then spoke up. "This issue may be worse than we thought. For the past few weeks, I've been possessed by a player who calls himself Samgladiator. He's been forcing me to stalk Grian in that entire time. This is the first time I've had control of my body in weeks." His voice was raspy and cold. "From what I've gathered, he and Grian have a history."

Heads turned to look at Grian, who averted his eyes. He was still processing what just happened, and he didn't need the attention.

Mumbo knelt down next to him. "G? If you have any information about this, now is the time to share." He said softly. "I know you're uncomfortable, but if we're going to find Xisuma, we need to know."

Grian hesitated before speaking. He could feel the roots curling around his feet again, digging into his ankles. He took a deep breath, and let the words spill out.

"Sam was my roommate in high school. Our high school was on a hardcore world, and Sam was keen to perma-killing others. I've lost count how many times I've seen him run after someone with a knife. And so I left, and I took Taurtis with me. We fled to Evo, but a while later, Taurtis was called to become a watcher, an-and he did but- but there was an accident with the End in a new update, and Taurtis went to check it out and..." Grian pulled his knees to his chest. "And he perma-died. And then I was called to be a watcher, but I wanted to keep building, so they sent me to a random server, and that server happened to be this one and.-" Grian stopped himself. "And now Sam's after me because I took Taurtis with me. I think he believes Taurtis' perma was my fault, and he's trying to get revenge."

The words spilled out of his mouth as the memories flooded back. Mumbo was rubbing circles on Grian's back, comforting him.

Grian then opened his mouth, and before he could change his mind, told everyone about Booky, the Faerie Stroke cure, and the promise he had to keep. He also spoke about the incident with Doc in Xisuma's base. The words all came out at once, as the guilt washed over him. The grass beneath him turned black and crumbled into dust with the tiniest of touches.

It came as a shock when Grian realized he was crying. Mumbo was hugging him, and Grian sobbed into his chest. He was overwhelmed by regret and fear, and wanted to sink into the floor and disappear. 

________________________

Mumbo held Grian tightly, allowing him to cry on his shoulder. He glanced up at the other Hermits, which were as shocked as he was.

"I think we should give Grian some space." Joe spoke calmly and quietly. "The poor thing's been through a lot."

Murmurs of agreement rippled through the crowd, as hermits began to disperse. Soon, the only ones around Grian were Stress, Doc, Iskall, and Joe. 

Doc and Iskall were quietly discussing the situation a few feet away while Stress tried to coax Grian to eat a cookie. Joe knelt down next to Mumbo, who was still holding Grian.

"C'mon love, it'll make you feel better. Besides, you need to regain your strength, the fire took a lot out of you." Stress said, holding the cookie out.

Grian finally gave in, and took a half-hearted bite out of the pastry. Mumbo gave Joe a worried look and they held a silent conversation.

"He looks bad." Mumbo said quietly to Joe.

Joe nodded. "This can't be good for his mental health."

"What do we do now?" Mumbo asked.

"I wish I knew." Joe said. "For now, we should get him to bed and resting."

Mumbo nodded. "Hey G, would you like to bunk with me tonight?"

Grian answered with a nod of his own, and Mumbo stood up, helping Grian get to his feet.

"Let's meet in Mumbo's base tomorrow at 9 am. We can see what we can do from there." Iskall decided.

Everyone nodded in agreement before going their separate ways.

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So.... This was a very anti-climatic chapter. But alas, there is always calm before the storm.

Note: The next couple of chapters will probably be preparation-heavy, since the real action doesn't begin until chapter 40. So if you're mainly reading this for the angst, don't worry, plenty will be coming in the form of Killer mood pt 5! (probably coming out tomorrow)

Oh and I finally have a Tumblr: https://lunastarseeker.tumblr.com/ so feel free to send me any questions or theories you have on there as well :3