Set in season eight
—

It had only been a few days since season eight had started, but Iskall was already enjoying themself.

Sharing a base with Etho was probably the best decision they had ever made, it would make things interesting all season long! The two hermits already had a temporary base built into one of the gigantic mountains found in the shattered savanna, neither having a plan for what the future of their base held.

Iskall didn't mind, however. They were fine with going along with anything that Etho had planned, so it was likely to be a calm season for the both of them.

In the meantime, however, the Swede kept themself busy. In one hand they held a block of oak wood, while the other held an iron dagger used the carve and shape the timber. It was a small hobby that Iskall had picked up while working on their omega tree, but it always gave them inspiration. Carving woodland creatures, mobs, plant life, shaping the wood was simply relaxing.

They chuckled lightly while finishing the final details on a little bird statue that they had carved, Iskall setting down the wooden sculpture in front of the azalea tree in the center of the storage room.

Smiling with pride, the Swede admired their work. Sure, it wasn't the best, the bird even looked a bit derpy if Iskall were to speak honestly. But, what did it matter? They were definitely improving upon their carving skills, and it make them laugh a bit each time they spot the wooden bird.

Turning to the chest labeled 'wooden items', the redstoner opened the storage box in hopes of finding their next project. "Huh," the Swede frowned, noticing that there was not a single piece of wood left.

'Oh well,' Iskall shrugged. 'I'll just go out and gather more, Etho could probably use it in the future.'

Grabbing their iron axe, the Swede walked to the nether portal with a leather satchel slung over their shoulder. 'Spruce would be nice..' They thought while wandering through the nether, 'It would look great with the base. Oak too. I wonder what Eth—'

Their thoughts were suddenly interrupted, as a Iskall was suddenly rammed by some force that knocked them to the ground. "Watch where you're going!" A voice snapped at them in a cruel tone, the Swede rubbing the side of their head as they tried to make out the figure who they had ran into.

It looked like...Xisuma? Similar to when he was Stride-suma, his suit was red. Though, he wore a regular helmet that wasn't the derpy strider that Iskall had seen previously.

"Oh, I'm sorry, X!" The Swede apologized while standing up, offering 'Xisuma' their hand to help the admin to his feet. However, the man in red armor slapped it away with a groan of annoyance.

"Can't you see I have someplace to be?!" He asked, slightly raising his voice at Iskall. "I don't have time to talk to idiots like you!"

"That's a bit harsh, don't you think?"

"Just get out of my way." 'Xisuma' growled while shoving past the redstoner, storming off down the nether tunnel.

The Swede frowned, that was a bit odd. Maybe he wasn't feeling too well, or he could have just been in a bad mood, it was understandable. Iskall was about to head off to gather wood, when a red glimmer managed to catch their attention.

They bent down, lifting up the crystal off the ground. It looked like a shard, like it had broken off of a larger gemstone. Not just that, but it seemed to glow. It radiated with some kind of strange energy, which sent a tingle through Iskall as they held the crystal.

'Did Xisuma drop this?' They thought, glancing down the tunnel that the admin had disappeared down. 'Maybe I should return it—'

Iskall suddenly dropped the gem, slightly groaning in pain as they placed a hand on the side of their head. Some kind of sharp pain had unexpectedly shot through their head, so powerful that the Swede couldn't help but flinch in pain.

The pain subsided as quickly as it had appeared, the redstoner slightly dizzy and unsteady after the odd burst of aching in their head. 'What...what was that?' Iskall thought to themself, before looking down at the crystal that they had dropped.

They snatched it off the netherack floor, shoving the glowing gemstone into their pocket. 'I'll show it to Xisuma, he'll know what to do.' The Swede thought hopefully, though a faint headache began to creep into the back of their mind.

—

Iskall was sitting on the edge of their bed, roughly carving wood while struggling to make neat and clean cuts. It was like they had completely forgotten how to carve wood, and it was so frustrating too! Why was this so much harder than they remembered?!

The wood wouldn't seem to cut, the iron blade seemingly stuck in the wood. Gripping the handle harder and gritting their teeth, the Swede pushed to try and carve the wood. They managed to push the dagger through the timber, only to end up slicing themself with the blade.

"Ah! Fu—"

"Iskall?"

The Swede quickly stopped themself mid-sentence, glancing up at their white-haired roommate. Etho cocked his head to the sides, his eyes slightly confused as he studied the blood dripping down from their hand.

"Were...were you about to swear?" He asked, "I don't think I've ever heard you swear before, you've always just been so cheerful."

"I..." Iskall thought for a moment, thinking about the words that were on the tip of their tongue. They were just so frustrated that it seemed like it the words were about to naturally flow out. "I think so. S-sorry, I'm just a bit overwhelmed. Got a headache, too."

"Eh, I don't mind if you swear. I was just checking up on you, haven't seen you at all today."

The Swede set down the iron blade stained in their blood, using one hand to gently grip the cut on the other hand. "I'm okay." They said, slightly distracted, keeping their eyes focused on the red that oozed out of their wound and onto the palm of their hand.

Etho wasn't completely sold on their words, though the Canadian turned away, leaving Iskall in the darkness of their bedroom. They hadn't even noticed that their base buddy had left the room, too distracted by the way that blood on their hands reflected in the torchlight.

'Actually..' Iskall thought, reaching into their pocket. They pulled out the glowing crystal, comparing it side-by-side their red palm. The color was an exact match, even the faint glow of the gem seemed to be mimicked by the blood. It was fascinating, hypnotizing.

They glanced up at where Etho was formerly standing in the doorway. 'I wonder what his blood looks like,' Iskall found themself wondering, the Swede running their thumb across the cut on their hand to feel the blood coming right from the wound.

The redstoner quickly shook their head, running and hand through their hair while trying to clear their thoughts of these strange temptings. 'What is happening to me?' They thought nervously. 'Am I going crazy?'

Iskall mindlessly shoved the crystal into their pocket, as well as grabbing the iron blade. It was more like an instinct, the Swede barely noticing that they shoved the items into their pockets. They quickly ran out of the base, through the nether portal, to seek help from the admin of the server.

Running through the nether, Iskall couldn't help but feel their headache growing worse and worse with each step. Blood trickled down their hand, leaving a trail on the netherack as they ran in search of Xisuma's portal.

They spotted the man in red armor standing by his portal, about to step through. "X! Wait!" The Swede called desperately, which managed to grab the admin's attention.

"Oh. It's you again. What exactly do you want now?" He growled with a roll of his eyes, Iskall pulling out the glowing crystal from their pocket.

"You dropped this when I ran into you. It's..it's doing something to me, I'm having these weird thoughts. I almost swore, I was admiring my blood, I even wondered what Etho's blood would feel like..Can you fix me, please?"

'Xisuma' took the crystal, examining it with a raise of his eyebrow. "I've been looking for this," he said. "glad you gave it back to me. I was planning on using this to control Xisuma!"

Iskall blinked, a bit confused. "But...you're Xisuma."

"And you're cute." The imposter said, pulling something out of his pockets. It was a crystal shard, identical to the one that Iskall had found, except this one was one some kind of necklace chain. "I'm evil Xisuma, but you can call me Ex."

"W-....What...? Are you j-joking..?" The Swede chuckle nervously, clearly worried.

"I'm afraid not." he said, dangling the crystal from side to side. The slowly swinging gem seemed to glow brighter than before, with Iskall captivated by the sight.

"I was originally going to use this on my brother, but the crystal has already been warping your thoughts. It'll be easier to control you, then." Ex said, the redstoner seemingly frozen as the evil hermit stepped forward.

He placed the necklace over Iskall head, the gem continuing to glow. They stumbled backwards as they regained the ability to move, the world turning foggy as they tried to grab ahold of something to lean onto for support. It was getting hard to think, hard to stay standing, as their thoughts filled with the lust for blood.

"ST-STOP! WHAT ARE YOU DOING TO ME?!" Iskall cried out, it felt like their brain was being ripped apart bit by bit. Ex simply grinned.

"I'm not doing anything, manual labor isn't really my thing. That crystal around your neck is doing it all, and soon you'll do anything I need."

They fell to their knees, panting. Ex placed two fingers on Iskall's chin, lifting his head to examine the Swede. "This has worked out better than expected," he said while the ends of his lips curled into a twisted grin. "I think you and I are going to get along just fine, don't you?"

Clearly resisting the crystal's powers, they shook their head, Iskall shutting their eyes as tight as they could. They could feel their own blood running down their hand, which only tempted the Swede further.

"Don't fight it, my friend. If you accept the crystal, it'll only make this easier for the both of us. Now, are you ready to comply?"

"N-no.." Iskall cried while clutching their head, pulling at their hair. "Stop filling my head with lies! I'll never help you! I'll never hurt my friends!"

Ex smiled. "Oh, but are they your friends? Just think, when have they ever helped you?"

The Swede tried their very hardest, but the red fog in their mind made it so difficult. However, they couldn't quite seem to recall even being friends with the hermits. Why...why had they even said that..? And why was it suddenly so hot...? Wha..Why was it getting so hard to think..?

Ex smiled, dragging his fingers down the hermit's neck and towards their bloody hand. The evil hermit held their wrist, studying the red that stained the Swede's palms.

"You're going to do what I say. Don't worry, it'll be enjoyable for the both of us."

Iskall slowly opened their eyes, which had become overtaken with a dark shade of red. They were empty, not a hint of emotion, though the corrupted hermit grinned wildly at Ex's words.

The admins brother offered his hand to help Iskall to their feet. "It's nice to have you alongside me. Now, we're going to have some fun, aren't we?"

"Of course," they chuckled. "I'd love to help."

Ex put an arm around the redstoner, the two grinning as they walked down the nether tunnel. "I can tell that you and I are going to be close, Iskall."