This is all your fault.

Zed stared at the destruction in front of him, not entirely believing what he was seeing. A server in flames. Buildings collapsed and destroyed. And worst of all, servermates dead. There was no taking any of this back. It was too late for anything.

They hadn't been warned in time.

A once-pristine diamond sword lay on the ground nearby, once shiny but not covered in soot. A cybernetic eye lay nearby, its wires short-circuiting. A red sweater, frayed at the edges, covered the eye.

And in front of Zed, a torn black and white bomber jacket lay.

He recoiled at the sight, recognizing it. Tango... Zed picked up the jacket, cradling it in his arms.

The boy's teeth clenched, tears pricking his eyes at the remains of the server, all was tinted in a layer of grey, and Zed realized his beloved server, Hermitcraft, was nothing but ruins now.

He hadn't realized the extent of the Watchers' powers, had he? Oh, he was so naive.

He resisted the urge to crumple to the ground and grieve right then and there. He knew he had to do something, but what? What could he do against them?

Zedaph took a deep breath to try to compose himself, slipping a small stack of rockets out of his inventory. Search for the others. That was a start. It was useless to stand there alone, but maybe if he could find someone else....

Spreading his elytra, he shot off into the air to get a vantage point. It quickly became clear that the shopping district looked even worse from higher up. The whole place was torn apart, dark flames curling around the buildings and ash hanging in the once clear sky. But amidst it all, he could've sworn he caught sight of something out of the corner of his eye.

Was that... movement?

Another survivor?

He knew exactly what he had to do.

He called out to them. "Hello?"

There wasn't a response for a while before someone shouted back, "Zed?" It was Etho. The look on his face was a mask of terror and betrayal. Zed felt a sharp pang of guilt. It wasn't your fault, Zed. But he couldn't quite convince himself of that.

Etho took a few seconds, looking around before he stared at Zed, speaking. "Zed! How could you let them do this!?" Etho cried out as the dark flames crawled towards him. Nothing would stop them. Zed didn't even try to. "How could you just let them destroy the server?"

Before Zed could respond with an explanation, the flames reached Etho, and in a single movement, engulfed them. Zed stared at the rubble, not daring to look at the spot where Etho died. The once pristine shopping district was now nothing but fire and ruins. It was Scar's fault. He was the one who didn't warn them in time.

It's not your fault, Zed. It's not your fault... He repeated the words in his head, but it didn't help.

Deep down, he knew whose fault it was.

He was the one who trusted the Watchers. He was the one who let those beasts pour sugar into his ears. He was the one who stood to the side and watched as the Watchers started to corrupt the server.

And for what? For something that wasn't even real. That didn't even exist in the first place.

Zed shouldn't have listened to the Watchers.

But he did.

And because of that, everything he cared for is gone.

And it is all your fault, Zed. It is all your fault.

--

Score: 9