𝘃𝗼𝗶𝗰𝗲𝘀

---〘⇯〙---

they sparred again in the morning and phil watched from the bridge connecting the two houses. the wood clacked loudly as their blades met. techno pressed down and pax buckled beneath the force. the tried to roll away and find their footing before techno pushed his foot into their back, pushing them flat into the snow. pax let out a groan and techno crouched besides them. pax didn't bother to readjust the mask that had come a little loose when they fell.

"trying to block like that will only work well if you have more weight or force." he flicked pax's exposed forehead, drawing a grumble of protest from pax. "c'mon." he offered a hand and pulled pax to their feet.

phil smiled at the pair from the bridge, before heading inside to do a few chores. he busied himself at the fireplace, hoisting a pot to boil over the fire. he found ingredients as he heard a particularly loud thwack. he glanced up to see techno stumble and phil smiled; it seemed pax had finally been able to get a good hit in. he glanced back down and started to chop the ingredients, smiling and chatting with the crows that had perched on the windowsill.

moments later, there was a scream. "PHIL!" phil's hand slipped, slicing his finger. the crows squawked loudly, scattering the way they did when something had happened.

"shit, shit, shit," he said, voice heightening.

"HELP!" it sounded like pax. he saw them darting away, techno following after. but something was wrong. phil darted out the door.

the pot boiled over, the water falling onto the floor with a hiss.

〘⇯〙

pax darted away, breathing heavy. technoblade was right on their heels. they had spotted a small cave, barely even a hole, in the mountain last night. they slid into the hole, and narrowly missed techno's blade as it tore through their cloak. they pushed themselves as far as they could from the entrance as techno threw himself against the rock, reaching in to grab them.

it was like a switch that had gone off when pax had finally landed a hit. there was a crack from the skull techno wore and he froze, hands going up to his head and shaking as they threaded through his hair. techno turned to pax slowly. they backed up, stomach plunging.

his netherite sword sang as he unsheathed it. pax dodged the first arc, falling into the snow before scrambling their feet. they darted off, techno following at their heels until the managed to crawl into the nook in the mountain. pax's breath came short and panicked. they shouted again. "PHIL, PLEASE!" their voice cracked as tears slid down their cheeks, the eyepieces in the mask fogging up.

techno backed up and a crossbow materialized, loaded with white and red. he aimed.

"TECHNO!" phil came from no where, slamming into techno. the crossbow fired and screamed as it collided with the snow to the right of the nook, spraying the three with fine powdered snow.

techno collapsed into the snow, cradling his head in his hands with his skull besides him, buried in the snow. it was almost silent.

〘⇯〙

pax was sobbing.

it came out short, gasping, as their lungs ached and their body trembled. technoblade looked up, the voices quieting.

NOOOO

no wait

dont cry

WAIT

sorry

help them

please

he sucked in a breath. the second the skull cracked, the voices had gone into a frenzy; they'd always been suspicious of pax. that was all they needed to cry out, scream out for blood.

techno opened his mouth. "pax," he said, his mouth drier than cotton balls. "i'm sorry."

their sobs were louder. "techno." phil's voice was sharp. techno glanced up. phil's eyes were hidden by the sharp shadow of his hat cast by the artic sun. "go back to the house."

"but-"

"now."

he glanced back at pax as he left; they curled into themself, their frame wracked with shakes as they whimpered.

that was the last time techno would see pax as themself.

AN:

:)

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