Oh! ;w; Thank you so much! Ah, I don’t really have a plan or anything for updating. >.<;; I suppose as I get the stories done I’ll post them? Probably something like that. This is kind of like a side-project to my life (XD), so whenever I get the chance or inspiration, there’ll be something new.

Sollux groaned. His arms were killing him. Stretched above his head and his whole bodyweight resting on them, his shoulders were screaming at him. His head pounded, as it always did now since the experiment. It hurt so much that at times he wanted to die. No one knew where he was. It had been years. No one was coming for him. It was pointless to hope.

“Agh- goddamnit, finally I got down here.” A familiar voice echoed outside his cell.

Sollux didn’t look up. The darkness had a strange quality here. It made you hallucinate, made you crazy. Or maybe darkness was like that everywhere, and Sollux had just forgotten about that.

“Holy Jesus dick! Is that you, Sollux?”

That question had never been asked in his hallucinations. His fantasies had always known who he was. Always. Sollux rose his head curiously. There, standing in the glow of an orange lantern, was Karkat. It had been so long since he’d seen his friend, it was hard to believe.

But the sight did not bring him joy. At least with his dreams, he knew the real Karkat was safe. And now he wasn’t. Now Karkat was in the belly of the beast and there was nothing Sollux could do to save him.

“Hold on, I’m gonna get you the fuck out of there.”

And Karkat left, obviously off to find something to break down the door.

Sollux let his head hang again. He couldn’t deny that he was excited and happy at the prospect of being freed, but still.

“K-K…” Sollux croaked. “K-K, be careful. The monthterth-“ He couldn’t be sure if Karkat could even hear him anymore. He couldn’t see anything beyond the glow of the torch outside his cell.

A groaning noise met Sollux’s ears. Damn it. Karkat must have picked something up that he shouldn’t have.

“K-K, look out!” Sollux knew he was safe inside the cell. None of the monsters ever came inside of it. “There’th one of thothe thingth around!” Sollux screamed, straining against his chains, begging any God that would listen that Karkat heard him around his stupid fucking lisp.

He received no answer.

“Go away! Damn, jutht leave!” Sollux hissed at the creature, trying to will it to go away.

It stared at him and groaned. Sollux growled back, as if he could be intimidating at all in this little cell. But glaring at the creature like this was only making his head hurt more, so Sollux looked away, an involuntary whimper emerging from his throat.

Sollux did not have to wait long before he heard Karkat yelp a curse. Evidently, the monster heard too, because it screeched and began the chase.

Sollux slumped in his bonds, resigned to his fate. The monster was going to kill Karkat, and it was all his fault. And he would die here. Alone.

“Don’t worry, asshole. I took care of him.” Sollux’s head snapped up to see a slightly more ruffled Karkat, with a cut now across one cheek.

In his hand, the other man held a thick crowbar, and was using it to slowly but surely pry the cell door open.

“How did you…?” Sollux trailed off, awestruck.

“There’s a really nice pit I passed awhile back. And now that poor fucking excuse for a surgery gone so fucking wrong it was pretty much mercy is having a much closer look at it. Come on, you stupid douchemuffin!” Karkat began snarling at the crowbar, as it wasn’t working as quickly as he’d hoped.

Finally, with a few more jimmies of the metal, the door gave way with a loud scream of anger. Karkat winced and looked around for a moment before entering the cell, dropping the now broken crowbar.

Karkat’s hands checked his body for wounds. Finding only slight bruises and three years worth of neglect, he found a way to get the locks open on the chains using a hollow needle. He let Sollux down gently, as if afraid to hurt him even more, even though Sollux assured him there really wasn’t much that could be done to him at this point on several occasions.

Once Karkat had let him rest for a bit, Sollux massaging his own shoulders and curling his back and the like, Karkat led the way out of the cell.

“I’m glad you’re okay, Captor.” Karkat said suddenly.

This made Sollux pause a moment. Karkat did not throw around anything remotely touchy-feely as though they were party favors. Nor did his hands shake and his shoulders tremble with- what Sollux guessed- was restraint. Ever. Sollux smiled to himself.

“You didn’t have to come looking for me.” He answered, peeking into cells that they passed. They were all empty, save for a few blood stains and body parts. Sollux looked away.

“I didn’t. Finding you was a huge fucking plus, though. You would not believe how fucking unhelpful these people are, and you know, for an abandoned castle, there sure are a lot of dicksucking retards running around.” Karkat lit his lantern, peering into the darkness ahead.

Sollux rolled his eyes, smile turning affectionate. Karkat had not changed a bit.

“Alright, alright. Don’t flip your shit, K-K.”

“I’m not flipping my shit. My shit remains unflipped.”

Sollux actually chuckled at that- the first time he’d laughed in three years. He was glad to be a free man and amongst a friend, even if they were now both in more danger than ever. It was better, much better, than the monotony in his cell.

Then, the oil in the lantern ran out, and the two were bathed in darkness. The growling of a Servant came from behind them.

“Fucknuggets.” Karkat hissed.

“Run!” Sollux yelped back, pushing at Karkat’s back.

And they were off.

-End-

Ah! All of these followers! ;A; You guys…

I’m going to try and post the first story I’ve got typed up tonight. I know I haven’t been on in a while, so… Yeeeah. But I just wanted to say something important about the stories- they won’t be in chronological order. Ah, at all. ^^;; Feel free to think of them all as oneshots all in the same universe. :3 Please enjoy!

Haha! I tried to make each of the ‘bios’ as plausible as I could. I’ll probably end up adding more as the stories go on. ^^;; But thank you so much!! X3

John Egbert- Age 19- Although trapped in the castle, he’s extremely optimistic about it. He’s been fighting nearly as long as Feferi and Eridan, and he’s actually managed to find time for romance through all of this, too.

Jade Harley- Age 18- John’s younger sister. She’s just as optimistic as he is, and is another person who can fit in an Iron Maiden. She’s really good friends with Nepeta, and she gets flustered by Vriska, not at all put off by the spidertroll’s behavior.

Dave Strider- Age 20- Takes it upon himself to protect John. He’s suspicious of the trolls at first, but eventually warms up to Terezi at least. He tries to be John’s voice of reason, not that it works very often.

Rose Lalonde- Age 19- Dave’s younger sister. She likes Kanaya and is pretty balanced as far as skill sets go, but she excels in solving puzzles and literally keeping everyone sane. She will do anything to get everyone out alive, and often organizes time for everyone to gather in one of Aradia’s secret rooms so they can all get some sleep in.

Dirk Strider/Bro- Age 38- Dead before beginning of story. He was killed in a rockslide inside the castle, having pushed Dave and Rose out of the way.

Roxy Lalonde/Mom- Age 37- Dead before beginning of story. She was killed in a rockslide inside the castle with Dirk, having pushed Dave and Rose out of the way.

Jane Crocker/Nanna- Age 82- Not present in the castle, waiting for John’s return elsewhere with Dad.

Jake English/Grandpa- Age 85- Not present in the castle, waiting for Jade’s return elsewhere.

Karkat Vantas- Age 19- The one who must find the orb. Isn’t adept at avoiding Gatherers because of his loud personality. But he more or less does alright. At the castle by invitation. He had no idea that it would turn out this way, and all he wants is to get out and return to normal life.

Aradia Megido- Age 19- She’s been hiding from the Gatherers much longer than the others and knows exactly what to expect pretty much all the time. She’s created a few rooms where the Gatherers can’t come in, and she lets Karkat rest there whenever they cross paths. She is able to get around the castle without having to use the hallways. No one’s quite sure how she does it.

Tavros Nitram- Age 19- This shy fellow really knows how to get the fuck out when the time calls for it. He is actually small enough to crawl under the beds if he has to. He tends to barricade the doors he hides behind, almost obsessively. Despite his terrible nerves, he is one of the only ones that can hide in an Iron Maiden without being hurt.

Sollux Captor- Age 20- Karkat’s best bro, who went missing three years ago. In reality, he was kidnapped by the Gatherers and experimented on. With new psychic powers, he’s been locked in a cell and kept drugged. Eventually Karkat will free him and they will team up against their foe. He’s good at not going crazy.

Nepeta Leijon- Age 18- Was trapped in the castle while playing hide and seek. She’s actually pretty cheery for someone in her position. She tends to hang out in the kitchens, making food for whoever passes by and hiding from the Gatherers behind her acid pot. She is one who can hide in an Iron Maiden, in addition to being able to fight a Gatherer for a very short amount of time.

Kanaya Maryam- Age 25- Once upon a time worked at the castle as a head gardener. Now she’s trapped there as well. She helps everyone she can, but she’s best at solving puzzles. She eventually joins Karkat in order to help him keep a cool head and not yell as much so they don’t draw Gatherer attention. Is actually very physically strong and enjoys sewing.

Terezi Pyrope- Age 22- This is pretty much the best game ever for her. SHe hangs out in the laboratory and the wine cellar, trying to scare the shit out of anyone who comes by. It usually works. She’s taken quite the shining to Karkat, and she’s good friends with Tavros, Nepeta, and Vriska. Although blind, she has an uncanny affinity for spotting Gatherers.

Vriska Serket- Age 22- Tends to use everyone else as bait to accomplish tasks. She does actually care about them, though. She just can’t help herself. She wanders about the dungeons, wreaking all kinds of havoc. No one knows her goal/end game. Pops out of Iron Maidens like Russian Dolls.

Equius Zahhak- Age 25- Hangs around with Nepeta. He ran in after her while playing hide and seek and failed to get them out. As compensation, he protects her as best he can. Is the only one who can lift the heavy boulders and fight a Gatherer for any length of time.

Gamzee Makara- Age 25- He stays with Tavros most of the time, trying to get the other to just calm his shit. He can also hide in an Iron Maiden, taking minimal damage because of his height. Otherwise, he’s actually very good friends with Aradia and knows how to get around the castle without using the hallways, though he rarely does that or actually lets on that he knows.

Eridan Ampora- Age 20- A noble who was staying in the castle when it was attacked. He’ll do pretty much anything to get out. He has delusions of grandeur- he’ll get out and get the girl, that sort of thing, when in reality he’s just as doomed as any of them. Has a special affinity for avoiding and distracting water gatherers.

Feferi Peixes- Age 21- Another noble who was trapped with Eridan. She mostly sticks with either him or the other female trolls, and seems to have it the easiest of all of them. She is, at the very least, avoided by the land-based Gatherers. The water Gatherers also seem to be less interested in her than most. Still, she’s very excitable, and jumps at the slightest noise. Eridan thinks it’s cute. Karkat thinks it’s stupid.

I’m really excited! X3 I hope it all looks okay!