Techno

Techno sits on the ground, his legs folded over one another with his hands resting on his knees. His eyes are closed, but that doesn't make him any less aware of the world. He can hear Niki's breathing across from him. He can hear the splashing of water as Ranboo washes himself and Pearl in a nearby pond. He can hear Alex and Steve talking amongst themselves, their conversation wading in and out of Techno's consciousness. He could feel a cool breeze against his skin. There was a bittersweet scent in the air that came from the wildflowers growing alongside the dirt road. The warmth of the sun was occasionally blocked by puffy white clouds crossing the light's path. The world was moving even when Techno was concentrating on his breathing to clear his mind.

Steve was the one to come up with the plan. He told Niki that she should try to make contact with the demonic beast who had saved her life. They were all hoping to determine who the creature was to get a rough estimate of Niki's power level and skill set. She was proficient at physical fighting, but those skills wouldn't help her against a stronger opponent or a group of enemies. It would be in everyone's interest for Niki to tap into the demonic beast's power, but that would require her knowing who the demonic beast was. Steve figured that meditation would allow Niki's mind to open towards her patron. Every day after training, Niki and Techno would sit down and meditate. They had not yet achieved their goal, but it didn't seem like either party was willing to give up.

Niki sighed. Techno lifted one of his eyes open just enough to see that Niki had abandoned meditation to look closer at the tattoo on her wrist. She ran her thumb across it with her eyebrows drawn together in confusion. Niki didn't look at Techno as she spoke, "Why would this demonic beast save my life? If they truly cared about me, they wouldn't try to hide themselves so much."

"A demonic beast will never care for a mortal life," Techno replied. He was starting to recall everything he knew about demonic beasts, pairing it with the new information the twins were telling him. Demonic beasts were like gods in a lot of ways. The one way that mattered to Techno at the moment, however, was the fact that while some demonic beasts cared about humans, most did not. Even the weakest demonic beasts lived several mortal lifetimes. They saw no point in caring about the fleeting flames of humanity. There was a slim possibility that the demonic beast who chose Niki cared about her enough to save her. It was more likely that a demonic beast saw an opportunity when Niki was sinking in the water.

"Be that as it may, this beast decided that it wanted me to harbor its soul. Why won't it let me wield its power?" Niki replied, rolling her eyes before they settled back on the tattoo. Techno looked at the tattoo. He didn't like how it made him feel. There was something uncanny about it. The tattoo looked normal enough. There were no unfamiliar shapes or weird runes that made it look inhuman. Techno knew every individual piece of the tattoo. A trident. A fishnet. Jagged rocks. The shifting colors of black, dark blue, and sea green. It was seeing all these pieces slotted together in this specific shape that made Techno feel like he was in the presence of something dangerous.

"Perhaps it does not see you as worthy of using its power. Perhaps it does not agree with your goal of fighting against Schlatt. Perhaps it is too busy devouring your soul to realize that you have not used its power," Techno responded with a half-shrug. Niki gave him a cold and bitter stare. She pressed down harshly on her tattoo, hissing in pain as she brushed against a vein.

"I'm going to meditate in the pond. If this demonic beast is an oceanic one, it will respond better when I'm close to water," Niki theorized. She stood onto her feet, stretching her back. Niki looked down at him. She showed him her hand like she wanted to help heave him to his feet. Techno took the hand, watching as Niki tried to pick him up. Techno didn't try to help, watching as Niki tried using the strength she had earned from all their training. It wouldn't work, though. Techno was mostly muscle at this point. He was heavier than anything Niki had ever tried lifting. Niki accidentally yanked her hand out of Techno's hand, and she flopped onto her butt at the force. "If you wanted to stay here, you could have just told me."

"You need to start lifting more during training," Techno said. He got onto his feet, reaching a hand towards Niki. She stared at it for a moment before taking it. With a lot of ease, Techno pulled Niki to her feet. Her mouth opened to gape at him. Techno hid a small smile by turning towards the pond. He started walking towards the pond, leaving Niki behind. He heard her shuffle to follow him. "Let's go see what Ranboo is doing."

Ranboo was doing what they had left him to do. He was washing Pearl in the pond. Carl was laying on the bank, already cleaned off. Pearl was jumping around in the water, and Ranboo was struggling to get her to stand still so he could clean her. Techno's nose twitched when he got close to the water. He could smell something awful. Niki wretched as she stood on the bank of the water, but thankfully, she didn't puke. She looked up at Ranboo and Pearl. She raised her hand towards the two. "Ranboo, sweetie, will you please come here?"

Ranboo looked at them before he came wading out of the water. Niki held a hand beneath her nostrils, and Techno took a step back. The awful smell was coming from Ranboo. More specifically, it was coming from the burn wounds on his leg that looked like someone dropped half of his body in a vat of acid. Niki's eyes widened empathetically as she leaned down. She hesitantly brushed her fingers against the wound, her hand drawing back when Ranboo hissed. Niki stood back up, looking Ranboo in the eyes. "What happened?"

"Water does this to my Ender half. Pearl doesn't like water, but she doesn't get burned by it like I do," Ranboo explained. Techno turned towards Alex and Steve. The twins were sitting in a nearby tree. They stared back at Techno with empty expressions. Techno couldn't hide his shudder. He hated when they looked at him like they were truly emotionless creatures.

"You should have told us! I would have washed Pearl for you. Here, you sit on the shore with Carl and Techno. I'll wash Pearl," Niki said. She walked past Ranboo and Techno. She didn't stop until she came to the drake. Pearl turned to look at Niki. The woman smiled at the drake, holding out her hands carefully. Pearl took a hesitant step forward to rub her snout against Niki's palms.

"Let's get you bandaged," Techno said, letting Niki do what she wanted. Ranboo agreed, sitting down on the bank. Techno pulled out gauze from Carl's saddle that had been left on the edge of the sand from when Carl was bathing. Techno did his best to wipe the water off Ranboo's skin, hoping that he didn't tear the tenderized flesh. Ranboo's lips were pressed tightly together to keep any whimpering inside. His eyes began watering, though, so Techno handed Ranboo a dry rag. Ranboo bit down on the rag as Techno removed some of the dead pieces of skin. Ranboo's upper body began shaking, but Techno couldn't do anything for the pain. When Techno was sure that everything was clean, he wrapped the gauze around the wound. He sat back on his haunches to look Ranboo in the eye. "Don't do that again. If water burns you like fire burns Niki, do not touch water."

"Are you not burned by fire?" Ranboo asked hesitantly, pulling his legs to his chest. Techno started putting away the supplies he had gotten out to take care of Ranboo. He was tempted to grab some wildflowers to rub the scent over the rotting flesh smell that permeated in the air. He didn't do that for several reasons. He didn't want to upset the wound further or get it infected. He also had no way of knowing the wildflowers would work or even smell better when covering the scent of burned flesh.

"No. It is a perk of being the Blood Gods' champion. There are other names for them. One of these names is the Twin Flames. This comes from the idea that fire is dangerous but necessary, much like war and the gods," Techno said slowly. A few weeks after he had become their champion, Alex had pushed him into a fire. Instead of burning alive, Techno walked out of the flames unscathed. This fire trick is the reason why the Antarctic Empire believed him when he told them that he was the champion of their main gods. This caused a lot of conflict with the imperial family since they were believers in the god Aoer. It was only by the mercy of the Imperial Prince Scott that Techno was not killed immediately and was given the opportunity to prove himself. Alex pushed him into fire in front of the imperial family. While Steve berated the barbaric display of power, Techno was recognized as the champion of War and Valor.

"That's really cool. What else can you do as a champion?" Ranboo said with bright eyes. Ever since he found out the truth, Ranboo had been oddly accepting of Techno and the twin deities. Techno could talk to these apparitions that only him and Niki saw, and Ranboo had never gotten offended. Sometimes, Techno would tell Ranboo what the gods said about him, which never failed to make Ranboo blush at getting the attention of a god. Ranboo was able to ask more questions than he could before since he knew that Techno could get information from the immortals.

"Fight," Techno shrugged. He wasn't wrong. Most of his abilities were only useful during a fight. He got boosts by fighting. He was made to draw blood; no more, no less.

Before Ranboo could ask for clarification, Pearl bounded onto the shore. Techno leaned up to block Ranboo from the water droplets that were being flung everywhere. Ranboo gave him a grateful smile as he told Pearl to lay down beside Carl. The drake reluctantly laid down beside the horse, letting the sun dry her scales. Ranboo smiled at her, and Pearl looked away from him. Techno turned his attention to Niki, who remained standing in the pond with the water resting at her waist. She was looking down, shadows covering her face. Techno was about to call out when Niki looked up.

Her eyes had changed. They had been absorbed by an inky blue color. It was the color of an eternal nothingness that created the dark trenches of the ocean. Her face had gone pale, and if it wasn't for the fact that she was standing upright, Techno would have thought she was unconscious. The water around Niki began to turn from a grimy brown to the same dark black of the abyss. Some of the water rose up in curving structures around Niki's body like a protective barrier, none of them covering her face. She stared at Techno and Ranboo with no emotion in those blank eyes. Techno slid in front of Ranboo to protect him.

"Do not be wary, ye mortal souls. I hast not join hither for thou. I am not hither for the gods thou serve. I arriveth 'i search of the God Maker, the mother of creation and sculptor of reality. I possessed this corporal agent to find her. Though, I never mind helping this child take revenge on the fools who trampled upon her home and dreams. I am Leviathan, the lord of the trenches and monster of the abyss. I met this wench when she was shipwrecked.  She landed 'i mine domain. I was able to connect our souls, and we forged a contract. When the wench awakens, say to her that mine power is hers to use till we find the God Maker. I shall release her from our contract then," Niki spoke in a voice that was not her own. As the words fell from her lips, dark clouds from the horizon began to blow over their position. Techno rushed to throw his cloak over Ranboo before rain came pelting down on them. Techno growled in annoyance, but Niki's body didn't seem to care about the sudden storm.

"It seems the wench hath made excellent allies. A warrior bound to bloodshed and violence with two pestering voices that dictate his will as an author with a quill writes his plays. She hath found a mage from beyond this ship of existence whose power is an untapped well. Twin gods of war and peace, calamity and justice.  I shall admit, I didst  not wot Dianite had children," The voice continued, face going from Techno to Ranboo to Alex and Steve.

"How do you know our father?" Alex said suddenly, jumping down from the tree. Alex tried to reach the water, but a bolt of lightning as bright as the sun landed at the point where the water hugged the shore. Techno closed his eyes, nearly tumbling to his knees from the excess energy in the area. Alex stumbled back, away from the glass that now glistened in the sand. Steve ran up to his sister, his bow coming into his head like he was going to strike Niki down.

"Put thy bow aroint, archer. I am not hither for a fight. I merely befell agnize mine power.  She shall be allowed to use mine power over the dark waters. Storms shall break, waves shall crash, and floods shall surge when the wench commands them to," Leviathan said in Niki's body. Techno's eyes blinked open to stare at his possessed friend. "I am far older than thou regards me as. I was around ere the realms were sealed. Thy father was mine friend."

Before the twins could ask more questions, the clouds cleared. The sun shone down on the pond, hitting Niki. For a moment, the light refracted all around to create a beautiful, luminous show that no one could look directly at. In the next second, both Niki and the water fell back into the pond. Niki's face crashed into the water, her body floating like it was dead. Techno muttered a curse as he ran into the lake to pull his friend out before she drowned. Techno pulled Niki's unconscious body out of the water. He lowered her down onto the shore. She didn't show any signs of waking up, but she was breathing.

"We'll be in Pogtopia in a few days. Hopefully, everything will be simple by then," Techno muttered as he grabbed Ranboo and Niki's hands. He didn't like physical affection, but for some reason, he wanted to provide them with some comfort.