Techno

People walk in the opposite direction as him, quietly conversing with one another about trivial affairs that help lighten their sour moods. The healers walk around the hospital tents, calling out to one another while gesturing to specific patients. Some guards were sparring against each other in the training grounds, their labored breaths and grunts of effort matching with every beat of their feet hitting the sand. If he strains his ears, he can hear the flickering of candles and the scratches of inked quills on parchment. Despite all the noises, Techno can't help but notice how quiet everything is. The silence festers in his ears like a plague, and he isn't sure if he's gone deaf.

Alex and Steve had not shown their faces or revealed their voices since Techno had brought Tommy back from the pirate's makeshift campsite, bringing along Fool and the other seraphim. Techno knew they were upset with him, but he wasn't entirely certain he knew why. It seemed like they were weary of the primordial gods, or maybe they just didn't want to upset the ancient deities by harboring multiple specimens that should have perished alongside their gods a long time ago. Techno would venture to say that the primordial gods wouldn't care. The seraphim have obviously lived for more than a dozen years, and Techno was sure that Fool had lived for many more. If they were going to be killed, they would have been attacked and disposed of already. In the case of the seraphim, their forefathers would have been slaughtered. He believed it was going to be fine.

It appeared his patrons did not agree with him. They had left him in the crumbling silence. It had been such a long time since he didn't have their voices floating in his head. He could still feel their blessing racing through his veins, but his instincts had fallen just as inaudible as their source. Techno wanted to be grateful. He never particularly liked the screaming voices demanding blood in his head. He couldn't be, though, when he felt like something was fundamentally broken. For reasons beyond his understanding that he blamed on his unique connection with the Blood Gods, Techno felt like there was something else at play besides surrounding himself with creatures wanted dead by the cosmos itself.

Techno growled beneath his breath, deciding that he wouldn't dwell on it any further. Per Wilbur's orders, Techno was going to the guard's barracks to inform the soldiers resting at the camp that they would be taken into battle soon. Techno was given authority over one of the corps, and he was planning on leading his men to victory. He already had a few plans concocted in his brain. He just needed to double-check the capabilities of his soldiers. If they weren't up to par, he only had a few days to get them somewhere close to his standards. It wasn't going to be pretty or easy, but Techno swore to himself a long time ago that Pogtopia was going to win this war with as little losses as possible. He knew it naive to believe that no one was going to die, but he didn't want to burden Wilbur any further.

Techno might not talk about his emotions often, but he wasn't blind. He knew that Wilbur was struggling through this war, doing his best to preserve everyone's lives. Techno could see the way Wilbur was deteriorating slowly, and he was growing afraid that Wilbur's psyche would break. Techno knew that he would be of little help in improving Wilbur's emotional state, but he could lessen Wilbur's worries. He would leave Tommy and the others to bring Wilbur out of his mental decline. He would focus on making sure Wilbur had less dead bodies weighing down on his soul.

Techno halts his movements when the guard's barracks come into sight. His eyebrows furrow as he tilts his head to the side, noticing that there is a new sound added to the mix. It is a subdued noise that isn't quite as natural as everything else in the camp. Techno finds himself staring at a bunch of wooden crates stacked outside of the mess hall. Techno pushes aside one of the crates with his foot. He suspected that he would find a wild animal, but the tuscan yellow eyes staring back at him decidedly do not belong to a creature trying to siphon food from the camp. They belong to a gnomish girl with her arms wrapped around herself and a worried expression on her face.

"What are you doing?" Techno asks, stepping into the small area between all of the crates. He remains standing, looking down at Shrub's ball-like form. She stares up at him, her eyes glistening. Techno isn't sure if the shimmer is from the strange lighting of the enclosed area or unshed tears. He really hopes it's the former because he knows he'd be out of his depth if it was the latter.

"I'm... just... making sure the food... is healthy! I grew up with gnomes, y'know, in the Undergrove. It was known as the land of autumn and harvests, so I know when food is spoiled or not. I also know what it is like to eat spoiled food. It's disgusting. It's all mushy and sour and..." Shrub attempts to explain, throwing her hands around at all the crates around her. Her eyes keep darting around, but they never once land on Techno's body. Those pupils stay as far away as they can from Techno's eyes. He raises his eyebrow, anyway, waiting for Shrub to stumble through her lie.

As he knew she would, Shrub finally sighs, arching her back over her knees. Her burst of energy fades away to leave a tired gnome who holds her knees to her chest like she can protect herself. She still doesn't look at Techno, but she doesn't seem to be looking at anything. Her eyes are misty with memories instead of tears. "I don't want Moon to find me. I'm hiding from her."

Techno nods his head slowly, letting the words circle around his mind. Unintentionally, his thoughts bounce back to the last interaction between the two of them. Fool had seemed so uncharacteristically serious as she revealed the truth about Xornoth. He thinks back to other memories he possesses of the strange skeleton-bunny hybrid. She's physically competent, far stronger than any regular mortal would ever achieve, and she knew how to fight. She seemingly followed Techno's orders, except for when he told her to leave him alone. She was knowledgeable, sometimes implying that she knew more than she let on. She was something different from anything Techno had ever seen before. He just didn't know why Shrub was hiding. Has the gnomish woman seen anything of Fool's true capabilities?

"I know how that feels," Techno admitted. He spends most of his time avoiding his newfound companion.

Shrub lets go of her legs, and her feet slide forward. The backside of her knees don't touch the ground, exactly, but they're a few inches away from the sand with a few clumps of grass. She tilts her head all the way back, staring up at the crack of sky the inhabitants of the ravine are allowed. Her hands fall to her side, palm facing up. After several seconds of silence that stretched into a full minute, Shrub looked at Techno with something... primal in her eyes. She resembles a soldier who has spent his entire life at war or an executioner who was forced to take the lives of his traitorous countrymen. Techno had seen both types of people before, and he knew their fates didn't lead anywhere kind. His heart lurched at the idea of finding Shrub dead by her own hand.

"Don't... don't blindly believe everything Moon tells you," Shrub whispers. For as little time as they've known each other, Techno had been certain that Shrub couldn't beg. She seemed like someone who was effortlessly, even clumsily, kind and naive. She stood up for what she believed and what she wanted, respect and proper titles be damned. It was something he liked about Shrub; one of the reasons why he could do more than simply tolerate her. The gnome sitting on the ground in front of him did not resemble the image of Shrub he painted in his head. But, Techno thought, he didn't really know anyone. He had such a strong connection with Wilbur and Tommy without having a shared past with them. His imperial prince continued to confuse him with his subdued emotions and icy looks. Fool's seriousness confounded him, and the twin god's silence proved that they weren't seeing eye-to-eye with one another. Techno didn't know anyone he thought he did, and he was getting rather frustrated by that.

Techno was going to say something, either demand further explanation or consent to the idea, but anything he was going to say was cut off by a scream. The entire camp fell into an eerie state of stillness as they waited for an explanation. Techno received his explanation when he saw something at the edge of the camp that others were starting to rush towards. It was a creature about ten feet tall. It had a humanoid appearance, but the flesh was made from writhing black shadows. The shadows sometimes parted to reveal cracks of dark red and purplish pink light, and the cracks were most prominent in the horned face where they resembled an ear-to-ear smirk and narrowed eyes. Soldiers were rushing at the creature, but they were swatted away like they were flies. The creature laughed tauntingly at them, the sound echoing throughout the entire ravine.

Shrub startled when she heard the laughter. She instantly jumped to her feet. She pressed one of her hands against the top of the crates, and she flung her body over the side of it. While in the air, blue sparks began to fold over her body. Her transformation into Lilka finished the moment her booted feet landed on the ground. A bow grew into her hand, and she quickly nocked a glowing blue arrow to shoot at the creature. She ran at the demonic being, forgetting all about Techno and their conversation.

Techno turns his attention away from Xornoth. He puts his faith in Lilka, hoping that she can at least stall the demon, if not defeat it by herself. Techno feels the itch to help her fight the demon, but he has to make sure that the people in the camp are okay, especially Imperial Prince Scott. Techno will join the fray once he gets his prince to safety.

Techno jumps out of the way of the crates, rushing into the camp proper. He dodges the crowds rushing toward or away from Xornoth. He tries to listen for his prince, but all he can hear are panicked screams and yelled orders. He looks around for some trace of his prince's blue hair. He notices Kristin and Tommy together, hand in hand, running toward Xornoth. Philza is right behind them, basically hovering above the ground with how rapidly his wings are flapping. He catches the sight of pale skin, but it belongs to his current headache, Fool, who is running with transformed Niki. Techno wishes Niki luck and Fool an injury as he continues his sweep of the rushing crowds. The people eventually thin out, and Techno is certain that his lord isn't among the scattered people. Techno huffs out in frustration, turning around to find where Scott could have wandered off to.

Techno peeks his head into several tents. He hears fast-paced breathing as he steps into one of the tents. He looks around the dark room to find a crate of weird fruit in the corner and hay stacked up in another corner. Techno meets the glowing poisonous purple eyes of Pearl, the Ender drake. She curled up around her master. Ranboo holds his arms around his long legs, trembling visibly and trying to shove his face into his arms. Techno knows that he should walk away to find Scott, but something compels him to rush into the tent. He lands on his knees right in front of Ranboo. His hands reach up, but he refrains from touching the hybrid. Instead, he starts talking in a low voice. "Ranboo... hey, it's Techno. I know it's scary right now, but we can't stay here. I promise that I will protect you, but you have to come with me. We have to go."

Ranboo tilts his head up, his watery eyes searching the darkness for Techno. The warrior can see the burn marks starting to form beneath Ranboo's eyes, but he doesn't know how to tell the boy to stop crying without making his panicked state worse. He supposes that he'll just have to apply burn cream on them later.

"Come on, Ranboo. Let's get out of here," Techno says, trying to stay put when a battle is raging outside and his prince is missing. His duty wants him to secure Scott, and the blessing of the Blood Gods' want him to join the fight. He isn't sure what is tethering him to this spot, right in front of Ranboo. He normally doesn't have the patience for this, but it feels wrong to leave a terrified Ranboo all by himself. Even if Pearl was there, Techno couldn't be certain that she would be able to protect both herself and Ranboo.

Ranboo grabs Techno's forearm. His grip is tight as his nails dig into Techno's muscled flesh. Ranboo continues to shake even as he pulls himself onto his feet. His eyes shine with bravery, and Techno feels a surge of pride coil painfully in his body. He doesn't have time to dwell on it, however, so he leads Ranboo out of the tent. Pearl ambles after them, remaining close to her master. Techno hopes that the drake has even a fraction of the power that he knows dragons possess because they are going to need all the power they can get when they have to face off against Xornoth.

Techno's eyes are drawn to the battle. As he suspected, Lilka is leading the charge. She's basically wrestling the demon with putrid hatred creating a translucent blue aura around her body that clashes against the burgundy mists around Xornoth's body. Kristin has attached herself to Xornoth's leg, her arms cracked with purple lines as she forces the full weight of her Touch of Death against him. Tommy and Philza are at her back, using their swords to cut down the shadowy creatures that pop out from the grounds to assist their lord. Niki and Fool are killing the shadows created on the fringes of Xornoth's control. Techno's eyes slide to a figure approaching the shadows and human (or human-like) fighters.

Techno runs forward with Ranboo barely holding on. Scott, the Imperial Prince of the Antarctic Empire, is slowly gliding toward the battle. Techno slides forward, standing in between his lord and the battle. Scott's eyes are glossy as he stares at the demon. His attention is captivated so thoroughly that he walks right into Techno. Ranboo is still clutching Techno's forearm as the warrior reaches up to grab both of Scott's shoulders. "Snap out of it!"

Scott blinks, the color rushing back into his eyes as they snap to Techno. Scott startles, looking around. He confusedly turns his attention back to Techno and Ranboo, his breath stuttering as he speaks, "What's going on?"

Techno doesn't have a chance to answer. He looks over his shoulder at the fight. Lilka, somehow, has been shoved to the ground. Xornoth's attention zeroes in on Scott like he was searching for the prince this entire time. Xornoth's cracked smile grows impossibly wide, a clawed hand raising up to draw blood red and violet purple energy from the air around him into a ball. The energy is shot out like an arrow from a bow. Techno pushes both Scott and Ranboo away from him. He's thankful that Pearl jumps in front of both her master and Techno's lord as Xornoth's attack hits him in the back. He stumbles forward, grabbing Pearl's body to hold himself steady. Techno winces in pain, but he doesn't waste a second. He slides over Pearl's body to grab the wrists of Scott and Ranboo. He drags them forward, ignoring the smell of burning flesh that now permeates in the air.

Techno doesn't stop moving until they are on the opposite side of the camp. Like a lighthouse on a stormy night, the pale blue tent of the empire beckons to Techno. He nudges his lord toward his tent. Techno is about to leave when he notices Ranboo and Pearl are still with them. Techno can't leave them alone, but he definitely isn't going to be bringing Ranboo to the battle. Techno looks around for some place to stash them, and he decides where the safest place is when he catches Scott waiting at the flap of his tent. Techno lowers his head, asking, "My lord, the great prince of the empire, please watch over Ranboo and his drake until my return."

"As long as you go to the infirmary," Scott orders Techno before lifting up the flap of his tent. Ranboo looks hesitant to move, but Techno nods at him. Ranboo, with a conflicted expression on his face, walks into the tent with Pearl right behind him. Scott follows them up, his icy glare the last thing Techno sees before the flap falls shut.

Techno turns around. His wound hurts, but he can already feel the edges of it healing. The adrenaline is a big help, of course, as he runs back to the fight with Xornoth. Kristin is being held by Tommy with Philza standing watch over them. Fool is, surprisingly, holding up Niki's body. Lilka drops down to her knee, placing one hand against the ground. Golems made from shadow husks, wood, and tent fabric swirl together. Techno looks at Lilka, surprised that her gold eyes were the same shade as Shrub's eyes. Lilka might be wearing her armor, but the face and body were currently in Shrub's possession. She was summoning the golems, and Techno halted his movement. Golem creation wasn't rare, but it wasn't exactly common, either. Especially not to this degree. Spontaneous golem-creation was unheard of, and the amount that Shrub had conjured was not something someone could accidentally do. All the golems jumped forward to stand in front of Shrub. They took the brunt of Xornoth's attack as Lilka regained control over the body. She raised her bow up, an energy arrow forming in her hands. She tilted the bow up at Xornoth's head, bringing the arrow back. The shaft began to glow brighter the longer Lilka held it back, the blue light flickering with snowy white fire. Lilka's entire body seemed to burn with ancient, divine power. When the last golem fell, Lilka didn't hesitate to release the arrow. It sailed through the air with the sound of thunder accompanying it. Techno took a half-step back as the noise pounded in his head and the divine energy shot through his body.

A beautiful garden.
A loving mother.
A kind father.
A spreading sickness.
A dying twin.
A child's hand held in his.
A wooden swing.
An axe given to two children.
Death.
Birth.

Techno's eyes snapped open, his breath shuddering as the images flickered in his head. He felt like he was staring at runes from an ancient civilization, or if he was looking at the physical embodiment of the primordial god's true voice. It hurt his mind, and an ache began to spread in his heart. He wasn't sure what he was seeing or why, but Lilka's divine outburst had unlocked something buried deep inside of him.

Lilka.

Techno's attention came back to the present moment. A huge hole had formed in Xornoth's body. His smile faded into a cruel frown, and he took a step back into the shadows. He wasn't dead, but he was currently out of commission. Lilka disappeared. Shrub was left with soot and burn marks all across her body. Her tired eyes fluttered closed, and she tilted. Before she could hit the ground, Fool rushed forward to grab onto her. Techno felt his hands trembling as he watched everyone else clamber to their feet, exhaustion written plainly on their features.

"Well, that was interesting," Alex whispered in his ear, and Techno didn't have the energy to argue.