(WC: 1350
Category: Angst
Ship type: None
Warnings: Death/permadeath, swearing

Aquadreion mentioned a concept about the void slowly taking away your identity and inspiration slapped me across the face so have this

This is a sequel to Dynasty and starts right after the last oneshot ended. Ending is a bit rushed, but enjoy!)

The void was lonely.

Here, Ex barely kept himself sane. He was crowded with thoughts about his past and how he could have changed it all. The disaster in the End, X and him slowly growing distant, until that day when he had struck back...and got sent here.

In a way, it had all come full circle.

Here in the void, there was just darkness everywhere you went. The only point of interest was above him--the main End island floated right above him. Ex didn't like looking at it much, though--it just reminded him of the chain reaction of events that had led him to be here.

What had he done to deserve this? Neither brother was in the right here. X was in the wrong for banning him here in the first place, and for abandoning him 2 years ago. When they had reunited about a year ago, it hadn't gone down smoothly.

And Ex was in the wrong for...a multitude of reasons. None of which could really be forgiven.

It started with him not forgiving X in the first place. Instead, he'd left his frustration corked up, until it had finally had enough. Then he'd taken out his anger on Hermitcraft, which was ironic, because he had already had one world destroyed. X had banned him to the void. He hadn't visited Ex at all until today.

Even though both of them were in the wrong, they were past forgiveness. The final thread had snapped today. Ex doubted that X would be coming back, ever. That was the last he'd ever see of his brother.

Odd things had started to happen after maybe 3 or 4 months in the void. Ex wasn't entirely sure--time was weird here. He felt like the void was tugging at him, slowly dragging him into the endless abyss. It was easy to resist before, but now...

Ex shook it off. Maybe he was just hallucinating after being here for so long. It had happened before.

But this seemed more real, even though he tried to deny it.

»»————-　★　————-««

Xisuma climbed out of the End portal, still silently fuming from his argument with Ex. He strapped on his Elytra, ignoring the memories from when he was younger, and started flying down the Nether tunnels.

He didn't understand. He was so focused on himself that he couldn't see X's point of view. It was all his fault. If he could just move on from the past...

X scoffed under his breath. It was that one thing, that singular event that had caused a domino chain of events that led up to this. No matter how hard he tried, Ex wouldn't see past it.

And neither could he.

X rocketed down the Nether tunnels, turning sharp corners at dangerous speeds. He needed to get away--from the End, from his past, from...

His pulse quickened as he frantically tried to remember his brother's name. He could clearly see what he looked like in his mind, but the name was just...gone.

What was happening? It was like he was slowly forgetting his brother. But how could that be? There shouldn't be any...

Oh.

Oh, no.

Oh, Xisuma, you fucked up.

He doubled back and raced to the End portal at double the speed. He had to get back there, before it was too late.

As he rocketed down the runnels, he remembered something his mother had told him when he was younger.

"The void is dangerous," she had said. "If you're near it for too long, it will start to erase you, your identity, little by little, then all at once. There's no escaping it. I'm telling you this so you stay away from it, okay?"

And what had X done? Banned his brother, the only remaining member of his family, to the one place his parents had told him to stay away from.

How could he have forgotten this detail when he had banned his brother in the first place? He was always cautious of the void whenever he was in the End, so why did he...?

Then a thought struck him. Maybe he had remembered, and purposefully banned his brother there for the sole purpose of the void slowly erasing him.

Idiot, Xisuma, you fucking idiot. He couldn't get to the portal fast enough. He wasn't going to lose another person he loved to the End again.

What color had his brother's eyes been again...?

X spammed his rockets, going at full speed down the tunnel.

»»————-　★　————-««

Whatever was happening to Ex was going at a much faster pace than before. The tugs were more like pulling at this point, slowly dragging him into the void.

And if he fell, there would be no coming back.

A disjointed memory surfaced up. It was right before X had banned him. He was lying on the ground, defeated in a fight against his brother. X had his admin screens up, about to send the command that would ban him.

"You did this to yourself," X had spat out. "It's all your fault."

"N-no, it isn't," Ex had managed to say. "It's yours. You wouldn't forgive me."

"You wouldn't forgive me!" X protested. "I wasn't the one who attacked this server out of anger. I wasn't the one who had held a grudge for a year, slowly concocting a plan to take revenge on your own brother."

"You're right. You're the one who's banning me to the void."

"...Enjoy slowly fading, Ex."

And here he was.

That's what was happening to him. The void was making him fade, almost urging him to jump down. It had been happening for months now, and he hadn't noticed it.

And X had done it on purpose.

Ex was overcome with a tidal wave of emotions--sadness, anger, guilt...how could he have done this? Ex curled into himself, realizing that he had been saying something to himself.

Forgive me, X, please.

I'm so sorry this all happened.

I'm ready to forgive you.

But nobody came.

Ex couldn't fight back the tears. This felt like X had repeatedly stabbed him over and over while laughing tauntingly. What had happened? They had been so close as kids, but now...

What was the point of even trying?

X hated him. His parents were dead. Nobody was on his side. Nobody was here. Nobody would come. Nobody cared for him.

In the end, it didn't even matter.

Ex looked down at the void below him. It was yanking him down now, pleading with him to join it.

And why shouldn't he?

So with one final breath, Ex let himself fall.

»»————-　★　————-««

Standing in front of the End portal, X hastily pulled his admin screens up. He couldn't focus--his mind was clouded with fear that he was too late for his brother. He couldn't remember what color suit he wore, or what his voice sounded like...

He couldn't already be gone, he'd still be there, please, please...

With shaking hands, X typed out a single command. A command he thought he'd never type out. He'd banned his brother in a fit of rage and anger, wishing he'd never see him again. He regretted the decision now, and he was terrified that he was too late to fix his mistake.

X started panicking again when he realized he needed his brother's name to finish the command. It was the first thing that had faded when this all started. He had to remember it, or else...

X wracked his brain, trying to remember the name. He could clearly see his brother gliding across the End island with his Elytra, whooping at the top of his lungs. He could see him kneeling in front of him, defeated and ready to be banned. But the name was just gone.

Please, you have to remember. For his sake, you have to try, please...

A sob built in his throat as he tried repeatedly and failed to remember his name. Second after second, another memory of his brother was fading, and if he was too late...

The memory hit him so hard that he stumbled backwards.

Xanthus.

He hurriedly typed in the command, hoping to Notch that he wasn't too late.

/unban EvilXisuma

The split second between commands felt like an eternity as he waited.

[Player not found.]

X felt his heart slowly sink. Everybody he loved was gone.

He had run out of time.