.

In and out.

You'll be quick.

.

As quick as you can be.

.

No one will even notice that you're gone.

.

There you are, hunched over a chest, fireplace dim with embers, windows dark as the sun hasn't risen yet.

You're searching for the sword Techno gave you way back before L'manberg got blew sky high.

You only want it as a threat for anything that may have ill harm for you, nothing more. Not that much of anything threatens you in or out of the nether.

The nether.

That's where you're going.

A trip down to the hellscape that used to be your home.

A trip you're going on that you don't feel like explaining to anyone in the house why you're taking.

You already left a note on the crafting table to everyone in the house. A simple note that read, 'Be back soon.'

Which again, has you here. Finally digging the sword out of the chest, strapping it as firmly as you could around your waist and tip toeing your way to the coat rack by the door.

You swing your cloak on. Then stuff your feet into your boots, tugging the string tight and tying them in a neat knot and bow.

Your put your gloves on next.

Then you stare at the weathered spruce wood.

Oh gods.

You're doing this.

You're really doing this.

How long has it been?

When have you last seen the face of kin? Been graced by a familiar voice? Felt the buzz of your soul basking in family?

You shake your head. This won't be pretty. This won't be pleasant. Or wonderful, or any other stupid thing your head wishes it was.

It'd be ugly. It'll hurt. And unless your.... brother decided to drop his grudge... it will probably be aggressive. Teeth gnashing, bone splitting aggressive.

Gods.

You rub your hands into your face, crouching down on your legs and trying to muster the will to exit the house.

You said you were doing this.

You can't pussy out.

You're doing this.

Righting yourself back into a standing position, you reach for the door knob, only to freeze as a voice grumbles at you from the top of the ladder.

"Wher' you goin?"

Startled you glance up at the attic entrance catching Techno's glinting red eyes refracting light and glowing at you from where they were in the dark.

It appeared he was crouched over the trapdoor, tiredly peering down half asleep.

"Uhh- just-" you scratch your chin, "Just going out for a little bit. I'll be back."

He snuffles at you standing up and calling to you as he walked somewhere in the attic out of sight, "Hold on, lemme grab my stuff."

You bite your lip-

Hhhrmmmm- you don't want Techno to come.

He-

Your brother-

Hhhrmmm-

This is dangerous...-

And-

Revealing-

He'd see you for what you are.

And that scares you.

You don't have words to say anything though, just silently standing in the dark ember lit room and his dull footsteps creep around the attic as he gathers his belongings.

When he comes down the ladder, he's fully suited up in netherite, sword strapped on, bone mask hanging off his belt, crown gently resting on his head, pouch full of supplies with him.

Prepared. He was prepared.

You grumble a few unintelligible words at him, waddling over to him and lowly glancing up, "You don't need to come- you should go back up, get some rest." You gesture out the window, "It's the middle of the night."

"It is. Which is exactly why I'm prepared. And why I'm coming." He hums, "...You look grim. I don't like it. So I'm coming." He reiterates.

You weakly laugh, grabbing his one hand and thumbing over the top of it with both your thumbs. You pull it close to yourself chest, "Noooo... nono...Nono.... you should-" You hum again, "You need to rest..."

"I'm already awake. I won't be able to go back to bed." He grumbly says.

Pausing in the movement of your thumbs, you look up at him, truly and softly, watching his red eyes stare impassively down at you, light still being reflected as he hasn't looked away.

He's gonna be the death of you.

So prepared to help with something he has not a drop of context on.

"You're sweet." You say.

"Am not." He grumbles.

"You are. Unless you go back to bed."

A chuff out of his throat and then a monotone, "Well alright, call me sugar then. I've been called worse."

"You're right. People have called you a lot of things." You squeeze his hand, "I bet none of them have called you lovely."

A weird strangled 'heh' comes out of his throat, but he does nothing to retract his hand or interject. You swear his hands feel hotter after your quip.

You steel your face, "But loveliness on this adventure is dangerous."

He shakes his head, figure leaning closer into your personal space, "You sound like your about to go into war... where excatly are you tryna march off to?"

You huff, not moving an inch in your spot, even when the crowding of his larger figure into your space threatens to make you release his hand.

You stare defiantly at him.

"If I take you with me, I'm gonna have to ask you to do something before we actually reach our destination."

The recognition in Techno's glowing eyes is instantaneous. You've said these words to him before. He remembers and he understands.

"Lemme guess, hang back... don't die?" He says, letting out a breath of amusement, "Both incredibly easy things to accomplish?"

You smile, "Yeah. Both of those things."

He slides his hand out of your grip, instead bringing it to brush against your cheek, "You look more worried then me." He slips his hand from your cheek to the back of your neck, pulling your forehead into his chest. Which in retrospect wasn't the most pleasant thing. The 'conk' noise of your skull meeting his netherite chestplate was uncomfortable, but the message still passed through.

And you couldn't help but bite back a smile.

"Sweetheart." You grin, forehead still against his armor.

"No. Bad."

"Biggest softy ever." Your grin spread farther.

"Not really." Techno denies.

"I can feel my teeth decaying from the sugar intake." You smugly grin.

"Okay- alright, this, this is fine. This 'pick on Techno' game has been fun, but I think your ego has inflated a bit too much for the size of your head." He grumbles. Despite his words you swear you see a burn dusting his ears.

The dim light makes it hard to tell.

You reel in the mocking, finally pulling yourself into a fully standing postion, looking up at him and shaking off the fondness of the moment.

"Alright. We should head out." You say, nodding at him, "All ready?"

"Been ready."

No more words to be said.

Techno is strapping his bone mask on and following as you grab the door handle and sweep the door open.

The night sky is clear of clouds and snowflakes, but it was still frigid. Tundra chill seeping into your spine faster then you could pull your cape around you.

Stray mobs are wandering around. Zombies, creepers. The usual likes of which like to roam when the moon rises.

You glance to Techno, who has shut the door behind the both of you, "We need to get to a nether portal. How far out is the closest one from here?"

"Thirty minutes on foot." He grunts, "We're leaving Carl, I don't wanna strand him somewhere."

"No no, makes sense." You say, making your way down the steps, careful not to slip on ice.

Techno is fast on your heel, overtaking your stride and walking in front of you, beelining it for the portal.

Which was convenient for you, as his strides through the deep snow made it easy for you to walk after him.

You know, he had to have intentionally did that. No way he didn't.

"If we're fast we can make it in twenty four." He says to you, trotting his way through the snow and being careful not to stray too far from you.

"Good. The faster we go, the faster we can be back."

He grunts in agreement, and keeps walking.

Just you, Techno, the moon and the mobs.

And the growing dread in your stomach as you realize what you're about to face.

Your hand slips into your pocket, pulling the compass out, and letting it glint in the moonlight. The enchantment on it is much more obvious at night, purple hue shimmering every which way.

You have a long way to go.

A long way where you and Techno don't speak many words.

Just walking. And thinking.

And the confusion on Technos face when mobs approach him and then turn the opposite direction when you prowl closer into view with a rugged look.

You see the unspoken question he wants to ask, but refrains. Which you appreciate.

What can you even say?

You've already told him animals are scared of you.

Anything with a basic understanding of the world and a sixth sense has a reason to, especially when you purposeful make yourself known to them.

So you continue, on through the chilled night until you reach a portal.

The neon purple hue coming from the obsidian frame casts soft violet colors all against the snow, Techno's silouette soaking up the light as he stops just before the portal.

He glances to you, waiting for you to arrive beside him.

His eyes search for confirmation, which you offer to him by walking forward.

.

You both enter.

.

.

.

Techno wasn't sure what to think.

His mind was spinning through a few scenarios, and sputtering a few inconsistent thoughts, but it couldn't focus.

The voices were loud.

Louder then they usually were with his... as they like to put it 'Hug Buddy.'

They wouldn't shut up.

And all of them sounded... spooked? An excited spook- the kind of scared when you're playing a game of tag and someone is right on your heels reaching for you.

Which worried him somewhat. He kept up the face though. He had to be the strong resilient rock he always was.

Especially when he could still sense unease coming from you.

He wanted to fix what was bothering you. But he knew the only way to fix it would be to walk who knows how long through the hellscape that is your home to apologize to your brother.

Apologize. For some reason he doubts your brother needs an apology from you.

Techno stares deeply into your back, watching you walk and adjust your course without looking at your compass.

He thinks back on all the times you've cared for people, and apologized to people, and let people step on you to avoid confrontation. He thinks back on how many times you've gently accepted who he was, and who Tommy was.

How can someone who makes people feel so comfortable need to apologize?

He grunts.

Which has you glancing back at him for a moment, eyes connecting before looking back to where you were walking.

You've been walking through the nether for awhile, leading the way with your compass, pushing forward and letting Techno shadow you. You've steered clear of soul valleys so far- and begrudgingly have gone through a few basalt biomes, yet so far you haven't encountered much, traveling the red and burning netherack and keeping away from ledges. Basic nether safety.

Which Techno is glad for.

Safety. Yours specifically. You're an ally, someone who would fight for him equally the way he would fight for you. If the numerous times you've told him you'd kill for him was anything to go by.

You're... important.

He steels himself.

Important enough to follow through the nether.

Important enough to need to show everyone who thought they could keep you and Phil trapped that no one under Techno's protection should ever be messed with again.

A cacophony of voices cry out in his head at the thought of... revenge as you put it.

Lost and echoing noises, crying for blood, jarring his own thoughts and forcing him to focus on the present else he get lost in their siren calls.

You. Him. Nether.

Finding your brother.

And apparently the bastion in the far distance. With two large lava oceans on either side.

Techno become alert.

"Hold up- we should go around. It'd be inconvenient to have to kill to get through."

You look back at him, "The only way through is that way." You shrug and turn back to walking, "Besides, we don't have to go in, there's enough room to just walk past."

Techno grunts, "If we can see the bastion, that means we're in the radius of their patrols."

Not to mention if a brute is also on patrol he'd really not like it if you somehow got in the crossfire.

Not that you'd die. But.

His head just doesn't like it. Neither do the voices.

You nod, "Which is fine- we're just passing through-"

Techno goes to say something else to you before a snort in the distance sounds, his ears flicking that way first before the rest of his head and body faced that direction.

The tip of a loaded arrow appears around a crimson log first- the piglin holding it shortly follows, it's own ears flicked forward at you and Techno.

Inquisitive.

A patrol.

Three more arrive after the first, all pausing to take in Techno with his hand on the hilt of his sword, and then you, which-

Techno glanced over to you.

You, who was passively looking at the piglins.

Good. You trust him to take care of this.

Techno is just about to unsheathe his blade when the piglins drop their crossbows.

The wood hits the netherack with a muted clack, and Techno watches in shock as the piglins bow their heads in what was clearly respect.

That.

Techno's brow furrows.

This is not how this happens.

This is the moment where he slices his overly protective mob origin to bits because they attack first and ask questions later.

They do not, just bow and drop their weapons.

Techno turns to you, for guidance- or explanation, to which you just silently grab his hand off the hilt of his sword, and lead him closer to the bastion.

The piglins disappear from sight as soon as you stop looking.

Any and all piglins they encounter are met with very much the same results.

Staring, disarming themselves, amd bowing.

You tug him past another set of bowing piglins and Techno can't keep the question down, "So I take it this is just something that happens....? Cause I'm pretty sure I should be knee deep in blood right now.... not-" Techno looks back to see the still bowing piglins, who are starting to glance up and ready to leave sight, "Showered with respect."

You nod, "Well, let's just say my mother had a lot of influence on nether stuff."

"Heh....?"

"Mmhmm."

Techno snuffs air at you. You and your cryptic ways. Which he completely respects, but also becomes so incredibly confused when things like what's happening right now start happening.

And the overworld mobs turning the opposite direction.

Or the fact that you don't die.

And the weird stuff your blood does.

Or the way he notices when you get overwhelmed you brush off some sort of clumped dust- debris-

So many, small inconsequential things that he has zero understanding of.

He grunts when another singular piglin stumbles upon the both of you, quickly dropping his crossbow to instead pull out a small cluster of gold nuggets.

The boar gently offers it to you, head lowered with respect.

Techno all but growls, glaring at the piglin and letting himself get tugged away by you.

That..... bothered him.

Which it shouldn't.

But it did.

Techno narrows his eyes, flittering his sights around the crimson trees before landing on the bastion the two of you had seen in the distance.

It was incredibly active, a housing unit by the looks of it.

Piglins were flitting to and from, prepping hoglin pelts on large drying racks, hauling in materials to the inside, hauling out patrol supplies-

Techno couldn't stop analyzing everything- looking for threats when everything that could have been a threat dropped what they were doing to bow at you.

Every piglin that spotted you dropped everything they were focused on.

Even a brute Techno spotted near the entrance to the bastion lowered his scar covered fuzzy head.

Complete and utter respect.

Techno let himself be dragged past the bastion.

Past the piglins.

Along the narrow strip of netherack that connected to more netherack expanses.

When you're both finally past the bastion, and outside the perimeter of patrols, Techno immediately throws a question at you, "What the heck kind of influence did your mother have in here??"

You shrugged, "Haha- let's just say she kinda stuck her fingers in everything nether related."

"Hah. You're mother was into politics."

You chuckle at him, and he passively stares into your back, even as he feels a warmth settle on his face. Your soft, amused laugh, and all the queasy thoughts that come with it.

You don't turn to look at him, but your voice holds the same amusement your laugh did, "Sure buddy- you can believe that if you want to believe that."

He snorts at you, but doesn't comment any farther.

The voices phase in- like a radio dial now that he wasn't distracted by poking at you.

Most still called for blood.

Some screamed for affection.

But a new thought came from them. One he'd never heard before.

Some merely yelling about chaos-

Some yelling to bow down.

A few rung out in an echoing, 'Chaos comes before Blood.'

He brushed it off.

Brushed it all off. To focus back on his surroundings, back on you, and any threats around you.

Red netherack, upon red netherack.

Old familiar red.

Gently, you release his hand, the one you had grabbed to tug him past all of the piglins, and he purses his lips but doesn't chase the touch. Merely following, here as moral support, as clearly facing your brother distresses you.

The seconds turn into minutes quickly.

He wonders if Phil is awake yet, awake and leaving the house to gather more supplies.

Tommy is probably sleeping still. He gets up when people wake him up, and usually that person is Techno.

You don't have the heart to disturb the boy's sleep, much less force him to carry his own weight.

In the distance a familiar biome comes into view, making Techno's attention snap back to the moment.

Soul valley.

He's observant, and catches the momentary hitch in your step as you to seem to realize what you're marching towards.

"We're getting close." You say. Pausing, faltering, but pressing on with as much confidence as you can.

In a few minutes you reach the border of the biome, and your footsteps come to a complete stop this time. Almost unwillingly if the grunt of fustration that comes from you is anything to go on.

"We can go around." Techno murmers, softly gliding to a stop beside you, feet settling on the edge of the distinctly red netherack.

You purse your lips.

"We can't."

He's in there.

Unspoken words.

But Techno is good at reading context clues. Sometimes.

"I can give you a piggy back ride." Techno pauses, "No pun intended."

You stare off into the soul valley a little longer before glancing back at Techno.

Your brows are furrowed- with this look. Distressed? Yes- but there's something farther passed the initial panic in you. Like you've gone through some kind of deep introspection and have finally strangled the panic that so clearly wants to make itself known.

"This is something I have to do." You look back towards the bleak horizon of soul fire and sand, "I'm never going to get over it if I keep leaning on people for stupid stuff."

Techno is quiet at that. He watches as you set your first step on the brown and hallowed sand. A full body shiver hits you, from the tips of your toes all the way up to the top strand of you hair.

But after the pause, and after the shiver, your second foot places itself onto the sand, and then the next.

And unlike that horrified and panicked person that first attempted to cross a soul valley the last time an adventure like this came up... you don't look back. And you don't stop.

You've grown. Techno thinks. Merely in observation, almost entirely to himself.

Your expedition continues, and now that you're both truly in the heart of the place you hate to be, he can see exactly where your gaze lingers. Every arching fossil of what used to be- every incomplete set of ribs, or spinal bones, or deep and blazing blue fires that are endlessly sprawling throughout this biome hold your line of sight.

You stare.

And watch- and walk- and act like nothing is affecting you.

Techno's head slowly begins to place more peices together.

You... had a lot of siblings, didn't you.

It takes a surprising amount of time to find what you came here for. The bones become less and less frequent the further in you get, but something about the air feels denser. Thicker- suffocating- even the patches of soul sand that were passed over seemed... more eager to weigh Techno down, soul speed or not.

Powerful.

Something about the atmosphere here was supercharged with an all consuming and lingering power.

He could barely place it, but something in him told him it was everywhere.

If he were out adventuring by himself and set foot in the radius of whatever this feeling was, he would steer clear immediately.

Even farther in you both went.

The power never diminishing and you refusing to falter.

Which meant Techno couldn't faulter either, especially when the soul sand below him was so eager to pull him under.

As soul sand does.

Loose the will to keep going, and it'll gladly make sure you never get to go again.

.

Something changes.

Not with the environment, but with you. Almost like you sense something he can't, you fling your arm out.

"This is where you stay behind." You say, for the first time since stepping into the biome you look backwards, steeling your face to Techno before scanning the area, "We should get somewhere better for you wait at- defintly not here on the sand."

Techno also takes a moment to sweep the surrounding area, and while there are patches of soul soil that don't want to drag a hopeless body to their doom, something about your protective facial expression says you don't want him just hanging out in the open.

Your eyes flicker for a moment before you point in hope at a spot, "Ah! There. Stable ground, and... some good bones to nestle into." You start trotting in that direction before Techno can quip anything back to you, so he silently follows instead, trotting at your heel.

Of course.

Until a horribly loud shuffling noise sounds from somewhere behind Techno.

You immediately turn directions, head snapping to look at Techno- and eyes quickly clocking in at something behind him.

The shuffling noise in question sounding like a mountain rising from the ground, sand sifting off of something and hitting the ground in the forms of gentle soul soil tacking and soft gasping of soul sand touching down on the soul valley floor.

Something large is dragged in a sweeping motion across the ground, sand shaking as it settled somewhere far to Technos right. And somewhere on Techno's left the ground shook again as another something settled heavily into the ground.

The nether doesn't have wind, but a large inhale of breath is enough to wip Techno's hair around- as is the large exhale sending all the pink strands forwards and into his face.

Techno's levels his blood red eyes at you through the bone mask.

"Do I even want to know what's behind me right now."

A loud growl shakes everything in Techno's body, right down his bones and flesh.

Despite everything inside of him... Techno turns to look.