Chapter Text
“You’re so stupid!”
“ Schewpid .” Techno retorted, casually twirling his sword in the air with a sharp swsh.
“Woah, now, we aren’t making fun of accents, are we?” Wilbur spoke up, catching up to the bickering two with a few bounds. The Englishman released one of his hands from where he’d been holding them behind his back to push the mass of brown hair that had been, as always, falling into his eyes. Even the beanie he wore didn’t help much to keep the bangs from obscuring his vision. “In that case, I’m sorry to say that you’re outnumbered!”
“Oh no.” The hybrid deadpanned. “Whatever will I do.”
“Whatever, let’s just get to the portal already.” Tommy huffed. His excitement was barely hidden, if you could even call it that; there was a slight bounce in his stride, jostling his own sword against his back. Not the gold of his older brother’s, but a sturdy, long-lasting iron. Phil had insisted that it was the best choice in the long-run; he didn’t want it breaking mid-fight. That was something Tommy scoffed at in private whenever he felt particularly irritated with the father figure.
“Patience, Tommy,” Philza ruffled his hair teasingly, which the youngest shook off with a huff. “we’re nearly there. Won’t kill you to wait a minute. And boys— be good to the child.” He grinned.
“I’m taller than you—“ said child squawked, though his protests were quickly smothered by the laughter of his elders.
“Ta daaa.” The hybrid deadpanned, free hand gesturing towards the center of the clearing they’d found themselves in. “We’re here.”
The Nether portal shone as though with condensation, a light purple fog obscuring the crumbling edges. Bits and bobs of the Nether had seeped out of it, staining the ground otherworldly hues. It was a fair walk from their house, something the youngest brother complained about often, though the reason was often cited as it being made from a ruin. And of course, to prevent the stray hoglin, a beast he’d only heard of from the stories of Techno and Phil.
“Let’s go already!” Tommy went to run into the frame of the portal, only to be yanked backwards by the cloth of his shirt, hanging from Techno’s grip like a kitten by its scruff.
The two experienced explorers exchanged glances before Phil finally spoke up.
“Okay, first we gotta go over the rules.” He began firmly. “One. No running off. You follow me, Techno, and Will, in that order,” when it seemed as though Tommy was about to interject, the pig hybrid silenced him with a glare. “you haven’t been here before. I’ve been the most, Techno knows what I know, and Will’s been here at least a few times. Two. No picking fights. We leave the piglins alone, and try to attack as little of anything as possible. And finally, three. You do what we tell you to. If we say to run, you run. Got it?” He adjusted the long sleeves of his robe, sending a meaningful look towards the other blonde.
“Yessss, Phil, I got it. Let’s go!” Gaining momentum in a single swing, he launched as Techno released him, stumbling into the portal frame. He grinned, sticking two thumbs out as his image wavered and faded.
Wilbur and Phil only exchanged matching grins as Techno groaned, all three squishing themselves into the weeping purple, before their images too, disappeared.
—
“Holy shit .” Tommy exhaled, looking over the Nether. His eyes watered at the heat, reflecting the blistering Nether wasteland even as he coughed into his shirtsleeve. “I repeat; holy shit. ”
“Think we heard you the first time!” Wilbur slapped him on the back, only succeeding in getting the younger to let out a small ‘ oof’ of surprise. “Crazy, huh?” He sighed.
“Yeah, yeah, let’s go get what we came here for.” Techno grouched. “Being here makes me antsy.”
“He’s right. Come on, boys, let’s go.” Phil tugged his fingers to his hand in a ‘come along’ gesture, though not unkindly. He waited until they’d passed him, following Techno like a pair of ducklings until he joined the line, exhaling with a soft smile to the dimension’s ceiling.
—
“It’s hot .” Tommy groaned. He’d untied his bandana from his neck, stuffing it into his pocket instead. The blonde had taken to ineffectively fanning himself with a piece of wrinkled paper he’d found in his bag, slumped over while he walked.
Techno sent an amused glance his way. He’d been whistling lowly, used to the heat, even under his cloak.
“Agreed.” Wilbur moaned his displeasure, wiping at his forehead with his beanie. “Phil, why aren’t you dying; more importantly, why aren’t you flying. Surely that’s bloody faster.” He pleaded.
“It’s all updrafts, warm air. It’s hard enough to land against the drafts without worrying about you going ‘splat’ against the Nether’s walls.” He responded, equally as unbothered as Techno about the heat. It seemed pleasant on his wings, based on how the white, grey speckled feathers spread and flexed away from the muscle.
“Doesn’t matter much,” Techno interjected. “We’re here.”
The Bastion loomed over them, and Tommy wondered how he hadn’t seen it before. Parts of it were obscured by the netherrack, but the blackstone still stuck out against the basalt and the red stone. It crawled with activity, piglins scurrying over the stone. Some were packing gold pieces into the blackstone, admiring the glisten. Others were carrying loads of the brick, repairing a crumbled wall.
“Is this inactive?” Wilbur wondered aloud, staring up at the structure. It was far busier than any of the sketches he’d seen of them; larger, too.
“Never seen an active one. Might just be busy.” The hybrid mumbled, examining the building. He sniffed at the air, wrinkling his nose against the sulfur. “Phil?” He looked to the eldest for his decision.
“Hmm,” he hummed, indecisive. The blonde itched at his stubble, before nodding to himself. He turned to the three, setting one hand on the sword at his side. “Okay,” he began, already smiling in placation towards the two least experienced. “Techno and I, we’ll go in there, while you two stay out here. Might be active; Wil’s in charge, got it?”
Wilbur saluted with two fingers, content to stay outside of the undoubtedly hotter black structure. Any complaints by Tommy were immediately silenced, and he dropped to the ground next to his brother with a huff, crossing his arms in irritation.
“Be good, you two. Be back in a moment.” Phil assured them with a grin, ruffling the hair of the both of them as he passed through towards the fortress.
Techno only grunted his assent, though he kicked the youngest lightly in the leg, clearly telling him not to worry about it; not that Tommy listened.
He ignored them as they moved towards the bastion, blowing his hair out of his eyes with a loud exhale.
—
“Hey Wil,”
“No, Tommy, they’re not back yet.” He continued scrawling into the soft soul soil with his index finger, humming some nameless tune Tommy was sure he’d made up on the spot.
“Shouldn’t they be, though?” The blonde asked from where he’d sprawled on the ground, hands behind his head and resting on his folded bandana. He stared up at the Nether ceiling, no longer flinching at the pops of the lava beneath the shelf they rested on. “It’s been a while, right?”
Wilbur stopped humming to frown contemplatively.
“Maybe?” He offered, uncertain. “Time is different in the Nether, I think— distance, too.”
“Well, I hope they’re back soon—“ he began, exasperated. He was interrupted by a low rumble, growing in volume. Tommy sat up, back ramrod-straight as he stared at the trembling pieces of rock on the ground, bouncing against each other and into the air.
His gaze flicked to Wilbur, who mirroring the same horrified expression he was sure he was wearing at the moment.
“Are there— earthquakes in the Nether?” The blonde murmured quietly, as if any loud sound would add to the still growing strength of the racket.
“Not that I’ve ever heard of.” His brother whispered back. Something seemed to steel him, though, an inner panic that fired the synapses in his brain. “Up, Tommy, up, come on,” he commanded, grabbing his hand and yanking the younger up.
“Hey, hey! What about Techno and Phil?” He yelled as he was tugged along.
Wilbur looked stricken, freezing as their survival and his care for his family warred with each other.
“Wil! T—mmy—!” Their names caused the both of them to still completely, looking at each other to confirm what they’d heard over the din.
A shadow darkened their vision, a swoosh cutting through the horrible cacophony of sound, and the both of them yelped, feet no longer planted on the ground.
Tommy was the first to look up, shock slowing his reaction time.
“Phil?!” He screeched, shame about the shrillness completely forgotten in favor of their circumstances.
“Hol— on—!” He grimaced. He had an arm wrapped around each of them, face streaked with soot and rubble, struggling to stay aloft with the weight of the two boys.
Tommy did as he was told, wrapping an arm around the man as best as he could to secure himself. A quick headcount — blonde, brunette, himself, there’s someone gone, there’s someone missing — showed him there was only the three of them. He looked back to the crumbling bastion— the source of the ruckus, he finally noticed — expecting to see a ribbon of pink hair flying behind a running figure; and not seeing anything at all. The smoke and rubble obscured his vision of anything close to what was quickly becoming the ruins of the building.
But he had to be out by then, right?
Techno — Techno, smart Techno, powerful Techno, awkward Techno, the poet, the warrior, his brother, Techno— was fast.
—
“ Techno!” Tommy shrieked, hands outstretched in front of him like a zombie, a guard against a stumble he was sure to take if he kept looking behind him for his pursuer.
Said pursuer had no trouble navigating the various littered stones, roots, and flora of the forest, nimbly ignoring it as if it was flat ground. The way he ran so casually suggested it wasn’t his full speed, which terrified Tommy even more. His hair hadn’t yet grown to the impressive length he kept it in the future; it was still fluffy, cropped, secured back in a low ponytail that barely bounced with each long stride.
“Oh Tommmyyy.~” Techno drawled, imitating the masked boy visiting the village a few days prior. He’d shown Techno the new game — Manhunt — with his two friends, and Tommy had been trying to escape it since.
Tommy made the mistake of looking back, stumbling on a misstep for just long enough for the hybrid to grab him, tossing him over his shoulder.
“Not fair!” Tommy harrumphed, crossing his arms. “You always win!”
The pinkette grinned to himself, pumping a clawed fist in the air.
“Technoblade never dies!”
—
His mouth ran dry, stark even against the previous grit from the Nether itself.
“Phil!” He yelled, grip tightening against his father’s robes. “Where’s Techno!”
A quick, devastated glance told him all he needed to know.
He screamed his brothers name back at the crumbling building, voice hardly carrying even as the rumble subsided, structure collapsing in on itself.