Chapter Text
It was late into the night when he discovered the village, the lanterns and torches lighting up the darkness around it. Not one to pass up on an opportunity, he made camp nearby in the woods.
Here he could rest and trade, relax before continuing on his way. Where? He wasn’t yet sure. He’d been traveling for a long time. Years even. Not like time mattered to him.
Cause it really didn’t.
So here he was, rummaging through his stuff at his current campsite. He has the food he needs for now, some potions and his armour. Books too, he could see about enchanting while stopping by.
For now he waited though, and decided to have a very early breakfast. He could see the sun only starting to rise, nobody would be out yet aside from a sparse few people. He really didn’t want to look like some thief sneaking in when everyone was asleep, so he’d wait until he was sure the village started its day.
A snort of amusement left him. He often loved the fear others had of him, he hated interacting with others, and they made it all too easy to avoid whenever they turned in the opposite direction. However, if he was to stay for a bit he’d need to build at least some semblance of trust and cooperation.
It shouldn’t be too hard, right?
Correction: this will be extremely hard.
Techno sighed as he saw the gates entrance, and the two guards glaring holes into his head. If looks could kill, he’d be going against his own motto. He double checked that his hood and mask were in place though, and continued forwards confidently to the distrustful faces of the guards.
‘E’
Not faltering in the slightest, Techno kept walking. “Shut up Chat”, he mumbled. “Now is not the time.”
‘BLOOD FOR THE BLOOD GOD’
‘Technolame!’
Techno walked up to the guards and lifted a hand in greeting. They both nodded in response.
“What business do you have here?”
Angling his body to the side, the hooded piglin gestured to the small shulker box of goods he left further back on the path. Leather, potatoes, and mob drops were all packed neatly. The two guards looked at each other and inspected the small shipment, and confirmed there to be nothing wrong. However, they turned back to Techno, distrust still evident, but not as much as before.
“If you go into this village, expect to be watched at all times. You are a stranger, and we must guarantee the safety of all members of our home.” The one speaking frowned, and his fingers curled around his sword. “We recently had an attack from someone pretending to stay the night. We trusted, and we paid for it. We’re just lucky that nobody died. So keep that in mind, as you visit. Don’t expect anyone to just willingly accept the fact you are here.” With that, they turned to open the gate, allowing Techno to grab his items and make his way in.
“...”
The village was bustling, that was for sure. His eyes roamed around, taking in the people working, trading, and talking through the streets. Children ran through the small crowds and a cat lazily stretched over the side of a well, settling in to sleep. Everything seemed to be going well, and Techno decided to go over to some shops to trade his items.
As he made his way through the village, he began to notice that slight change of atmosphere. As the guards had mentioned, he could see the few on patrol glancing at his actions and movements, watching his every movement. Aside from that though, Techno could feel eyes on him. The villagers were beginning to notice someone new had entered the village, and their recent misfortunes were not lost on them. They gave him a wide berth as they walked, frowning and glaring when they thought he wasn’t looking.
‘BLOOD’
‘Stab! Stab! Stab!’
Techno oh so dearly wanted to respond, to tell Chat to just shut up . He didn’t want to make himself seem more unstable though. The masked, hooded figure seemed untrustworthy enough on its own.
Walking into the first shop, Techno pulled out the leather from his shulker. The villager was stiff as he went about behind the counter. Checking over the materials and offering his trade in return. As Techno took the emeralds, he wished he got a bit more for the amount he gave, but oh well. They’ll come around over time. So he nodded his head and left. Barely catching the relieved breath the villager gave.
It was similar for the mob drops too, shaking hands took the goods, and gave him the rewards in return. Techno regarded the person behind the counter, they seemed a lot more outward about their fear of him. Outright shaking as they traded. Techno could practically see beads of sweat dripping down.
Techno admits he probably looks like something out of a nightmare, but as he looks at his trades, he realizes why.
Spider eyes. Zombie flesh. Skeleton bones. Gunpowder.
One can’t simply find a spider eye or some gunpowder in the woods laying around. It was more than obvious that Techno killed the mobs himself. The poor guy knew that Techno could fight, and combined with the village’s state of wariness and him just showing up, it was probably a lot for the fellow. So Techno quickly finished the trade and left, not wishing to cause any problems or scenes when he only just arrived.
His shulker box noticeably emptier, he made his way to find the nearest bakery. He passed through the village square, and heard the strumming of a guitar, followed by singing.
Glancing in the direction of the noise, Techno saw a man with a guitar. Having drawn a crowd, the guy performed and sung, strumming a little tune as he went. Techno himself didn’t care too much for performers, and so continued on his way. The crowd didn’t notice him and neither did the musician, fine by him. No need to ruin their fun.
What Techno didn’t realize however, was that someone in fact noticed him, (aside from the guards) and began to quietly follow from a distance.
Bakery in sight, Techno held a firm grip on his shulker, and prepared to do his final trades of the day. He could probably see what food they had here as well, it would make a nice late lunch for him. Before he could keep going however, he felt a tight hand on his shoulder. Techno stiffened but calmed down before attacking on instinct. He hadn’t done anything worth the guards' interference, right? Looking over his shoulder, Techno was surprised that there seemed to be no guards around at all, the hand on his shoulder leading to a villager who only happened to be a few inches shorter than him.
At that revelation, Techno shrugged the hand off and turned to face the villager expectantly.
‘Death!’
‘BLOOD’
‘FIGHT!!!!’
‘Yeet the child!’
Techno ignored chat, deciding to question the choice of words later, and focus on his current problem: the angry villager with a death wish.
“Who the fuck do you think you are?! Walking into this village like you own the place!” The man yelled. Techno didn’t think he owned the place, and he was sure he didn’t walk around like it, but he doesn't want to sound like a smartass, and stays quiet.
“We don’t need some other mysterious stranger making their way in and ruining the peace of this village! How about you GET OUT and leave us the fuck alone!” The man’s face was bright red, and the smell of alcohol was present in the air. Techno rolled his eyes (not like anyone saw) and proceeded to continue to the bakery. Where are those guards? Much good they’re doing watching me.
Techno abruptly ducked, having realized that the man took a swing at him. Spinning on his heel, he made sure to keep space between the two. The man swung again and Techno dodged, now having no idea what to do.
‘FIGHT!’
Definitely not that. He didn’t come to the village to fight its inhabitants, if anything, he’d be kicked out and not allowed re-entry. He enjoys a good fight any day, but now is so not the time. So he continued to dodge the drunken man, praying for the guards, or anyone to break this up so he could just finish off his tasks.
Luck was on his side today.
As Techno dodged a kick to his shins, he heard shouting from behind him. Running out of the bakery was a woman, someone else trailing behind.
“Stop this! We can’t be fighting now! C’mon, break this up!” The woman pleaded, and allowed her companion to step in to stop the (very one-sided) fight. The piglin’s eyes widened as the person who stepped up didn’t even look human.
A gloved hand stopped the fist hurtling towards him, and the being’s eyes narrowed. A barbed tail curled behind him and horns stood menacingly above his head. The being looked back to Techno, and gave a small smile.
“Hey there! Sorry this muffinhead was causing trouble! I’ll go and let him cool off, Niki can help you if needed!”
The being had a pitch black face under its small hood, and appeared to have a glowing smile and eyes. A demon? Techno wondered. He watched as the demon led the man away, still shouting curses and waving his fist, and turned to the woman, identified as Niki.
“We’re sorry this seemed to have happened! A lot of people in the village are very tense right now, and are a bit unnerved in having a stranger walk on in!” She smiled a little and let out a huff of air. “May I ask what you were currently doing? I can help if you need.”
Techno held up his shulker opened enough that the potatoes inside could be seen. Niki laughed and gestured to him to follow. “I help run the bakery, we can get you what you need there.” Techno followed, his long strides keeping up with her shorter ones, and they made their way into the shop.
“That seems to be all, it was great meeting you!” Niki smiled, now joined by her co-owner Badboyhalo, or just Bad for short. (By this point Techno was sure he was a demon.) He lifted his hand in parting and made his way back out. Not bothering to stop for anything else he made his way back to the gates, avoiding anyone else on the streets.
With a nod to the guards, he left, but not before one called out to him.
“Hey stranger!”
Techno turned to the guards.
“On behalf of all the guards, we’re sorry! We kinda lost you for a moment there, and we heard through one of our villagers that one tried to pick a fight. As much as we may distrust anyone new coming in, we do wish to look out for everyone.” The guard straightened with his head high. “If you ever need our help, for anything from directions to a problem with anyone in the village, don’t ever hesitate to come to any of us alright?”
Techno nodded and the guards smiled. Waving, Techno left them to their duties and made his way back to his camp.
Maybe this wasn’t so bad after all.
‘TECHNOLAME’
“Oh for the love of- Shut up Chat!”