Chapter Text
xB took a shaky step forward, eyes narrowed and hand on his sword hilt.
“Okay, so…your name is Tanner? What the hell did you just call me?”
“In your tongue, you are the Crowned One. I have…well, to be blunt, the Master has not sent me. But you’ve awoken, and it is finally time for you to learn.”
The rotted corpse of a man kneeling before xB spoke in a raspy tone, their voice low and guttural. xB took in their deferential kneel, took in the wicked club they clutched- a club on a long pole, covered in spikes. The weapon was made of the same dripping, oozing stuff as the cables that plugged into dozens of holes all over Tanner’s body, the ends of it snaking off the End island they sat on and into the void.
xB stared at the symbol stamped on Tanner’s hood, and his eyes went wide with realization.
That symbol was identical to the one tattooed on his shoulder blade.
“…Your- your hood,” xB started nervously, “you’ve got a…?”
“It is the symbol of our order.” Tanner said, “A relic, to you. I assume…Well, I assume much. I assume your childhood was...happy, yes?”
xB stared at him blankly.
“Okay, whoa, whoa, back this up. First you crawl out of the void and call me some weird name I’ve never heard before, and now you start picking on my family? And what- what was all that business with the black hole earlier? Did you do that to scare me?”
“No.” Tanner growled, standing up slowly, “You summoned a spark of your power yourself. I have come to help you…control your abilities. Because, if I don’t…you will kill yourself. And that would upset the Master greatly. And by “upset” I mean “they may devour all things around them in a blind rage.” So in the interests of avoiding the Master’s ire, I have come to help.”
“Okay. Cool. Great. So we- sure. I’m down for that. I don’t wanna die. Who’s the master?” xB echoed, feeling a bit dizzy, “’Cause I’m not gonna- like, I’m- I don’t do masters, you know? No gods, no kings, no masters. ‘Cept Ren, but he doesn’t count, he’s a pretend king. I’m just- playing along, you know?”
“I understand well, Crowned One.” Tanner rasped, gesturing for xB to sit down.
They tapped at the ground with the base of their long-shafted club, feeling at the area around them. patting for a good spot to rest. Satisfied, they lowered themselves to sit on the cold endstone, crossing their legs with an audible creaking of their rotted joints. Ancient fabric shrieked as it was pulled, and they laid their mace on the ground, letting go of it.
Still within reach, but not in their hands.
xB watched this, his palm still on the hilt of his sword.
“Okay. So let’s…let’s cut the crap. I don’t wanna blow myself up or suck myself into a black hole. And if you’re here…I’m guessing I’m not gonna respawn from that kind of damage?”
“Right in one.” Tanner said pleasantly.
“Right, right. So uh, pressing question number two. If I- I mean, if I listen to you, I’m not gonna- like, no offense, dude, really, but I don’t wanna- you’ve got some stuff, hanging outta your jaw, and I’d rather not-?”
Tanner made a rough wheezing noise that took a few seconds to register as laughter.
“You will live and you will die as the mortal man you are unless you request it. And even if you do, the Master is…unlikely to grant a second person the wish my people requested. They seem…regretful. I do not know why. It has given me more time to ponder the Master’s glory, and the Universe’s wonder at that. But I wouldn’t be afraid. This, Crowned One-“ And Tanner waved a hand at themselves, “Is not your future.”
“Okay. Cool, great. Awesome. Now, uh, let’s just-Right, so, the- your hood. I got, like, a tattoo. On m’back, right? Got it when I was, like, sixteen. Mom- I mean, we went to this guy, and I remember it was like, some hole in the wall in the hub, in like the really sketchy part of town, and Mom just yelled at this guy until he promised to use the best needles he had- uh, right, but anyway. I got this tattoo, and it’s- I mean, your hood. It’s the same.”
Tanner nodded.
“And that is why you are the Crowned One. Were the…flesh of my back more…intact, I would have the same tattoo.” Tanner gestured at their own shoulder, on the same side as xB’s- a cord of ooze was plugged into a gap in the robes, spiralling into the depths of the end.
“So we’re- there’s a connection?” xB asked slowly, nervously.
“Yes, Crowned One. I feel you already know what’s happening, do you not?” Tanner said, placing their hands in their lap loosely. Their clouded eyes were staring up in the rough direction of xB’s voice, not tracking any of his movements- they only turned when the voice moved.
“Look, can you forgive me for not wanting my stupid ritual to be anything other than a stupid ritual?!” xB growled, “I get it! I get it! Joe’s right, it’s some big thing! But what if I don’t WANT it to be a big thing, huh? What if I don’t WANT to worship some monster or Master or whoever you are?! What if I just want to do my thing in my own little place, and what if I don’t wanna join your stupid cult for dead people?!”
Silence.
“The Master chose their champion well. Your wisdom is…astonishing. Crowned One, I assure you: this is a lesson, nothing more, nothing less. I will be honest…I rather lost my appetite for proselytizing around the time my heart stopped beating. My faith is my faith and your lack of it is…your own business.”
“So…just a lesson then? A chat? So I can learn to not blow myself up?” xB said slowly.
“Yes. That is all I am here for.”
“Tell you what. I sit for your lesson, and we do this, and then while we do, you answer some questions and stop being so damn cagey.” xB said.
“That is acceptable to me. Please, sit.” Tanner said, gesturing.
xB sat down slowly, crossing his legs on the cold stone of the outer End island.
All around them, the chorus trees swayed. The Endermen, xB noticed, were all keeping a very generous distance- far more than they normally would for a player.
Huh.
Tanner smiled.
“Are you sitting?” they rasped, “I have…problems with vision.”
“You’re blind, right? Yeah, I’m sitting.” xB said.
“Yes, I’m blind. Very good. So. Inside of you now is a power that cannot be quelled. It cannot be quenched. It is…vastness, beyond all measure. Do you know what it means, Crowned One, to be “Void”?”
“…Uh, yeah. Generally means you’re dead.” xB said, blinking and looking around nervously.
Tanner chuckled.
“That…is the surface interpretation. Let me share more with you. “Void” is the term for the empty stuff of the between-worlds, the emptiness that permeates all aspects of reality. Please look at your hand, would you?”
xB looked down at his hand. Yep, still there, four fingers and a thumb with some hairy knuckles and a stupid scar from when he was carving a pumpkin. Right there on the middle finger, plain as day.
As he was about to ask what the point of this was, Tanner spoke again.
“Your hand is not solid. It appears solid, because in a practical sense it is. But on a deeper level, it is made of empty space. There is a gulf between the nucleus of an atom, where protons and neutrons dwell, and the outer shell where electrons probably exist. That gulf is a Void- an emptiness. Every atom of every cell of your entire body contains the Void within it.”
xB blinked. He stared at his hand, and then jerked his head up to look at Tanner.
“Okay but- like- wait. What’s this got to do with me not summoning black holes again?”
“You must crawl before you can run, Crowned One.” Tanner explained pleasantly.
“Sure.” xB said slowly, biting his lip.
What the hell was this Tanner guy actually after?
“The Void is thus everywhere and everything. And its victory is absolute. We praise it, we feed ourselves to it, and it feeds us in turn. Every bite of nourishment is a gift of the Void. And in return, all it asks is a life lived in service to it. But it matters not. All things will return to the Void in time. When the last star dies alone in the dark, the Void will then, at last, be free.”
xB stared.
“Wait, what-?” he said-
“Listen well, Crowned One. It all ends in ice. The Void’s ultimate truth is this- all things come to it. Some follow the teachings of Entropy, the inevitable decay of all things that ever were and ever will be into a cosmic soup of dead photons in eternal emptiness. The Master is one such aspect of that emptiness- the Master we worship is entropy incarnate. The Void is Entropy. It is Decay. It is finality. The end of all things comes from the Void. Do you understand?”
xB nodded slowly, before remembering Tanner was- oh yeah. uh.
“Yeah, I- A lot of this sounds like dogma, dude-“
“Dogma is the words of the weak-minded who cannot comprehend the truth.” Tanner said softly, “But you are correct. I will…simplify. A trillion trillion trillion years ago, a universe burst into being. It lived and it died, and it left itself as an endless, empty abyss, a cosmic soup. The Master told us that this was a paradise. A verdant garden, where the Blessed Ones could sleep and dream of brighter things. But there was…a disruption. A vile usurper came to this empty, blessed place, and filled it with light and noise once more. And with that, the cycle began again. We- and the Master in concert- await that end to dawn again.”
“Uh. Okay. And how- does any of that- relate to me not blowing myself up?” xB asked weakly. He was…so lost and confused. Tanner seemed rather animated as he ranted, gesturing his hands- if xB was a betting man (which he was) he’d have put money on Tanner quoting something, probably a text of some sort.
“Ah, yes. My…apologies. I had promised…yes. Well, the truth of the matter is that the Master…hm. Our sects, you see, are different, Crowned One. Once, there were many. Most fizzled out, unsatisfied, unable to reach the Master and their glory. Some succeeded, and vainly asked for the power of the gods. They got it, and destroyed themselves as a result. But we- our sects- asked for something different. My sect asked for life. Yours asked for safety. And in the end, it’s come down to us. That power- the power of the Void- rests in you. Because yours is the last living head of us all, and a living head is the only one that can wear the crown.”
“ Uh-” xB said flatly, “And uh, what- okay. And my dad passed- so they must have- said no to the crown, then, when they were-? So it’s…mine? By default? So since I’m the last one that’s left of this…sect thing…then I’m the only one who’s left, so I’m the Crowned One, because a living head has to- is this all right? Am I getting it?”
“You are understanding, yes.”
“Okay. So. Again. I am begging you- no, you know what? I got the crown, right? I’m the Crowned One? Alright, cool. So, Tanner, with the power vested in me as the King or whatever, please for the love of GOD tell me how to control this.”
“I will if you swear to not mention that false diety again.”
“Look, man, everyone says God. It’s just some thing. It’s like, the- the language, right? Some vague religious thing, we all just- anyway. Sure.”
“Good. Then…I will cease the…education. I would like you to close your eyes…and drift.”
xB did, putting his hands in his lap.
“I assume you have.”
“Yeah, I have.”
“Good. I am…outside of…the Master’s embrace. It is difficult to…perceive, without their advanced senses aiding me, here. Now…I want you to understand what it means, the End Of Time. Every atom of your body and every atom of the world you have touched will be gone, decayed into photons soaring through an abyssal soup. Do you understand this?”
“Yeah. That’s…depressing, but I- I kinda get it?”
“Good. now…think for a moment of yourself. I want you to feel calm. Think of places you have felt calm. Think of your calmness and your joys. Is it difficult for you, Crowned One?”
xB frowned, crumpling his brow. Yeah, it was a smidge difficult, actually.
“Yeah, it’s a little…hard to get into the zone when you’ve been repeatedly reminded that everything you love is gonna be nothing but light on the breeze in a few howeverlongs.” He said, opening his eyes to glare at Tanner.
“Perhaps it will help if I…elaborate. The breadth of time between now and then is so long, Crowned One, that to those on a mortal timescale, it will not happen. ‘Eternity’ is a concept that humans have struggled with for as long as we have been able to look at the stars. It all ends in ice, yes, but the time we have is so vast that it is possible to make a meaningful difference, not just now, but for all eternity to come.”
xB hummed thoughtfully, letting his eyes fall closed.
“So…the void is powerful, it’s everywhere, it’s going to eat everything for a second time…and that won’t happen for such a long time that…huh. Okay. So…”
“So think, Crowned One, of peace. What makes you calmest?”
xB hummed.
“You ever been swimming? Just floating on your back in the water. Your ears are under the surface, so the sounds above are muffled. It’s so quiet. It’s peaceful. You flick your hand, and you move- effortless. I love that feeling, the water supporting all of me. I wish…”
“Good. Now focus on that peace, that calm. You must find acceptance and calm. The Void is not a fire that burns and blazes from hate and rage. The Void is not fuelled by greed. There are two things that fuel the Void. Peace…and hunger. So if you wish to tame your gift, to use it as you see fit, you must channel peace and be calm as a placid pond while you do.”
“See? Was that so hard?” xB snarked, and Tanner chuckled.
“I want you to try speaking some words with me, now. In fact… can you recite for me the words you know? Your prayer?”
“Absolutely not.” xB said flatly, “That’s my ritual. It’s my thing. I’m not letting you turn THAT into a weird wizard show with black holes and your frickin’ bible-thumping rants.”
“Very well.” Tanner said, “Then we will contemplate the peace. Reach inside yourself, as you did before. Do you feel your power?”
“I…feel something? It’s in my back, all up my…what is that?” xB wondered, and Tanner smiled.
“Good. Feel the power inside of yourself. We will focus on something small for now. Reach in, and draw from it, like a cup into a stream. Picture, if you will, a sphere. Palm-sized…”
“We’re making a black hole again, aren’t we.”
“Yes, we are. Focus on it, inside of yourself. Breathe into it. Let it grow….”
Tanner could feel the faint tug on their skin, the distortion and warmth that was the calling card of a small black hole blooming to life in front of them. The tang of unearthly magics laced the air- and they smiled in pride.
“Now, breathe. A snowball on a campfire, it should melt away, shrink, slowly…”
xB grunted, and Tanner felt as the heat ebbed, as the small black hole vanished into the air from whence it came. The cold air of the end filled the gap, and Tanner swelled with pride.
“Good, good. I think you should practice that, if you can.”
“What if I lose control of it again?” xB asked, his eyes still closed.
“You won’t. You know what to do, Crowned One. If it gets too big, simply force it to be smaller. You should practice that- it’s very basic, a building block of something greater…”
xB’s communicator, strapped to his wrist, buzzed. He opened his eyes.
“Ignore it.” Tanner said, and they smiled.
“Now, we should focus on something…else. Travelling through the Void allows you to reach any world, anywhere, albeit a world with a hole in the bedrock. With Void travel, you cannot be chained down, since all worlds are surrounded by the Void in all her majesty. I want you to focus your power on this spot, here. Can you feel the ground beneath you? Can you feel the Void, pulsing in the heart of every atom of stone?”
“It…tastes…like…bread.” xB said slowly, “Why do I- why do I taste bread? Why would it-?”
“The human brain takes in information in ways it can understand. This world smells and tastes of bread to you; you can use the scent of other worlds to trail them through the Void. Once you become proficient, a single item dropped from another world is enough for you to find them across the depths of space. You can sniff them out like a bloodhound.”
xB’s eyes shot open.
“Tanner.” He said flatly, “What item did you use to find me?”
“I- what? Crowned One, I don’t-“
“Tanner. If you need an item to find someone. Then how did you find me? Because we’ve never met before.” xB said, his voice dropping an octave.
“I- Crowned One, I don’t think that’s really relevant-“
xB pulled his sword out and gently rested it against Tanner’s throat.
“Tanner.” xB said softly, “What aren’t you telling me?”