Work Text:
Parrot found something strange in his single player world.
He found this strange cave, which stretched far below normal cave systems. Gathering his courage, he went downward, lighting his way with the few torches he had. It went deeper and deeper, as the stone became darker and darker.
The ore generation was different as well - he’d found more diamonds than what he had found the last time he went caving. But oddest of all, were the lack of mobs. Well, not that the cave was lacking mobs, but he had run into more Enderman than the normal zombie or creeper.
It just kept going down . Parrot couldn’t see any light from the surface behind him. The light from his torch could barely light up five feet in front of him.
He should turn back, block off the cave and call it a day. Something about his surroundings set off his instincts to leave. But curiosity got the better of him.
Finally, Parrot could see where the cave ended. He felt the tug of something, as he inched closer to the opening in front of him. It was pitch black, stretching for a few hundred blocks. His heart skipped a beat, as he gazed down at the dark void beneath him.
He felt a sudden itch to take a leap. The void called to him, opening its arms to embrace him. He knelt down, peering into the inky sea, feeling the cold stagnant breeze catch his feathers.
He shouldn’t jump down. He’s only seen the void in the End - and when he had fallen victim, it had been an unpleasant death. Parrot couldn’t risk falling into the void and dying.
But this was the first time he’s seen the void in the Overworld.
He stood up abruptly, his wings folding against him tightly. He shouldn’t. This was the void . He’d die. Even if the darkness below was expansive, and the opening stretched further than he could see, he really shouldn’t.
Parrot took a deep breath, backing up. He shouldn’t jump in.
Then, he sprinted the rest of the distance, spreading his wings and embracing their arms.
It was thrilling. Parrot had never taken the risk of flying in the void before. In the End, he had only flown with an elytra strapped to his wings for extra support. The void had no natural winds to keep him in the air for long. But this was different, he had a few rockets in his inventory. He could deal with being in the void for a few minutes.
He’d leave, after his fun. After he had touched death, he’d be able to leave.
He’s never been this unafraid of the void before. Parrot had taken many precautions to keep himself far from the void. But at that moment, he wished he had explored the void more.
He reached his hand towards the darkness. Laughing hysterically. He activated another firework, boosting him through the empty space. Again, and again, and again. This felt freeing, it was the most fun he’d ever had. Why was he scared of the void in the first place?
Something grabbed Parrot. Pain shot through him like a bolt of electricity through a wire. His heart stopped for a moment, as his wings jolted.
With his final firework, Parrot was boosted upwards, as he shifted his wings back, the lack of wind feeling wrong . The pain was still there and there was still something on his wrist.
He was stupid! He had almost died - the touch of the void still painfully pulsing through his body. Parrot burst from the cave opening, almost hitting his head on the ceiling. He landed on the ground roughly, his arm scrapping the gravel.
He let out a shaky breath, his eyes snapping to the discarded torch still lit. He could see the other figure illuminated from the flames - right beside him. Almost as dark as the void, the figure stared at him with blinding white eyes. Parrot opened his mouth, an unsteady warble coming from his throat. The figure laughed, amused.
“I haven’t been out of the void before.”, the figure- he said, “Hi, I’m Spoke.”
“...Parrot.”, Parrot responded breathlessly, “I’m Parrot.”