Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

“I love you Mo-…Nexus… even if you don’t know it yet.”
Sun spoke through the raging purple fire. His brother, reduced to just a cloak held up by dark energy, growled under his breath. The forest around them rustled with wind, yet there was a lack of birds. No life existed here. It was the perfect prison for Nexus. Somewhere where no one could hurt him again.
Sun hadn’t wanted to do this. He wanted nexus to come home. He wanted him to be okay. He wanted to be a family again. But after seeing the way nexus burned down magic protections just to try to kill him, he knew that had become simply a fantasy.
“You won’t leave me here!”
The being wearing his brother's name yelled, the fire growing up to Sun's eyes. He took a step back.
“You coward! You can’t just drop me here like trash!” Dark power accumulated into his hands, the fire spread to surrounding trees. This whole forest would burn soon enough.
“Nexus, I don’t have a choice.” He pleaded, shifting the small device in his hand. Once he presses that button he can’t go back. He’ll never see his brother again.
“Goodbye brother.”
“NO.”
His voice shook the surrounding nature, like an earthquake. Sun took an unsteady step back as air moved past him toward the cloaked energy.
Nexus raised his hand, the fire following like a tornado had blown it straight toward Sun. He raised a hand- the one carrying the device- to protect his face. A bright flash filled the area, a mix of suns magic, dark star power, and faulty rushed technology. It was loud, reminding Sun of the sound that would follow whenever he told the kids at the daycare they’d run out of candy. Sun watched as it all came straight toward him, shutting his eye tightly in preparation for pain.

Then silence.
Deafening silence.
No pain, no feeling.
When Sun reopened his eyes, there was nothing there.
At all.
No trees, no fire, no nexus. Not even a sky. Just a dark expanse.
Something that Moon had talked about before, the place between dimensions that nothing could enter. The void.

The place that no one had ever entered or escaped from.

Chapter Text

He stared into the inky darkness for a while, his mind trying to fathom where he was. His feet weren’t touching any ground, he was just hovering. Somehow the lack of anything was suffocating.
“Okay, okay this is fine. I’ll just press the-“
The device was completely gone. Reduced to ashes practically. Sun almost stopped breathing for a second before laughing anxiously. He dropped the ashes in his hand into the dark expanse. They vanished instantly.
“Still fine, I have my portals.”
He checked his arm- oh god.
His arm was heavily damaged. His entire right side was actually. A lot of his casing had been taken off, a lot of his internal wiring and frame work too. His portal placer on his wrist was obliterated.
Sun brushed the right side of his face. Heavily damaged.
How did he not feel that? Were his pain receptors damaged? He still would feel something.
“Shit. Of course this happens, when can anything ever go right?”
He laughs, moving his hand to his retracting rays. Tugging on them.
Panicking begins. He starts looking for ways out. He tries brute forcing it, hitting his wrist and then waving it in pain. He tries magic. Should work right? Wrong.
The small flicker of a portal vanishes into the ether immediately.
He tries pleading to whatever god or deity may control this place. He tries asking for Dark Sun, for some reason.
“What do I do. What do I do-“

His breathing- well, simulated breathing- increased quickly. He could hear his “heart” pounding in his “ears”. He was stuck in the void. No way out, no way to contact his family. Why did he have to take that stupid gadget, why did he have to live like this at all?! This entire situation was so stupid, his whole life was so stupid. Why was he even fighting anymore? To live? What has living ever done for him except take more of his family? It probably wouldn’t matter if he even made it back, another issue would just come up again. At this point he should just give up. Stop trying. It never worked anyway-

He slapped himself, snapping out of that mindset instantly. He thought back to his brothers words two years ago- wow only two years. Feels like forever ago-.
“If you start thinking like that, I’ll unplug you now.”
And that worked. For now.
He sighed, releasing the death grip he had on his rays. Ow. An old habit he’d picked up from when Eclipse was in his head
.
“No magic, no tech, no solid ground. I’ve had worse odds…”
That was a blatant lie and everyone knew it.

Sun waved his hand in the void. There wasn’t even the sensation of air, it was just nothing. A really weird feeling. It was like back when his and Moon's processors malfunctioned and they couldn’t feel anything. That was good for him, it helped him avoid the shocks whenever Moon tried to switch.

Sun tried moving, though he didn’t know if he was going anywhere. He was just there. In an empty darkness. It was kind of like the inside of his own head. He’d been there a lot. Dark and empty. Except for the cotton candy colored clouds that existed for some odd reason.
Anyway, back to testing. He was going to be doing this for a while. Or no time at all. Does time move in the void? Moon would probably know. He’d probably tell him all about how exactly time would or wouldn’t change here. Maybe Moon should have been the one to do this. Maybe sacrificing himself for his family wasn’t smart. Monumental idea.
While he floated, testing different things, all he could do was think about Nexus. Is he okay? Did the blast send him in here too? If so, is he going to try to kill him again? Best not to think of that right now. Sun had never been the best at optimism, he’d put in a smile for others but his mind killed him slowly. Right now, he tried his best to think happy thoughts as Terra always said. It failed immediately.
“This is the worst possible scenario.”
Sun grumbled as he untied his remaining wrist ribbon.

Chapter Text

Sun tapped his finger against his arm, inspecting the emptiness. Things Sun had learned so far:
1. Small items or dust disappear instantly.
The bigger the item the longer it took to disappear (Sun tried to ignore the implication of what would eventually happen to him)
2. He could move around, but there was no way to stop if he started spinning.
3. There was zero echo at all, he could yell and it would just be absorbed.
4. Sometimes he saw flashes of light. Hallucinations?
Something Sun had also figured out insanely fast, the void is really boring. Floating there in the nothingness with nothing but your own curiosity and fear does not stimulate the mind well. He was keeping a mental list of everything he learned since he had nothing to write it down with. Sun looked off into the distance, maybe, and made random mouth noises. Anything to occupy his mind.
“This was so stupid. I’m so bored.”
“You could go to sleep.”
He turned his head quickly. A small red animatronic sat crisscross mid air,
“What are you doing here.” He muttered, rubbing his head. These hallucinations. He should have expected it honestly, his mind was bored. Bloodmoon just shrugs, smiling.
“You wanted us here for some reason. We were busy being dead.” The other speaks. His voice was gruff. More aggressive.
“I definitely didn’t. I just want to leave.”
Bloodmoon moves infront of Sun, not letting the man ignore him.
“Too bad. You know you can’t.”
“I don’t know anything. I know my arm and my face hurt.”
“Honestly, we expected better of you sun man. Defeated us and now this? Whining in the void.”
Sun kicks bloodmoon. He vanishes.

His stomach hurt. Curse his upgrade to be able to eat. He tried to ignore it, scratching the paint on his arms. He glances down at the damaged one, inspecting the jagged edges exposing wires.
“I need to get out of here.”

Testing different things had taken its toll on his energy, as had a panic attack or two and facing off against the husk of his brother. He drifted off to sleep, finding it difficult to sleep properly while hovering.

He dreamt of being home. Sitting on the couch with Dazzle as she tried to write a book for him. She called it “my Sun”.
“How’s it coming along Little miss Dear?” He asked, leaning over her shoulder. She grabbed it, hiding it from his view.
“No you can’t see it! It’s a surprise.”
He laughed, leaning back against the couch.
“Okay, I won’t look. Just make sure you get my good side.” He laughed as she rolled her eyes. This little girl was the best thing to happen to him.
Someone rapped at the door, impatient and heavy. He got up, ruffling her hair and walking over.
“Who is it?” He asked through the door, really wishing he didn’t uninstall that doorbell camera now.
“Hey bro bro.” A familiar raspy voice chuckled from behind him- behind him?
He turned around. Nexus was standing there, holding dazzle up by the wrist. Her eyes were purple and lifeless. Similar to how his had been when he died before. When all his dark star energy accumulated into him.
“Nexus?! Let her go!” Fire flickered in his hands, smoke quickly filling his vision. Nexus just laughed.
“Your little magic won’t get me this time, Sun.”
He dropped dazzle to the ground like garbage. Pressing a foot to her back.
“Don’t hurt her, she’s just a kid.”
“An annoying one though. One you care about.”
He put pressure onto her back, the metal began groaning.
“You did this too, right? July 16th, whatever year it was.”
He smiled as more and more noises of protest came from the metal dead body.
“That’s why she’s like this now.”
Sun clenched his fist, staring at the lifeless shell on the ground.
“Get off her.”
“Hm, no.”
Suddenly, her body cracked. It started breaking, oil spilling out. Wait, oil? That’s not-
Blood. That’s blood.
“STOP!” He rushed forward, shoving nexus aside. crouching to her side, he tried to think. Put pressure on the wound, right? But there’s no place to- there’s just a-
Blood continued falling out of her onto the white rug.
“Evelyn, wake up, please sweetie-“
Nexus laughed.
“Still so pathetic, hey brother? What, you gonna freak out and hit me now? Go ahead, try.”
Suns hands shook where they hovered around her. He stood up, moving to punch nexus. He wanted him to feel the pain he caused others. But he couldn’t move.
“That’s right, you can’t.” He laughed, full on cackling.
“You’re still holding onto the idea I’m worth saving.”
Nexus grinned wickedly.
“At the expense of your own daughter.”
As he taunted Sun, fire spread up Nexus’ legs, he had no reaction to it. Just kept laughing.
“You still can’t kill me. Like you did before.”
He burned, turned into smoke and ashes. But his laugh echoed.
Dazzles body was gone. Her voice wasn’t.
“You still feel bad for killing all of us. You still hate that day.”
He turned around, no one there. He knelt down, grabbing his rays. He tugged. As the laughter and the voices continued. He pulled. One broke in half with a painful shock. Then another. They all snapped, and the voices just got louder. Oil in the form of tears washed down his face.
“Stop. Stop stop stop-“
It was suffocating. He was drowning in the noise.

Then he woke up.

Still floating in the inky depths of the void.

Still all alone.

Still crying.

Bloodmoon was sitting there expectantly, waiting for Sun to explain.