Chapter Nine. Red, red, red, and red.
Saturn led them to a short hallway. At the end was a small black door, from it whispers filled the hallway. They watched from the entrance as a woman opened the door, she paused in the doorway, lifting a large leather bag over her shoulder. As she secured it closed, the enderman felt something in his chest. Even though he only saw a glimpse of something black and purple, he knew.
She had the egg.
After the woman was satisfied, she twisted the bag do it was behind her. She ran into the room, disappearing from view.
Without thinking, the enderman grabbed the boys arm teleporting into the room. A large portal made of obsidian, a purple portal whispering its magic in the center.
'Our magic. How did the humans get it?' He thought, though disregarded it, as he turned to the boy.
"The murder as the egg. We must go." The boy nodded in agreement.
Together, the leaped through the portal the world melting away.
It was replaced red, fire and lava replacing the sky and water. The air hot and thick with sulfur. Soft light stemming from an odd gold stone, large creatures that looked like blobs of magma stared at them with burnt eyes.
"Is this the Neather?" the enderman asked, not sure to be fasitated or scared. Though he took neither of the feeling as he saw the boy on the ground. His eyes pale and dead.
He spased his arms, tearing at the ground with his nails. His skin that touched the Neatherrake burned and blistered.
"Saturn?" the enderman asked, worry striking in his voice. He watched his friend wither in pain, helpless to do anything.
Defenseless, vulnerable, totally helpless. It reminded him what he was, just as this boy was just...
a child.
After what seemed like years, before the boy grew still. His breath returning to normal. It was a time before he opened his eyes again, a week simle reassuring he was okay.
"Saturn…" the enderman asked, silent tears shaking his body.
"I'll- be okay. I think I is- just the teleporting." the boy explained in a whisper chaugh.
"but we need to get the egg." the boy said trying to sit up, though just fell again to the ground.
"Here…" the enderman picked the boy up gently, surprised by how light he was, and put him on his back. The boy hung on, leaning his head on the endermans shoulder.
"Thanks" he whispered.
The enderman ran down the cobblestone path the humans had set up, he didn't dare teleport in fear of Saturn having another fit. There was something in him that said, after the last one, the boy wouldn't survive another.
The thought of the lively boy laying cold like his mother pierced is hard with something he couldn't describe.
It wasn't long before they reached a thin bridge leading to a tall fortress. Its red bricks lowering to the ceiling. It was surrounded by an ocean of lava, lake of fire falling from the overhead caverns. The path ended at the end of the clift, a straight drop to the hard neatherrake below.
The enderman stepped out onto the bridge, when a terrible screech filled the air. A large ghost like thing floated to them, its face in permanent sorrow.
"None must enter the fortress of 'Him'" It spoke in a whisper of a million voices.
"We garde and wait what for return of 'Him'" a different dominant voice said.
"Odd, It has been a long time since an Enderman came here."
"Thats because it has been a long time since the reign of Enderman."
The boy stirred, looking up at the ghost.
"Is that a Ghast? I thought they were all dead." he said in a tired voice.
"The history of man is greatly flawed."
"The truth is that we all live in one."
"Our bodys died in the war of worlds"
"But we live on and on"
"Why not just die though?" the boy asked, laying his head back on the enderman. His eyes gazing up at the ghast.
"We still have a purpose"
"A purpose to remember"
"And to mourn."
"Mourn?" the enderman asked
"To mourn 'Him'"
"We await the return of him."
"He will give us the cooling wind"
The enderman backed away, growing unsure of the situation.
"We do not mean to disturb the fortress of 'him' we only need the thing that has been taken from us." the enderman said warily.
"None must enter the fortress of 'Him'"
"But we will give you another kindness."
"The enderman where once called the Kindred, as they connect all worlds with their magic and created peace through there kinship."
"Even humans, though misunderstanding of the Kindred they lived in coexistence."
"Until one human grew greedy."
"And that human slayed a Kindred."
"She consumed the purl…"
"the soul of the Kindred"
"She became impure"
"Unatrule"
"Hartless"
"She became a Witch"
"She killed hundreds-"
"Millions of Kindred"
"Eating the souls of each, become more and more powerful"
"The rulers of all the world, plead to the gods for help."
"The oldest, Notch, refused to interfere himself"
"Instead he sent the younger god, his brother"
"He fought bravely"
"And gracefully"
"He walked right up to her door."
"She welcomed him warmly."
"She gave him the blades that would kill her"
"But instead of killing her, he listened to her story."
"And found pity in his heart."
"He held her prisoner for three days-"
"And three nights."
"And through that time they fell in love."
"He also fell in to her dark magic."
"He became the most powerful creature in existence."
"Or almost"
"The Great Dragon still lived"
"So he faced her."
"and fell to her."
"And with him, the Kindred and there mother fell from the land of gods"
"Banished to a dimension without a name"
"So they call it the End."
The enderman only half listened, searching for an opening. The boy however lisented adamantly.
"So thats what happend."
"Mans history is greatly flawed."
The enderman looked up at the ghast, feeling his defeat.
"Now may we go?" he asked
"No."
His heart raced.
"Why?"
"Because, we have prepared you for death."
"So now you must die."
The enderman reached up, steading Saturn on his back. With giant leaps he dashed across the length between them and the bridge. Rain like fire falling from the sky as the ghast screamed, spitting fire in an attempt to stop them.
But just as the bridge crumbled under his feet, he twisted taking saturn into his arms as the air behind them burst into flame.