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Earl's hand clamped around his wrist, and Valor jumped, jerking his hand away reflexively as he looked up at him.

"What?"

"Please do not walk off the edge." Earl nodded to the edge of the bridge they were crossing, and Valor grudgingly acknowledged the drop.

"I won't."

"Forgive me if I prefer to be safe rather than sorry." Earl didn't let go, and Valor gave up, turning his attention back to marvelling over the End.

The foreign dimension was just as eerie as it was beautiful, which didn't stop Valor from gaping at everything in sight. The land was made up of islands that floated in space, distant stars winking at them from both above and below. On these floating islands were towering structures that seemed to need no support, balancing more and more precariously the farther up they went. They seemed to mimic these odd, purple trees that grew in clumps over the landscape. The trees were the only visible plant life, but the sprawling towns that the endermen lived in made up for the empty space.

Currently, they were crossing a huge bridge that was built between two large islands. They had initially appeared in Earl's home, but the enderman had informed him that they would need to speak to his superiors. It was quite the distance to teleport, so they walked.

As they neared the edge of the bridge, Valor began to see other endermen, and he noted how much they varied in height. Some were nearly as short as he was, while others were several feet taller than Earl. It was quite intimidating. Among humans, he was usually quite tall.

A few of the endermen gave him curious looks as he and Earl passed by, but never looked at him for long. None of them seemed aggressive, thankfully. Valor had never had the misfortune of being attacked by an enderman, but his father had told him that they could be quite dangerous if provoked. He focused on the path ahead instead.

Earl led him up to the largest building, which peaked in several spires at the top. Valor nearly walked into a doorway craning his neck to try and see the top. Once they entered, Earl was forced to teleport them up the next few floors, as there was no easy footpath. Valor was sure that they rarely had visitors.

Once they reached a large, simply-decorated room, Earl stopped him with a hand on his shoulder.

"I need to speak with my sovereigns." He told him, then teleported, leaving Val with no idea where he had gone. The young man milled around the room once, pickaxe swinging absently at his side, before taking a seat on a high bench. He wondered who the last human to see this room had been. Had his father ever been here before?

The End was very quiet, he noted as he sat in the waiting room. The overworld, which he was accustomed to, was almost never silent. Even if there were no people around, there was always the wind, and birds and beasts and insects. Here, there was nothing, not even the slightest breeze.

Earl appeared before him again, making him jump.

"Come." Taking him by the wrist again, Earl teleported with him to another room, this one with a high, domed ceiling. Before him stood a small haunting of endermen, dressed in rich garments, the tallest of which wearing a silver diadem. Before Valor had a chance to react, the being lowered himself in a bow.

"Void's greetings." He addressed him. Valor blinked in astonishment. "Yes, we know your language."

"I see." Valor hurriedly bowed back. "A pleasure to meet you."

"The same to you."

"This is Valor, the son of Herobrine." Earl introduced him.

"Herobrine is known to us." The crowned enderman nodded. "Where is he?" Valor's grip tightened on the handle of his pickaxe.

"He's dead."

"I see." The Enderman's gaze lowered to the purple bricks. "I am saddened to hear that."

"His spirit resides in this pickaxe." Valor continued, lifting it. "He is still with us. Ordinarily, I can see him and hear his voice, but only through the use of a magic amulet that I wear." The enderman's gaze strayed to his neck. "Which is missing." Val added. "That is why I'm here."

"You wish for our help to recover it?"

"Yes." Valor dipped his chin in a nod. "If that is at all possible."

"Do you know where it is?"

"No. All I know is that it was stolen less than a day ago."

"Your units of time mean nothing to us." The enderman shook his head. "We have no 'days' here." Valor blinked, looking to the window. The light had not changed, and the sky was still a dull, twinkling indigo.

"Ah, I apologize." Val hesitated, then gave up. "It has not been long."

"Do you have any means of tracking it, or the thief?"

"No."

"Then I'm afraid there is little we can do." The enderman bowed his head. "Without a lead, we can do little more than you. I'm sorry." Valor felt his heart sink into his stomach, and his gaze lowered to the floor.

"I see. Thank you for your time." What was he supposed to do? Could he track it down himself? Perhaps it would end up in the hands of an unscrupulous individual who he would be tracking down anyway, though that would be unreasonably convenient. And it might change hands over time…

"Although," The crowned enderman interrupted his thoughts, and he looked back up. "There is a prisoner of ours, a sorcerer, who may be more knowledgeable on the subject." Valor's face brightened a bit.

"Could I see him?"

"Of course." The crowned enderman turned to the others on either side of him. "Please take him to the prisons to see ℸ ̣ ⍑ᒷ !¡𝙹ᓭᓭᒷᓭᓭᒷ↸ 𝙹リᒷ." Valor blinked at the unfamiliar words, but the endermen understood readily enough, and one stepped towards him, grasping his arm. Valor barely had enough time to manage a thank-you before the end swirled around him, his host winking out of sight.

Valor clutched at his bare arms as his guide spoke to the prison guards, nervous gaze flicking around at his surroundings. Almost as soon as they had teleported, a crushing sense of unease and danger had settled over him, which, coupled with the strange and unfamiliar surroundings, had him feeling very paranoid. He nearly jumped when his guide turned around to look at him.

"Come." The enderman beckoned him inside, and Valor followed him through the opened gates. The enderman descended a staircase, and, distracted, Valor nearly followed him before he realized where he was going.

"Wait." He stammered, halting on the top step. His guide paused, turning to look at him.

"What is the matter? There is no danger, he is behind bars."

"I…" Val's gaze was trained on the dark passageway at the bottom of the stairs. "I… don't like being underground." Every since he'd died in Null's dungeons, just the thought of being below the earth would make him shudder. The enderman cocked his head slightly.

"I assure you, it is perfectly safe. We will not be very deep." He held out a hand, insistent, and Valor reluctantly followed. It was worth it to have the chance of getting the amulet back…

As he descended, a cold chill came over Valor, causing him to shiver. Surely it was just his own anxiety, right? Not the chill that came from…

The enderman approached a reinforced door, motioning for Valor to wait before opening it a bit and slipping inside. Valor busied himself studying the walls, trying to distract himself from the endstone above him. They certainly had the "prison" look down, dark stone lining the walls in intricate patterns. He wondered how long it took to build and decorate this place. Already it struck him as a much better place to die than Null's prisons.

Val heard a rattle of chains, and he turned back to the door as it opened, only to take a heavy step back in alarm.

Null was there.

The sorcerer was dragged out onto the floor in the hallway by the enderman, white eyes glowing from his pitch-black face immediately locking onto Valor. Val was frozen, holding his breath as he gazed upon the man who killed him. What was he doing here? And how could the endermen believe that he could help him?!

As he stared, though, Valor started to calm at the sorry state of his former murderer. Null had heavy, black shackles locked around his wrists, which kept him on the ground even without the enderman holding him still. He was dressed in rags, all that remained of his ornate robes, and the black fog around him had diminished enough to reveal his gaunt and emaciated form. Did they not feed him…?

Null coughed, and Valor stiffened again as he spoke.

"Son of Herobrine. I never thought I would be happy to see you again."

"You two have history?" The enderman questioned.

"These loathsome creatures speak in gibberish." Null gestured faintly with a thin hand. "I haven't been able to hold a conversation with another living being since the night I struck you down." Valor scowled, turning slightly to address the Enderman.

"He killed me."

"Nether, not you too." Null groaned as the enderman stared in confusion. "I suppose that was too much to ask for."

"What are you doing here, Null?" Valor spat. The captive sorcerer raised a brow.

"Do you not remember? These accursed end-dwellers whisked me away before I could finish you off." He nodded towards his guard, and Valor frowned. He'd blocked out most of that fight… or maybe it was the blows to the head. "A better question is," Null continued. "What are you doing here?" Valor grimaced. Oh, this wouldn't be fun to say.

"I need your help." He gritted out. Null's other brow went up.

"My help?" He confirmed. Valor nodded. "Oh. Oh, that's-" he broke into raspy laughter, which quickly descended into coughing. Valor took a step back, frowning at his state.

"Are you… alright?"

"Your concern is touching." Null spat on the ground. "You try being locked in a void-prison without ever seeing the sunlight for a year and see how you like it."

"Why would you want to see the sun?" Valor gestured to his pitch-black body. "Wouldn't you… dissolve, or something?"

"You wish. Oh no wait, you don't, you need my help." Null leaned his chin in his hand, sitting up on the floor of the hall. "What, pray tell, do you need my help with?" Valor's hand crept up to where his amulet should hang.

"My amulet was stolen. I need your help to get it back."

"Amulet?" Null echoed. "The amulet that revived you after I left your corpse to rot?" He scoffed, a grin on his face. "Why- why do you expect me to help you with that? And how could I even do so?"

"You're a sorcerer." Valor shot back. "Couldn't you track it down?"

"Oh, you wish to use me as a magical bloodhound." Null gestured sarcastically. "Of course, of course I could. But again, why would I help you?"

"It would get you out of the End." Valor pointed out. Null rolled his eyes.

"Only to be sent back right after, to live out my endless days confined to this dark cell."

"I would think you'd feel right at home." Valor snipped.

"Oh I'm sure you would." Null crossed his legs. "Drive a harder bargain, son of Herobrine, and maybe I'll consider it." Valor clenched his jaw, hard, looking to the enderman guard.

"We could attempt to threaten him." The enderman suggested. "But there is little we can do that is worse than his current situation." Val grimaced, looking back down at Null.

"Help me get my amulet back, and I'll set you free."

"You cannot do that." The enderman interrupted quickly. Valor gave him a pleading look.

"That's a lofty promise." Null looked down, examining his nails. "You aren't even my captor."

"Please." Valor begged his escort. "At least let me speak to your leaders about it."

"Do not make a promise you cannot keep." The enderman warned him. Valor just scowled, looking back to Null.

"If you help me recover my amulet, I'll set you free." He held out a hand towards the sorcerer. "Deal?" The enderman was silent as Null considered this, giving his nemesis a wary look. Finally, he reached out, cold hand fitting into Val's own.

"Deal."