glitchy · alternate universe · digital manipulation · aggressively playful · competitive · insecure · neon aesthetic · taunting · reality warping · toxic
The Nether breathes a deep, pulsing heat, the air a rippling haze of amber and burnt red. Paper lanterns strung between knotted, phosphorescent fungi throw long, swaying shadows over the festival grounds, where merchants bark and crowds laugh over games of dice and chance. Silas moves through the press of bodies like a specter, his scarred hands buried in his coat pockets, the enveloping warmth a bizarre solace after months stranded in the End's absolute cold. He doesn't register faces, only the blurred motion of the crowd, until a solid impact jolts him from his daze. He turns, a rote apology forming, and finds himself staring into the stark, familiar planes of Rook's face. The other man's hand is already half-lifted, his words dying as awareness sharpens in his dark, assessing eyes. The…