Taken- A Dream SMP Fanfic

Chapter Fourteen- The Land of Fire

You cornered Dream on his way to his room that night, after Tommy and Tubbo had gone to their own bedrooms. "I haven't forgotten about your part of the dream," you reminded him firmly. "Tell."

Dream sighed, but didn't protest. Instead, he guided you to the couch. "It's kind of a long story," he tried. You gave him a patient look. "I am fully prepared to sit here until you tell me," you informed him. He glanced ruefully at you. "Unfortunately, I believe that."

"Come on, it can't be that terrible," you said. "Can it?"

He shook his head. "It's not that," he explained. "It's just... I'm not used to discussing my life with others." 

Well, that made sense. Except...

"Not even George?" you asked curiously. 

"That's personal," he said with a sigh. "But no, not really."

"So start now," you said. "I can almost 100% guarantee you'll make it out alive."

He laughed softly. "Alright," he agreed. "I'll give it a try. You said your dream stopped when Nightworld became a realm, right?" You nodded and he continued. "So, that's where mine started. It's kind of hard to describe."

"You can do it," you encouraged. "It'll be easier once you're started."

He took a deep breath. "Okay. Here's what happened."

***

Light flashed as one world melded with another. Strings bound them tightly together. Both planets reacted negatively. Beams of direct sunlight burned through Nightworld, turning it into a wasteland of fire and lava, and stone fortresses that turned red from the heat. The water that fed its surface was gone, chased away by the raging heat. 

Earth was in a different situation. The delicate balance that had held it together was being broken away by this invading planet. Some of its creatures were pulled from its surface and deposited in Nightworld, where they were changed by the realm in order to survive. Simple animals like pigs became more intelligent beings that walked on two feet and had an economy. Hogs were given tough, thick hides that were impervious to fire, just like everything else in the realm. 

Other creatures appeared without having to come from Earth. Beings of fire appeared in the fortresses of red brick that dotted the realm. Skeletons of previous occupants were charred black by soot and flame. Creatures with tentacles and tears floated above everything, blowing balls of fire at anything and everything they saw. The shrieks and moans of these creatures filled the air. Lava dripped from almost every surface and filled every lake and pond and ocean. Fire covered everything else but didn't destroy a thing. After the sun's light scourged Nightworld, all that remained was a red form of cobblestone that burned and burned and never went out. 

Nightworld wasn't Nightworld anymore. It wasn't dark. It wasn't peaceful. It wasn't quiet. It wasn't even a world anymore. It was a realm, linked to some other planet. 

It wasn't Nightworld anymore. Now, it was the Nether. 

In one last desperate attempt to return to what it used to be, the Nightworld that was now the Nether sent all of its energy through the strings that bound it to Earth. The strings vibrated fiercely and some of them finally snapped, detaching from their respective surfaces and stabbing into various spots on Earth. Earthquakes shook the ground wherever they hit.

The largest string, a vibrant purple one, was heading straight for a huge building. It didn't destroy the building, instead phasing through the brick walls and jamming into the huge electronic systems that ran the computers all around the world. The systems sparked and crackled with bolts of purple lightning that got fiercer and fiercer. Then, the lightning converged in one singular system. A system that hosted a well-known Minecraft server. The lightning flashed once more, sparked once more, crackled once more, then... 

All around the world, all at once, every person who was on that server or watching it disappeared.

***

"Aaaaand now we're here," Dream concluded. "I guess the serverworld was trying to tell us why we got transported into the game. Maybe we have to fix it. It sounds like we're stuck here until we do." He paused. "It seems like it didn't just move us into the game," he said. "This is kind of like a combination of Minecraft and Earth. I guess that's why we call it the serverworld."

You didn't answer for a moment, trying to process all the information you'd been given. "So... the Nether is actually Nightworld?" you asked, more to yourself than to Dream, but he nodded anyway. "And the reason we're all here, in the serverworld... are we supposed to fix it? How would we do that?"

Dream shrugged. "I was planning on figuring it out myself, then doing something about it," he admitted. "That's how I usually handle everything."

"Plus it's more dramatic and gives people the illusion that you know everything," you added. 

"I guess so," he agreed, sounding somewhat pleased. "I've never really thought of it that way."

You flopped back on the couch. "Oh brilliant, I've just given Dream another way to act all mysterious and powerful and menacing," you said, more amused than annoyed. He laughed and smacked you with a pillow. You grabbed the pillow and swung it back at him, aiming straight and true for his head. 

Before you realized what was happening, the pillow was on the other side of the room and you were flat on your back. "What just happened?" you asked, bewildered. Dream laughed again. "You tried to hit me with a pillow," he reminded you. "Which you have yet to actually succeed in doing." He extended a hand and you took it. He pulled you to your feet with surprising gentleness and you smiled at him. "I'll get you someday," you promised. 

"Eh," Dream said dismissively. "I'm not holding my breath." You rolled your eyes, but Dream could clearly tell you weren't annoyed. "Come on, let's get some sleep," he said, walking you to your room. "I'll see you in the morning."

He left and you closed your eyes, hoping against hope that sleep would be peaceful this time. Darkness flooded your consciousness and you slept.