My Writetober 2020

Day 30: Voidlings

"Hey Xisuma?"

"Yeah Mumbo?"

"Are there others... Like you?"

Xisuma turned to face his friend. "What do you mean by that?"

Mumbo hesitated. "Like, voidlings. Players who came to be in the End, who have an attachment to that dimension. Like um.. you."

"Well, I never did see many others aside from my brother. All voidlings are unique. Many of them prefer to be alone, and don't like being near overworld players." Xisuma met Mumbo's eyes. "The last time I saw a voidling other than Ex was when I was ten."

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Mumbo paused as he walked past the portal back to the overworld. One of the strangest things about this particular world was the lack of a dragon egg. When they'd defeated the dragon, all they got was a pair of damaged elytra, no egg in sight. It wasn't like they ever had a use for dragon eggs, so it wasn't that big of deal.

But he still wondered what had ever happened to it.

Mumbo shook his head and set off a rocket, making his way to the nearby end-cities. He just came here to end-bust.

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Mumbo found himself endbusting more than usual, finding it surprisingly calming. 

That wasn't the only reason though.

Lately, he'd been catching glimpses of a wing or tail, out of the corner of his eye when he was sifting through chests or organizing his inventory.

Today, he wanted to find out what it was.

So, the next time he caught a glimpse, he was quick with the slowness potion. Tossing it in the direction before sprinting over to see.

Even still, he only caught a glance, the slowness potion only doing so much.

A small figure. Caramel blonde hair. A voidling.

A voidling who had ender-dragon traits.

A realization hit Mumbo. That's what had happened to the dragon egg. It had hatched.

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Time and time again, Mumbo would catch the voidling spying on him, admittedly from a greater distance now.

Mumbo had apologized for the potion, and the voidling hadn't answered back, only giving him a nod before darting out of sight.

That's what prompted him to ask Xisuma.

The answer didn't help much though.

But Mumbo did his best to show he wasn't a threat to the voidling. Eventually, after some time, the Voidling watched from less and less afar.

The voidling looked to be a young teen, though he was probably barely a year old. Mumbo knew dragons matured in a much different way than players, so he wasn't that surprised.

And at this point, Mumbo hadn't told anyone else.

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Mumbo was woken up in the middle of the night by a shriek. Jumping out of bed and grabbing his sword, Mumbo rushed outside, ready to come to his fellow hermit's aid.

He was shocked to see the voidling, cornered by a zombie.

Acting without thinking, Mumbo ran his sword through the Zombie, poofing it into some exp and a single piece of rotten flesh.

Mumbo quickly sheathed his sword and looked at the voidling.

The voidling was shivering and trembling in front of him, clutching his side. Mumbo could see blood seeping out, and realized this was something not caused by the zombie. Zombies beat you black and blue, but they never make you bleed.

"Uh-uhm, I'm gonna get some healing items, okay? I'll be right back." Mumbo stammered, dashing back into his base. He quickly rummaged in his chests for a healing potion and bandages, rushing back out side when he found them.

He handed the potion the the voidling. "Drink, it'll help."

The boy seemed to contemplate before decided he was in no position to question it. He quickly swallowed the potion in a few gulps, Mumbo handing him the bandages. The boy quickly wrapped up his side, wincing as he tried to stand up.

That was when Mumbo noticed his wings. They were a little shredded, not beyond repair, but bad enough to keep the voidling grounded.

"Wait! Um, it's dangerous out here. At least stay the night?"

The voidling turned back to him before nodding.

Mumbo let out a small sigh of relief, leading the boy back inside. The voidling curled up on the couch, falling asleep quickly.

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"Xisuma?"

"Yeah?"

Mumbo fidgeted. "If I told you I found the missing dragon egg, would you believe me?"

"You found it?!" Xisuma was certainly surprised.

"Yeah, sorta." Mumbo walked Xisuma back to his base. "It's a bit of a long story but uh..."

Laughter echoed through the building. Footsteps raced down a hall, a dragon hybrid leaping into Mumbo's arms with a delighted squeal.

"Xisuma, I'd like you to meet Grian. A voidling who hatched from the missing dragon egg."