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Technoblade whispers to you: See you tonight at sunset
Fundy frowned at his communicator for a few seconds, trying to get his thoughts to catch up. Techno. Wanted to see him. Uh- why?
Shrugging, he clipped the comm back onto his belt. Alright then. Could be fun.
Oh, he should probably reply.
You whisper to Technoblade: sure :D
No reply. Fundy shrugged again, pulling on his coat as he watched the screen. It wasn’t like he had anything particularly better to do today, and he was getting increasingly worried that Charlie was going to make him get a job if he carried on hanging around. He’d tried to explain the concept of a gambling addiction to the slime, but it hadn’t stuck. Apparently he had to do something useful with his life. Ugh.
Fundy checked his hair and tail one last time, grinning to himself. Hey, he wasn’t the sort of wallow in self hatred. He was on a path of self destruction, and loving every second. Wasn’t like dear old dad was coming to save him. This whole place could burn down around his furry ears, and he’d be fine as long as he got a drink and someone to yap to at the end of it.
——————
Technoblade whispers to you: See you tonight after sunset
You whisper to Technoblade: Why?
Technoblade whispers to you: Good question
Technoblade whispers to you: Do you know about the syndicate?
You whisper to Technoblade: yes
Technoblade whispers to you: Good
Callahan frowned at his communicator, strapped to his wrist and accessorised with stickers and charms for all his friends. But not Techno. He didn’t know Techno.
Of course, there was a decent chance this was some sort of ploy. A hostage situation, requests for him to mess with someone’s code, some kind of attempted information trade… honestly, around here, the possibilities were endless.
Still, he was always happy to meet new people.
Where was he right now, anyway? Callahan looked around the plush room, trying to remember. Oh, of course. Kinoko.
Tina poked her head around the door, smiling warmly as she wrapped the cloth around her horns to disguise them as cat ears. She said it was friendlier, and Callahan wasn’t the sort to ask in the first place. He protected her. That was enough.
“Morning, puppy! All good?”
He nodded, smiling in return as he reached for his mask. Tina nodded in acceptance, and disappeared again, humming softly on her way down the corridor.
He wouldn’t be leaving her for long. Techno probably did just want him to give some information on Dream, or something like that. Maybe he’d give it. It wasn’t like he cared too much for their power plays, aside from a mild disdain. It all just seemed so silly, when they could be having fun.
Then again, he’d have fun no matter what. So sure, he’d go see Techno. Could be fun.
——————
Technoblade whispers to you: See you at midnight tonight
“Hold up.” Jack held up his hand, frowning at his comm. “Sorry, just need a moment.”
“Sure.”
Tubbo leaned against his doorway, tugging at his gloves idly as Jack typed fast.
You whisper to Technoblade: what do you want?
No way was he meeting with fucking Technoblade without a damn good reason. Not at all, if he had a choice in the matter.
Technoblade whispers to you: Syndicate business. Niki can be there if you’re scared
You whisper to Technoblade: I’m not scared
Technoblade whispers to you: We’ll see you later
“What’s up, boss man?” Tubbo peered over at him, and Jack realised he must have been scowling.
Flicking his comm off and shoving it in his pocket, he shook his head, trying not to look like he cared.
Because he didn’t care. He didn’t give a fuck what Technoblade did, or what any of them did. He was done with all of it. He was happy to spend the rest of his time building nukes and never seeing any of those idiots ever again.
If he did though, Technoblade should be a hell of a lot more scared of him. Well, maybe he wouldn’t fight Technoblade. But he’d happily tear some of their fancy nations down, just for the hell of it. So take that, blood god, and don’t disrespect him.
“Nothing. What were you saying?”
——————
Techno was waiting, to his credit, patiently. Three people. Three interviews, even if they didn’t know that.
He’d put Callahan in the middle, on the basis that if either of the others encountered him, they might not even know who he was, and his presence could be explained under him running an errand for Dream or some such. Of course, Techno knew the admin would never do anything of the sort.
He’d brought up the name itself with Niki a while back, who’d promised to join him for Jack’s slot, and maybe drop by to see Callahan too. Phil was on his way now, planning to say hi to Fundy, given he hadn’t had a chance to see his grandson last weekend. And Ranboo…
“So, wait.” The enderman frowned, looking around the icy, windy, deserted snowscape outside their little cave. “Who are we waiting for?”
“I’m waitin’ for Fundy. You’re providing emotional support.”
“Oh. I like Fundy?” Ranboo phrased it like a question, then shook his head, trying again. “That- sounds fun.”
Techno glanced down at him, smiling slightly.
“You don’t have to be here. Just thought you might want to see.”
“I- I might go.” Averting his eyes, Ranboo squinted out into the snow, then nodded. “Yeah, I- I’ll be back at the base.”
“Have fun.”
The enderman teleported off, and Techno chuckled under his breath. Strange kid. Nice, but strange.
Fundy arrived with Phil in the end, determinedly not sheltering under his wing. That particularly decision had lead to his orange hair being streaked through with snowflakes, making him honestly just look a painful amount like Wilbur. Techno still waved shortly, and didn’t smile.
“Welcome. Has Zephryus told you why you’re here?”
“Would have if I’d known, mate.” Phil smiled apologetically, then looked over his shoulder. “And sorry, Tech, but I might have to run.”
“No problem. Lethe’s back home too, if you see him.”
Techno nodded a goodbye, and Phil left, trekking back off through their footprints already being filled in with snow. That left him and Fundy.
Gesturing to the bench on the other side of the cave, Techno sat down himself, and waited for Fundy to nervously do the same, foot tapping incessantly as his tail swished through the air.
“Uh- hi? Not sure what I’ve done to you guys, but I’d really rather not die right now. Still got a few debts to try to pay off, and it’s be a shame to leave them waiting.”
As Techno continued to silently study the fox hybrid, he took note of everything. The energy that never quite left him alone. The way everything about him seemed tense, waiting for the next blow to fall. The excitement that spoke of someone far enough down the road to self destruction to care to turn back.
“Hi? Hi. Sorry, I… what am I doing here?”
Fundy laughed, and it sounded forced, but still happy, in the way he was always happy. Techno respected that about him. It took skill to keep that kind of passion for life going.
“Interviewing.” He settled on telling the fox the truth, at least partially. It’d do him good, to see the terms laid out. “An invite to join us, if you want to.”
“What, the syndicate?” Eyes widening, Fundy laughed again, a hitching, terrified giggle. “You’re joking? You’re joking. Me? No way. Why?”
“You seem interesting. Phil doesn’t have a bad thing to say about you, I know you’re getting desperate, and you’ve been wronged just as much as the rest of us.”
“Wait, no. The second one.” Fundy frowned, leaning forward on his bouncing knees. “I’m desperate? Who- why d’ya think that?”
“You’re an addict, Fundy.” Techno smirked slightly, not enough to be cruel, but nameless like letting him in on a dark joke. “And I can tell you don’t care about that. Hell, you’re probably enjoying it. But what if you could do something better with that energy? Is it really worth burnin’ out just for a bit of a buzz?”
Fundy fell silent for a moment, still practically vibrating like a wound spring. Techno could see a racing thoughtfulness behind his eyes, genuine consideration going past at lightning pace.
Then, he nodded, once, sharply.
“Alright. Yeah. I’ll join, if you want me. Anything weird I should know about?”
“Hold up.” Techno couldn’t quite keep back a smile. This kid was his nephew, technically, but he couldn’t see an ounce of himself in him. “Glad you’re on board, but you can’t rush this. What can you do?”
For the first time, Fundy went still, only for a moment. His face seemed to genuinely go pale, and he swallowed, biting his lip with teeth sharp enough to make it bleed.
“Uh- not much. Not anymore. I- I haven’t really… tried to do anything. For a while. It’s just…” He looked suddenly so lost, and his eyes clouded over, fingers drumming on his thigh in a desperate attempt to escape whatever prison he’d made for himself. “I did try. And- and I don’t think I was very useful. To anyone, really. You know?”
He tried a smile, but Techno just hummed thoughtfully, and stood up.
“Huh. Ok then. Want company back to the portal?”
Fundy stood up too, tail curled around his ankles as he kicked at the dusty floor
“Nah. I’ll be fine. Thanks for the offer. Sorry I’m not- what you wanted. I- I’ll be in Las Nevadas. If you… can’t find anyone else.”
“Hey, you ain’t off the table, kid.” Techno smiled, leaning slightly against the entrance to the cave. “In fact, you’re doing pretty good.”
“Oh. Thanks? Thanks.” Fundy grinned nervously, uncertain whether he could actually accept the praise. He shuffled for another moment, then skipped out, pausing to look over his shoulder. “Nice seeing you!”
“You too.” Techno felt a buzz in his pocket. “Lay off the gambling for a while?”
Fundy’s laugh carried through the snow, and Techno sighed, shaking his head and smiling to himself, and pulling out his comm.
Callahan whispers to you: nearly there
Callahan whispers to you: hotter than your mom over here
Well, good to know he was on his way. While he waited, Techno elf his thoughts drift back to Fundy, still calculating.
Good kid. Lost, for sure, but he had more potential than he gave himself credit for. Not a burn out, but a long shot. Techno liked people who still had fire.
It was only a few minutes wait before he saw another light coming through the snow, a pulsing sort of red that looked artificial.
Callahan approached the cave, shivering, wearing his mask and what looked like a warmer version of his normal onesie, fake nose glowing like a beacon. He nodded on seeing Techno, and ducked into the cave, sitting down immediately and typing with shaking fingers.
iys raellly coold heer
Raising an eyebrow, Techno nodded, looking up from his comm in his lap.
“You ok for me to talk, or do you want to use comms entirely?”
Callahan shrugged, typing one handed at a remarkable pace, now he’d warmed up a little.
don’t normally do stuff like this
not this much at least
you can talk, I don’t mind
Techno nodded, looking from the screen to Callahan, expressionless aside from a slight smile.
“Alright then. You asked why I was talking to you?”
Callahan nodded, frowning slightly behind his mask. It was hard to tell. He was pretty unreadable overall, and it was throwing Techno off a little.
“This is syndicate business. I know you don’t like to get involved in things, but we’ve got a spot, if you ever fancy wreaking some chaos.”
A pause. Callahan’s fingers hovered over his comm, a thoughtful smile on his lips. Then he frowned.
would I need to leave Kinoko?
“Maybe. You could just be… consulting.”
It was a valid suggestion, but Techno couldn’t say he was wild about it. Fundy was probably winning so far, although Callahan had a certain calmness that would be appreciated.
I won’t leave Tina
but I’m willing to help you
Techno frowned slightly, then shrugged. He had no idea who Tina was. That wasn’t bad though.
“Alright. Skills?”
mischief?
can’t use admin abilities, don’t ask
“Noted. Well, Callahan. I’ll consider your applications. Thanks for coming out here.”
Callahan nodded, professional despite his grin, and stood up, almost at attention, typing without looking on his wrist.
thanks for your time
blood god
I ain’t scared of you
“I’m honoured.” Techno stood too, holding his hand out to shake. “I’ll call you back.”
Callahan shook his hand firmly, then waggled his communicator in the air, before sending off one last message.
I’m always online, if you need me
and always up for anarchy
He set off, head high and glowing a flickering red as his reindeer nose began to run out of battery. Techno only watched him go for a minute, then sat down again.
Interesting guy. Motives laid pretty bare, yet at the same time unknowable, hiding behind masks and silence.
Since he had his comm out, Techno sent a quick message to Niki, who appeared to be running late. She replied a moment later.
NikiNihachu whispers to you: patience, pig boy
A moment later, a flash of bright pink hair appeared through the snowstorm, and Niki pulled the scarf off from where it covered most of her face.
“Heya, Tech. Seen anyone good so far?”
“Well, Fundy’s my favourite out of the two of them. Callahan seems to have other priorities, but it’s nice to have him on our side. Still waiting on Jack.”
“You sure he’s even going to come?” Niki sat beside him, leaning ever so slightly against him to warm up. “I can picture him not really trusting you.”
“Yeah, well, that’s why you’re here.”
“It’s why you’re going to give him a reason to trust you.” Niki gave him a fierce look that was having more and more of an effect on Techno every time he was on the receiving end of it. “Jack’s my friend, and I know you two don’t like each other, but he’s one of the few people I’d still trust with my life.”
“Well, nice to hear good things about me.”
Jack unbuttoned his cloak, shaking the dusting of frost out from the fur lined collar, and looking around. His expression was carefully blank, although his eyes lingered on Niki for half a moment longer than anywhere else. Then he sat down, posture straight and tense.
“Jack!” Niki beamed, and Techno heard a softness in her voice he didn’t often. “Where’ve you been?”
“Snowchester. Doing pretty well for myself.”
“Do you want to join the syndicate?”
No point beating around the bush, even if Niki gave him an aggrieved glance. Jack stared back, stony eyes hardened by as many battles as any of the rest of them. Now this was someone Techno could understand.
“No. But I will. Not for you, or Phil.” Drawing his sword, Jack levelled it at Niki, not breaking eye contact with Techno. “For her. And for anarchy. Just know that when they fall, I’ll kill anyone who tries to take their place.”
Gaze just as calm as his, Techno nodded, not bothering to smile. He liked Jack, something he knew probably only fuelled Jack’s disdain for him. Serious to a fault, loyal to his own destruction.
“Of course. Do you and Niki want a moment alone?”
Niki pulled a face, and Jack’s expression flickered into what might have been disgust for a moment.
“Tech, we’re not- ew.”
“Yes.” Jack nodded firmly. “Not- like that. But… yes.”
“I’ll leave you to it.”
It was his turn to stand up now, and start the trek across the tundra, with a wave goodbye to Niki.
As Techno walked, he pondered. So. Jack. Fundy was still on his mind, but he’d probably let Phil take care of the fox hybrid. The avian would probably be delighted to spoil his grandson a little. Callahan… not the best fit. As he’d said to Niki, the admin’s priorities seemed to lie elsewhere. But Jack was strong, determined, and hated him just enough for Techno to trust him.
That was a decision then. Easy.