Chapter Text
Techno adjusted his mask one final time as he made his way toward the docked spaceship. His hands felt clammy and he took a few deep breaths to center himself. This would be his first real, long-term job since escaping the fighting ring.
His unclawed, scarred hands were hidden beneath heavy, leather-akin gloves. A pink boar-like half-mask hid the upper portion of his distinctly human features from view. Boots covered his uncommon foot shape, and long sleeves, pants, and a red cloak hid the rest of his scars.
Thankfully he had gotten a genetic hair color change to pink, back on Earth and he'd managed to file his canines into sharper points to further complete the look.
He was now only a couple yards from the spaceship that he would be spending the next year of his life on and he watched as three aliens made their way down the gang-plank to greet him.
The tallest one stood in the middle of the group, at about Techno’s height. He looked fairly human except for the large black wings sprouting from his back, a few feathers on the upper area of his face, and four clawed fingers on each hand. Each feature clearly labeled him as an Elytrian. That was the captain, if Techno remembered their holo call correctly, who went by the name of Philza Minecraft.
The other aliens standing next to him must be the other members of the crew. Techno remembered that their names had been mentioned at some point, but he couldn't for the life of him remember what they were.
The one on the left could only be described as a snake with arms. As Techno got closer, he took note of the gills located on their neck and the dandelion yellow sweater they wore. Their skin was a kaleidoscope of blues, greens, and purples of all shades.
The being on the opposite side of Philza was quite a bit shorter than the other two. They looked like a random mismatching of several different animals that Techno recognized from Earth. They had four thin eyes resting just above the center of their face, with eyelids that came sideways over the eyes, akin to those of a lizard. Small antlers protruded from the top of their head, and four furry, pawed arms tapped away at a hand-held PADD.
Techno nodded his head sideways in what he had read as a standard Elytrian greeting as he approached the trio, "Captain Philza."
The Captain raised a foot and side-nodded in reply, "Technoblade, it's a pleasure to see you in person."
He raised a wing slightly toward the serpent, "This is Wilbur, he's a Merpent and the ship's science and medical officer."
Techno made a mental note to stay as far away from Wilbur as possible.
"And this is Tommy, he's an AclumiNite. He works security, navigation, and supplies."
Wilbur gave his tail a shake of greeting and Tommy lifted a paw from his PADD in acknowledgment. Philza turned back to Techno, "I'll be providing you with files on each of our species, but I wasn't able to find anything on yours. Is there anything we should know about you?"
Techno nodded, before remembering that while some species did use nodding, it was a fairly rare form of agreement, "Yeah, my species is relatively unknown, so there's not a lot of information outside of the home planet. Uh, I'm a Piglin, and in our culture, anyone who leaves the mother planet swears an oath to never let another see their face."
He gestured to the half-mask, "Hence, this whole deal, so, I'd appreciate it if you didn't try to get me to take it off, as well as knocking before entering." (Yes, this whole idea is a mix of Minecraft and Mandalorian)
"I'm an omnivore, meaning I can eat most things, and I need around 6-8 varga of uninterrupted alone time each cycle unless there's an emergency."
Philza looked over at Tommy, “You got all of that?"
Tommy silently tapped for a couple of seconds longer before turning off the PADD and lowering it, "Yep, a new file has been started on Piglins."
He turned to Techno, "Big Man Tommy Innit at your service."
Wilbur let out a noise that sounded very much like a strangled seal. Tommy whipped his head around with the speed of a cobra, "Oi, what're you laughing at?"
They dissolved into an argument over whether or not Tommy was a Big Man while Philza sighed and rubbed at the space behind the feathers located near his ears. He turned around and led Techno up the gangplank while Tommy chased Wilbur around the loading area.
"I hope you recognize the terrible mistake you've made by agreeing to this job, mate."
Techno snorted, "It's a whole lot better than my previous conditions, I think I can manage."
Philza gave him a look over his shoulder that Techno didn't have the knowledge to decipher.
"Well, this is the storage area," he gestured to the room they had entered immediately after coming off the gang-plank. Crates and boxes of various sizes were stacked in Tetris formations all around the room.
"The tools and manuals are located over there," he nodded to a wall with all forms of mechanical instruments covering it, "You'll have a couple of cycles to get acclimated to the systems and routine of the ship before starting your real work."
Techno hummed an acknowledgment as Philza led him deeper into the ship. He was shown the cockpit, engine room, central maintenance area, kitchen/dining area, and communal room. Finally, he was led down a short corridor, stopping in front of a gray panel. Philza pressed a button on the wall and the panel slid over, revealing a sleeping compartment.
"We picked up a bed that should fit your height specifications, on the way over here," he nodded to a circular mattress in the far corner of the room, several sheets and blankets folded neatly on top.
Techno held back a grimace. If he had been like any other species in the galaxy, this bed would have been perfect. As it was, he would either have to become a bit more flexible or get used to sleeping with his feet hanging off the edge.
Philza showed him how to adjust the lights, use the large screen implanted in the wall, and work the storage/closet area.
"I'll leave you to get adjusted here. Dinner will be ready in about thirty clicks to a varga depending on if it's Wilbur's or Tommy's turn to cook," Philza began heading towards the door, "We'll pick up any luggage you have in the morning."
Techno stiffened. "Oh, um, actually, you don't have to worry about that. This is all I have."
Philza halted in the doorway, his head swiveling around in a very owl-like way (why were all aliens so animal-like?) to look back at Techno, "What?"
Techno let out a soft huff and tilted his head at the captain in a look that hopefully translated, "Philza, there's a reason I accepted a year-long position on a random spaceship with minimal questions asked."
Philza let out a short trill before seeming to catch himself, his wings shifting forward and puffing out slightly. "I see, well, I suppose we'll be leaving first thing tomorrow then. I'll let Tommy know."
He turned again to leave, pausing just inside the threshold, "And mate, call me Phil."
He finally left, the panel sliding closed behind him and leaving Techno in an empty room. Techno sighed and sunk into the circular mattress. He removed the boar's mask from his head, turning it over in his hands a couple of times before placing it atop the pile of folded sheets. He stood up, taking a deep breath before stepping into the restroom area and coming face-to-face with an unfamiliar reflection.
Techno hadn't had the chance to view himself on a proper reflective surface in a long time - and while his features were undeniably human - the face that stared back at him was not one that he recognized.
It had been 7 years since his capture from Earth by the alien poachers.
7 years since he'd been stripped from the military academy and taken into the dark recesses of space.
5 years since his first brawl in the fight ring.
5 years since his first kill, when he’d accidentally murdered another fighter, not realizing his strength.
4 years since his escape.
3 years since he'd taught himself to speak and understand Common fluently. (He knew his accent was still off, but he'd stopped trying to fix it a while ago).
He was older now, with many more scars and a whole lot more trauma. He carefully opened his mouth, viewing the sharp, filed canines that rested there. He snapped his mouth shut. With shaking hands, he carefully removed the gloves from his hands, setting them on the counter. He slowly worked his marked fingers through his hair, separating it into three sections and braiding them together with practiced ease. He didn't have a hair tie, but this would do for now. A small thing to remind him of home.
Suddenly, he heard a knock on his door.
"Technoblade!" Wilbur's voice came from the other side of the panel, "Dinner's ready, so I'd suggest you hurry before Tommy eats all of my hard work."
Techno slipped the gloves back onto his hands.
"Just give me a moment, I'll be there soon," he called back.
He walked quickly back over to the bed, tying the boar's mask back on.
After wandering around the ship for a couple of clicks, Techno was finally able to locate the kitchen. The ship hadn't seemed this big before. Why was it so big?
He sat down at the small round table in the space between Phil and Wilbur.
Tommy was in the middle of attempting to sneak cubes of light gray meat off of Wilbur's plate.
Wilbur was in the process of pushing one hand against Tommy's forehead to prevent said thievery while holding his plate far out of reach, as well as using his tail to inconspicuously steal food off of Tommy's plate.
Phil had two plates in front of him, one of which he slid over to Techno as soon as he sat down.
"Better eat quickly, mate. Before Tommy realizes what's going on.”
Phil's plate held a half-finished, multicolored salad while Techno's had an assortment of fruits, vegetables, and meats. Techno supposed that was so he could determine what he preferred. Most meat he'd come across while on Pogtopia had tasted like chicken, so he quickly finished off that portion of the meal, before turning his attention to the vegetative side. He only recognized one of the fruits present, a gapple.
They had been a rare delicacy for him on Pogtopia. They tasted like candy apples and held almost all of the nutrients needed for humans. Other species couldn't eat too many at once or they'd be sick, but humans didn't have that problem. There was a small slice of one on his plate. Most likely there as a kind of dessert.
He ate it.
And then stole Phil's.
And then stole Wilbur's.
And then stole Tommy's.
He almost laughed when the other crew members turned back to their plates with looks of indignation (or what he assumed was indignation) at finding their precious gapple slices mysteriously missing.
Techno leaned back and watched as a frankly hilarious game of Who-Did-It?? began.
Maybe things would be okay again.