Alex continued to wander around the Nether, collecting items of interests and battling against the various monsters that roamed this untamable region. All in all though she had become weary and tired. She could not tell the passage of time as there was no day and night. She had no way back home as she had long ago lost the location of the portal. She could not rest in a bed, instead opting to y around the ground or find refuge at one of the many Bastion remnants that dotted the world.

  She wanted to go back home, she wanted to rest, she wanted answers, she wanted so many things. But she was trapped, alone with her thoughts and the many creatures that roamed around. Both hostile and passive, some more friendly than others.

  Alex currently y on the edge of a cliff overlooking the sea of va. Her legs dangling just off the edge as she took a moment to try and rex. She thought of Steve, who had been so seemingly stressed about her discovery and completion of the portal. Did he know that she would become trapped here? Did he suspect? Had he been trapped here previously?

  Alex followed that st thought. The ruined portal had to have come from somewhere right? Not only that but while Alex may not know the extent to Steve's knowledge, he must have some level of knowledge regarding the Nether. This would've led Alex to thinking maybe Steve had found some hidden way out of the Nether, but no that didn't feel like the right answer.

  She thought back to her own rage as finding the monster spawner. Her feeling of deja vu traveling around the Nether. No, there was more to it than simply Steve having been here before. THEY had been here before.

  Alex wasn't sure how it could be possible, but she decided that had to be it. That somehow they had both been to the Nether before and for some reason Alex couldn't remember it. She sat up as she thought back to her discovery of the book. The name Steve had seemed familiar somehow, and when she saw him she immediately knew it to be him without him needing to identify himself.

  She thought back to their first night of passion and the many that followed after. There was a sense of belonging when they were together. There was a sense of familiarity. They had known each other previously. But Alex could not remember.

  Why?

  Could Steve remember? Was he hiding something from her? Did something terrible happen to them? To her?

  Alex sprang up and started pacing around, trying to force the memories forward. Why couldn't she remember anything from before waking up alone in those woods!?

  Then from the corner of her eye she saw something. She turned around to see something quickly fly across the area. It moved too quickly for her to see properly but it was followed by a series of explosions off in the distance.

  What was going on?

  Alex started walking around trying to get a better view of the whatever was going on. She could see a bunch of TNT covering a fortress before getting set off and destroying the entire fortress.

  Over and over again Alex could hear the various screams of pain and death from all the creatures. Entire sections getting quickly wiped out, areas falling into the sea of va, creatures both hostile and passive reaching a sudden and votile death.

  Alex climbed over mounds and even made it up a tree just to try and understand what could possibly be happening. Finally the thing flying around slowed down for a moment and she realized it was Steve!

  He was flying in the air searching around frantically and pcing TNT everywhere. Was he looking for her? How was he flying!? And where did he get so much TNT? Alex had never stocked up on a lot of them due to how destructive they tended to be.

  Well doesn't matter right now, Alex needed to stop him before he turned the entire Nether into JUST the sea of va!

  She pulled out her bow and notched an arrow, aiming it right by him and letting it fly. She had no intentions of hitting him, but if he was looking for her then this would help them both greatly.

  Sure enough the arrow nded right by his head and Steve spun around, a wild look in his eyes. He flew up towards Alex and then instantly calmed when he realized it was her. There was a momentary pause as he floated just above her, his image twisting for a moment. A visage of pain and suffering overtaking his calm face for just a split second. His entire body seemed to shutter and glitch, before calming down.

  He slowly pnted some Netherrack in front of Alex and motioned for her to walk on it. She did so, and he pced another one down. On and on it continued, with Steve guiding her through the Nether, and creating a passageway just for her.

  After some time they eventually reached the site of the Nether Portal. Steve must have come through it and gone looking for her. But how was he able to do what he did?

  He stopped at the portal and attempted a smile at Alex. But again he seemed to glitch in space, his body shifting and becoming distorted for a second. His smile turning into a look like he was screaming for just a brief instance.

  Alex felt uneasy, but he seemed as though he would not harm her. She walked through the portal and reappeared back in the forest. It was the middle of the day and everything seemed peaceful and quiet.

  Alex waited for Steve to come through the portal as well. He was no longer flying and he seemed to be more at ease. Alex held out her hand and he eagerly took it, allowing to gentle guide them both back home.

  While she still wasn't sure what had happened or what was going on, she was certain they both needed rest...