Max sat at the edge of the cliff overlooking the beautiful scenery of the aether. He tossed a ball of fireball from hand to hand while staring at a few angels working below. 

"You're getting good at that" Notch said, walking up behind him. 

"Yeah, I tried" Max said, still staring down the hillside. "I can't seem to make the flowers grow like you suggested though"

"That's a harder thing to master" Notch nodded "You're getting better and you've only been here what, a week and a half?" 

Max smiled a little. "You've had me practicing every day. I hope I'm getting better" 

"Are you going to try and contact your mother? I'm sure she's worried by now" 

Max paused. The angels below had stopped planting and were now throwing clods of dirt at each other. Laughter and the thud of dirt hitting clothes rose from below. 

"You have to go home eventually" Notch said 

"Said that already" Max sighed. He stood up and walked back from the edge of the world. 

Notch stood up and followed him down the forest path. They walked in silence, Max fidgeting with the fire in his hands. 

"I'm not giving you an option this time Max" Notch said, "You've got to go home before you start an all out war within our family. Last time that happened-" Notch trailed off. 

Max sighed. "Fine. I'll go-" 

Even before he could finish that sentence his surroundings started to change. The bright and friendly colors turned darker, more serious tones as the overworld started to materialize around him. 

He was back in the forest and he felt as if nothing had ever happened. 

The birds were singing, the trees swayed in the summer breeze, and flowers were blooming. The sky was clear, save for a few fluffy white clouds rifting lazily through the sky. 

Max started to make his way back home, following the forest path he had used so often. Now, it just seemed foreign. Like he'd never used it before. 

The house came out of nowhere, just as it always did. It's dark oak logs blending in to the trees around it, with the light shining off the window panes, creating rainbows inside if it was the right time of day. 

He walked up to the door and hesitated. What was he going to tell his parents? What if his friends were in trouble because of him? He shook his head and pushed the door open. 

The house was dark. The slow, steady drip from something somewhere in the house was the only noise. It almost seemed to echo with each drip. 

"Hello?" Max asked. He stepped inside and the silence seemed to engulf him. 

"Mom? Dad? I'm sorry I ran away. I didn't- we were exploring the caves nearby and found a portal" Max said as he walked deeper into the house. "I got out but it took a while" 

Max stopped in the living room. The curtains were drawn, and the living room seemed darker than it usually was. As Max's eyes adjusted, he saw just how much damage had been done. 

Wood was splintered across the ground, and he couldn't tell if it came from the gaping hole in the ground, or the scattered remains of the couch and chairs that had once been in the room. Fluff from pillows was scattered around, looking like the dead bodies of tiny, furry animals. In the far end of the room, what once was the book cases and fireplace was now nothing more than a heap of wood, paper, and bricks, with defined claw-like marks running through everything. The carnage was like nothing he had seen before. 

Something moved in the darkness. Max took a step back. 

"Don't be scared" A voice called. "I won't hurt you" 

She sounded young, but the thing in the darkness moved closer to him in an undefined shape. It seemed to scurry, staying low to the ground. 

"Who are you?" Max asked, backing into the light just a bit more.

"I don't have a name. Please don't be afraid" She said. She stopped, just inside the doorway of the living room. "I have a message for you"

max stared at the black mass in front of him. She was shorter and stout, but without the light helping him, he couldn't make out much besides the darkness that seemed to edge around her. 

"What is it?" He asked.

"Your parents are safe. However, if you wish to see them again, there are some things that first need to be arranged" She said, her voice lowering further as she spoke. 

Max stared at the darkness confused. 

"Herobrine requires your presence" She sighed. "you have to go to the nether to see your parents and your friends again. A deal was made, and broken. It must be repaid." 

Max took a step forward, confused, but jumped back as the dark mass rushed forward. It rushed past him with such force and speed that he fell backward. A cold wind followed in its wake. 

The darkness rushed out of the house into the sky. It made its way toward the mountain, disappearing as it flew further away. Max watched, heart growing heavy. 

He knew what he had to do. He packed up, and made his way toward the only nether portal he knew of.