Cap

Cap is a stubborn, vain creature who believes that his birthright is to live comfortably, despite his rough beginnings. He is confident with nothing to back it up, and despite his small stature has a fiery spirit that can be extinguished with little trouble. He can be a bit of a hopeless romantic at times, choosing to preform grand gestures and extravagant feats to express his infatuation. Those he deems allies and friends he'll protect with fierce loyalty that occasionally gets him in trouble.

Cap was born on the outskirts of a basalt delta, his father being the one to watch him hatch. The grueling process took multiple hours, quite out of the norm for ghasts.

It became apparent within the end of his infancy that there was something wrong with the ghastling; he couldn’t spar, glide or do anything regarding fire, well past the time most ghasts matured. Once that became clear to his ‘loving’ father Cap was treated coldly, before being scheduled to be put out of his misery entirely.

When Cap slept, the elder crept into his room, knife in hand. It should have been easy to slit the thing’s throat - he was young and fragile, and oh so incredibly weak.

Fortunately for him, it seemed Cap had one saving grace, his knack for deadly redstone contraptions. This lethal talent proved useful as his father triggered one such machine causing his head to be sliced from his shoulders and sent flying across the ghastling’s nursery.

In secret Cap had been trading with piglins, building ties with the species, in exchange for rare overworld items such as redstone and iron.

During the day he’d keep himself busy, tinkering with metal and ore instead of choosing to play-fight like his brethren. He deemed it a menial task that ended up in senseless bloodshed. Perhaps his hobby was no better - after all, it certainly wasn’t respectable in a culture based on war and fighting.

With the only family he’d known dead, he was left homeless, scrounging around the delta for odd jobs and scraps to keep himself alive. He’d taught himself to read and speak common, dealing with travelers and players, leaving him even more ostracized by his kin.

One day the current over-lord of the area was passing through the delta, Cap’s strange features catching his eyes. He was dragged along for the rest of the king’s campaign, delighting the man with his otherworldly looks and absurd mannerisms.

The sovereign had the perfect job in mind for the ghastling when they returned to the palace; court jester.

For the next twenty five years or so Cap’s life was a humiliating joke that left a bone-deep anger festering inside him that kept growing and growing until one day, it finally boiled over. It seemed he’d inherited his father’s murderous tendencies but unlike his old man, he was successful, planning out the attempt and using his proficiency in redstone to cause the king to meet his demise.

The man had had no one in line to take his throne, but fortunately for the Nether, Cap was perfectly content to assume the title of Overlord.

The first few years of his reign were... rough to say the least. He was power hungry, insecure and who could blame him? But it translated to uncertainty, leaving the denizens of hell feeling restless.

A rebellion rose against him, forcing Cap to finally pull himself together. Within weeks the rebellion was decimated, flattened into the ground until it was nothing more than an unpleasant stain in Cap’s ledger, a footnote in history that would be overlooked, over and over again. Since then, he ruled with an iron fist, beating surrounding territories and provinces into submission, and forcing them to join his empire under the threat of annihilation. He compiled assets until the entire Nether was united under the rule of one ghast, relatively peaceful as long as everyone kept their heads down and paid their taxes on time... After all, old warships and skeletons of bunkers were enough of a reminder to let everyone know what happened to those who dared speak out against him.

The ghast was getting more and more confident as every knee in the nether bent for him, bowed for him, and sang for him but it still wasn’t enough.

Cap wanted more, he physically needed more.

He got his finest soldiers and scientists to build and light him a portal- a risky new venture on the overworld.

Outposts began to spread from the portal, piglin, skeleton, and blaze armies tearing through forests and plains until a sign of civilization was spotted.

A peaceful race of dogfolk, mainly farmers inhabited the area. Under the guise of an alliance Cap met with their leader, putting what he hoped was his best foot forward. He was nothing but winning smiles and trustworthy handshakes but the dogs could smell something still awry, not that it mattered, a betrayal would have been in the works if they had accepted, but this only brought their demise on faster.

The dogfolk were eradicated in the span of a few months, leaving behind not a single survivor, or so Cap thought.

Despite this glaring victory Cap realized how ill-suited he and his were for the overworld and led his armies back through the portal.

Instead of the warm welcome back, he was expecting he was met with a knife at his throat. While he was gone it seemed his closest circle of what he thought were friends had been conspiring against him for some time now and had riled up the settlements near his castle.

He spent that night in a prison cell, his execution set for tomorrow at noon. In between bouts of hysteria and tears he was visited by a strange man in ever stranger attire. He offered Cap a way out with seemingly nothing but a favor in exchange. Desperate, he shook the black-suited man’s hand, ignoring how otherworldly his skin felt and how absurdly wide his grin stretched.

Then, all went black and when he woke up he was in the woods, unknown worlds away from the nether portal he had ordered be built.

He was picked up by a band of what he could only describe as fuck-ups and misfits, the sort he would have executed were he still king, and dragged through the forest until Drak, the one who had dubbed himself leader decided the place to found a new empire; Milkshire.

It grew quickly, faster than Cap fathomed it ever would. New homes and shops sprung up every day and encircling it all were blackstone walls towering up over everything. The ghast couldn't help but wonder wether they were meant to keep enemies out, or Milkshire's citizens in. Cap could only guess the latter as Drak grew more and more unstable with each passing day.

He'd set up a system of government, appointing Cap as secretary of defense and conquest after noting his proficiency in redstone and machines of mass destruction. The ghast was unsatisfied with the position but there were much more pressing matters to attend to, so for the moment he kept silent.

Most of the empire's citizens were simple folk, but as always there were a few people that piqued Cap's interest including a pink and blue dog-seal and a strange thing determined on adopting him into what the ghast assumed was a cult. He managed to avoid that ordeal, but got to know the seal much better over the course of a few days. As it turned out they had strange views on Milkshire that Cap was certain Drak wouldn't be too fond of hearing.

Forced to ruminate on that he made his way back to his hovel where Drak was already waiting for him, trident in hand. He claimed that he found the city's history book in Cap's home and placed him under arrest. Of course unwilling Cap turned tail and ran but was caught quickly as he was still unskilled at navigating overworld terrain.

As punishment for theft that the ghast hadn't committed he was sent to the ancient city that resided below Milkshire and told to find his way back up to the surface with no armor or light.

He'd somehow managed it and collapsed when he did so, utterly exhausted.

Cap was shaken awake a few hours later by Sweettart, the seal and told they were running away from the grand empire of Milkshire. They believed that Cap was framed and didn't believe he deserved what consequence Drak bestowed upon him. They offered Cap a chance at escape with them, but in the end they had to flee without him as Drak had caught onto their plans.

Sweettart's escape attempt only succeeded for a few days before they were dragged back as a prisoner and kept in a tower in Milkshire's walls. Now angry at the wrong people for the punishment he'd received, Cap came to visit them, shears and lava bucket in hand. He left that tower with a singed pink and blue pelt that he later fashioned into a pair of boots.

Once he returned from his little excursion he was promoted to Milkshire's second in command as it was revealed people began to leave the city left and right after what had been done to Sweettart became public.

As his title grew more and more grand Cap began feeling like his old self again, powerful and with a lust for blood that couldn't be sated easily. Fortunately, there was a certain tyrant that could help the ghast with that. Mere days before the deed was to be carried out the world collapsed around Milkshire - the god of the realm most displeased with something or another, sending the empire's residents to an entirely new world.

When he awoke, with a splitting headache, he was in a much more civilized place, the entire area communicating wealth beyond what Milkshire could ever offer.

He'd scampered off once he oriented himself and began to build a grand castle, almost reminiscent of Milkshire's walls. As progress was under way he was visited by a godess named Thalassa, who looked quite familiar, although the ghast couldn't place it. She claimed that not only was Cap dead, he also needed to change his evil ways, and with some well phrased insults and arguments she managed to convince him it was true. He begged for next steps and was eventually granted them, although the lack of proper guidance set him up for failure.

He'd ended up meeting a strange person named Cedar who's life he saved and in exchange demanded they become his squire. As such he kept them in a small bedrock enclosure only managing to create an enemy. This went on for a few days before Thalassa reappeared and forced him to dismantle it.

Life was passive for a while after that, interrupted by a strange invitation appearing in his mailbox. It claimed that Thalassa was holding a dance and all were invited. Below that, less politely it stated that attendance was mandatory. Unsure what to make of it Cap prepared a dress for the event and then went on with his day.

A few days before the dance Cap went exploring and stumbled upon a cute little cottage that apparently belonged to Cedar. Being the curious creature he was he began to snoop through the home finding a diary that held their deepest secrets, one such being the fact they were a shapeshifter. He pocketed the diary and brought a torch to Cedar's wood and straw home, running off before anyone could force him to face the consequences.

When the day of the event finally arrived the entire server seemed to jitter with electric excitement. At 4pm sharp he was teleported to a grand ballroom with other members of the server, some of which he'd never laid eyes on before. After a series of hijinks that the ghast couldn't care less about it was time for the main event to begin- the dance itself. Being the cocky individual he was, the first person he asked to dance was the godess of the realm herself, Thalassa.

As they tangoed he continued to ask questions that grew harder and harder for her to answer, challenging her lies and ideals that fell apart the more he pressed, although the upper hand changed owners very quickly. Thalassa had changed tactics, now choosing to fluster the ex-prince. It worked spectacularly, leaving his cheeks bright blue and his mouth shut once the song ended.

Miserable after that exchange he'd ended up in a few mundane conversations with people of interest. One such creature was an enderman much taller than the average, with bright red eyes and a grating accent. Once he tore himself away, done with the ridicule the beast spewed at him he began snooping around the complex, finding information that Thalassa certainly intended to keep hidden. Now this, this he could profit from.

He'd learned about a series of books Thalassa owned, keeping the residents of the server bound to the world. Not only that, the third and final book also served as her personal diary.

Unfortunately, he wasn't able to do much more than pocket the first and second book before being teleported back home. Needing to think more about next steps he began to explore. As he did so he stumbled across a quaint little farm, the owner being much more notable. It was a pink and brown dog-folk of the very same breed he'd wiped off the face of the earth years ago. Caught off guard he rambled to the creature who introduced herself as Smibby.

She was absurdly kind and it was clear she had no clue of the atrocities Cap had committed. In fact, she was all around naïve, clueless to the way the world worked. Well, the ghast certainly wasn't complaining. He became close with her quickly, keeping her as a disposable asset for later, until that began to blossom into true friendship. Cap hadn't been treated with unconditional kindness for quite a while.

Of course, all good things had to come to an end, including Cap's relatively good life. Cedar came, looking for revenge for what he'd done, and sure it was merited but the way the shifter treated him was 10 times worse than what he'd ever done to them.

He was locked in a small bedrock enclosure with a few trap doors and levers for entertainment although Cedar periodically took him out for 'walks', tying a fishing rod around his neck and dragging him through the land, parading him around for all to see. Fortunately for the ghast the shifter had grown too confident for their own good, and he managed to chew through the lead and scamper back to Smibby's where he thought he was safe. Unfortunately, it wasn't so and the shifter had found him after a few days, taking him into custody once more.

Unfortunately, this time they were much better prepared. They and Thalassa had secretly built a maximum security prison where Cap was put.

That was where Thalassa claimed he would improve and heal, but if anything the opposite took place. He remained in his cell for 24 hours a day, never allowed enrichment or human interaction other than sparse visitors, one being the enderman he'd encountered at the ball. In the prison Cap found out that he'd named himself Marquis.

Marquis treated Cap more like an animal than a person, leaving the ghast in question fuming but otherwise helpless. He despised that this was the only way he'd be granted enrichment.

Another visitor he'd gotten was Thalassa, who's encounter went much less smoothly. As Cap confronted her for her hypocrisy she got angry and scarred his face, also impairing his eye.

Fortunately, not all was hopeless as Marquis found out about the information he held regarding Thalassa's book and staged a rescue, not only bringing him to his mansion afterwards but also infecting him with vampirism. Cap lived in Marquis's mansion for a while, scheming since the moment he'd learned that the enderman had Thalassa's third and final book.

It was almost pathetic how easy it was to steal it- the vampire was much too confident for his own good.

Just as Cap was about to go public with the information within the book Thalassa appeared to take the test from him. Unfortunately for her, Cap was a stubborn creature, demanding something of equal value in return. Desperate the godess offered him a wish in exchange, which Cap accepted enthusiastically.

Things began to happen quickly after that- Cap made his wish demanding Smibby, the naivest creature on the server ascend to godhood, as he planned to use her for more power. Trapped and unable to do much else, Thalassa was forced to grant the demand and so the poor dog was forced to become a deity.

Once Smibby recovered from the power coursing through her, Cap stood at her bedside asking her to grant him access to the powers of the divine as well. She did, falling unconscious once more. As guilty as Cap felt seeing her prone body he had much more important things to deal with.

The first thing he did as a god was visit the liar herself, Thalassa. He confronted her on everything she'd done and her origins. As it turned out he was right about Sweettart and they did have something special about them- they and Thalassa were the same person. Not only that, Cap wasn't dead, no one here was, Thalassa had created the world as revenge for what Cap had done to her. There were still plenty of unanswered questions he had but his luck had run out and Thalassa lashed out, shredding his ear and tearing it apart.

He'd teleported away quickly after that, swearing vengeance, but before anything he planned could be put into action the world fell apart in front of the ghast's very eyes. The last thing he remembered was watching the world collapse, leaving patches of staticky void where the server crumbled away before everything went black.

When he woke up he was back to his old, significantly weakened, scarred self.

He’d given up on power- it was pointless, time and time again it had been ripped from his grasp so why bother? He’d built himself a small series of tunnels and kept to himself, building little redstone farms and digging holes. He’d been busy acquiring wealth but not daring to flaunt it.

Cap explored once he'd licked his wounds for a bit, finding old enemies and new friends all of which sat on the same level playing field.

Perhaps he could do something here, after all ghasts were stubborn creatures.