And we are back! In this chapter we introduce a member of the Heroes. Let's go!
Chapter 2: Saved by the Silverfish
Israphel's castle was a giant building on the top of Mt. Aether, now the most corrupted place in Minecraftia. Corrupted Mobs lurked everywhere, guarding the castle from any intruders. Inside the huge fortress, King Israphel sat leisurely in his throne. His blood red eyes were glued onto a novel. As he finished the chapter, his subjects entered the throne room, led by his son Codex.
"This better be good. I was just getting to the good part." Israphel grumbled, the book levitating next to him."
"You will be very interested, father. The Hybrid Heroes appear to be heading to the Aether to seek advice from the gods." Codex said with a grin.
"Yeah! They brought a small team with them, the Golems and the Spiders were left to guard to the base. I say we trash it!" Ayombi shouted with excitement.
As much as he hated Ayombi's recklessness, Israphel was feeling slightly… destructive today. And why not? No matter what those pathetic heroes did, he had Minecraftia in the palm in his hand. No one said evil masterminds couldn't have some fun once in a while.
"Very well. Ayombi, you and your sisters can go destroy the base. Chester will be accompanying you so you don't screw it up."
"Alright!" Ayombi exclaimed. Lily simply smirked. Alice nodded in understanding. The three ran out of the fortress, ready to do what they did best: destroy anything in their path.
Codex shook his head as the trio exited. "I swear working with those three is a pain in the ass. I don't understand why you keep them around."
"You must always keep a few henchmen to do the dirty work, my son. They get the job done and that's all I care about." Israphel got up and began walk up the stairs, Codex and John following him.
"So now what, master? Do we have any plan for my brother and his friend?" John asked.
"Actually, no. In fact, I am going to sit back and let them run their little hearts out. What can they possibly do at this point? The Corruption has spread to almost the entire world. All I have to do now is send my troops to wreak havoc on the humans and villagers. Soon, the world will be my domain, incurable by even the gods. What makes them think they can stop me?" Israphel explained with a confident smile on his face. He stopped at the observatory deck, admiring his work, the Mountain Biome completely corrupted.
"I hope the heroes took a good look at their home before they left, because when they return they'll be looking at a completely new world."
Meanwhile, at the Hybrid Heroes' Base…
The base was enjoying the quiet day. Sky and Ryan took watch from the top of the mountain. Irene and Tundra were playing cards. Sarah was working on some potions that she and Sabrina had brought with her. Snap, Spinner, Bianca, and Korbus were exploring the caves, and Arachne was taking a nap. In the caves, Snap was leading the way into an underground dungeon. A few twists and turns left them at a dead end.
"I believe it is safe to say that you're a terrible navigator." Spinner said, her arms crossed.
"Oh shut it. Let's just break through this wall." Snap retorted. His Wither Sword transformed into a pickaxe. He struck the block in front of him, expecting the concrete block to shrink like it usually does. Instead, out came a silverfish. The tiny mob looked up at the 3 heroes curiously.
"Aw it's a silverfish. Isn't it adorable?" Spinner gushed, picking up the tiny gray monster. Suddenly, the silverfish transformed into a small girl about Arachne's age. She wore a ruffled gray dress with gray boots and leggings. She had white hair and a proud smile on her face.
"Yeah, I guess I am pretty adorable." The silverfish hybrid said. Spinner dropped her in shock. "My name is Slyvia. I take care of the silverfish in this mountain.
"Really? Why haven't we seen you before?" Snap asked.
"No idea. I didn't even know there were people living in the Purple Valley."
"So you've been down here all by yourself all this time? You poor thing." Bianca cooed, hugging Sylvia.
"Yea, but it hasn't been that bad. The silverfish have been family. They'd do anything for me, just like I would for them." She replied, picking up a silverfish and petting it.
"You know you could always come with us. I'm sure Ace wouldn't mind you around." Korbus suggested. As soon as he said that, explosion were heard from above ground.
"Aw geez. What could that be?" Snap shouted.
"No one messes with the home of a silverfish on my watch." Sylvia growled. Korbus grabbed them all and teleported them back to base. When they returned they found the Mutant Hybrid Trio in front of their base, Beast Boy floating above them to supervise them. Ryan and Sky had their swords drawn already. Tundra was summoning a snowstorm around her. Irie's fists were raised. The explorers joined their friends and faced the evil trio.
"Not you stooges. What do you want?" Ryan growled.
Lily giggled. "Oh don't mind us. We just came to wreck shop a little bit."
"Hehe, and you know how much we love to wreck things." Ayombi said, barely able to contain his excitement."
"Stand aside and no harm will be brought upon you." Alice said, her hand glowing purple.
"You guys just ain't all that bright, aren't you? We're not just going to let you trash our home."
"Then die." Beast Boy said abruptly, teleporting and punching Ryan in the stomach with brute force, sending him flying. Irie countered with a punch to the face. Ayombi, Lily, and Alice went Mutant and attacked the base. The rest of the team tried their hardest to defend the base, but fighting 3 superpowered mobs proved to be a challenge.
Bianca called out Sylvia, who stood by in shock of how quickly this battle escalated.
"Sylvia, we may need some reinforcements!" Bianca shouted. Sylvia understood and nodded. Sh closed her eyes, calling out to her kin to help her and her new friends. The mutants stopped fighting to see what was happening. The ground burst open, hundreds of silverfish escaping into the open world. Sylvia took a fighting stance, and the silverfish gathered around her. She pointed her finger at Ayombi, and the mob stormed him, enough to take him down and restrain him. She summoned another mob of silverfish. They piled together, forming humanoid figures with swords and shields made of silverfish. The charged, aiding in the fray. With the extra help, the heroes were able to drive away the Corrupted. Realizing this was not their fight, Beast Boy retreated, a bruised up trio in tow. Ayombi was still pulling silverfish out of his clothes and other places they shouldn't be.
"You have one this time, Heroes. But do not celebrate, for your friends' quest will only end in doom, death, and-"
BONK! Beast Boy's soliloquy was interrupted by a silverfish to the face.
"Aaaand stay out!" Sylvia yelled after him. The enemy teleported back to Mt. Aether, defeated. The Heroes cheered with relief.
"Well, that was awesome. If you guys do that often, I'd love to stay!" Sylvia gasped, sitting on the ground to catch her breath.
"Yay! We can be like sisters!" Arachne declared, hugging Sylvia.
Suddenly, the Aether portal started to glow. The group peered into the portal to see that Ace, Sam, Endra, Evenstar, Chris, and Sabrina were contacting them from the other side.
"Hey you guys made it!" Snap exclaimed.
"Yea we did. How's the base keeping up?" Sam asked.
"Ah the usual Corrupted Mobs trying to kill us all. You know, the usual." Korbus said with a smirk.
"We made a new friend too." Arachne and Spinner said together, pushing Sylvia in front of the portal.
"Wow, a Silverfish Hybrid. I'm Sam nice to meet you." Sam said with a smile.
"Aww, she's adorable." Sabrina cooed.
"Yea I know." The silverfish hybrid said, flipping her short hair for added measure.
Well I'm glad things are going well back home. Keep in contact if anything happens." Sam said, the Aether team waving goodbye. The portal shut once more.
"I'm glad they're doing ok. I was worried about leaving them alone to protect the base…" Evenstar mumbled, twiddling her thumbs.
"Hey, they're a crazy powerful group of kids. They'll be just fine without us." Endra said, wrapping her arm around her Ender brethren, "Besides, we have our own mission out there." She pointed out the vast mass of clouds and floating islands that stretched as far as the eye could see. The sun shone brightly, bathing them in a warm and hopeful light. Flying mobs and Valkyries floated along, some waving and some simply passing by.
"Ladies and Gentlemen. Welcome to the Aether. Home of the Minecraftian Gods…" Ace declared.