Survival of the Fittest
Chapter 4 – From the Depths
White rays of light were all Steve could see. His entire body was shaking and his muscles were tensed permanently. He felt he got hotter, and hotter… And then, suddenly very cold. An image of bones, fire and lava came towards him. And together with that, a temple.
The temple was a building unlike anything Steve had ever seen before. It was a huge building, with wing-like structures coming out of the sides, braziers on every corner and a tower that literally touched the- Steve shook his head. 'What the- Where the fuck did the sky go?'
When he looked next to him, Ender stood there, too. 'Don't worry, this is just a memory of mine. I saw this a few years ago and this is the thing I wanted to show you.' The memory receded and Steve and Ender were back in Steve's cave-house.
'What. The hell. Was that?' Steve said. Ender looked him deep in the eyes. 'That was the Nether Temple, my friend. Inside it is an artifact that can make someone immortal.' Steve frowned. 'How do you know if it'll make someone immortal?'
Ender pointed at himself. 'Why do you think I didn't go crazy yet?' he said. Steve nodded. 'Ah… But that means you're going to outlast me. Doesn't it?' Ender shook his head. 'Not likely. Every time it rains, I hurt like hell. It's possible that I'll commit suicide because of the pain sooner or later.'
Steve put his hand on Ender's shoulder. 'Dude. Never even mention that anymore. I'll find a way to keep you safe from the rain. Okay?' Ender smiled. 'Alright. If you can come up with something, I'll let you get to the artifact, too. Who knows what you'll be capable of doing once you become immortal!'
Steve nodded. 'Aye… But I'm not so sure. Do I want to be immortal? And what if I want to go back to the world I used to live in? To Earth?' Ender sat down on his bed. 'We'll see if you ever want to go back. For now, let's just concentrate on our survival, shall we?' Steve nodded. 'Indeed. Let's.'
The next day, Steve woke up with an idea. He looked to the other bed, but Ender was gone already. 'Probably hunting, or something,' Steve said to himself. He went out the door and looked out on a spectacular view.
Before, he was just concentrating on making his house safe and comfortable to live in. But now that the dangers were gone, at least on home turf, he could finally take a step back and relax. And the sight before him was beautiful unlike anything he had ever seen before.
When he looked ahead towards the rising sun, the valley below was lit in beautiful rays of sunlight and the wilds were also starting to wake up. The snow on the mountain peaks in the distance reflected the light of the sun and so it seemed as if the mountain peaks were on fire.
'Damn…' Steve said to himself, 'That sure is one hell of a view…' Then he looked down, to the forest. It was teeming with wildlife. 'Time to get myself some meat!' Steve yelled loudly. All birds nearby flew up because of the sudden sound of Steve's loud voice.
Steve grinned and went down the stairs to the open spot in front of his house. However, he found something strange there. In one spot, the ground wasn't green with grass, but red with something he couldn't place.
Suddenly, Ender teleported next to Steve. 'What have I done…' he said. Steve put his hand on Ender's shoulder and gripped it firmly. 'Hold on a second, one thing at a time here. What do you mean, "What have I done?"'
Ender looked at Steve. 'I… I've been inside the Temple… You wouldn't imagine… THE HORRORS!' Ender started hitting himself in the head. Steve saw no other option than to knock Ender out. His fist hit with an almost deadly precision and made sure he wouldn't wake up for an hour or two.
'What the hell was he talking about?' Steve said to himself. Then, he felt a presence behind him. A chill went down his spine. He recognized this feeling as extremely dangerous. When he turned around, the last thing he saw was a black fist coming straight for his head…
Steve slowly woke up with a pounding head. 'Ugh… Where in blazes am I?' he asked no-one in particular. Then he sat up straight in a flash, only to realise he was in his own bed. 'What the-' When Steve looked next to him, Ender was also still peacefully sleeping in his bed. 'Probably just a bad dream…' Steve said to himself.
He stood up and walked to the windows to look outside. But somehow, he couldn't believe what his eyes were seeing. Where the mountains in the distance used to be, there was now a massive sinkhole, at least a kilometer in diameter.
'Where the hell did THAT come from?!' Steve yelled. Ender walked up next to him, apparently awake. 'Oh, no… It has already begun!' he said. Steve frowned whilst looking at his friend. 'What are you talking about, man?!' he said.
Ender grabbed both his shoulders firmly. 'The Cataclysm is happening. The end of the world as we know it, as you will. Oh, I should have been more careful…'
Ender started walking from one side of the room to the other repeatedly. 'Have you ever heard about The Tenet?' he asked. Before Steve could answer, he said: 'Oh wait, of course you haven't. How silly of me. Allow me to explain what The Tenet means.'
'The Tenet is a sacred rule, created by Notch himself to prevent mortals from reaching immortality. The relic I showed you in that Temple was the Blade of Souls. I know it sounds cliché, but it's simply named that way. Now, The Tenet is basically the safeguard of the relic. If you remove it from its pedestal, The Overworld, where we live, will literally be replaced by The Nether. And believe me, we don't want that to happen!'
Steve nodded. 'So… Do you have the weapon with you?' Ender grinned. 'Here's where the fun part begins. I know a way to end the Cataclysm without returning the Blade. And that is to kill the Sentinel. A massive guardian in The Nether. I know it sounds like a bad idea, but let the Overworld be turned for now. The Sentinel will come here soon, as well, and we'll be able to take him out and save this world!'
This time, Steve asked a question. A question Ender couldn't answer immediately. 'What if we defeat the Sentinel, what then? Will the world revert back to normal if we do?' Ender stared at him. 'That's what I don't know 100% sure. The legend of The Tenets says it, so it's probably true,' he answered. Steve nodded again. 'Right. Time to go demon hunting!' he said. And as he said that, the Blade of Souls started shining brightly, as if it knew it was going to battle. As if it knew it was going to spill blood…
That was it for chapter 4 :) Hope you liked the sudden dramatising stuff I put in this time, hehe… Anyway, please be so kind as to leave a review, it really helps. Don't have to be shy! ^^ Have a nice day, people!