Chapter 9

Both Ivor and Gabriel were blown off the stage as the Wither was created.

The Wither slowly and shakily ascended with its eyes closed and its ribs wrapped around the command block, holding it.

People slowly backed away, intimated by it, while Ivor stared angrily and got up.

"Creature – attack!" Ivor commanded it, causing Steven to shake his head, somehow knowing, even if it does, it soon won't listen to him.

The Wither screamed loudly and opened its eyes revealing its white iris. It slowly flew around the place looking at all of them scream in terror and ran away.

Jesse looked at his friends scared form's and turned to back the Wither with his own scared look.

The Wither fired at Jesse making him freeze in fear only to have Steven jump in and push them both away from the fired skulls after math.

The two slowly got up, but said nothing and glared at the Wither, before gaining worried looks when they saw how big the explosion was and started to back away with Reuben.

The Wither fired again causing Jesse to evade, by side stepping, this time, while Steven ran around him and towards their friends.

Somehow the Wither began to tare blocks from the ground and encase its self in a new shell of armor. It screamed than started to tear single blocks from the walls and anything that it could get in its pull.

"Everyone stay calm! This foul beast is no match for me!" Gabriel shouted pulling out a diamond sword.

"Creature – attack!" Ivor commanded pointing to Gabriel.

The Wither cried out before charging at Gabriel.

"Hyahh!" Gabriel shouted jumping at The Wither, only to get knocked back while swinging at the command block.

"What have you done?" Gabriel asked Ivor in horror looking at the Creature that was slowly getting bigger.

"Gabriel!" Jesse exclaimed running up to him.

Gabriel quickly got up and swung his arm at Jesse, "No! Stay away! It's after me, not you!" Gabriel warned him not willing to pull anyone innocent into this.

Steven frowned and narrowed his eyes. Something was telling him the Wither wasn't after Gabriel, but at the same time something was saying it was, but not for him exactly…

The Wither tried to swing slam into Gabriel making both him and Jesse duck to avoided it.

Gabriel slowly got up and leaned forward, as the Wither began to pull more than single blocks from the walls and floors.

As soon as a chunk of blocks he ducked to avoid was past he looked at the Wither that was slowly building its self a new form.

It fired at the roof breaking a whole area of blocks and absorbed the fallen pieces into its self.

"Look at him! The mighty Gabriel!" Ivor shouted walking forward and pointing at the scared Gabriel who was at the moment cowering, ignoring the upset looks from the group, "Looks like the true greatness is out of his reach!" Ivor exclaimed, pleased he exposed Gabriel's, apparently, true colors.

Gabriel did nothing but make make his eyes look away, ashamed and worried.

"He may not be able to defeat this creature – but I can!" Ivor exclaimed before getting into a stance ignoring the blocks being torn apart around him, "Creature – retreat!" Ivor commanded the Wither.

However this time The Wither didn't listen and kept tearing blocks from everywhere slowly getting bigger and giving its middle head a new face, that had a single purple glowing eye giant jaws with massive gaps between it teeth, turning its self into an even worse monster than before.

The Wither slowly turned to face him doing nothing, "Ahem." Ivor started thinking it didn't hear him, "Creature – retreat!" Ivor commanded again only for it to slowly float towards him, "Retreat, I said! Retreat!" Ivor shouted in annoyance and a bit of fear.

"So much for obedience…" Steven said taking a step away.

"Steven's right! He's lost control of it!" Jesse shouted pointing at the Wither.

"No need to be alarmed, my friends." Ivor assured them, but was worried him self, ignoring the group look at each other in fear, "I have an elixir that will destroy this creature." Ivor exclaimed pulling out the potion, that looked like the one Axel switched with the potion he took earlier.

"That potion – is that…?" Jesse said recognizing the potion, in worry.

Ivor got ready to throw what he thought was the elixir, while Jesse and Axel looked in fear knowing what was about to happen, "Uh-oh…" Axel muttered.

Ivor took a step forward and throw the potion doing nothing.

"What?" Ivor asked in shock, "Impossible! It should have worked – I took such care!" Ivor shouted knowing well that should of worked while backing away.

"The potion – Axel! You've got to throw the real potion!" Olivia said, upset that Axel's greed may be the death of them all.

"But – finders, keepers!" Axel tolled Olivia shrugging, not wanting to toss the potion.

Ivor over heard them and knew instantly why that potion didn't work, "You thieves! You're ruining everything!" Ivor shouted while gesturing to them.

"Axel, come on!" Olivia tolled him, finally making Axel give in and sadly pull out the elixir.

Jesse quickly snatched it from him and ran towards the Wither.

"Jesse - throw it!" Olivia ordered him.

Right when Jesse threw the elixir the Wither put blocks around the command block refusing to let it be destroyed.

"It's protecting itself!" Ivor shouted in horror, "Without the command block exposed… the potion is useless!" he continued watching the Wither float around and tear, then absorb blocks from everywhere, "It wasn't supposed to happen like this." Ivor exclaimed angrily before running away in fear.

"Ivor! You coward, come back here!" Gabriel shouted at Ivor's retreating form right before the newly designed head Wither head started to pull him in a tractor beam from its eye making Gabriel shout in fear.

Before he got to close Olivia ran out and grabbed his foot trying to pull him out of the tractor beam, "Jesse, help me!"

Jesse ran forward and grabbed Gabriel's other foot and started to pull, until he was out of the Wither's tractor beam.

Gabriel landed on his back and got up with Help from Jesse, "Thank you." Gabriel said to them, "Ivor was right about one thing – I can't defeat that thing. Not on my own." Gabriel tolled them, looking at the Wither that just grow tentacles made from blocks and was slowly but visibly getting larger.

"Everyone's running away…" Gabriel said looking at the remaining people that were either hiding or running, "Except for you." He continued looking at the group that had both separately, determined and scared faces.

"Will you help me?" Gabriel asked them, "I must get to the temple – but what needs to happen next, I can't do alone."

"Of course!" Jesse exclaimed with a determined look.

Gabriel slowly nodded and started to run off, "Follow me!" He tolled them while running with everyone right behind him and the Wither watching them run.

A few chickens that somehow managed to escape a chicken machine were pecking at the ground until they saw the crowds of people that were screaming and running.

"Out of my way, chickens!" Jesse exclaimed trying to get pass a crowed of chickens that were covering the bridge.

Before anything else happened the glass dome on top of the Hall broke and a massive Wither storm's tentacles broke out straight after followed by the body, that was still absorbing blocks and soon sprouted three monstrous heads that each had a tractor beam coming out the eye piece.

Reuben, who looked back, eyes widened at the sight before he ran off.

Jesse stared in awe at it before he scowled and ran forward.

The Wither Storm then started using its tractor beams to, not only absorb blocks, but to also eat anybody who got caught in it.

Jesse tried to run but caught in a tractor beam catching him and a chunk of the bridge.

"Oof!" Jesse shouted while being pulled into the beam, "Wait!" Jesse shouted trying to grab onto something hoping somebody would hear him, "Hey! I'm up here!" Jesse tried again while grabbing the bridge that was slowly being torn apart, "Somebody, help me!" Jesse shouted again desperately hoping for someone to hear him, "Guys!"

Jesse was trying not to get pulled into the beam but his attention was caught to a chicken that was in the same beam before it got out of its range and landed safely one the floor.

Seeing that Jesse put on a determined look and started to crawl along the chunk of the bridge trying to escape the beam.

When he did he ended up falling all the away down the stairs that led to the bridge and landed on his stomach.

He quickly got up and looked at all the people that were being taken by the Wither Storm.

Jesse quickly ran forward and jumped over a crowed of chickens that were blocking the path.

After a few seconds of running he saw lukas standing in a crowd of fleeing people and stopped as quickly as he could, "Lukas!"

"Holy crap!" Lukas exclaimed running over and looking at the Wither Storm, "Oh man, if I was still in that basement I-" he stated thinking of what could have happened if the Wither Storm was created and he was still in the basement, "Thanks for coming back for me, Jesse. I wouldn't be here without you."

"Jesse!" Petra shouted from a booth with Olivia, Reuben, Axel, and Steven.

Jesse and Lukas ran forward and hid in the booth before the Wither Storm's tractor beam went right over them and started to tear the booth apart making them run away.

"Wait – wait! We have to stay together!" Jesse shouted while Steven stopped and his only seen eye widened in fear making Jesse raise an eyebrow at him.

"Jesse! Help me!" Petra shouted making Jesse turn to see Petra was caught in a tractor beam.

Jesse quickly ran towards her and grabbed her hand, pulled and grabbed onto a 2 block high orange fence post.

"I can't hold on! Steven help!" Jesse exclaimed while he was lifted of the ground looking at Steven who was staring at the Wither Storm with wide eyes, but not with fear, or anything he seemed… empty, "Steven?!" Jesse asked, not noticing one of the Wither Storm's head was doing the same and staring at Steven, right before the fence posts were ripped, "Noooooooo!"

Right before they could be absorbed by the Wither Storm a slapping sound was heard, Gabriel and Steven, who now had a red cheek, came and grabbed Jesse's foot while Steven grabbed Gabriel's shoulders and they both pulled, until the tractor beam was moved and they all fell.

The rest ran up to them to see if they were okay.

"Do we still have everyone?" Jesse asked getting up.

Gabriel didn't wait for an answer and started running ahead, "We must set out for my fortress – we'll be better protected there."

Everyone looked at him for a moment before running after him, while the Wither Storm absorbed what ever it could to grow larger.

"Thanks for that just now." Petra thanked Jesse, while Steven rubbed his stinging cheek beside her.

"Yeah, well, now we're eve-" Jesse started and gasped when he saw the Wither Storm screaming and absorbing chunks of buildings and thousands of blocks.

"Incoming!" Petra shouted as a normal but flaming Wither skull came flying towards them.

Petra knocked Jesse aside saving them from the attack, except Steven who wasn't so lucky and got blown back.

The two didn't register that Steven was hurt, got up and ran forward.

Steven attempted to do the same but one of the Wither Storms tentacles grabbed him and started to squeeze him as tight as possible instead of bringing him closer to be absorbed.

The Wither Storm slowly squeezed him tighter. Steven tried to escape its grasp, but that made it squeeze him tighter, faster and harder making Steven's eyes shut tight with tears of pain and cringed when he felt something pop and his ribs slowly push against his lungs making him hoarsely cough.

Just before it could tighten the hold on Steven anymore an iron sword whacked it making it let go of him but also breaking the sword.

Steven shakily got up, and saw who saved him.

"H-Her-Herma-" Steven tried but ended coughing harshly, and gasped for breath, "H-Herman…" Steven finally spoke seeing Herman standing there with the hilt of a broken sword that soon turned into dust.

"Steve! You alright!" Herman asked helping him stand straight.

"I-I'm f-fine…" Steven answered Herman, his voice still horse and ragged, and thick tears threatening to escape his eyes.

Herman would've questioned Steven but he looked like he was in to much pain and now wasn't really the time to argue.

"Steve run!" Herman ordered Steven and before he could argue Herman spoke, "Steve that thing is absorbing people but it just tried to slowly kill you. Run and I'll keep it distracted as long as I can."

Steven took a glance at the Wither Storm and gave Herman an unsure look before he turned around and tried to catch up with his friends.