Separated

Chapter 10: Diggy Diggy Hole

Honeydew barged through the door of the Elysium, potion in hand as he headed for the stairs. Lysander followed after quickly looking the wooden door over, making sure Honeydew didn't accidentally damage it when he slammed it open. Upstairs, Old_Peculier was staring silently out the window, his back facing the two as they ascended. He gave no sign that he noticed them, staring out across the city through the glass windowpane. Lysander and Honeydew shared a look before Honeydew took a step towards the old man, clearing his throat.

"Peculier?" He tried. Old_Peculier simply continued to stare out the window for a moment before slowly turning to face the Dwarf. His eyes were bloodshot, dark circles having formed under his eyes from exhaustion and lack of sleep. Lysander and Honeydew shared another look. He looked absolutely awful. Peculier simply stared at them, waiting for Honeydew to continue.

"Um, here..." Honeydew stepped closer and showed Peculier the bottle of golden liquid Fumblemore had given them. "Drink this. It should restore your health."

The old man simply stared at the bottle before taking it with a shaking hand. He looked it over closely.

"It looks…horrible." He croaked out, voice straining from lack of use.

"Fumblemore's potion looks gross, I know, but it's the only thing to help you get back onto your feet." Lysander broke in. "We need you if we're ever going to stop Israphel."

"Besides, it doesn't taste all that bad." Honeydew added, though he was most likely lying. "It uh…it tastes of strawberries and single malt whiskey!"

Old_Peculier looked between the potion and the two in front of him before he sighed, yanking the cork out of the top of the bottle with a pop!

"For Daisy…" He mumbled, pressing the bottle to his lips. A bright golden light filled the room suddenly, so bright Honeydew and Lysander had to shield their eyes. When the light died away, the two looked up to see Old_Peculier standing tall and proud, no longer hunched over with age. The dark bags had disappeared from under his eyes, and he looked at the now empty bottle as he wiped his mouth with his sleeve.

"Much better." He said. His voice was no longer strained by age, though an old Scottish-sounding croak still remained. He looked at Lysander and Honeydew, and his smile grew as he suddenly embraced both in a hug.

"Thank you, friends! I feel as though I'm as young as how I was when I first became a knight!" He laughed, Lysander and Honeydew smiling at their friend's new state of health.

"Well I'll be; Fumblemore isn't just a crazy old wizard-y bastard!" Honeydew declared, a joyous laugh erupting from him. The three parted the embrace as Peculier turned towards the window again, expression turning serious as he thought.

"Everything's rushing back to me." He began, staring out across the city once more. "I need to follow the footsteps of my father if we're to ever stop Israphel. He went missing one day, serving at a guard tower just outsde of town. I tried to investigate where he'd gone, but to no avail." He turned to face the two behind him. "Quickly, we must pick up my father's trail once again. To the guard tower!"

Lysander and Honeydew nodded, arming themselves with their weapons that had been strapped to their belts. Peculier led them down the stairs before all three rushed out of the Elysium, heading back down Victoria Street and around towards the main square. They crossed the drawbridge and started following the wall towards the back of the city, Peculier leading confidently with a bounce in his step.

"Geez, it's like he's a whole other person!" Honeydew said quietly to Lysander as the two followed. Lysander just nodded.

"It feels a bit odd calling him Old_Peculier now, now doesn't it?" The Skylord replied, looking forward at the man in front of him. Peculier didn't seem to notice the pair's conversation. Honeydew was about to reply to Lysander's statement when Peculier suddenly stopped. The Dwarf and Skylord looked past him to see large craters scattered around the land before them, small fires still burning around the edges of the gigantic holes. Peculier raised a brow.

"What on Minecraftia is this?" He asked. Honeydew looked around and noticed a sign that had been quickly staked into the ground. He walked over and read it.

"Mine Field?" He asked, reading the warning. "Why the hell did they set up a Mine Field?"

"Looks like it was the citizens' last attempt at defense before they all fled to Icaria." Lysander broke in. "Wandering animals and creatures must've set them off."

"It seems so." Peculier concluded. "We'll have to head around it. This way, everyone!" He then turned and started to walk around the Mine Field, carefully watching his step for any stray land mine that had yet to be set off. Honeydew and Lysander did the same, although the Dwarf tripped and nearly fell back onto a suspicious-looking mound of dirt, only to be saved by Lysander's quick reflexes. Soon, the three made their away past the Mine Field and stood before a ruined tower, its crumbling stone walls laced with thick green moss. Honeydew approached the old door and read a sign above it.

"Ye Olde Watch-e Tower…e." He read, squinting at the faded writing, prononcing each "E" separately. "Now that's some old English."

"This is certainly the tower my father served at." Peculier said, studying the tower as he stroked his 4 o'clock shadow-of-a-beard. He turned towards the others. "Let's have a look around. There has to be something!"

Honeydew and Lysander nodded before the Dwarf forced the door open. It came down quickly, falling off its rusted hinges after a few good shoves. The three started to climb up the winding staircase that led to the top.

"Sure is moldy in here…" Lysander commented, covering his mouth and nose with his shirt. Peculier did the same as Honeydew led the party up the slippery stone stairway.

"C'mon guys, it's not that ba- CREEPER!"

Before anyone could react, a creeper suddenly blew up as they reached the top. Lysander and Peculier were thrown down the stairs a bit while Honeydew was thrown over the side railing. The Skylord helped Peculier to his feet before rushing over to where the Dwarf had fell.

"Honeydew!"

"Um... Down here…"

Lysander looked down to see Honeydew hanging precariously off a ledge, barely hanging on to the mossy stone with one hand. Both he and Peculier sighed in relief before helping the Dwarf back up to safety.

"You alright, friend?" Peculier asked. Honeydew gave a grunt in reply as he fixed his iron helm back onto his head, the helm having become askew in his fall.

"I'm fine, surprisingly." He eventually responded. "I'm a bit shaken up, though."

"At least you're not hurt." Lysander told him, scanning the small lookout post around them. "It doesn't look like anything's up here. Let's head back down."

And so the three quickly headed back down the stairs, the party soon emerging outside again.

"How did a creeper get up there, anyway?" Honeydew asked, glancing towards the spot he'd almost fallen from. Lysander just shrugged, also looking at the part of the tower.

"It was almost like it was waiting for us..."

"I've heard rumors of an old secret being buried near here." Peculier broke in suddenly, eyein the tower again. "Like a secret basement or something. Anyone have any shovels?"

"It just so happened I grabbed a few back at the Yogcave." Honeydew replied, slipping his bag off his shoulder to dig through it. After a few seconds of digging around in the leather sack, the Dwarf pulled out three stone shovels, handing one to Lysander and Peculier each. Peculier approached the crumbling stone base of the tower before stamping his spade into the dirt. Lysander did the same on the opposite side of the tower while Honeydew began his dig elsewhere. Silence followed as the three adventurers worked tirelessly. Hours started to pass like minutes, and by the time the sun had started to dip below the mountains again, they'd found nothing. A giant hole sat around the tower's base, and the three leaned up against the wall, catching their breath.

"I feel as though we need something to boost morale…" Lysander mumbled after a bit, glancing at the two men beside him. "Any ideas?"

Honeydew started to stroke his magnificent orange beard in thought, and after a moment, he smiled. The Dwarf picked up his shovel again and walked over to where he had last been digging. He quickly cleared his throat and broke out into a hearty Dwarven song, beginning to dig again as he did.

"I'm a Dwarf and I'm digging a hole. Diggy diggy hole, I'm digging a hole…"

Honeydew continued, basically repeating the same few lines over and over again. Lysander and Old_Peculier looked at each other before smiling, and the two quickly rejoined Honeydew in their dig. The three continued for a few more minutes, the hole around the tower slowly growing wider when suddenly Honeydew's spade struck something. The Dwarf stopped his song and looked down at where he had just hit.

"Huh? Guys! I found something!" He called. Lysander and Peculier stopped their digging and ran over, staring at where Honeydew stared. A flat wooden surface was visible in the dirt, and with a bit more movement of the dirt around it, an old, half-rotten chest sat before them. Peculier bent down and forced the top open with his shovel. All three men leaned over the open box to find…

"A paper?" Honeydew asked, his brow furrowing. "We dug for all those hours for some bloody piece of paper!?"

Peculier pulled the old parchment out of the chest and looked it over. It had started to yellow with age, but it was still in a pretty good condition. Old runes and markings were written all across one side of the paper. Peculier squinted at them.

"It's written in the Old Language." He explained. "Give me a moment, I'll try to translate it…"

Lysander and Honeydew waited as Peculier stood silently, eyes fixed onto the parchment as he quickly scanned what was written. After a minute or two, he looked over at his two comrades.

"It's a message from my father." He began, neatly folding the paper and tucking it away into his pocket. "It says he and a few men had left to venture down into the local mine. It doesn't explain why, however, but it must've been important. We must follow them!"

At the mention of a mine, Honeydew quickly reached for his pickaxe and held it confidently. Lysander, on the other hand, looked absolutely worried. He pulled at his collar and glanced at the ground, starting to break into a cold sweat.

"I'm afraid I'll have to sit out on this one…" He said quietly, his tone showing he was embarrassed. Peculier and Honeydew looked at him.

"What? Why?" The Dwarf asked. Lysander gulped as he fiddled with his collar again, shrinking back slightly.

"You see, I'm not very good with going underground." He explained. "I-It's an old phobia of mine... I'd go with you if I could, but I'd just be a burden. A Skylord like me has no place in a mine, anyway."

"We understand, friend." Peculier responded. Honeydew had opened his mouth to make a retort, but stopped when Peculier spoke. "We'll meet you back at the Elysium once we're finished."

"Alright. Thanks, you two." Lysander replied as he started to turn. He gave the two a wave before he headed back towards the city's main gate, hands slipping into his pockets as he disappeared around a corner. Honeydew watched him go before he rolled his eyes.

"Sheesh, what a pussy." He mumbled, earning a stern look from Peculier.

"Lysander's not a pussy! Fear of the Underground is a perfectly reasonable fear." He argued. "Besides, you're a Dwarf, Honeydew. You were practically born down there."

"I guess you're right…" Honeydew replied, although a bit begrudgingly. "Let's just go check this mine out, yeah?"

Peculier sighed before he nodded, and the two quickly followed the path Lysander had taken back towards the main gate. They easily avoided the Mine Field this time, knowing the safest route past it. The two soon reached the main gate and headed inside, cutting across the main square and past the Sports Court. The fenced-off mine entrance sat before them, the creeper Honeydew had seen within the fence earlier having mysteriously disappeared. Peculier and Honeydew quickly hopped over the fence and headed for the mine's trapdoor entrance. It had been sealed shut with wooden planks, but Honeydew quickly pried them off the door with his pickaxe. Peculier kicked open the trapdoor and peered inside. A dark hole reached deep into the ground, an old, rickety ropeladder hanging down. It continued on a ways before the darkness below engulfed it. It was impossible to tell how far down the hole led.

"Honeydew, do you have a torch on you?" Peculier asked. The Dwarf nodded and pulled one out of his bag.

"Yeah."

"Lite it."

Honeydew did so, dragging the torch's head across the cobblestone ground. There was a spark, and a bright flame erupted from the torch's head. Peculier took it and stared into the hole again, carefully beginning to climb down with the torch still in hand. Honeydew quickly did the same, not wanting to get too far behind the torchlight and end up missing a foothold in the dark. The Dwarf took one last look at the darkening sky before pulling the trapdoor closed overhead. Heaven knows what waits in the caverns below, and it was only a matter of time before the two would find out.