Alright, I need to get a couple thing out of the way before the chapter. First, I'm so sorry that this chapter didn't get out sooner. Family and college made it difficult to do so. Second, holy shit balls, Batman, we've hit 1000 views! This means so much to me guys, thank you! Finally, I want to give thanks to all the people who have left me reviews and have favorited my story. Most of all, I've got to thank SylentDoom. He's been a huge help in writing this story and helping me smooth out the edges in the stories that aren't out yet, so kudos to you, man! Thank you for all the support, guy, and without further ado, I give you Chapter 11!
-Shade's POV-
"Finally!" I cheered as I pulled the final chunk of Cobalt ore from the ground. "That was a massive vein. Vince and Mina are going to love this!" Loading the deep blue ore into my pack, I climbed out of the hole. "Hey Terra! How goes the Quartz?" I called over to a hole in the cliff not too far from me.
"Just finished, actually!" She said once her head popped out of the cave. She ran over to me and showed off the massive amount of the shining crystals she had gotten.
"Damn!" I whistled. "That's an impressive haul!"
"Thanks!" She giggled. "So that's the last two things on our supply list, huh?"
"Yep! So we're free to do whatever we want for a while."
"Whatever we want, huh?" She said with a sly grin, placing her pack on the ground. "Well, there's many things I want to do..." The look in her eyes was one of desire, excitement, and, most of all, lust. She backed me up against the cliff face, pressing up against me, running her hands across my chest. I could feel my own lips curl into a smile as I drew her closer, locking lips with her. With each passing second, the passion of the kiss grew, both of our minds seeming to grow blank as it overtook our reason. It was her who had to push away before we lost ourselves in each other.
"Shade..." She said between heavy breaths, "I think we're going to need a more comfortable place if we're gonna continue."
"I couldn't agree more." I said, thinking. After a moments consideration, a location come to mind. "Well, I do have an idea, and it's not too far from here. It's a soul sand beach next to a molten Adamantium lake. It's surrounded by Darkwood and Bloodwood trees, and it's where I found the blossom for you necklace. What do you say?" Terra seemed to consider the idea, then smiled out of anticipation.
"What're we waiting for!?" She said excitedly. "Lead on!" With a smile, we hoisted our packs onto our backs and began to walk towards the oasis in hell. "Hey, Shade?"
"Hmm?"
"You know," she started, blushing slightly, "I've been curious. Every since we've started dating, one thought has pervaded my mind."
"And what is said question?" I asked.
"Why me?" She said, blushing brighter. "I've always asked myself why you chose me, and why so quickly. After all the time we've spent together, getting to know each other and falling for each other's flaws...I don't understand how I'm so lucky..."
"You just are." I said with a chuckle. "It's not very often you fall in love with someone the moment you see them, but that's what happened between us. Best not to question it."
"True," she said, lacing her fingers between mine, "but I can't help but marvel at my luck."
"Well," he heard a voice say from above us, "it seems your luck just ran out!" Our heads snapped up as we saw someone jump down from the cliff above. They landed with a crash and when the dust settled, I could feel Terra tense. The person was a woman and could've easily been Skelly's twin. She looked the exact same, save for the fact that she had charcoal grey hair and clothes and her teeth were razor sharp. "Well, well, if it isn't my favorite Magma Cube! And what's this!? She has a tasty looking human with her!"
"Back off, Hilda!" Terra said, stepping in front of me. "You lay a hand on him, and I'll cut it off!" The woman stared at her, then laughed.
"Wow!" She said, chuckling. "You've gotten braver, Terra! Normally, all it takes is one feral Wither Skeleton to cause you to run, but here you are, standing up to the princess of them! The nerve!" She rushed Terra, grabbing her shirt collar and throwing her to the ground. "Know your place, you molten whore! I'm the only princess to not face death! Do you honestly think you stand a cha-" I interrupted her by grabbing her hair and flipping her over my shoulder. She laid on the ground in a stunned silence as I spoke.
"You will not touch her..." I seethed. "If you so much as think of harming her again, I'll tear you into so many pieces that it'll take months for you to respawn!" I drew my blade and held it before me, waiting for the bitch in front of me to move.
"You dare touch me!?" She screamed after an eternity of silence. "I'll see you wither for this!" In a flash, the woman was on me, knocking my blade out of my hand. She grabbed hold of me and bit deep into my shoulder. I could hear Terra gasp as we tore away from each other, but I grabbed my blade nonetheless. "Tenacious one, aren't you? Most would've succumbed straight away."
"I won't fall to the likes of you!" I said, barely noticing a wisp of white floating around me. I would've ignored the wisp had another one not float up in front of me. Confused, I looked for the source of the white mist, only to drop my sword in surprise. My body was encased in the white mist, which was swirling faster by the second. It took me a minute to remember where I had seen this effect before, and once I remembered, I realized Terra was in danger. I could feel energy begin to build up in my chest, and I did the only thing I could do; I ran.
-Terra's POV-
I watched as Shade sprinted away, confused and worried as to why he was doing so.
"Looks like he wants to die alone!" Hilda laughed. "What a coward!" I could feel my rage grow as she laughed, the ground beneath me beginning to bubble. "Tch, the least he could've done was go down fighting, but no, he ran off like a bitch!" That statement was the last straw. The ground around me erupted, all the netherrack and ores liquifying in a flash, leaving me standing on a single block in the middle of a lake of molten stone and metal.
"Watch your tongue..." I seethed, molding some of the molten material into a blade. "Speak foul of him again, and I'll follow up on his threat." Her gaze was as cold as ice when she looked over at me.
"Do you remember who was the cause of your first death?" She threatened. "I'll gladly kill you again, if that's what you want." I raised my blade, causing the remainder of the molten material to raise up into a wall behind me.
"You won't succeed this time, you withered cunt." I said, tensing to lunge at her. I was about to attack when a massive explosion knocked me on my ass. Shocked, I looked around for the source of the explosion, only to see an imposing pillar of black energy in the direction Shade had run. Fearing for my lover's life, I ran towards the pillar, thoughts as what it could be, completely forgetting about the Wither Skeleton behind me. I arrived at the base of the pillar rather quickly, awestricken at the sight before me. The pillar wasn't shooting up into the sky, rather, it was spiraling down into the ground, being absorbed into...something. Just as Hilda arrived, a hollow and terrifying voice echoed out from the center of the pillar.
"Through evil's curse," it echoed, seeming to reverberating throughout the Nether, "I taint the ground on which I stand. The Wither has returned." As the words trailed off, the pillar dissipated. From the center of the fading pillar stepped out, much to Hilda's surprise and my happiness, Shade. However, he looked much different. His silver hair now had streaks of black and charcoal grey running through it, his eyes glowed with ominous red light, his clothing had changed to a solid black sleeveless coat with a high collar, solid black pants and a dark grey tank top. His skin, if at all possible, was whiter than a Ghast's tear, and a black and blue spine was tattooed down each arm. The one thing that stood out the most was the imposing grey aura that surrounded him and seemed to lift him off the ground.
"Whoa..." Was all I said, desperately trying to keep myself from drooling over my increasingly attractive boyfriend. He gazed over at me, recognition flashing across his features, but the gazed immediately snapped over to Hilda when she started clapping.
"Impressive trick!" She said sarcastically, completely oblivious to the glare of intense hatred being shot at her. "So are you going to fight for real now? Oh, wait you can't! You don't have a sw-" Her words were cut short by the aura around Shade lashing out and slamming into her stomach, sending her flying into the side of a cliff. She didn't even have time to stand back up before Shade was on her, grabbing hold of her ankles and shooting into the air. Once he reached about 100 feet, he used the combined force of his aura and his own strength to fling her to the ground. She careened towards the ground, hitting with enough force to create a massive crater. When she was on her feet again, I could see the rage in her eyes. She generated her own aura and lashed out at Shade, grabbing his foot and pulling him towards the ground. She smiled with triumph as he sped towards the ground, but the smile quickly faded as his body became transparent and seemed to phase through the ground. Both of us looked around for him, but Hilda found him first, or, rather, he found her. With enough force to send her rocketing into the air, after ramping up the side of the crater, Shade's aura hit her from behind. He caught her on the way back down, but not in a nice way. She was speared on his aura, the grey mass protruding from her stomach. Much to my surprise and horror, Shade drifted over to me, looking from me to the bleeding Hilda floating next to him.
"Permission to annihilate, m'lady." He said, voice full of a madman's mirth. I could feel my sadistic tendencies begin to surface as I stared the now struggling Wither Skeleton impaled before me, a cruel smile curling my lips.
"Permission granted, my unholy knight." I said, causing us both to chuckle. "However, make it gory. I want her first encounter with death to be a painful and horrific one."
"With pleasure!" He exclaimed excitedly, eyes lighting up. He turned to his prey, his aura becoming razor sharp spikes. "Now then, my young Wither Skeleton, I hope you learn something from this." Confusion filled Hilda's eyes before she spoke.
"What? What would I learn?" A sinister smile curled Shade's lips.
"The fear of death..." He said softly, his aura slamming into Hilda's body. The spikes impaled her, causing her to cry out in pain. Shade let the spikes sit there, watching with a sick and satisfied smile as her body convulsed with pain. "Now...DIE!" With that word, the aura moved at blinding speed, shredding the woman into a red mist, the only thing of her left behind being her sword. I stared in awe as the red mist seemed to be absorbed into Shade's aura, causing it to darken. He stood there for a bit, only to collapse. I scooped him into my arms, sighing with relief to find him asleep.
"I guess becoming a Wither takes a lot out of you." I said with a chuckle. I was in the process of trying to figure out how to get him home when I heard a familiar voice.
"Terra!" I heard my best friend, Evelyn, call out. Looking up I saw the familiar white of her dress not too far away, causing an idea to come to mind.
"Come on," I said, hoisting Shade onto my back, "let's get you home." With that, I walked over to my friends, ready to head home.
-Chapter 11 End-
And there you have it. I hope at least a few of you got unnerved by Shade's demeanor in this. I thought it was a good touch. Leave a review to tell me what you think and I'll see you all in chapter 12!
