Minecraft. The Stranger: Rewritten.
Chapter 14.
It was the rise of the sun that woke me; my eyes opening up to the new dawn as I sat up from the ground, yawning from rest as I rubbed the dust of sleep from my eyes.
I stood up from the stony ground and stretched each of my limbs; my muscles still sore and aching from the poor excuse for a bed I'd been forced to sleep on. Which I guess was better than nothing, because nothing short of a bed on nails couldn't have made it any more terrible than it already was.
I took note of my body's current state after having shrugged of the feelings of slumber and once more tearing from my skin patches of ice, my wounds having healed entirely from my fight with Shadow and Blood, feeling only the fatigue of a hard nights sleep weigh me down, but it was easy enough to turn my thoughts away from it, focusing my attention more on the wolves of the cave than anything else, the pack having become a very real threat to me yesterday.
For whatever the reason my injuries continued to be healed no longer concerned me, for I was only glad that they had, meaning I would not be such an easy opponent now that I had once more returned to full strength.
Well...Not as easy as I would be if I was weakened...I wasn't strong enough to take on the twins, or most likely any of the wolves that lived upon this mountain for that matter. I wasn't exactly sure of my place in this world yet, not having tested myself against anyone other than Blood and Shadow, and that test had ended pitifully, for my strength nothing when compared to theirs so I had no idea where I stood among the creatures of the land. I could only hope that I would not encounter anything stronger than those two, and if I did I just hoped it wasn't out to kill me.
The two may have almost killed me, yet I still breathed, so something had stayed their jaws for the moment. If this was the case and the two continued to fight without killing me than I would gladly take the two's savagery over an even more powerful foe that sought my death.
Though I could not stand by and wait for the two to catch me off guard like that again, I would not allow it to happen. I would be more weary of the pack from now on, yet still, the next time we fought could very well be the last I ever raise a fist, so I needed to either escape to buy myself enough time to train, or see that I become strong enough to face them on equal footing as soon as possible. Which ever one I choose though, I would need to do so quickly, feeling that greater danger was fast approaching, and not just that of the wolves.
When the fatigue of my body left, I looked to them all, taking notice that many of the pack were either still asleep themselves, or just unaccounted for, with Shadow and Blood among those that were were gone, which I was immensely glad for, not looking forward to see the two so soon after the fight. I also didn't spot the den-mother within the sleeping pack, giving me much relief, as none of the dominant wolves were there to keep me in the den, giving me plenty of time to maul over my options.
Before I walked out of the cave to take some time for myself, I cast a glare at the pack before me, burning with anger that was aimed towards the two absent brothers for their treatment of me the previous day before turning away from the slumbering pack, making my way towards the clearing as I stretched my limbs as much as I could.
Stepping out onto the site of yesterdays battle, I walked myself over to the edge and looked down upon the land in front of me, taking in the sites as I sat and dangled my legs over the edge of the cliff, in my thoughts of the events as of late as I looked beyond the borders of this mountain.
While I may have felt fear from being so high up previously when I was making my way here, I held no such feeling today as I looked out across the forest.
I hadn't been able to truly appreciate the sights until now, admiring the snow blanketed land around me, feeling some sense of calm the more I stared out into the world.
Though for a few moments I had found some form of peace, I became sad because of it not long after.
I had found that there was much beauty within these lands; Something beyond the almost endless death and chaos of a world I did not know, and yet, I knew that for the time being, this place, these wolves, were all I would know.
I knew I could not face the dangers of the land yet, for I was weak.
Too weak to tread across the dark corners of the world; too weak to have beaten Blood and Shadow; Too weak to have defend myself.
Too weak to even know my own fucking name.
I still didn't even know my name!
For whatever strength I might have had during my fight with the creatures was now denied to me, possibly gone forever.
I could remember the feeling of the power that coursed through my body when I had fought back against the creatures that night; to know what it meant to be strong enough to stand on my feet in the heat of battle against relentless foes.
But that feeling was gone, replaced with a dark fear of what the future held.
It was almost enough to bring about tears, but I wouldn't allow myself to do that. Not yet.
If I was going to survive, I'd need to harden my self; become as cold and harsh as the land around me, maybe even more so. For this, I believe, is what would make me strong enough to stop feeling scared; to deny myself to save myself.
I could not know what life would be left for me if I did this as I sat and wondered, gazing up into the clear sky as I thought of what would need to be done if I went down this path, of what I would do; what kind of person I'd become when all was said and done.
When I had reached that end, if by then I had lost myself, I could only hope I was able to turn away from what I'd turned myself into. And yet I wondered if it even mattered, for I did not really know myself to begin with.
Upon this mountain I swore that I would do what needed to be done to survive. No matter what, I would overcome my fears, become strong enough to reclaim my past, and find my place in this world.
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