And I am back! Sorry it took so long for this new chapter, I've been busy.
I finally got a 3ds for Christmas from my parents! I bought X from Target the next day, but Alpha Sapphire was sold out so I ordered it and it arrived the following week. That's why I haven't been writing on my down time, and why this chapter is a little later than usual.
Anyways, did I break anyone's feels in the last chapter? When I told my friend about it, before posting it, I warned her that it might be a "feels-eating demon" I was really unsure as whether to post it or not, because I've never really killed a character like that before... in any of my stories. I generally avoid the concept of death.
So if you want to, message me if you have any of the gen 6 pokemon games (and if there's any way to meet up or something on there, I have no idea. Maybe something about friend codes?) I may not have my 3ds when I get the message (parents!), but I'll get around to it eventually.
And on a final note that you probably already noticed, my friend finally finished drawing the picture! It's not quite what I imagine Krystal looks like, but hey, it's still a lot better than I could do. It's been nearly a year since this story started, so hooray for pestering my friend to do the drawing for nearly a year! Her Quotev profile is linked on my profile.
Also, Matt and Power, you guys are awesome. :)
When I woke up in the morning, Ty was nowhere to be seen. Eli was shaking my shoulder, a grim look on my friend's face.
"There's something you need to hear" He said.
My heart sank, "Is Hector okay?"
"Hector's fine. It's something else"
Jumping down from the low tree branch I had slept on, I let him lead me back to the main camp.
My brother was there, explaining to the little wither skeleton boy what had happened the night before, but Eli pulled me right past them, to Sky's tent.
The leader of Budder City was pacing back and forth. He looked up when Eli and I came inside.
But it was my friend who spoke first, "Let me explain, Sky. It involves me and Krystal more than almost anyone else here" Sky nodded, so Eli went on, "Krystal, Tommy's gone. But that's not all. He snuck past Mitch on guard last night, and let out the scientists. They must have run out into the forest. Jerome looked, but couldn't even find much of a scent trail. I feel really aweful. I can't believe I didn't notice it sooner. They got away, Krystal. Tommy and the scientists"
My heart stopped. "Everything we've done..." I whispered, looking outside. Ty obviously had already been told. Hector, probably not.
"Was all for naught" Eli finished.
"No. It wasn't. We can still keep them from ever using this facility again" If he noticed my change of nouns, he didn't mention it. But I did catch him smiling.
"We can destroy all their equipment. But what are we going to do with all the mob-mob hybrids?" I asked, glancing back at the compound.
"That's another thing. I don't want to take you to see it, but you can if you want... The scientists killed all the mob hybrids. I guess they didn't want us to study them, though they must know that you know just about everything they do"
All the hybrids Celosia (I didn't realize until I played Pokemon X, but Celosia is the name of one of the Team Flare scientists. Cool, right? Nintendo uses name meanings too! (Celosia=burning, Team Flare)) had advised to leave behind for now... All of them were gone because of our decision.
"All of them...?"
"Every one"
I shuddered, "We're going to have to dig a grave for the bodies. But first, I want to record what each was a mix of. We need some sort of record of the losses, in case we can't from the computers"
As it turned out, the scientists and Tommy had been thorough. The computers had been trashed, all their data removed, though a lot of the machines and such they had used still remained intact.
We destroyed everything we could lay our hands on. Though found some interesting things.
Once, I caught sight of a creamy white scale, possibly from an albino creeper or something. Another time, it was a logbook of one of the scientists.
When we were finished, and all the dead had been buried, I turned my thoughts back to where was now home.
"Savannah. We'll need to warn her about Tommy before it's too late" I said to Eli as we prepared to leave.
"Right. We can drop Seto off at his house and pick up Mist and Shade, then go right to Budder City. That's home for us now" He agreed.
Hector was standing beside the freshly overturned earth that covered Celosia's body, the stone carved by Ty standing proudly, as though it was guarding the dead girl.
"Come on, Hector. It's time to go" I called.
All of a sudden, he ran to my arms.
"Krystal? Why'd Celosia have to go away from me?" He asked.
My heart shuddered, and I crouched and hugged him, "Hector, she didn't have much of a choice. She knew she was doomed soon enough. But her wish was for you to live. It always was"
"Promise?" He sobbed, "Promise you'll never leave me"
"I can't promise that. There will be times when we have to separate. Especially when you're older. But I will promise that I will never abandon you. You can trust me on that, Hector"
With Celosia gone, I was going to have to be sort of an older sister or cousin to Hector. Though it was certain I would have to leave him behind sometimes, especially with all the trials coming our way.
Between Tommy, the scientists, and the growing issue of the gods, my brother and I still had a lot left to do.
When we broke camp, after doing all we could to impair the scientists, Ty and I left the others. It was time to go to the End again, to tell Mother everything that had transpired.
I left Hector in the care of Jerome, who Hector seemed to think was the most like a hybrid, and therefor someone who we could trust. But I warned Seto to keep an eye on the wither skeleton boy, because if anyone were to hurt Hector...! And I especially trusted Seto with this issue. He was more skeptical of Mitch and Jerome, and would keep a closer eye on them than maybe Sky would.
After that, we left and found Endrea and Endre, who had been waiting patiently and anxiously for us to emerge from the vicinity of the compound.
The two endermen teleported us to the End, and we stayed conscious this time. Maybe because it wasn't our first time here.
-Mother!- I called out, flying towards the draconic shape approaching us.
She roared, and I slipped close to her and wrapped my arms around her neck.
My enderdragon mother wrapped her head over my shoulder, cooing to me softly. -I was worried when Endre and Endrea told me what you were doing. I'm glad you're safe-
Isalar the enderdragon queen was still new to being a mother, but she seemed every bit as good as any mother I'd seen in the Overworld. Sure, she didn't share the same shape and world as her "children" but did that mean she couldn't be a good mother? Especially to two hybrids who'd never known what it was like to have a parent?
I told Mother everything. Our plan, what had happened, even Mist, Shade, Hector, and Celosia. Even Tommy and his betrayal, and the scientist's escape.
But it was Enderlox who, growling, brought up the real issue, 'Get to the point already. The gods'
I nodded, acknowledging him, -Right. Mother, the next problem we need to solve is that of the gods. Herobrine has already sent an army after us, and it was his minions who warned us of Notch's interest as well. We need to figure out somehow to deal with them. And I came to you. You must know more about the gods than most mortals-
The End Queen nodded, suddenly hesitant, -Yes, I know of them. I have not, however, met either. Now listen, dear Krystal. We must go to the castle to speak of this. It is a tale only to be spoken to an enderdragon. I believe that you two qualify-
'If it's for enderdragons, can I be the one out there?' Enderlox asked mischievously.
I laughed, -That's not up to me and Mother-
'Ty?'
My brother sighed, 'I'll give you this, Enderlox. I guess you deserve a reward for helping save Krystal'
My brother's personalities switched places, and the few physical changes occurred. Enderlox's slightly darker hair and more vivid eyes. He always looked more wild, more like a fighter, than Ty. I loved them both, as separate brothers.
-Welcome to your first first-hand experience of the End, Enderlox- Mother greeted him warmly, though she looked a bit unnerved by the change.
We flew to the castle, and Mother sent the servants and attendants away for the time being. They were all endermen, of course, and she'd said this was for enderdragons alone to hear.
-So what is it, Mother?- I asked as we came to the large main room with the open ceiling.
-Children, what I am about to tell you will most likely conflict with anything the mortals have told you about their gods- She paused, then went on, -The mortals have long believed that Notch created their world and everything good and neutral, while his brother Herobrine created the Nether and everything bad and hostile. That is not entirely true-
Neither of us reacted as much as she had clearly expected us to, so I said, -I haven't been in the normal world long enough to really know all that much about their gods-
'We honestly never really cared all that much, but I think Sky was really devoted to Notch. Something about his amulet, I remember' Enderlox put in, rubbing his chin.
-Well then, I have a blank enough slate to draw this picture. As it turns out, Notch and Herobrine were the first Minecraftians. But they were different in those days. They were regular humans in all appearance, except they had unusual powers. Notch learned that they had the power to create, and together, they made the entirety of Minecraftia as we know it. It is true that the Nether was Herobrine's project, but he kept it sealed away from the Overworld, so no stray creatures could find their way there. There were no hostile creatures yet, so it was a barren, desolate place with nothing but lava.
-They grew lonely, and often quarreled with one another, fed up with only each other for company. Until Notch hatched a brilliant idea. He created the first human. Like them, but with no powers. Herobrine was fascinated by this, and decided to help. As the two created more and more, the humans started to revere Notch as a god, and his white-eyed brother was set off to the side. Herobrine grew bitter as his brother spent more time with his creations than with his own brother, and plotted secretly.
-Herobrine created portals into the dimension he had kept aside and secret until then. As mobs wandered in, they mutated to adapt to the harsh climate. Pigs turned into zombie pigmen. Slimes into magma cubes. Squids somehow into ghasts and blazemen. The Nether changed things. Humans were cursed from the beginning with curiosity, and could not help but wander into the swirling violet portals, and they were slain by the mobs and the cruel, angry terrain. Much like Herobrine's heart had been crushed by his brother's love for the humans. He also created the hostile mobs in the Overworld, in order to punish Notch's creations, for having more of Notch's love than Herobrine himself.
-But the Overworld god was not blind to Herobrine's tactics. He sought out his brother, and questioned why he had created such despicable things. Herobrine's answer was simple. Notch had had all eyes for the puny, weak little creatures he had created, but was blind to his own brother's rage and sadness. But that was still true of Notch, who decided that Herobrine was tormenting his people for fun, and out of boredom. He banished his brother to the Nether. A few of Herobrine's Overworld creations tried to follow him as well, but of those, only the skeletons survived, turning into wither skeletons, who Herobrine created a boss, the Wither, for. While banished he has created several things of beauty, Nether quartz and glowstone, mostly. Meanwhile, in the Overworld, Notch spread rumors about Herobrine being the true evil one, even more cementing his place as the one the humans looked up to and loved-
She stopped and nuzzled my brother's hair, then continued again.
-And us, dear Krystal and Enderlox, were created by a combination of both. In the open dimensional space between the Overworld and the Nether, Notch created another dimension. The End. A series of cold, desolate islands above the Void. Their only purpose was so that Herobrine could not create his own dimension so he could return to the Overworld. For you see, Herobrine has grown even more bitter and angry after his long solitude. He has come to hate Notch, and all Minecraftians, for the injustice given to him. When he discovered the End, it was in fact discovered by his newest creation, endermen. The endermen could teleport interdimensionally, and disliking both the water of the Overworld and the lava of the Nether, found the End suitable. So Herobrine gained his root in our dimension. He created us, the enderdragons, as a final punishment for any Minecraftians who thought themselves strong enough to challenge a god. Someone who had proved their worth by slaying a dozen or more endermen in the Overworld first. There are other full-blood enderdragons like me, scattered across the dimension on their own islands, through many are too far to be worth the effort of flying between. But I am the only one here on the main island, given the task of challenging any human who dares to enter our home-
-Did Notch ever comment about the enderdragon's existence?- I put in.
She cocked her head to one side, thinking, -I believe he mentioned that he does not necessarily approve or disagree with our presence. Like us, he is neutral until provoked. Now, dearest children, you are tired, and have spent a long while listening to me ramble on. You can return to your friends later today. You have not yet fully recovered from your battle yesterday. But for now, sleep-
Her voice faded into the background, and my head drooped, eyelids growing heavy. She must have used some kind of magic or something, because I was asleep in moments, even though it was probably still the middle of the day.
Bit of an abrupt ending, but a bit of backstory on what is going to be the main part of the sequel, dealing with the gods (in case you didn't get that from the million and a half mentions Krystal made) One more chapter left! As Matt suggested, the sequel will be called "Hardly Started" After the next chapter, I will post a little surprise I've actually had since I was about five chapters in. It's just a small little thing, but I think you'll like it. Then I'll post a chapter with the story stats after the sequel comes out.
So see ya, Flowers!