Steve gets into a battle stance, slightly low and ready to take a blow. Lucky for him, he managed to be south of the witch, meaning that he got to block the doorway. The only disadvantage to this was the Witch's preferred mode of attack: ranged splash potions. Steve had to leave Alex here if he didn't want to get in the way of her poison or instant harming. Steve knew this witch was prepared to give her all, even if that risked giving herself those attacks.

The witch looks carefully at Steve's every move, preparing a counterattack of her own. Steve slowly backs away, opening the door just a crack. He backs away more, opening the door wider, until eventually he dives out of the way. Seeing that the witch really did throw a splash potion, he immediately dives into a murky pond, avoiding the aerial splash.

As long as he didn't get in the way of the splash, he'd be fine. He had to keep his distance.

But that was the witch's specialty: her bow. The enchanted bow was powerful. Steve remembered having to fight a dungeon of skeletons once. Just the power of standard bows cumulatively proved to be a hard task to combat. Now, with just one bow but with cumulative powers, Steve really had to think twice before every move. The first thing he had to do was find a way to disarm her. He didn't have a bow himself, but he had some other things with him that could work similarly.

The witch steps down from the hut and onto the ground. Ten blocks away, Steve stood. He takes a diamond axe and hurls it at the witch, who skillfully dodges it, letting it fly past her. She fires another arrow at Steve, but that hits the water and sinks like a stone. Steve propels himself from a lily pad and swings his sword towards the witch, who was hit with fierce blows. She tumbles into the murky pond Steve was in. Her weakness had really backfired. She tries to toss another splash potion, but Steve catches it with his bare hands before it even reached its apex.

He throws it back, and she suddenly begins to cough wildly and choke violently. It was a poison potion, judging from the potion particles emanating off her. Steve takes the axe he threw out of the wall and waits for the witch to get out of the water.

When she comes up gasping for air, Steve builds up energy in his arm and releases it on the axe, letting it fly through the air like a dart. It whizzed through the air and hit the witch square in the head, killing her almost instantly. She sinks down the boggy surface, bringing the axe with her. Steve sits down on the stairs, his brain still rushing with adrenaline.

He glances up at Alex, who was still lying down on the floor. She couldn't be dead, that's for sure, but she had to be brought back from consciousness. That witch was right about her being in a deep coma. Steve opens the only chest in the entire hut and looks for any potion that could be used for intense healing. Maybe he could whip one up of his own right here.

After finding nothing that was ready to use, Steve had to turn to the recipe book the witch had with her. Not only did it have a motley of potions to create, but it also had very particular details on what was to be done. Steve was no alchemist; he could make the basic potions like Regeneration, Healing, Poison, and so on. He couldn't make an expert potion on his own. He had never even heard of the way the witch was making that weakness potion, but it didn't seem to affect Steve in the long run.

Steve got to work the moment he found an Extreme Revival Potion, one that's guaranteed to bring Alex back to consciousness, whether she was already dead or not. It was a wonder she was alive. Steve had also never encountered a coma in Minecraft.

Steve has to hurry if he wanted to stop the Ender Threat. The deadline was coming quick, and they need to find the stronghold as quickly as possible before it was too late. Inside the chest were some ender pearls, and blaze powder was there for potions. He uses them to create a total of fifteen potions, more than enough to fill in the portal if he needed to. All he needed now was for Alex to wake up.

But one question lingered in his mind, one that hung since the very beginning: who orchestrated this ordeal? Who's idea was it to take over the world and make it the End? What good would it do to that being?

That wasn't Steve's only concern. After giving her the potion, she hadn't responded. If it was so extreme, it should've worked in under a minute, right?

He waited and waited, nearly all day, but she didn't even move. Steve was determined. He would dose her with another one two days from now. If it didn't work, he'll keep giving her the same potion, but stronger than the last. He won't lose hope, not now. Not in a time like this.

After the sixth day, Alex hadn't moved at all. Steve had tried everything: strong regeneration, strong healing, pouring a bucket of water over her, even the use of strong swiftness. He used everything the witch had that was positive, just to bring her back. Steve leaned against the crafting table. Was there anything else he could do? Was she dead? Was the coma permanent?

Steve refused to believe it, but every day of it not working, he would come to terms with it very slowly. He knew he shouldn't, and his mind told him not to, but there was no other choice. She was truly dead.

Steve felt as if the world was spinning. His legs were wobbly, like it was knee deep in water. He was frozen. Steve didn't want to believe it, even though every part of his body was telling him that it was true. There was no denying it. He wanted the world to leave him. He wanted no pain, no suffering, just silence. He wanted to go with her, wherever her body was going. He wanted to join her and let the world disappear along with the rest of his memories of it. He wanted to leave this chapter behind and never speak of it again.

But he can't.

So, sighing and shaking with the severity of a dying silverfish, he took out a piece of paper from the witch's chest, along with an ink sac and feather, and began writing to her a letter for her when she wakes up. Putting that near the door, he leaves, untying the lead. "I'm so sorry, Alex..." he whispers, mounting the saddle and using the Eyes of Ender he had to lead the way.

"I'm so, so sorry..."

Welp, five more chapters left! Will Steve prevail?

Well idk rn tbh

Thanks anyways!
-DWalkthroughGuy