Review Replies:

TheLion: Thanks so much! I have certainly come a long way from when I first started writing (holy crap, six years ago). Now that's an idea... As for getting rid of the Old Order... I think I might have to start considering it. They haven't shown up since the first part of season one, and don't appear to be showing up anytime soon. However, I am reluctant to get rid of them because of the mentor-student-parent-child-whatever relationship they're developing with the New Order (particularly Jesse and Ivor). I won't officially decide anything until after I've played all the episodes of season two.

Ariza Luca: Ariiiiiizaaaaaaaaaaa! *tackles you to floor* I've missed you soooooooo much! How have you been? Are you alright? Your parents haven't been too hard on you, have they? Do you think you'll be able to come back before November? Maybe? God, I miss you.

Jesseromaeve: Well, I'm glad you're doing alright now. As for Hadrian pointing out the Reuben thing, that'll actually be appearing in the next chapter! Jesse's backstory, though, won't be appearing until the beginnings of episode eight. Here's that reappearance you've been looking so forwards to!

GrayRay: Haha, sorry XXD

andie: Uh... yeah. It does. I'm not sure you mean that in a bad way or a good way, but I'm gonna take it as a compliment.

GabrielRavier: Yup! Season two's going to be thrown in as well.

The Bronipegusisters Studios: Heh, thanks! I'll be officially sixteen on December 23rd (mum keeps asking what my twin and I want to do for our 'sweet sixteen' but neither of us have any idea). Yes, who knew Aiden could be so level-headed?

jessicanightmarewolf: Hmm, I might add that in, but it won't be happening in this chapter. She's... kind of in shock, you could say.

Raintag: Aww, thanks!

kookie1234: Hey, it's no problem. I wouldn't be doing this if I didn't enjoy it as much as I do. I love making stuff that people actually want to read, but this also means that if I abandon it or don't update, I'll leave them disappointed. I've abandoned stories before and I'm trying really hard to break the habit; besides, I have big plans for this story!

CamronXTheXGamer: Haha, yeah, I saw the trailer- PRISON RADAR! I love this kid ::D And yes. School sucks.

purplemint64: Yeah, sorry to worry you. I'm not exactly well, seeing as how I was certain someone had decided to stuff barbed wire down my throat yesterday, but I'm getting better. I was (am) sick, for clarification, but I should be all better tomorrow. Jesse is starting to doubt himself a bit, isn't he? He's unsure about his decisions because he's starting to realise just how big of an impact they're making in the episodes, and, yeah, he's blaming himself for a lot of the outcomes.

Guest2: Hehe. I kinda started calling them that before I even started writing episode six.

TheAmberShadow: Yes. Technically. I shall speak no more of it. Oh, and thanks, I've fixed the italics. And yes, Jesse's going to get himself killed in this, isn't he? Hadrian's certainly not helping, especially since he'll be the one holding the sword. And thanks! It's good to know that it's okay if I don't update in a while, even if I would really love to get a chapter up.

Fishchild: Thank you, I appreciate it ::)

LunartheMooncake: TANTA AGURI A TE! TANTA AGURI A TE! TANTA AGURI A LUNAR, TANTA AGURI A TE!

TheSilentFury: My lips are sealed. I feel bad for Cassie too- if only she'd asked for help. Her not asking for help has actually got me thinking a lot; I mean, why wouldn't she? Did she even consider it? Something must have happened to her to her so weary to trust people. And my mind always turns to the other Old Builders.

This chapter is dedicated to Jessromaeve! Because I like her and she's been super excited for Sparklez coming back since we first started episode six. Here's the chapter you've been waiting for!


Movie Mode

Episode Six: A Portal to Mystery

Part Fifty-Five: Above the Endermites


The blackness didn't come away like they'd expected. Instead, screaming erupted from the speakers, and they caught the brief flash of eyes before there was a painful thud!

Olivia winced at the noise, burying her face into Jesse's arm, heart thundering in her chest. She wondered, as her stomach churned, if she was about to watch her friends die.

Groaning. Two pairs of eyes blinked into existence, followed by another, and then one more, closer to the screen. A voice that could only be Ivor's spoke, a little slow in his confusion.

"What… happened?"

"I can't see a thing," came Petra's voice. Then, almost as soon as she'd said that, the lights came back on. The four jumped, eyes automatically closing at the abrupt assault. They were standing in the middle of some sort of dirt bridge, surrounded by black walls of obsidian.

They looked up, as more lights flickered on, revealing multiple bridges- sandstone, quartz, terracotta- high above them. The top was nowhere in sight. They'd fallen a very long way, long enough to injure.

Lukas swallowed, trying to see if any of them looked hurt. With the lights out, it would have been impossible to see if they'd flashed red.

"Well," said onscreen Lukas, "That's… ominous."

"Do you hear that?" asked Ivor, suddenly, voice hushed. Jesse inched towards the edge of their dirt bridge, not unlike the one they'd made to get to Sky City was seemed like a century ago. He looked down, down, and the lights below him burst into life, revealing thousands and thousands of tiny, hissing, wriggling monsters.

"Endermites!" Ivor exclaimed.

"Oh god," breathed Gill, hands moving to tangle in his hair, "Oh god."

"Er… what are those?" asked Milo, warily. Isa gnawed on her bottom lip, wincing as she remembered her own encounters with the tiny beasts.

"Nothing good," she said.

"And there it is, Jesse!" the group's heads snapped around, looking up to a ledge, where Cassie stood in a dark blue jumpsuit, "You're trapped. Stuck!" she giggled then, a small giggle that got louder and louder and turned into a hysterical laugh.

"Ooooh, boy," muttered Magnus.

"Just like how I've been stuck in another world."

"Oh, please," said Jesse, sending her a careless smile, "I've gotten out of way worse than this, Cassie."

Dan blinked, "Have you?"

"Well," said Maya, slowly, "There was the whole Witherstorm thing, running for your life, almost getting killed by Magnus the Rogue," she sent said rogue a look, who he grinned back sheepishly, "Surviving the Nether, the End, Soren's Grinder, his…" she made a face, "'Artificial Happy Land,' the Far Lands… uh, Aiden going crazy and making you guys criminals for, what, a day?"

"Uh, yeah," Jesse scratched his ear, "I think the Witherstorm was worse than Cassie's Murder Mansion."

"This is coming up as a close second, though," muttered Lukas. Olivia winced.

"Ha," Cassie smiled, "I admire your bravado. I don't know how much time you've spent with Endermites, but," Jesse looked back down at the Endermites, scrambling over each other, hissing and spitting as they tried and failed to eat away at the bedrock, "The poor things are eternally hungry."

"Heh, yeah," Axel gave a painfully obvious forced grin, "I know how they feel."

Petra snorted.

"I would throw the flint and steel up here," Cassie continued, the screen switching to Jesse as he shoved his hands into his inventory, a flash of panic crossing his eyes as he began to pat himself down, "Before I drop you down to find out how sharp their teeth are."

Axel's forced grin fell, face paling considerably. Olivia's bottom lip was between her teeth, gnawing at the flesh nervously.

"Uh, guys," Jesse whispered, only loud enough for his friends to hear, "I dropped the flint and steel when we fell. I have no idea where it went."

"This is bad," declared Lukas, white as snow, "This is very, very, very, very bad."

"She won't actually drop them down, right?" asked Nell, a nervous smile on her lips, "I mean, Jesse'll get 'em out of this," her smile faltered, wide eyes meeting the real Jesse's, "Uh, right, bra?"

"I'll think of something," Jesse assured, because he always did, he always found a way out or a third option or- or something. Maybe he'll be able to convince Cassie to come with them, to go through the portal together. Or maybe there's some kind of puzzle he'll solve, or they'll have blocks on them and be able to build their way out.

He chewed on the inside of his cheek, biting so hard it actually hurt a bit, "I'll think of something," he repeated. Because he had to. He didn't care about himself- he can get torn limb from limb by millions of vicious, tiny teeth for all he cared- but he'd never forgive himself if his friends met the same fate.

"Tick tock, tick tock, Jesse," Cassie called down, impatient, "What's it gonna be? The flint and steel or your lives?"

"Uh… lives?" Stampy squeaked, weakly.

"Axel," Jesse gasped, "I can't breathe."

His larger friend jumped, forcing himself to loosen his grip immediately and sending the shorter boy an apologetic look, "Sorry, dude. Again."

"Give me the flint and steel," said Cassie, "And I'll let you go free."

Harper raised a sceptical eyebrow, "Really?"

Ivor leant closer to Lukas, covering his mouth to whisper, "I don't believe her." Petra shot him a glare.

Magnus snorted. This time, it was Gabriel that shushed him.

"And just because I hate this place doesn't mean it's so bad," Cassie continued, having either not heard or was ignoring him, "I'm sure you're way dumber than I am. You'll probably acclimate and learn to love it."

"He's not dumb," Petra hissed, surprising Jesse. She shot Cassie a venomous look, causing the girl to swallow and quickly look away.

"Hey, I'm sure we can make a deal, huh?" Jesse tried, "How about we share?"

Aiden shook his head. He was starting to admire Jesse more and more.

He almost snorted out loud. If only his past self could hear him.

"Share? Share?" Cassie repeated, face twisting into a look of rage, eyes flashing red, "What, you wanna walk through some portal happily holding hands and stab me in the back later?"

"No!" Jesse exclaimed, eyes widening, "I- I'd never do that!"

Cassie looked unconvinced, but didn't say anything. Hadrian was frowning, that odd glint back in his eyes. He almost looked astonished.

"Nope," said Cassie, voice taking on a bored tone, "This is taking too long," she pulled out a white mask, holding it high and regarding it almost lovingly, "I'll just let the Endermites eat you and fish it out of your inventory."

"Don't!" shouted Maya, as though they could hear her, "They don't have it!"

Cassie took the mask in both hands, holding it above her and slid it down over her head. Yellow irises appeared in the black holes of the eyes, the deep, metallic voice of the White Pumpkin replacing Cassie's entirely, "It'll be the best fishing trip ever!"

Gasps erupted, both onsceen and off. Magnus and Ellegaard clutched each other, Nell yelped and leaped into Em's arms, Stampy squeak and scrambled into Dan's lap, Sparklez's eyes rolled into the back of his head and he went limp in a dead faint, Milo jumped and almost toppled off the couch, Soren clung to Gabriel, looking as though he were about to vomit, and Axel had somehow ended up with all four of his friends half on and half off his lap.

The White Pumpkin turned away from the ledge, making his way towards a bench where a single lever was seated, Winslow licking his palm beside it. "Winslow, my pet," she said in her deep, demonic voice, "Activate the trap!"

There was a pause. Winslow glanced at her, before returning back to his paw, uninterested. The White Pumpkin grumbled, pressing a palm to her mask, "Want something done right you hafta…"

Trailing off, she marched to the lever, before turning to glare down at the trapped group bellow, "Prepare for your death!"

"No!" said Clutch, frantically shaking her head, "No, don't do that!"

With a mechanical laugh, Cassie turned and shoved the lever. The bridge trembled, then began to split away from the middle, Jesse on one end and his friends on the other, "Guys!"

"Again?!" shouted Lukas, right in Jesse's ear. The boy winced.

"Jesse!" Ivor shouted back, coming dangerously close to toppling over the edge from the constant rigged movements as the bridge (or would it be bridges now?) retracted.

"Come on, Winslow," said the White Pumpkin, starting to walk away. Winslow meowed, before following after her.

"I can't watch," Olivia whimpered, covering her eyes.

Ivor and Petra dashed to the iron doors at the end of their bridge, banging their fists against it in a desperate attempt to get it open, Lukas' head snapping left and right as he tried to find another escape route.

Breaths coming out in ragged gasps, Jesse ran to his own doors, tugging the frozen handles and banging a fist against the iron, probably bruising his hand despite his gauntlets, "Stupid. Door!"

"Dear lord," Gabriel sighed, closing his eyes and leaning his head back, unable to watch any longer. Call him a coward (he was), but he couldn't bring himself to watch. Not if they ran out of time. Not if they fell. Not if it showed them puffing into dust. Not Petra, not Ivor or Jesse or even Lukas. Not them.

"It's no use!" Ivor yelled across the ever growing gap between them and Jesse; Lukas had pulled out a stick and was whacking it against the doors behind him, "Without a lever or button, we'll never get these iron doors open!"

Jesse looked up at the ledge Cassie had vanished from, eyes sparking, "Hold on, guys," he reached into his pocket, "I'm gonna get up to the control panel!" And pulled out an Ender Pearl.

Nell whooped, loud and sudden, right in Em's ear. The burly girl jumped and, be it in surprise or annoyance, shoved her off her lap and onto the floor.

Eyes narrowing in concentration, struggling to take aim with the constant shift of the ever-retracting dirt bridge, Jesse pulled his arm back- and tossed the Ender Pearl at the ledge. It went soaring, spinning in a wide arc, and then bounced off the edge with an almost delicate cling!

Then the pearl vanished, and Jesse appeared in its place in a burst of purple and magenta sparks. Gravity took hold a second later, pulling him down to the starving Endermites directly beneath him; Jesse's arm shot out; latched onto the edge, fingers straining, shoulder almost dislocating, and dangled above a drop that would lead to certain death.

Reuben squealed loudly, almost hysterically, at the sight of his onscreen owner. Petra shouted a curse word, her arm painfully tight around Jesse's arm. Olivia's eyes were squeezed stubbornly shut, holding her breath. Axel's arms- yeah, both this time- were so tight around Jesse that he was having trouble drawing breath. Lukas had his hands over his mouth.

Onscreen, Jesse gasped, looking down and regretting it immediately, "That is… disorientating."

Cassie's lips twitched, "You get used to it."

With trembling arms, Jesse hauled himself over the edge, grunting. Letting out a breath as he left the danger of falling into a hoard of Endermites behind, he turned determined eyes towards the single lever on the bench.

Now that he was out of immediate danger, a series of sighs repeated around the room. Axel's arms went a little slack, but his hold remained tight. Reuben whined into Jesse's chest, and the boy stroked his head in what he hoped was a soothing gesture.

Jesse ran to the lever, pulling it and straightening on his tippie toes a little to see his friends. The retraction of the bridges had increased.

"Uhh, it just started going faster!" yelled Lukas.

Jesse couldn't breathe. When had he stopped breathing? He almost didn't register Magnus' loud curse, which Ellegaard surprisingly didn't scold him for.

Onscreen, Jesse sent the lever a glare, as though this was all its fault, "She booby-trapped her booby-traps? That is so," he drew his sword, "Paranoid."

With a single swipe, the lever popped off the bench and flew into Jesse's hand. He began to run to the edge, but skidded to a stop when the White Pumpkin spoke seemingly from nowhere.

"What? Thought you could do it, just like that?"

Stampy squeaked, clinging to Dan with trembling fingers.

Jesse's eyes snapped left and right, sword raised. Then his eyes darted upwards, just in time to see Cassie leaping from one of the higher bridges, axe raised, "Trying to get 'leverage'?"

Gill blinked, mouth open, "Was… was that a pun?"

Jesse blocked her blow just in time, stumbling backwards from the force- "Gimme the key, Jesse!"- and Cassie swung again, axe spinning with her body. Jesse leant backwards, the axe scraping the tip of his nose and leaving behind a small bead of blood.

Unconsciously, the real Jesse raised his hand to his nose. He couldn't breathe. He couldn't breathe.

Before she could swing again, Jesse locked his sword with Cassie's axe and shoved, sending her flying over the edge. An Ender Pearl appeared in her hand, then vanished, and she was gone in a blast of purple sparks. Her axe fell towards the Endermites.

Not looking to see where she'd went, Jesse dashed towards the edge- "Guys?"- only to see there was no one there, the bridges gone apart from a small floating island in the very centre, and panic seeped into Jesse's voice, "No!"

"Hey, Jesse!"

His head snapped to the side, the iron doors directly below him, to see Petra, Lukas and Ivor standing on a terrifyingly small ledge, the potionologist dangling over the edge.

Jesse gasped in a breath of air, relief washing over him like a blanket. They were alive, they were alive, they were alive.

"Guys!" Jesse gasped, relief clear on his face as he knelt on the edge of the platform, his grip white-knuckled around the lever, "You're all alive, thank goodness!"

"Yeah," said Petra, a tad breathless from her near-death experience, "For now."

"Don't worry, I found a lever!" Jesse declared, waving said lever. Lukas smiled up at him.

"Throw it down!"

"Okay, get ready," said Jesse, standing up. He hovered for a moment, before tossing the lever over the edge- the audience held their breath- and right into Petra's arms.

"Got it!"

"Okay, you guys get to safety," Jesse said, glancing over his shoulder most probably in search of Cassie or any sign of the flint and steel, "I need to find that flint and steel."

"Great," mumbled Lukas, "He's alone again."

Before they could give him an answer, Jesse was off, running up the stairs onto another dirt bridge- and he skidded to a stop, the White Pumpkin glaring at him from the other side.

"You're not a fast learner, are you?" she asked.

"Get out of there!" shouted Olivia, tugging her green beanie further down her head, twisting the fabric in her hands.

Then the White Pumpkin was running at him, the screen briefly slowing down, and in either a moment of desperation or outright stupidity, Jesse leapt from the bridge, soaring high over certain death by tiny teeth, and landed on a column of dirt.

Axel let out a sudden breath, pressing his large palm to his forehead, "Oh god, please don't do that again."

Jesse turned just in time to see an Ender Pearl clang against a different stack of dirt, right across from him, Cassie appearing in its place not a moment later. She straightened, the last of the purple sparks blinking out of existence, "I grow tired of this game, Jesse."

Nell, still on the floor and currently clinging to Em's leg, swallowed.

Onscreen, Jesse's eyes caught a glow of blue, and he turned to the bridge- to see the flint and steel sitting in its centre, Cassie's yellow eyes widening as she followed his gaze.

"There it is!" exclaimed Milo, jabbing a finger at the screen.

"The key!" the White Pumpkin gasped, head snapping back around to the wide-eyed Jesse, "You didn't have it either?!"

"Hurry, Jess!" shouted Lukas.

"Well, now," Cassie reached into her pocket, pulling out another Ender Pearl, "It's mine!"

"Cassie, no-!" Soren shouted.

"Nope!" shouted Jesse, pulling out his own Ender Pearl and aiming for the bridge- only for a Pearl to bounce off the side of his head, Cassie suddenly replacing it directly next to him in a burst of purple sparks, sending his own Pearl in the completely wrong direction-

"JESSE!"

"No!" And Jesse was gone, skidding on a different ledge, the White Pumpkin's mechanic laugh following him. He watched as she leapt from the ledge onto the bridge, dashing towards the flint and steel. Jesse's teeth clenched.

"No," he repeated, even though she probably couldn't hear him, pulling out another Ender Pearl, "We are going home!"

Cassie turned onto the bridge, the flint and steel right in front of her- and Jesse threw his pearl, the screen slowing down as it went straight for the back of Cassie's mask, and Jesse threw his fist back as though about to punch something and leapt forwards, right off the edge-

A burst of purple sparks, and he was tackling Cassie to the ground, the flint and steel just out of her reach.

Jesse jumped when a hand abruptly whacked him over the head, and he turned with wide eyes to meet Petra's glare, "Don't," she growled, "Do that."

"No!" Cassie yelled, thrashing as she struggled to throw Jesse off, who almost appeared to be holding on for dear life, "You can't do this! I've waited too long!"

"It's," Jesse grunted, "Mine, Cassie! I won't let you have it!"

Then, abruptly, they stilled. They watched, eyes wide, as a meow met their ears, and Winslow sat down directly in front of the flint and steel. He raised his paw and began to lick it.

"The… the cat?" Magnus blinked.

Winslow looked over at them, tilting his head to the side, before his attention was drawn down to the flint and steel. Meowing, he nudged it with his paw, ears perking up when it made a little clinking noise.

"No!" Cassie shouted, "No, no, Winslow! Don't touch that!"

"Oooooh, no," said Em.

But Winslow ignored her, purring as he batted at the flint and steel, closer and closer to the edge.

"No, no, no!" chanted Cassie, "No, Winslow! Bad kitty! Stop it!"

"This is why I don't like cats," hissed Petra, hands curling into white-knuckled fists in her lap, unable to look away from the screen. Her heart was in her throat.

"Winslow!" Cassie gasped, voice on the edges of desperation. The key terribly close to the edge of the bridge now. "Good boy- sweet kitty! Bring that to Master!"

"That's so creepy," whispered Stacy, more to herself than anyone else. It was kinda creepy, with the modified voice and all.

"Please bring it to Master!" Winslow batted it again, "Don't do that!"

"Here, kitty, kitty!" called Jesse, "Here, kitty, kitty!"

The real Winslow raised his head, blinking blearily at the screen, before deciding he didn't care and curling back up in his owner's lap. Cassie sighed.

Onscreen, Winslow meowed, cocking his head to the side as he stared at them, tail flicking. Then he kicked the key over the edge.

"Nooo!" Cassie- both onscreen and offscreen- screamed, Jesse already on his feet and watching with horrified eyes as the flint and steel bounced off a mound of dirt, falling towards the sandstone bridge directly above the retracted dirt one.

Jesse glanced to the side to see Cassie already on her feet, about to throw an Ender Pearl, and he lunged at her a moment too late, knocking her to the ground. The Ender Pearl went flying, clinking against the sandstone.

Cassie laughed hysterically, before suddenly vanishing, leaving Jesse to get a rather unpleasant faceful of dirt. In a burst of sparks, Cassie reappeared on the bridge, just in time to catch the key.

"Ah, there you are," she purred, the glow illuminated her white mask, "After all this time, I'm FREE!"

Aiden swallowed, eyes darting between Cassie and the pale group on the floor. The girl's eyes were glinting hopefully.

If only she believed Jesse wasn't a bad guy.

Cassie walked to the end of the bridge, flint and steel clutched protectively in her hands, "Winslow? Where'd you go?"

There was a meow, and the calico cat appeared off to the side, jumping down a few columns. Cassie sighed, "What have I told you about wandering off?"

Behind her, Jesse landed, sword drawn, "You should give that back, Cassie."

"No," she hissed. A lever snapped downwards. "I'm afraid not."

The sand- not sandstone after all, but proper, grainy sand, somehow staying aloft- began to tremble. Jesse gasped and ran towards Cassie and Winslow, the edges vanishing at his heels, and the front was gone too- he leapt at the last moment, too far, too far, the Endermites hissing and snipping beneath him-

He grabbed onto the ledge, dangling. The sand hit bedrock, and the Endermites pounced. The blocks were gone in an instant.

"Oh, dear god," breathed Maya. Honestly, Jesse was just coming to expect the death-squeezes.

Grunting, Jesse slowly hauled himself up, pushing his sword up first so he didn't have to hold onto it. Panting slightly, he stumbled to his feet and raised his blade. The White Pumpkin paused, glowered and turned around.

"I'll give you one thing," she spat, "You are incredibly tenacious!"

Jesse brought his arm out, blade flat against his chest- a pose everyone was starting to recognise as his battle stance- and dashed towards Cassie, the screen slowing down- and the White Pumpkin clicked the key together, a blue column of fire sparking into life directly in front of the boy, sending him stumbling backwards with his shoulder smoldering, a hiss of pain from his lips.

"He's hurt!" exclaimed Reginald.

Multiple eyes snapped to the real Cassie, glares all around. Ivor looked as though he were attempting to drill holes into the side of her skull. Even Aiden's jaw clenched, but he didn't look away from the screen.

Cassie swallowed, shrinking in her chair. She wished she had her mask.

It was so easy to hide behind a mask.

Onscreen, the White Pumpkin laughed her mechanical, hysterical laugh- and she was in front of Jesse, although no one had seen her move closer, and there was a spark of blue as she clicked the flint and steel together- and triplet columns of fire burst into life, so close that Jesse began to sweat instantly, blocking his only exit.

"No!" shouted Lukas, the only thing stopping him from leaping to his feet being Petra's arm around his shoulders.

"That's Netherack, Jesse," Cassie declared, smugly, breathing harsh in her excitement, "It stays on fire forever!"

Shouting erupted around the room, loud and ear bleeding. Jesse flinched and slapped his hands over his ears, shrinking into Axel's side. Out of the corner of his eye, he spotted Reginald on his feet, golden sword drawn, marching towards Cassie, face twisted into a look of fury-

"SHUT UP!"

Everyone froze. Harper looked around at them with hard eyes, fuming, hands curled into fists at her sides.

"Thank you," she said, in a much more inside-appropriate voice, "Now can we all please just sit down, shut up and watch the episode? Hm?"

Abruptly, almost everyone looked like children that had just been scolded. Mumbling quiet apologies, they seated themselves- even Magnus. Ivor stared at Harper for a moment, eyes wide, before sitting down as well. He looked dazed.

Harper smiled thinly and sat down as well, "Thank you."

Onscreen, Cassie made her way to a different lever, where Winslow was sprawled out on his side lazily, "Well, Winslow, that's the last of the obstacles," she declared, "We're finally going home!"

She flipped the lever, laughing loudly as the stonebrick wall retracted to reveal the real portal, cobwebs dotted around it.

"The portal!" gasped Lizzie.

"Come on, Winslow," said Cassie. He didn't move.

Jesse peered through the flames, dry blood on his nose and shoulderpad smoking, but he seemed to be having trouble. Then, his eyes turned upwards, to spot Petra on a ledge directly above the arch leading to the portal, golden sword drawn.

Gabriel grinned, "It's Petra!"

Blinking, Jesse sheathed his sword, head turning a little further up, to a different ledge right above him, where Lukas knelt with a bucket of water in his hand.

"He has water!" exclaimed Nell, jabbing a finger at the screen, "Go kick some White Pumpkin butt!"

"Winslow," said Cassie, starting to sound a little bit irritated. Jesse leant over the edge to watch. "Winslow, come on."

"No, kitty!" said Gill, "Stay!"

Winslow remained where he was. Cassie sighed, kneeling next to him, "Oh, for the love of- you know I love you but you make me very tired sometimes."

"Hey, Cassie!" Jesse called. The girl sighed, casting him a glare.

"What?"

"Aren't you gonna say goodbye?" Jesse asked, cocking his head to the side, "Seems pretty rude to leave someone in a death trap without even saying goodbye."

"What's he doing?" asked Aiden.

"I don't know what you're playing at," said Cassie, getting to her feet and striding towards him, "But I'm bored with it."

The words had barely left her mouth when Petra yelled, jumping down from above. Cassie twisted, yellow eyes widening, and Petra's sword slashed across her mask.

The White Pumpkin flashed red, toppling backwards, a crack running down her mask not unlike the one Jesse had dealt to her old one. The flint and steel went flying from her hands.

"YES!" Nell screeched, leaping to her feet and throwing her hands in the air.

Not a split-second later, Lukas tipped his bucket, sending a cascade of water down towards Jesse. The boy clung to the ground to stop himself from being forced over the edge, the blue fire extinguished.

The flint and steel clattered over the edge, Jesse jerking to catch it, too slow-

"What's going-" and Ivor appeared, fingers wrapping around the flint and steel. He blinked dumbly at it, then his eyes widened and he grinned, "Ha! I've got it! Excellent! I did it!"

Magnus snorted. He was starting to wonder if he was doing that every time his old friend was onscreen. From Ivor's irritated glare, he'd come to the same conclusion.

Jesse let out a relieved sigh, a still grinning Ivor clambering the rest of the way up. The White Pumpkin staggered to her feet, fury in her demonic voice, "You're all dying now!"

Petra lunged with her sword, but too late- Cassie ran towards Ivor, the potionologist paling- "Uh, no thank you!"- and he threw the flint and steel across the short gap between him and Jesse, the screen briefly slowing down.

"Got it!" Jesse exclaimed, hand curling around the key. Cassie skidded to a stop only an inch from Ivor, turning narrowed yellow eyes to the boy.

The real Ivor muttered a quiet curse.

The White Pumpkin dashed forwards, body low- and Jesse clicked the flint and steel together, igniting a column of blue flames, Cassie running right into it. She went soaring upwards, mask alight, arching right over Jesse's head, "Noooo!"

And she fell, right over the edge.

Aiden's breath hitched- he wouldn't kill her, he wouldn't kill her- and suddenly he was seeing the cobblestone ledge jutting out of the side of the Founder's garden, with rain pouring from the heavens and lightning flashing all around them, and Jesse's blade coming down and slashing through his stomach, spilling guts, shoving him right over the edge after his own sword, falling down to the ground where he would miss the lake no matter how big it was, what Jesse could have done, what he should have done.

His mouth was dry. He wouldn't kill her. He wouldn't kill her.

Why didn't he kill me?

Jesse turned, narrowed eyes watching to make sure she didn't climb back up. He shifted the second piece of the flint and steel to join the other in his different hand, before pocketing it.

Down below, on that little dirt island, all that remained from the bridge, Cassie went into a coughing fit. She tugged the flaming mask from her head, eyes watering and glasses fogged, and threw it down into the Endermite's pit, the tiny beasts lunging at it as though they had seen something so delicious in their whole lives.

"Well, Jesse," she said, a small spot on her jaw shiny with burns, soot blackening her cheeks and forehead, "I bet you're reeeal proud of yourself," on the ledge, Jesse, Petra and Lukas appeared, soon followed by Ivor a little further back, "Look at me! Stuck again! Out of Ender Pearls!"

The real Cassie paled considerably, breath catching in her chest. No. No, no, no, no, no.

"And that's where she wanted us to end up," said Ivor, glaring down at the redhead.

"Trapped," Cassie continued, talking more to herself now, "In my own trap. Ha," she looked down, no humour on her face, "Of course. Of course."

"I'm really sorry it had to be this way, Cassie," Jesse called down to her, regret flashing across his face, "I wish it could've gone differently."

Cassie looked up, a defeated look on her face. She sighed, casting her eyes downwards again, "Me too."

Something like hope sparked in Soren's chest, throat swelling, his eyes flashing over to Cassie, who was staring at the screen with her eyes wide and her mouth slightly open. She looked like she was about to burst into tears.

They stared at her a moment longer. Then, without a word, Petra turned, Lukas and Ivor making to follow. Jesse hesitated, watching the trapped girl, then turned as well.

"Wait!"

Jesse halted, looking over his shoulder. Petra shot him a warning look, thoughts most likely along the lines of trap.

"At least don't leave me here alone," Cassie said, watching him with shiny, begging eyes as Jesse approached the edge again, "Give me my cat. My dear, sweet Winslow."

"You're actually leaving her?" Hadrian questioned, looking faintly surprised. The real Jesse flinched, as though he'd just accused him of a terrible crime.

"It's not like he has much choice," Lukas pointed out, shooting the man a look that wasn't quite a glare but was pretty close, "You can't save people who won't let you save them."

At the sound of his name, Winslow approached the edge as well, watching his owner with big eyes. He sat down at Jesse's feet.

"My best…" Cassie's words caught in her throat, "My only friend. Please."

The audience was silent. Cassie was crying, though she didn't seem to notice, silent tears dripping down her cheeks, hand firmly buried in her kitty's fur. Isa was chewing on her lip, and while it didn't bleed, little pink beads rose from ripped layers of skin when she stopped.

It wasn't like giving her Winslow would help her escape or give her the ability to actually hurt someone. But if Cassie truly was out of Ender Pearls and had no blocks or any hidden secrets or tools to get out of the trap, she would more than likely starve to death or end her suffering by jumping into the Endermites.

By giving her Winslow, Jesse was basically dooming the cat to the same fate. He'd never be able to get off the island by himself, even if he didn't starve. But Jesse knew where Cassie was coming from, same with Isa, and while none of them liked to admit it, if they were about to be trapped on a four block island of dirt above an infestation of hungry Endermites to either starve or commit suicide, they would have definitely found themselves longing for their animal companions.

Jesse was quiet for a long time. Then, finally, he sighed and bent to pick Winslow up, "Heeere, kitty. Here, you pain-in-the-butt kitty."

Cassie's face lit up immediately, eyes still shining brightly in the dim lighting, "There you are, Winslow! Who loves you? Come to Master!"

Lip between his teeth, Jesse tossed Winslow off the edge- Cassie lunged forward, wrapping her arms around him before he could fall into the Endermites, burying her face into her kitty's fur, "There you are, there you are! You and me, together, just like it was always meant to be."

Jesse gave his head a small shake, although something strange flashed across his eyes, something that had many audience members thinking back to when he'd spotted that little herd of pigs in the previous episode. He turned, following his friends, Cassie's voice trailing after him, resigned, accepting.

"Trapped… forever… just me and my little Winslow."

The real Cassie closed her eyes, pulling her cat closer and burying her face into his fur, much like her onscreen self had been doing not moments before. Her hands trembled, tears matting Winslow's mismatched coat, but she was silent. Aiden scooted closer, wrapping an arm around her shoulders in quiet comfort.

Jesse felt sick. Sure, she'd killed people, would have killed them all, and she was a terrible person… but there was something sad about her. Something that made his chest ache and his stomach churn at the same time.

She'd just wanted to go home. And he'd stopped that from ever happening.

Lukas, Petra nor Ivor said anything as Jesse led them towards the portal. The boy was, a bit surprisingly, the one to break the silence; no one mentioned the slight tremble in his voice.

"Wow," he breathed, as they came to a stop before the archway, "So she kept the real portal down here all this time."

"Unless this one is a trap too," Ivor pointed out.

"I don't know if even she'd be that paranoid," said Lukas, although he appeared sceptical. The glow of the flint and steel cast his and Jesse's faces in shadows as he pulled it out of his pocket.

"Only one way to find out."

"It's not a trap, right?" asked Maya, glancing over at Cassie, who still had her face buried in Winslow's fur. For a moment, she thought she wasn't going to answer, but then she shook her head.

"No," Cassie gasped, voice thick with tears, "No, it's not."

A few people released breaths they hadn't realised they'd been holding.

Onscreen, Jesse knelt in front of the empty portal and clicked the flint and steel together. There was a blinding flash of light, a green hue, and the portal glowed, a match to this worlds key.

"Ooooh," Stamped muttered, eyes wide. Dan and Lizzie looked at each other, grinning widely.

The group slowly blinked open their eyes, having automatically closed them when they'd been assaulted by the sudden light. Ivor grinned, a hand going to his hip.

"So good so far."

"Yeah," said Petra, tense shoulders loosening, "No trick floors or arrows or anything."

"Okay, sure," Lukas said, still sounding unsure, "But who's going first?"

"You don't think it's actually a trap, do you?" asked Olivia, wringing her hands nervously. Petra's eyes flashed over to Cassie.

"I'm not sure."

"We're a team," Jesse declared, standing up and twisting to face them, "We all go together."

Ellegaard smiled, "That works."

(Better than him deciding to go by himself.)

His friends looked at each other, then back at Jesse and, in unison, nodded their agreement. Jesse nodded back, then turned around to face the portal once more, the green glow on his face, "Ready? One-"

"-Two-" they said together, "Three-"

Then they ran, Jesse vanishing through the portal with Lukas and Petra hot on his heels. Ivor skidded to a stop, twisted to look behind him and winked, "Adventure!"

And he was gone too.

"Wow, wait," Magnus said, straightening in his seat, "Can he see us?"

"That wouldn't make any sense," muttered Gabriel, "How would he be able to see us?"

"Well, who knows," Harper's lips twitched, "He might just be one for theatrics."

Ivor's cheeks dusted pink, and he abruptly found the ceiling to be very interesting.

"Well," said Em, as the screen darkened, "Is that it? End of episode or whatever?"

"Probably," Otto hummed, "Now, how about we have some-"

"Wait!" gasped Gill, jabbing a finger at the screen, "It's coming back on!"

Indeed, it was. The familiar words Next time on Minecraft: Story Mode decorated the previous darkness, except this time there was no Jesse-Voice to read it aloud. It melted away to reveal the Portal Hall, lit by the greens and blues and reds and whites of the portals.

From the side came a smiling Captain Sparklez.

"Sparklez!" gasped half the audience.

"He's alive?" exclaimed Stampy, "How is he alive?!"

"I-I don't know," stuttered Lizzie. She turned to look at the self-proclaimed captain, who was gaping at the screen as though it had decided to leap off the wall and start tap dancing.

"Alright," said Not-Dead-Sparklez, hands going to his hips, "What's going on, dudes? It's me, Captain Sparklez."

"Yeah," muttered Dan, slowly, "That's… that's him, alright."

"Next time on Minecraft: Story Mode," Sparklez turned, starting to stroll along the length of the hall and taking on an almost narrator-like voice, the screen following, "After defeating the dreaded White Pumpkin, will Jesse and the others find their way back to the Portal Hallway?"

"How does he know they defeated her?" asked Mevia, only be shushed a bit harshly by half the audience.

"Wait," Lukas frowned, "What does he mean by back to the Hall-"

Cue more shushing.

"And will it lead them home? Or, instead, are they destined for more perilous adventures?"

"My thoughts are more along the lines of how the hell is he alive?!" shouted Magnus.

"Magnus!" exclaimed Ellegaard, "We. Don't. Know."

"Well, I guess I'll never know," Sparklez continued, coming to a stop and sounding a bit too cheerful considering the topic he was breaching, "Because I got pounded into the floor by a ton of sand!"

The real Sparklez blinked dumbly at his onscreen counterpart, his face telling that the screen was still tap dancing.

"I mean," said Magnus, "Has he been alive the whole time? Was the trap fake?"

"We saw his inventory," pointed out Ivor.

"Yeah, but how do we know it was his?" Magnus asked, "We don't know what he had on him. That stuff could have totally been just a load of random loot. Didn't we see gold ingots? Who brings gold ingots to what was, to his knowledge, a house party?"

"Magnus," Gabriel sighed, "Would you shut up?"

"I guess you saw that, right?" asked Sparklez, "I'm in the middle of an amazing speech and boom!" he fell to the ground, the screen panning down to show him propping his head up with his hand, "I've suddenly become part of the floor."

"If Sparklez truly wasn't killed," said Isa, turning to look at the self-proclaimed Boom Master, "Then why was he spared? Why kill TorqueDawg and ShadowLady, but not him?"

Magnus faltered, "I… did not think of that. Gimme a… gimme a…" he frowned, trying to think up a counter. He turned hopeful eyes to Ellegaard, who very maturely rolled her eyes.

"She could have thought he knew who had it," she supplied, "He was the one that realised this was all about the flint and steel in the first place."

Aiden gnawed on his lip, turning to Cassie hesitantly, "Did… would you?"

She seemed to consider it for a moment, sniffing as she wiped the tears from her face, "Uh… I-I don't know. Maybe? This is at least six months into the future."

"And wasn't it Dan that pressed the button?" Olivia asked, wincing when Dan flinched and paled, "She couldn't have possibly known he was going to sit in that exact spot and that Dan was going to press the button at that exact time. It's not enough for her to fake his death when he'd only just told them why he thought they were there."

"I mean, dude," Sparklez climbed to his feet, "You saw that, right?"

"Sadly," murmured Sparklez. The screen still appeared to be tap dancing before his eyes.

"How much worse can it get? First, they choose not to invite me on their adventure-"

"You died," Petra muttered, earning a snort from Lukas, who slapped a hand over his mouth, mortified. She smirked at him.

"-And the next thing I know, I'm part of the floor," Sparklez shook his head, "Anyway, one thing's for certain, with or without me, this is going to be an amazing adventure."

He gave them one last smile, before turning around and walking back down the Portal Hallway. The screen faded to black.

A silence came upon the room. Awkwardly, Slab coughed.

"Sparklez?" said Stacy, casting her friend a concerned look, "You okay?"

"Uh," Sparklez blinked; rubbed his eyes, pushing his glasses up his forehead, "I think I… really need a nap."

"I think," said Isa, "A break would be sufficient."

"For how long?" asked Stampy. Then, realising he'd been in Dan's lap for who-knows-how-long now, squeaked and tumbled to the floor.

Harper covered a smile, "How about the rest of the day? I don't know about you lot, but this room's giving me a headache."

"I can make you a headache potion," Ivor offered, earning surprised looks from, well, pretty much everyone who knew him. Harper blinked, then smiled.

"That's nice of you. I might take you up on that."

"Well," Magnus stood, hands going to his hips, and looked around at the other watchers.

"Who's making lunch?"


Did you give Cassie her cat or walk away? Let me know in the reviews!

Well, that's the end of episode six! That's for all the supports on my busy schedule, guys. Speaking of schedules, I have decided to try and update Movie Mode every Friday from now on. Now, I've tried doing schedules before and they never work out, so this is me trying again. I'm also sure you'll understand if I'm not able to stick to it.

I am also sick.

Bleh.

Also, episode three was amaziiiiiiiiing! I was seriously considering bringing Warden (is that even his real name?) into the audience, but, well... nevermind, I guess.

Oh, and for how they're planning on defeating the Admin- caaaaalled it!

...

Romeo.

Romeo.

(You'll understand soon if you haven't played/watched it yet)

Okay, so, to my Empty Echoes readers: Empty Echoes has not been discontinued or put on hiatus. I'm just writing this one more because, yay, new episodes! Here in England, the Ninjago movie doesn't come out until early October, but when I do see it, I'll probably be working on Empty Echoes a lot more. The next chapter will, as always, come eventually.

Speaking of the Ninjago movie: why the hell did they change Misako's name?! What is the point in changing Misako's name to KoKo? Koko? Is it a nickname? A nickname I can accept, because her name's Misako. But I will be very unhappy if it turns out to be her actual name. Unacceptable. What the hell is wrong with her proper name, anyway?

*shakes head* Sorry about that. I should probably keep those rants to the Ninjago fandom.

Anyway, until (hopefully) next Friday!