I Die In Style

Fisherman was laughing as he raised his fishing rod. "Let's dance."

He sent his hook flying towards Dan, who merely slammed the hook away and charged at Fisherman with a scream.

Fisherman front flipped right over Dan's head, flying straight towards me. As he fell, he swung his hook towards me, and i leaped out of the way as the hook scratched a line through the floor.

Fisherman landed in front of me and I swung towards his chest, only for my sword to be caught by his hook and pulled out of my hands. He whipped it back, and my sword went flying all the way down to the floor, shattering apart on impact.

"Whoops." Fisherman said. Before he could raise his fishing rod, Dan slammed into him with his obsidian scimitars, swinging wildly. Fisherman grunted as Dan sliced one of his arms.

They were getting too close to the edge of the staircase. I shouted a warning, but it was too late. Fisherman stumbled and fell backwards, swinging his fishing rod towards Dan and hooking him as he fell. Dan tried to anchor himself by slamming his obsidian scimitars into the wooden floor, but was pulled off the staircase anyways. Dan managed to grab the railing of a staircase as he fell, stopping himself.

Fisherman wasn't so lucky, landing hard on a set of stairs and rolling down the entire flight of stairs only to slam into the railing at the bottom, splintering it and nearly falling off again.

I leaped down onto one of the stairways, landing hard. I ran down the stairs as fast as I could, determined to get to Fisherman.

"Cal, you get back here!" Dan howled as he hung from the side of the staircase, swinging his legs like he was running on an invisible treadmill. I ignored him and jumped down onto Fisherman's staircase, where he was slowly getting up. I didn't give him a chance to get up, jumping down practically the whole flight of stairs to get where Fisherman was collapsed. I landed awkwardly, and a bolt of white-hot pain shot through my ankle. I stumbled a bit, nearly tripping over Fisherman.

Fisherman snarled and pushed me away, making me fall on my butt. He began to rise again, but I kicked him, making him smash through the railing. He managed to grab the edge of the ground, gasping in effort.

I began to raise my heel again to kick him, but Dan screamed, "We need him alive!"

That made me hesitate, which gave Fisherman enough time to swing his fishing rod towards a sagging staircase above us. The hook embedded itself in the wood, and before I could stop him he violently wrenched the fishing rod down.

The staircase above us completely collapsed with an enormous groan, and Fisherman waved at me obnoxiously as he let go of the staircase, falling down to another staircase.

I yelped and began running down the stairs, though it wasn't easy with an injured ankle. The heavy wood above slammed into the staircase I was running down, and large cracks split the steps I was running down apart. The wood collapsed under my feet, and I fell.

I slammed hard onto the statue of Klith's head, and I gasped as pain shot through my chest.

I slid off his head and fell another few meters onto another staircase, slamming onto the steps and miraculously not rolling down the entire flight of stairs this time.

But I couldn't move—I was pretty sure I'd broken a rib.

Fisherman dropped out of the sky onto the stairs above me with a grunt. He stood and pulled out a small iron dagger.

"Sorry," Fisherman said. "But you're a little too slippery for my taste."

And then he stabbed me in the chest.

I gasped as agony spread throughout my chest like a wildfire. Fisherman pulled out the knife and kicked me down the stairs.

"FISHERMAN!" Dan roared as he landed on the steps above Fisherman. As Fisherman turned, Dan slashed his obsidian scimitar across Fisherman's face, making him jerk to the side.

Blood spattered 5e ground, and Fisherman let out a maniacal laugh as he turned back to Dan, swinging his fishing rod.

I grabbed the railing while clutching my wound, groaning in pain. Every time I moved, my chest hurt like someone had stabbed me in the chest with a white hot poker. I was also pretty sure my head had slammed into something, because my head was pounding.

I heard a thud and a yell. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Fisherman collapse. Dan ran up to me frantically. "Oh god, are you okay?"

"I'm fine, other than the fact that I've been stabbed." I said in a strained tone.

"Are you making jokes right now?" Dan said incredulously.

"Sorry," I coughed. "Just trying to make light of the situation."

"What light?" Dan fumed. "You've been stabbed. Hold still."

He pulled out a healing option and poured it into the wound. Immediately my stab wound began to heal, though the wound still burned if I moved.

"What is it," I gasped, "with me getting stabbed?"

"You've been stabbed before?" Dan said. "Actually, I'm not surprised. Anyways, what were you trying to accomplish? Getting yourself killed?"

"Thought I'd help." I mumbled.

"In what way? Alright. No time to scold you. You need to get out of here. Hold on." Dan said. He grabbed my hand and pulled out an enderpearl.

Behind Dan, Fisherman began to stand. "You little—"

Dan punched Fisherman in the face, downing him again. Dan grabbed Fisherman's shirt and threw the enderpearl up into the hole in the roof, and we were teleported to the roof instantly, where the remnants of a battle were taking place.

Ben and Seu were fighting side by side, Ben sporting a bloody cut on his forehead and Seu only fighting with one arm. Nikai, Durham, and Ender were battling RHM and LHM, who were both sporting bruises and cuts. Ender threw a potion that smashed on LHM's face, making him drop to his knees and claw at his face. Orca seemed to be holding an entire dispenser with a button on the side, pressing the button and sending arrows into the fray. The battle was going surprisingly well, considering how outnumbered we were at the start of the fight.

"DURHAM!" Dan bellowed. Instantly Durham was running towards us, smashing through a group of guards like building blocks as he ran. He skidded to a stop in front of us. "What's the problem?"

"Will Ender and Nikai do fine without you?" Dan asked.

Nikai took a board of wood to RHM's face while Ender threw another potion at him.

"They're fine," Durham said.

"Good. Take Cal. Get her out of here. I don't care how." Dan ordered.

"No," I said weakly. "I can fight."

"You literally can't," Dan snapped. "Durham, if you'd please."

"Sure thing." Durham lifted me into his arms like I was a rather heavy dog. "Oof. How much do you weigh?"

Fisherman stood, now snarling with fury.

"Get out of here!" Dan shouted as he turned to Fisherman, lifting his scimitars.

Durham charged towards the set of doors on the other side of the roof, slamming through guards that tried to get to me.

"GET THE GIRL!" Fisherman bawled as he sent his hook flying towards me, only to have it knocked off course as Dan plowed into him, knocking him away.

All the guards dropped what they were doing and chased after Durham.

Seu, Ben, and Nikai renewed their efforts as they slashed through dozens of guards, but they just kept coming from god-knows-where. Ender threw multiple bottles filled with swamp green liquid, and it shattered, forming a steaming cloud in the air that made people choke and collapse. A hail of arrows slammed into multiple guards at once that came from multiple dispensers placed strategically by Orca, who was tossing button sized objects onto the crowd of guards. There were multiple flashes of light, and guards fell to the ground jerking and thrashing as electricity ran through their bodies.

"Just a little further," Durham muttered.

We were right there, right in front of the set of iron doors—

—and now I was on a heap on the ground, because LHM had taken his pickaxe to Durham's leg—

LHM lifted his pickaxe, and I grabbed a hunk of metal on the ground and charged at him. I jumped onto his chest, bringing the metal down on his head, knocking him out with a dull 'thud'.

Something struck me in the side, close to where my wound still burned. I fell back and hit the ground, because the world was spinning and I feel like I'm gonna puke and also my wound is burning again.

Dan yelled something—probably for me to get up and die somewhere safer—but my limbs wouldn't comply. Everyone was fighting, and meanwhile I was laying on the ground, trying not to vomit.

Suddenly a hand wrapped around my face and lifted me into the air, and RHM held a dagger to my neck.

"Don't move or I gut her!" RHM yelled.

I bit RHM's hand as hard as I could, drawing blood. RHM let out a pig-like squeal and beat my head with the dagger, so now I had a headache along with everything else.

I elbowed RHM and also stomped on his foot. I was proving to be too much for him to handle, so he dropped me. I tried to stand for more than two seconds, and to my delight, I succeeded.

Only to be shoved back down by an enraged LHM. He raises his pickaxe and brought it down. I rolled out of the way, and it sank into the wood like a knife through butter. LHM cursed and tried to pull it out. I kicked him in the face, making him groan.

Ender tossed a potion that explodes and surrounds LHM's face with a gray smoke, making him fall unconscious.

And for a second, silence. I realized that the battle was over, and that the ground was littered with bodies.

I slowly stood—was this victory?

And then I heard the all too familiar sound of an enderpearl—

Cold metal presses against my back.

"I've had it up to here with you," Fisherman snarled.

And he stabs me. Again.

Time slowed down, and everyone turned to look at me. The blade of the dagger extended out of my chest, but wasn't there anymore because he pulled it out.

I fell to my knees, clutching my chest. Dan descended upon Fisherman with a roar, swinging his obsidian scimitars like a tornado made of obsidian.

I fell onto my face, and everything went hazy.

Suddenly there was a roar, and a burst of heat wrapped around me like a blanket. Which was nice, because my skin was ice cold.

There's screaming, and then everything goes silent. I'm flipped over onto my back.

"Cal? Calliope! Damn it!" Dan frantically said. "Orca? ORCA! Damn it, no, you can't die—he's going to kill me if—"

Orca runs over to me. "Oh no."

"Hey, Orca." I grinned drowsily. "Oh, wow, my fingers are white."

"She's going into shock." Orca said. "I can't..."

I closed my eyes. Everything was darkening.

Everything people say about death is wrong. There's no 'my life flashed before my eyes' scenario. No light at the end of a tunnel. Just darkness.

And then, nothing.

?-V-?

She was standing in a white tunnel. In front of her was someone wearing a black hoodie, leaning back on a chair, his feet on a pretty looking mahogany desk.

"Interesting," he said, studying a clipboard. "You came here. It says you were supposed to come here. But you're not staying."

"What?" she said weakly.

The man raised a finger. "Don't worry, you'll be back to your boring life soon."

"Boring—?"

The man snapped his fingers, and everything went black.

?-V-?

"Cal! Cal!"

I groaned and opened my eyes. Everyone was staring at me.

"Hey," I said weakly.

Dan seemed to sag with relief. "Oh thank god. You're not dead."

And it was true. I wasn't dead. Sure, I still felt like I'd been run over by a steamroller, but I was alive.

But that white hall…what was that? Now that I thought of it, my memories of that hall were already fading, becoming hazy…

Was it just a vision? I wondered.

"Damn," Nikai said dryly. "Just when I thought we'd be rid of her."

Seu punched him in the arm, making him grunt. "Hey, it was a joke."

"What happened?" I asked Dan.

"You nearly died." Dan said. "In fact, you did die. But this saved your life."

He held up a golden totem with small emerald eyes.

I looked at it blankly. "It's a doll."

Nikai scoffed in disbelief. "A doll! As if. This, is a totem of undying!"

I stared at him blankly. "You act like I'm supposed to know what that is."

"You don't know what that is? Honestly, what do they teach you in school?" Nikai snorted. "A totem of undying is exactly what it sounds like—it uses magic to save you from dying."

"Magic?" I said. "So like…cheating death?"

"I guess." Nikai sniffed.

"But, then who—" I began.

"Me." Ender piped up. "Dan practically mugged me for it. Fifty emeralds, too. Those things are damn expensive."

I stared at Dan. "You did, huh?"

Dan shifted uncomfortably. "Well, I couldn't let you die."

"Yeah," I said. "Earlier, you were talking like someone would be mad if I died."

Dan stiffened. "Was I?"

I stared at Dan, when I heard a snort from behind me. I expected it to be Nikai, but jumped nearly a block into the air after seeing Shell behind me.

"Where'd you come from?" I asked Shell, who just curled up and looked at me smugly.

"He showed up completely out of nowhere and set Fisherman on fire. Oh, his screams were like music to my ears." Dan sighed.

"Speaking of Fisherman…" I looked around and found Fisherman crumpled on the ground, his face covered with bruises and most of his shirt burned off.

"Oh yeah, I beat the absolute snot out of Fisherman," Dan said casually. "He deserved it."

"Definitely." I looked down at Fisherman like he was gum stuck on the rim of a toilet. "He stabbed me twice. I'd beat him further, but I'd probably break something if I started kicking the hell out of him. I'm still kind of fragile."

"Yeah, the totem doesn't heal you completely." Dan said. "Guys, let's get out of here. Durham, carry Fisherman. You guys can carry RHM and LHM. And don't drop them. People like them cost more in mint condition."

?-V-?

I took a sip from my mug of coffee and made a face. "Ugh. Tastes like crap."

"Yeah, but it's caffeinated crap." Dan took a sip from his mug. "Caffeine gives you energy. And we're gonna need all the energy we have for this transport."

That was true enough, but as I took another sip of the stuff, I couldn't understand what people liked about coffee so much.

"Don't we have anything else to drink?" I muttered.

"Oh, tough it up." Nikai snorted as he sharpened his sword. "We're taking the most notorious criminal of the decade on a two hour trip back to base. I'll eat my boots if nothing happens during the transport."

"Wanna bet?" I muttered.

"You're right, you know. I'm not going to go quietly." Fisherman threatened. "LHM and RHM-"

"Ender used a very strong dose of drugs on those guys." Dan said with a yawn. "Even if they do wake up, they'll probably won't be able to feel certain parts of their body. For instance, their legs and arms. Ender, where's the rag?"

"He spat it out." Ender picked up the rag.

"Ah," Fisherman said. "As much as I'd love to hold that…revolting thing in my mouth again, it'd be bad for your long term health if you—"

"Oh, shut up." Ender stuffed the rag back in his mouth and slapped tape over his mouth to keep the rag in, making Fisherman gag.

"Can I sell all this stuff?" Ben asked Dan. "Cause it looks like some of this stuff would make for a pretty large sum of emeralds."

"Sure, why not. But not the pickaxe, the dagger, and certainly not the fishing rod." Dan said. "Those are nasty things. The dagger's enchanted with Excruciate VI and Infinity, meaning that that dagger can cause extreme agony to anyone who gets cut by the blade. It's not nice, and certainly not legal. The pickaxe is enchanted with Curse of Vanishing, so it wouldn't be useful even if you sold it. And for obvious reasons, we won't be selling the fishing rod."

"Yes, yes, that's all good and nice." Orca broke in, casually snatching a watch out of Ender's arms.

"Hey!" Ender snapped.

"Excuse my manners," Orca said as he fastened the watch to his wrist. "But you wouldn't have a prayer of figuring this watch out."

"Are you calling me stupid?" Ender snarled.

"Not stupid, just painfully average." Orca examined the watch. "This watch isn't just for telling time. This is a very high tech watch that is state of the art. I'm the only one in the group that can control this."

"Oh?" said Ender coldly. "Let's see."

"Tch," Orca scoffed. "Fine. Watch, expand!"

The watch shuddered, and somehow confetti burst out of it.

There was a slight pause, and then Orca pulled off the watch and stowed it away in his back pocket. To his credit, he didn't get flustered. "It's a work in process."

"So how are we going to play this?" Durham sat heavily on a log, which cracked under his weight.

"Oh, don't worry about Fisherman and them. They'll be tied to Shell's underside." Dan said casually. "I'll tie their ropes extra tight so they can't harm Shell. And on top of that, they'll only be supported by a few strands of rope that will snap if Fisherman moves in the slightest."

Fisherman blanched.

"But...the ropes won't snap, right?" Ben piped in as Seu gingerly wrapped his wounded shoulder up. "I mean, we go all this way to get him and then drop him to his death? Not that I care about his well being, but still. He's worth a lot more alive, right?"

"Don't worry," Dan said airily. "He'll stay still if he knows what's good for him. Hold on, I think I forgot something. Be right back." He stood and walked past me. As he passed, he paused and whispered, "The fragile rope part was a lie. It's just to keep him quiet."

I grinned, and Dan walked off, whistling a tune that sounded similar to Jingle Bells.

Later, Dan and Durham tied Fisherman and his henchmen to the bottom of Shell, who grunted but didn't move.

After everyone was done packing, Dan yelled, "Alright, we're done here! Everyone head back to the bounty hunter base!"

As I slid onto Shell's back, I whispered to Dan, "I'm sure that the ropes will be able to hold, but will Shell be able to hold them up?"

"Yeah, he will." Dan proudly said. "Once he picked up two iron golems in his claws and crushed them like paper."

I whistled softly. "That's a strong dragon."

Shell lashed his tail and looked at me like he knew what I was talking about.

Dan bent down and whispered into Shell's ear, loud enough for Fisherman to hear, "Shell, make sure to give your new passengers a hell of a flight."

Shell flapped his wings, and Fisherman let out a muffled scream of fury.

?-V-?

Eventually the sea of green under us turned to sand, and in what felt like no time at all we were back at the bounty hunter's base.

We set down on the hot sand, and I stumbled off Shell, happy to be off the metaphorical scaly frying pan. Don't get me wrong, Shell was pretty smart, but not the best route of transportation in a desert.

Everyone stopped right in front of Shell and got off their horses.

Shell laid down on his stomach, and I heard a muffled scream from underneath.

"Oh crap, I almost forgot." Dan said. "Shell, roll over. We can't have him suffocate before we get our money's worth."

Shell reluctantly rolled over, and Fisherman gasped for air as sand poured off of him.

"I…hate…sand." Fisherman groaned. "It's coarse and rough and irritating. And it gets damn everywhere."

"Save your complaints for the prison guards," Dan said as he cut the ropes holding Fisherman to Shell's stomach.

"I'm going to flay all of you alive," Fisherman snarled, "and that's a promise."

Me and Dan exchanged looks.

"No. No, don't you dare—"

Dan roughly shoved the gag back into his mouth. "Oh, shush."

Dan and Durham dragged the three behind us as Ender walked over to a dead bush.

"Alpha, Delta, Omega. Ave." Ender said, and a pit opened up in the ground.

Dan tossed the three in and jumped in. I jumped in the pit, and only swore once this time.

We walked through the obsidian hall and then through the iron door that led into the large chamber.

Almost everyone stopped and watched us pull Fisherman and his minions through the hall, some staring at us with an impressed expression, and others staring in envy.

"Stand up," Dan snapped at the three as we crowded into the elevator, which seemed to have enlarged since the last time I'd been there. Dan pushed a button and said, "You guys should get off at our floor. There's no need for all of you to come with us."

"But I wanted to see the treasure," Nikai said.

"Nikai, you know how the treasurer is." Dan said. "Come on."

"Alright." Nikai grumbled.

The doors slid open, and everyone walked out. I also began to walk out, but Dan stopped me.

"Hold on. You're coming with me." Dan said.

"You're taking her?" Nikai said, like Dan had insulted him.

"Just shoo," Dan said.

Nikai walked away grumpily, but stopped.

"You're not taking the money all by yourselves, are you?" Nikai said suspiciously.

Dan chuckled. "What do you take me for?"

Nikai didn't seem very reassured, but he walked away.

The doors slid shut, and we descended to one of the bottom floors. Soon after, the doors slid open, and we stepped into a large black hallway lined with doors.

I scratched the wall with my fingernail, but it didn't even leave a mark. It looked like a polished version of obsidian.

We walked down the hallway until we reached an iron door.

Dan reached for the doorknob, but before he could open the door it flew open.

Behind the door was a man with short cropped dark orange hair and tan skin. He would have looked handsome, if it weren't for the cruel look in his eyes. He wore a large gray trench coat, and black silk gloves.

"Danny boy. How have you been doing?" the man smiled and spread his arms. "Not as good as the good ol' days, I seem to recall. Not since you stopped doing it for the money and started doing it for the 'greater good.'" His face was friendly, but his eyes were as cold as packed ice.

"Nice to meet you too," Dan said stiffly.

"Oh, I'm sorry to keep you standing in the doorway." the man smiled and backed up into his room. Dan reluctantly followed, and so did I.

"Cal, meet Carlos." Dan introduced me. "The most ruthless and power hungry bounty hunter in this building." Dan smiled, but his eyes were blank. "I seem to remember it was this kid who sliced your arm off." Dan gestured to Fisherman.

I glanced at Carlos's arms. Sure enough, I could barely see the glint of metal under his silk glove.

"Nice that you're hanging out with other people your age now," Carlos said with a grin. He glanced down at Fisherman. His grin didn't change, but the cruel look in his eyes became more intense. "Well, well, well. Look what the cat dragged in." Carlos's eyes skipped over LHM and RHM. "I believe this is RHM and LHM?" Carlos asked.

"Yes." Dan said. "Now...I believe you have something for us?"

Carlos's lip curled slightly. "Yes. I believe I do."

He sat down behind a desk. He pulled out a diamond the size of an adult's fist with Carlos, Fisherman carved on it. He tossed it to Dan, who gingerly caught it as if it was a dead mouse.

"Show this to the Treasurer. He'll lend you the reward. And in the meantime...leave them with me." Carlos smiled down at the three unconscious people.

Dan looked like he wanted to object, but didn't say anything.

We all walked out of the office, and Dan shut the door behind us.

"I hate him," Dan growled. "He treats me like I'm some stupid toddler."

"Who is the Treasurer, anyways?" I asked.

"He's this guy who gives out the cash rewards for the people who have been caught. He gets the money from the same people who request the people to get caught." Dan explained.

"So…how much would we be getting for Fisherman's capture?"

"Around twelve hundred thousand emeralds if we counted LHM and RHM."

My jaw dropped. "Twelve hundred thousand?"

"Yeah, a lot of people really want him punished. It's what happens when you cross more than a hundred people. Anyways, if we divide that evenly among us, we'll get around fifteen thousand emeralds each." Dan said.

"Fifteen thousand…" I echoed faintly. "That's more than I would have earned in a lifetime."

"Now you get the perks of being a bounty hunter, huh?" Dan smiled—he seemed to be in a good mood again.

Dan opened a door and we walked in. I did a double take—we were standing in front of a vault door the size of a billboard. Cameras lined the wall, all of them trained on us.

Dan strode up to the vault door. There was a small speaker and a camera lens inside the vault door, and Dan hit a button next to the speaker that beeped.

"I'm not sure if that was enough to wake him up," Dan confessed. "His sleep schedule is pretty unpredictable."

"He sleeps in there?" I asked.

Dan nodded. "Yeah, he does. I'm not sure what he does in there during his free time, but if anyone breaks in he hits the alarm."

"What if they were invisible, or disguised?" I said, not seeing the point.

Dan laughed. "I'd like to see the disguise that could get past the Treasurer. He can see through them, literally. He's got a magic eye. And his pulse is connected to the alarm—if he dies, the alarm is set off immediately."

"A magic eye?" I said, surprised. "But…isn't anyone worried he'll steal something?"

"He won't." Dan's expression was so serious I had no choice but to believe him.

Before I could ask more, a loud screech came from the speaker, making me jump.

"The diamond?" a gruff voice said. Dan held up the diamond Carlos had given to him to the camera lens.

There was silence for a second, and a cool female voice said from the speaker, "Please stand a safe distance away from the door."

Me and Dan backed up, and the vault door slowly swung open with the sound of gears grinding and pistons pumping filling the air. As the door fully opened, my jaw dropped.

Inside the vault there were mounds of gold, and seas of lapis. There were piles of netherite and stacks of diamonds. But most impressive of all, was the enormous mountain of emeralds in the center. I had no doubt in my mind that the treasure in this vault could buy half the world.

"Oh," I said quietly. "Oh wow."

Dan bowed mockingly. "Ladies first."

I rolled my eyes at him and stepped inside.

The treasure was even more impressive close up, as it glittered and sparkled in the light.

"Well, boy? The diamond," said a husky voice. I looked in the direction of the voice, and saw an old man behind a desk. Beside the desk was an old bed and a lamp that contrasted with the beautiful luster of the valuables all around us.

The old man wore an ancient swamp green turtleneck sweater. He had mismatched eyes—one of which matched his sweater, and the other an electric blue.

Treasurer glared at me. "Fisherman, eh? You don't look like the type of person who would capture a criminal."

"Yeah, well. It was a team effort." I said.

Dan passed the Treasurer the diamond. "Treasurer, just give us the money."

Treasurer scoffed. "Fine, fine. No one stops to talk anymore. It's just money, money money." He inspected the diamond. "Will that be converted to diamonds, netherite, emeralds—"

"Just emeralds." Dan said.

Treasurer walked away, and after a few moments, came back. He pulled multiple chests out of his inventory and set them on the ground in front of us.

"There you go." Treasurer growled. "Your emeralds."

Dan looked skeptical. "You mean twelve hundred thousand emeralds are in these chests?"

"The chests are filled with shulker boxes." Treasurer explained.

"Oh." Dan went up to one chest and opened it. Sure enough, it was stuffed to the brim with shulker boxes.

"Yes, well, if you're done, you can leave now." Treasurer glared at Dan especially.

Dan took the hint. He picked up all the chests and walked away without a word.

I blinked at him, then turned to Treasurer. "Uh...pleasure doing business with you?"

Treasurer didn't say anything, but a scowl appeared on his face. Except it wasn't a hostile scowl, like for Dan. It was a resentful scowl. "Don't hang around these types of people, kid. It'll ruin your life."

"Cal, let's go!" Dan yelled.

The Treasurer sneered at Dan and tossed the diamond onto his desk.

I turned back towards Dan and ran after him. "Wait for me!" As I ran, I looked back.

The Treasurer didn't.

"So, what's the deal with the Treasurer guy?" I asked Dan.

"He's a bad guy, Cal." Dan said without looking at me. "You can't trust anything he says. You're not even going to see him again, anyways."

I probably should have asked more, but then again, I wasn't that interested. But it made me wonder…being a bounty hunter and all, if Dan had more to him than what I was seeing right now. Something dark.

I shook the uncomfortable thought off.

As we rode the elevator back up to our office, I asked Dan, "So what are you going to do with your portion of the money?" I asked Dan.

"I'm going to buy a solid gold toilet," Dan deadpanned.

I laughed. "Seriously, though. What would you buy?"

Dan frowned. "I'm not sure, honestly. I've always thought that even if I was super rich, I wouldn't know what to spend it all on."

"You're a bounty hunter," I said. "You get money like this all the time."

"Yeah, but I never know when or where to use it." Dan shrugged.

"Doe's that mean you're secretly a millionaire but never used any of your money?" I asked suspiciously.

Dan laughed. "Nah. Usually I spend the money on getting better equipment, and fund projects like Orcas."

The door slid open, and instantly Nikai was in front of us.

"Did you get it? Did you get the money?" Nikai gasped.

We walked out of the elevator, Nikai straggling behind like a dog.

"C'mon, let's see 'em!" Nikai pleaded.

Dan rolled his eyes and tossed multiple shulker boxes into Nikai's arms. Nikai ran off, giggling like a child.

Dan scoffed as we reached his office. Dan stopped upon seeing the pigsty that was Dan's space.

"Oh." Dan said. "Right."

Everyone walked into the space all at once except Nikai.

"I suppose you're here for the money?" Dan asked.

"What else?" Ender asked.

Dan smiled. "I guess you guys deserved it."

Dan handed out chests full of shulker boxes like someone handing out candies at Halloween.

"Well...what now?" I asked Dan.

Dan smiled. "Now, we tell the others about your favor."

"I'm not sure if they'll trust me," I said.

Dan sighed. "I'm not sure either. But hey, at least you're a little richer."

?-V-?

"You want us to do what?" Nikai exploded.

"I know it sounds irrational, and crazy." I said. "But you understand at least, right? My mom—"

"No!" Nikai shouted. "You expect us to break into the Nether Prison? That's ridiculous. Dan, tell her that's ridiculous."

"It's ridiculous," Dan said with a tired look on his face. "But I think we owe her something."

"Owe her what?" Nikai yelled. "Once you think about it, she didn't help with anything on this whole Fisherman ordeal! I've said it once, and I'll say it again: all you did was get yourself killed!"

"I'd like to remind you that you do not, in fact, speak for the entire team." Seu pointed out.

"Seu, there's no way you can possibly be considering this. It's the Nether Prison, for crying out loud. Just because her mom is stuck in there doesn't mean we should raid it." At the look on my face, Nikai groaned. "Girl, it's not that I don't sympathize with you, but raiding a prison for a person we barely know is nuts. I hear they've tightened security a hundredfold ever since that rebellion back in 2016."

"Well, you snuck into the Temple of Entity, didn't you?" I pointed out.

"That was different." Ben broke in. "To be honest, it wasn't all that hard to get in. After all, the guards weren't very focused on their job. There, the guards will be wither skeletons, not humans or pigmen. Wither skeletons don't have the ability to be bored, nor do they need to rest. They will stand at attention until they turn to dust, or something approaches them."

"Not that we wouldn't help you." Seu broke in. "But it's kinda difficult, you know?"

Ender frowned. "That's certainly an understatement. I don't see us breaking into the most hardcore fortress in the Nether."

"Yes, I must admit, I don't see us doing that." Durham said.

"What about you, Orca?" Nikai prodded him. "You're the only one who hasn't voiced your opinion."

Orca was leaning against the wall and his arms crossed. Out of everyone here, he'd reacted the least. Orca straightened and straightened his tie, even though it was already symmetrical. "I have to agree with Nikai, as much as I hate to admit it. It wouldn't be smart to raid the Nether Prison with what we have now."

"Well, we have twelve hundred thousand emeralds, right?" I argued. "Maybe we can buy the things we need—"

"I am not wasting a single emerald on this fruitless ordeal." Nikai said, outraged.

Dan sighed and rubbed his temple. "Okay, let's…let's think on this. We're all tired after the journey, and we all need rest."

Everyone murmured assent.

I looked at everyone's apprehensive faces. "But…you'll at least think about it, right?"

Seu winced and turned away. Orca watched me like I was an interesting insect he'd found in his house. Nikai scoffed, and Ben didn't meet my gaze.

"Okay," Dan said as he looked at me uncomfortably. "Let's think on it."

Nikai scoffed and stormed away. Durham and Ender walked off, and Ben and Seu glanced at each other uneasily before walking away.

Dan hesitated, and then walked away.

I walked into Dan's office space and slumped into one of the chairs, defeated. I wasn't getting any help from the others. That at least was clear.

I stared down at my chest of emeralds Dan had handed me.

I knew what I had to do.

I stood and walked towards the elevator. The doors shut, and I hit a button.

After a moment, the doors slid open and I walked out. I was in the stables, where all the horses, and Shell were. I stopped, surprised, when I saw Dan sitting on the ground watching Shell tear apart a group of dummies.

Dan glanced at the elevator, and jumped a little when he saw me. "Cal. What…are you doing here?"

"Leaving." I said shortly. "It's clear I'm not getting help."

Dan didn't say anything, but just looked back at Shell tearing up a dummy. He patted the ground next to him, and I reluctantly sat down.

"Y'know, dragons are surprisingly similar to dogs." Dan said. "They're fierce, but are loyal to those who treat them well. But they can bite if they're provoked."

"What are you trying to say?" I said.

Dan shrugged. "Nothing. Well, not really nothing." Dan was silent for a moment, and then he said, "I think you should stay."

"Why? Because of this person that wants you to guard me?" I said hotly. "Is that all you see me as? Another assignment?"

"I never implied that," Dan said. "All I'm saying is, you don't stand much of a chance alone."

"Don't you think I know that?" I snapped.

"I know what you're feeling. I used to feel like you once. Resentful. Lonely. Thinking everyone's against you." Dan said.

"You don't know me." The words felt venomous.

"Yeah. I don't." Dan said. "But what I do know is that things get worse when you're alone."

We were silent for another moment, and I watched a dummy go up in a wave of purple flames. "I just need to do this, you know? My mom's somewhere in that prison, and my dad, probably. But my sister's gone. My house burned down, and only me and my mother got out. My dad was missing. My mother tried…to save her. But she couldn't get around the fire." My voice went shaky. "I don't think that there was anything I could do, but. To think that my sister burned to death all alone, while her house, and her life, burned down around her..." my hands formed into fists. "I can't let it go unpunished. I can't."

Dan was silent for a moment. I didn't look at him. I felt my eyes become wet, and wiped at them furiously.

"I don't know what to say." Dan said, and there was something in his voice that made me want to cry. Pity? No, but it was close.

"It's better if you say nothing." I said. "Those monsters...I'm not gonna let it go." I stood. "Fine. I'm staying. But don't expect me to stay for long."

"Take all the time you need to recover. Not just physically, but emotionally." Dan said.

I let out a hollow laugh. "When'd you become a therapist? Whatever. I'm going to rest."

I rode the elevator back up, then walked all the way back to Dan's office. It was slightly less messier. Had Dan cleaned up? It hadn't made much of a difference, truthfully. Last time it'd looked like a hurricane had blown through. Now it looked like a tornado had blown through. An improvement, not matter how small it was.

I sat in Dan's comfortable office chair and closed my eyes.

I just laid there for a moment when I heard Seu's voice. "Uh, me and Ben are having lunch in the cafeteria. Care to join us?"

I opened my eyes. Seu was looking at me. I thought she'd look at me with pity, but she just looked a little concerned. I snorted. It felt like I was back in my mom's house, with her fawning over me every time I got a minor scrape or bruise while playing sports.

"Oh, are you tired?" Seu asked.

"Nah." I grinned. "I actually need something to take my mind off things."

I walked to the elevator with Seu and Ben, and half heartedly tried to listen to their conversation.

We started walking through the large chamber into the crowded cafeteria. I was glad to see that there was no one fighting each other, at least not yet. Everyone stopped talking and looked at us.

"I guess we're popular now that we caught Fisherman." Ben said dryly.

"Not popular. They're just interested in us." I said, which came out slightly more cynical than I intended.

"What do you want?" Seu asked me, and I blinked. "I dunno. I can have whatever, I guess."

"Mmm," Seu said. "What about steak?"

I shrugged. "Sure."

"Seu," Ben said in an attempt to make the silence less awkward. "Remember that time you nearly choked to death on a piece of steak and then blew up your office on accident?"

Seu giggled. "Yeah, I remember. God, that was a terrible day. Remember when you offended Shell by wearing a dragon scale helmet in front of him?"

Dan chortled. "Yeah, of course I do. He set me on fire and Dan had to spray me with a hose to put out the flames."

"You know," I said, "once I was at camp and burned down the lodge."

Seu looked at me, grinning. "Oh?"

I entertained them with the story of the time I was at camp and burned down the lodge, and they were in hysterics at the end.

As we all shared stories of stupid stuff we'd done before, it took my mind off the subject of revenge for a moment.

But as I laughed with Seu and Ben, I should have known that it wouldn't last so long.

?-V-?

An hour before

Fisherman stared blankly at a tree. They'd tied him, LHM, and RHM up, and tossed them into the ground like sacks of beetroots. What a disgrace. His father, who was the one who started the criminal business, would disown him if he were alive to see him. Fisherman, the most notorious criminal in the world, trussed up like a turkey.

The air in front of him shimmered, and Klith appeared in front of him.

"A lot of help you were." Fisherman growled.

Klith regarded him coldly. "I assumed you didn't need other people to fight your battles. I was wrong, apparently."

"They caught me off guard." Fisherman said.

"Wrong," Klith said. "They didn't catch you off guard, you were the one that set up a trap. And you still failed."

Fisherman sighed. "What do you want from me? They were surprisingly good fighters. Including that girl. If I didn't hate her guts so much, I'd be impressed. Stabbed two times, and she's still alive. Anyways, it won't happen again."

Klith inspected an obsidian ring on his fore finger. "No. It won't."

"What? Going to kill me?" Fisherman said tiredly. "I assure you it wouldn't improve anything."

Klith smiled. "Kill you? No, no, no. Even if I wanted to, I couldn't. See, I'm not actually here."

"I doubt that there's anyone on this world you couldn't kill if you wanted to." Fisherman said.

"You flatter me." Klith's eyes were colder than the arctic sea. "But I have a plan. And it has already succeeded."

Fisherman tried to stand, but fell back down. "You wanted me to lose?" Fisherman snarled. "You two faced—"

"Stop. Yes, I admit I did not want you to win. But because I have a plan. I knew your confidence would be your downfall. But why wipe only some bounty hunters off the map when you can wipe all of them off the map?" Klith seemed to find the ring on his hand very interesting.

"Not possible." Fisherman said coldly.

"Oh, but it is." Klith took off his ring and slipped it into Fisherman's pocket.

"I thought you weren't really here." Fisherman said.

"Well, I'm not." Klith said. "Now here is the plan. You will like it."

Klith explained the plan. Fisherman liked it.

I didn't have many 'characters talk about their feelings' scenes in the original story, and if I did they were kept rather short. I'm planning to have a few more of those scenes later in the story, because characters just seem to go through traumatic/life threatening situations, and then not talk about them.

Anyways, have a nice day!

Leave a review—Krios