Chapter twenty: Trial by Combat
"What is happening?" Kai whispered. "Is that the mob's doing?"
Raulyn looked up at the dark clouds above. He had noticed the change in weather, but could a mob really be that powerful? Did it matter? All citizens knew that it was best to stay indoors during lightning storms, so they should be safe.
Raulyn turned to Kai and the other Hunters. "Everyone," the captain ordered, "spread over the village in groups of two, and go inside. We cannot hunt a teleporter; we have to divide our forces and protect as many houses as possible."
Responses of affirmation sounded, and the Hunters swiftly scattered. It was a poor plan; a single teleporter could seldom be killed by only two mob hunters, and even after the Hunters' growth in numbers, there were not nearly enough of them to protect each house. If only they had had more time to prepare for this attack…
Tvusn was the only Hunter without anyone to accompany him. "Captain!" he called as he began walking to Raulyn. "I suggest we go to—"
A crimson flash of light. A loud crack. Raulyn was shoved back by a wind so powerful that his feet parted with the ground. He landed on his back meters behind him and slid over the dirt.
For a moment, he lost consciousness.
When he awoke, Kai and Flamma were kneeling next to him. He saw Kai frantically shouting in his face, but there was no sound to be heard.
The instant he opened his eyes, Kai stopped. The two Hunters' expressions turned fearful, and they backed away from him.
Raulyn tried to move his limbs, but an inexplicable weakness had set in, and he could not do much more than lethargically drag them back and forth.
Moments later, he snapped back into reality. His eyes widened and he sat up, ignoring the pain.
Pieces of Tvusn's glowstone lamp—which had hung at his belt—littered the ground where he had stood moments earlier. In the glowstone's faint light, Raulyn saw burning pieces of cloth lying everywhere, accompanied by molten metal shards that glowed softly. They surrounded a motionless body.
Raulyn felt Kai stand him up and drag him away. Raulyn could not tear his gaze from Tvusn's corpse. He had seen people die before, but this…
What had happened?
Another figure revealed itself from behind a nearby building. It was illuminated by streaks of soft white light that leaked from its body like luminescent smoke.
Raulyn's breath froze. He recognized the figure. Its face.
Jack spared him a glance before kneeling down next to Tvusn. Raulyn wanted to shout, to command Jack to leave the dead Hunter be, but he could not summon the energy.
Kai dragged him inside a house. Flamma shut the door.
Jack kneeled down next to the dead Hunter's corpse. He put his hand on the man's chest and summoned Herobrine's power. Healing someone would've been a cakewalk with these abilities at other times. Wounds inflicted by another entity—like Áhýdan—were always a bit more difficult. How'd Jack know that? He just did. He knew that, and much, much more.
Even so, he managed. The Hunter's body regenerated under Herobrine's powers, and Tvusn eventually opened his eyes.
"Must be embarrassing," Jack said. "Waking up in the middle of town just after your clothes exploded."
Disoriented, Tvusn looked at him. He gasped and kicked Jack in the head. Jack registered it, but he didn't feel pain. He didn't even move. The Hunter might as well have been kicking a wall.
"Guess Raulyn told you about me," Jack said. He stood up. "I need you to get inside. It's your best bet."
"Wh-what—!"
"Inside," Jack snarled, using the power to make his voice more persuasive. The Hunter cried out, scrambled to his feet and ran to the nearest building. Jack watched him go.
Another crimson lightning strike struck the ground next to Jack, but he ignored it. Because most of the crystals were destroyed, Áhýdan was significantly weaker now. They just needed to finish him off. Jack glanced to where he knew the portal was. The place where the border between the Nether and the Overworld had been the thinnest was the quickest way to travel. That place was, of course, the portal itself.
Unlike the three spirits, however, Jack had to stay in a physical state. He looked at the sky. He, Hera and Herobrine were all here, but at the same time the latter two were up there in the lightning storm. Fights between creatures like these were sometimes visible in the physical, mortal plane of existence, often manifesting in some pretty amazing lightshows.
Hera and Herobrine focused mainly on the storm, giving Jack full control of his own body. He could still use Herobrine's power. It altered his mindset and allowed him to see things he shouldn't be able to—like the group of mobs just outside of town, and the other group who'd just come through the portal. It was a surreal experience.
Red lightning struck a building, lighting it on fire. Jack lethargically waved a hand, putting it out. Again, it was more difficult to extinguish than a normal fire would've been.
"Jack?!" It was a whisper. Not from any entity, but from a physical person. He turned to its source.
Two purple eyes stared back.
"Andr," Jack realized.
She looked at him warily.
"It's okay," Jack said. He approached her. Herobrine and Hera backed off even further, focusing mostly on the lightning storms. The glow around Jack weakened a little bit. He felt the confidence and control that came with the merging weaken as well; the further the spirits were away from him, the more he felt like himself. The human, the tormented soul that had passed the other Trials.
Andr hesitantly stepped closer. Then her pace quickened, and she caught Jack in an embrace. Jack hugged back. Andr was trembling.
They finally parted. "J-Jack," Andr said. "You're…here?" She glanced at the sky. "Wh…what's happening?"
"It's complicated," Jack said. "Áhýdan is in the Overworld. We're trying to contain the damage he'll cause."
"Áhýdan?" She paused. "And…'we'…?"
"Herobrine and I. We kind of…joined forces. Long story; I don't really have time to explain. Ask Mystia about it when you see her again."
"Jack, I…"
"For now, Herobrine and I can prevent him from spreading too far beyond Ironhand," Jack said. "But the citizens here are in danger—and so are you."
Andr hesitated. "I…I don't know if I can just teleport everyone out of here! And even if I could, they'll lose consciousness, and I don't know if it's safe for them if I just leave them out there."
"Don't worry about the humans. I've made some new friends in the Nether; they're at the southern edge of town right now." He pointed. "Find them and bring them to our mutual friends outside town, but don't teleport anyone; it's best if they stay awake."
"Our friends… You know they're here?"
"I can see them." Mystia, Athena, Ari and Cass were still outside town. He saw them, but they didn't see him. "They're out of Áhýdan's reach, so they don't have anything to fear from him. Yet."
Andr looked uncertain.
"Go," Jack said. "You can do this. Southern edge of town. Make sure they won't get into a fight with our group. I'll keep Áhýdan off your back."
She hesitated briefly. Then she sighed and nodded. A purple flash of light heralded her departure soon after.
Now that she was gone, Jack looked at his hand. The tissue was slowly necrotizing and falling apart, as expected; Mystia had said that merging with an entity would cause the mortal's body to decay, and Jack had since discovered that actively using Herobrine's power only accelerated that process.
He lowered his arm and turned to the increasingly violent storm in the sky. At the same time, he expanded his gaze to the entirety of Ironhand, looking for one thing in particular: the crystal.
The last crystal was what had allowed them to travel to the Overworld, and now it was here. Áhýdan's dependence on it wasn't severed; most of his essence was still inside the thing. Herobrine had been the crystals' original creator, making it easier for him to pass through it. Several different factors and safety measures—including Herobrine's direct intervention—had previously denied Áhýdan the same luxury.
Áhýdan already had the disadvantage power-wise—with four of the five crystals destroyed and two merged spirits and a human working against him, he wasn't going to win a fight—but as weak as he was, he still couldn't be killed until the last crystal was taken care of. If he could, Jack wouldn't've had to go through the Trials in the first place.
Jack continued looking around Ironhand, but found nothing. The crystal might've been a blind spot for him. Omnipresent sight—or whatever it was called—was easier to fool than physical eyes, and Áhýdan knew that.
Then Jack suddenly got an idea. "Mental influence," he said out loud.
Herobrine and Hera heard him. Their minds had split up as far as they could without their merged state falling apart, giving each individual more autonomy.
"You," Jack said, addressing Herobrine, "had to limit your influence on the Overworld because of the Rule. Since we used the crystal to get here, we can basically ignore the Rule. That's the whole reason why we tried to stop Áhýdan from escaping through it in the first place—because he wouldn't have to limit his direct intervention if he played it right."
"What's your plan?" Hera asked. She wasn't physically there, but to Jack, it felt just like any normal conversation.
"We can't see the crystal with this little sixth sense power of ours," Jack said, referring to his omnipresent, nonphysical sight. "But with you two keeping Áhýdan busy, I doubt he can spare the power and focus to shield it from being seen by…well, you know, eyes. Actual, physical eyes. We have plenty of those here in Ironhand; we just need to direct them—with the same mental influence Herobrine used on me to get me to the Nether.
"Without the Rule to limit us, we can use that power on every single human here without being hindered. Áhýdan's reach can't spread beyond Ironhand now, so the crystal has to be in town, somewhere. All we have to do is influence the humans' minds to try to find it. They'll be looking for it without even realizing."
"Clever," Hera commended.
"Doing this will accelerate your body's deterioration greatly," Herobrine warned.
Jack looked at his hand. His forearm had already lost much of its flesh. His bones were going to be visible before long. "That's a price we'll have to pay," Jack mumbled.
"No," Herobrine said. "We must lessen the risk of you dying."
"I thought you said there was no hope for me."
"I expected you to die during the other Trials. You did not. And if one is given a chance to avoid the Aether, one should take it."
Jack sighed. "Alright then, what do you want me to do? Having all of Ironhand look for the same thing at once might be helpful…"
"We do not need all of Ironhand. Choose one—one with authority. One who can command others to look for the same thing."
"Hm," Jack said. "One with authority, huh? I…might know a guy."
Raulyn had mostly recovered from the event. So had Tvusn, it seemed. Raulyn had been too disoriented to register anything, but apparently Tvusn had run inside shortly after 'dying', shakily talking about Snyder's power to heal wounds. Malcolm—the owner of the house—had brought Tvusn clothes shortly after, as the Hunter's armor had been completely destroyed by the lightning.
Raulyn unsteadily rose from his seat and looked through a window at the storm above. He spared Tvusn—who had only just calmed down from his shocked state—a glance. Kai and Flamma were in the corner, discussing something with Malcolm.
The captain looked at the town outside. He saw a charred spot on the ground where the lightning had struck Tvusn, not too far from the house he was in now. A similar spot sat on a damaged rooftop in the near distance, just barely visible in the light of a glowstone lamp.
"Where are you?" Raulyn whispered as he continued his search.
White and red lightning flashed. In that flash, Raulyn saw a figure standing in the darkness outside, the white glow around him almost gone. Jack. He had something to do with this. He had power. A kind of power Raulyn had never seen before.
And there was only one mob Raulyn knew of that could disguise itself as a human.
"You…" Raulyn whispered. "You are him…are you not? The one Karles spoke of. The Rogue." He looked at the sky again. "But even Karles did not know what your true power was."
Jack did not respond at first, but the white light around him grew stronger, making him visible in the darkness.
Then Raulyn heard a chuckle. No one else in the house seemed to hear it, but to him it was as clear as day. No, the voice said. It was Jack. No, I'm not a mob. Sorry to disappoint.
Raulyn was not sure if the voice was real or some effect of the earlier lightning incident. "You sowed doubts in Tristan and Drake," he whispered. A speck of anger began to shine in his emotional numbness. "Made them kill each other. You sowed fear among us—just like Karles said the Rogue could do."
I never wanted that to happen. I'm human. I just did what I thought was right, and Tristan thought it meant something.
"No human can create a storm such as that by simply wishing it."
Not sure if any mob can, either. 'Sides, that storm isn't really mine.
Raulyn frowned. The storm did not belong to Jack? "But then…what is happening?"
There's a lot going on here that you don't understand…but my point is, I'm trying to set things right.
Raulyn did not respond.
There's something in Ironhand, Jack continued. An…item. I can't find it, but you can. If we don't get our hands on it, the town is done for. And that might just be the beginning.
"And you want me to find this item…"
I can't do this without your help. This isn't just for Ironhand; it's for the Overworld as a whole.
Raulyn sighed, leaning against the windowsill. Could he trust this man? After everything that happened? He remembered clashing with Jack directly. He remembered the mobs coming to Jack's aid, fighting, defeating Raulyn.
He remembered waking up, alive, the mobs gone. Alive. They had spared him. Why? Mobs were master manipulators, but they should know that not all humans are as easily fooled into siding with them. They should have known that killing Raulyn, a professional mob hunter, would be more beneficial for them.
The captain looked at the sky again, and he realized that this was beyond mere men and mobs. Whatever was happening, he could not stop it…but maybe Jack could.
Jack had spared Tristan's life in the Silver Cave. He had saved Tvusn moments ago. Another manipulation tactic? No—even if Raulyn was dead, Jack still may have manipulated any other human in Ironhand into finding this item for him. Yet here he was, addressing Raulyn directly.
It did not matter. Raulyn had to act. The storm was still getting worse, with red and white lightning flashing more and more frequently. This was no normal storm. If he stayed inactive, Ironhand would almost certainly suffer.
Whether he would choose to seek this item or ignore Jack's words, Ironhand was going to be in danger. He had to take a risk.
Raulyn took a deep breath. "Tell me what I am looking for."
Jack watched from the shadows as Raulyn and the other Hunters—including Tvusn, who'd found new clothes—left the house they'd hidden in. Raulyn ordered the others to alert the remaining Hunters, and they jogged away. Only then did Jack step forward.
Raulyn noticed him before long. The captain froze and examined Jack from head to toe.
"I get it if you still don't like me much," Jack finally said. "We can set that aside for now, right?"
Raulyn shook his head, scowling. "I do not know what it is that makes me trust you, Snyder. You may be luring us into a trap."
Jack sighed quietly. He knew that he was doing exactly what Herobrine had done to him; directly manipulate someone's mind into trusting something they shouldn't. Jack still felt bitter about that, even though he knew he was being hypocritical.
"You don't have much of a choice," Jack said. "If you do nothing, Áhýdan will destroy a whole lot more than just Ironhand."
Raulyn nodded begrudgingly. Then his gaze softened a bit. "Your arms."
Jack looked at them. One had lost most of its flesh; the other was only just beginning to necrotize. They weren't going to survive this fight.
"Go," Jack said. "I'll cover you."
Raulyn nodded, then jogged off.
"Athena…" Ari said.
Athena had seen it too—a group moving up the hill towards them. From that distance, she recognized Andr's tall figure, accompanied by some others. They didn't see the archeress; she was crouched down, hiding behind the top of the hill she and the others were on.
"You think she brought friends?" Ari asked.
"Andr could easily beat any uninvited humans," Athena said. "If they weren't friends, she wouldn't have—" She stopped.
One of the figures looked familiar to her. The shape of their silhouette, the way they walked, the way they held their sword…
"'Thena?" Ari said. "You okay?"
Coming to her senses, Athena swiftly grabbed an arrow from her quiver and put it on her bow. She didn't aim, but kept her gaze fixated on the approaching group.
That figure… It was her.
"Minerva…" Athena whispered.
Ari tensed. "What?"
"The Nether mobs. It's them."
When the group got closer, Athena rose from her crouched position. They immediately stopped walking.
Athena's eyes locked with Minerva's.
"Athena!" Ari hissed. "What are you doing!"
Athena didn't respond. Some of the other mobs from the opposing group looked at the bow in her hand.
Andr held up her hand defensively. "Athena," she whispered. "It's okay."
Athena ignored her. Her gaze was fixed on Minerva.
"Jack is here," Andr said. "He's working with Herobrine."
Athena stepped forward, bow held in hand.
"Athena!" Ari hissed, rising and putting a hand on the archeress' shoulder. Athena shrugged her off and continued walking, weapon in hand. If she tried to shoot Minerva from this distance, the Nether mob would be able to dodge the arrow. Her inhuman reflexes were that good.
Minerva separated herself from her group and approached, holding her sword in a similar way as Athena did her bow—lowered, but ready for use. Athena recognized the pose—it resembled a sword stance, with the hilt held low, the blade pointed backwards at a downward slope.
"What are you doing!" another mob from her group hissed.
Minerva didn't break stride any more than Athena did.
Andr nervously looked at the two, ready to intervene if things went badly.
Athena suddenly felt more nervous than she had in a long time as she approached her sister. Both had their weapons out, and both could use them better than most humans. In close combat, Minerva would have the upper hand, unless Athena could rid her of her sword.
They stopped. From that distance, their odds were equal—Minerva would need to take a good step forward in order to strike Athena, and Athena would barely have time to shoot Minerva. Had the distance been greater, Minerva would've been able to dodge any arrows Athena sent her way. Had the distance been smaller, both would've had to use their weapons for close combat purposes.
For a moment, time froze. Athena's focus was solely fixated on her sister. One of the few people who matched her fighting skill and her powers. The one person who knew her best, who knew what she had gone through all her life, who knew her fighting tactics and her mindset better than anyone else.
And that person dropped her sword. It fell flat on the grassy ground.
Unarmed, Minerva stepped forward and took her sister in an embrace. Athena returned the gesture.