AN: I should have brought it up last week, but Happy 6th Birthday My Craft. It's been going on for six years. Crazy.
I typed this Chapter up on my phone, so there might be a few errors. Let me know if you find any typos or awkward paragraphs. I looked over it, but I also wanted to get this Chapter out by today. If I do, I'd be following my one week quota again!
Disclaimer: I don't own Minecraft. Bwuh.
Chapter 189
Boxed In
[Daymonte]
"How's bedsitting going?"
The question was mocking and Wing and Witige understood it as such. It had been half a day since Cobb and Baltic's group entered the End dimension. With more than half the group away, they were short on hands and more vulnerable than ever. However, de‐ spite this, Perry and Dwight had ignored Cobb's orders to guard the beds and went bar hopping instead. Luis and Heather had stayed, but it was clear they were bored watching the beds and wanted to do something else. The only ones taking the duty seriously were the straight-laced Witige and the determined Wing.
"Shut it." Witige spoke through clenched teeth.
"Don't mock them, Dwight." Perry smirked. "Can't you see what an exceptional job they're doing? Under their watchful gaze, those beds haven't moved an inch."
"Pfttttahaha!"
Luis and Heather were mortified by the ridicule, the latter covering her face, but Wing stood up to the hecklers with folded arms.
"Protecting these beds is serious, guys."
"Seriously boring, maybe." Dwight joked. "Hey, at least you can catch some Z's while at your post, eh?"
"Cobb and Baltic gave us this mission." Witige argued. "I'd expect you to turn your nose at this if it was Cobb's orders - you're still sore at him for thrashing you at Caerbannog Valley –"
"I let him win, I tell you!"
"—but Baltic and Trenay are counting on us to guard these beds. It's their only way back."
"Oh, please." Dwight waved dismissively. "This can be solved as easily as putting a Do Not Disturb sign on our door. Nobody's going to break some stacked beds."
"Yeah, this is just busy work." Perry agreed. "The kind that's made out to be really, really important when it's just to give us something to do or keep us out of the way. I can think of better things to do with our time."
"Like getting drunk?" Witige complained.
"Zip it, beta male."
"You know, I have to agree with Perry on this one." Heather sighed. "We've been sitting around for hours and haven't seen hide or hair of any bed smashing maniacs." Luis stifled a chuckle at that. "Really, only the innkeeper would have a problem with this stack of beds, and it's not like he bothers cleaning these disgusting rooms." She stood up, cracking her back as she did so. "I could use a break to stretch my legs. Luis, care to join me?"
"Luis, not you too!" Wing sounded betrayed.
"Sorry, pal. I just don't see the urgency." Luis shrugged before leaving the cramped room with Heather.
"Come on, just admit this is a waste of time." Dwight tempted. "Do something productive. Your potion supplies could use a restock, right?"
"No! I won't abandon my post!"
"You mean your bedpost?" Dwight went for a high-five, but Perry left him hanging.
"This job may not be the most... thrilling... but it's smarter and safer than going out bar hopping." Wing pointed out. "Have you forgotten our run in with those escapees? Someone will have noticed their disappearance. There could be other escapees all over Daymonte, and if they spot you getting blitzed—"
"We're careful!" Perry shouted over him. "We're not careless drunkards. We pace ourselves. And if they do show their cultist faces, we'll just cut them off."
"Hear, hear."
"Would you two just listen for a minute—?"
"I'm not gonna sit around and look at beds all day!" Perry declared firmly. "It's just busy work meant to waste our time. If that's how Cobb sees us, then we might as well enjoy some down time while the group in the End has a leisurely shopping spree."
"We don't know if that's the case." Witige argued weakly. "They said they'd be back tomorrow night at the latest, that doesn't mean they can't come back sooner. But they haven't. Maybe because they've run into trouble...?"
"What trouble? They're probably having a blast!"
[Cobb]
"HEY! LET US OOOOOOUT!"
Shroud and Doyle pounded fruitlessly at the bedrock walls. They'd been pounding and hollering for an unknown amount of time. I glanced at my clock and watched the night and day indicator spin around aimlessly. It couldn't read the position of the sun because in the End, there was no sun. Sitting beside me, Lenz shook his compass, the device just as defunct. The rest of the Paragons were busy examining the interior of our prison. Or, as Landon called it, the Timeout Corner.
Initially, Trenay, Baltic, and the rest had walked the circumference of the chamber, looking for points of weakness. There were none. It was all made of bedrock. Impenetrable, just like the wall surrounding Herobrine's lab.
Just another coincidence. I told myself. No connection.
It wasn't entirely unconnected. Herobrine and Landon killed a dragon each, and therefore had access to the High-Beam Eyes and a Command Block. Landon may have appeared as a badge-loving fool, but he clearly demonstrated his skills with the Command Block. He could warp people AND summon bedrock. How else could he have lined this chamber with the stuff?
"Ugh, this is hopeless!" Doyle lashed out with a kick, no doubt breaking his toe. "There's no way out!"
"What's Landon want with us?" Aurand asked.
"He wants us to join the Scouts, and he won't take no for an answer." Baltic frowned. "I've heard of aggressive recruitment, but this is fairly extreme."
"What are you two doing just sitting around?" Shroud accused, glaring at Lenz and me. "Help us look for a way out!"
"I mean, I can see just fine from here that we are trapped." Lenz said simply.
"Well, we need to think of something." Trenay said. "Joining up with those crazies is a fate worse than death."
"...I'm sorry." I suddenly said.
"?"
"It was careless of me to approach Landon when we first arrived." I closed my eyes as I confessed my mistake. "If I had listened to you and acted covertly, we could've avoided getting found out by the Scouts. Instead, I waltzed right up to him."
"So why'd you do it?" Baltic asked.
"...I lost my head. I thought it was Herobrine." I admitted.
"I don't understand why you're still so fixated on him." Shroud frowned. "Don't you know what he started? The things he's done..."
"No. And that's just it. I don't have the whole story." I sighed. "My perception of Herobrine has been really back and forth since I first learned of him. I've respected him for his teachings, shunned him for his wrongs, redeemed him for his legacies, and sympathized with him for his losses." I nodded slowly. "I mean, I've built him up so much in my head, but I've only recently realized how he's just as flawed as any regular guy. I want to know what he's even fighting for anymore. I want to know how he feels about his friends. I want to know the moments that pushed him deeper and deeper into darkness. I want to know what went through his head and what motivates him to this day. All the struggles that wore away at his heart and spirit, and if his heart and spirit were even in it anymore. Then maybe I could figure out..." I clutched at my chest, feeling empty. "...where to go from here."
After Jade, I had shut off my Heart, losing the part of me that yearned for connections. I couldn't trust or feel for anyone new. The Paragons that insisted on coming along were valued less combined than my one friend, Lenz. I cared more for him getting warped away than the others.
I cast my Heart aside, and attempting to reclaim it only brought about unendurable grief. As I was, I was in a constant state. It wasn't heaven or hell, but like a stable purgatory where I wouldn't have to feel any highs or lows.
It was safer... and emptier.
I guess I just wanted to know if Herobrine was the same. If he was stuck in an unfeeling purgatory after losing his friends. Maybe he shut out the world and pushed people away because he was as scared of the pain as I was.
"I just wish I could ask him." I lamented aloud. "I wanted to know more."
"...Herobrine got together with his friends one last time."
I jerked my head towards Baltic, the aged alchemist rubbing his beard thoughtfully.
"We heard it from Ciro. Apparently, Herobrine visited Notch fifteen years after the Tragedy of Nitebane and they reconciled."
"They... reconciled?" I asked, confused.
He nodded. "They embraced like brothers—Notch had been looking for Herobrine, and Herobrine thought his best friend had turned his back on him, only to feel relieved that he never gave up like the rest." A small smile graced the aged alchemist's lips. "Even with the whole world against him, Notch never gave up on Herobrine. Their friendship endured."
"But... but I thought Herobrine killed Notch." I pointed out. I knew from Floyd's talk with Sandra that Herobrine had set the Hackers on his friends. He made the very artifacts that threatened them. "What else did Ciro say?"
"Notch and Herobrine called a meeting of the First Ten, where the artifacts were handed out. But Herobrine revealed his twisted philosophy on life and death and his relation with the Endward Cult, trying to convince the others to join him and overthrow their own kingdoms. He became convinced that the deaths he caused were a natural progression of Next Life, and that was how he coped. Naturally, the others renounced him, and walked out. Even Notch was reluctant to remain by his side, but he remained." Baltic narrowed his eyes. "Also, Herobrine asked Notch to acquire a Dragon Egg from Jeb."
"But what happened after? Did Jeb destroy the Egg? And what about Notch's indestructible grave? Herobrine had to have built it, and Notch wrote that Herobrine most likely killed him!"
"We don't know what happened next." Baltic shrugged. "That's all Ciro knew. He went to Exter during the Stigmata Wars and secured the Yanhua Gong before the Hackers could. When he returned to Ringwood, it was to find Notch dead, the grave made."
I pressed a fist to my forehead, my mind processing the newest piece to Herobrine's story. He and Notch were still close after the Tragedy of Nitebane, though Herobrine had chosen his dark goals. He even roped Notch in, requesting him to obtain the Dragon Egg from Jeb. But what did he need it for?
Again, I was reminded of the crazy ravings on those signs. Most likely Herobrine's last words were scrawled on those signs, and they depicted a great betrayal and an Egg lost.
I had a good picture, but what was the rest? How did it end between Notch and Herobrine? And how did the Endward Cult Founder feel after all was said and done?
"Thanks for telling me." I nodded gratefully. "Even after getting you all trapped in here. Again, sorry."
"...well, that's something Carys never did."
"Huh?"
"Carys never apologizes." Shroud smirked slightly. "Even after she had us hunt you down, thinking you were cultists. It was a wild goose chase that wasted our resources and she never apologized for it."
"Probably because she thinks apologies are wasted, right old man?" Trenay chimed in.
"Yes, I can't argue with you there." Baltic looked exasperated. "She always learns from her mistakes, though. She's proactive, valuing actions instead of words. No sense in making a vocal apology when you're internally vowing never to make the same mistake again. Truth be told, I think she just hates to admit when she's wrong."
"I hear that." Doyle nodded. "Z7's the same, though I think it's more because we can't quite understand her. She just stays cool and quiet."
"An apologetic gesture wouldn't kill her, though." Shroud complained.
"Our point is this," Trenay interjected. "An apology, however sincere, is not going to get us out of this forced recruitment pitch. We need action. We need to get out of here."
I nodded resolutely. "I promise. I'll get us out of here." If only to make up for my earlier mistake.
"I don't mean to be Johnny raincloud over here, but I don't see how you're going to manage." Doyle frowned, slapping his palm against a bedrock wall. "We're locked up tight. Not a single weak block; it's all bedrock!"
"How long have we even been here?" Lenz asked. With my clock malfunctioning, there was no real sense of time. No windows either, even though the End's sky was perpetually dark.
"Not sure." Trenay rubbed her neck. "I can only guess by how much our Hunger Meters have been decreasing. Half a day. Maybe two-thirds of a day."
"We could always wait for reinforcements." Aurand suggested. "We're expected back tomorrow night at the latest. If not, Dwight and Heather know the way, and they can bring help."
"Even if they did, would they fare any better against Landon's Command Block mastery?" Lenz asked.
The silence was telling.
"What about a Nether Portal?" I suggested, pulling out my ender chests. "If I break enough of these, I can get us the obsidian to-"
"That will not work." Lenz spoke aloud. "When I made my test trips into the End, I tested whether Nether Portals could work. They do not." He shook his head sadly. "Inter-dimensional travel is impossible from here. We need the fountain portal."
"What about Z7?" Shroud offered instead. "She's still out there stealthing, I bet."
"On the central island? Thousands of blocks away from us?"
Shroud blinked. "Uh... maybe she'll find a way to us?"
Turns out, his hopeful suggestion proved true. Shortly after, Z7 did find a way to us.
She warped into our prison with a bewildered expression, her head twisting and turning as she took in her surroundings.
"He got you too!?"
"Hey, yeah, sorry!" Landon's voice called from outside our prison walls. "I remembered there was an eighth lady unaccounted for, but I had trouble recalling her name! Typing Jibbermen names is way too annoying. I got it in the end, though. Damn well earned my Eidetic Memory Badge."
Brain: Cobb would be a shoe-in for that badge!
Liver: Brain!
Brain: What? I'm just saying, since becoming Scouts is looking like a possibility, thinking about easy badges—"
Stomach: Not helping!
Seeing Lenz, Z7 approached and began chattering in her strange language. Lenz understood her perfectly, even recoiling in surprise by the end of it.
"Bad news?" I guessed.
"The worst." Lenz noted sadly. "According to Z7, the fountain portal-our only way home-has been sealed with bedrock. Even if we could escape this prison, and made it back to the central island, we would have no way of accessing the portal. The Scouts have us trapped."
"Fufufu! You see now the power we possess." Landon boasted from outside the cell. "It's good to be Scouts. What say you sign these contracts," a book materialized in each of our hands, Z7 included, "and we can get you started on some stellar badges? Yes? You'll say yes, right?"
"NOO!" Trenay screamed, hurling the contract as far as her hands could throw before banging at the bedrock walls futilely. "Let us out of here you badge-obsessed whack-job! We'll never join you!"
"Never say never." He tried before Trenay let out an inarticulate scream of fury. "Er... maybe I should come back later, when you're a tad calmer."
"You can't just leave us in here, Landon!" I tried, raising my voice to speak to the man.
"Why's that?"
"Because..." I thought for a moment before changing my voice to make it sound fainter. "Because... cough cough... our food is running low..." I lied. "Oh no, the starvation pains... cough cough... they hurt... oh the inhumanity... cough cough..."
In truth, we still had plenty of food, but I sold the act by collapsing to the floor, my voice turning even weaker.
"Oh, how could you leave us in here to starve Landon? Cough cough... how cruel can you Scouts be...? What the—?"
I trailed off as a mountain of cooked porkchops materialized in my hands, and in the hands of everyone imprisoned. Z7 gave them a contemptuous flick before instead drawing the cookies at her belt.
"There you go." Landon offered kindly, having spawned us the food with his Command Block. "How is it?"
"...Delicious." I spoke dispassionately in between mouthfuls of porkchops. So much for that idea.
Stomach: In the interest of free food, I say we give being Scouts a chance.
Blood: REFUSAL! We're nobody's fool! Landon_Noir doesn't know whom he's dealing with!
"The only way you're getting out of there is by signing the contracts and becoming bonafide Scouts."
"You cannot break us, Landon." Lenz swore.
"Look, being a Scout isn't so bad." Landon tried pitching to us again. "You'll get great deals on SutsCo merch, and if you collect enough badges, you get to be the Scoutmaster. And let's not forget about Command Bloooooooocks..."
Suddenly a Command Block materialized in Lenz's palm. He lifted his tinted glasses and gazed at it in awe. A rare redstone item, unbreakable and unobtainable, and he was holding it in the palm of his hand. Before he could properly revere it, however, it vanished in a whirl of keystrokes, leaving him whiplashed.
"C'mon, you know you want it~" Landon tempted.
"Nnnnngh!" Lenz convulsed, barely restraining himself. "Cobbert, I do not know how long I can withstand such temptation! He holds a forbidden fruit, and I am weak! So weak!"
"Yes, Lenzington! Give in to the dark side! We got badges!" Landon egged him on further before delivering the killer stroke. "I'll even code you your own airship!"
Froth formed at the corner of Lenz's lips as he ripped open the contract.
"Somebody tackle him!" I shouted.
Z7, understanding my intent and being the closest to the engineer, dove for his midriff. The wind was knocked out of him as well as the contract book, Z7 pressing her body into him and pinning his arms so he wouldn't get any ideas. Still the engineer thrashed, his magenta eyes wide and mad.
"NO, NO, EVERY SKIPPER NEEDS A SHIP! EVERY SKIPPER NEEDS A SHIIIIIIP!"
It took some time before Lenz was calm enough to come to his senses. He thanked Z7 for her timely action, but agreed that he should be held down while he fought the temptation of christening a ship named after himself.
"He can spawn in anything?" Shroud asked, holding up his contract. "This is way too specific. Did he code in the contents of these books too? How powerful is Command Block technology if he can spawn whatever he wants?"
"For your information, smarty-pants, I can't spawn whatever I want, because what I want most dearly are badges!" Landon announced.
"Couldn't you just spawn in whatever you needed to get those badges, though?"
"Where's the fun in that?" He asked blandly. "Listen here, soon-to-be Scouts. An achievement is only worth anything if you have to work to get it. Spawning in items is the loser's way, and can get old pretty fast. Some days, I wish I never had these blasted eyes."
I understood the sentiment. Herobrine had been much the same in the entries following the defeat of the Ender Dragon. He conducted research and experiments in the comfort of his castle basement, never needing to go get items when he could spawn them in. It grew dull having the world at your fingertips.
The High-Beam eyes were just as much a blessing as they were a curse.
It also meant Landon couldn't be persuaded through material possessions. There was nothing we could offer him that he couldn't already obtain. We had nothing to trade for our freedom.
Nothing except... The Portal!
"Guys." I announced dramatically. "I'm gonna play the only card we have left." They tilted their heads as I walked up to the wall Landon was speaking from. "Hey, Landon! I have an offer for you!"
"Have you finally decided to join us!?"
"No."
"Awwwww..."
"But I am prepared to offer something you might be interested in." I spoke enticingly. "You were right in assuming we didn't infiltrate your End Portal, though if I had to guess, I'd say it was near your largest store, somewhere in Exter."
"You going somewhere with this?"
"I'm offering to share with you our End Portal location." I made my intentions clear. "You'd have a second access point into the End, meaning you could transfer twice as much merchandise. You could expand SutsCo, send more Scouts into the End, and make more emeralds. How much closer would that get you to claiming your Economic Depression Badge?"
The portal location was the only bargaining chip we had apart from signing over our souls. While I wanted to guard it as our only entrance into the End, escaping these nutjobs was more pressing at the moment. Besides, with Herobrine's lab cleaned out, there was nothing potentially world-ending the Scouts could make use of.
Surely they'd agree.
"No deal."
"...Huh?" I asked weakly.
"You think that deal is enough to entice me? Clearly you have no idea how big SutsCo is." Landon boasted proudly. "What do I care for another portal when our own is perfectly secure? Having more access may be enticing, but not to the point of letting the eight of you go. We can dominate the market and cause an economic depression just fine with one End Portal. If that's your best offer, you may as well sign those contracts now."
"B-But you will have more accessibility to the End!" Lenz tried desperately from beneath Z7. "Think of the workforce you can bring on! Think of the profits!"
There was a flurry of keystrokes before emerald blocks started raining from inside our cell. We were being pelted by a king's ransom worth a hundred times my current bounty.
"I can make profits without batting an eye. They clearly mean more to you than me, so have a mountain of emerald blocks to sweeten the deal. Call it a signing bonus. All yours if you join the Scouts."
"This is ridiculous." I raged, clutching my head as emerald blocks continued to cascade into our cell. "There's nothing this guys wants!"
"It's like I told you, Cobb." Trenay said sympathetically. "The Scouts don't follow common sense, and they're impossible to predict. They can't be bought, bullied, reasoned, or negotiated with."
"Yeah!" Doyle chipped in. "All they care about are their stupid badges!"
"THAT'S IT!" I cried out ecstatically before wading through emerald blocks and pressing my body against the bedrock wall. "I just gotta fight crazy with crazy!" I grinned roguishly.
"I am scared, now." Lenz muttered worriedly.
"Hey! Landon!"
"Have you decided to join—"
"Shut up and listen." I cut him off. "You can keep us trapped in here if you want," I smirked, "but then how will you ever earn your... uh... Prison-Break Badge?"
There was a moment of silence as the words were processed. Behind me, Trenay and Lenz facepalmed while Doyle just cried 'What!?' Hmph. What did they know? My plan was foolproof! In fact, it was the same level of crazy these Scouts preached. If I couldn't beat 'em and had to join 'em, then I had to join 'em to beat 'em!
Brain: That's not how the saying goes!
"Fufufu. Nice try, King_Cobb. You're as devious an Executive as I'd imagine." Landon spoke lowly. "But do you really think I'd fall for such a blatant ruse? I already HAVE the Prison-Break Badge! Obtained after I liberated some misunderstood and surly apple farmers!"
"Erk! Then... what about the Bust Down Bedrock Walls Badge?"
"Pedestrian!" He scoffed. "I got that weeks ago after being unsatisfied with how the first Timeout Corner came out! Try again."
"Rggh! Then how about the Let The Prospective New Hires Go Because It's Ethically Wrong To Hold Them Hostage Until They Sign A Freaking Contract Badge!?"
"You keep giving me easies."
"GAH!"
"I'm losing brain cells just listening to this." Trenay lamented.
"The Warp Us Home Badge!"
"That was like the first one I got after learning Command Blocks."
"The Betray Your Scouts Badge!"
"I already got it. That was a crazy weekend, let me tell you."
"Ugh! The Shut Your Gob Badge would be nice!" Trenay exclaimed in a fit of annoyance.
"It's like you're not even trying." He bragged, earning another angry squawk.
"Oh for the love of—there's gotta be something!" I shouted desperately at the wall. "Some challenge or contest for a badge that not even you could get a hold of. Something that we can wager our freedom on and beat you at your own game to get out of here! Hff. Hff. Hff."
My labored breaths were the only sounds in the silence before, in a flurry of keystrokes, the raining emerald blocks ceased, the contract books vanished, and the bedrock wall melted away to reveal Landon with his back turned.
"Are you suggesting," he performed a full turn, his feet planting upon the bedrock floor and his High-Beam eyes staring squarely at me, "the coveted SutsCoDown Throwdown Showdown Merit Badge?"
I blinked in confusion at the string of words he chose before turning towards my allies askance. They shrugged and shook their heads, just as lost as me.
"Er..." I turned back to Landon. "Sure! Of course I'm suggesting... that. Obviously. Aheh." I paused. "Buuut for those of us who don't know, mind explaining it in more detail?"
"Gladly. The SutsCoDown Throwdown Showdown is a time-honored badge for whenever two competing parties reach a stalemate. Both sides put up something, wagering it on a set of challenges chosen by SutsCo. It's the challengers' task to complete the trials. If they fail, they lose."
"Time-honored. So this has been done before?"
"No, I just made it up now."
Nnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnn! I threw my head back and bit my fist to stifle my scream. What was with the Scouts!? Why even bother pretending this was tradition when he was making it up as he went?
I wasn't going to say it, since it sounded like a chance to win our freedom and escape the Scouts' clutches, but, once again, I came to realize how unreasonable Scouts could be. I fully understood what made people so averse to them.
"Challenging us to a SutsCoDown Throwdown Showdown, knowing full we can't refuse. Very clever."
"Okay, we can stop pretending I planned this. You're clearly the one setting the pace here."
"Also quite risky, considering your freedom is on the line. Fufufu. How interesting."
I didn't like that smile of his. With his glowing eyes, he looked like a jack-o-lantern.
"If your challenge is genuine, I must first consult the other Scouts. They'll want to get in on this badge." Landon declared before typing more code in his Command Block. "Until then, don't go anywhere."
Before we could leap forward, the gap in the bedrock was resealed, separating us from Landon and the outside.
"...what did you just agree to?" Baltic asked worriedly.
"Not sure." I answered back, just as worried. "I was just grasping at straws when I made that suggestion. Also, he just made that badge up to accommodate."
"Maybe, but something tells me Landon will honor this challenge. Anything for a new badge." Lenz reasoned. "We had best expect the worst. Whatever challenge they propose will be difficult. After all, they want us to fail."
"Should we have even played along?" Shroud asked.
"Not like we had a choice. There's no way out." Trenay sighed. "I think Cobb made the right decision. At least now our fate is in our hands again. Whether we leave here or not will be determined by the challenges Landon prepares."
"The SutsCoDown Throwdown Showdown."
"I'm not calling it that."
"We should rest while we can." Aurand suggested, already laying down on the cold floor. "We'll need our strength for whatever lies ahead."
"Got it. Z7, blf xzm tvg luu nv mld."
However long I slept, I was roughly awoken by Shroud. The eight of us were no longer in our bedrock cell.
Instead, we stood outside the SutsCo facility, a group of Scouts surrounding us on all sides. They wore eager smiles, with Landon's being the biggest of all.
"We have deliberated." He spoke decisively. "And we've decided to accept your challenge." He spread his hands out. "Every Scout here helped contribute to a set of three challenges for you to complete. As such, they'll all be credited for this badge, regardless of whether you win or lose. Though, most likely, you're going to lose!"
"Woooo yeah, you're going down!"
"Thank you, Legoless."
"We can take any challenge you freaks throw at us." Doyle spoke confidently.
"Oh, I wouldn't be too sure of that." Landon's eyes glowed fiercer. "These challenges were designed to test your brains and your brawn, and we spared no expense. The sacred SutsCoDown Throwdown Showdown demands it!"
"You only just made this up—"
"And now, for the win condition" He cut me off before throwing a clock to Lenz. The engineer bobbled it before it was deftly caught by Z7. "Here in the End, there's no sense of time. Like spending the day in a casino. Or night school. But thanks to my Command Block know-how, I've specially coded this clock to make one full day-night cycle rotation regardless of where the sun is or isn't in Minecraftia. You have until the clock rotates to finish our trio of trials. Otherwise, you lose, and we win."
"Can't we just refuse the challenge?" Shroud asked.
"Not an option." Landon shot down. "Not only will you be branded as dirty takesers-backsers, but you'll be sent straight back to the Timeout Corner until you sign our original contract and join the Scouts."
"So basically it'll be back to square one for us." I frowned.
"And the stakes?" Baltic asked.
"I was just getting to that." Landon folded his hands behind his back. "Number One: If we win, you'll share your End Portal location with us. Number Two: You'll sign these originally prepared SutsCo contracts, signing over your souls to SutsCo and the Scouts, and abandoning all former allegiances to join us. And Number Three: The eight of you agree to wear the SutsCo uniform and work as customer service representatives for the first month as Scouts! Isn't that great!"
The others made faces as if they found raw sewage in their breakfast cereal.
"And when we win?" Trenay asked, displaying a confidence I didn't feel at the moment.
"If, by some small chance you win," Landon made a point to add, "you will be signing a revised non-disclosure agreement prohibiting you from revealing to anyone any of what you learned from our fabulous SutsCo tour. And rest assured, there will be no soul clauses in the fine print. It's merely to protect SutsCo's interests. We can't let you go blabbing about our trade secrets. You will be allowed to peruse the contracts before signing them if you have any misgivings. Furthermore, you will be allowed to vacate The End."
"That's it? That's all we get?"
"You want to be a greedy cow, hm? Fine. To sweeten the deal, we will grant you top-of-the-line SutsCo merchandise. Pocket Boxes, Dragon's Breath, Tipped Arrows."
"And Wonder Wings?" Trenay asked eagerly.
"No, greedy cow. Wonder Wings are off the table. We're still looking for them."
"Can't you just make more with a Command Block?"
"I haven't figured out the code for those, get off my back!" He snapped. "Apart from the wings, you'll be granted any of the merchandise from our store catalogue. A million emerald shopping spree, all for free. That enough of an incentive for you?"
"Not so fast." I interrupted. "These are our souls on the line, and I don't particularly care for the merchandise. I only came here to find Herobrine. We need more of a reward, especially if you've arranged for some tricky challenges."
"Very well. What else do you want? And before you ask, my soul is off the table. I'm a Scout at heart."
"Your End Portal location." I blurted out. "If we're wagering ours, you have to do the same. Plus, one personal favor from you, Landon_Noir."
"I can get behind that. Deal!" He floated over with his hand extended. "As the leader of this small group, Cobb will seal the deal on your behalf with a binding, irrevocable handshake. So put 'er there!"
I stared at the extended hand like it was a snake. Shaking it would start the SutsCoDown Throwdown Showdown and propel us into an all-or-nothing contest with the Scouts. Win and we'd escape. Lose and we'd start a new life as Scouts.
I felt a hand touch my back as Baltic and Trenay got on either side of me, the unwavering determination displayed on their faces worked to bolster my confidence.
"Not to worry, Cobb. If we put our heads together, we'll trounce these idiots at whatever challenges they've cooked up." She smirked. "Let them do their worst."
"I'll keep us boosted with potions." Baltic promised.
"We can kill things." The assassins nodded.
"And I will pilot however many airships they force on us!" Lenz declared before Doyle smacked him.
"Quite the entourage." Landon drawled, checking his nails with little concern. His hand was still extended, waiting to be accepted. "I'd hate to see all this faith fall flat. How embarrassing would that be?"
I slapped his hand out of my face, my expression fierce. His glowing eyes narrowed.
"May I take that as a yes?"
"You're on."
Inventory (Cobb): 1 Carved Pumpkin, 1 Leather Tunic [Dyed Green], 1 Diamond Leggings [Projectile Protection IV], 1 Fishing Rod {Backlash} [Knockback II, Luck of the Sea III, Unbreaking III] {Weak}, 1 Diamond Sword [Sweeping Edge III], 12 Cobblestone, 28 Sand, 2 Glass, 52 Glass Bottles, 1 Stone Pickaxe, 1 Furnace, 17 Flint, 1 Flint and Steel, 17 Oak Wood Planks, 1 Crafting Table, 1 Clock, 1 Water Bucket, 1 Lava Bucket, 1 Milk Bucket, 7 Ender Pearls, 14 Coal, 37 Snowballs, 5 Ender Chests, 24 Obsidian, 64 Steak, 26 Steak, 62 Cooked Porkchops, 15 Rotten Flesh, 1 Book {How to Kill Stuff for Numb Nuts}, 1 Book {Advanced Mob-Slaying}, 1 Book {Mobs of the Nether}, 1 Book {Mobs of the Bounty Days}, 1 Map {Minecraftia}, 1 Book {Citizenship Information}, 1 Paper {Ringwood Entry Pass}, 1 Paper {Zeppil Entry Pass}
[EXP: 38]
Inventory (Lenz): 1 Chainmail Helmet, 1 Chainmail Chestplate, 1 Chainmail Leggings, 1 Chainmail Boots, 1 Carved Pumpkin, 32 Pumpkin Seeds, 1 Iron Dagger, 1 Shears, 1 Lever, 13 Tripwire Hooks, 9 Redstone Torches, 8 Redstone Repeaters, 3 Redstone Comparators, 18 Blocks of Redstone, 2 Hoppers, 3 Pistons, 2 Sticky Pistons, 13 Cobblestone, 1 Compass, 25 Gunpowder, 1 Bow, 1 Bow [Infinity], 1 Crossbow, 43 Arrows, 11 Jungle Wood Planks, 1 Crafting Table, 6 Ender Pearls, 62 Cooked Porkchops, 43 Steak, 1 Splash Potion of Healing II, 1 Potion of Regeneration II {0:22}, 1 Map {Minecraftia}, 1 Book {Airship Piloting 101}, 1 Book {Notebook}, 1 Book {Citizenship Information}, 1 Paper {Daymonte Entry Pass}, 1 Paper {Ringwood Entry Pass}, 1 Paper {Zeppil Entry Pass}, 1 Paper {Akasha Entry Pass}
[EXP: 19]
Inventory (Baltic): 1 Carved Pumpkin, 1 Iron Helmet [Protection III, Unbreaking III], 1 Iron Chestplate [Protection IV, Unbreaking III], 1 Iron Leggings [Protection IV, Unbreaking III], 1 Iron Boots [Protection III, Unbreaking III], 1 Iron Sword [Sharpness II, Unbreaking III], 1 Shield, 1 Bow, 1 Diamond Pickaxe [Silk Touch I, Mending I, Unbreaking II], 25 Arrows, 4 Brewing Stands, 1 Splash Potion of Weakness {4:00}, 1 Splash Potion of Fire Resistance {8:00}, 64 Glass Bottles, 42 Glass Bottles, 1 Water Bucket, 59 Blaze Powder, 55 Nether Warts, 30 Soul Sand, 28 Bones, 64 Phantom Membranes, 9 Golden Nuggets, 64 Blaze Rods, 26 Fermented Spider Eyes, 59 Carrots, 58 Melon Slices, 60 Cooked Porkchops, 14 Steak, 3 Ender Chests, 1 Map {Paragon Minecraftia}, 1 Book {Citizenship Information}, 1 Paper {Gold Citizenship Pass}, 26 Emeralds
[EXP: 30]
Inventory (Z7): 1 Clock {SutsCoDown Timer}, 1 Carved Pumpkin, 1 Diamond Helmet [Protection III, Unbreaking III], 1 Diamond Chestplate [Protection III, Unbreaking IV], 1 Diamond Leggings [Protection IV, Unbreaking III], 1 Diamond Boots [Protection III, Unbreaking III], 1 Iron Dagger, 1 Iron Dagger, 1 Iron Dagger, 1 Iron Dagger, 1 Iron Dagger, 1 Iron Dagger, 1 Iron Dagger, 1 Iron Dagger, 1 Iron Dagger, 1 Iron Pickaxe, 32 Cobblestone, 1 Crafting Table, 1 Furnace, 21 Charcoal, 9 Ender Pearls, 14 Torches, 18 Oak Wood Planks, 1 Cake, 1 Cake, 1 Cake, 1 Cake, 1 Cake, 1 Cake, 1 Cake, 19 Pumpkin Pies, 9 Cookies, 44 Baked Potatoes, 1 Bucket, 1 Potion of Swiftness II {1:30}, 1 Potion of Night Vision {8:00}, 1 Potion of Slow Falling {4:00}, 1 Map {Paragon Minecraftia}, 1 Book {Citizenship Information}, 1 Paper {Gold Citizenship Pass}
[EXP: 42]
AN: Okay, so I've written a character with god-like spawning and teleportation abilities. How do nerf?
...
Of course! I'll make him a badge-obsessed crazy! Brilliant! BRILLIANT!
Will Cobb and Co complete the rigorous trials conceived by the Scouts? Or will they work customer service positions in a 9-to-5 job? Find out next time... since we're not going back to Carys' side next Chapter. We're sticking with Cobb for a bit. Please hold your applause.
Carys: Screw that! What about us!? Where's my screentime!? Why are we focusing on this idiot-?
Cobb: Carys, please, stop making this all about yourself.
Carys: Nnngh...
FAV. FOLLOW. REVIEW. PM. FORUM. DISCORD. BROWNIES.
