"Woah, this place is huge!" Bdubs gasped, looking up.

Towering over them was a massive mountain. A narrow staircase made of stone bricks wound its way up. The snowy peak did not appear to have much atop it, but it glowed with an odd golden light. After a bit of searching they had found the location specified by the signs on the mysterious statue.

They began the trek up the long staircase, voyaging to the snow-covered mountain top. As they climbed, the air became brisk, and the icy wind blew through their meagre clothing.

"W-we p-probably should've d-dressed warmer..." Impulse shivered as they took another step.

"T-too late n-now..." Bdubs responded as he looked down the stairs. They had already traversed almost half of the mountain, and they weren't turning back now.

About two thirds of the way up the mountain, they paused to rest on a little ledge. Iskall sat down heavily on the freezing ice.

"It's g-getting dark, we should s-sleep." He took out a torch, lit it, and stuck it into the ground. The ice and snow around them slowly began to melt away. The men huddled around the flame, rubbing their hands together and wiggling their numb fingers.

"So... sleep?" Impulse inquired, his head tilted to the side. In the warmth of the flickering flame, both hermits had stopped shaking.

Bdubs grinned broadly, immediately pulling a bed out of his storage.

"I have you covered!" He kept a bed on him at all times, just in case.

"Do you have another?"

Bdubs scoffed, and placed down a second bed. "You bet I do!"

Impulse gave him a thankful smile, and the friends settled down to rest. As the sun set, they climbed into their beds, curling up under the warm covers. Bdubs' vision faded to a deep shade of indigo.

After a moment, he opened his eyes, and found himself standing in the sun again. He stretched after a good night's sleep. Also stretching, Impulse tried to drag one of the bed's blankets with him to shield him from the cold. Bdubs laughed, picking up the beds and storing them away in a shulker box. Impulse growled groggily, and reached out for bedsheets that were no longer there.

People who don't sleep often are always so grumpy...

He thought to himself.

If they slept every night like me, they would all be bright and full of energy!

Impulse groaned again and rubbed his face with his hands. He looked sound with wide eyes. "Where...? Oh... right..."

Bdubs struggled to restrain his laughter. This man was comedy gold.

"Cmon' Impulse, we should start trekking again. Here." He tossed his friend some food. Impulse picked it up and devoured it eagerly.

After a few more moments, Impulse was fully awake and they were ready to find out what was at the top of the mountain. For the beginning of the trip, it had only gotten colder, but as they climbed higher, the snow began to melt.

"Well that's odd... Impulse, does it seem like it's getting... warmer?" Impulse paused and frowned, before responding with perplexion.

"Yeah... Yeah, I think it is getting warmer. Just look over there!"

Bdubs glanced in the same direction as his friend, and to his surprise, a small stream was running down the mountain. It froze as it went lower.

"That... that's really weird..."

"Cmon', we need to find out what's going on." Impulse continued, and Bdubs scrambled up the final few stone steps after him.

It was enormous. A huge tower, open to the air, rose out of the ground like a tree. It towered into the heavens, and lava cascaded down from the peak, oozing off the roof in neat streams. The magma dribbled into pits in the ground, and flowed beneath the floor of the building, working its way through narrow glass tubes.

Breathless with awe, Bdubs threw a soggy, half-melted snowball at one of the lava sreams. It hit the cascading magma with a loud hiss, and when the steam cleared away, all that was left was a dark patch of cooled lava, which quickly melted and flowed away.

"This is... magnificent. No wonder the peak was so warm! From the ground, the angle doesn't let us see the tower, only the glow of the lava!" Impulse exclaimed excitedly, "Whoever built this is a design genius."

Bdubs made his way forward. In the centre, a large glass tube lifted the lava back to the peak, pushing it to pour out of the top again. There was a ladder on the far side, along with a single sign on the pillar that was facing them, pinned precariously to the hot glass. Bdubs read it aloud.


Reach the peak and you will find,

A secret clue that lies enshrined.

The ultimate sacrifice one must make,

Or both lives will be at stake.


"Well, it looks like it was built for only two people. Good thing Grian was busy!" Impulse joked.

Bdubs squatted down, and read the second sign.


Climb the levels one by one,

Do not stop until you're done.

Once two enter neither shall leave,

Until the final prize they receive.


"Well that's terrifying." He finished with a chuckle, "Well, shall we?"

Impulse nodded, grinning, and began to climb the ladder.

~ ⬩ ╎リ ⬩ ~

They emerged on a small platform. In front of them lay a pit of lava along with a chest. Bdubs eagerly reached in and retrieved two fishing rods from its depths. He handed one to Impulse, and they both looked around confusedly. What were they supposed to do? The gap was too large to jump over, and they figured elytras would be cheating. Impulse inspected the room for a bit, before placing down a bed.

"Let's set our spawn, just in case..." he said. Both men went over to the bed and touched it. A nearly invisible shimmer of light wound its way around their arms briefly. When people interacted with a bed, even if they didn't sleep in it, it would make sure that that is where they would wake up after dying.

"Wait..." Bdubs walked over to the lava, walking left and right. He took out his fishing rod, and began to fish. After a moment, he pulled the hook back, and tried again. Impulse laughed, and he realised that Bdubs was not making a joke. "What're you planning to do here?"

"Maybe..." He mumbled, paying no heed to Impulse's inquiries. This might actually work.

Suddenly, there was a click. A grin spread Bdubs' face as a path rose out of the lava in front of them.

"How did you do that?" Impulse wondered in awe.

Bdubs began to walk across the narrow path, and explained, "If there are pressure plates, you can set them off using a fishing rod bobber!" He held up the rod, and pointed to where its string entered the magma.

"Pressure plates can be hidden under the lava! I read it somewhere a while ago." he finished.

"Nice work, Bdubs. On to the next!" Impulse exclaimed excitedly.

~ ⬩ ⍑╎ᓭ ⬩ ~

The next floor was chaos. Dispensers lined the walls, shooting arrows in a seemingly random pattern. They sat for a while, trying to figure out how to get through. They would surely die if they went through without knowing when the arrows would be fired.

Coloured wool lined the floors and wall. The bushy material was already covered in hundreds of prickly arrows, and even more were still building up, embedding themselves in the soft fabric walls.

"Huh." Bdubs remarked, "I wonder why they didn't use concrete."

"Wait..." Impulse was muttering softly to himself, "red... green... purple... yellow... green again... blue... orange... blue...red... green..."

Impulse looked up from the flying arrows and grinned at Bdubs.

"I've got it! It has an order!" Impulse pointed to the colours on the floor and walls. They fired in the same pattern he described, and both hermits laughed in triumph.

They began to make their way across the room, carefully shuffling from one colour to the next. At one point, Bdubs almost went to the next section too early, and his action was rewarded with a sharp arrowhead grazing his shoulder. At the end of the hallway, they both sighed, letting out their pent-up breath. They had made it through.

"Well this is proving to be much easier than I thought it would be..." he said.

~ ⬩ ⍑ᒷᔑ↸, ⬩ ~

They climbed a staircase made of sandstone to the next level. The dusty rock crunched under their feet, sending up small puffs of tan dust with each step.

The next floor was a large room, full of intricate details. Grass covered the floors, and a flower here and there reached out towards the artificial lights in the ceiling. Trees rose out of the earth, their mighty roots grasping the ground. It was beautiful.

"Wow..." Impulse sighed in awe.

Bdubs unequipped his armour and dived into a small pond in the corner. He splashed about, laughing, before grabbing Impulse's arm and tugging him in too. The buddies took a very needed break as they had fun in the cool, clear water.

Soft sand squished between their toes as they emerged, sopping wet, and walked across the sand lining the pool.

"Huh. where'd this come from?" Bdubs picked up a large lavender feather from the ground. He turned it around a few times, "Weird. It's too big to be from a chicken or a parrot."

Impulse shrugged nonchalantly, "Dunno man."

The sound of someone drinking emanated from behind one of the trees.

"Ok, something is definitely going on. What the heck was that?" Bdubs asked in bewilderment.

The friends inspected the room. There were odd buttons placed everywhere, all of them were stone. Probably just detail for pebbles on the ground.

Impulse's voice called out a few minutes later, "I found something!"

In his hand, an empty glass bottle was held. Residue of some silvery liquid clung to the sides. Impulse dipped a finger in it curiously, and his finger disappeared.

Bdubs' face paled. "That's... it's an invisibility potion..."

They both stood up. They knew for sure now. Someone was here.

"Wait..." Bdubs mumbled, connecting the dots, "Grian had an invis potion that I smashed. He is involved! Grian has- he's got something to do with this!" he exclaimed angrily.

Impulse stood with his friend and put a hand on his shoulder.

"Hey!" he called, "Wherever you are, is Grian selling you the potions? Because I can sell them to you for cheaper!"

Bdubs elbowed his buddy

"Why- Impulse! Are- you're using this as a marketing opportunity?"

Impulse shrugged with a grin. They joked about for a bit, swishing their hands through the air.

Bdubs sat with a sigh. "So how are we going to get out of here? I think the person left, so how? Where is the exit?"

"Well, there is that iron door, but I can't open it. Must be locked." Impulse pointed out.

Bdubs grunted as he rose and dusted some dirt off his pants.

"Well, there's- there has got to be some- a lever or button somewhere."

They both began searching again, this time for something that would activate the door. Bdubs crawled about, pushing the buttons that they had initially mistaken for pebbles. He saw Impulse shimmy up the small tree and yelp as he fell to the ground again. Finally, after what seemed like ages of searching, he found it. Hidden in a corner behind a small bush was a lever. He flicked it and rejoiced in triumph as he heard the lock on the door click. Impulse ran over and grabbed his hand.

"YESSSSSS! WE DID IT!" he rejoiced, pulling Bdubs though the door he had just opened. Once they made it through, they stopped, gaping in amazement. A glass staircase wound up the side of the tower. The sun was setting outside, sending fiery orange and pink lines arcing across the sky.

They walked slowly up the stairs as the sun dipped below the horizon. A small glass doorway opened out onto a glass balcony. In front of them sat two more signs.


Four floors remain of the seven you must complete

And here is where you must decide of you will retreat

There is no means of escape if you continue

So you must find the courage within you.


Hordes of enemies risen from the grave

The way forwards will appear if you are brave

Wander the caverns to the left or right

And one shall fall into eternal night


"These are just getting more and more scary!" Impulse laughed. Both men looked out at the setting sun. The wind gently brushed the leaves and dust out of their hair and tugged softly at their clothing. The fading sunlight warmed their skin as small stars began to twinkle merrily in the heavens. Glints of vibrant orange and yellow danced over the bright glass like small tongues of flame. As day turned to night, the friends took a break, relaxing after a very long day.