Chapter 14

Fateful

BanjoNote: After the long-ass chapter, also known as Memories of Days Past, I decided to let a bit of it bleed into this chapter.

So, for a small part of the chapter, it'll be with Sileeno. There will be more flashbacks throughout this arc. At the end of the chapter, as an apology for the late last chapter, on Saturday, I am publishing a new story. Next chapter, I will reveal the next Arc's name. The Broken Arc's last chapter is 18.

Also, refuses to save my progress, so yes. I did lose over a 1500 words. It was a pain.

I've rambled on too long. Here's your chapter!

BanjoMano does not own Minecraft, but he does own Mojang. Wait-

[Alex]

"JOSIE WANTS TO KNOW WHERE GIMERO IS!"

I sighed, looking around the street. I was sitting down on a wooden bench in the middle of a park, just outside of the castle grounds. Josie walked around the pathways, which took her about five minutes to traverse. While she was waiting for Gimero, I was hoping that Athara and Sileeno would return from... wherever they were.

Josie stopped stomping, and I looked around to her. She was looking on the main street, where there was nighttime traffic- to say, people were clubbing. But my attention was drawn to the same thing Josie was looking at.

One building was very bright, because it was on fire. I stood up and without thinking, ran straight to the building.

[Gimero]

I swung the frying pan around, smacking Rosa in the ribs. She clutched her side, swung her cleaver straight at me , and I cowered backwards, muttering "Sorry, sorry, so-"

She socked me in the face, and I fell head over heels. She sighed and pulled me up by the back of my coat.

"By Notch," She said, exasperated. "You can't go fighting and apologize everytime you manage to hit."

"But..." I looked down on my Manyullyn frying pan. "You're a friend...?"

"Alright?" Rosa gave me a sympathetic look. "I can tell you're not a fighter, but you need to defend yourself out there. We can't have you dying out there."

I swallowed audibly, and raised my pan defensively. Rosa smiled and charged at me, and I fought all my urge to cower in a corner.

She vaulted at me, cleaver raised, and swung down on my head. I blindly swung upwards, meeting her head and spinning her mid air. She twisted mid-air, landing awkwardly on one knee. She quickly recovered and swung at my ribs, slicing a gash in my coat. I stumbled to the side and flailed the pan at her, resulting in her kicking me down, hitting the ground backwards and taking the air out of my chest.

I didn't even bother to to stand. I just stayed there, arms splayed, as Rosa looked down at me.

It took me about three seconds to realize something was wrong.

I sat up, sniffing. "Is that... smoke?"

Sure enough, the gray clouds of smoke rolled into this underground basement from the cellar above. I stumbled up and opened the dark oak trapdoor to the tavern, and closed it almost immediately.

"What's wrong?" Rosa asked, frowning.

"I, uh, ah-" I started, but she smacked in the face.

"Well, there's a fire." I yelped. "And all exits are blocked. And... well, it's hard not to notice the culprit. You said something about defending Lafor?"

"Oh, Solomon." She swore. "It's begun. Gimero, we need to get out of here. In an hour, the City of Lafor is going to be surrounded by Griefers."

I swallowed. "I suppose I'm going to be important in this? Or can I stay here, underground and safe?"

My prayers were not answered when she grabbed my wrist and dragged me up the stairs.

[Sileeno]

I grabbed Athara right before she could smack face-first in the ground for the third time that day. Kat_Kin looked at me in surprise, then back at her Griefer ally. "Will... she be fine?"

I nodded. "Thanks to my newest invention, I have been creating the ability for arrows to have two effects at once. If my calculations are correct, and they usually are, Athara has chosen the arrow that has the Levitate and Feather Falling effects, thanks to manipulating the code in such a way to make the code appear as if the arrow does not have an effect, allowing us to add a second effect on top of the first effect."

Kat blinked, then kneeled down to Athara. "What's wrong with... her?" She asked. "One moment she looked at me, then her eyes rolled up and bam!"

I raised an eyebrow at her, saying nothing. She must've been 90 years old, but she still had the demeanor of a teenager in the way she spoke and just her aura. She kept fidgeting with her hair, messing with her sleeves.

It took a moment until I said anything. "Your tendencies. Are you ADHD?"

She shrugged, tapping her jeans. "I think so. But you didn't answer my question. What's wrong with Equara?"

I sighed, annoyed with this girl. "Her name is not Equara. It's Athara. And what's wrong with her? Why, you griefers caused it!" She recoiled. "A certain event triggered her to... emotional trauma."

She mumbled to herself, but I caught the word "...Quersit..."

She looked up at me, nodding. "I.. guess that would do something to her."

Athara groaned, and shifted out of my grip. She stood up, rubbing her head.

"Cave?" She asked, looking around. She smiled, and breathed in the air.

She faced Kat_Kin, then her smile faded.

"Kat." She said, no tone to her voice. Kat looked at the dirt.

I felt extremely awkward, which is nky exactly a feeling I get every day. The two girls faced each other, waiting for the first to say something.

Eventually, Kat spoke up. "Are you guys here for our plans?"

Athara shrugged. "I... yes. Yes, we are. If their was a Griefer I trust, it's you. Is the rest of the clan here?"

"Wait." I raised my hands. "I point this out only for Lafor's safety. Kat_Kin, are you of agreement with the Griefer's plan?"

She looked over her shoulder. "No. I don't agree with killing, but you guys should know that... that Redonath is here. He's leading the siege."

"Siege?" I repeated. "So the Pillagers are attacking Lafor."

She shook her head. "Not only Pillagers. We also found some Illagers in a mansion to the west."

"You found-" Athara let out an exasperated sigh. "Of course you did. Just our luck."

"Well!" I piped in. "We need to get back as soon as possible!"

"We have horses stabled in the nearby forest." She pointed towards the border of the forest. "Use those to get to Lafor."

I quickly ran calculations in my head. "That would take about... we would get back to Lafor by midnight. But-"

"Then we should get moving!" Athara insisted, but I had realized something obvious.

"This is too simple for Redonath." I stated simply. I pointed at Kat_Kin.

"We're being used."

Athara stepped up to me, a dark look in her eyes. I raised my hands inna peace gesture, to allow me to explain.

"Redonath sent Kat_Kin in our path, knowing she would tell us this information. If the siege happens today-"

"It's happening..." She frowned, fidgeting with an arrow. "A little past midnight?"

I sighed. "Just as I thought. He is trying to distract us. Trying to get us to trip up."

Athara's shoulders slumped. "Well, there's not much we can plan for that."

I shook my head. "Redonath planned well. We'll have to hope we ca-"

I stopped. Athara investigated my face and sighed. "You have a plan."

I smiled wildly. "Not only that, but I know what step we're going to miss. And... it may just help us."

I began to tell them my plan.

[Alex]

I didn't even think before slamming the door open. I tumbled into the tavern, narrowly missing line of fire.

I looked around the room, counting how many groups were trapped. Three. A family consisting of two parents and a child - something that confused me - an elderly couple, and a woman in full plate, standing in front of a black man in a blue coat.

Wait...

"Gimero!" I yelled over the crackling flames. There was no way he could hear me-

"Alex!?" He called back. He took out a bucket and started to place it down, but a shadowy figure slammed into him, making him drop the bucket in the flames.

He cowered behind the woman who shot him an exasperated look. I looked at the shadowy figure, who now sat on the bar counter like Spider-Man.

So I took out my crossbow and fired it at him.

He rolled to the side, sliding down the counter and landing dramatically on the ground. It looked so anime-like that I leaped onto a table and vaulted over the flames, just to prove a point. I don't know what point, just one.

I rolled to a stop in front of him and whipped out my cutlass. He let out a low growl and aimed a foot at my stomach, but I dove to the side. He took out what looked like flint and steel and flicked them together.

The ground around me burst to flames, but as soon as it was alight, it was smothered. He looked up at me, let out a confused"Huh?" and began to shred the flint and steel at the ground I was standing on until it broke. We stared at each other, and he slammed a fist into my face.

I promptly spun in a circle. He whipped out a stone sword and sunk it into my gut, which didn't kill me, but hurt a shit ton.

His black eyes met mine, and he lifted me off the ground and flung me onto a table, which I slid off.

Normally, that would be a statement to give up, but I was so pissed at him that my ears drowned out the sound of the panicked people surrounding flames. At first, this was to save them, and it still is. But it just got personal.

I extracted myself from the floor and stumbled to my feet, clutching the wound. I pointed at the man, who appeared to be laughing.

I felt a tugging right where he stabbed me, and a wall of water slammed into my back.

The entire building was filled with water. The liquid slowly filled to the brim, drowning the inside and the road outside as it poured out of the holes the fire burned.

Slowly, the water disappeared. I stumbled over to a chair, exhausted, hand wrapped around my chest, and slumped into it. I looked at the spot the shadow-man was, wondering how he miraculously just disappeared. Maybe I imploded him like a mob? But his loot would be on the floor. He seemed to have teleported out of the tavern, which wasn't out of the ordinary for this world.

Gimero and the warrior woman walked up to me.

"I always knew- well, I didn't expect you to drown a building, but I had a feeling we would see each other again!" Gimero exclaimed, jumping onto the seat next to me.

I smiled weakly, and nodded to the woman. "Who's your girlfriend?"

"Excuse me?" She asked, giving me a dark look. "Watch your words, Crafter. I saw what you did, and how you handled that situation. I don't care whether you have powers or not. If you can't control them, you're no match for me."

I bit back a retort, knowing she was probably right. Gimero watched this with a look of anxiety on his face slowly growing more and more painful.

"Alex, this is Rosa_Lind. Rosa, Alex." He introduced us. I stuck out a hand for her to shake, and she complied once.

Looking at Gimero, she asked "Where'd you get such rude friends?"

He shrugged. "She wasn't this rude before."

I gave him a dark look. "I just got my guts impaled. Cut me some slack."

He winced. "Ye-yeah, that'd really sour your mood."

Rosa sighed and walked away from us, checking on the other patrons in the tavern. I looked at Gimero and winced, a sharp pain in my wound. I removed my hand and looked down, and saw that the wound was gone. I looked at my clothes, my hand, my skin- there was no blood whatsoever.

Gimero shifted in his seat. "Well... how's your three days or so go?"

I shrugged, still mystified about the gut wound. "Just normal for Minecraftia. I'm actually waiting for Athara and Sileeno to come back."

"Sileeno?" He asked, confused. "Who is that?"

I pondered. "Scientist, silver hair, goggles, lab coat-"

The remaining door to the tavern slammed open, as the very man walked in. I spun around on the stool, frowning. "Couple of things."

"No time." He walked over to me. "We need to get you to the Command Center."

Gimero looked between the two of us, confusion crossing his face. "So... this is Sileeno?"

Sileeno regarded Gimero. "Who is this? He seems to... are you a Guided?"

Gimero swallowed audibly and nodded, making it my turn to look confused. Sileeno sighed, and said "I'll need both of you to come with me, then. Alex, it's time to learn your powers."

[Gimero]

We followed Sileeno over to a large building, mostly made of various stones. We entered the piston doorway, shifting a wall of stone bricks and showing a staircase upwards. I took the tail of the group, looking at Alex who could barely maintain her excitement.

We walked up the stairs, entering a small room filled to the brim with levers and buttons and other various redstone contraptions. A large window took up the majority of one wall, showing a large room that took up most of the building. A platform made of redstone blocks directly in front of our box, about 15 to 20 blocks away from us. A doorway to the right led to that platform, and Sileeno opened it.

"Alex, get on that platform." He ordered. Alex walked down the narrow path nimbly, standing on the redstone and shifting nervously.

"How did you find us?" I asked him, as he started to flick levers. Not even looking at me, he answered "Well, I saw the building get flooded, and figured our Crafter here did that."

Fair.

I paced around the cockpit, finally coming to a stop at the window behind us, looking outside the entirety of Lafor. I certainly didn't like the height, but I didn't want to really watch what was was about to happen.

Sileeno hit one last button, and turned to me. "I wanted to speak with you in private. While this-" he pats his table of mechanisms. "Starts, I'm going to ask you a question. How many Guided are alive?"

I frowned, thinking. "Uh... don't... know?"

His eyes narrowed. "Look - what's your name?"

"Gimero?"

"Gimero. You're not supposed to exist."

I blinked, looking him in the eyes. "I - uh, what?"

He started to answer, but a light blinked. He turned to the table, and pressed tbe button in the very center of the table. The platform underneath Alex lit up, and she began to float up. She winced, and white characters started to pulse out of her.

"Is that... normal?" I asked, scared. Sileeno shook his head.

"Not usually," He answered. "But it's what we want." He pulled out a clock, took one glance, and put it back in his pocket.

I swallowed and looked out the window behind me. I stopped and walked up to the window, frowning.

"Um." I pointed out the window. "Is it some sort of holiday? Because that's alot of fireworks."

Sure enough, all around Lafor, fireworks of various colours and sizes were lighting up the sky. Sileeno muttered calculations to himself and started to shake his head.

"Not enough time." He stated, resigned. "We need Alex to-"

Alex slammed into the redstone platform, limp. A pulse of white energy came to a steady rhythm out of her, and her skin began to glow white.

"...that's not a good sign, is it?" I squeaked. Sileeno blinked, and pointed to the exit.

"Move."

Without a second thought, we slammed through the door and practically flew down the stairs.

[Alex]

An endless sea of blue, cut only by a handful of white clouds. I layed down on an endless flat land, looking up to the sky.

I sat up, and only then I realized the entire ground was layered with a thin amount of water, maybe up to my ankle. I stood up, my back soaked, looked around.

The ground reflected the sky, with no landmarks to tell me how far this... plane was. I started to wonded where what the name of this place was, but the words came to me. The Empty.

It gave me no context, but at least I knew it had a name. I cleared my throat and called out, "Is anyone out there?"

My voice leapt into the void, with no vocal answer. But one of the clouds shifted and formed a human shape, which plummeted into the ground. Water erupted dramatically around him, and the cloud person stood up.

It seemed to be male, one with a luscious cloud beard and an afro. His clothes consisted of those tacky disco clothes, which would've sparkled if they were anything but clouds.

"Who are you? I called. The man chuckled; a sound that reverberated throughout this nothingness.

"Ah, the irony. I ask that quest every three days, and yet you arrive and ask me the very question. It's almost... refreshing."

I would be lying if I said I could understand anything he said. He kept on rambling "I suppose some call me God, but I'm much too weak for that. I'm one of the Trinity. Call me... Identity, since Code Beast is much too long a title."

"Why am I here?" I asked, confused. "Do all Crafters-"

"Now that's an interesting question." He pondered, scratching his fluffy beard. "In time, yes. But you're much too early, too weak, too inexperienced."

A bubble of anger threatened to escape me. "Just because I don't know my powers does not mean I'm inexperienced."

"New, then. Fresh. You're very clearly a Crafter, but... ah. You're the Fated."

"I'm the... what?" I repeated, confused.

Identity nodded. "History lesson."

I sighed.

"Okay, so. In the beginning of time, there was only 3 people. Me and my brothers, 303 and Eldest. We used our powers combined to create the world you know as Minecraftia."

"So you're too blame for the ridiculousness of the world?"

"...yes."

I nodded, keeping my curses silent.

"Anyways, we each created creatures to inhabit the world. Who made what, not important. I'll tell you when you're suited for that information.

"The world thrived for centuries, as we watched on from above. About 130 years ago, we had a vision. Darkness would befall us, the Trinity, and that would spell disaster for all of Minecraftia. So we created the Crafters- heroes to defend our world from the ones who made it. Each Crafter is blessed by a separate one of the Trinity."

"Who blessed me?" I asked, only to get a smile from Identity.

"You're the Fated. Your powers doesn't come from us, it comes from those around you. When Minecraftia is under attack from the Trinity, you'll be the only one capable of stopping us. But even the Fated can't fight Fate."

I winced at those words, not even knowing why.

"Fate is unforgiving, Alex. It takes and it gives, not regarding to who it gives it to, or what it's giving. Crafters can take an inch, and you can take even take more. But if you give Fate an inch, it'll take a mile. But here's a question.

"Who are you? Are you a Crafter? Are you the Fated? Or are you Alex?"

"I don't suppose you could tell me?" I asked, resigned.

"I don't know the answer," He replied. "But you will. Soon. For now..."

I rolles my shoulders. "For now... I'm Alex. A lerson trying to figure things out. For now, I'll play Fate's game, until I have reason to weigh the dice. And when that day comes..." I left that hanging.

Identity let out a small laugh. "I like your spunk, kid. Now, Alex, I believe the siege should be starting... now."

"Wait-" I started, but he waved his hand and my world went dark.

BanjoNote: Serious problem, guys. Literally, over 2k words deleted.

I'm too tired to write a good BanjoNote.

Next Chapter: The Siege of Lafor, p1! Until then, Read, Review, Favourite and Follow! And, as always, Banjo-on!