Chapter 38 : War is coming.
Hey guys, Agithos here for Chapter 37 of this story and, since I have nothing more interesting to add, enjoy this one.
Hours later, The human capital, Mickael POV
"Here we are." Blazette spoke up as we arrived in front of a seemingly giant city that, judging by its size, could have really been considered a small town, back in Germany.
We arrived there after what seemed like an eternity. We were all exhausted after all we had been through : The Nether, the void and one battle most of us didn't expect to come out alive. It was almost dusk. The sun was slowly disappearing behind the horizon, letting the moon take its place inside the sky.
"By the name of the emperor, state your name and the reason of your coming." A guard shouted at us from the high walls.
"I am Korian, captain of the expedition force sent into the Nether Skeletons kingdom a few days ago. We wish to speak with the emperor himself immediately. We found some answers about this plague. We have also many wounded and we seek shelter for the night." The zombie pigman girl replied from my horse.
Korian was feeling a little better after sleeping a few hours. She could finally feel her legs again even if she still needed help to walk more than a few meters. Shara only had some bruises on her back that would heal on their own. We managed to stop the bleeding on Blazette's forehead but it was clear she would need a lot of rest if she wanted to get back at full health quickly. As for me, I just had a light scratch on my cheek I got while trying to get away from that monster mass. You may call me a selfish bastard if you want but I was a little happy I wasn't the one that was critically wounded for once.
With that being said, the two guards looked at each other before one of them disappeared from our view.
"My partner is going to warn our superior. We will open up the gate shortly." The remaining soldier replied.
"Be quick about it." The zombie pigman girl simply responded as we began to wait.
I took a look behind me to see that Vanessa had fallen asleep on my back.
"Hey, wake up, sleepyhead." I said as I wiggled a little. I heard her groaning a little before she yawned.
"Uh ?" She looked around her "Did we arrive ?"
"Yep." I smiled as I pointed at the high walls in front of us. Her eyes opened wide and she gapped.
A second later, there was a loud rumble and the giants door slowly opened for us to enter the capital. We were welcome by a dozen knight in full iron armor standing next to the door as we passed through.
"Greetings." The one in the middle walked to us "The emperor is currently being warned about your arrival. I'll take you to the castle."
"Understood." Korian nodded.
That being said, we walked through the city. The buildings were much more impressive and looked much more luxurious than those we had seen back in Azlanta. There were also were also many citizens into the streets, moving on the sides to let us pass. Seeing some with huge bags makes me wonder if they were refugees. At the far end of the street, we could see a huge castle, standing proudly in the middle of the town.
"Is that..." Shara asked, her eyes full of stars upon seeing the giant structure.
"Yes, that's the castle where the emperor is. I advise you to be on your best behavior while talking to his majesty."
"Yeah yeah...it's not like we hadn't met him be-MFPH" Vanessa began before I quickly covered her mouth with my hand.
As we continued on our way, I noticed humans trading with merchant mobs, some of which were coming from the nether and, this time, they were actually wearing some warm clothes...not like the shivering blaze girl in underwear floating a meter above my head.
"ACHOO !"
"Bless you..." I sighed.
"Thanks." She replied as she rubbed a finger underneath her nose.
A few minutes later, we finally arrived in front of the giant cobblestone building. The gates were made of pure oak wood with dark oak wood blocks on the sides. Our escort made a gestures and a few seconds later, the gates of the castle opened, revealing the luxurious inside. We got down from our horse and let them with the escort. Once inside, we were welcomed by a beautiful woman wearing a head maid dress.
"Good evening." She bowed to us "My emperor is waiting for you. Please, come this way."
Helping Korian walk, I climbed up the stairs all the way up to the throne room. We were all tired and a good night of sleep would be very welcome. However, it had to wait, every seconds were important in this time of war. I could even see Blazette close to collapsing on the floor. She hadn't slept at all since we stepped a foot into Ashshore and the numerous injuries she received weren't helping at all. We finally arrived in front of two wooden doors.
"The emperor is inside, if you will..."
We did as we were told and entered. The same old guy we meet at the meeting was there, sitting on a throne made of golden blocks. The floor was covered by a red carpet and large paintings were hanging from the walls. The room was also very well lit du to the large windows on the sides. Next to the emperor, there was two men. At first glance, I thought they were normal guards until I noticed they had a blue chestplate as well as a blue sword. There was also some nobles inside the room which I guessed must be the advisors of the emperor.
"Don't tell me those are made of diamonds..."
We walked to the center of the room and went on one knee in front of the emperor. The two guards were watching us, react to act at the slightest threat.
"Rise, young ones." He began "My messenger told me you are the expedition force that went into the forbidden kingdom."
"Yes, emperor." Korian replied as we stood up and a smile appeared on the old man's face.
"Ah, I recognize you three. We have seen each other before : Princess Blazette, The captain Korian and Mickael Tabor, the human chosen by our god." He then joined his hand together and he frowned "Tell me, what did you find ? Queen Gelli told me about this expedition but I thought she would send more men to this cursed place."
"She did..." The zombie pigman girl responded "What you see here is not even fithteen per cent of the inital group."
"Is that so ? What happened ?" The emperor didn't manage to hide the worry into his voice.
"We were right." The captain answered "According to the ancient reports, the land was covered by the black skeletons of the people that used to live there. However, there wasn't a single one of them. Villages after villages, there was none to be seen, even in the capital. The streets and the houses were empty, leaving only the buildings in ruins. However, we did find something." Korian finished as she looked at me. I nodded and continued the report.
"Along with two of my friends and the help of Notch, we headed to the castle and we found the cause of their disappearance : A nether star."
"A nether star ?" The emperor eyes widened and the advisors began to whipser among themselves.
"Yes." I nodded "But there was also something else : A journal recording the events of their last days. Herobrine was never truly dead, he had simply sealed himself inside a nether star, waiting thousands of years until the Nether Skeleton race found his old castle and, unfortunately, the star inside. They were tricked into believing it would grant them power but it simply doomed them. Their deaths gave Herobrine enough energy to have a body once again."
"So, that's what happened..." The king sighed "But why did so many of you loose their lives ? I gathered some of the best soldiers I could find."
"To make it simple." I replied "We found a map leading to Herobrine's castle. He was there, waiting for us with two of his most powerful monsters."
"You fought him ?" The emperor asked, quite shocked "Is he as invincible as the legends says ?"
"Yes, emperor. He took swords strike and a arrow coated with a deadly poison straight into his heart and he didn't even flinch. He moves so fast one could believe he teleports." Korian replied "A mere mortal could never hope to defeat him in a singular battle. We managed to flee by entering a portal who brought us back to the overworld."
"Do we really have a chance ? He grows more powerful every single day and he seems untouchable..." The emperor closed his eyes before gritting his teeth "Whatever, my family never backed out from a fight. I'll do what I must to protect my people."
"Emperor !" Blazette called him "There is no time to spare. Herobrine appeared in Ironstead along with his castle. No doubt he is going to formalize this all out war against the mobs and the human race."
"Ironstead ? That quite close from here." The old man gritted his teeth. He then stood up and faced his advisors "Tell every soldiers to get ready to fight. I am going to send letters to every one of my kings and the mobs rulers. If there is a chance to end this war one and for all, we can't let it go away."
"Yes my emperor." They bowed to him before they quickly got to work. Then the ruler turned to us, a wam smile on his face.
"As for you, you have done a great deed to this world. Maybe your action is what will save Minecraftia from its utter destruction. My healers will take care of your wounds. You are free to roam the castle and spend the night here if you want, I will tell my maids to treat you as upper class guests."
"Thank you, emperor." We all said as we bowed our heads.
That being said, we exited the throne room. Finally, we could have a moment of peace after all the madness we went through. I just wanted to jump on a bed and sleep until noon. However, something was preventing me to do so.
"I sense worry into your heart, Mickael."
"I am approaching the end of my journey...I am going to fight a mythical being of what was supposed to be a simple sandbox game...in hardcore mode." I then chuckled "If someone would have told me that not even a year ago, I would have simply laughed or called the nearby asylum."
"I think most humans like you would have reacted the same..." He laughed with me.
"Still...I beat him and restore peace into the land...then what ? I go back home ?" I sighed and leaned against a wall.
"That will be for you to decide." He calmly replied.
"I know...At first, I just wanted to go back home and resume my normal life but now...I am not so sure anymore." I responded.
"I am sure you will find the answer in time."
"Mickael ?" I heard someone call me. I turned my head to find Korian staring at me.
"Do you need something ?" I asked her.
"I am going to the city's hospital with Blazette and some of the others members of the team to get our wounds taken care of. I just wanted to thank you for saving us earlier. If you hadn't come, I don't know what would have happened to Shara...so...thank you."
"No problem." I smiled at her before taking a look around the hallway "Is everyone already gone ?"
"Yes, I think those who weren't badly injured just went straight to sleep...either that or they are getting drunk at a nearby inn." She finished as she crossed her arms, smiling "Now that I think about it, I think I saw your little protege following Shara toward the castle's library."
"I hope they will be okay. Both of them has been exposed to something children should never see or go through." I sighed.
Meanwhile, The library, Vanessa POV
"So, that's where she went ?" I asked myself as I entered the library after seeing her go through the door.
Using my spider stealth skills, I climbed on the shelves to have a better view of the whole area. I just hoped I wouldn't fall like an idiot.
"Come on, where are you ?" I said in my head, looking around before I spotted a small figure quickly disappearing around a corner "There you are, wait for me, you little brat."
I quickly climbeddown from my the shelve I was on and quietly walked to where Shara was supposed to. I took a peek around the bookshelve and that's where I saw her, a book in hand...more precisely, MY book. A machiavellian smile appeared on my face as I continued to watch her. She opened the book at a seemingly random page and read a few lines. Then, she immediately closed the book and hugged it close her chest.
"What in the nether...?" I raised an eyebrow as I was staring at her hugging my book. She almost looked like a teenager in love. She had her back turned to me but I could almost imagine her blushing madly with heart popping out of her body like an enderman's particles.
Deciding I had seen enough, I walked to her.
"Hey." I said as I arrived behind her.
"AWAWAWAWA !" She screamed in fear as she turned before falling on her butt "V-Vanessa ? What-What are you doing here ? Did you follow me ?"
"Yeah, pretty much." I smiled proudly. Victory was mine "So...ready to admit that MY book is a great one ?"
She looked away shyly with a slight blush on her face. She got up and fixed her grey dress before handing back the book to me.
"It's...not as bad as I thought." She said in a low voice before quickly regaining her composure "I especially liked the part with prince Heartfold...However, it is far from the level of the books I usually read. Maybe the second volume will be better."
"Second...volume ?" My eyes widened in surprised "Wait...THERE IS A SECOND VOLUME ?"
"Well, yeah..." Shara replied as she put her pinkie in her ear to ease the pain of my shouting "Though, it has been released less than four months ago so it's no surprise a 'wild' mob like you never heard of it." She then continued as she turned her back on me.
"Wild mob ?" I little veins appeared on my forehead "I'll show you how wild I can b..."
"It must be somewhere around here." She said, facing the shelve "Ah there is it."
"Hey, I am speaking to y..." I began before she shoved a book in my face. Grunting, I snatched the book away from her hands and looked at the cover "The spider princess and the human slave, volume...2"
"I read the first book, might as well read the second one." Shara said, crossing her arms "They are written by the same author, I just hope he improved since that time."
"Then, why don't we take a look at it ?" I asked as I pointed to a nearby table.
"You have read into my mind." The little silverfish girl smiled as she took the first step toward the desk.
Meanwhile, The hospital, Mickael POV
"Do you feel better, miss ?" A healer asked to a familiar female Blaze laying on a bed. Her forehead bandage had been replaced and her arm with in a rudimentary splint.
"Yes, thanks a lot." Blazette responded as she tried to sit on the bed before she was immediately pushed back down.
"Please, don't overdo it. Your wounds are quite severe." The healer replied "You should rest while the potion is doing its work."
"Fine..." The former princess sighed before she turned her head to my direction "Hey, hot stuff. Came to see your favorite blaze girl ?"
"If only you weren't the only one I knew." I chuckled.
"That's harsh, hot stuff." She began to pout.
"Just kidding." I smiled "I just helped Korian get to the hospital. She is getting her legs treated." I added as I pointed at the zombie pigman captain girl sitting on the bed with two healers at her side.
I took a good look around the hospital, apart from the sounds of the quick footsteps of the men and woman trying the save the lives of the woundeds, groans of pain were all I could hear. There was a lot of blood on the floor as well as used bandages and empty bottles which surely contained healing or regeneration potions.
"If I see this giant bastard once again, I will pour my fireballs into his throat and burn its body from the inside." She glared. I could even see little flames beginning to form into the palm of her hands.
"Please, remind me to never get on your bad side." I laughed before the healer made a sign in my direction, telling me I should leave to let Blazette take a good night rest "Well, glad you are feeling better. I'll check on you later."
"Thanks, Mickael." Blazette smiled before closing her eyes.
As I left the hospital, I was greeted by a maid.
"Good evening, mister." She bowed to me "If you allow me, I shall lead you to your room for the night."
I nodded and followed her through the castle for over a few minutes until I arrived inside a luxurious room with a giant bed. A window was showing the outside where the night and darkness had already fallen on the land.
"Damn, this room is bigger than my former living room." I thought as I looked around.
"This will be your room for as long as your are staying here" The maid spoke up behind me "The king made sure your group had the best guest bedrooms of the castle."
"Then, could you send him my personal thanks next time you see him ?" I turned to the woman.
"I will be done, mister." She bowed to me "May I take my leave ?"
"Yeah, do so." I answered and the maid left, leaving me alone in this huge guest's room.
Not a second after, I finally got out of my heavy and now stinky armor and clothes. I placed my backpack near the bed and jumped head first on the mattress. I groaned in satisfaction as, for the first time in almost a week, I was laying on something soft. I burried my head in the pillow and fell asleep almost immediately.
Later, The castle, Vanessa POV
I don't know for how long I was asleep but if there is one thing I knew, it is that I was woken up by someone knocking at my door. I grumbled in annoyance, wondering who could that be at this hour, and walked to the door.
"If it's someone pulling a prank on me, I am going to infect them with the most painful poison I have." I thought as my hand touched the door's handle.
I opened the door and was surprised to see the little silverfish brat standing in the hallway, her face half hidden behind the big pillow she was holding.
"Hum...good evening Vanessa..." She asked shyly "Were you sleeping ?"
"No, I was baking a cake..." I replied sarcastically "What do you want ?"
"I...had a nightmare..." She explained "Can I...sleep with you ?"
"What are you, five ?" I crossed my arms. There was no way I was letting HER sleep in MY room "No, go back to your own bedroom."
"Please ?" I could see small tears in the corner of her eyes. Whatever the dream she went through, it must have quite shaken her up.
"Listen, if you so desperately want to sleep with someone, why don't you go to your little pigman friend ?" I asked, sighing.
"Korian is resting at the castle's hospital. I am not allowed to see her at the moment." She answered, close to crying.
I facepalmed and took a deep breath. Even if I didn't hold Shara high into my esteem. I am not a monster, I couldn't let alone her like this...
"Notch damn it..." I swore under my breath "Fine...come in." I said as I grabbed her by the arm and dragged her to bed "However, my room. My rules. Rule number one : You tresspass on my side of the bed, you're out. Rule number two : You snore, you're out. Rule number three : You speak, you're out. Is that clear ?"
She simply nodded as she looked at the ground.
"Good." I stated as we both went to bed. However, as soon as I pulled the blanket over my body, one of the rules I stated five seconds ago was broken.
"Vanessa ?" She asked with a low voice.
"What ?" I grumbled "What do you..."
I was interrupted as I felt two small hands sandwishing my right one. I turned my head around and saw Shara looking at me dead in the eyes.
"Thank you." She smiled at me and I could feel a small blush appear on my face.
"D-Don't be mistaken. That was a one time offer." I replied as I faced away from her. A second later, I closed my eyes and fell into a deep sleep.
The next morning, the throne room, Mickael POV
It was still pretty early in the morning, the sun had just got up above the horizon. We were all in the throne room, standing in front of the emperor.
"If I gathered you here, right now, it's to inform you the letters have been sent to my kings and the mob rulers. They will pass by the nether with an escort and if everything goes as planned, they should received them in a few days at most. In the meantime, you are more than welcome to stay here or, if you desire, you can leave the castle and go back to your families. We shall not forget what you did for this world." The old man said before raising his hand "That's all, you are dismissed."
Bowing our heads, we left the throne room. While one or two soldiers took on the emperor's offer, the others decided it was time to go back home. Ayumi was waiting for me and I was pretty sure Ari was still deadly worried about her sister. Down the hallway, I spotted Blazette talking to Korian. The wounds on her forehead and arm had healed during the night thanks to the potions the healers had given her. Even the zombie pigman girl seemed to feel a lot better as she didn't help to walk anymore.
"So, what are you going to do, now ?" The blaze girl asked.
"What I always did : Train the troops to transform them into fine warriors for the war to come. We don't have much time but I'll try my best." Korian replied "What about you ?"
"I think I'll go back to my castle and take a nice long lava bath. I also have to lead the hot stuff and the little cave spider to their own home." She answered before leaning into the girl's ear "I think he really misses his girlfriend."
"I can hear you, you know ?" I asked with my eyes closed and a little blush on my face.
"What makes you think I didn't, hot stuff ?" I heard her snickering.
I was about to protest when a little girl's voice shouting came into my ears.
"WHAT ?"
I turned around and saw Vanessa and the little silverfish girl who seemed to argue about something.
"You heard me...I told you that Meleth is more powerful." The cave spider girl answered.
'How can you say that ?" Shara seemed shocked "It's out of the question that the prince Heartfold would beat him without any help."
"Listen, I have been a fan of the first book for years and I can tell you, this spider boy would destroy him."
That being said, they began to frown at each other. Sighing, I rolled my eyes and decided to put an end to this argument, whatever it was about. However, before I could interviene, they began to laugh...together ?
"It's the first time I have seen them friendly with one another." I spoke to myself.
"Yeah, me too. I wonder what happened..." Korian backed me up.
"So, are we gonna go home or what ?" Vanessa spoke up as she and her new silverfish 'friend' rejoined us.
"Yeah yeah." I chuckled before facing the captain girl "Well, it's time to say goodbye for now."
"Yes, it has been a honor to fight by your side in this mission." She said before saluting me "We will see each other on the battlefield."
That being said, I saluted her back while Shara and Vanessa said goodbye to each other. We thanked the maids for their work and exited the castle. A nether portal had been built next to the entrance gate for those who wished to pass by this hellish dimension to get back to their home faster. That's what we decided to do.
"Whyyyyy..." I whined in my head knowing I would have to face the heat of the nether once again. I could see next to me that Vanessa wasn't also very eager to get back into literal hell.
Despite my inner protests, I followed the blaze girl into the portal and we found ourselves into a human outpost. It seemed quite small but there was more than enough men to defend it if it was under attack by a horde of those monsters. Instead of being made of wood, the huts were made of cobblestones, preventing them from burning du to the intense heat and resist the fireballs of the flying blazes and ghasts.
"So...now, we have to find out where we ended up..." Blazette spoke up as she looked around before walking toward a nearby guard with a seductive approach "Hey there, little cutie, could you tell us where we are ?"
"H-Huuuuh..." The guard seemed stunned for a second before he shook his head and regained his composure "You are in Camp Torchbearer, at the frontier between the blaze and the Magma cube's kingdoms. You must have come from the capital, right ?"
"Yeah, we want to get home." I replied as the seductive blaze girl took a step back.
"Well, good luck on your travel." The guard responded.
"Thanks...we will need it." I replied, jaded by the fact we would have to spend two more days into the nether to finally get back home.
We left the camp and we headed toward our destination.
The next two days were tiring. Sure, we had supplies of food and water that were handed to us the morning we left but nothing to face the heat. I was so fed up with this that I finally decided to remove my armor as the sweatness inside and the awful smell that was coming with it was too much to take. The monsters were few but not inexistant. Most of the time, we managed to hide or simply outrun them. At one point, we even found the remains of our previous passing like the cobblestone bridges to cross the small crevasses. Eventually, we finally saw the end of our jouney : Blazette's castle.
"Finally." I spoke up, happy this nightmare was going to be over any minutes now.
"Well, this is where we part way, hot stuff." Blazette spoke up as one of her zombie pigman guard came to us.
"Princess Blazette, we are glad you are safe and sound, and you too captain." He spoke up, bowing his head.
"At ease, soldier." The blaze girl replied "Did anything happen while we were gone ?"
"Some monsters tried to enter the castle but they were quickly taken care of. We dispatched their corpse into the nearby ocean." The guard answered.
"Good work." Blazette smiled "Well, hot stuff, you know the way. I am gonna take a nice long bath. I think I deserved it."
"Of course." I chuckled before waving at her "See ya, Blazette."
A quick passage through the portal and we found ourselves on the grass blocks of the overworld once again, next to the house I built with my own hands : home. The sun was still high into the sky.
"YOU'RE BACK !" A really cheerful Cupa jumped right in front of us with a happy smile on her face "I am so happy you are alright, especially you Vanessa." She spoke up as she pulled me and the little cave spider girl next to me into a tight hug.
"I am fine. Can you let me go now ?" Vanessa grumbled.
"Nice to see you too, Cupa." I stroked her hair and the creeper girl released us from her grip.
"Hey there, you two." Hayden waved at us. He was shirtless and had sweat drops dripping of his forehead meaning we must have arrived in the middle of his training "How did your trip go ?"
"Horrible..." The cave spider girl answered without looking at him.
"I'll explain once we get inside." I added as Hayden had a puzzled expression on his face. "Are the others here ?"
"I think they are making lunch right now."
As the hazel-eyed man finished his sentence, his creeper girlfriend took off at full speed toward our house. She shouted so loudly we could hear her from where we were standing. A few second later, Ayumi, Ari, Andr and Yaebi exited the house. As soon as she saw me, my skeleton lover ran straight into my arms, pulling me into a warm embrace.
"Notch damn it. What took you so long ?" Ayumi asked after placing her lips on mine
"A lot of thing happened. Let's get ins..."
*SLAP*
My head slowly turned around to the direction of the sudden sound to see Vanessa, her right cheek red from being hit by something. Her older sister was in front of her, a hand slightly shaking and her breathing, heavy.
"I am not sorry for this one...you...you stubborn brat." The spider girl spoke up. However, before Vanessa could reply, she was pulled into a tight hug by Ari who burst into tears "Don't you...ever do this to me again...you hear ? You are all I have left from mom and dad...I don't want to loose you."
"I...I am sorry." Vanessa replied, staring at the ground.
"Don't worry..." Ari stepped back and looked at her sister "I am glad you came back in one piece." She then turned to me "Thank you for taking care of her, Mickael."
"No problem." I smiled before adding "To her credit, I don't think we would have discovered the truth if she hadn't come with us."
"What do you mean ?" Yaebi asked with one of his eyebrow raised.
"I'll tell you more about it once we are around the table. I am starving." I replied.
"Hey sis..." Vanessa spoke up "Now that I proven my point. Can I go with Mike more often ?"
"NO !" I heard her big sister shout from behind me.
Meanwhile, A village at the outskirt of the spider kingdom, No one POV
Once a proud village, now it was only a ruin full of fire, blood and death. The monsters had left their mark there forever. Through the flames and the smoke of the burnt wood, two beings were still standing.
"Notch damn it." A tall black figure with four massive hands spoke up with a female voice "That's the fifth time you let survivors escape. How our master is supposed to create his army if you let the ressources go every time."
"I am sorry..." A bulky snowman with a lit pumpkin for head replied with a low voice "I am not as powerful as you. I can't handle so many people at once and the fire is bad for my snow."
"You are useless, I wonder why master stuck me with you." The mutant enderman groaned "Next time, I should ask to attack on my own."
"Hey, I am not useless." The mutant snow golem argued with angry voice "Take that back."
"Oh, really ? Apart from throwing little ice blocks...What can you actually do ?" The black creature glared. Receiving no answer from his companion, it rolled its eyes and walked away from the scene "Yeah, I figured as much. Let's go...we spent too much time here already."
Thus, the two mutants left the former small town, leaving the smaller monsters do the dirty work of taking the bodies away.
TO BE CONTINUED...The war is growing near. However the alliance is ready to try and fight for their lives and the safety of this world but will it be enough. As always PM or review to tell me what you think of the story : good or bad. And if you have any suggestion for the story, feel free to contact me. See you guys next time (^_^)/
