Chapter 13: Chess Pieces

3 weeks.

I took one last glance at the calender, still a bit surprised it had already been three weeks, before turning to our little game of chess. I was playing it with Hailey, and the wolfgirl was currently winning.

I sighed as she took my last tower, leaving my king right open. I tried a last ditch move, but that failed, and she won.

"Checkmate." The white-haired girl declares as she finishes the game. I nodded, my head swimming elsewhere. It was the weekend, but today it had only been rain, rain and even more rain. Pools of mud were starting to form in the backyard, the only positive being that the spot where there had been lots of blood and charred grass was being washed away.

I shivered as I remembered that day. It had been a hectic day, with ups and downs. The image of the man staring at me with disbelieve, his ear chopped off, flashed in my head, but I shook it off as I stood up to grab a snack.

Erin jumped from the couch as Andrea appeared from the bathroom, her skin still a bit pale. She had been throwing up not so long ago, something that had been going on for a few days now. I was growing worried, another thing on my head.

"You feeling any better?" The Dragongirl asked, really worried for her best friend. Andrea nodded, though slow. I knew that she had left the bathroom door open just in case, seeing how pale she still was.

"I'm sure it's just some morning sickness. It'll go away with the day." Darren tried to reassure us, and it helped, for a bit. We all nodded, and I decided that I had enough worries for today and went to my computer, hoping that someone was on the server.

With the Enderman activity near our base stopping, we decided that it was safe again to play, but we always kept some water and a few enderpearls ready just in case.

As I logged in, I was practically blown away by an explosion. I looked ahead, finding the source.

Creepers, and not just a few.

I quickly backed away, my health already at half. A blast of creepers, what a day! I pulled out my sword and used my own strategy of dealing with these mobs.

The hit and run strategy.

I slashed in a few and dashed back assuring that they don't explode. Luckily the base was big enough to manoeuvre around in. I noticed Sky and Rayleigh dealing with them their own way, the first just slashing in them and one-hit killing a few. I sprinted forwards and hit some more, killing a few in the process.

We worked our way through them until only a few were left. As we finished the fight, a hiss sounded through the air into my headphone. I froze on the spot, a part of me saying to turn around. As I did, my eyes almost bulged out of my head!

A creeper, red in color and obviously charged, was walking down the side of the base, it's eyes darting from me to Sky and Rayleigh. I'd never seen a creeper like that before.

"A failed experiment, I can only guess." Rayleigh explained, understanding well that we needed a few answers. "I don't know for sure, but it can be that this one normally already does a lot of damage, but charged is even more dangerous."

"You mean that it could blow away our entire base?" Sky asked. Rayleigh nodded, both in game and possibly I.R.L., because I heard Sky groan in annoyance.

"Think we should kill it?" I asked, sword in the ready. It seemed to ignore us, even after the massacre a few minutes ago. I didn't want to hurt a mob that wouldn't attack us.

"I'm not sure..." Rayleigh trailed of as he slowly approached. I knew it seemed crazy, and my guts told me to run, but I stood my ground. He got closer and closer, catching the mobs' full attention now.

And the next moment it started running faster then a normal creeper! If the kid hadn't payed well attention then he might have not been able to avoid the creeper charging at him.

"Okay, definitely hostile!" Sky yelled as she avoided being hit too. I took my sword and ran forwards, using the confusion to get a good hit. I hit down and the creeper staggered back a bit, head spinning (seriously!).

"That's just creepy. Ha, get it?" she retorted, but we could only sigh. Rayleigh aimed a few good arrows and got good hits, but the mob didn't die!

"Lots of health." I murmured as I avoided being hit by it's sprint attack before swinging around and hitting it in the back.

The creeper stopped in the middle of the base, head now focused on me. I wasn't sure what to do, until I saw it's focus and the shaking.

"It's gonna blow!"

Right at the moment we all took shelter (Rayleigh had apparently used his last arrow), a different kind of arrow -a flaming one, I guessed- came crashing down on the creeper, killing it on the spot. The drops were a bit puzzling: gunpowder and blaze powder?

"Who killed it?" Sky asked as we came out from our hiding spot. I looked up to where the arrow came from and could just make out a female player-like shape in the sunlight. It was quickly gone, though. I tried to catch up, but noticed the shadow vanishing on horseback. 'Damn!'

"Well, that was an adventure."

"So, we can assume that it was either a hacker or another hybrid?" Sky asked from her Skype page. Everyone else nodded.

"A hacker is impossible; I've put my own personal hardware, software and anti-virus on the server." Tyler explained, getting a valid point. I and Sky nodded, knowing well not to underestimate his smartness.

"Then it's a hybrid." Rayleigh concluded as he kept on fidgeting with a pen in his hand. His eyes seemed to be focused elsewhere, and his mind was absent.

"What are you keeping from us, Rayleigh?"

Everyone turned to the boy, Sky hitting her brother on the shoulder. He noticed what was going on and his sister whispered to him what I had asked. A small blush covered his face as he tried to come up with an excuse.

"Just tell us, please?" Erin asked from next to me, her eyes like those of a puppy. At first I wondered what she was doing, but Rayleigh's reaction and the sigh meant that she was convincing him on her own way.

"Fine. I-it reminds me a lot of the way I met my first hybrid."

"That creeper girl, right?" Sky stated, getting a nod from her brother. He sighed as he put the pen down.

"I met her during a similar event. A blast of creepers had gathered at my house, but I fended them off. At a certain point I noticed her in a small hole, trying to get out. I don't know why, but the fact she didn't explode when we crossed eyes convinced me that she wasn't going to hurt me. I helped her out and we talked, and soon enough we became friends."

"Friends with a creeper?" Tyler questioned, earning him a glare from the young boy.

"Yes! And we were good friends, until the day another one of those blasts came along. It was like, like she wasn't herself! I-I didn't have a choice." He finished, his head hanging down. Erin and Andrea nodded to each other before the first turned to talk to Rayleigh.

"Creepers can't really control it. These blast gatherings always happen at random and anywhere, and when they do a creeper can't control the urge to explode themselves near players. Heck, even other hybrid's aren't safe from them! The point is, she couldn't help it. She must have tried to fight it, but failed. It's already a miracle that she was able to suppress the urge to explode when near you!" Erin explained, hand waving through the air at the end. Rayleigh's eyes were dots as he realized what that meant. He blinked before he looked away, me just barely noticing a small tear on his cheek.

"She couldn't control herself. You had no choice really, unless you took the fact that a simple respawn was possible."

"It was a hardcore world." Rayleigh interjected, silencing me. Everyone else seemed finished with whatever they were hoping to say, too.

"So, other hybrids?" Sky asked, changing the subject. I swear I saw a sigh of relief from Rayleigh as he turned to follow the conversation.

"Most likely." I said as I took a paper from the table. I had asked Andrea as much as possible about them, and one aspect caught my attention.

"Are you sure that it could be a settlement?" I asked to her. She nodded as she took a seat next to me, just able to fit on the Skype-screen.

"They do sometimes stop somewhere to settle down. It's rare to see settlements with different hybrids, but they do exist." She explained, everyone else listening with attention.

"We should check the surroundings of the base, maybe head in the direction the shadow vanished." Tyler started the plan, getting a few ideas.

"I think that we should take realism in check. Maybe close to a river?" Sky pointed out, and Andrea nodded, following that logic. I took a moment to stand up, head to the kitchen and grab a glass and pour some water for me to drink. As I did this, my brother joined my side.

"They're taking it surprisingly well." He said as he leaned on the kitchen counter. I nodded as I finished my drink.

"Yeah. Maybe even better then me, sometimes."

"They're good friends. I really like 'em."

"I'm not sure, but I think that Tyler and Sky are in love with each other." I whispered after putting my glass away. Darren seemed a bit surprised until something seemed to click in his mind.

"Well, opposites do sometimes attract."

We snickered a bit at that logic before I turned to look at Andrea, Erin and Hailey.

"You think that they miss home?" I asked, unable to stop my mouth from ranting. Darren's eyes widened for a moment before he seemed to think.

"Well, Hailey hates her world so she definitely doesn't. You told me how things are in The End for Andrea and Erin. I don't think they'll ever want to go back."

"I kinda figured that, but can they really live here, with us? I mean, one day their origins will come to the light. How will people treat them? Will the government want to take them away for some kind of crazy experiments? I-I just don't know." I voiced my concern. My brother seemed to agree until a smirk played on his face.

"I bet you and Andrea will figure something out. Heck, she can teleport you two!"

We laughed a little until I noticed that Sky and Tyler were in an argument again. I sighed before walking over, turning my mind to 'strategy-mode'.

I was riding on horseback through the plains of Minecraft, a river to my left. I stopped to take a small brake and allow my horse to wander a little bit as I took a bite from my rations.

We had agreed on a plan, and seeing my expertise with horses I was send after the shadow. I.R.L. Andrea was following my progress from the sideline, Erin playing some chess with Darren, my brother on the winning hand.

I continued and kept going until I reached a forest. Going through these things on a horse was though, but somehow I managed to pass through with some difficulty.

But once I reached to other side, I quickly jumped off and hid behind a tree. Andrea noticed the sudden tension and she sat down next to me, unable to see what I had seen.

"A settlement." I whispered to her. She nodded, understanding now. I slowly looked back from behind the tree, noticing the crude buildings set up.

It was really rough-build and simple. The houses were small and the center had a few chest and workbenches scattered around. I saw the farm fields at the river and thanked Sky's reasoning. The sun was setting in the distance, telling me what I needed to know. Dark was coming, and then this place would get active.

I grabbed my horse and picked an open spot in the forest to set up camp. I refrained from chopping trees and simply set up a tent with bed, workbench and furnace, the latter cooking some food.

Night came and I prepared myself to sleep when I heard the noise of a tree breaking. I tried to find the source, but the darkness was really covering thick tonight.

I kept on staring in the distance, being the stupid guy I sometimes am. Suddenly, my screen seemed to stagger and I looked back, finding myself face to face with an iron sword.

"Great." I muttered under my breath but I remained calm, waiting for the attack. Instead, the one holding the blade stepped back a bit, allowing me to judge him. I was right to say him, because he looked like a pale boy with gray-brown hair and similar colored clothes. He had a bow and a quiver with arrows on the back.

'Skeleton hybrid, male.' My mind concluded, and I sighed a little.

"What are you doing here, player?" The hybrid asked, keeping his blade steady with surprising easy despite his size-difference. He was surely smaller then a player, his face more looking up at me.

"I'm not here to fight you, if that's what you want to know. I'm here because I'm looking for a female hybrid with a bow." I explained, trying to sound as composed as possible. I knew that the only thing he could do was make me respawn, but it was still an annoying thing to go through. Andrea kept herself quiet, assuring that I'm the only one the boy hears.

"You looking for my sis? She's the only other hybrid with a bow around here." He said, his expression (still amazes me, the detail in a pixel game) showing that he was curious now.

"Does she know how to ride a horse?" I asked, catching the boy off-guard. That answered my question as I nodded my player's head.

"So, what do you want of her?" The boy asked as he recomposed himself. His sword was hanging slight down now, his focus more on our talk.

"Did she tell you that she saved us from a red charged creeper at our base?"

"You are from that base?!"

I nodded, and that seemed enough for the boy. He lowered his sword and put it away before gesturing me to follow him.

We walked in silence, even as we left the forest and headed straight for the settlement. A few hybrids, which I think are Iron Golem hybrids, were standing guard. The boy talked with them, and one gave me a glance before they smiled a bit and they allowed us in.

There weren't many hybrids around, well, at least not that many. I saw a large variety, but there were still groups of a certain kind. They looked different in skin and size too, something I guessed is still normal for them.

We reached a house, if you could call it that, and the boy walked in through the spruce door. He stopped me from walking in, though, but I understood why.

'First announcing the guest.'

I heard some muffled voices and then one got louder until it settled down again. After a few moments the door opened, revealing the boy, a taller and female hybrid behind him. She was staring at me with a glare, I think, but I didn't let it faze me.

"Come in." The boy said as he walked to the side, allowing me in. The woman still kept her eyes on me, her pupils following my every move.

I stopped in the middle, noticing how bad things were inside. The bed, different in appearance and surely comfort, looking more worn down and old then anything else. And they only had one? I noticed something like a carpet, and concluded that as bed two. There was a furnace, but it wasn't lit, the room lit up by a single torch on the left wall. It was small and little decorated, spare a single painting.

"Wow. Pretty, uh, cozy in here." I said trying to sound kind. The woman rolled her eyes and the boy snickered a little before he walked to me and held his hand out.

"Weapons, please. Sis always says to put them away somewhere when inside the house."

I understood the reasoning behind that and complied, even when Andrea pushed my shoulder and shook her head. I handed my diamond sword and the bow with the arrows. They both stared at the sword with awe before the boy put them away inside a chest.

"So, what do you want?" The woman spoke up for the first time. I gulped a bit, her voice sounding very commanding and stern.

"I saw you when you saved us from that red charged creeper." I explained, and her eyes seemed to widen before she realized what I meant. She giggled a bit before recomposing herself.

"I saved you because I had been hunting that thing for days. The saving part was an accident." She said, but I didn't really believe her tone.

"Yeah, I don't buy lies like that."

"Damn. You're a good player, you know that. Be lucky that the rumors about your run-in with the Endermen has reached so far. They're not happy, even though we don't know why." She said, allowing her guard to loosen up a bit. I nodded and turned to look around a bit before continuing. The place seemed terrible to live in.

"We saved two hybrids."

"Which kind?"

"An Endergirl and a Dragongirl."

Silence. I looked at the two and they seemed shocked before the woman shivered a bit and spoke up.

"Y-you saved the daughter of the Enderdragon? For real?!"

"Yep."

"Where are they now?" The boy asked, his eyes betraying the worry he had. I was surprised for a sec, but realized that he was still young and probably more worried then anyone else. I looked at the two and then the door before concluding something.

We needed more privacy.

I grabbed a few blocks and blocked the door before checking for any windows. Noticing none I turned to the two, the woman now in a fighting stance. I sighed.

"No one should know this. And first I want to know your names. My name is Archer."

"Owen." The boy introduced himself.

"Amber." The older girl said as she allowed herself to stand normal again. I breathed in and out before answering.

"They're in the real world."

They looked at me with a sign of disbelieve, but as they kept thinking, their expressions went from shocked to completely surprised.

"THEY'RE WHERE?!" Amber yelled, causing my ears to ring. Even Owen had covered his.

"Cheez, sis, turn it down a bit. That's why he blocked the door."

The hybrid girl seemed to understand that and she tried to calm down. I was glad to see that Owen was showing more of that young boy's attitude. He was more interested then questioning.

"So, they are in the real world?"

"Yes. They're living with me right now. The others from the base know about them, too.

"How?" Owen asked, getting a small punch from his sister at the bad question.

"I can't tell you. I'm not sure it's wise to tell you how to get back in the real world."

"what do you mean, 'Get back'?" Amber asked, but I could hear that she was just acting.

"I know that you're created in the real world and send into Minecraft because you're so called 'failures'."

That caught them off-guard even more, even Owen walking back a bit. As they shared a look, I knew that they were debating about something.

"T-they called us failures because we're brother and sister. Family relations are forbidden. Even among hybrids it's rare." Amber explained as she started pacing the room. Her younger brother looked at her with worry. I knew I had hit a sensitive string.

"Sorry, that wasn't what I wanted to hear. I'm just here to thank you, and now I look at this, I know something else to do."

They eyes me curiously, but I ignored them as I started opening Skype. I asked Andrea to get the others attention before I turned back to the game.

"Okay, I'm going to talk with the others in real life now, so don't expect my player to move and ignore the voices you might hear." I explained as I moved to a corner of the room. I paused my player, knowing well the server will continue running. I saw them eyeing my player curiously, but was glad to see they listened and went to talk with each other.

In the mean time, everyone had gathered, and Skype was showing the rest.

"I found the settlement and the hybrid."

All sighed in relieve, but then Sky got worried.

"Are they, like, nice and stuff?" She asked, trying to avoid hurting the girls their feelings. I nodded, earning another sigh from her.

"What's it like?" Tyler asked, his mind probably going in overdrive. I sighed before explaining everything that had transpired.

"Wow, they really have to life in those conditions?" Sky asked, her face showing her worry. I nodded, getting everyone's mood down.

"But, what did you want to talk about?" Tyler asked as he shifted a bit in his chair. I tried to find the right words, but decided on the straight going tactic.

"I want to have them move to our base."

"WHAT?!" Everyone shouted at me, even Erin and Hailey. Darren and Andrea were less surprised, and Rayleigh was the first to recover.

"Y-you want them to move to our base?"

"I want them to settle down at our base. We can build better homes for them, assure that there is enough food for them. We can even help protect them. Guys, they are just as much human as we are. Sure, some will be a bit though to handle, but we went through The End for Erin! Can't we help them out as well?"

That seemed to win them over, everyone agreeing. We decided on a few things: Rules, accommodation and some questions; and everyone went ahead to go back to base.

I closed Skype and returned to the game, finding the two hybrids staring at me. I refrained a laugh and waited before...

"Boo!"

The two jumped back at my shout, Owen quickly hiding behind his sister. Amber was trembling a bit, but I could only laugh.

"Shut up!" Amber shouted before hitting my player, wincing at the toughness of my armor. That earned her a laugh from her brother.

"Okay, okay. Enough jokes, serious now." I recomposed myself and soon we were all serious again.

"We talked, and I would like to offer you something."

"What?" They asked in unison. I took a pause, allowing the tension to rise before answering.

"We are willing to let you life with us at our base."

I checked their reactions, but they came out dull. For a moment I was worried that a glitch had caught them or there was an error in the system, but slowly their expressions turned to shock, surprise and happiness.

"Seriously? For, for real?!"

"Yes, for real. You can even tell the whole settlement the news." I said as I removed the blocks covering the door. They shared a quick glance before they darted outside, me trying to follow.

'This is going to be interesting.'

Author's note:

I know it's been a long while since I updated this story, but I had been a bit patient when news came out about the 1.13 update. I'm thinking about using it, but that's still open for debate.

Anyways, rememeber to fav, review and follow, and I'll see you soon!