Well, I hope you're excited, because I'm making a rather long chapter again. Its alright. I don't need sleep.
Well, not that much.
Actually I do, but overnights the only time I have free time to type this, so I hope you can understand.
Anyway, I'm done talking, its not what you're here for.
Enjoy.
The next day rolled around, as the sun started to shine, but there was still a nip of cold in the air.
We can see Joe stepping out of his home, and enjoying the morning sun. He then shivered a bit, because it was still slightly cold.
"Alright, everyone should be better now, maybe I can go back mining. maybe I can find some more diamonds, because I only have one left...and I'm not using it on a jukebox." He said to himself, stretching his arms.
He then popped his neck, as he walked back into his home. He stepped over to his chest, and took out some paper, ink, and a feather. Leaving a note would make the girls worry less, was what he thought.
Went out mining, will be back by sundown.
-Joe
He grabbed his gear from his chest, and made sure to bring extra bandages just in case. The last time he went mining, he almost lost his life, so he took extra precautions.
"Two Iron pickaxes, check. Two Iron swords, check. Iron axe, check. Bow and plenty of arrows...check." He said, looking over his equipment, making a mental checklist. "Plenty on food and water to keep me fed and watered, check."
He put on his jacket, but left his scarf off, but kept his gloves. He thought he should bring them, to protect his hands while mining or climbing.
He packed all his food and such in his bag, sheathed his sword on a makeshift sword sheath he strapped on his back, and kept his pickaxe on a leather belt loop.
"Heh. I kinda feel like someone from Skyrim. Huh. Speaking on that, I wonder if the console version has SkyCraft yet...Man, I need to stop talking to myself." He said to himself, as he fitted everything on him.
He then looked back into his chest, and noticed a block of TNT he made. He pulled it out, and pondered it.
"Just in case." He said, placing it in his bag.
He stepped over to his front door, as he looked over towards the girls, all sleeping in their beds.
"Maybe if I find some emeralds, or Lapis, I can make some gifts. I think they'd like that." He said to himself. "There I go, talking to myself…" He repeated, stepping out the door.
He looked out into the horizon, watching the sun rise, breathing in the fresh air.
"Never gets old." He said to himself. He always liked vanilla Minecraft, untouched by Forge or Mods, because he always thought they would stain the experience.
He walked along a path he made with torches towards the cave, passing them one by one.
Along his way, he took in the sights he sees everyday, but he felt they don't get old. Going into another world was always a daydream he has at least everyday when he was in the real world.
He walked for a few moments, until he reached the mouth of the cave, which he made some slight decorations to.
And by slight decorations.….Huge, obvious decorations were better fitting words.
He made stairs, torches, and flames to decorate. He didn't know why, but when he was decorating, he had the image of the Gates of Hell in mind.
And to him, it looked on the dot.
He stopped in front of the doors he made, as he rose his hands.
"Aperta, Inferorum Portae!" He yelled.
A small moment of silence passed, as he snickered to himself.
"I read too much Alighieri." He said to himself, as he opened the doors, and walked through.
The plunged deeper in the cave, following another path of torches, illuminating the way.
"Maybe theres some iron I missed, or maybe more diamonds...I'm kinda asking for a lot at this moment, I don't want to find another cave…" he said, looking at nothing but stone. He sighed. "One can hope…".
He eventually stumbled upon some iron veins, and was able to mine plenty of iron.
Continuing along the cave, he found Lapis, more redstone, and a plethora of coal.
"Well, Lapis for the girls, check." He said, placing the stones in his bag.
In that moment, he heard a very recognizable groan, and clinks.
"Dammit, not again…" He groaned to himself, pulling out his sword.
After a few moments, he saw the zombies and skeletons walk through a hole in the cave, as he readied himself for combat.
The first zombie lunged at him, but he was able to dispatch it quickly, with one quick slash across the chest, almost halving the zombie.
He noticed a skeleton readying its bow, as he pulled the next zombie, using it as a shield from the arrow. After stabbing the zombie, and throwing it down a nearby hole, he was able to pull out his own bow, but another skeleton had it's bow ready, as he jumped out of the way, landing behind a block of stone.
"Alright….three….two…" He said to himself, as he rose over the edge of the block, and shot the arrow, piercing a skeleton in the head, killing it instantly.
He put away his bow, as he pulled out his sword, and axe, one in each hand. He charged at the remaining skeleton and two zombies. He jumped forward, plunging his sword in the head of a zombie, and chopping off the head of the last skeleton with his axe.
All that remained was the one last zombie, limping towards him.
"Wonder if I could do Mifuyu's move…" He said, crossing his arms with his weapons in his hands behind his head, like some kind of video game character.
He looked over at the zombie, as he stepped forward towards it. He then swung both arms at once, slashing the zombie with both weapons in an X-shaped fashion.
The zombie stood still, as its arm fell off, along with its head. The body of the zombie then collapsed, as Joe slashed the air with his weapons, clearing the zombies' blood off.
He sheathed both his weapons, as he looked over the bodies of the monsters.
"Damn, I'm good." He said to himself, thinking his practice definitely paid off.
He cracked his knuckles, as he walked forward.
He walked on, until he reached the remains of Lily and Nia's former home, sighing at the ruins.
"At least their happy now." He said, thinking of the girls back home.
He walked past the destroyed entrance, when he noticed something inside the ruins.
He looked over, and found a person, who seemed to be crouching over, in what seemed angst.
He stepped towards the person, and noticed it was a girl.
"Hey, Excuse me?" He said to the girl.
The girl turned around, showing her face to Joe.
Joe then froze. He noticed the girl had grey eyes, and two pigtails trailing off her dark silver hair.
What got to him, was the hat she was wearing. It seemed similar to Andr's hat, but this was grey, and had the eyes and mouth of a skeleton.
He also couldn't help but notice that her clothes were….rather revealing.
She wore a pair of grey stockings, and shorts that were just way too short. They almost looked like underwear. He could see she had gloves that reached past her also had on what looked like the top of a short sleeved vest, but it was mostly unzipped, as the flaps covered her rather...large breasts.
He could fully see her naple, and the underneath of her breasts. It just seemed so close to fully exposing them.
He went a bit pink, as he looked away.
"D-Did you need any help?" He asked.
The girl looked over at him, then looked down.
"You…" The girl muttered.
"Excuse me?" Joe asked, tilting his head in confusion.
The skeleton girl then pulled out a bow out of seemingly nowhere, and aimed an arrow at Joe.
"You did this! You destroyed their house!" She cried, aiming at Joe.
"Huh?" Joe said, slightly shocked at this reaction.
In that moment, the girl shot the bow, and from some luck, Joe was able to duck out of the way.
"Woah, Jesus!" He said, only to have more arrows fly towards him.
He sprinted in the other way, taking cover behind one of the destroyed walls.
"H-Hey! Cut that out! Thats dangerous!" Joe yelled behind cover.
"You probably killed them too! You damned human!" The girl yelled, shooting more arrows in Joe's direction.
Joe was slightly shocked at the girl's statement.
"I don't know what you're talking about!" Joe yelled back, peeking over the corner.
The girl seemed to be offended, as she strung another arrow. "You know who I'm talking about! The two spiders!" the girl yelled.
It then hit Joe.
"W-Wait...Do you mean Lily and Nia?" Joe asked, peeking over the corner.
The girl then grew confused. "H-How do you know their names!? Did you ask them before killing them!?"
"K-Kill? N-No, I-" Joe said, but was interrupted but an incoming arrow. "Shit that was too close…" He said to himself.
"Come out, human!" the girl yelled.
Joe then rose his head out of cover, looking at the girl. "Look, if you'll just give me five seconds to explain, I'll-SHIT!" Joe yelled, as another arrow barely missed his face.
"What do you have to explain!?" the girl said, readying another arrow.
"T-They're not dead! They're alive! A-And safe!" Joe yelled out.
The girl's face widened, as she loosened her bow.
"What are you talking about?" The girl asked, keeping an arrow strung.
"Their home was destroyed by an explosion by a Creeper! Not me! I would never do that!" Joe answered, hiding behind cover.
"Liar!" The girl screamed, re-stringing her bow.
"I-I'm not lying! They're at my home, right now, as we speak!" Joe said back.
The girl seemed to relax a tad, but still had her suspicions.
"Did you kidnap them!?" The girl cried out, unsure.
"What!? No! I offered them! I-I'm the reason they're alive!" Joe replied back.
The girl seemed to relax a tad more. "You? A human?"
"I-It may seem a bit suspicious, but I mean no harm! I promise!"
The girl still had her suspicions, as she yelled out.
"Prove it!"
Joe sighed. He removed his weapons and tools, and took off his backpack, leaving only him unarmed. He then rose his hands out, showing he had nothing in his hands.
"See? I wont hurt you! Or the girls!" He yelled out.
A small moment of silence passed, as the girl spoke.
"Move from your cover."
"Shit…" Joe whispered to himself, as he stepped out of cover, his hands still out.
"You say they're safe?" The girl asked.
"O-Of course, they're friends of mine…" Joe replied. "I-I'll take you to them if you'd like…"
Another moment passed, as the girl lowered her bow.
"Alright. I'll take your word." She said.
Joe sighed in relief, as he lowered his hands.
"But. I don't fully trust you. Not until I see them." She demanded.
Joe nodded. "Sounds fair." He said, as he picked up his gear, and walked towards the girl.
Much to his surprise, he still stood taller than the girl, but she was off by a few inches.
"Now. Bring me to them." The girl demanded, only to have Joe nod in return.
In that moment, a sound of something whizzing through the air shot out, as a what looked like an arrow stuck in a wall of stone close to the two.
This surprised both, as they looked over to the arrow, and where it came from.
They saw a group of skeletons and zombies together, outside the outer part of the ruins.
"F-Friends of yours?" Joe asked, frozen.
The girl looked at the skeletons in concern, as he watched them all string arrows.
"Get down!" The girl yelled, as she tackled Joe to the ground, as a stream of arrows barely missed them. They landed behind a few blocks of stone to cover themselves from the arrows.
They laid on the ground, with the girl on top of Joe, practically straddling him, her breasts in his face.
"Why are they firing on us?" The girl asked, looking past the cover at the group of monsters.
Meanwhile, Joe was as red as a beet, as the girl's breasts where being stuffed on his face, practically suffocating him.
"C-Can't….Breathe…." Joe managed to say, struggling to breathe between her breasts.
The girl realized his face as in her breasts, as she turned red, and sat up, covering herself. "Y-You keep your face out of these!"
"You landed on me!" Joe yelled back in defense. "Look out!" Joe yelled, as he turned himself and the girl, an arrow barely missing her.
Now they were in an even more risque position, with Joe on top of the girl, in a missionary position.
"N-Now what are you doing!? The girl screamed, her face red all over.
"Making sure you didn't get shot! Calm down!" Joe said, as he tried reaching for his own bow.
He didn't realize that his hand was touching the girls inner thighs, causing her to moan a bit.
"D-Don't touch there!" She yelled in Joe's face.
"I'm sorry! I'm trying to get my bow!" Joe yelled, moving his hand more, only to have it rub the girl's thighs even harder.
"J-Just get off!" The girl yelled, pushing Joe off, allowing her freedom.
They both pulled out their bows, and each strung arrows.
"Why are they shooting at us? Aren't you one of them?" Joe asked.
"I-I don't know! Maybe they think I'm working with you!" The girl replied.
"You are! Maybe they think you're against them now…" Joe thought, gripping his bow.
"Well, If we just stay here, we're as good as dead. Ready on three!" The girl yelled, gripping her bow.
Joe nodded, as he looked over the cover.
"One...Two….Three!" The girl counted, as her and Joe rose out of cover and shot their bows, both arrows hitting their mark on skeletons' heads.
They kept firing, pulling out arrows, and firing them, while dodging incoming arrows themselves.
They crouched below cover, readying themselves.
"Not a bad shot." The girl complimented.
"Not a green collar yourself." Joe replied, as he shot his bow into the head of another skeleton.
"Theres not that much left, just keep firing!" The girl yelled, shooting her bow.
What seemed like eternity passed, as they seemed to be getting nowhere. they kill one, another takes their place.
"There's too many!" The girl yelled ducking behind cover.
"And we're getting low on arrows!" Joe yelled back, looking at his quiver.
"What are we going to do!? We can't do anything!" The girl cried in despair.
Joe looked around, and noticed his bag. He grabbed it, as he rummaged through it.
Then the idea hit him.
"I got it!" Joe yelled.
The girl looked at him. "What are you talking about!?"
In that moment, Joe pulled out the small block of TNT out of his bag.
"I've got an idea." Joe said, as he grabbed an arrow with his other hand.
"What are you doing!?" The girl cried in Joe's face.
Joe then stuck the arrow in the TNT, piercing it.
"Ever heard of a Bomb Arrow?" Joe asked, making a joking smile.
"Are you crazy!?" The girl yelled, appalled at Joe.
Joe strung the bomb arrow on his bow, as he pulled out his flint and steel.
"Better than nothing!" He yelled, as he lit the fuse on the TNT. "Get down!" He yelled, as he aimed the arrow at the group.
The girl then took cover, covering her ears.
"Good god, I've gone insane…" Joe said to himself, aiming his bow.
He waited until he had a perfect aim, as he yelled out:
"Checkmate, fuckers!"
He then shot the arrow, sticking it in the head of a skeleton.
The fuse burned in the skeleton's head, in which Joe ducked down, and held the girl close.
"W-What are you doing!?" The girl yelled, turning red.
"Just shut up, and get down!" Joe yelled back.
In that moment, the fuse hit the TNT, causing it to explode.
The explosion engulfed the monsters in fire, burning the monsters.
There was then only silence.
The two looked over their cover, and saw the group gone.
"Holy shit, that worked!" Joe laughed.
The girl had an excited expression, as she looked over at the aftermath.
"It worked! It worked!" The girl said, hugging Joe tight. Really tight.
Joe struggled to breathe, trying to pry the girl off.
"C-Can't...breathe again…" He struggled to say, crushed from the girl's embrace.
She realized her action, as she let go of him, causing him to gasp for air.
"S-Sorry…" The girl apologised.
The two then rose, and stepped out of their cover, looking over the aftermath.
"Well, thats over…" Joe said, sighing in relief.
"Thank goodness…" The girl said, sighing as well.
Joe then looked over at the girl. "Say, I never really got your name. I'm Joe. Nice to meet you." He said, extending his hand.
The girl smiled, as she took it.
"Ria."
Joe's face brightened. "Oh, you're Ria?" He asked. "Lily has told me a lot about you."
"Yeah, she tends to do that." Ria said, smiling.
Joe smiled back, as he noticed something behind her.
It was half a skeleton, readying an arrow.
"Look out!" Joe said, pulling Ria in front of him, facing away from the skeleton, shielding her.
The skeleton shot its arrow, as it flew by, and stuck on Joe's back.
He cried out in pain, with Ria looking into his face.
"J-Joe?" She asked.
The skeleton that shot the arrow then collapsed, presumably from death.
Joe winced in intense pain, with the arrow sticking out his back.
"Almost...Got you…" He managed to say, before collapsing himself.
Ria saw the arrow in Joe's back, as she gasped in horror.
"W-Why did you do that!?" She yelled, supporting him.
"It….would have hit...your heart…" He replied weakly.
Her face grew more horrified, as she started to tear up.
"Y-You….You…" she snivled, tears dropping from her eyes.
Joe then felt his body weaken, as he dropped his hand to the ground.
Ria noticed this, gasping. "J-Joe!" She yelled, turning Joe on his side. "Stay with me! Don't die on me!"
He felt his consciousness leaving him, as the last few moments he witnessed before blacking out was Ria's teary-eyed face above his.
Darkness.
Darkness was all he could see.
Joe was sitting down criss-cross, with his arms crossed.
He sighed.
"Guess I'm dead." He said to himself.
Guess again.
He recognized this soft voice.
"You again."
You remember me?
"How could I not?"
Thats good to hear.
"So...I'm not dead?"
Of course not. You merely blacked out.
He chuckled. "I seem to do that a lot."
Yes, you do.
"I'm guessing you have something to tell me this time?"
I have no need. I have already told you what you must do.
Joe flinched a bit, as he grew confused.
"You never told me anything."
I am merely here to guide you. You already know what you must do.
"Huh." Joe said. "I guess I do."
Just remember. Your friends will be your strength.
Joe rose his head.
"My friends, huh? I think I understand that now."
A ray of light then beamed, cutting through the darkness.
"I understand completely."
The light shined on, eventually engulfing Joe in this warm light.
Joe awoken from his slumber, and found himself laying on the ground.
"Man, I'll never get used to that…" He said, turning on his back.
Only to have Ria's overly excited face above his.
"J-Joe! You're alright!"
He was surprised at this sight, and found out what his head was laying on.
Ria had him laying his head on her legs while he was out cold.
He turned pink, as he sat up, but had a small sharp pain on his back, causing him to lay back down, his head back on Ria's lap.
He then realized the was topless, with a long bandage wrapped around the top of his back.
"Hey, don't move so quickly. You still need to heal." She said, her hand on Joe's forehead.
Joe was slightly confused.
"D-Did you pull out the arrow?" He asked.
She nodded. "And I bandaged you up."
"But...You were ready to kill me just a few moments ago." Joe said.
"Well, how can I not trust you after doing that?" She replied, smiling.
Joe struggled to remember what he did,as the full memory hit him. He then smiled back.
"Yeah...I guess so…"
A few hours pass, as Joe was able to stand on his own, despite a small pain. He grabbed his gear, and looked over at Ria.
"Well, ready to go?" He asked.
Ria nodded, smiling.
The two then set off towards the exit of the cave, walking away from the ruins and aftermath of the struggle.
They walked for a few moments, having small conversations along the way.
They eventually reached the exit of the cave, as Joe stepped through the door.
But Ria stayed behind, and looked slightly scared.
"Anything wrong?" Joe asked.
"T-The sun…" She weakly said.
Joe looked to the sky, and found the sun was still out, shining.
"Thats right. Skeletons can't be out in the sunlight." He remembered. He thought to himself, as an idea struck him.
He removed his jacket, and offered it to Ria.
"Cover yourself with this. This should help." He said, offering the jacket.
Ria was a tad surprised.
"D-Don't you need it?" She asked.
"Its cold, but I don't want you dying." He chuckled.
Ria slowly reached her hand out, and grabbed the jacket, shielding herself with the jackets shadow.
"Ready?" Joe asked again.
"Y-Yeah…" Ria said, as she stepped out into the light, but the jacket's shadow kept her from the sunlight, keeping her safe.
Joe smiled, as he walked on, with Ria following after.
They walked along the path of torches through the forest.
Joe shivered from the cold a little, but he didn't want to make Ria feel guilty, so he kept it to himself.
They eventually reached his home, in which Joe saw the girls out in front of the house, playing in the snow.
The first girl to notice them was Lily, as she saw Ria, and had the most excited look on her face.
"Ria-chan!" She yelled, as she sprinted towards the two.
"Ria-chan?" Cupa said, as she looked over, and saw the skeleton girl as well, and ran to Joe and Ria as well.
The other three then ran towards the group, all gathering together.
"Yeah, found her out in the cave. She was over by your former house." Joe said, chuckling.
"I'm glad to see you're okay, Lily…" Ria said, smiling at Lily.
"You're glad? I'm so happy, I can't contain it!" Lily said, glomping Ria.
"C-Careful! This jacket is barely keeping me covered…" Ria said, trying to keep herself covered.
"She's right, we should take this inside." Joe said, patting Lily's head.
Lily slightly pouted, as she let go of Ria.
"Man, I'm freezing…" Joe said, shivering as he walked inside, with everyone following after inside.
They all seated around the fireplace, all engulfed in warmth, giving Ria an opportunity to tell everyone the story of what happened.
"You had an arrow in your back!?" Cupa yelled in extreme worry, holding Joe's arm after hearing Ria's story.
He went a bit pink at this, as he scratched his head.
"W-Well, she would've died if I hadn't…" Joe said, making a guilty chuckle.
This made Ria smile, as she looked over to Joe, who went a bit more pink.
"Well, thats a very bold move of you." Nia said, crossing her arms.
Joe chuckled. "How do you think you and Lily are here?"
Nia went a bit red, as her cheeks puffed a bit.
"Well, everyone's safe, and that all should matter." Andr said, having everyone nod in return.
They all then enjoyed the rest of the evening talking among each other, all warm from their heads to their toes.
A few more hours pass, as everyone is out asleep, except for Joe, who sat on the couch, looking over the fire.
"My friends will be my strength…" He said to himself, looking at the fire.
He pulled out his wayfinder, and gripped it tighter.
"I think I fully understand it now." He said to himself.
"Hey, Joe?"
He looked over his shoulder, and saw Ria standing behind him, looking at him.
"Can't sleep?" He asked, which was replied of a shake of her head.
"I...Just need to say something…" She said, seeming slightly nervous.
Joe smiled. "Well, take a seat. I'm all ears."
She nodded, as she sat next to Joe on the couch, rather close to him.
"I just want to thank you...And apologize…" She said, looking down.
"Apologize? What for?" Joe asked.
"W-Well...I kind of freaked out, and shot at you…" She replied.
Joe chuckled, and rubbed Ria's head.
"No need to worry. You were just scared is all." Joe replied.
Ria smiled back, then placed her hand on top of Joe's other hand.
"Thank you so much...You put me at ease for my friends, brought me to them, and saved my life, risking your own…" She said, holding onto Joe's hand.
He went a tad red around the cheeks, as he could feel her soft hand.
She scooted a bit closer to him, looking into his eyes.
"You're truly a Hero."
Joe felt a surge of flattery hit him, and him being humble as he is, he slightly denied it.
"W-Well, I wouldn't say-"
He was interrupted by Ria kissing him on the cheek, catching him off guard.
"...That.." Joe managed to say to his surprise.
Ria made a slight giggle, as she stood up.
"Well, I'll be going to bed now. Thank you for building another bed in the girls' room." Ria thanked, slightly bowing.
"N-No-No problem…" Joe replied, rubbing his cheek.
Ria smiled, as she waved to Joe, as she entered the spider girls' room.
Joe was still trying to gather his thoughts, looking over to the fire.
"You know...This is looking a lot like one of those harem manga/anime…." He said to himself, as he laid himself on the couch, looking at the fire.
He sighed to himself, lost in his thoughts.
"Courage from friendship, huh?" He chuckled, as he looked over the crackling fire.
"Sounds...Kinda cool."
Six thirty in the morning, my feet are almost frozen.
I just hope you can enjoy this, I'm going to sleep.
Thank you for your time, I'll see you in the next chapter.