Icy's POV: "Is this it?" I ask Steve, who holds a map and compass.
We've been walking for at least an hour. Mainly for a few bathroom breaks and checking for supplies.
"I think so. We are facing south after all, and here's a village and an ocean!" Steve cheers. "I finally didn't get lost!"
This village is a wreck. It must have been through lots of mob attacks, and the villagers look badly wounded. Even the kids look depressed. When the villagers see us, they cower in fear.
"Let's just make sure" Piper says. "Just in case. Could you guys help this place out?"
"Why not? These poor guys need more respect" Steve agrees.
Edwin heads over to assist the farmers in giving out supplies. Allen heals the injuries of each and every other villager. Steve helps the architects repair the buildings. Piper speaks to the mayor.
While the others go to visit the locals, I look at the ocean shore not far from the village. The water has strange blue blobs floating on the surface of it. The smell of ink enters my nose instead of the salty scent. Dead squids. Guardians hate squids. So unless Skydoesminecraft has been here, this must be where Alex and DK are held prisoner. I even notice an upturned boat.
Piper returns. "It's definitely here. Many of the village's fishermen have gone missing, and dead squid bodies have washed up on this shore constantly. Plus there have been strange faint lights coming from that ocean".
"Ok then. I've got some water breathing potions here, unless you guys are Atlanteans" Edwin holds out six water-breathing potions.
"Actually, we don't need them. The mayor has said that you can breathe and speak in these waters. Let's try it out" Piper says.
I volunteer to go first. Without hesitation, I walk towards the shore. Then I dive right in. It's deep, even just a few blocks away from dry land. I float for a bit, then stick my head under the waves. To my surprise, I can see everything in the water. Litter, wood, dead squid. I take a breath, and instead of water it's air that fills my lungs. I resurface.
"That felt awesome! Especially without having to hold my breath! It works, come right in!" I grin at the stunned onlookers called my friends.
Steve and Allen join me. The next thing you know, they are rap battling in the H20. Piper gracefully freestyles away from the land. Edwin seems hesitant.
"It's not that bad! Come on, you won't drown" Piper tells Edwin.
Eventually, he trudges into the waves, but doesn't duck his head down.
"Look, you want to save these guys or not?" I tell him.
"Look, you want me to die or not?" Edwin mimics my tone.
I sigh. "Fine. Why don't you make a magical boat appear? You can watch us from above with your magic or whatnot"
Edwin waves his wand, and in a few seconds he is sitting on top of a JetSki. "Much better now!"
Steve and Allen come back from their underwater rap-a-thon.
"Come on, guys. Stop playing and start swimming!" I say.
Now all we have to do is swim until we reach the temple.
HHHHHHHHHHHHHTIMESKIPHHHHHHHHHHHHHH
"I see it! I must be Aquaman!" Edwin slowly down his JetSki and points at a massive cyan structure on the ocean floor.
I duck my head down, then pull my head back up and confirm that he is right. And anyway, there are so many dead squids around here that they might as well be islands.
"You can't be Aquaman. First, you're a cat. Second, you have a fear of water" Piper reminds Edwin.
"DEEP water! I can swim in pools!" Edwin snaps at her. "I have a chance"
"Baby pools, I bet" Piper grins.
"Guys, shut your chat! Steve's missing!" Allen looks around.
He's right. Steve is nowhere to be found. Where is he? Why do people bother to ask these questions when they know that no one here knows the answer?
"He couldn't have drowned, you can breathe in these waters. He's a good swimmer. And he can't have gone far, and why would he go away in the first place?" Piper evaluates.
Everyone looks around. It's hard to see with all the squids. I check underwater. And I spot someone swimming towards the temple at high speed.
"Guys, he's heading for the temple!" I get a closer look. "He looks like he's going for a full-frontal assault".
"That's impossible. Steve is smart, he'd go for the stealthy tactical way" states Miner.
Miner!
We turn suddenly and spot Miner, swimming backwards and forwards casually. We completly forgot him and didn't notice him stalking us.
"Don't worry guys, you didn't see me when you woke up" Miner reads our minds. "I managed to come to before the rest of you. And then I saw this big metal warrior dude, I think his name was Ferrous Something. Anyway, he flung me into a far away tree. Honestly, I nearly died. Luckily, I had a golden apple on me, so I could heal. I managed to catch up to you guys, who were just leaving the area. I technically forgive you. So, what are we doing?"
"Well, thanks. Alex and DK have been kidnapped obviously, and we have been informed that they are here" Piper tells Miner. "But now Steve is doing something noobish".
Steve is almost in range of the temple. At this point, Guardians would have noticed Steve but there are none to be found.
"Are we going to help him or not?" Allen dives under, and we can hear his voice under the water. "Let's go!"
Edwin reluctantly dives into the water and the JetSki vanishes. "I'm not going to be a noob in front of you guys".
Together, we all duck down and swim after Steve. I manage to catch up to him before the others. The first thing I notice about Steve is his eyes. They are no longer diamond blue, but are blaze yellow and have a glazed look to them. The second thing is instant rejection. As soon as I get half a block closer he shoves me aside.
"Strange" I think aloud.
I turn behind me, expecting to find the others right at my tail. Instead, I can only see the sea. When I face forwards again Steve is gone. Into the doors of the temple.
"Darn" I curse.
I do my best follow, hoping to catch up. But then I know it's going to be impossible. When I enter the temple, three different directions greet me. Left, right or straight. It's a maze. Why?! Mazes suck.
"Guys?" I call out, but no one answers.
Either logic's finally reached this ocean and made sound hard to travel underwater, or something isn't right. The only thing I can do is just keep swimming (it would be such a coincidence if Dory started swimming by) through the shimmering prismarine corridors.
When 1.8 came out, I watched all the history shows and read the wiki twice to find out how to survive one of these things. So I know the inside and out of a water temple. They do have quite a few twists and turns to get to the middle and locate the bling. But this seems different, with five times the amount of paths. Plus, I can't shake off the feeling that something is constantly watching me, and that feeling intensifies every turn I make. After quite a while, I hear a deep whisper that sends a shiver down my spine.
"You feel fear"
It's a female's voice, deep and rich, but not necessarily mean or evil. It's quite gentle, actually. Like, caring mother voice. Against my own will, or maybe I'm just so alone I need someone to talk to, I speak. "Not really..."
"Of course you do. Everyone feels fear. Even the most brave, most confident, most sinister".
To be honest, I've felt fear quite a lot when I was younger. But as I grew older I almost forgot that I had fear. But now, with someone reminding me about it, it's almost as if all the fear I missed out on is rushing back at me at once, getting revenge.
I sense something wrong, and I start to swim a bit faster, but the voice returns, and I resume to a slow and steady pace.
"I can get rid of fear" States the voice.
"But fear keeps you alive sometimes, doesn't it?" I say. "It prevents you from being a noob and jumping into a pool of lava or the nether portal without gear or something like that".
"That is true. But when I do get rid of people's fear, they are smart about it. They will not do ridiculous suicidal things that will let them meet certain death".
I do another turn, and I am in a big open area. The calm feeling of the ocean water stops, and I drop to the ground on my feet. This area must have air. In the middle of the room, blocks of majestic gold stacked up high. The Sky army would love this. The prismarine walls shimmer, and the sunlight streams in. It's such a beautiful sight, it's hard to take in. But just then, I notice someone in the far corner of the open space. Leaning against the pile of gold. Playing with a bouncy handball. A brunette, wearing a blue tux over a white long-sleeved shirt, and ripped jeans. Golden pads over some areas of the tux, on the shoulders and arms, have spikes sticking out of them. The girl has yellow eyes. Or should I say EYE, because on closer inspection an eyepatch covers her left eye. She looks about 16.
I grab the handle of my sword, but don't pull it out.
"Relax. You have no need to be afraid. I wont kill you".
That's when I realise the voice belongs to the girl. But that's impossible. How can her voice project around the entire temple? She must have spoken in my mind. I also find it strange because by now most of my friends should have reached here.
The girl laughs. For some reason, I change my mind four times in a row in less than half a minute. (Emotions time!)
'Kill her! Find Alex and DK!' says Dark Icy in my head.
Then my mind changes thought. 'Run away! Trap! Get the others and go!'. cries Derp Icy, arguing with Dark Icy.
Finally it sticks to something. 'Be careful, keep your guard up, but don't attack'. commands the normal Icy, ignoring the others.
But right when I'm about to stay with that plan, some other voice, one I have not really seen before play in my head, does its part. 'The girl's fine, it's not like she'll blow us up, not in here. You don't have to act so sharp'.
I decide to let that feeling be my instinct for now.
Strangely, for one second I feel light-headed and weak, but then I pull myself together and put my sword away. Then I walk towards the brunette, while she just keeps playing with her ball. I stop, just 5 blocks away. For a while, it's silence, except for the sound of quiet waves and dripping around us.
"So..." I start off, still a bit unsure. "Miss..."
"Oh, please!" The girl laughs. "Just call me Aqua".
"Um, OK".
The girl, Aqua, grins, then looks me in the eye. There it is again, that strange feeling of lightheadedness.
'That's nothing too severe, probably seasick or maybe you just need some food,' mutters instinct.
So I munch on an apple as Aqua speaks.
"I do understand why you have come here, you know?" Aqua tucks her handball away in a chest. "You are looking for two people. They are some of your friends".
I nod. How did she know that? She must have read my mind. Again, the other feelings object, but the one I'm currently following silences them. I like this instinct. My confidence levels increase a little.
"Yes. One's a hybrid. And ender hybrid. The other is a default" I reply.
Aqua is still rummaging in that chest.
"Your name is Icy. Runaway daughter of Herobrine. On a quest with Edwin, Miner, Piper, Steve and Allen to find your friends. A giant metal creature called the Ferrous Wroughtnaut fell to you and told you to come here. The Ferrous Wroughtnaut was sent to you by GameMod, assistant of Hacker and CommandCrash. This is what you know, I assume?" She speaks calmly, then pulls out a little scroll thing from the chest.
Well, confirmed mind reader. But instead of finding that strange or annoying, I find it quite interesting. So I nod without question.
"Well, there are still some puzzle pieces that you have not found, which led you directly to here," Aqua turns to me, holding the scroll in her hand, then plunges into the facts. "I was here, defending these blocks of gold from squid people, Atlanteans and other entities that may pose a threat to this temple. This includes humans. But that's when a Guardian came up to me and gave to me this message".
Something clicks. "You're a Guardian Hybrid?" I ask.
"Good observation skills. Yes, I am. But let us continue the story. It was from the very person who helped kidnap your friends. Game. So I opened it up, and this is what it said," Aqua opens the scroll and begins to read. "Hey Aqua, I am currently in a stage where me and the other two have got a real good bounty up for grabs. And it's not just a single job, but for an entire business. The new boss will pay heaps per every excellent job we do for her. Anyway, the mission now is to catch and neutralise two wizards, two hybrids, two young warriors, and two defaults. But we have to leave the girl default and two of the others alive to be brought to the boss immediately. Strange order, I know. But we'll share the money with you if you help us with this task. We've got the girl default and the ender hybrid. We're going to mislead the others to believe that they are with you. Whatever happens next is up to you, you can keep them dead or alive, just make sure they won't be doing anything to stop us. Thanks, Game".
Aqua looks at me with a sinister smile, replacing the warm and kind one that kindly greeted me a few minutes ago. That's when I realise. This entire thing is a trap. I try to move my legs, tell them to turn on their engines and charge towards Aqua, but they don't even twitch. That's when I feel a blow from behind me, and I'm knocked to the floor. I pull up my arms in attempt to stand, but once again a fist connects to my head, and I end up kissing the damp tile floor. I look up, and pure dread fills my body completely. The instinct that kept me calm, the one I once trusted, has now abandoned me. I would normally be brave, and stand and fight, but this is what is controlling every muscle of my body. Herobrine looks down on me (I'm being nice and NOT ending here). But it's not the normal Herobrine I know. Instead, it's a female gender bent version of him, but she looks just as sinister. She once again punches me in the face, and I recoil. She glares at me, and two balls of electricity erupt in her hands. Almost just as threatening as fire. When she speaks, it's like multiple voices speaking at once.
"Don't worry, your Auntie is doing you a favour, Icy".
It echoes around the room, giving it a heart-stopping effect. She raises her arms, ready for the kill. I am frozen in terror, unable to move. However, right before she manages to slam her electric fists into me, a yellow beam shoots her in the arm. She flops to the ground. I turn to my saviour.
"Noobish aim!" Aqua grimaces, then puts her fingers up to her head. Another yellow beam shoots from her eye, and this time it shoots the figure on the ground in the head. Herobrine genderbent vanishes in black smoke. "Now do you know what real fear is, Icy?"
I'm still frozen with fear, so the only thing I can do is nod in agreement. But who was that female Herobrine? And why the Nether did she say auntie? Aqua walks over, and offers a small chair. I sit up, but I'm still full of shock to stand. So Aqua helps me onto the chair.
"Thanks," I gasp, catching my breath.
Aqua nods at me. "You see what I mean? Fear is dangerous. Especially when you have no control over it. You wanted to fight back, but it was fear that was holding you from doing so. But I can help you have control over your fears. Just relax, okay?"
I feel that lightheadedness again, in full force, but I welcome it. After that crazy near-death moment, this feels better. I breathe in and out, slowing down my heartbeat, because if it beats any faster it might explode. Aqua gently grasps my hand. All the pain from being punched is gone, vanished as if never there.
"That feels much better, doesn't it?" Aqua tells me. Her voice is now back to being deep and soothing. "Because the only thing you had to do in the first place was sleep".
The very moment she says 'sleep' she quickly releases my hand. And I flop to the ground, with lightheadedness taking control of everything.
VVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVV
DUN DUN DUN!
DK: Honestly, is that DUN DUN DUN thing gonna be a habit now?
Me: Shut your chat, it's just fun to say!
DK: Power agrees.
Power: Yeah.
Me: SILENCE BOTH OF YOU! I AM AN AUTHOR AND I CAN DO WHAT I WANT! Now, both of you, BACK TO YOUR PLACES OR I'LL KILL YOU IN THE NEXT CHAPTER!
DK and Power: Sheesh! Ok! *vanishes*
Me: Sorry about the OC cruelty there, folks. Anyway, looks like Aqua's got Icy under some sort of spell!
Aqua: It's called hypnotism.
Me: Yeah, yeah. And I just realised the elemental name thing. Aqua, water. Icy, snow. Get what I mean?
A few notices:
STORY MODE IS SO COOL! Petra, Gabriel, Petra, Gabriel, WHO WHO WHO TO PICK!? I might be writing a Story Mode fanfic in a few months, after all the episodes are shown to the world.
For real, I actually hypnotised my friend! No joke! And for a whole day she thought a unicorn was stalking her! Lol!
Anyway, a surprising long chapter, I'll see ya later with the next one! *gasps* BYEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE.