We had walked for barely four or five hours before it started to get to me. The heat and monotony of walking for so long were making me tetchy and irritable, and the silence only made it worse.
"How much further to the first stop?" I asked for the thousandth time. Bill sighed.
"You know how much further. Shut up and walk," he replied, not breaking pace or looking back at me. I growled something I can't put on paper and kept plodding along, softly sweltering in the humid air. For what must have been the billionth time, I checked the map again to see how far we had come. A green cross marked our first stop, according to Bill. We were almost there, thank Notch, and then we could rest and recuperate.
A sudden noise made me stop. The others stopped too, looking questioningly at me. I pressed a finger to my lips, warning them to stay quiet, and scanned the area around us.
There it was again! A high-pitched noise, almost like a child's giggle. It was quickly followed by a curious purring sound, like an ocelot, and something moved out of the corner of my eye.
I whipped my head around and my eyes widened at the sight of something huge and white floating towards us. Bill swore loudly and yelled, "Get to the cave! Run!" He sprinted towards the first stop and we followed him without hesitation, not doubting his experience in this place. Behind us, the thing noticed us and made a terrible screaming noise. Something exploded directly behind me and I felt searing heat burn at my back, spurring me forward to escape from the horrific creature.
I tripped on a rough part of rock and fell to the ground, painfully scraping my hands and knees on the hard surface. I turned and saw a flaming ball of rock shoot towards me. It exploded at my feet, billowing up in flames and enveloping me in pain and fire. I screamed, the agony too much to bear. Suddenly, everything faded. The pain turned to icy cold, and I knew nothing more.
April Fools! Here's the real ending:
I tripped on a rough part of rock and fell to the ground, painfully scraping my hands and knees on the hard surface. I turned and saw a flaming ball of rock shooting towards me. I scrabbled at the unrelenting rock, pulling myself out of range just in time. I pushed myself up, desperate to escape. The thing screamed again as I fled to the opening of the cave mouth, finally safe from the horrors of the Nether – for now.
Sorry. Couldn't resist...