Chapter 12

DC sprinted through the mass of jungle plants, grunting whenever a bush would push against him in an attempt to hinder his progress. His small muscles strained to keep up with his frantic footwork, and he was sorely out of breath, but he had to keep going. Stopping now would mean death. He didn't bother to glance at his pursuers behind him, for he could clearly hear their footsteps catching up with his own. There were many of them. Too many. They would eventually overcome him. And then what? Would they kill him?

Why else would he be running?

He tripped over a root and cried out as he tumbled headfirst into a large pit. He braced himself for the inevitable, painful landing that would no doubt lie ahead, but it never came; he merely continued to fall. This is something that would only happen in a dream, he thought.

"That would be because you are dreaming," stated a booming voice.

Eh?

"You are dreaming," stated the booming voice.

Who said that?

"It is I, Notch, creator of Minecraftia," stated the booming voice.

DC felt himself being lifted from the air, as if a large hand was scooping him up like a human would a small kitten. He was set back into the air, but instead of conforming to the rules of gravity and resuming his fall, he found himself suspended in the atmosphere. Looking around in the darkness, he saw nothing, but the voice continued to speak.

"I have come to ask something of you," it said. "For certain reasons, I decided it would be best to communicate with you in your sleep - it is safer that way."

"Why?" asked DC. "Why is it safer this way? And how do I know you're not just a figment of my imagination, since you said I'm dreaming?"

"A valid question, that is. Perhaps it would be easier for you to believe me if you could actually see me." With that said, a great beam of light shone down from the sky, and in it appeared a giant, slightly bearded head covered in an odd-looking black hat. This was the head of Notch, god of Minecraftia.

The face was too detailed and memorable to be considered a mere part of a dream, for dreams are often presented like a blurry mirror before one's eyes. There were no words that had to be said for Notch to understand that DC indeed believed his appearance was true.

"These are dangerous times," he warned the creeper. "I have no doubts you already know of the predicament in which this world lies. Minecraftia is doomed to become a replica of the Nether - a horrible place of death, destruction, and fire. Alastor has grown powerful - too powerful. Humans were not meant to obtain such power; it has corrupted him just as much as the world itself. Humans were given one life to live. Alastor has taken a countless number, and it has twisted into a reserve that has made him immortal."

"Does that mean he's a god now?"

Notch sighed. "I'd rather consider him a demon, but yes, it has gotten to that point. He is too strong for me to conquer him; that is why I sent two specially-created individuals to descend from my home in the sky and restore peace to the Overworld. However, something went wrong in the process, and both were swept clean of their memories."

"And those individuals were…?"

"A creeper and a man - you and Steve."

"Steve and I?" The revelation produced a variety of questions in his head. "Why us? And how come I spawned in the darkness as a hostile?"

"The corrupted world saw you as a creeper; as a result, it received you as a hostile. As for why you and Steve were sent, haven't you noticed the similarity between him and another person, Herobrine, whom you have met?"

In a flash, DC recalled the moment he saw the prisoner who could have easily passed for his friend's twin. "Yes." I'm afraid to ask. "Why do they look so alike?"

"They bear such a resemblance because Steve is the reincarnation of Herobrine himself."

"Wh-what? How is that even possible?"

A playful smile etched into the corners of the god's mouth. "I created this world, remember? That and all of the creatures in it. Let me tell you something about Herobrine; he has an incredible amount of potential, a myriad of gifts and talents he only caught a glimpse of when he used them for evil out of ignorance. It appears that he has long since repented for his actions, but he still has yet to live out the punishment for his atrocious crime; for that reason, I could not use him. Therefore, I decided to create another human who had all the capabilities of Herobrine. Such a person you cannot create from scratch (it's a god thing; you wouldn't understand), so I used Herobrine as a "base component", if you will. From that came Steve, one of two chosen heroes."

It was a bit confusing to take in. "What about me, then? Where do I come into the picture?"

"If you can remember from Alastor's account, Herobrine had a friend - a creeper called DC. Nobody knows about this (except me, of course), but DC also had an enormous aptitude when it came to the aura - almost more than Herobrine. He could see it, and he could use it; he chose not to for the sake of peace, a very admirable decision on his part. I took pity on the poor creature when he was accidentally murdered by Herobrine and forgotten in the ground. It was quite the difficult decision for me to make, but in the end I resolved to bring him back to life by providing him with a piece of my own aura. You may not think it was that difficult of a decision, but hear me out. Once a god gives up a part of his aura, he is no longer immortal. I am still Notch, creator of Minecraftia, but my powers are limited. My years are numbered as well, but…" He winked at DC. "I do believe it was well worth it. I brought you up to the sky to rest, and once Steve was created I sent both of you to the Overworld to stop Alastor from completely destroying everything, for that is his wish - to destroy. Do you get it? I chose the two of you not only because of your power, but also because you are a natural pair together. Steve is the reincarnation of Herobrine, and you, DC, are Herobrine's friend brought back to life."

"I'm not just a randomly-generated, ordinary creeper?"

"No. You were created with a purpose, as everything else was. And you are far from ordinary. I had no doubts that you and Steve would restore the peace together. Unfortunately…" He stopped.

The look on his face had changed so suddenly that DC was more than a bit unnerved. "What? What's so unfortunate?"

"Steve… has been drained by Alastor."

No… All hopes of being reunited with his friend vanished within a second. Steve is dead. He choked back a sob and let the news sink in. He really is dead…

"I cannot tell you how sorry I am for his death. Since I am no longer considered a god, I could only watch as his life was taken. I apologize; truly, I am sorry."

DC stared at his feet, his heart drowned in sorrow. Images of his enemy flashed behind his eyes as a scorching heat built up in his chest. This was a new emotion to the creeper, one that scared him with its overwhelming power. The pressure continued to grow until he was afraid he might burst. What was this feeling? It felt similar to when he had snapped at Herobrine in the cell, but to a much higher degree. He was seething at the thought of Alastor. He wanted to destroy him and leave nothing behind.

"You're angry," murmured Notch.

DC lifted his head. "I want revenge. He murdered my friend - my only friend."

"That he did, and there is a way to defeat him, DC."

"Really? How?"

"Do you remember that stone you stumbled upon in that cavern?"

"Yes…"

"That is what I like to call my 'godstone'. It has a variety of uses, including being able to see any part of the world through it. I accidentally dropped it when I banished Herobrine and Alastor to the Nether. Because of that, Alastor now has it in his possession."

"How did it get into the cavern, then?"

"That cavern was originally an old shrine a group of humans and creepers erected for me as a sign of loyalty. Alastor saw you and Steve appear on the earth and wanted to capture you, but he wanted you together. Therefore, he sent one of the Endermen to the cavern with the stone as he saw you in the general area, hoping that you would discover it, which you did. You heard the stone speak; that is another one of its uses. You see, Alastor tricked you - that was him speaking into the stone and morphing the runes with his power. You found Steve and ventured into the shrine once more, only to discover that he had already repossessed it. By then, he had set his trap, and you two were eventually captured according to his plan."

"No way…"

"That godstone I mentioned - you need to retrieve it from his grasp. In it lies the power you need to defeat him once and for all, a fact to which he is ignorant. Since you are DC, the creeper with the draining gift, you have the ability to take his soul - with the stone's help, of course. Trap his soul into it, and then throw it into the sea of magma, for only the flames can destroy the godstone."

"Why can't you just pick it up?"

"As the creator, I must stay in the sky. I can only watch over the world and not dwell in it myself."

DC was hesitant. Not only did this mean he would have to return to the Nether, but he would also have to inevitably face Alastor again. "I don't know if I can do this…"

"Of course you can - you are my creation, after all. I wouldn't have brought you back to life if I had not a purpose for you. I have faith in you, DC - immense faith. Do not doubt yourself."

And that is exactly what he was doing - doubting himself. After all, this was quite the difficult task he was being put to, considering this was the world that had to be saved. Nevertheless, he swallowed his fear and looked the former god in the eye. "I'll do it," he said.

Notch gave a solemn nod. "Thank you, valiant creeper. I will watch over you as you go. Now, it is time for you to wake up. The world has already begun to collapse."

"What?" But the dream world was already fading to black. DC was no longer levitating and felt himself fall backwards. A muffled voice began to call his name, and as he fell deeper into the dark abyss, the voice became clearer… and much more urgent.

"DC! You must wake up! We have to get out of here - now!" It was the voice of Loki.

He felt the Enderman shaking his sleeping form on the ground. Stevie the cat mewed in his face, and he slowly opened his eyes.

The first thing he noticed was Loki with Herobrine in his spindly arms. Stevie was standing on the creeper's stomach, its eyes wide with fear.

Wait…

Why was the tree so bright?

And so hot?

DC shot up from the ground, resulting in Stevie tumbling off of him. He ran outside and gasped.

The entire jungle was aglow with flames.

A/N: I apologize if this chapter seems a bit shorter than the others. This was meant to be sort of a "filler" chapter, because I'm currently in the middle of studying for my final exams. One week to go, and then I'm free! :D