Chapter 7: Hunt Or Be Hunted
Last night didn't just scare Pickaxe.
It gave him a sense of emptiness. All he and Jewel ever did nowadays was just mining. Sure, now they had a garden, but at the moment it was slow. The only time he ever felt elated to do anything was either when he was dedicating himself in a project, or when he was lost in the moment. Like when he was killing all those mobs last night. It felt… satisfying. It didn't feel GOOD good, there was still some guilt over the many murders he caused (whether or not that guilt should be present will forever remain a mystery). Regardless, it gave him a sense of exhilaration. A sense of a greater purpose. He had to do it again.
Jewel would be flabbergasted at his request.
"Umm… you sure?" she whispered nervously. Monsters always gave her the willies. She would fight them, but only for self-defense, not for the heck of it. Pickaxe understood… but he knew it was the only way to kill the monotony. He looked at Jewel with a pleading face. At first, Jewel was wearing her poker face. Unfortunately, at least in this round, Pickaxe had more stamina. Jewel sighed, "I hope Stan doesn't hear about this…" She looked up at Pickaxe. "What's the plan?"
As the sun began to set on the land, Pickaxe went through his mental checklist.
Create a minor beacon? Check. Jewel had talked about it for some time, so Pickaxe finally decided to build the dirt tower with a torch on top. Upgrade the arsenal? Check. Pickaxe was decked out in a full set of iron armor, except for the helmet (he had grown rather fond of his pumpkin). He made sure to bring two fresh sets of iron tools, in case he needed to do some impromptu gathering. Create an additional boat? Check. It was currently residing in Jewel's inventory. Extra supplies? Check. He made sure to bring some gravel to make a snipping tower, torches, and food, thus increasing their chances of staying alive. Leaving before nightfall?
Pickaxe and Jewel trampled out of the house, hurriedly pulling out their boats. Check.
After several moments of rowing, Jewel noted the desert that Pickaxe had nearly entered earlier, and they decided to dock there. They took their boats, and did a quick recap on their inventories. Pickaxe and Jewel spent the first few moments exploring the scenery. Pickaxe learned the hard way that the spiky green blocks, called cactus, weren't any fun to be around. At least, not when left unharvested. He made sure to bring extra arrows and an additional bow; the skeletons and creepers were not on his "Get Too Close" list. Finally, the sun set. Pickaxe swiveled his head back and forth, looking for Jewel. She had conveniently located herself at the top of a sand dune. He wasted no time rushing up there.
Naturally, that was the perfect time for an arrow to land in front of him.
The battle was on. While Jewel was sniping enemies from afar, Pickaxe was going full force in close combat. Strangely enough, he had a pickaxe in his left hand, even though it wasn't as effective as a sword in combat. That didn't stop him from slaying half the monsters with it. Heck, even a creeper died by its hand! Occasionally, the duo would team up, as Jewel snipped and Pickaxe came in for the final blow. This came in handy with the skeletons. Then the two saw a sight they would never forget: a skeleton riding a spider. "A spider jockey!? No way!" Jewel gasped. Pickaxe was a bit off guard as well, but he had already encountered sand colored zombies (husk, as they were called) so he didn't think much else could surprise him.
A few arrows in the chest said otherwise.
Pickaxe was trying to kill the spider, while Jewel semi-successfully tried eliminating the skeleton. The thing was too fast! If that wasn't enough, the spider jockey then set its sights on Jewel. That did it. Pickaxe ran as fast as his legs could take him, leapt into the sky... and killed the spider jockey in one fell swoop. Jewel was in awe. How… did he do that? And with a pickaxe, no less! Then she darted her head down. Gee, Pickaxe thought, I wonder why… He turned to face the enderman. So long as he wore the pumpkin, there was a slim chance of death. Besides, it did look kind of cool. Move along buddy, thought Pickaxe. The enderman, seeing as he was not threatened, wandered away with a sand block in his hands, then teleported away. Pickaxe and Jewel didn't notice a creeper sneaking up on them…
*SHKRAAAAAAAA!*
Pickaxe and Jewel swiveled their heads at the sound. They only saw a dying creeper, and a shadow dash past them. It managed to get as far as the edge of the desert, before disappearing into the forest. Pickaxe and Jewel gave chase, taking the water route back to the house's vicinity. When they arrived, they could barely make out the figure in the darkness, approaching the house. It swiveled its head back in forth, making sure nothing was following it. "Hmph," it uttered distastefully,"Might as well raid the place. It could have something useful…" Pickaxe froze. The voice sounded deep, serious, and… feminine. Another girl? What business did she have raiding Pickaxe's house? The girl began to approach the entrance. The door was flung open, her hands fidgeting from the thought of potential riches.
Jewel shot one of her arrows; it flew over the girl's head.
Upon noticing she had been seen, the girl swiveled around. Pickaxe got a good look at her from their hiding spot. Her hair was a fiery shade of crimson, tied back into a ponytail. Her fair skin clashed against her brown and black clothes, which looked caked with dirt. Her eyes were green on the left, black on the right. Kinda reminds me of Jewel, Pickaxe thought. Of course, Jewel wouldn't wield two iron axes, like the girl was. At least to his knowledge. "Come out where I can see you…" she warned. Pickaxe and Jewel remained hiding in the darkness. The girl grew impatient, taking out a bottle with a strange dark blue liquid. "A potion?" Jewel whispered. Pickaxe didn't like the look on Jewel's face when she said that.
The girl gulped down the potion. Her body was surrounded by a mysterious aura.
"FOUND YOU!" she snarled. She darted to Pickaxe's location. She's bluffing, right?, thought Pickaxe, who clearly realized that was NOT the case when one of the girl's axes almost decapitated him. Jewel was trying to snipe the girl, but she kept dodging Jewel's arrows. The surrounding darkness didn't exactly help either. Eventually, Jewel ran out of arrows. Pickaxe was on his own for this one. He lunged towards the girl with his sword and pickaxe, but she instinctively blocked with her axes. The two continually exchanged slashes, trying to get the jump on the other. It was a stalemate.
But then Pickaxe's sword broke.
Pickaxe was exhausted. He had to double down just to avoid getting hit. It was too much. The girl kept swinging her axes like a maniac. She was eventually going to get a hit in at this point. He needed to think fast. Suddenly, the girl slashed her axe downward, which Pickaxe barely dodged. Without thinking, he went in for the girl's arm, swiveled around it, and flung her axe out of her hand. She looked shocked. Now was Pickaxe's chance! He lept into the air, preparing to slash his pickaxe down with full fury. The girl wasn't so keen on that idea, and rose her axe in defense.
Both weapons shattered upon contact, and the girl fainted on the spot.
Pickaxe and Jewel spent the next few moments catching their breath. The night was a quarter away from ending. Pickaxe looked in the distance. They hadn't caught the attention of any mobs… yet. He needed to get back to the house. He looked back to the girl. He didn't know what to do with her. She tried raiding the house. She tried to kill them! But then again…they did try to do the same to her. Besides, she took care of the creeper. Darn, if only he had a sign...
A sheep walked right next to Pickaxe.
…
He took out his sheers.
…
SNIP, SNIP!
Good enough for him!
He picked up the girl and carried her into the house. He handed her to Jewel as he crafted a bed for her. He set it right next to the bedrooms; he'd make a bedroom for her later. Jewel set her down on the bed, tucking her in before retiring for the night. Pickaxe decided to get some shuteye himself. He ate some apples he had leftover, and crawled into his bed.
So how was this gonna play out?