Preface: Hello, again! I don't particularly have anything to say here, so let's just get right into things!

MINECRAFT MANIACS:
LIGHT AND DARK

Previously...almost two years after their previous big adventure, Danny, Liam, Kevin, and their companions decided to set out in search of a new adventure. As they were about to set out, however, a mysterious allay appeared at the door.

Now...they question who this allay is...

Roll Call

Danny - Alfred von Any: Hero with emotional issues. The leader.

Liam - Willy Blanq: Expert crafter. The maker.

Kevin - Nevile Napoleon: Part-gangerman player. The brains.

Pork Chop - Dee Bradley Baker: Danny's companion. The pet.

Spawny and Spawnette - Damien Laquet: The rabborg siblings. The heart.

Chapter 2:
Back in the Game!, Part Two -
The New Threat

[Main Party Selected: Danny, Liam, Kevin]
[Supporting Party Selected: Spawny, Spawnette, Pork Chop]

[Character Selected: Danny]
[Current World: Minecraftia]
[Current Location: Public World, Temporary Shelter]

[BGM: Antimo & Welles - Order of the Stone [Minecraft: Story Mode 101 OST]]

I had trouble comprehending what was staring back at us. I knew what the mob was - an allay, voted into the game at Minecraft Live back in October, just after a mini-game tournament the others and I participated in. But the update they were going to be added in wasn't added yet - there was only one explanation. "Did someone install the new beta or something?" I asked. "The Wild Update's not out yet."

"No, not me," said Liam, shaking his head. "And I'm sure Kevin didn't."

"I see you have questions," said the allay, and we all nodded our heads. "Don't worry - all will be answered in time." She put her hand to her chest. "I'm Balancia, and I'm a guardian of the Chaosverse."

"Guardian of the Chaosverse?" repeated Kevin. "Why didn't we see you a couple of years ago after we beat Doppel?" I certainly remembered when we met those two interdimensional beings after that big battle.

"So many questions, but so little time," said Balancia, doing a somersault in midair. "Here, follow me! I'll explain on the way!"

"Alright, guess this is our adventure, guys," I said, shrugging. We began to follow the allay as she flew through the air.

It seemed like she had a lot on her mind, so I shut up and let her talk. "Do you remember when your ally Buzzer sacrificed himself to save the Chaosverse?" Balancia asked. We all nodded, remembering the fly. "Well, after that party you threw in celebration, the dimensional guardians decided that someone had to go into the dimensions themselves to make sure everything was fine."

"So they basically…I dunno, made you?" asked Liam, waving his hands.

Balancia rubbed the back of her head. "Sorta. Apparently, I was made from a duplicate of Buzzer's soul," she explained. "I guess you could say that I'm a reincarnation of him."

Well, that must cause some existential dread, I thought. Or not. She must be beyond emotions and feelings or whatever. "Alright, now for the elephant in the room: why are you here?" I asked.

"Oh, right!" said Balancia. "Okay, you might wanna take some notes: it's a doozy!"

"Gotcha," said Liam. Reaching into his inventory, he pulled out a book and quill and began to take notes as Balancia explained.

And boy am I glad he did! I actually had to look in his book to remember everything! Basically, there was a third of those dimensional guardians, but that guy didn't want to merely be an observer. Instead, he wanted to control the worlds directly! To keep him under control, the other two beings stripped him of his powers and banished him far, far away from the Chaosverse. Light years, probably. And then, when Perinton merged all the worlds into one, the third guy was able to take notice and started to journey back, but by the time he arrived, it was over a year since we won. But then he found a way to get his powers back, and now he's targeting the Minecraft world because it's the closest to the real world.

Was that a lot of info to take in? Yeah, same for me. I swear my head must've gone up a size from everything I was told. But I certainly got the idea that this guy meant business. "So I guess it's up to us to stop him," I said when Balancia finished her info-dump. I thought about it. "I mean, we do seem like the right guys for the job…"

"(Well, I guess if we have to,)" said Spawny, somewhat reluctantly, and Spawnette nodded in agreement.

"I guess you're getting the interdimensional adventure you wanted, eh, Danny?" said Liam, elbowing me in the chest. I actually realized he was right, but there was still the little niggle of concern in my heart.

"I suppose I'll take that as a yes!" said Balancia, excitedly. "You really are as grand as you were two years ago!"

[BGM: End]

Kevin smiled. "Yeah, I guess we are," he said, chuckling. That was when we arrived at our destination: a large cave blocked by a wooden door marked with several small globes attached to a bigger globe in the middle with branches.

"Well, this looks…kinda cool," I said. "Is this gonna be our home base or something?"

"Something like that, yes," said Balancia. "Now hold on, only I can open this." She flew up to the middle of the door and closed her eyes. Clear hologram-like images of the Gadgets of Order appeared around her, and we heard their familiar jingle play as their beams shot out. A crack was heard, and the door slowly opened.

"(Whoa, boy!)" cried Spawny. It was not only bright, but windy, too! Pork Chop was easily being blown around, so I had to hold onto him to keep him from blowing away. Meanwhile, the rabborgs were holding on to the grass to keep from blowing away, while Liam and Kevin shielded their eyes.

After a while, the light and wind died down. "(Well, that certainly wasn't pleasurable,)" said Spawnette, fixing her tutu. And that was when we got our first good look at our new surroundings.

[Character Selected: Kevin]
[Current World: Minecraftia]
[Current Location: Private World, Multiversal Gateway]

[BGM: Antimo & Welles - Map Room [Minecraft: Story Mode 101 OST]]

You gaze in awe at the interior as you walk inside the cave. An otherwise-dark hallway is illuminated by several portals, each with a marking of a different world you've been to. A blue portal marked by a gold ring leads to the Sonic world, you think, while a pink portal with a marking of a square with a cone on top leads to the Unikingdom. It's a sight that genuinely impresses you, and the others feel the same.

"So this place basically connects all of the worlds in the…how do you say it, Chaosverse?" you inquire.

"Correct, and it's hidden to everyone but us," says Balancia. "We can't just have anyone wandering into these portals now, can we?"

"True, true," says Liam. "So, which world are we going into first?"

Balancia twirls around and points to a portal at the far end of the hallway. "This one right here!" The portal she points to is turquoise-colored and marked with the icon of pawprints.

"That world made up of dogs?" you ask. "Hmm. We haven't been there since we first met the Heelers."

"Oh, no, not that one!" Balancia corrects you. "This is a world where all sorts of inanimate objects can talk, and people like ones in the real world coexist with them."

"Hmm, that sorta rings a bell," says Danny, trying to pinpoint the world she's talking about. "Well, what are we waiting for? Let's go!"

"Whoa, hold your horses!" says Balancia, flying in front of the portal. "Did you bring the Keys of Balance?"

Everyone gives her a weird look. "The what?" says Liam.

"The Keys of Balance!" repeats Balancia. "These keys can harness the good and bad in the multiverse and be used to face the Challenges of the Code! Andy and Mark said that they gave them to you months ago!"

That last phrase makes you think of the mini-game tournament you participated in back in October. "That's what those keys were for?" you ask. "I've been wondering about that for months!"

"Yeah, uh…we left them back at our house," says Liam, rubbing the back of his head. "It should be the chest in the storage room marked "Important Stuff".

"Got it! I'll be right back!" After that, Balancia twirls around three times and vanishes, just like Buzzer used to do. Then all of you turn your attention towards the portal.

"So…anyone wanna peak their head in and see what's inside?" asks Danny.

"(I guess just one little check wouldn't hurt,)" says Spawny, agreeing. The decision made you all creep up to the portal and stick your heads through. The first thing you see is…a toy chest. In a room with red walls and a felt frame.

"No way…" says Danny, genuinely surprised. "The Blue's Clues world?"

"It's always preschool shows, isn't it?" says Liam, groaning a little. "Wait, someone's coming!" he suddenly says, hearing footsteps. Before you even see who it is, you all pull your heads back into the portal hall.

"(Well, that was a…very strange experience…)" says Spawnette. "(And those dreams where I discovered my elemental powers were quite bizarre!)"

Balancia returns at that moment, holding the three transparent keys you won in the tournament. "So sorry for that delay, but here we are!" She tosses the keys into your, Danny's, and Liam's hands. "Danny, you there have the Key of Light, which absorbs the kindness and goodheartedness in the multiverse!"

"So we just gotta do good deeds to power this thing up?" Danny asks, and Balancia nods. "Alright, sounds easy…a little too easy." He turns towards the back wall, spotting three keyholes marked with icons of the yin-yang symbol. "Say, what about these keyholes?"

"Oh, those?" says Balancia, flying towards the keyholes. "Once we charge the Key of Light completely, we just place it into this keyhole…" She points towards the keyhole marked with the "yin" portion. "...and we'll gain access to the first two Challenges of the Code. If we succeed, we'll achieve one of the three Cubes of Balance!"

"Cubes of Balance?" you say. "Well, every adventure story needs a good macguffin…"

"So, is everybody ready?" asks Balancia, pointing towards the portal.

You all look at each other and nod. "No player left behind," says Danny. And with that, you all run right into the portal to begin your newest adventure.

[BGM: End]

[Character Selected: Manipulator]
[Current World: In-Between Space]
[Current Location: N/A]

From his viewpoint of the Chaosverse, the Manipulator could see seven orbs traveling from the Minecraft world to another world. "Those fools…traveling to the world where my powers returned," it said, shaking its head. "They won't know what hit them." With that, it began to travel right to the world they were traveling to…

To be continued...and next time: looking for clues!

Next chapter: "In Search of Pawprints" It's time for the adventure to really begin, in the world of Blue's Clues! In order to fill up the first Key of Balance, the Maniacs will have to (what else?) play a game of Blue's Clues! Not everyone's happy about it, but if you use your mind and take a step at a time, anything can be done!

Postface: Chapter complete! So, now the ball's rolling and the adventure can really begin!

Trivia time! Now that she's been properly introduced, here's a little more light on Balancia. The reason why I decided to make her an allay, one of the creatures added in the recent Minecraft update, is because I wanted the players' companion this time to be an almost fairy-like being, someone that came from the space between worlds. After thinking about it, I decided the allays fit the bill just fine! The bit about her being made out of a duplicate of Buzzer's soul was a compromise between an idea I had where she was a reincarnation of him straight-up - I decided the original Buzzer deserved some rest! As for why she's a girl, I just wanted a little more female main characters, that's all. In addition, we have our new home base: the Multiversal Gateway! This will be the players' main way of travelling between worlds from now on, and it's where the Challenges of the Code will occur! What are the Challenges of the Code? You'll see...

That should be it! Please read, review, and share around, and I'll see you all next time for a little bit of clue hunting! Stay diamond, everyone!

-Alfred

~Minecraft and everything related to it are properties of Mojang Studios and Xbox Game Studios. No copyright infringement with any of these companies nor financial gain was intended in the making of this story. Any resemblance to real-world people or events are either coincidental or done fictitiously.~