One less
Nuka froze when he heard that.
"What?!" he heard Steve ask a second later with an agitated voice, who then pushed past the young soldier.
He looked around with panicking eyes before turning back to her. "How could you have only noticed this now?!"
"I'm sorry!" the young soldier quickly replied, stepping back and looking at Steve with fearful eyes. "I-I swear he was right behind me just a moment ago, really! I... I even ask if he needs help, but he said he could manage on his own. So, I went ahead..."
"I'm so sorry...I should have kept a better eye on him..." she added with a guilty, lowered gaze, and Nuka felt a pang in his heart as he looked at her.
He could understand how she felt and wished he could somehow help her.
But he knew that it was not his place to speak up right now.
Maybe I can talk to her later Nuka thought but before he could ponder further, a frustrated sigh from Steve snapped him back to reality.
"I'll go get him," he retorted grumpily, but before he could take another step, Roxana blocked his way.
"No! You can't. That's far too dangerous! You're way to important and besides you'll get lost just like he did," she interjected sharply. "I'll go."
"But if you go, our group will have no protection and, most importantly, no guidance out of here!" Steve argued, to which Roxana simply shrugged.
"But what else should we do?" she asked him, and suddenly an idea struck Nuka!
"I can go."
Steve and Roxana stopped their angry stare-off at that and instead turned to him, which made him smile nervous.
He never liked being the center of attention, especially when these were people he was afraid of.
"I-I mean," he continued with a slightly faltering voice, "I-I can teleport. So, I can search for him and come back here without any issues."
It was a stupid idea, but it was the only one that more or less remained for them, and to his surprise, Roxana actually seemed to consider it.
"Thats not a bad idea," Roxana replied eventually, "but the tunnels extend quite far. Are you sure you can teleport that far?"
"I think so.", Nuka answered with a shrug ,,As long as I have a picture in mind of the place I wanna go, I can go farther than I normally can."
"Besides, it hasn't been that long since you saw Notch," he added, glancing at the young soldier. "So, he can't be too far away."
"Well even if he is, I won't let a criminal like your search for Notch!" Steve growled sharply, which made Nuka shurk a bit.
But before Steve could say more, Roxana stood in his way.
"He might be a criminal," she dared to put forward, "but we don't have any other option and we're also running out of time, so we'll have no chioce but to trust him at this."
Steve glared at her grimly, and for a moment, Nuka feared he would object and set off on his own.
But then he just sighed in resignation.
"Fine," he muttered eventually, turning his stern gaze onto Nuka. "But you better not dare to disappoint me, or else..."
"No!"
Herobrine's sharp voice hit Nuka so unexpectedly that he almost jumped back in shock, before turning his gaze and looking at his friend, which was still by his side and now looked very upset.
"Hero..." he tried to talk to him, but Herobrine just vehemently shook his head!
"No! Never! Under no circumstances am I letting you search for Notch!" he flared up again, causing Nuka to look at him in shock, unsure of how to respond.
"Of cause, you would object!" Steve grumbled, to which Herobrine snorted contemptuously.
"Why so surprised?!" he spat towards Steve. "Do you think I would risk Nuka's life for a bastard like him? It's his own fault for not keeping up!"
"What?!" Steve snapped, his hands now clenched into fists, bearly able to hold back his anger and Nuka could feel tensions rising up!
"Stop!" Nuka quickly intervened before things could escalate further. "You don't need to argue any further. I will go."
"Don't worry," he continued, looking at Herobrine with a reassuring smile "I'll be right back. Promise."
With these words, Nuka disentangled himself from Herobrine and walked back through the tunnel without hesitation.
"Nuka!" Herobrine called out to him with an angry voice, but he collapsed after taking the first step in an attempt to follow him, forced to helplessly watch his best and only friend vanish out of his sight, while Einshine went over to him to help him up.
(Change of View)
Notch didn't know how long it had been since he lost sight of the group.
He didn't even know how it happened.
He had just stopped briefly to shake off the dizziness that had suddenly hit him, and when he looked up, they were gone.
Since then, he had been wandering through the tunnels desperately, always searching for the others, but he hadn't found them since.
With every dead-end Notch hit, his fear and hopelessness that he wouldn't find them grew more and more.
I'm such an idiot... he thought as he sighed, feeling defeated after ending up in yet another dead-end. I should've just accepted help from that young soldier...then nothing of this would have happened...
But before he could contemplate that further, another sharp pain shot through his head, causing him to groan as he slumped down, laying his head against the next wall.
I wonder if that's one of the symptoms Ethan mentioned, he pondered, when suddenly a loud explosion directly above him made him flinch.
A powerful gust of wind and a wave of dust followed, and as Notch blinked, he could see that just a few blocks away from him, a large hole had appeared in the ceiling, letting in a bit of daylight.
And in that hole, dimly illuminated by the red light of the staff, stood none other than Null.
(Change of View)
Nuka ran as fast as he could through the countless tunnels, constantly searching for Notch or any clue as to where he might be. However, he couldn't spot him anywhere.
Where could that guy be? Nuka thought desperately, when suddenly a loud explosion echoed, seeming to have been very close by.
Full of worry what caused the explosion, Nuka rushed towards the location.
However, he came to an abrupt halt when he ran around a corner and looked directly at Null standing amidst a hole that seemed to be caused by the explosion.
Fortunately, Null had his back turned to him, so he didn't notice Nuka. It gave him the chance to quickly hide behind a pile of debris, before he could notice him.
Why aren't the mages coming to fight him? Nuka despaired, looking up towards the hole, hoping they would appear any moment to attack the tall shadow.
But nothing happened, and the longer Nuka waited, the more nervous he became.
They can't all be dead already right? He thought, distressed, but before he could ponder further, Null began to speak.
"Well, well, well who do we have here?" he asked, his voice dripping with satisfaction.
He still hasen't notice Nuka and as he looked out from his hiding place, he discovered why.
At the end of another corridor on the opposite side of him, sat no one other than Notch, pressing himself against the wall, while fearfully staring at Null.
"I told you that you can't hide from me" Null continued. "Though I must admit, even I didn't expect to find you this quickly."
With these words, Null slightly moved his head, which made Notch gasp as suddenly something invisible grabbed and forcefully pulled him forward, dragging him across the ground towards Null.
Nukas eyes widened as he watched the scenery before him!
He hadn't expected him to be this powerful!
I though it was impossible to move something without making a single physical movement from your hands! Nuka thought shocked, watching as Notch desperately tried to hold onto the ground or somehow escape Null's grip. But nothing seemed to work..
I wonder if he could do that before, or if the staff granted him that ability?
He felt his heart tighten anxiously as Notch was flipped over and now lay on his back with Null standing over him.
"Now, where are your brothers?" Null continued at this moment, his voice growing darker.
He continued to use his telekinetic powers to press Notch against the ground and, in addition, held the staff to his face, causing it to emit a bright yellow light.
"I-I don't know," Nuka heard Notch say in this moment, his voice a mix of fear and a shaky determination. "A-and even if I did, I'd never-"
His last words were drowned out by a loud scream of pain as Null suddenly lifted his foot and stomped with full force on his arm, breaking it!
That all happened so quickly that Nuka was hardly able to see, causing him to flinch and hide behind the pile of debris again.
Oh no, what should I do now? He thought desperately, closing his eyes and gritting his teeth as he could hear Notch's pained moans and whimpers. I can't fight Null...I'll never stand a chance against someone like him... but I can't just leave Notch alone...
"Hey don't get cocky now," Null's dark voice sounded a moment later. He paused with his foot in place, exerting even more pressure on the already injured arm. "Now, tell me where your brothers are, and don't dare lie!"
With these words, Nuka peeked out from behind the pile of debris again, only to see Null lift the staff, its crystal now glowing red, and slam it onto the ground, sending a small shockwave emanating from it.
Fortunately, the shockwave didn't reach Nuka.
"I-I don't know. I r-really don't know," Notch whispered softly in response and Nuka was startled by how fear-filled and shaky his voice now sounded. "I-I lost them in... in the tunnels... I doubt they're still here."
"We'll see about that," Null replied calmly. "But before I continue searching for them, I'll take you with me first. It would be a shame to lose you again."
And before Nuka could do anything, Null grabbed Notch by the arm, pulling him up, causing him to cry out in pain, yet Null seemed to pay no attention to his suffering.
Instead, he lifted the staff again and, with a forceful motion, opened a portal, which looked quite different from any Nuka had seen before.
Speechless, Nuka sat there, gazing at the portal that glowed a fiery. It seemed much more unstable since it was lacking the frame of a Nether portal.
However, unlike Nuka, this dark portal with its strange noises and occasional flickers of light didn't seem to instill fear in Null.
Instead, Null held onto Notch even more tightly and walked through the portal without looking back.
Oh no, where is he taking him now?! Nuka thoughed concerned as he watched Notch being drawn into the portal, when he suddenly raised his head and his eyes widening in surprise as he spotted Nuka.
Startled, Nuka looked back, but before he could say or do anything, Notch disappeared and the portal dissolved before his eyes.
Nuka stood there for a moment, staring at the spot where the portal had been in dismay, before shaking his head to clear his thoughts and then teleporting away.
He didn't like the idea of returning to the others with such bad news but there was nothing more he could do to help Notch.
He needed to focus on reporting to the others and getting them out of here as quickly as possible, knowing that it wouldn't be long before Null returned and started searching for them again.
I just hope Steve won't be to angry about this Nuka worried as he reappeared at the place where he had left Herobrine and the others.
But to his shock, no one was there!
What? But how am I supposed to find them now? Nuka thought alarmed, and then he noticed a small light!
Startled, he turned around and to his surprise, he spotted a small pink-glowing cat that looked more like a light form than a real creature. It was gazing at him with its white eyes.
At first, Nuka was confused and uncertain about its appearance, but then he realized.
This must be a spell from Roxana so I am able to find them, he deduced and as if he had heard his thoughts, the cat turned away and shot down the tunnel in a flash.