AN: People seem to be getting into this, which I'm glad for. Still not promoting it on the Discord, since I don't wanna be pressured in the case I can't update this weekly. As of now, however, I'm sticking with one chapter a week.

We return to Teal's story.

RISES IN THE EAST

[Teal]

Keara, Tomas, and Teal gazed in awe at the steep rocky cliffs that rose from the Restful Meadows. From their position, they could just make out the silhouette of Lunar Castle and the ruined—yet statuesque—skyscrapers of Nitebane. Up there, one of the biggest tragedies of Minecraftia occurred, leaving the kingdom a ruined mess where Griefers gathered. It was like a black hole; get too close and you'd find yourself drawn in whether you wanted to or not and brutally killed.

"Welp, we ain't getting any younger." Teal chirped happily as she started walking towards the cliff base. Tomas and Keara followed close behind.

Though the thrill-seeking trio partook in reckless stunts regularly, they weren't stupid enough to reach the cliffs through the ruined kingdom fraught with peril. They were quite sensible. They traveled during the day and went at the cliffs from the meadows, intending to climb up as they went. Even then, they wouldn't reach the top of the cliffs and risk encountering Griefers or worse. They'd keep out of sight, mine a safe ledge to camp out at night, and then watch the beautiful sunrise over the ocean in the morning. From the Cliffside vantage point, it would be a view that hadn't been witnessed by Crafters for eighty years. When Keara told Teal that, it got her more pumped to get a good spot.

Climbing the cliffs wasn't a new thing. Nitebane had set up a couple of trails for Crafters to enjoy. They hadn't seen use after the Tragedy of Nitebane, but that meant the trio would be unbothered by Griefers so long as they didn't attract attention.

The trail started off fairly steep. The difference in elevation between the meadows and the cliffs meant there'd be a steep incline at some point. Tomas, with his thick calves and incredible finger strength, was the best at rock-climbing and left his two female companions in the dust at the start. Once the trail leveled out, however, he waited up for them and they went together at a more leisurely pace.

"We're already so high up." Keara noted as she cautiously peered over the edge. She jumped when Teal grabbed both her shoulders with a short exclamation of "Boo!"

"Don't do that!" Keara slapped her away angrily even though Teal kept a secure hold of Keara when she scared her. The blue-haired girl giggled mischievously.

"You think I'd risk that? I don't want you getting ripped apart by Guardians."

It was common knowledge that the Eastern Ocean was patrolled by Guardians; spiky fish Mobs that shot debilitating lasers at any encroaching Crafters. If you survived the fall and the rocks at the bottom, you'd soon meet your end at the eyes of the merciless Guardians.

"I actually read that some people jumped." Tomas commented. "Back when that deadly Mob was tearing apart Nitebane, Crafters would jump off the cliffs to save themselves. They figured even if they didn't make it, it would be a kinder death."

"That's nice." Teal said sarcastically. "Can we discuss something a little less morbid?"

"Sure thing. Anyone getting hungry or thirsty?" Keara pulled out water bottles and healthy foods—apples, watermelon, carrots, and cooked fish. Teal and Tomas helped themselves to some and washed it down with a swig of water. Hiking and rock-climbing burnt up the Hunger Meter fast.

In the afternoon, the sun moved out of sight and cast the cliffs in shadows. It made it harder to see gaps in the rocks. Luckily, Keara came prepared with Potions of Night Vision. One sip and the three could see as clear as day.

Higher and higher they climbed, cautiously knocking off any Mobs that spawned from the shadows. Tomas was a decent archer and took out any Creepers, Skeletons, and Witches from a safe distance. Teal and Keara, familiar with boxing and kickboxing, simply jabbed the Zombies and Spiders off the sides.

When the last vestiges of daylight began to fade and their Night Vision wore off, they chose then to stop and make camp. It was a fantastic spot, too. They were right beneath the rocky outcropping from which Lunar Castle stood. The top of the cliff was maybe twenty meters above them, but it was an overhang, so they had shelter from any unwanted eyes. The trio took out pickaxes and began to mine a large enough shelf to set up tents and beds.

"You know," Teal groused, "when I suggested rock-climbing Nitebane's cliffs, I expected a little more danger."

"You want danger? Set off a firework and bring the whole Griefer population down on us. That's a joke!" Keara said quickly when Teal took out the explosive.

"I wasn't going to do it… mostly." Teal mumbled before putting it away.

"I for one thought this was nice." Tomas smiled, flexing his sore fingers. "A good workout. A good sweat. And tomorrow morning, we'll wake up to the most breathtaking sunrise. I'm gonna sleep right away."

"You don't want to stay up and talk?"

"No, because the sooner I sleep, the sooner I wake up for that sunset." It was almost impressive how he flopped into bed, out like a light. He didn't even care to set up a proper tent. Just a bed and some torches.

"He'll catch a cold." Keara shook her head in exasperation before putting down some netherrack and lighting a campfire. The sea breeze hitting the cliffs at night was bone chillingly cold, even with the fire, so Teal set up some cobblestone to shield them. Then Keara built the rest of Tomas' tent so he wouldn't freeze his nips off.

The two girls hunched over near the fire, talking about idle things without waking their snoozing friend.

"Sorry this isn't up to your standards." Keara apologized.

"Nah, I get it." Teal waved her off. "Better safe than sorry. I don't wanna get mobbed by Griefers."

"We'll think up something special for your spawnday." Keara promised, only for Teal to raise an eyebrow and hold out her little finger.

"Pinky swear?"

Keara scoffed. "What are you, five?" Teal held her pinky further, prodding Keara's cheek insistently. "Fine. Pinky swear." The platinum blonde extended her hand and the two girls wrapped pinkies before breaking the connection.

Teal yawned. "Let's hope that sunset is worth it."

After a few more minutes in which the two couldn't stay up any longer, they retired to their tents and snuggled into their beds.

Teal woke up in the middle of the night.

Confused, she rubbed at her eyes and peered around, wondering what possessed her to wake up at this hour. She was usually a heavy sleeper.

Then she heard it. A deep, low murmur from outside her tent.

"…not our own. Look how prepared they are."

"Let's toss them off."

A shiver ran down Teal's spine and she fought to hold her breath as she listened through the tent. At least two voices. Maybe more. And they were making serious threats against her and her friends—

Her friends!

"Don't wake them. Take their gear off their hands. Then dump 'em over the side. Let the Guardians have them."

"WAKE UP!" Teal screamed at the top of her lungs before darting out, fists flying.

Her scared blue eyes took in the amount of Griefers in an instant. Fourteen. Too many to fight on her own. But there was no way Keara and Tomas could sleep through her scream. Instead, she used her boxing and kickboxing training and struck the first confused Griefer in the face, knocking him out in one hit. She knocked a second one back before the Griefers recovered from the shock and drew swords of various materials. Their armor was also a mismatch of materials. Leather, chainmail, iron, and gold.

She and her friends had no armor at all. Too cumbersome for rock-climbing.

Her head swiveled as they tried to surround her and she leapt back before kicking high into one Griefer's chin. His teeth clacked together loudly. She then performed a roundhouse kick to another approaching Griefer, knocking him flat on his ass.

A brave one probed with a sword and scored a hit on her side. The pain made her heart race and she backpedaled to avoid any more hits.

They're trying to kill me. She thought, her blue eyes quivering. One mistake and I'm dead.

"Teal!" Came a shout from the tents as Tomas and Keara leapt into the fray. Tomas fired arrows and knocked one or two Griefers back and Keara struck out with a pickaxe. It was the only weapon she had. Not one of them had brought a sword or armor.

"These girls got some scrap in them." One Griefer rasped sleazily. Teal's skin crawled at his voice. "The blue-haired one especially. So exotic. Any chance we can have some fun with them, boss?"

"Try it and you'll lose an eye!" Tomas threatened, firing at the sleazy Griefer and scoring a hit in his shoulder. He failed to notice the Griefer sneaking up on him with sword raised.

"Tomas! Behind you!" Teal warned.

He whirled, but the Griefer was faster and struck Tomas in the head. Teal's friend fell to his knees, his eyes dazed.

Keara shoved a pair of Griefers away with her pickaxe while Teal spun to protect Tomas. Instead, she was tugged back by her ponytail, courtesy of the sleazy Griefer.

"Such silky hair. Almost a shame to kill you, girly." He guffawed before slashing at her unprotected back. She cried out and tried to get away, but the Griefer prevented it with another sharp tug of her hair. She fell down with a pained shriek.

I'm going to die! I'm going to die! I'm going to die!

Teal's heart was beating a mile a minute. Blood was hurtling through her veins. Her breathing sped up. Her pupils dilated. Every muscle in her body was tense, demanding to be exerted. The sights and smells all felt hyperactive to her as fear clawed its icy hand over her soul. Adrenaline flooded her bloodstream.

She saw the sleazy Griefer raise his sword as if in slow motion. Saw her friends beset by Griefers.

She was in fight or flight mode, now.

Her leg shot out fast as a bullet and kicked the sleazy Griefer's chest in. His mouth opened in a soundless wail, but Teal didn't let up. Instead, she spun around, whipping his face with her released ponytail, and grabbed at the arm holding the sword. Then she used her boxing training and threw out a sharp jab to his throat.

While he fought for oxygen, Teal wrenched out his sword and then buried it in his chest using every bit of her adrenaline-fueled strength. He didn't cry out since he was still trying to breathe in, but Teal pushed off with her arms, and flung the Griefer off the shelf and way off the cliff. He flailed his arms as he went down.

The other Griefers cried out in alarm, and one tried to attack Teal in retribution.

I don't want to die! I don't want to die! I don't want to die!

The blue-nette swung wildly, not used to a sword, but succeeded in slashing the Griefer's chest. They were as equally untrained in the blade as she, and they seemed to reconsider fighting now that one of them had a weapon and another was dead.

"…Let's get out of here." One of them spoke, backing away from Teal who was still breathing heavily, her hair slightly frazzled. Her terrified eyes, however, promised pain if they resumed the fight.

One by one, the band of Griefers backed off, going up the trail from whence they came. Once they were gone and the two girls were sure they wouldn't come back, Keara went over to the dazed Tomas.

"Oh my God…" Tomas murmured to himself, breathing fast. "Oh my God, we almost died… we almost just died..."

"Yeah…" Keara struggled to keep her breathing under control. "That was… geez… forget the sunrise and packing up. Let's just get out of here before they come back. Teal?"

Teal looked over the edge where she pushed that sleazy Griefer. She looked down as far as she could, but she couldn't see if he hit the bottom or the water. Either way, he'd be dead before long. And it was because of her that he died.

"It was self-defense, Teal." Keara said immediately. "You saved us. They would have killed us if you hadn't scared them off."

Teal's shallow breathing took a while to calm down, even as she raised a hand to her chest and felt her own heart pounding from the near-death experience. A dull ache started to fill her muscles as the adrenaline wore off. Her muscles may have done something beyond their capacity in that fight or flight moment of exertion. She was shaking slightly. Trembling.

She didn't realize what she was trembling with.

"Teal."

"Yeah, I heard you." Teal nodded absently before turning away from the cliff, the sword clutched tightly in her hand. She'd keep it in case any Griefers showed up. The tents were left where they were.

Tomas and Teal ate some food to fix their Health and they slowly made their way back down the cliffs. Along the way, the sun finally rose past the horizon. It would have been beautiful and greatly appreciated if the three hadn't almost died moments ago.

Though Teal could be pleased with a bit of the sunrise. Not a lot, but a bit.

By the time the group of friends made it back to the Restful Meadows, they were ready to put Nitebane and its cliffs behind them. They found their horses and rode out without looking back.

But in Teal's heart, she became aware of a profound hunger that wouldn't go away.

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