AN: 10,000 Views! Over 200 Reviews! Forget Meter-stones! That's an official Milestone! Thanks for all the views my appreciated readers!
Also, I got a couple of questions in the reviews, so I figured I'd answer a few of them with the reviewer's name. Think of it as an 'I appreciate your input to my story, and I respectfully offer my responses.'
-Responses-
The Ravenclawed Demigod: Aside from Inventory, I never really considered adding EXP levels. It's easy enough to keep track of though, so I don't see a reason not to include it. I'll write it at the end of each player's Inventory list from now on.
Yuri fanatic: M-rated parts?...ehhh...I don't really want to cross the T-rated line...Y'know, since this is about Minecraft. Doesn't mean I can't hint at possible interactions. *wink wink* *nudge nudge*
Platypotato: Honestly, you people will ship anything! First it was Cobb X Erin, then it was Cobb X Wynn, then it was Wynn X Veronica, and then Cobb X Fishing Rod! People don't have to hook up, they can just be good friends.
AxeHelix: Yay, Verily.
Void of Shining Darkness: Wynn is always grumpy. The Squidward of Ringwood.
Slenderbrine: Again this is rated T, I don't give inappropriate answers to riddles.
AwakenedKarbon: If the Transformers reference was more in detail, there'd be less talking and more Michael Bay explosions.
DarkWolf133: The mason appreciates your sympathy. Thanks for thinking of him. Honestly, I didn't think anyone would.
Laner: Yup, 200 Reviews! I finally...oh! You cared about the mason too? Well, gee, I didn't expect so much support for-
AwesomeCoolGuy5: Okay, seriously, you guys really felt bad for this character! So much sympathy...Also I unknowingly referenced Deadpool...Don't tell Fox.
joel348: Oh, cool, free cookies! Just need to slap on the Victory Cookie brand and...um...forget I just said that.
Congrats to Void of Shining Darkness for answering the riddle correctly. The answer: They weren't twins, but triplets! Got some weird answers to that one, but enjoy your cookie and your acknowledgment.
(::)
Puzzle: When is a door, not a door?
Disclaimer: I don't own Minecraft. If I did, I'd add goggles.
Beta: Void of Shining Darkness
Chapter 33
Redstone
[King's Fortress]
Rotjes sat atop his throne, carefully contemplating the deal Wynn had presented to him.
A Cross-Kingdom Railway. Just the concept alone was absurd.
The ten Kingdoms had always remained separate from each other. If a Crafter wasn't satisfied living in a certain Kingdom, then he had to journey on foot to get around. The only exceptions were the airships, but they were a rich man's luxury, considered too convenient for general use.
The Railway would go against all that. It would link two Kingdoms together and further uphold unity.
A Railway of that size would require resources and builders and engineers and guards: A fast way of creating jobs for the many unemployed. And all of them would revere the King who pulled them out of the gutter with payable work.
Not to mention, a simple toll or ticket system would drop much needed emeralds into Daymonte's lap. Redstone tech and engineers were expensive, after all.
Rotjes smiled happily. While being wealth and being praised by his people seemed suitable cause to accept the deal, it wasn't the main reason he was considering it.
What Veronica said was true. Future generations would admire the King that broke tradition and helped facilitate the first ever Cross-Kingdom Railway. Maybe even the first of many.
Perhaps King Miles realized the same thing.
Making a mark in Daymonte's—no—all of Minecraftia's history! That certainly sounded suitable for accepting the deal!
It would cost him. That much was obvious. The Northern Swamps were always looked upon as a last resort of iron reserves. And it was unknown whether they'd be enough.
The Griefers in between were also an issue. They were weak, but numerous. Like ants.
And enough of those ants could collapse the entire railway. Thankfully, they only ever operated in small bands of twenty or thirty, just enough to overpower any unsuspecting Crafter, but not enough to mount an attack on any settlement.
And, who knows, with the Railway in place, Crafters would have no reason to travel on foot between Ringwood and Daymonte. The Griefer attacks would subsequently subside, and maybe disappear for good.
Hopefully.
But it was always better to have a second opinion.
"You called for me, Your Lordship?" A muscular and dark-skinned man with short black hair knelt before the King.
"Yes, Captain Thistle," King Rotjes greeted. "I need your opinion on a recent…proposal."
"You're getting married, Your Lordship!?"
[Cobb]
The Redstone College had so many halls and rooms and passages and stairwells and trampolines and doomsday lasers…
Okay, probably not doomsday lasers. But they looked like some complicated devices with all the glowing trails of red dust and pistons pumping in and out. It wouldn't surprise me if a college for 'redstone tech' ever thought twice about building weapons of mass destruction.
Surely that was a college-offered Major.
Or maybe just a Minor.
But the college's curriculum wasn't what I was there for. Oh no, no, no.
I was there to check out the Redstone Fair: The event intended to show off the 'wonders' of redstone technology.
At least, that's what it said on the promotional signs all over the place. And judging by the crowd of Crafters all traveling in one direction, I only needed one guess as to where the fair was being held.
I followed the flow of the crowd as we emptied out of the castle and into a wide courtyard. The ground was dirt and grass instead of stone, and was far more comfortable on my sore feet.
I really need some new leather— I attempted to think before all thoughts were wiped from my head.
"Wow." I spoke breathlessly.
The entire courtyard was filled with strange contraptions, characterized by some bit of red glow or moving piston. There were levers and buttons and flat crystal things I never saw before. And then there were furnace-looking things I never saw before. And then there were gold and iron plates (also never saw before) hooked up to flat, two-torched plates.
There were metal hooks trailing fine wire across the ground, more of those note blocks I recognized by the musical notes popping out of them. Clocks and slime blocks and what looked like a replica of a trampoline tower. Circles of that red dust that flowed in an endless, glowing, loop.
A whole section of the courtyard looked designated for rides and fun attractions. Slot machines, trampoline bouncy castles, glass mazes, dunk tanks, and best of all…
ROLLER COASTERS!
Rails that climbed, circled, and wove through the structures of the college. I recognized one particular rail that looked wired with gold from the time Floyd and I traveled through Mt. Mur. And judging by how it propelled minecarts filled with Crafters, I figured it was the same thing.
Just as I was about to sprint towards the 'funfair' section of the fair, a feminine voice reverberated in my mind.
'…Today, you are to spend sixty seconds thinking over whatever you do, looking at any and all consequences, before proceeding with an action. And I don't care what crazy Butterfly Effects your mind comes up with. If you think there is even the slightest possibility of things going wrong, you are to forget all about it.'
I paused with my foot hovering in the air and my body leaning towards the funfair, my will barely keeping myself in check. Calm down, Cobb. You can't go rushing in. Not without thinking things through first.
Brain: Are you serious!? They have a friggen roller coaster! And I don't want to spend sixty seconds of my figurative life thinking about doing something!
Heart: Brain! This is Cobb's decision. And just because—oh, wait, hang on…Bladder! Can you be a dear and get me the hammer? I'm about to break the Fourth Wall.
Fourth Wall?
Bladder: *Hands over hammer*
Heart: Thank you. *Breaks fourth Wall* Now, as I was saying, just because we haven't gotten enough screen time doesn't mean we can just pop in whenever we want.
Brain: Cobb. Forget Wynn's advice. Just run into the fair, recklessly with arms flailing. Like nature intended.
No, Brain.
Brain: DO IT!
No!
Brain: Just DO IT! Don't let your dreams be dreams.
What…why the fuck are you saying that?
Brain: Yesterday, you said tomorrow. So JUST DO IT! MAKE YOUR DREAMS COME TRUE!
No! Wynn's going to stab me in the balls and make me read fifty volumes worth of text! With no pictures!
Bladder: As the bladder, I too detest the ball stabbings. We should do things Wynn's way…for now.
Brain: Uggggggghhhhhhh…fine. But I'm not gonna enjoy this.
With everything sorted out inside, I took a look at the nearest attraction at the funfair: A slot machine. Immediately I thought of any possible consequences.
I saw myself operating the slot machine. Depositing all the imaginary emeralds I didn't have, to try and win the jackpot. After several failing attempts, I saw myself frustratingly punching and kicking the machine, calling it a 'Rip-off' before getting ripped off the slots by security and promptly thrown from the fair…
…INTO A POOL OF LAVA! Where I would get incinerated to death!
And then, Wynn, with the dark powers of sternness, would somehow bring me back to life to stab me in the balls and force me to read fifty volumes for disrupting the fair!
Heart: Brain! Stop thinking up wild stories! They're messing with Cobb's thought process.
Brain: Tough. If I can't have roller coasters, this is the next best thing…I could really use some popcorn to watch this…
The sixty seconds of thinking were up, and even if I had emeralds, I figured the slots were a bad idea. So I turned away to the next attraction: The Dunk Tank. A Crafter was sitting on a piston exposed block jutted over a pool of ice-cold water. There, he taunted people to goad them into playing, aiming with a bow at a single wooden button that must have been connected to the piston.
Sixty seconds, starting…now!
I saw myself walking up to buy a round at the dunk tank…with imaginary emeralds I didn't have. Maybe they'd accept EXP bottles.
I saw myself take aim at the small button, readying an arrow, releasing it…and watching it fall into the pool. I kept trying, getting the arrow farther each time, before accidentally shooting an innocent Crafter in the eye.
Wouldn't you know it, the innocent Crafter was actually the King of Daymonte. And he was so pissed that he immediately declared war against the Kingdom of the Crafter that shot him. And while I was wearing the leather tunic with Ringwood's color blazoned across it…
Then, I saw myself getting grabbed by Wynn, where she proceeded to burn my cherished fishing rod in front of me before shoving my face into the first of fifty textbooks describing redstone.
The Horror!
Brain: Hah! This is actually kind of fun.
I shot down the idea of the Dunk Tank. The other attractions had similar results, leaving the roller coaster as the last choice for Wynn-Vision observation.
Alright, sixty seconds…please…
I saw myself getting on line for the roller coaster…using my rotten flesh tactics to quickly get to the front of the line. Then I boarded the minecart and took off along the ride.
But suddenly, disaster strikes, when Carys_Angel inexplicably returns from the dead as a Zombie Queen! She's forgiven me for killing Mr. Piggles, who has since been reanimated as a Zombie Pigman—
Oh, who am I kidding!? I'm babbling at this point! I internally complained. I mean, Zombie Pigmen? Really? The crap my mind comes up with…
Heart: I'll say.
Brain: Don't stop there! I was just about to think up Carys summoning a Zombie army to kidnap you and force you to be her slave for all eternity~!
Stomach: Save it for your fanfics, Brain.
I don't know what's worse: listening to you guys argue, or being forced to abandon doing anything when following Wynn-Vision!
Actually, I take that back. Wynn-Vision puts the 'unfair' in 'funfair!'
Seriously, did Wynn spend sixty seconds every time she decided on doing something? How did she even get anything done?
It must suck being Wynn 24-7.
[Wynn]
Why me? I internally complained while being led around by Veronica. She was smiling ear-to-ear and looked positively happy. In other words, the exact opposite of how an investigative Captain should look like.
Yet despite her beaming attitude, she at least must have felt a shred of urgency over the two serial bombers. Otherwise, she wouldn't have bothered recruiting the best Captain she knew.
And by recruiting, I meant blackmailing.
Veronica may have been laid-back, but even I couldn't tell if she'd sabotage a Kingdom-level proposal out of spite. It was a fifty-fifty gamble whether she'd do it or not, and I couldn't take that risk.
I needed to do whatever it took to get His Eminence's deal to take root. And if that required cleaning up Daymonte's criminals…and dealing with Veronica's disconcerting flirtations…
Then so be it.
"So," I began, figuring I'd need as much information as possible for solving the case. "What can you tell me about these two serial bombers?"
"Straight to the point, eh? How direct of you." Veronica began with a smirk. "Well, I only know enough about one of them." She parted her flowing hair to get at her backpack and fished out a few wanted posters. She shuffled through them before handing me one of a burly, ashen-faced man with a poison-green mohawk. "His name is Burke, or, as he prefers to be called, 'The Destroyer'. And no that's not a dead animal on his head, it's his hairstyle."
"I can see that." I replied, studying the likeness of the suspect. "I suppose the caricature is of the same likeness as the original?"
"Yep! The Lazuli artists captured his mug perfectly!"
I hummed in thought as I returned the poster. "What makes you so sure it's him? Are the bombings following his M.O."
"Well, that's the tricky part of this case." Veronica admitted with a head shake. "See, we already caught Burke. Years ago. And he was in prison…before he sort of…"
"Escaped?" I guessed at the blonde's obvious hesitance. She just chuckled awkwardly. "I assume you were on guard duty?"
She gasped dramatically. "How dare you even assume that I had anything to do with his escape! You have wounded me deeply, Wynn!" She clutched her chest, feigning agony.
I pretended to play along however. "You're right, Veronica. Please forgive my insolence for ever thinking you wouldn't take your job anything, but seriously."
Veronica pretended to consider my words before seemingly surrendering. "Alas, I cannot stay mad at you! You have my forgiveness."
I bowed to her before she started busting out in laughter. Even I had trouble stifling some giggles.
"Alright enough play-acting. I was on guard duty—"
"What a surprise."
"But, in my defense, I was hungry, and they were serving steak in the cafeteria."
"You poor thing." I sympathized dryly. "To make a choice between food and your Kingdom's security…"
"It wasn't like I could have done anything about it." She protested with a shrug. "The guards said there was an explosion near his cell, and by the time I got there, he was gone."
"He blew himself out?" I asked. "Did he have any access to gunpowder or TNT?"
"Well," Veronica tapped her chin in thought. "There was that pack of TNT we supplied him for an Arts-and-Crafts project—Of course we didn't give the guy any TNT! We're not stupid!" Veronica changed tones so quickly to get her point across. "Somebody else busted him out. Which is why I said we're looking for two serial bombers."
"An accomplice, perhaps?"
"Try partner." Veronica shuffled through the other wanted posters again. "Prior to his breakout, we got reports of dozens of bombings, all targeting support bridged throughout Daymonte. Burke was never one to target. Instead bombing things indiscriminately. Made him easy to catch, but…" She trailed off with a guilty expression, making it clear Burke claimed many innocent lives before he was caught.
And after all that, he was back on the outside.
"So, you're saying the bridge bomber and the one that freed Burke are one and the same?" I asked to steer the conversation away from Burke's victims and Veronica's guilt. "Any idea who?"
"No, none of the other wanted criminals stood out as the serial bomber type." Veronica quickly recovered from her guilt in favor of a small smile. "But if we check the crime scenes, we should be able to find some clues as to who our mysterious bridge bomber is. And I'm betting he'll know where Burke is hiding out."
Veronica stuffed the rest of the wanted posters back in her backpack and grinned to herself. "We find the bridge bomber, we find Burke, I reserve a hotel room for the two of us. Bing Bang Boom. And done!"
"Sounds like a—wait a second, what was that last part?" I asked, wondering if I had misheard her.
"Bing Bang Boom. And done?" Veronica replied evasively.
"No, before that."
"We…find the bridge bomber, we find—"
"No! In the middle!"
"I reserve a jail cell for the two of them?"
I paused, thinking back on the conversation. "I thought you said someth—"
"Hey look! We're here!" Veronica sang abruptly as we approached a half-destroyed bridge, one of the most recent crime scenes, surrounded by several red-capped guards. She hurried off to the nearest one before I could question her further.
…Maybe I'm just hearing things. I concluded with a shrug before following the blonde's lead.
She was animatedly talking with a sharp looking guard. "…There has to be some clue! Nobody saw anyone place any TNT?"
"No, Captain." The guard responded morosely. "I just questioned a few of the survivors. It's the same story we've heard before: Sudden hissing on the bridge, followed shortly by a cacophony of explosions. One of the survivors blown off was lucky enough to land on a slime pad. The others…not so much."
"Where were the other bombings done?" I questioned while striding forward.
"Who the hell are you?" The guard asked rudely. "This is official Daymonte business, young—Agh!"
Veronica drove an elbow into the guard's ribs. All while grinning impishly. "She's a friend of mine who was kind enough to help me with this case. And you were being rude to her. I think some quick kissing-up is in order."
The guard rubbed his sides and appeared apologetic. "S-sorry, Miss. I didn't mean to offend." He bowed low to me and I nodded in forgiveness.
"Good. Now say something nice to her to make up for your attitude." Veronica urged with a widening grin.
"Oh…um…you have pretty hair?" The guard offered awkwardly.
"Good enough." Veronica snapped her fingers and pointed to another nearby guard. "You there! Guy with the freckles!"
"My name is David, Captain!" The freckled guard shouted resentfully.
"Not now, Freckles!" Veronica dismissed much to her amusement before gesturing to me. "Kindly fill in my white-haired friend on where all the bombings have taken place up until now."
Immediately, the freckled guard walked up and began pointing above and below towards targeted bridges. A lot of them were under repair, but some of them were barren. Daymonte just couldn't keep up with the damage.
As he pointed to more and more bridges, something flashed across my vision. I shaded my eyes and glanced upward to see that it was a sunbeam streaking down from the noon-day sun. Even though the cavernous Kingdom was lit up with glowstone lanterns, the natural sunlight easily outmatched them in brightness.
In fact, it was kind of pointless having lanterns on at all when the sunlight shining down did so well illuminating…the…bridges…
Wait a second…
I spun my head towards the lanterns hooked up to the bridges. They were all turned off. But was it because the bridge containing the light's circuitry was destroyed? Or could it be…
Just to verify, I jogged over to the bridge's edge, despite ignoring the freckled guard's explanation, and looked down at one of the undestroyed bridges.
Just as I thought, the lanterns below were all turned off.
Whoever hooked up the lighting system, realized it would be a waste of power to light up the bridges directly below the chasm's opening.
But only during the day. At night, the lanterns would need to be powered to let Crafters see in the dark.
I looked back up towards where the freckled guard pointed out all the bombings and made a frame with my pointer fingers and thumbs, pointed straight towards the chasm opening.
All the bombings were within the fingered frame. All in the sunbeam's light.
"What is it, girl? You got the scent?" An excited blonde joked while walking up to me.
"I'm not a dog." I deadpanned. "But I believe I've found a common denominator in these bombings."
"Don't bust out the math terminology, please." Veronica begged, but eagerly awaited what I found out.
"They're all in the sunlight, where the lanterns are turned off." I pointed out, trailing a pointed finger from bridge to bridge.
Suddenly Veronica gasped and grabbed me by my shoulders. "Oh my God, Wynn! Do you know what this means!?"
"That you just realized who's responsible for these attacks?"
"Yeah…No, that was just for show. I actually have no idea what lanterns have to do with any of this." She smiled and stuck out her tongue cutely before I bonked her over the head.
I knew I'd have to do all the work here. I internally grumbled while the blonde clutched her head in pain. I turned back to the freckled guard. "Do you know what turns these lanterns off during the day?"
The guard scratched his cheek in thought, carefully trying to remember something. "Well, I know that Ohm Tower powers the Kingdom's Day-Night systems along with everything else. It does so with a multitude of daylight sensors that harness solar power." He gestured to the shut off lanterns. "From what I can guess, the redstone engineers must have hooked up certain bridges to turn on during the night and turn off during the day."
"All the attacks did happen at around Dawn." Veronica supplied.
"And the TNT could have been hidden within the bridges circuitry." I considered, already forming a theory of how it happened. "Pre-set to activate at that time. Giving the bomber ample time to vacate the area. No suspicion aroused." If that were the case, then this mysterious bomber was a genius.
I'd be impressed if he wasn't a serial bomber.
"But wait," Veronica held up her hands, trying to wrap her mind around something. "I'm no redstone expert, but if the lanterns turn OFF at dawn, how could they activate the TNT? It would need a signal to set off, right?"
"Do I look like redstone engineer?" The freckled guard questioned sarcastically.
The blonde Captain hummed in thought. "Nah, Freckles. You'd be whining more about me getting your name wrong if you were a—oh, wait…"
"Ha. Ha. Ha. Very funny, Captain." The freckled guard let out a harsh, fake laugh while Veronica smirked impishly.
"Alright, enough jokes." Veronica suddenly adopted a serious expression. "Freckles, tell the guards to rope off any bridges directly below those sunbeams. And spread the word for Crafters to stay inside at Dawn. It'll be inconvenient, but probably a lot safer."
The freckled guard nodded respectfully before leaving to fulfill the blonde's request.
While I was busy examining the scene for any evidence of faulty wiring, Veronica suddenly hooked her arm through mine and led me away from the destroyed bridge. "Veronica! Let me go! I was checking for more clues!"
"Any evidence of faulty wiring would be blown away along with the bridge. Besides I have a few engineering questions I need answered." She dragged me over to one of the trampoline tower lines before I finally escaped her grip. "And the Redstone College is filled with enough eggheads to make an omelet. I'm sure one of them can tell us how the TNT was triggered."
"That's…unexpectedly smart of you." I was pleasantly surprised by her reasoning. "Sometimes I forget you have a brain between your ears."
"Thanks!" She looked pleased that I had seemingly complimented her before her expression morphed into a frown. "Dick move, Wynn. Dick. Move."
[Cobb]
Well that roller coaster wasn't worth the price of admission. And it was free!
I hung my head wearily as I got off the roller coaster. Even though Brain had convinced me there was no harm in riding it, it turned out to be a major disappointment. All it did was loop once around the college. And their only excuse was, 'I'm sorry, sir. We didn't want the roller coaster to disrupt any of the classes.'
"Stupid classes. Ruining my roller coasters. Making me feel bad." I muttered to myself as I slid my hands in my belt pockets and left the funfair part of the fair.
All that was left were the redstone projects built by the college students. They admittedly had some cool stuff, and I did come there to learn more about redstone…
Sixty second thinking process…
…
Yeah, nothing to worry about.
I walked over to the first project, held in a sizable booth walled off by white banners. There was a crowd watching and a college student was already making his presentation. He had tousled dark-gray hair and an ashen complexion, almost like he was a recluse that didn't get much sleep last night.
"Greetings, common plebeians!"
Oh God, was he one of those sophisticated types who used big words to sound smart?
"Today, I humbly present to you a machination of my personal design."
Yep. He was one of those guys. I internally sighed. I tried to gauge what he was saying from his tone, but many of his words sounded new to me.
The finely dressed people beside me, carrying books and looking important, also appeared confused by the student's word choice.
"For generations, engineers have been satisfied by the simplicity of the lever." The student dramatically gestured to a lantern with a lever hooked up to it. "Why, the very name denotes plainness; a quality we, as engineers, should abhor!"
"Stop using big words!" A voice cut through the crowd, followed by an uproar of laughter and chuckles. The student faltered in his presentation, momentarily thrown off track.
The voice was mine, but I was subtle enough to cover my mouth so nobody would see me heckling. Because, goddamnit, I didn't want to be bored to death.
"Yes…well…best not to tarry too long on the why's and wherefore's." The student recovered, directing our attention to a contraption adjacent to the lever-lantern. It had more of those two-torched plates as well as red dust and a red glowing torch beneath a lantern. All hooked up to a stone button.
"Do not be intimidated by my machination's complexity." The student called out with a small smile. "It is capable of splitting the signal output of a solitary button, while—"
"Get on with it!" A voice cut across the crowd again. Again it caused the crowd to laugh and again the voice was mine. I couldn't help it. The guy was boring me to death with all talk and no…things happening.
The student frowned as he scanned the crowd, trying to find who was heckling him. I ducked my head a bit when his gaze passed over me, but after the fruitless search, he cleared his throat and returned to his explanation.
"In short," he continued with gritted teeth. "The machination you see before you, can make a button behave as a lever."
That's it? All that space and tech, and it only turns a button into a lever? What does that even mean? And why even care about interchanging levers and buttons? The lever doesn't look difficult to craft, so why would anyone want to waste so much time making one from a button?
And it wasn't just my lack of redstone tech talking. The whole crowd shared confused looks, wondering who in their right mind would make such a complex device for such a stupid purpose.
The only ones that showed any interest were the well-dressed people besides me. They were busy jotting notes down in their books, watching the presentation with bated breath.
The student dramatically walked up to the button of his seemingly useless device. "Behold, as I rock you to your cores…with the POWER OF ENGINEERING!" He boomed with a dramatic pose and a deft press of the button.
*click*
…
Nothing.
*click* The student, still holding his pose, pressed the button again. He probably figured there was some one-time faulty delay.
The entire crowd watched for any changes. But the lantern he hooked up was still dead. Just like his presentation.
*clickclickclickclickclick*
The student began repeatedly and frantically pressing the button, a nervous sweat breaking across his face, as the well-dressed people beside me closed their books and turned around. Their expressions showing cold apathy.
The rest of the crowd began to part from the obviously failed presentation. All while the student begged his machine to work. He pushed his tinted glasses up to swap them for his tinted goggles as he hurriedly checked the machine.
"Nonono…I beg of you…work!"
It was kind of sad how defeated he sounded. I focused so much on his tone that I failed to realize I was the last person left watching. I made a step to move on to the other exhibits—
"Wait!" The student called out as he looked over his shoulder at the last person observing his project. "Apologies, but…I-I can get this to work…a little more time is all I require…"
I just stood there awkwardly, not sure how to break it to the guy that his presentation was a bust.
So I searched my mind for the kindest words I could contribute.
"I got to go…so…bye…"
And then I briskly walked away.
And 'Douchebag of the Year' goes to…me.
Yeah, it was kind of cold to just ignore the guy, but there were cooler redstone projects to check out. Plus, I still wanted to know how those piston things made the trampoline towers and monorails work.
So, I walked over to the project that looked like a replica of the trampoline tower. The well-dressed people had also come over to check it out, with opened books. It was then I realized that they must have been judges, grading the students' projects.
They probably wrote a zero for that button-lever waste of time.
"Welcome, esteemed judges!" A student with long hazel hair spoke at her position by the trampoline tower. "For my project, I decided on building something more practical: A trampoline tower."
Oh, good. I thought while paying close attention to the hazel-student's presentation. Now I'll know how those things work.
"The trampoline towers were invented by Potato Tech about 350 years ago. Before that, the people of Daymonte were forced to use stairs to ascend, wasting time and energy."
The tower she had built was displayed sideways, showing off the inner workings. Though I noticed she used wood instead of the marble-like blocks and was lacking the furnaces of the original tower.
"The towers work as such." She pointed to one of the pistons. "Pressing the button at the bottom sends out a redstone signal, or pulse, that hits each piston as it ascends upward. The pistons push out a second perpendicular piston that then pushes a slime block up, bouncing the Crafter to new heights." She climbed a ladder up to the second level of pistons. "Take note, that the distance between piston levels is crucial. Knowing where the Crafter will land on each consecutive bounce takes precision."
Finally, she descended down the ladder and stepped inside the elevator. "I will now demonstrate its operations."
She pressed the bottom button with a 'click.' And I was expecting her to bounce up to the next level, just as the trampoline towers had done for me.
But, oddly enough, no piston moved at her level.
Though above her, the tower's structure suddenly jutted out at each piston point, ending with a chunk severed at the top.
Then the whole thing looked like it jammed, transforming into some hideous collection of wood. The crowd quickly lost interest in the hazel-haired girl's project.
It looked like I was two-for-two in witnessing failed projects. Which was odd since her explanation made enough sense. I couldn't see where she went wrong. Then again, I knew as much about redstone as I knew about archery: Very little.
"I…um…" The hazel-haired student stuttered as she checked the redstone wirings. "I don't understand…I double-checked and triple checked the circuitry. This shouldn't have—"
"I think I can explain." One of the judges strode forward. "I'm a professional Engineer from Potato Tech, and I offered to judge to check out possible talent. I believe I see your problem." He walked up to the elevator and placed a hand on it. "Tell me, did you ever wonder why the trampoline towers have furnaces built into their structures at specific key points? Namely where the slime blocks connect?"
The hazel-haired girl looked puzzled at the question before her eyes suddenly lit up. "Ugh…" She groaned as she smacked her head in realization. "I'm such an idiot…"
"Judging by your self-belittling, I take it you know the answer?" The judge responded before turning to the crowd. "Slime blocks, while useful in cushioning and bouncing, can also stick to other blocks, like stone…or in this case wood." He rapped his knuckles on the now-defunct wooden tower to emphasize his point. "Like glue, the slime block attaches adjacent blocks to it. Meaning, that whenever a slime block is pushed by a piston, it pushes the adjacent blocks too."
"To circumvent this problem, Potato Tech uses a wide variety of immovable blocks, ones that can't be displaced by pistons or slime blocks, to act as a buffer. Furnaces, in particular, are great buffers because of their simple crafting recipe and availability."
The judge turned back to the hazel-haired student. "I take it you missed that class?" He asked dryly to which the girl shrunk in on herself and nodded. "You should always test your inventions before giving presentations. If this tower was constructed following your design, it could cause serious problems for users." The girl shrank in upon herself further, looking like a helpless turtle.
"This is a moment of great shame to you, I'm sure." The judge continued before resting a comforting hand on the girl's shoulder. "Though the next time this technology comes up, I'm positive you'll have a strong memory to learn from."
The girl lifted her head up and smiled kindly. "You're right, sir. I'll be sure to learn from this mistake."
"Glad to hear it." The judge gave one last parting pat before returning to his fellow judges.
The hazel-haired girl had failed her project, but she didn't look dejected anymore. The judge's words, though harsh at first, ultimately made her learn something. And the next time she needed that knowledge, she'd have a good example from her failed trampoline tower.
Learning from mistakes. Or learning from experience.
Kind of like me.
Without even thinking, I took my last glass bottle and filled it with EXP before tossing it at the hazel-haired girl. It shattered like a splash potion, scattering EXP orbs that slowly floated into the girl's arm. She looked up in surprise at the action, but I was already gone.
I didn't know why I did that. Maybe because my last attempt at compassion failed with the gray-haired student.
Anyway, I traveled to the next presentation. The student was already in the middle of his explanation.
"…TNT cannon…"
That was all I needed to hear to gain my interest. A TNT cannon!? That sounded cool!
I focused more of my attention on the machine rather than the explanation of how it worked, only ever catching a few passing words.
"…TNT…water…propels…decimates buildings…heightened range…"
Then the student clicked a button, igniting several TNT blocks in a row before pressing another button that ignited a final TNT. The resulting explosion blasted away the final TNT, sending it straight into a wall of some thick black material, before detonating. The black wall was still standing, looking untouched, but the explosions were incredible.
It also showed me that TNT didn't have to be lit on fire to activate. A redstone 'pulse', as they called it, would work just as well.
Then there was the giant robot presentation where two robots fought each other with TNT and automatic arrow turrets…but I'll skip that part of the story. (Wouldn't want to bore any of you after all.)
The next presentation, and one of the more practical inventions was a self-cooking furnace. It used strange devices called 'hoppers', which resembled black tornadoes, to pull items from a chest and cram them into a furnace.
When placed at different points on the furnace, they'd fill either the fuel or the input slot. Then a final hopper would pull the cooked item from the furnace before depositing it in a separate chest.
The student that built the self-cooking furnace received a slip of paper from the Potato-Tech judge and received congratulations from all the judges. It looked like his invention was one of the better ones.
There were many other inventions too. Lie detectors, more compact tram cars, item scanners, a device that used note blocks to play an entire song! They were all so complex and amazing that I couldn't believe anyone could memorize it all.
After completing a full loop of the fair and seeing most of the exhibits, I returned to where the original lever-button guy presented. I figured I'd try again at offering more comforting words. Maybe see if he had finally fixed his pointless machine.
However, the guy wasn't there. He looked like he left in a hurry too, abandoning his broken invention in the process. Not even cleaning it up.
I just sighed in disappointment. I felt a bit guilty about abruptly leaving when he begged me to stay, but I had come back, and he wasn't there to prove his invention worked. Nobody could accuse me of indifference from that.
And I was probably the only one that cared if the guy was disheartened or not. That Potato Tech judge offered that girl some supportive words, but he didn't give any to the gray-haired student. Just left him to his own failure.
Brain: You did the same thing, though.
It's not the same!
Nevertheless, I had my fill of the redstone fair. It was…educational.
But still majorly confusing.
I exited the courtyard and traveled through the halls of the college, eager to explore more of Daymonte now that I had a better grasp of redstone. I could try buying things, but first I needed emera—
FUCK! The mason is still waiting for me! I suddenly realized. I checked my clock to see that it read a little past noon. I kept the guy waiting there for a quarter of the day! And after I promised him those rocks…I needed to get back to the Inn!
I quickened my pace through the college's halls, footsteps echoing across stone floor and Hunger Meter steadily depleting.
It was when I ran down a flight of stairs that I realized how lost I truly was. The college was a massive castle so it was no surprise I had no idea where anything was! Finding the fair was as simple as following a crowd, but now I couldn't spot a single—
A flash of gray and brown swam in the edge of my vision towards one of the darkened halls. It was definitely movement.
A Crafter! I thought with relief as I hurriedly followed the gray movement around a corner. Maybe he can tell me the way out.
Each time I turned a corner to follow the gray blur, it just shifted down a new hall. Following it was like chasing a shadow, twisting and turning deeper into the foundations of the castle. And probably further away from the exit.
I couldn't turn back. After hurriedly keeping up with the gray blur, I couldn't keep track of which direction I was going. Retracing my steps would be impossible given how many lefts and rights I took. And the halls I was traveling through looked abandoned. One of the halls I spotted the gray blur turn towards was actually roped off by white banners with red 'X's emblazoned across: The universal sign of 'Don't go this way, moron!'
Crossing into a restricted area in a college…was that grounds for getting arrested? I didn't know.
But I DID know that I needed that gray-blurred Crafter if I was going to find my way out of the college. Wynn made her threat pretty clear.
'No later than midnight.'
'Fifty volumes of Redstone Engineering.'
Making up my mind, I crossed the line of banners and continued after the Crafter.
"Hey! Wait up!" I called out, deciding that maybe I could get him to stop. Instead it had the opposite effect, making the Crafter quicken his pace to the point where I was no longer sure I was following him or not.
No, no, no! Damnit! I can't lose this guy! I stopped at an intersection of two halls, catching my breath and devouring some baked potatoes to sate my hunger.
If I can't rely on my eyes, I'll have to use my other senses. I closed my eyes and tried to listen to any echoing footsteps. I had to slow my breathing so I could pick up any other sounds.
Something…anything…to put me on the right track…
*Cha-chunk*
My eyes snapped open and I turned my head towards the direction of the noise. It was the same sound the pistons made. And somebody had to have activated the piston.
A gray-blurred somebody.
I sprinted down the appropriate hallway and turned a corner, only to come to a halt.
It was a dead-end hall, with a section at the corner slowly closing upon my arrival. A secret entrance.
*Cha-chunk*
The wall sealed with that same piston sound. The only other object was a button along the wall, which presumably activated the secret piston entrance.
But buttons only activated a pulse for a short time. Meaning that if I opened the secret door, I'd have a few seconds to enter before it closed.
And then I wouldn't be able to turn back.
Well…actually, I could probably just bust through it with my pickaxe. Wasn't like it was made of indestructible bedrock.
But I'd try the secret door first just for fun.
I had no choice but to go forward. I needed that gray-blurred Crafter to get out of the labyrinth of a college. And I didn't have enough time to dig my way out or fumble for an exit.
So, I carefully pressed the button, watching as the piston entrance opened, before steeling myself and stepping towards it.
*Cha-chunk*
"Gah!" The piston closed on my leg before I could enter and I struggled to yank it out. It was awkward seeing how I was prepared for the worst, only for the wall to close on me.
Finally, I slipped my leg from the wall and limped back over to the button. "Let's…try that again."
I quick click, a hurried limp, a familiar *cha-chunk*, and I was through, hoping to God I wouldn't get caught up in any trouble.
Oh, how wrong I was.
Inventory (Cobb): 1 Wooden Shovel, 1 Stone Sword, 1 Golden Sword [Sharpness I, Unbreaking I]{Weak}, 1 Wooden Pickaxe, 1 Iron Pickaxe, 1 Fishing Rod, 54 Cobblestone, 1 Coal, 20 Torches, 1 Minecart, 32 Oak Wood Planks, 1 Note Block, 1 Clock, 2 Signs, 1 Water Bucket, 10 String, 1 Ender Pearl, 9 Baked Potatoes, 19 Pumpkin Pies, 39 Cookies, 1 Leather Cap, 1 Leather Tunic [Dyed Green, Unbreaking I], 1 Crafting Table, 1 Furnace, 15 Rotten Flesh, 1 Book {Citizenship Information}, 1 Paper {Ringwood Entry Pass}, 1 Paper {Daymonte Temporary Entry Pass}
[EXP: 8]
AN: When is a fair, unfair? When I completely skip the giant robot fight sequence! XD
Mostly getting things underway this chapter. Wynn and Veronica are going all CSI Miami to find serial bombers while Cobb is off doing his own shit...and maybe finding a new companion along the way.
See you all next week! Also the Omake below is a little dark...even for me.
Omake: The Vanisher
Cobb glanced at another project sign.
"The Vanishing Objects?" He read questioningly with piqued interest before turning to watch the presentation.
"Welcome one and all!" A female student with pink hair and a vibrant smile greeted as she stood atop a small stage. On one side of her was a simple chest, and on the other side was a metal booth with a glass display. "I'd like to show off the mystique of my wonderful vanishing objects. All powered by redstone!"
The crowd clapped excitedly, getting pumped up by the student's presentation. It was already way better than that button-lever machine.
"First, I will require a volunteer from the audience!" The pink-haired student began. Several hands, Cobb's included, immediately rose up, all offering to take part in the mysterious presentation.
The girl hummed in thought, carefully looking over the raised hands. "How about…that fine dressed gentleman in the back!"
She pointed to one of the judges.
Figures. Cobb thought while sulkily dropping his hand. She's only picking him to butter up the judges.
The judge quickly made his way to the stage and stood besides the pink-haired female, with the name Illid101.
"No need to be nervous, sir." Illid pointed out while walking towards the lone chest. "What's your name?"
"Lansing. Charles_Lansing." The judge introduced. Not like it was necessary seeing how he had a floating name over his head.
"Well, Charles, you're gonna be a big help for me. See that chest over there?" Charles nodded at the only present chest. "I want you to place all your valuables in that chest. Don't ask why, I'll explain it all later."
"Oh…okay." The judge agreed with small uncertainty as he walked forward and withdrew stacks of emeralds from his belt.
"As you can see," Illid continued with a radiant smile, "Charles is filling the chest with valuables. And I'm standing nowhere near it." Just to emphasize her point, she took a few more steps away from the chest. "I have no interaction with the chest, nor have I conversed with Charles, alerting him on what to do next."
At that moment, Charles closed the chest and stood back, waiting for something to happen.
"And now, in the presence of this crowd, I will transport the contents of that chest…to another dimension!"
"Ooooooh…" The crowd commented in awe.
"To another what now?" Charles asked in surprise. "Uh…wait a second—"
"Magic waits for no man!" Illid shouted as she clapped her hands and rubbed them together. "And now for the magic words…SHIA KAZING!"
She uttered her magic words with a loud clap, leaving a deafening silence of anticipation in its wake.
"Charles. Open the chest." Illid ordered confidently. The judge quickly rushed to the chest and tore it open, only to pause when looking at its contents…or lack thereof.
"It's empty!" He called out in despair. "Son of a—I put forty emeralds in there, you bi—
"Which," Illid interrupted with a raised finger, "concludes my presentation. Thank you all for watching and—"
"Now hold on just a second you charlatan!" Charles interjected, looking furious. "You think you can just scam me and get away with it!? Where are my emeralds!?"
"They are in another dimension, sir." Illid offered sympathetically. "I am sorry for—"
"Bullshit!" The judge shouted, and the crowd shared a few uncomfortable glances. "Either you bring my emeralds back or I'll make sure you never find work in this Kingdom again!"
Illid's eyes widened in fear before narrowing back to normal. "Very well, Charles. I will bring the emeralds back to you through my second device: The Vanishing Booth."
She pointed to the metal booth, and Cobb felt a flurry of excitement at what it could do. Was it a portal to the same dimension Illid had sent the emeralds? Or was it something else?
"Vanishing Booth?" Charles questioned skeptically while he eyed the device. "I'm supposed to get in that thing?"
"If you want to reclaim your emeralds again, then yes." Illid flicked a lever, parting the glass display so that Charles could enter.
The judge gulped, obviously unsure of whether to enter such a mysterious contraption.
"Don't tell me you're scared?" Illid questioned with a smile.
"No! Of course not! It's just…this better not be another trick!"
"Perish the thought." The student dismissed as the judge entered the booth. She couldn't seal the container fast enough as the glass slid into place, displaying the judge for all of us to see.
"Now what?" Charles questioned as Illid made her way over to the other side of the booth.
"Shia Kazing, asshole." She spoke coldly before flicking a second lever.
Suddenly, one of the booth's walls was pushed forward, crushing the judge within. "GAH! WHAT"S HAPPENING!?" He screamed as the repeated sounds of breaking bones assaulted our ears. "IT'S CRUSHING ME! SOMEBODY GET ME OUT OF HERE!" He banged his fists futilely on the glass, desperately trying to free himself, all while the booth's wall continued to close.
"Is this…part of the show?" A member of the crowd asked, unsure of whether the man was acting or…
"AUGHHHHH! THE PAIN!" He screamed even louder than before. His fellow judges were already rushing to the stage. "HELP MEEEE—"
A final strangled cry was all that was heard before a shower of gear exploded from the booth, a sign that the judge was crushed to death.
"Ta-dah!" Illid proudly displayed with jazz hands. "As you can see, Charles is no longer here! Completely vanished!"
"You…you monster!" One of the judges exclaimed, clutching the Head of the deceased Charles. "You murdered him! Guards! Seize her!"
Several red-capped guards climbed up on stage, ready to apprehend the pink-haired student. Admittedly, it was still better than the lever-button machine.
"Sorry, fellows." Illid apologized with an insincere flourish. "But, as they say in showbiz, 'always leave your audience wanting more.'" In her left hand she held the emeralds she robbed from Charles. In her right hand she held a bottle with a curved neck containing a light-gray potion.
"She's got an Invisibility Potion!" One of the guards shouted as he dived towards the student.
"Shia Kazing!" She smirked as she splashed the potion at her feet, slowly vanishing into thin air.
"Find her!"
"Try and feel her out!"
"We can't let her get away!"
As the red-capped guards frantically searched for the invisible girl, Cobb could only stand there traumatized by what he had just witnessed.
"Redstone is more dangerous than I thought." He said to himself, dazed, as he left the presentation along with the rest of the crowd.
AN: Shia Kazing!