AN: NOOO! I'm too late! (T_T)
Maybe I should just wait until next week to publish this...
Nah! You guys get it now. It's a short chapter, but it's chalk full of action!
Also, I'm waiting until next Wednesday to announce the puzzle winner. So no new puzzle this chapter.
Disclaimer: I don't own Minecraft. If I did, I'd add Paralysis Potions.
Beta: Myself...again...
Chapter 41
Elsewhere
[Just Outside of Daymonte]
Just outside of Daymonte, in a secluded and vacant mountain village, a courier was nervously scanning for addresses.
The address for the letter was the furthest he'd ever had to deliver, and most likely the furthest within Ringwood's courier routes. That meant using a good chunk of Invisibility Potions to avoid confrontations with Mobs or Griefers.
The courier let out an exasperated sigh, inwardly complaining about the pay not being worth it.
However, in the midst of his inner thoughts, a horse jumped out from a nearby bush, scaring the courier half-to-death. At the rider's command, the horse reared and stamped around the courier who clumsily backed away until falling down.
The rider had wavy blond hair and dark brown eyes. A golden stubble adorned his face along with a deep scar just above his nose. He wore an orange vest with yellow lining over a simple brown T-shirt. Fingerless black gloves held the horse's reins in check. He had light blue jeans and brown boots with orange along the toes. His backpack and belt were orange and he was clad in enchanted iron armor.
"You have five seconds to tell me who you are and why you're here." The rider on the horse demanded, thrusting a diamond sword in the courier's face. "One…two…"
"W-well…I…I'm here t-to—"
"Bzzzzt! Time's up." The rider spurred his horse into rearing again, ready to stamp on the downed courier with solid hooves.
"M-message!" The courier spoke frantically to stop the rider. "I have a message from Ringwood! I'm just a courier!"
His explanation wasn't quick enough, however, as he felt the full weight of the horse stamp on his legs. The sickening crunch was drowned out by the courier's agonized scream as he curled upon his leg.
"A message from Ringwood? Yeah, right. We don't know anyone in Ringwood." The rider raised his sword, poised to inflict further harm upon the courier.
"Perry! Enough!" An armored forearm intercepted the blade before it could strike the courier. "This man is not an enemy!"
The man who stopped the blade had pale skin and dark blue hair. Two black eyes shone with compassion and wisdom, and a deeper strength hidden within. A grey beard tinged with blue hung from his aged face. He wore a simple white long-sleeved shirt with blue sleeves, a pair of blue cargo pants, and a pair of dark sandals. His belt and backpack were the same hue of blue as his hair and, like Perry, he was completely clad in iron armor.
"Get out of the way, Baltic." The rider named Perry demanded as he raised the sword once more. "We can't take any chances."
The man named Baltic simply withdrew a golden carrot from his backpack and waved it in front of Perry's horse. Its eyes lit up in craving at the tantalizing carrot dangled before it. He threw it into the air and watched with slight amusement as the horse reared up to chomp it, displacing a disgruntled Perry onto the ground.
"Bob! You're supposed to be a trusty steed!" Perry complained while the horse named Bob munched happily on the carrot. "This is a backstab! And over a golden carrot!"
With Perry preoccupied, Baltic turned his attention on the courier, who immediately shrunk in fear with what little mobility two broken legs allowed.
"Please don't kill me…" The courier screwed his eyes shut and held his arms up helplessly.
Baltic softened his expression and reached to his belt to withdraw a red potion. "Here," he spoke kindly as he knelt down. "Drink this." He held the bottle up to the courier's mouth, prompting him to drink the healing brew.
The courier opened his eyes to glance between the healing potion and the man's kind face before sipping the brew. His lost Hearts refilled instantly, mending his broken legs. "Good. Now, you have a message to deliver?"
The courier nodded quickly. "Y-yeah. Josep Village, 12 Acorn Street." He reached into his backpack only to freeze when Perry pointed his sword at him.
Baltic shot a disapproving glare at the distrustful man. "Perry, stop it. He's not reaching for a weapon."
"Nobody delivers mail here, Baltic. You can't—"
"He wouldn't know our exact address unless one of ours sent the letter." The kind man reasoned before glaring at the sword. "Now put that away."
Perry narrowed his eyes with a growl before reluctantly sheathing the blade at his belt. However, he kept his distrustful eyes glued to the courier, expecting things to turn bad.
Baltic gave an appreciative nod before turning back to the courier. He was still frozen with his hand in his backpack, but with Baltic's prompting soon began to remove his hand to reveal a message book.
Baltic leaned forward, ready to accept it before stopping suddenly. He slapped a hand to his forehead. "Ah. My mistake. I need to pay you a small pittance for the delivery." He rummaged in his backpack for some spare emeralds, but the courier just shoved the message into his arms.
"Just…just take it." The courier nervously dismissed before slowly backing away. "It's free…a-and I'll be sure to warn any future couriers from coming here—"
"You'll tell nobody." Perry interjected with a menacing step.
"R-right. I'll tell nobody. I-I won't even warn couriers that come here—"
"No! No more couriers." Perry clarified with a growl. "You tell them if they show their faces here, they'll be hung up on our wall."
The courier shuffled awkwardly. "S-so just to be clear, you want me to warn them off…without telling anybody? How am I to do that?"
"Are you trying to annoy me!?" Perry lunged forward causing the courier to flee in terror.
Baltic cupped his hands over his mouth. "I'm terribly sorry for the misunderstanding!" He called out as the courier disappeared from sight.
Perry shot the kind man an irritated grimace. "What is wrong with you?"
"I was about to ask you the same thing."
"That weedy courier could have been a spy!"
"That kind man," Baltic pointed to where the courier disappeared, "braved miles' worth of untamed wilderness to deliver us this message. To do his job. And how do we repay him? We break his legs and scare him to death."
"Half the Cult is looking for Carys, and you don't think—!"
"They're looking for the 'Angel of Death', whom, unless otherwise proven, is not Carys_Angel."
"How long before they figure it out with you letting witnesses come and go! Think!" Perry gnashed his teeth together like a mad dog. "Honestly, why does she even keep you around?"
"For my pleasant company, of course." Baltic chuckled before opening the message book. His eyes darted across the pages, quickly summarizing the contents. "Hmm…this changes things."
"Let me guess. It's a fake message, right?" Perry spoke confidently while gripping his horse's reins. "Just a blank excuse for that courier to sneak here."
Baltic shook his head. "We need to tell the others."
"Tah!"
A quick slash.
"Hah!"
A sweeping kick.
"Dadadadada!"
A series of lightning fast jabs.
The brown-haired woman dodged or deflected them all, her hazel eyes showing absolute focus.
Her opponent, a man with short brown hair, kept up his relentless attacks, all with custom sound effects.
"Ka-stang!" The man shouted while lashing out with a knee.
The woman's eyes widened before she let out a mirthful laugh. "Ka-what?" She asked humorously, dropping her guard and allowing the man's knee to connect with her gut. The next instant, he grabbed her arm and twisted it behind her back, trapping it.
"Ha!" The man shouted with a grin. "I knew my ridiculous sound effects would trip you up eventually! It's my win!"
As soon as those words left his mouth, the woman slammed the back of her head into the man's nose, stunning him. Then she twisted out of his grip and used the momentum to unleash a spinning kick across his cheek.
The man fell to the ground, unmoving, before he let out a faint, "Ow."
"That's Heather's win." An onlooker signaled with a raised hand in the woman's direction. "That makes the score 67 to 2."
"You almost had me, though." Heather smiled warmly as she extended a hand to help the man up. "If you hadn't started talking, you probably could've pinned me."
"Yeah, I know." The man accepted the hand and pulled himself to his feet. "Now that I know random shouts can distract you, I'll win for sure next time."
Heather laughed to herself. "That might work on me, but your next opponent is Luis." She pointed to the onlooker who had judged the match, a man with shoulder length silver hair and a black baseball cap.
The brown-haired man groaned. "Why is it always me against you, or me against Luis? Why don't you two beat each other up, and I watch?"
Luis and Heather exchanged a small look, their eyes meeting each other's, before quickly turning away with a blush.
"I guess…if it's alright with Heather…"
"If Luis thinks it's okay…"
Before either of them could agree, Perry and Baltic stepped into the arena. "Luis, Heather, Wing. If I could have your attention. There's something you should hear."
The three Crafters gathered around and Perry joined them. "What's the news, Baltic?" Wing stretched the soreness out of his arms. "Is Carys back? Because getting the tar kicked out of me over and over isn't helping with the boredom."
"Not exactly." Baltic held up the book. "We just got this letter from her. She won't be back soon…because she's in Lazuli."
"What? Why?" Heather asked with concern. "She was just out on a simple scouting mission."
"Calm down. It's nothing serious." Baltic assured. "Her letter said something came up and she needed to get to Lazuli."
"I hope it's not serious." Perry commented as he tried to get a glimpse of the letter. "Operation: Overshadow is in a few weeks. We're supposed to be lying low. Keeping off the Cult's radar. If she starts making waves—"
"This is Carys we're talking about," Luis interrupted flatly. "Of course she's making waves. Part of the reason why we follow her. But she's not a fool. She wouldn't jeopardize all our preparation just for 'something that came up'."
The rest of the group nodded in agreement, followed closely by Baltic. "So what else does the letter say?"
"She wants us to pick her up in the airship." Baltic continued. "She says she'll have concluded her business by the time we get there."
"And then…?"
Baltic paused before reading directly from the book. "You are to gather our forces and wait for me. Once I return, we will move forward with the plan."
The group smiled in anticipation. All of their training was about to pay off. After Operation: Overshadow, everything would change.
The Endward Cult will be the ones on the run.
"Hell, yeah!" Wing shouted as he pumped a fist in the air. "I can't wait for this! No more waiting around in this village! Time for ACTION!"
Baltic glanced away guiltily. "Yes…well…actually, Wing. I have a bit of bad news."
Wing turned to the blue-haired man, a bit of the hopeful light vanishing from his eyes.
"There's no easy way to say this…er…Carys values everyone in the Paragons. You know that. I know that. We all know that. But…"
"You're not going on the mission." Perry finished Baltic's attempts at breaking the news with mild indifference.
Wing sank to his knees like a deflated balloon. "But…but…"
"I'm terribly sorry." Baltic apologized with genuine remorse over crushing the warrior's optimism. "Carys wants you to investigate some people living in Ringwood."
"But…but…"
"If it's any consolation, you won't be alone." Baltic tried to cheer him up. "Carys wants Luis to go with you too! Isn't that great?"
"But…but…"
"Hang on. I have to go too?" Luis stepped forward. "Is that a direct order from the Angel?"
"I'm afraid so." Baltic flipped through the pages. "The people you're investigating go by the name King_Cobb…not sure why that's underlined in red…and Flawwed_Floyd. She wants you to find out everything you can about them. Numbers, friends, experience, allies, habits, tactics, etc."
"But…but…"
"Sounds like a lot to cover." Heather interjected while stepping around the dejected Wing. "Maybe I should tag along too, just to watch out for Luis—And Wing. Wing is also a concern."
She blushed a bit at her slip-up in words, to which Luis mimicked.
"No, Heather. You need to stay behind and spread the word to all our hideouts." Perry shot down. "Overshadow is a go, and we need everyone ready for the big day. Make sure all the Paragons are armed and ready. Meanwhile, Baltic and I can take the airship and pick up our terrifying leader."
"But…but…"
"Fine." Heather relented before patting Luis on the shoulder. "You be careful in Ringwood. That's 4Blite's stomping grounds."
Luis gave a reassuring smile. "You don't have to worry about me. Neither 4Blite, nor the Cult, know about any of us. Hopefully, I can keep this one in check." Luis prodded Wing with his black skater shoes. "Come on, Wing. Best to snap out of it."
"But…but…" Those were the last words Wing muttered before he was dragged out by his red and grey checkered hoodie.
"I'll let everyone know." Heather nodded as she prepared to gather her supplies. "You really think Carys is okay up north?"
Baltic flashed a reassuring smile. "Carys is no Newb. I'm sure wherever she is, she's just fine."
Perry let out a low chuckle. "I'm sure wherever she is, she's kicking some serious ass."
[Carys]
"In hindsight, I probably should have seen this coming."
I held my last cooked steak up to the snow-falling sky while lying beside my useless horse.
The journey to Lazuli was taking longer than I expected. Costing me more provisions than I was prepared for. The horse was just so damn slow. Trudging along when it should have been galloping as commanded. Add snow fall to the mix and its pace became downright glacial.
I swear, I never had to deal with such sluggishness when riding Mr. Pig—
I halted my thoughts before I could finish thinking that name. I bit my lip remembering what I promised myself.
Every mention of him was a sign of weakness. He was dead. Dead and gone. And if I kept my mind trained on his death, I would lose focus of everything else.
Everything I've worked for…all the plans I've made…I wasn't prepared to risk all that. Not even for Mr. Piggles.
I would settle my business in Lazuli, get suitable revenge on the brown-haired bastard that ended my precious bundle of joy, and put that all behind me.
With a great sigh, I began to nibble on my last provision, trying to draw it out as long as I could. After that I'd be left with rotten flesh. But eating it was out of the question. Not because it was disgusting, but because it sapped my hunger. I needed full hunger to be at top strength.
It was a shame horses didn't drop anything edible, otherwise I'd have slit its throat and feasted on it in seconds. Slower animals probably had more fat on them anyway.
So my only options were to either stick it out until Lazuli (which was a day or two away at best), search for food in a blizzard, grow my own food, or wait for the food to come to me.
I didn't have seeds or crops and the ground was solid snow, so becoming a farmer was out. And only sheep and their wooly coats could survive the freezing temperatures, and I couldn't see any nearby.
But I did notice something else nearby.
A group of Crafters on horseback, galloping towards me from a high snow bank. They were whooping and hollering and waving swords around like idiots. There behavior wasn't like the professional guards that patrolled the land. Plus, they lacked the blue-dyed leather helmets of Lazuli. And the malicious expressions on their faces with their eyes zeroed in on me…
Bandits.
Looks like the food came to me after all.
I quickly finished my steak and tidied my hands while the bandits circled me. There were ten of them and they were all clad in iron armor. Their weapons ranged from iron to stone, but they had plenty of provisions hanging off their belts.
Hmm. That one has steak…but I'm kind of in the mood for fish…
When the bandits formed a circle around me, they dismounted their horses and approached me with smug grins on their faces. Some even had lecherous eyes.
They'd be the first to die.
"Well, hello there gorgeous." One of them was foolish enough to walk up to me. "You're a long way from Lazuli. And all by yourself too?" He tsked with a shake of his head. "Pretty stupid."
I suppose you'd be the final word in doing stupid things. I retorted mentally, not wanting to start something…yet.
Obviously these bandits had no idea who I was. Otherwise they'd be begging for forgiveness or fleeing with their tails between their legs. News about wanted criminals didn't extend between Ringwood and Lazuli.
And while I did miss people immediately fleeing in sheer terror from the mere sight of me, it was simpler to acquire food from Crafters who wouldn't run away.
I smirked. This was going to be entertaining.
"Well, it's a good thing the ten of you showed up when you did." I commented charmingly. "I was running low on provisions."
"That is unfortunate." The bandit leader waved off, trying to steer the conversation back in his favor. "But I bet you got more than just food. That diamond armor of yours looks pretty nice. Must have cost you a fortune."
"Why, yes it did." I gushed with a smile, not caring about their subtle threats. They were just minor annoyances with food for all I cared. "But I must ask, who are you people?"
The bandit leader laughed loudly before gesturing to his men. "Us? We're the Snow Golems!"
"Snow Golems!" The bandits cheered in unison.
"The baddest group of bandits that ever enforced these arctic wastelands!"
"Is that so?" I asked with mild curiosity. "And what exactly do you enforce?"
"Only the greatest law of the land! Survival of the fittest!" One of the bandits shouted. "We take what we want. And if you argue, we take your life too!"
A dark smile spread across my face. "Why, I couldn't agree more."
I felt a small stirring of amusement at the shocked looks on their faces. The bandit leader glanced behind awkwardly before returning his attention to me with renewed arrogance. "Well, then I assume you'll just hand over all your supplies to us? Nice and easy?" His eyes roved up and down before adopting what he probably thought was a suave tone. "Of course, you can always join us. I'm sure someone as lovely as you could find a spot in the Snow Golems."
I didn't like the innuendos he was making. And I visibly showed my disgust before answering. "Actually, I have a better idea." I turned to face each one of the bandits. "You give me half of your food, and I'll only kill half of you."
I said it casually, so it was understandable that they proceeded to laugh. As if the idea of one woman taking out ten people was absurd. I didn't mind. Each guffaw would just be another nail in their coffin.
"Hoo! Haha…haha! Oh that's rich! Alright, I'll play along." The bandit leader wiped a tear from his eye and reined in his laughter. "What if we don't want to hand over half our food? What'cha gonna do?"
I gave a single-shoulder shrug. "I'm sure I'll think up something. Though either way, you can't be saved." I hardened my gaze on the leader. "You've already pissed me off enough."
He laughed at my threat like the oblivious blowhard he was. Honestly, it seemed that all bandits were cut from the same idiotic cloth. If he was more intelligent, he probably would have noticed my relaxed state, the enchanted gleam on my armor that I wasn't wearing just for show, the swords and bows at my belt specifically crafted for varying scenarios, the potions, the TNT.
I was a one woman army.
Who just so happened to have neglected bringing ample provisions.
"Well, Miss Angel." The bandit leader announced while glancing at my name. "You think you can kill me? I'd like to see you—GRK!"
The rest of whatever clever retort he thought up was drowned out by the pommel of my blade slamming into his throat. Very effective at cutting off oxygen.
I followed up with a heavy overhead slash before sending him to the ground with a boot to the chest. Most of his bravado seemed to evaporate with him sprawled on his back like a helpless turtle. The rest of it left him when I took his foot and twisted it sharply to the left, punctuated by a satisfying crunch and a predictable howl.
That was enough to show the bandits I meant business. But they were slow on the uptake. By the time they drew their swords, I had already slid past their perimeter. I trudged as fast as I could through the snow while I heard the sounds of their pursuit.
"Get her!" I heard the bandit leader command in between curses. "Don't let her escape!"
He thinks I'm trying to escape? That's cute.
Those bandits were a bunch of incompetent weaklings. I just didn't want them getting at my horse, left tied to a post. Even if I was soon to have a selection of ten horses to choose from, I'd stick with the horse I purchased. Sluggish or not.
Plus, I promised I'd think of a worse punishment if they didn't hand over their food.
I intended to keep that promise.
I reached into my backpack as soon as the horse's labored breath reached my ear. Pivoting on my foot, I chucked a swiftness potion at the animal. The bandit, surprised at the change in his steed's speed, easily overshot his charge, face-planting into a snow bank.
Eight.
When two more horses galloped forward, their riders readying their swords, I smirked, standing perfectly still. Predictably, their swords hit me with all their might (which was paltry), but the backlash from the Thorns enchantment hit them with enough force to propel them off their steeds.
The opportunity was too good. I splashed a strength potion and grabbed the two by the legs before whipping them across the snow. They joined the first fallen bandit at the base of the snow bank.
Seven…Six…
The next bandit came at me on foot, swinging his sword wildly and with no technique whatsoever. It was laughable, really, how these 'men' thought they could intimidate anyone.
I met bunny rabbits more ferocious.
I knocked the sword to the side with an armored shoulder before lazily catching a wild jab in an open palm. I pulled his arm up and over my shoulder before tossing him through the air.
Right on the bandits struggling to their feet.
Five…
The remaining bandits had the sense to stay back after witnessing half of them taken down so effortlessly.
As for me, I simply withdrew a water bucket from my backpack and poured it by the snow bank. The bandits raised their eyebrows in confusion until they saw me with my loaded bow.
Five arrows.
One Flame Bow.
They were ablaze in moments.
They fell off their horses, panicked with flames engulfing their bodies. It was only natural for them to sprint to the nearest water source—the one I just placed—without thinking.
As soon as all nine of those bandits were gathered in one spot, I threw two splash potions back-to-back.
It was a potion trick Baltic had taught me. One he learned from a touch-and-go experience with some Witches.
The first was a Slowness Potion, to make them sluggish.
The second, a Weakness Potion, to sap their strength.
When combined, they had the effects of paralysis. Any target hit with them would be at my mercy.
And my current target, was nine paralyzed bandits.
They just lay there, unmoving, except for their constantly darting eyes and their insufferable mouths. True to their nature, they were begging for mercy.
No honor to the end.
I withdrew a Splash Potion of Poison from my backpack and threw that at them. While the poison ate away at their health, lowering it to the minimum level of health without killing them, I placed a block of TNT right in the middle.
I took whatever food the guards had at their belts. Steak, potatoes, salmon, mutton, chicken. I left the soups and anything I couldn't stack. Had to travel light after all.
Once I thoroughly raided their supplies, I placed several planks connecting the TNT to a safe distance away, like a fuse, before lighting it.
I promised them a fate worse than death if they didn't comply. Now they got to lay there, numb to the world and powerless to do anything but watch as that fire reached that TNT. Their life was measured by how long it took.
I ignored their frantic pleas as I sauntered back to the bandit leader, still downed from the foot I broke.
He looked shocked to see me. "Wha—You!? Where are my men!?"
Just then, an explosion went off behind me. I could not have timed it more perfectly. "Looks like the Snow Golems are disbanded." I answered coldly as I readied my blade. "Any last words?"
"P-please…" He pleaded with fear in his eyes. "I'm sorry…I don't want to die!"
"Neither does anyone else."
And with a series of stabs, each one punctuated by a whimper of pain, I ended his existence.
I grabbed a handful of the apples he was carrying and left the rest for some fortunate Crafter to find.
I walked back to my steed and leaned against it while I munched contentedly on some apples. I built quite an appetite after all.
It was nice how grocery shopping for me was as simple as slaughtering some assholes.
AN: RIP Snow Golems. We won't really miss you.
Last Chapter ended the Daymonte Arc, so now I'm entering a two-chapter mini-arc about what Carys is up to during Cobb's adventures.
Needless to say, she still hasn't forgiven him. To the point where she's sending members of her faction after him and Floyd.
You got to see a bit of Carys' faction, The Paragons. Including two new viewer submitted OCs. Agent_P (Perry) by Anonymous and Hopeful_Heather by LuckyLuis. They also submitted Wing and Luis, and I felt it was about time to show off Carys' forces.
Fanfiction . Net is a bit off so the reviews aren't showing for some reason. But I'm sure it'll be fixed...eventually.
No Omake this Chapter, because...well...I just wrote one yesterday. And NOT because I couldn't think of anything funny enough. (9_9)
Summer's great by the way, in case any of you were wondering. Feels so good not to have to hand in written papers on a deadline anymore. Instead, I get to publish written chapters on a deadline.
Waaaaaay more enjoyable. (^_^)
See you all next week!