AN: Another Chapter...another failed deadline. I've got to take another break soon.

Congrats to The Ravenclawed Demigod for getting last week's puzzle correct. The answer was: unbrella. Enjoy your cookie and your acknowledgement.

(::)

Disclaimer: I don't own Minecraft. If I did, Slimes would be able to reform.

Beta: Void of Shining Darkness

Chapter 49

The Price of Power

"Well, that was a comfier landing than I expected."

"My…back…"

"We really should count our blessings that a soft, complaining cushion was here to break our fall, eh, Nowhere?"

"—off…"

"Nowhere?"

"Get off me, please…"

Marble gasped. "Nowhere!? Since when were you a cushion?" The Scout quickly jumped off of the injured Billionth, who proceeded to grumble into the floor.

Once fully recovered, the two looked at where they ended up. It appeared to be some kind of secret bunker. The ceiling was made of blocks of iron, but the floor and walls were made of stone brick, lit only by torchlight.

"Quite the place to hide valuables." Marble whistled appreciatively as he walked around. "I wonder if this runs below the entire Maplefrost estate."

"Let's just worry about finding the Voda Shlem." Noman didn't want to be distracted from his objective. He'd almost lost and gained the artifact several times in the same day. It was maddening thinking how close he'd gotten each time, only for it to be plucked away from him.

This time, he wouldn't let it slip away so easily.

"Well…if I was an expensive artifact," Marble mused to himself, "I'd probably have no choice where I'd be, since I'd be an immovable artifact. But Maplefrost would probably keep it somewhere super safe. The safest place any item could be stored."

"And that would be…?"

Marble frowned. "An ender chest."

Noman looked perplexed. "Ender…wait, like the pearls the cultists used?"

"They're made of the same materials." Marble scratched his head in annoyance. "Ender chests work like a sort of 'Crafter bank'. Whatever a Crafter puts in can only be accessed by that same Crafter. In that sense, an ender chest's inventory space is only limited by the amount of Crafters using it. Plus, all ender chests are interchangeable and can work between dimensions."

"Dimensions!?" These ender chests sounded more like fiction than fact. "You mean these chests can violate the laws of space?"

Marble scoffed. "Since when have the laws of space been relevant in Minecraftia? A Crafter can carry over thirty stacks of anvils in their backpack without feeling any additional weight. How does that make sense?"

He had a point there.

"Fortunately, Maplefrost sent the artifacts away via his guards so he could focus on the cultist attack. He wouldn't have had time to store them in an ender chest. We have until he comes down here, however, to find the guard that does have the artifact."

"And before Ciro does."

"Yes. And before Ciro does. And THEN I can get my badges."

"Right. And then you can—Alright, enough about badges." Noman began to sneak down one of the hallways with Marble in tow.

It was strange how Maplefrost had a spooky second basement under his estate. Unless he was mistaken, Noman was pretty sure that spooky second basements weren't normal.

What exactly was Maplefrost trying to hide?

As if answering his unspoken question, Noman found himself passing a set of glass windows overlooking a large room below. He and Marble quickly ducked upon spotting two yellow-capped guards standing watch in the room below. They weren't spotted and were allowed to poke their heads up to watch what was unfolding below.

The guards were standing beside some weird cobblestone structure with water flowing down glass tubes and ending in two areas: One fenced off, and one sealed with glass and weird mechanical looking blocks. The two guards had a brewing stand on a table between them. Their mouths were moving, but neither Noman nor Marble could make out what they were saying.

However, they did see what was happening with the structure.

From the large sealed cobblestone part of the structure, a Skeleton flowed with the water down the connecting glass tube.

"Where did that Skeleton come from?" Noman asked, all while his eyes followed the Mob.

Marble was doing the same. "That cobblestone room probably. It's sealed…so I bet it's pitch black on the inside."

"Right…Mobs spawn from darkness." The Skeleton continued to flow down the glass tubes; a marble in a complicated game of Mousetrap.

But what are they spawning Mobs for?

…And also, what's Mousetrap?

Eventually, the Skeleton reached a diverging pipe. One way led to the area sealed with glass and the mechanical looking blocks. The other way led to the fenced off…and oddly enough had a Testificate fenced above.

The Skeleton flowed towards the glass area. However, Noman's attention was ensnared by more Mobs coming through the pipes. Skeletons. Creepers. Zombies.

The Creepers and Skeletons always went towards the glass area. However, the Zombies, drawn to attack the Testificate, moved towards the fenced area. Even though they were obviously trying to attack the Testificate, who all the while was hopping frantically, the flowing water eventually overpowered the Zombies, forcing them into the fenced area.

"You know what," Marble poked his head further up, "I think that thing is a Mob Spawner."

Noman turned to the Scout. "A what?"

"It's basically a Mob factory. Look." He pointed towards the cobblestone area, which was now filled with Skeletons, Creepers, Spiders, and some other strange Mobs. A guard walked over to it and pulled a lever, causing the mechanical-looking blocks to extend and crush the Mobs. "The Mobs spawn from the darkness, and then flow down to be separated. Zombies go to the fence while everything else goes to those piston crushers. They probably have hoppers hooked up to collect all the loot those Mobs drop."

"Really? That's amazing." Noman could hardly believe the ingenuity of such a device. Not only could it control Mob spawning, but it could also earn items from it. And since Mobs could constantly be spawned from darkness, it was an infinite supply of resources. Bones, string, gunpowder, spider eyes, arrows, and more! "But…why separate the Zombies?"

"Not sure." Marble admitted, his eyes turning to the Zombies amassed in the fenced off area. Another guard was throwing Splash Potions of Healing to quickly kill them off. "They're killing them off anyway so I don't see why they'd go through all the trouble…unless they're actually Scouts in disguise, going for their Fruitless Acts Badge."

"...Maybe?" Noman replied, not wanting to be so impolite as to say that the chances of that being true were as likely as the moon being made of cheese. "Anyway, we should really focus on finding—"

"Wait, wait!" Marble cut him off, gesturing wildly to the Mob Spawner. "Look."

Noman followed the Scout's finger to spot a Zombie being deposited into the glass tubes from the cobblestone structure. At first, Noman didn't see what was so interesting about it. But after narrowing his eyes, he saw what Marble was talking about.

The Zombie looked more like a Testificate than the regular Zombies he had encountered. It was hard to miss the giant nose and oblong shaped head with extra forehead space. Not to mention the thick unibrow above its eyes. Yet it had the same tattered shirt and pants and clammy green skin as a Zombie.

Remembering the book on Mobs Helena had provided, Noman recalled that Testificates could be tainted and converted into Zombies. True, he hadn't seen such a thing happen, but he trusted the book's information. However, he had no idea that they could spawn just like any other Mob.

As the Testificate Zombie floated down the tubes, one of the guards tapped the shoulder of the other and pointed to the Mob as it went down. Immediately, one of them walked over to another lever and flicked it off, closing the cobblestone structure from the rest of the Mob Spawner.

"Looks like we're about to see what this thing is for." The Scout poked his head further up, going so far as to press his face against the glass to get a better view.

He's going to get spotted. Noman thought in annoyance as he rose to pull the Scout back down.

When the Testificate Zombie finally reached the fenced area, one of the guards walked up to the brewing stand and pulled out a Splash Potion. He chucked it at the Testificate Zombie while the other guard pulled out something gold from another chest and fed it to the Testificate Zombie. Immediately, the Testificate Zombie started shaking as if it were cold.

But there were no more immediate changes.

"Alright, you've seen what they've done. Now let's go." Noman tried to tug Marble away from the window, but the Scout refused to move.

"Give it a minute."

Noman huffed before folding his arms. The two continued to watch the Testificate Zombie, as did the guards below, for one minute. Then two.

Finally, something happened. The Testificate Zombie lost its sickly green skin and its tattered shirt changed into a black apron and a brown tunic. Before their very eyes, the Testificate Zombie became a Testificate. A female.

"They…cured her?" Noman didn't remember reading anything like that in the Mob book and Marble looked equally surprised. But also interested.

The two guards below didn't visibly react, as if they were used to Zombies turning into Testificates all the time. While the newly cured Testificate shivered in terror and glanced at her surroundings in confusion, the two guards opened the fence and pulled the Testificate out of it. They shoved her towards a set of doors in the room before roughly escorting her out.

"Can we move on now?" The Billionth looked to Marble for confirmation, but frowned upon seeing the Scout breaking the glass window. "What are you doing?"

"I wanna see what they did," was his reply as he jumped through the window and tumbled onto the floor below.

"Right." Noman sighed to himself before muttering under his breath. "Not like we have other more important things to look for."

"You say something?"

"Uh—no." Noman stuttered, jumping down onto the Mob Spawner floor. "Must have…been the wind."

"Yeah, that wind is always talking behind my back." Marble clenched his fist in frustration. "I'll catch that wind some day."

"Uhh…"

"Anyway, check this out." Marble opened the chest beside the levers controlling the Mob Spawner. He withdrew something gold and—

Noman gasped. "Is that…a Notch Apple!?" Noman looked over Marble's shoulder at the rest of the chest's contents. "By Notch! They're full of Notch Apples!"

Marble held one up to his face, scrutinizing it closely. He frowned and took a tentative bite. After devouring it, he checked his arm and nodded to himself. "They're golden apples…but not Notch apples. These are their cheaper twin brother, made up of gold ingots instead of gold blocks." He crammed a bunch of them into his backpack. "They're not as strong as the Notch equivalents, but it's shiny, gold, and valuable. So I'd say taking them fulfills my Robinhood Badge."

"What's a Robinhood?"

Marble paused in his cramming to think for a moment. Then he just shrugged before continuing.

Noman walked over to the brewing stand and checked what type of potions they were brewing. There were two Splash Potions of Weakness on the stand with a space missing for a third potion. It was safe to assume that the potion they used on the Testificate Zombie was the one missing from the stand.

"So…they splashed her with a Potion of Weakness," Noman traced his gaze to the chest of apples, "then they fed her a golden apple. That's the cure to Zombification…if that's even a word."

Marble gasped in realization. "No way! That's so cool!" His eyes lit up and he slammed a fist into his palm as if figuring something out. "No wonder Maplefrost has a bunker! He'd want to keep this as secret as possible! This is revolutionary!"

"What are you talking about? Is a Zombie cure that important?"

"Of course it is!" Marble gushed as he picked a Potion of Weakness from the stand. "Don't you get it? This machine isn't just a Mob Spawner. It's a Testificate Factory!"

Noman just looked confused at Marble's exclamation, but the Scout wasn't paying attention. He rushed over to the doors the two guards had gone through. Hanging beside them was a sign that read 'Prison Cells'. After double checking the sign, he returned to the control panel and started pulling levers. "Hey! Don't go pulling random stuff! Do you even know what you're doing?"

"Yes…no…but trial and error, right?" Marble switched a few of the levers on and off until the water once more began flowing from the cobblestone structure. And with it, all the Mobs that spawned in the darkness. "There we go…"

"Is this another chaotic Scout thing? Or is it a Badge thing?"

"Neither. It's a calculated plan!" Marble grinned as he began breaking up the fenced area. "Since this thing churns out Zombies, those guards will find this place overrun with them by the time they get back. And that's just the diversion we need to find that artifact!"

"That's…actually a good plan." Noman blinked in surprise. "Where were these plans when you were burning down taverns?"

"They were in the deep recesses of my mind. Now find some cover by those doors."

"Hey…" Marble and Noman looked up to see who had spoken. It was the Testificate hanging over the glass pipes as Zombie bait. "If you guys wouldn't mind, could you get me down? I don't like being Zombie bait." The two looked at each other before ignoring the Testificate and getting to their hiding spots. "No? Just gonna leave me here? Okay, great, thanks a ton, fucking assholes."

"Language!" Noman couldn't help but protest. It wasn't that they didn't want to save the Testificate. The Zombies wouldn't head towards the fenced area if there wasn't suitable Zombie bait to persuade them.

Sure, Noman might have moral dilemmas with leaving a living being as bait for Zombies…

…But it wasn't his idea. It was Marble's.

So it was okay.

"Hey! You're not stemming the flow of Mobs! This is too much!" The Testificate wailed.

No guilt whatsoever.

"Seriously! Get me out of here!"

None.

"HELP!"

After several dozen Zombies, both the normal and Testificate varieties, were transferred to the fenced area, quickly crowding it, the Testificate was pleading for help. That brought the two guards running.

"What happened!?" One of the guards shouted angrily. "Did you leave the lever on again!?"

"W-what!? No!" The other guard replied nervously. "No, I even double checked before we left!"

"Well the next time you look at your ass—"

"Language!"

"—you better double check that my foot isn't buried half a mile up it!" The guard quickly shut off the lever and grabbed some Potions of Healing at his belt. "We got to clean up your mess before Maplefrost gets back."

"I'm telling you it wasn't me!" The guard protested. "And…did you hear someone shout 'Language'?"

The guard shrugged. "Probably the wind."

"Right…because that's the sound that wind makes…"

While the guards were distracted with the Mob Spawner, Noman and Marble slipped through the doors towards where the guards had come from. A long hallway stretched before them.

"I swear, Nowhere," Marble whispered with a smile, "you shouting out 'Language' whenever someone curses has got to be the shittiest—"

"Language!"

"—crappiest—"

"Language!"

"—and most lamestest super power ever."

"…Lamestest isn't a word." Noman pouted.

Despite the lighthearted banter, neither Noman nor Marble were prepared for what was at the end of the hallway.

"What the—?"

"Yeah, I figured as much."

It was a room filled with cages and cells, layered up several levels. Each one held no less than ten Testificates of similar clothing and occupation, along with accompanying signs.

"What…what is...?" Noman tried to speak, but was caught with the horror of what was before him. These Testificates were imprisoned underground, crammed in cages and away from natural light.

Suddenly, Marble's statement about the Testificate Factory made more sense to the Billionth. Testificates were able to make trades with Crafters based on their occupation, usually demanding relevant items in exchange for emeralds. Some even accepted emeralds for enchanted items.

But Maplefrost wasn't waiting around to find Testificates with good trades. Rather, the Lord was mass producing them. Using his patented Zombie Testificate cure, he was spawning them from nothing, healing them, and shelving them like bottles of wine.

By God. He was monopolizing living beings!

This went against everything humane and decent. Making life just to imprison and exploit it. It was no wonder Maplefrost could afford those artifacts and auction items. With all the emeralds he was getting from trades, he was sitting on a metaphorical gold mine.

Beside Noman, the blonde Scout smirked. "No wonder he needs a bunker to hide this. I bet the other families would love to know the source of Maplefrost's wealth." Marble's eyebrow twitched in surprise. "And…uh…whatever the heck that thing is."

He was pointing towards a large cage on the floor, containing the green glob of goo simply known as Slimy. The guards must have decided to store it with all the other imprisoned beings.

Noman took a look around. "If Slimy is here, you think the other auction items are too?"

"Boy, you really have a one-track mind."

"Oh, really?" Noman gave the Scout a level stare. "Ahem. Badges."

"Badges!? Where!?" The blonde crouched low, twisting his head this way and that like a bloodhound trying to sniff out ridiculous achievements.

While Noman gave an amused chuckle, he noticed a bit of movement out of the corner of his eye. The Slimy in the cage was moving. Once more, it looked like it was trying to gather itself together. It flowed to the center of the cage, building itself up and up…only to collapse upon itself into a big green mess.

It let out another gurgle…though it sounded more distressed than menacing.

"What even is this thing?" Marble walked up to the cage and peered inside at the amorphous creature. He knocked on the cage a few times, causing the Slimy to shirk away from that side.

"Careful, Marble." Noman warned, pulling the Scout away. "You don't know what it'll do."

However, upon closer inspection, Noman noted how two shamrock green eyes peered at him from Slimy's depths. They quivered slightly, looking almost misty-eyed, as they gazed upon Noman pleadingly.

Noman moved his head from side to side just to verify that Slimy's eyes were indeed following him. Tracking his every movement. "Why is it looking at me?"

In response, the Slimy let out a faint gurgle. Its voice sounded like it was being smothered by a pack of jelly.

"Did you hear that?" Marble looked between Noman and the Slimy. "It understood you! Try talking to it again."

"Um…okay…" Noman reluctantly turned back to the Slimy. "Can. You. Understand. Me?" He spoke each word slowly, wondering how a blob of slime could even hear without ears. However, Slimy let out another gurgle, though more pronounced, all while trying to form something once more.

"It…it sounds like it's trying to say something."

"Grgl…sprgle…"

"Girgle Sprgle." Marble repeated those sounds as if it was some kind of secret message. "What do you think that means?"

"I think it means this thing can't talk since its mouth is probably ankle-deep in itself." Noman reasoned. "Maybe if it could sound it out…or spell it out for us…"

At those words, Slimy's green free-flowing eyes lit up like a light bulb. It quickly amassed itself into a large blob before carefully spreading itself out on the cell floor. It looked to be making a tremendous effort to form something. And when it was done…

"It's an 'S'!" Marble exclaimed at the green letter Slimy was able to form. Slimy let out an affirmative gurgle before forming a new letter. It was a tad sloppy, but that was understandable given how difficult it was to form anything.

"Next looks like…a 'P'."

"Right, right. Then an 'L'."

"…'I'…'T'—oh!" Unable to form itself into letters anymore, Slimy lost its shape, becoming a deflated blob on the cell's floor, seemingly heaving in exertion.

"Okay, so 'S'…'P'…'L'…'I'…'T'…Split!" Marble exclaimed in realization. "It wants us to split it up!"

"Split it…how?" Noman questioned while the Scout withdrew his pickaxe and began breaking the cell.

"This thing looks just like a Slime. It's a Mob that hangs around swamps mostly. But the thing about Slimes' is that they can separate after you attack them. They break off into smaller pieces."

"Alright, but why should we help this thing if it's a Mob? Won't it attack?"

"I don't think so. Not once did it ask for us to let it out of its cage." Marble protested readying his Longsword as Slimy flowed out of the cage. "It just wants to split apart."

Marble raised his sword to strike, the Slimy waiting patiently before him. However, the Longsword's blade sunk into the green jelly known as Slimy. Not appearing to do much damage. The Scout struggled to dislodge the blade, all while Slimy gurgled sadly.

"I—ugh, gross—I can't tell if I'm damaging it." After finally wrenching his Longsword free, Marble wiped his blade on the side of the cage with a bit of disgust. "Maybe we could try burning it…"

Upon hearing that, the Slimy shrunk away in fear, wildly shivering as if saying 'Fire Bad!'

The Scout sighed. "Well, then I'm out of ideas. What about you, Nowhere?"

"We don't have the time for this." Noman didn't mean to sound so cold, but they really needed to find the Voda Shlem before Ciro could. Not to mention if any guards saw them, they'd be arrested for trespassing in Maplefrost's hidden basement and Testificate supply. They had no time to dilly-dally.

"But Nowhere…" Marble whined as he stepped aside. "Look at this little guy. It's small and defenseless and needs our help. Where's your sense of compassion?"

Maybe I'd be more compassionate if we hadn't lost the Voda Shlem to that Cultist attack. Or if I hadn't been ambushed by a seemingly innocent old lady.

Noman frowned to himself, looking at the poor pitiful creature before him. All it wanted was this one thing of them, and it was behaving politely, not attacking them once. After a brief moment of hesitance, Noman reached into his Inventory for the proper item. "Once we damage it enough, are you sure it'll split apart? Or will the damage carry on to its split pieces, killing it?"

"Um…hmm…" Marble tapped his lower lip in thought. "I don't know. Not usually…"

That wasn't quite the reassurance Noman was hoping for, but he donned his Severe Shield all the same. "Stand back, Marble."

The Scout took a big step back as Noman approached the Slimy with his sword in hand. The Severe Shield supposedly had a massive damage effect. So Noman figured it would be enough to destroy the Slimy.

The Billionth poised his blade above Slimy, looking for a final confirmation from the creature.

"Grgl."

Good enough.

*SHLUK*

The blade stuck, just as Marble's had, but the added strength of the Severe Shield inflicted enough damage for the creature to splatter apart into three separate puddles. The green slime ran dribbled and ran across the stone brick floor.

"Um…did it work?" Marble poked the nearest puddle with a stick, hoping for some type of movement.

"Oh no…" Noman clutched his arms in terror and screwed his eyes shut. "I did it again…I killed again…"

"No, Nowhere. You—"

"Every time I put this on, something dies!" Noman shouted, wrenching the artifact off as if it was burning him. "I should have known it would do the same to the Slimy!"

"No, Nowhere." Marble yanked the Billionth's sleeve. "It's fine. Look."

Noman opened his eyes just enough to see each of the three puddles of slime shaking slightly. Then they began flowing, amassing, into three separate blobs. However, unlike before, the separate blobs had no trouble forming into something. Each one built itself up, gathering more and more of its splattered mass, before finally standing at a Crafter's height.

Next, limbs began to form on each of the three new Slimies. An arm here, a leg there. Then more pronounced features like noses, ears, fingers, and even a head of green, jelly-like hair. They even began to form shapely…chests…

Noman blinked in surprise. A moment ago, Slimy was just a formless blob.

But now it was three female, Slime-like Crafters.

"…What?" Noman tried to stutter out.

"It's a girl!" Marble clapped cheerfully. "And triplets too! What a wonderful miracle of birth!"

"…What?"

One of the Slimies looked at their hands in surprise before beaming happily. "Free! Free! I can finally shape myself!" She tried to twirl in jubilance and it half worked. She twirled, but she didn't have any legs to twist over one another since…well…she was lacking legs. Her waist was one thick pile of goo. "Well, half-shaped is good enough for me!"

"Easy for you to say." Another Slimy mumbled sadly, glancing at her own missing right arm. "I'll never be able to fire a bow again. Or climb a ladder. Or play the piano." She sniffled sadly.

"Minecraftia doesn't have pianos!" The third Slimy shouted angrily. This one was missing her left arm. "And what do you have to complain about anyway? We're all left-handed! But now I'm no-handed!"

"I can't possibly be mad right now." The first Slimy giggled as she slithered to the other two. "Without all that mass weighing us down, we can finally move, and talk, and…and…" She trailed off as her stomach—or rather the section of slime where her stomach should have been—gurgled loudly. Her cheeks painted themselves a lighter shade of green at her obvious hunger.

"…What?"

As if suddenly realizing they were there, the three Slimies turned to Noman and Marble. The first one was beaming brightly with perhaps a twinge of embarrassment. The second one looked depressed, but also kept her eyes on the two males. And the third one was scowling, but appeared to tolerate their presence.

Then, they all bowed slightly. "Thank you, heroes." They all spoke in unison.

"Do you have any food, perchance?" The first one tacked on.

"…What?"

"Hero, eh?" Marble smirked. "I like the sound of that."

"Is he brain-damaged or something?" The third Slimy pointed to Noman. "He just keeps repeating 'what' over and over."

"…What?"

"See? It's getting on my nerves."

"Now, now." The first slimy soothed charmingly. "Don't be upset…um…" The first one tilted her head in thought. "What's your name again?"

"It's not my name, genius." The third one growled. "It's our name. We were all the same person once after all."

"Oh yeah!" The first one cheered before adopting a puzzled look. "But why can't I remember? I feel like I'd remember our name."

"I think it was Slimy." The second one spoke faintly, as if worried her opinion might make others angry.

"No! Not Slimy! That's just the idiotic name the Lord Maplecock gave us!"

"Language!"

"Also, wasn't his name Maplefrost?"

The third one folded her arms. "I know what I said."

"Alright, so what was your name?" Marble interjected, taking interest in their argument.

The third one glanced awkwardly to the side. "Of…of course I know what it was! I…I wouldn't forget something like that!"

"There's no shame in admitting you forgot too." The first one comforted kindly. "We all forgot, I think. Though I feel like it was something like…Tiffany?"

"Ha!" The third one scoffed. "A girly name like Tiffany? No way!"

"But aren't you all girls?" The Scout questioned.

"That's sexist! Besides, our name was obviously something tough and full of testosterone!"

"Estrogen."

"Who asked you!?"

"Um…"The second one spoke up. "I-I thought our n-name was Tiana...because…oh, nevermind. Sorry I said anything…"

"Ugh! Tiana is even worse!" The third one groaned. "I tell you our name was Tamara! Now THAT'S a tough name!"

"Hmm. Sounds like they're having a naming dispute. What do you think, Nowhere? Think I should give them all new names?"

"…What?" Noman was still dazed at what was happening. Slimes didn't just randomly materialize into Crafters. Green, jelly-like Crafters but Crafters all the same.

"You're right, Nowhere. I should give them all new names. And if possible earn my Naming of the Dames Badge."

The stupidity of that badge name was enough to snap Noman out of his daze. "I didn't encourage you to…CAN WE JUST LOOK FOR THE VODA SHLEM ALREADY!?"

The three Slimies and Marble recoiled in surprise, startled at Noman's tone. Even Noman was shocked by his sudden outburst. It was just…he had a mission to get done. He didn't have time for all these distractions.

The second Slimy sheepishly scratched its arm. "I…I know where the Voda Shlem is…if you want…I mean…you did free us and all…"

"Really?" Noman pounced immediately, grasping the Slimy by one of her shoulders. "Where…OW!" He pulled back his arm, feeling a sharp burning sensation where he had touched the Slimy. "What was that?"

"Oh my gosh! I'm sorry! I'm sorry! I'm sorry!" The second one wailed with tears in her eyes. At least it looked like tears, what with her whole body made of slime. "Please don't hate me!"

"Serves you right for groping her…us…Bah! This is confusing!" The third one clutched her head as if in pain.

"Wha…I didn't grope anything!" Noman defended while blushing profusely.

"Nowhere you player, you." Marble wasn't helping with his supportive nudges and wiggling eyebrows. "Looks like someone's trying to get their Gigolo Badge. Though…since it's a Slime-girl…more like a Jiggle-o Badge! Eh, eh?"

The third Slimy frowned. "That pun legitimately killed me a little."

"Same." Noman replied flatly before returning his attention back to the second Slimy, ignoring Marble's words of 'Oh, everyone's a critic!' "Anyway, you know where the Voda Shlem is held?"

She nodded slowly before pointing towards a set of doors. "Maplefrost brought us to the room holding the auction items only once. Just to show the guards the entirety of what they had to safeguard. But I remember the Voda Shlem…er…it was a green tunic, right?"

"Um…close…" Noman replied kindly, not wanting to sadden the easily depressed second Slimy. Distinguishing between the three wasn't hard. The first one was happy, the second one sad, and the third one angry.

"I remember that Voda Shlem thing too!" The first one cheered. "It was light-blue! The color of the ocean!"

"That thing?" The third one scoffed. "It was a leather cap, right? Big fucking whoop."

"Language!" Noman shouted before clearing his throat. "Do you remember anything else? Like water dripping particles?"

All three Slimies paused for thought, scouring their memories for that information.

"Hmm. Nope!"

"No…sorry."

"IDGAF."

Noman sighed in disappointment. "Can you at least take us to where it's being held? We really need it—"

"We're stealing it from Maplefrost."

"Marble!"

"What? It's true."

The third Slimy wore a malicious grin. "Stealing from Maplecock?" Noman covered his ears. "Count me in! That prick kept us locked in that cage forever. Tried to auction us off like slaves!"

"Oh he wasn't that bad." The first one tried to remain optimistic. Noman could relate to that. "Not as bad as that other guy. The one that made us half-slime."

The second one shivered fearfully. "W-what if He finds us again!? I-I-I don't want to go back in a cage!" She rocked back and forth, clutching her knees with one arm.

"Someone made you into a Slime?" Marble questioned. "How?"

"He…um…" The first one scratched her head. "Y'know, it's weird…I can't really remember how He did it…I just remember the Morel Islands."

"That's where Maplefrost said he found you." Marble supplied helpfully while Noman roused the second Slimy from her depressed slump and convinced her to lead them to the Voda Shlem. They continued their conversation as they moved through a long corridor.

"I remember the Morel Islands too." The third one added. "We were there looking for mushrooms…then we got jumped and kidnapped."

"Before you continue your story, I think you all need names." Marble pointed to the third Slimy. "Since you're missing your left arm, I dub thee…Righty!"

"I still DGAF."

"That's the spirit! And you!" The Scout pointed to the second Slimy. "Since you're missing your right arm, I dub thee…Bethany!"

"Wha…how does that even—"

"As for you!" Marble continued on, pointing at the first Slimy who hopped eagerly on the spot. No doubt excited over a new name. "You're missing your legs...and have a sunny disposition…so I hereby dub thee…Legoless."

The bright smile fell from her face. Not even she could put a positive spin on that nickname.

I know your pain. Noman thought to himself. Idiocy of this level is difficult to bear.

"Maybe I could have a different name—?"

"Now that that's out of the way, what can you tell us about the mysterious person that turned you half-slime?"

The third Slimy—sorry—Righty, frowned in thought. "Well, He wore a mask. A black Skeleton Head. So we couldn't tell what His name was…"

"A-and he used potions…" Bethany added. "The weakness-slowness combo paralyzed us instantly…though I can't remember anything more specific about what He was wearing…"

Noman decided to step in. "What's the last thing you remember?"

"You asking us what the last thing we remember is?"

"…I'll rephrase. Do you remember the auction?"

"The auction…oh yeah!" Legoless tried to snap her fingers in realization, but failed since her arms were made of slime. "It was…there were a lot of Lords…um…"

"The auctioneer was named Baltimore." Righty added. "And—shut your ears, Nowhere—Maplecock was running his damn, fucking mouth off. That fucking prick. I bet he whips his dick out whenever he has to pee, the freak."

After the curse rant was over, Noman removed his hands from his ears. "Bethany. Do you remember any of the auction?" She shook her head. "Well, then it seems like you do have memory problems. But I don't think it's that you can't remember. I think it's because your memory split along with your bodies."

"So, what, each of them can only remember a third of their life?" Marble questioned. "That suc—er, is terrible. Yes, that's what I was gonna say."

"It's well worth the trade-off." Legoless smiled softly. "As we were, our memory wasn't doing us any good. We couldn't talk to anyone or form anything. I don't regret what you two did for us. That deserves a hug!" Legoless approached the two Crafters and gave them a great big hug.

However, whatever Slimes were made of was causing the two damage upon contact. Causing them to writhe in discomfort.

"Ow! Ow! The love hurts!"

"Legoless stop!"

"Oops." She giggled lightly before releasing them. "Sorry." She stuck out her tongue cutely while Noman and Marble wiped the slime off of them.

As they continued down the hallway, Noman and Marble chatted idly with the three Slime girls. Noman even offered them some food, which they ravenously accepted.

Suddenly, a loud explosion echoed through the corridor.

"W-w-what was that!?"

"An explosion!"

"Meh, I hear explosions all the time." Marble shrugged before another explosion landed him on his rear. "Though this might be a little abnormal."

Several more explosions rocked the shook the corridor, making it harder for four of the five Crafters to stand upright. Legoless, with her entire below-the-waist a blob of slime, had perfect balance.

"Is someone setting off TNT!?" Righty shouted, causing Noman to realize something.

"No! It's Ciro and the Yanhua Gong! He must be fighting for the helmet up ahead!"

Legoless gasped before pausing. "Who's Ciro? Is that someone I should remember but can't?"

"Beats me. I don't even know what a Yanhua Gong is."

"We need to hurry!" Noman rushed forward with the others following in his wake. The explosions continued to echo off the walls, getting louder and louder as he approached the proper doors. The Billionth burst through them, frantic to get to the artifact.

Before him was Ciro_Che, no longer garbed in his red-dyed leather suit. Instead, he wore a billowing crimson trench coat with frayed edges at the tail. A black undershirt adorned with a white skull. Black jeans, red shoes, a white belt and a midnight-black backpack. Half of his face was still concealed by the black facemask, and his heterochromatic eyes, one black and one grey, glared at Noman. His black hair was still done up in its ponytail and he was clad in diamond armor that shimmered with the power of enchantments.

In one hand, Ciro held a bow, undoubtedly the Yanhua Gong. Several craters and explosions littered the room along with defeated guards or loose piles of gear. A few auction items sat unprotected on several pedestals.

And at Ciro's belt was the light blue cap that could only be the Voda Shlem.

"Come for the artifact, eh Billionth?" Ciro_Che mocked while pointing his bow at Noman. "Well you're too late. It's mine now."

"How…how do you know I'm the Billionth?" Noman was mad that he'd been beaten to the punch, but he was also curious as to how this mysterious Crafter knew of the title Notch had given him. "Who are you?"

Ciro chuckled softly before pulling back his bowstring. "I'm the true chosen one."

Then he let the arrow fly.

Remembering what the bow was capable of, Noman quickly threw himself out of the way. Although avoiding the arrow's explosion, he was far from unscathed. The blast knocked him into a pedestal, bruising something and costing him a few Hearts.

Looking at where the arrow had impacted, Noman only saw a smoking hole in the floor. It seemed like the area below was hollow, blocked only by a one block thick floor.

Hearing another arrow whistle through the air, Noman rolled aside, trusting that the arrow would be aimed at wherever he was standing a second ago. His trust was rewarded after surviving another blast.

Ciro laughed as he fired a few more shots. "Why don't you put on that Severe Shield? That is, if you can find the time between shots!"

Noman dove to cover behind a pedestal, only for it to be blasted in pieces not a second later. Ciro was too skilled with that bow. His precision was amazing. And even if he didn't hit his target, the explosive splash damage would do the job for him.

Noman could barely catch his breath, let alone put on the chestplate. How was he going to beat another artifact user?

Just as Noman was running low on Hunger and breath, with an arrow aimed right at him, something quickly scooped him up before carrying him out of harm's way.

"What the…OW!" Noman yelped in pain from the contact with Legoless' slime.

"Sorry, Nowhere." His savior apologized with a smile. Despite having no legs, Legoless was surprisingly nimble, able to carry Noman and evade arrows all at the same time.

"What the…is that the Slimy thing?" Ciro questioned in surprise and mounting frustration over missing his shots. The explosions weren't even unbalancing her. "Ngh! Hold still!"

Another arrow was fired, aimed straight at Legoless. Even Noman thought they were done for before the Slime girl stretched and arched her back unnaturally, easily dodging the projectile.

Ciro was about to let loose another arrow when Righty ran up behind him and lashed out with a sharp kick. It caught Ciro in the side, stumbling him. "Gah! What the fuck is this thing?"

"Language—Oof!" Noman was plopped onto the ground a safe distance away from Ciro's range. Meanwhile, both Bethany and Marble joined Righty to engage Ciro in battle. Or rather, Marble joined in, his Longsword glancing off of Ciro's bow. Bethany stood nearby, trying to stealthily creep behind and snatch the Voda Shlem from Ciro's belt.

Ciro really had his hands full with fighting a Slime girl and Marble while also keeping the helmet at his belt. He kept firing arrows, not caring if he possibly blew himself up so long as he hit his target. Noman suspected his armor had Blast Resistance. However, Marble, Bethany, and Righty kept right on dodging.

After several minutes of evading, firing, punching, striking, kicking, and swiping, Bethany finally managed to grab the helmet.

"You little, amoeba!" Ciro growled. "You don't deserve its power!"

"Not so good at close combat, are you archer?" Marble mocked before driving his pommel into Ciro's ribs.

Ciro withstood the jab and stood strong as he aimed his bow at the floor beneath all of their feet. "DON'T MOCK ME!"

He fired the arrow, exploding the ground and the floor and blowing up one of the Slimes.

"Bethany!" Someone shouted, though Noman couldn't tell who. He watched as the chunks of Bethany were blasted apart, along with the Voda Shlem that flew from the Slime girl's grip and teetered on the edge of the freshly made hole in the floor.

The bits of Bethany fell into the hole along with an enraged Ciro. Righty was blasted back, hitting her head on another pedestal and falling unconscious. And Marble was left hanging off the side of the hole, smoldering slightly from the explosion and barely holding on.

Noman and Legoless rushed forward, but for different reasons.

Noman went for the helmet before it could fall down the hole. Legoless went to Marble for the same reason.

As they reached the hole, Noman knelt beside the edge and reached out for the Voda Shlem. It was teetering in such a way that it could fall at any second and was just outside of his reach.

"WAIT! Don't grab me!" Marble shouted to Legoless, who quickly retracted her outstretched arm. "I'm at half a heart. If your slime so much as touches me, I'm dead!"

It was right there. Almost within his grasp. He couldn't let it slip away again.

"Nowhere! You gotta pull me up!"

"Just…give me…a minute…"

"What!?" Marble protested weakly before his left hand slipped off the edge. "Quit joking around! I'm losing my grip!"

"Almost…" He could just about touch it. It was finally going to be his.

"Nowhere! I'm gonna fall!"

Just a little bit more. And he'd have gotten a second artifact.

He couldn't let it slip away again.

"NOWHERE_MAN!"

"Just…about..." The helmet tilted over the edge and Noman lunged as far as his arm could permit to grab it.

He felt the familiar texture of leather in his firm and unyielding grip. "Got it!"

However, as his eyes gazed upon the artifact he sought after for so long, the artifact that had eluded him time and again, the artifact he rescued from falling into the abyss, he noticed something else falling into the abyss.

A flash of blond hair and betrayed light blue eyes.

"No…" Noman reached out his other hand, a fruitless attempt at trying to save the Scout. At trying to convey how sorry he was for letting him fall. That he prioritized the artifact over him.

That it was done for the good of the world. To stop the Endward Cult.

That he wasn't to blame for his actions. That it was all for the best.

But as Marble's face disappeared into the shadowy depths, "No…" was all he got out.

Inventory (Noman): 1 Diamond Chestplate {Severe Shield}, 1 Leather Cap [Dyed Light Blue] {Voda Shlem}, 1 Diamond Sword [Sharpness I], 1 Bow [Infinity], 1 Wooden Pickaxe {Weak}, 1 Wooden Axe, 1 Crafting Table, 2 Oak Wood Planks, 1 Book {Notch Mission II}, 1 Book {Artifact List}, 1 Book {Citizenship Information}, 1 Paper {Entry Pass}, 1 Paper {Dover Plains Entry Pass}, 1 Map {Dover Plains}, 1 Arrow, 2 Glass Bottle, 15 Steaks, 7 Enchanted Golden Apples, 1 Leather Tunic [Dyed Blue], 1 Leather Pants [Dyed Blue], 1 Leather Boots [Dyed Blue], 2 Bones, 12 Rotten Flesh

[EXP: 0]

AN: When your cliff-hangers are actual cliff hangers, everyone wins! Ha-HA!

...Too soon?

This Chapter was fun to write, (not the Marble falling part) mainly the parts involving the Slime-girl trio. Take from that what you may. It might mean something...or it could mean nothing.

But this Chapter does have a point for Noman's character. After failing so many times to get that helmet, he didn't want to lose it again. Much like the Chapter title, the whole Chapter had the theme of 'the price of power'. Sometimes you gotta make sacrifices to get what you want. Humanity for an endless Testificate source, memories for a body...and a friend for an artifact.

There was a LOT more humor with the Slime-girl trio and their separate personalities. Much like the memory split, they all sortof have a personality split, with each one having different emotions. It's not the same as Vanilla Minecraft, but this is my universe.

No Omake this week...mainly because I'm out of ideas. I mean when you write about a five-part chicken saga...

You start to ask yourself - what the fuck did I just write?

Also, it's time for everybody's favorite game: Good News vs Bad News!

The Good News is Noman's Arc will go on for two more Chapters (Don't quote me on that.) before turning back to Cobb's adventures, an Arc I'm really excited to get to.

The Bad News is, I won't be able to publish next week since I need to get my laptop checked out. The charger isn't working properly and I don't want to type this up in a Library - God forbid the person sitting next to my computer glances over and finds me writing about Fifty Shades of Chicken or somthing similar - so my laptop is on Disability as of now.

See you on Wednesday...um...wait, I need a calendar...Wednesday, July 20th! That'll be the date of Chapter 50! (Don't quote me on that.)