AN: IT'S STILL WEDNESDAY! BACK YOU RABID READERS! BACK!
The answer to last week's puzzle was: tongue! Even though this reviewer spelled it wrong, I don't grade by spelling... unless it's purposefully awful. Congrats to LA LA land for guessing it correctly. Enjoy your cookie and your acknowledgement.
(::)
Apologies for this next puzzle, but it is so convoluted, that I doubt anyone will even solve it. The bar has been set. Good luck.
Puzzle: Fill in the blank:
8x8=24
8x8=32
9x9=40
19x19=_
Disclaimer: I don't own Minecraft. If I did, I'd add TNT boots.
Beta: Myself (So there's gotta be, like, a million errors.)
Chapter 66
Those that Remain
"Tch. These rats are everywhere." Attila glanced down an alley, waiting as a crowd of Griefers passed, before crossing. Behind her, one cherished comrade—and four annoying stragglers—followed. "Did you Silver Intent kick the hornet's nest or what?"
At the back of the formation, Soul scowled. "They only found us because of the TNT you set off."
"Oh, is that a fact, little lost boy?" Attila called back with a sarcastic titter. "Then maybe you and the rest of your group should stop following us. Because explosions are kind of my thing." She subtly withdrew a block of TNT from her belt and 'accidentally' placed it between Kate and the Silver Intent group. "Ooooops…" She drew out, slowly lowered a redstone torch to ignite it.
Void and Soul jumped back reflexively, though the next instant was filled with a light smack rather than a resounding explosion.
Kate lightly smacked Attila again and again before assaulting her in a barrage of gentle slaps. The brunette girl held up her arms defensively. "Ow! Relax! I wasn't gonna blow them up!"
Kate stopped her slaps upon hearing Attila's apology, until she added in a low warning, "Unless they start something…"
Smacking the back of her head once more for good measure, Kate broke the TNT and handed it back to Attila. "They won't start anything. I can tell that they're good people." Kate turned to look at the Silver Intent Group, renewing her faith as she looked each one in the face… until she got to Soul's. She took a long look at his face, paused, and blinked twice, before turning around completely. "Most of them look like good people." She amended.
"Why you little—"
"Soul." Cara held out a hand to restrain the axe-wielder. "Enough. If these Crafters know a place to hide, we'd do best to be polite towards them."
"Hear that, little lost boy?" Attila cheekily called back, sparking annoyance from the axe-wielder. "You gotta be nice to us."
"Not to be rude or anything," Floyd cut in before Soul could share a few choice curse words. "But where exactly is the hiding spot you spoke of?"
"Well… I—" Kate paused, taking a moment to glance to Attila for permission. The brunette rolled her eyes and nodded, albeit reluctantly. "We live in that skyscraper up ahead."
The girl pointed to the nearest skyscraper. Just like the ones Floyd had spotted, this one had several missing floors, but only at one spot. The rest of the skyscraper just hovered there, defying gravity as most blocks in Minecraftia did.
Oddly enough, however, there were small stacks of blocks, covered in ladders, climbing towards the hovering skyscraper. Almost as if someone had been trying to nerd-pole up there.
When the six Crafters reached the base of the broken skyscraper, they watched Attila walk up to an abandoned fountain with a platform of obsidian in the middle.
"So… how do we get up there?" Floyd questioned, to which Kate pointedly ignored. "Kate?"
"Hm?" She turned to the blue-nette. "Yes?"
"How do we get up there?"
"Oh! Well, see what Attila is doing?" Floyd watched as the brunette girl rigged up some redstone and several blocks of TNT to surround the obsidian platform. "She's setting up the explosion pad."
"…Explosion pad?" Cara's eye twitched at that phrase. "Now wait a—"
"See, you know how explosions can send you flying? Like when you're blown back?" Kate explained.
"I really don't think we can—"
"Well, Attila figured out how to harness explosions to reach greater heights. She's smart like that."
"That doesn't sound like the smartest—"
"So, we're basically going to explode our way up the skyscraper." Kate cheered, failing to notice Floyd and Cara's pale face. "It's much safer than it sounds… unless you crack your head on the ledge—But we fixed that!" She hastily added.
"Well would you look at the time!" Cara shook the clock at her belt as if doing so would somehow get her out of the current situation faster. "Exploding up a skyscraper sounds like fun, but we've reeeeeeally gotta go! So, thanks again, and we'll just be off—"
"Hey! I think I heard someone over by the fountain!" The damning voice of a Griefer called out.
"Let's search there next!"
"Yeah!"
"You were saying?" Attila smirked as she placed one final block of TNT down. "Okay, it's all set. Kate, let's go. The rest of you Silver Intent grunts can either stay here or take a ride on the explosion-powered elevator. Trademark."
"Uh…"
"Ahaha! No thanks!" Cara took a step back. "I choose life!"
"Which is why *hic* we need to get on board." Void advised, seeing the swarm of Griefers approach. His counsel would have been more encouraging if he wasn't half drunk.
"We have to, Cara." Floyd tentatively stepped on the obsidian platform, being helped up by Kate.
"Ugh… is this even safe?" Soul questioned, poking the platform with his axe.
"Why? You scared, little lost boy?" Attila grinned at how the axe-wielder leapt upon the platform with folded arms, daring her to call him a coward. It was funny how predictable he could be.
"Oh… this is insane. This is crazy, and insane…" Cara whispered to herself as she and Void clambered on the platform.
"Okay, everyone's on." Attila readied a redstone torch as she continued to speak. "Please keep your arms and legs inside the platform at all times and be sure to maneuver yourself towards the skyscraper." She placed the redstone torch, igniting all the surrounding TNT which fell into the fountain's water.
"Three…" She counted down.
The TNT was flashing white.
Kate balled her hands into tiny fists and raised them to the sky, fully prepared for launch.
"Two…"
Floyd and Soul gripped Cara to keep her from freaking out.
"One…"
The TNT expanded just before…
"Lift-off!"
*BOOM*
Floyd was unprepared at just how much force an explosion could possibly contain. Several blocks of TNT going off at once created an explosion as loud as a Charged Creeper. Probably as destructive as one, too. It was a miracle the group of six Crafters were still alive.
It was an even bigger miracle when Floyd opened his eyes and realized how fast they were rising. The force of the explosion had propelled them up the side of the skyscraper faster than any ladder or skyscraper could. The windows and floors of the building whizzed by so fast.
Floyd saw Attila and Kate being propelled up at the same pace. Kate's arms were still raised up, cutting through the air and aiding her ascent. Attila's arms were folded patiently across her chest. Their expressions were the same, looking rather bored with the mode of transportation, as if it were as ordinary as doing the laundry.
In comparison, Cara was screaming with tears in her eyes, clinging for dear life onto Soul's face. Void and Soul had varying degrees of shock at the method of transportation, but not nearly as bad as Cara's.
"Hold me, Soul!"
"Cara, stop! I can't see anything!"
After rocketing past the missing floors in the skyscraper, the six Crafters began to lose speed. At that time, Attila and Kate angled themselves towards the building, with the latter gesturing for Floyd to do the same.
"Guys! Lean forward!" Floyd shouted, causing the Silver Intent group to move towards the skyscraper. As they reached the peak of their ascent, the effects of gravity finally taking hold of them, the six slowly began to drift back down.
Fortunately, there was a ledge on one of the floors, ready to catch them.
Attila and Kate stuck the landing almost lazily while the Silver Intent group floundered about only to land face-first or on all fours. But as they peeled themselves off the ledge and looked up, they were greeted by an unbelievable sight.
Crafters.
Not Griefers. Crafters.
People with kind faces who wandered across the floor, greeting each other with warm gestures, and who appeared at home in the upper floors of a ruined skyscraper.
Though, to be fair, this skyscraper was vastly different from the others.
After navigating through several of Nitebane's skyscrapers, Floyd was usually able to guess what business each one housed. Whether it was the cubicles of an office building, or the close-knit desks of a college building, each one had some identifying furniture or structure.
But this skyscraper, the one filled with Crafters, somehow had none of that… and yet all of that.
What might have been a hallway when the building was still used had been expanded, allowing for more people to pass. The ceiling had been broken and redone into a balcony overlooking the hallway below. Rooms were converted into homes and fitted with doors and banners that offered meager privacy to the occupants. There were wooden stands haphazardly set up, with Crafters lined up all the way down the hall.
The Crafters themselves looked a little worse for wear. Some were gripping their stomachs on the line by the wooden stands, wearing dirty leather armor. Some were busy distributing logs and charcoal, while others simply remained in small niches, curled upon themselves and shivering.
And yet… it was a living community.
"I don't believe this…" Void did a double take between the sight before him and the empty Awkward Potion bottle in his hand as if he thought the whole thing was a drunken hallucination.
"I'm seeing this too, Void." Cara assured, though she didn't take her eyes off the community of Crafters.
"By Notch…" Void actually wiped tears from his eyes. "I never would have dreamed that… that…"
"That Crafters could live up here?" Attila finished, turning to the Silver Intent group. Void just numbly nodded, prompting Attila to continue. "It was a last ditch effort. Back when Nitebane began to be overrun by Griefers, a few smart Crafters gathered all the TNT they could muster and each led a group into a skyscraper. The Griefers pursued, intending to massacre people, but soon retreated when they found the skyscrapers' floors to be rigged with TNT."
Attila smiled as if it were her favorite part of the story. "Kaboom! Several floors taken out. And the other groups did the same, leaving the Griefers no way to climb up here."
So the floating skyscrapers… they were really just regular buildings with the floors blown out. That explained why only the bottom half was riddled with holes and ruined. The Griefers couldn't demolish what they couldn't reach. So then…
"You mean the Griefers never tried to climb up here?" Soul questioned as he watched a pair of Crafters share a bowl of stew.
Attila's smile widened, turning a bit shark-like. "Oh, they tried. Nerdpoles and whatnot. But the higher they climbed…" She punched her open palm. "The further they fell."
"We used eggs and arrows to knock them off the nerdpoles." Kate filled in. "We wasted a lot of eggs until the smugglers brought in some snow and pumpkins. It cost a lot of emeralds, but now the snow golems supply us with an infinite amount of snowballs. Makes for good ammunition."
Attila chuckled to herself. "Some of them even tried to imitate my explosion-powered elevator. Needless to say, they failed spectacularly."
"Incredible…" Void marveled at the community in disbelief. "For a community to exist right above our heads. All this time I thought Nitebane belonged to the Griefers, but—"
"It still does." Attila's eyes darkened, her smile vanishing. "So long as that Hacker sits on the throne, this Kingdom will never be truly free." She breathed a weary sigh before glaring at the Silver Intent group. "I don't want you four causing any trouble, got it? If I think for a second you'll hurt any of these Crafters, you—"
"Attila! Attila!" The brunette has to postpone her warning when three Crafters rushed over to her. They were bedraggled and looked emaciated. Attila quickly withdrew a Zombie Head from her backpack before thrusting it upon Floyd's head, swapping out his iron helmet. Only when it was secure did she turn around.
"Don't run you three! I'm not going anywhere." Attila half-reprimanded, half-assured as she walked up to them. "You can't waste your Hunger Meter running. If you're not careful—"
"But that's what we needed to talk to you about!" One of the Crafters gasped as he tugged on the torso of Attila's shirt. "The smugglers are causing trouble! They're not giving us the bones. They say we didn't honor the deal, but we did!"
"What?" Attila growled as her face was obscured by her dark brown curls. "Where are they?"
"The Harvesting Room!" one of the Crafters pleaded. "Please, hurry. I don't think Angelico can fast for much longer."
Attila nodded, but before she left, she turned to Floyd. The blue-nette was in the middle of removing the Zombie Head from his face when Attila grabbed his hand. "Hacker or not, don't you dare show those lines in this building." She whispered. "I don't want people to panic." Realizing she meant the markings on his face, Floyd slowly released the Zombie Head, letting it obscure his face once more.
With that settled, Attila rushed over to an elevator off to the side. She pressed a wooden button, the doors sliding open to reveal a ladder. Floyd watched as she climbed up, her dark brown hair sliding out of sight before the elevator doors closed.
"Oh no…" Kate mumbled, her hand resting against her lips and a look of worry etched across her face. "Another food problem…"
"Is something wrong with your food supply?" Floyd asked curiously, to which Kate nodded.
"Feeding this many Crafters isn't easy." She gestured to the starving Crafters waiting on line for what could only be food. "We have to grow all our food since it's almost impossible to ferry livestock up a skyscraper."
"So you use bone meal." Cara filled-in, catching Floyd's attention.
"Yeah. With bone meal we can instantly grow our crops without having to wait. Usually mushrooms for stew." Kate rubbed her arm uncomfortably. "The problem, however, is our supply of bones. The smugglers bring them in, but demand emeralds in exchange. And they're not stupid. They know how desperately we need them… and they're not above racking up the price."
Floyd's eyes narrowed beneath the Zombie Head. "Disgusting."
"Hmm." Kate nodded in agreement. "We also send people down to steal from Griefers… every bit helps and all… But, there's little we can do."
Floyd frowned, shoving his hands in his belt pocket at the bleak reality of the situation… only for his hand to graze something scaled.
While he rummaged in his belt, catching Soul's attention, Void stepped up. "What about fuel, and tools? What do you use up here?"
"Wooden tools, mostly." Kate admitted. "And charcoal." Kate gave a small chuckle. "Not many Crafters even know that charcoal is an item. It's so rarely used compared to coal—"
"Why did you bring us up here?" Cara stepped forward, taking charge of the conversation.
Kate took a step back, looking sheepish. "Well… you're glad I did, right? Those Griefers would have killed you if I didn't give you somewhere to hide."
"That's not what I asked." Cara stated bluntly, her aquamarine eyes boring holes into Kate's. "Why bring us to your underground—or should I say aboveground—community, where you can barely feed yourselves, much less others?"
At first, Void looked surprised at Cara's rude tone. She was the same person who told them all to be polite. But then, that was before Kate revealed their hiding spot was a community like this. And as surprising as it was, Attila's cold indifference was a response that fit the situation far better than Kate's inexplicable friendliness towards a couple of strangers.
Void realized, as had Cara, that Kate wanted something of the group. Displaying the starving community could have just been her attempt at guilt-tripping them.
As for why…
"Hey, Kate." Floyd stepped forward, displaying the cooked fish Void had given him. "I have more fish than I know what to do with. I could share some of it with the hungry Crafters if you—"
"Is that fish I smell!?"
One of the emaciated Crafters shouted that word as he sniffed the air, instantly drawing the attention of every Crafter in earshot.
"Food?"
"I'm starving?"
"There! That Zombie-headed guy has it!"
"Uh-oh…" Floyd bothered to say, even as the thin Crafters descended upon him like lions ready to tear apart a gazelle.
"Toss them, you fool!" Kate shouted as she knocked the fish out of Floyd's hand. The fish scattered through the air, spinning wildly and catching the eyes of every Crafter. Hands reached up to grab them, snatch them, and catch them before the fish were swallowed whole, restoring a meager amount of Hunger.
Despite how mob-like the Crafters seemed, after the initial frenzy, making sure they took just enough to hold themselves over, they distributed some of the remaining fish to those that were too hungry to move. The ones curled up in the corners were gently hand-fed the cooked fish, the fire in their eyes rekindling from the belly full of food. They got up and joined the Crafters busy transporting charcoal and tools, ready to help in any way they could.
"It's almost like a family." Floyd commented at the care the Crafters showed one another.
Kate smiled at the comment, rolling her shoulder towards the side. "The Griefers below will take a while to clear off. Since you guys aren't going anywhere, would you mind if I gave you the grand tour?"
Cara and Soul looked reluctant, but Floyd and Void gratefully nodded. Though thinking it over, even Cara had to admit she would rather take a tour than sit around and wait. So the Silver Intent group followed Kate down the hallway, weaving their way between Crafters who were already sending grateful waves towards Floyd, the Crafter who 'gifted' them the fish.
Up the ladder, Attila climbed higher and higher. She refused to break for food, instead fueling herself on the anger and frustration she felt towards the smugglers. They were always trying to squeeze more emeralds out of her community and she was sure this time wouldn't be an exception.
Reaching a familiar level, she pressed a button to open a set of doors and jumped across to solid dirt.
The Harvesting Room.
Even though it was called a room, three floors were allotted to it. Mainly because mushrooms grown through bone meal reached… interesting heights.
Farming mushrooms wasn't easy. While they didn't require water, it was vital to grow them in a dim location. For whatever reason, mushrooms couldn't be grown in the presence of strong light. As such, the Harvesting Room had a minimum of torches. Enough light to keep Mobs from spawning, but not too much to stunt the fungi.
The good thing about them was that a mushroom grown from bone meal would drop ten times as many mushrooms. And since mushroom stew was as easy as mixing a red and a brown mushroom into a wooden bowl, it was no wonder it became a staple of the community's diet.
Though getting the bone meal required bones. And getting bones required dealing with smugglers.
"Attila! So glad you could make it. I was afraid we'd have to wait all night for you."
And dealing with smugglers required a level of patience she didn't have.
A world-weary sigh escaped her lips before she straightened out and approached the group of ten smugglers. "I was out looking for supplies. Sorry for the hold up."
One of the smugglers, Larril, stepped forward with a cocky grin. "Scavenging for supplies, Attila? Tsk tsk tsk. Isn't that our job?"
"Yeah." Another smuggler chimed in as he draped an arm over Attila's shoulder. "You wouldn't want us to be out of work, yeah?"
Attila resisted the urge to shrug off the arm, knowing it would only make things more troublesome. "My people said there was a problem?"
"Very straightforward." Larril commented before reading from a book in his hand. "This week, we went through the trouble of finding loads of goodies for your community. Bones. Iron ingots. Arrows. The works. But when we come up here to do business, your people try and swindle us."
Attila's eyes narrowed. Her people swindling the smugglers? She was fairly certain it was the other way around. She had even verified the payment of emeralds beforehand.
No. The smugglers were just being greedy.
"I'll have to have a serious talk with them, then." Attila lied, if only to make the smugglers feel like they tricked her. Judging by their dumb sneers, it worked. "I'm sure this misunderstanding can be resolved."
"Oh, it can be resolved…" Larril mused. "I'm sure paying double the emeralds will more than make up for your people's incompetence."
Attila nearly choked. They didn't have double the emeralds. They barely managed to scrape by the original price.
"Something wrong, Attila?" One of the smugglers spoke loftily. She could detect the humor in his voice though. They knew very well what was wrong.
"I'm afraid… we don't have that many emeralds." Attila dragged out the words, knowing she'd have to play whatever game the smugglers had in mind.
"Oh, dear." Another smuggler spoke mockingly. "Not enough emeralds? It's a shame—"
"—Such a shame," another smuggler added, "but I guess your people will have to go hungry."
Attila grit her teeth, keeping her head bowed so that the smugglers couldn't see her fury. She wished she could lash out. Beat the smugglers to a bloody pulp and demand respect from them…
But then they would simply leave, never to make a deal with her community again.
"Now wait just a minute, fellas." Larril spoke softly, snapping the smugglers to his attention. "Attila and her people have been good to us for a long time. They're treasured customers, after all. I'm sure we can let them off with a warning… just this once."
The smugglers smiles split into devious grins. They nodded too readily, telling Attila that they had something planned.
Larril walked up to her, and folded his arms. "But we do require something for all the trouble you and your people caused." He gave her an arrogant smirk. "Beg for it."
Hearing those words, Attila clenched her fists. How easy it would be to just kill them all.
"Well?" Larril spoke testily. "Go on, Attila. On your knees and beg."
She had a sword. And some TNT. Hell, her people would be all too happy to rid themselves of these arrogant smugglers.
But this wasn't about beating up jerks. It was about keeping people alive. And her people desperately needed those supplies.
So, swallowing her anger and pride, Attila got on her knees and bowed so that her forehead was scraping the dirt.
"Please." Her voice was shaking in anger, but the smugglers were too busy laughing to take notice.
Larril took pleasure watching her prostrate herself. "Say, 'Please master, feed my friends.'"
"Please master, feed my friends."
His eyes shone maliciously. "'Please master, feed my worthless friends.'"
"…Please master, feed my worthless friends."
Larril and his smugglers guffawed like the assholes they were. "Oh, Attila! I can't say no to you. Huhuhuhu."
Attila remained bowed, even as Larril and his smugglers dumped the supplies near her head. Bones. Iron ingots. Leather. Meat. And more. A week's worth of resources.
"We'll let you off, just this once, because that begging was pretty funny." Larril lifted Attila's chin with the toe of his shoe. "But next week… triple the emeralds. And no more problems, yeah?"
"…Yes."
"Yes…?"
Attila sighed. "Yes, master."
"Atta girl." He patted her face before walking past her with a swagger. The other smugglers followed him out, cackling at how foolish they made her look.
Attila didn't stand until after she heard the elevator doors slide close. She brushed the dirt off her pants, even as several of her people rushed over.
"Those jerks!" One of her Crafters cursed as she stuck out her middle finger towards the elevator door. "They think just because they get us supplies that they own us! Are you okay, Attila?"
She nodded. "We got the supplies. That's all that matters." She pointed to one of the Crafters. "Get to work grinding the bones into bone meal and growing the mushrooms. I want thirty bowls of stew ready to be served at the stalls in ten minutes."
"Yes, ma'am." The Crafter saluted before collecting the bones with another Crafter.
"Davey." Attila pointed to another Crafter. "Once the Griefers calm down below, organize a party to go looking for supplies. Check the suburbs for anything we can trade for emeralds."
"Sure." Davey nodded. "Marge'll probably want to join us when she gets back." Davey spoke to himself as he walked off.
Before Attila could make another order, a young looking Crafter holding a wooden sword tugged on her shirt. "Attila? What about the training group? You haven't been training us lately."
"Oh… um, yeah." Attila rubbed her head awkwardly. "I… sorry, I've been busy lately. Maybe another time—"
"But ma'am." The young Crafter continued. "We need to train. We got to be ready for that Hacker in Lunar Castle, right? You said so yourself! If we want to overthrow him and take back our Kingdom—"
"Not now!" Attila snapped, instantly regretting it by how scared the Crafter became. "Ah… I'm sorry… it's just… I'll talk with you guys about it later, alright?"
The young Crafter looked disappointed as his sword hung limply at his side. Without another word, he turned to leave, dragging the sword in the dirt.
Attila sighed before calling out to him. "I'm not giving up! Just to be clear!" The young Crafter perked up instantly, hanging onto Attila's every word. "We'll take back this Kingdom for sure… I just need some time to come up with a better plan."
The young Crafter nodded. "Well whatever plan you make, you can count on us, ma'am! We'll fight that Hacker to the death if we have to!" He saluted before running off with a spring in his step.
"Yeah…" Attila rubbed the back of her head, the guilt worming its way into her chest. "That's what I'm afraid of."
"I'm pretty sure this building used to be a sweatshop." Kate explained as she pointed out some item frames and cauldrons. "Attila's been here the longest, so she would know, but based off the work stations it's a pretty safe bet."
"I see." Void noted with interest. "Is Attila in charge of this community?"
"Well, she says she isn't," Kate chuckled to herself at that, "but almost everyone here thinks 'leader' when they look at her."
"'Child' is the first word that comes to my mind when I see her." Soul ignored the frown Kate shot him. "I mean, she looks like a teenager. What's up with that?"
"Crafters spawn at whatever age they spawn in." Kate chided. "And it's her experience that marks her maturity; Not her age. She's a three-digit."
Soul's eyebrows lifted at that revelation, only for them to knit back into a scowl as he looked away. He, Floyd, and Cara were all nine-digit Crafters, separating themselves from Attila by almost a hundred million Crafters.
"Well, I can't deny how incredible Attila is." Void pulled out another bottle from somewhere and began to drink. "She's gotta be *hic* incredible to lead such a community."
Kate nodded her head absentmindedly. "It's thanks to her that we've lasted so long. I can't even count all the times she's saved my bacon… why, just earlier this night, she saved me from some axe-waving psycho." Kate turned to the unamused Soul. "Remember that, Lost_Soul? That axe-wielding psycho with the axe? Nearly killed me. Looked just like you. Ring any bells?"
"Alright, my bad. Sheesh." Soul folded his arms. "Like you guys have never been attacked before."
"You're right, actually." Kate announced as she led the group to the next room. This one was filled with wooden dummies made of fence posts. A few Crafters were batting at the dummies with wooden swords. Others were shooting arrows at targets across the room. "We try and train people, just in case those Griefers rear their ugly heads."
"Wait… what!?" Soul flung his arms to his sides, stomping forward angrily. "You mean to say you have a fighting force—"
"I wouldn't exactly call it that."
"—and yet you're not using it? The Griefers aren't that tough. You should be down there, sticking it to them and reclaiming your Kingdom." Soul was incredulous. If the people were up here starving, why wouldn't they try and fight back? Why stay hidden?
Kate's eyes shifted to the floor. "Well… I admit there have been some that want to fight?"
"Only some?"
"Okay, more than half! But Attila has been against it recently."
Soul clicked his tongue in disapproval. "Sounds like she's a coward."
Immediately, several pairs of eyes—not just Kate's—fell upon the axe-wielder at his latest comment. The training Crafters within earshot were glaring at him, warning him to take back his insult towards Attila.
"For your information," Kate spoke coldly, keeping her eyes locked with Soul's, "Attila's been fighting longer than any of us. In Nitebane's annual bouts for control of the throne, Attila has been right there with the best of them, trying to wrest back control from those Griefers and bandits. Even when that Hacker, Ocan, took over, she coordinated attacks and ambushes to slay him… and while she hasn't succeeded, nobody can deny her fighting spirit! And everyone loves and respects her for trying!"
Taken aback by Kate's sudden shouting, Soul retreated, thinking up a counter. "Well… they don't heap praises on those being almost good enough."
"Soul…" Cara warned. "As a Crafter who dabbles in proactive arson, even I can tell when to stop adding fuel to the flames."
What? Soul thought to himself before noticing where Cara was looking. The training Crafters were now all glaring at him, with their fists clenched.
"I think we should conclude the tour here." Kate seethed. Soul could tell she was trying not to hit him for the jabs he made against Attila.
"Fine by me." Soul shrugged. "Just point me in the direction of the bathroom… nature calls, if you know what I mean."
Kate stiffly pointed down the hall. "First door on your left. Don't get lost." Kate turned on her heel and left the Silver Intent group to their own devices.
Soul strolled down the hall, ignoring the Crafters glaring daggers at him. When he reached the bathroom, he noticed footsteps following him. A disgruntled Crafter perhaps?
Expecting the worse, his hands flew to his belt as he spun around… only to come face-to-face with Floyd's Zombie Head. The blue-nette pulled it off his head, muttering about not being able to breath.
"What's with you?" Floyd asked accusingly. "Why did you have to press Kate's buttons like that?"
"Tch. Sorry if I upset your new girlfriend."
Floyd's face flushed red, more out of anger than embarrassment. "She's not my girlfriend. We just met."
"Then why are you acting so friendly towards them?" It was so stupid. The whole situation was so stupid. Instead of being in and out, they were stuck in Nitebane. And there was only one person to blame. "Heck, why did you even try to save that girl in the first place!? You didn't know her!"
Floyd held his hands out searchingly. "She was in trouble—"
"She was acting!"
"—She looked like she was in trouble, then! What was I supposed to do?"
"Nothing!" Soul pushed at the blue-nette. "If you had stayed silent and done nothing, we would be out of this hell-hole Kingdom by now!"
Floyd shook his head. "I couldn't just stand by."
"Why!?" Soul clenched his fists in anger. "You couldn't help but do nothing when Silent was the one in trouble—!" Soul's eyes widened as the words escaped him. He had brought up his deceased friend again. And right in front of Floyd.
Soul expected the blue-nette to get mad. To start shouting out apologies or accusations. But instead he was surprised to see his eyes softened.
"Soul… is that why you're so mad?" Floyd continued. "Because I'm worried about others?"
"I… you… ngh!" Soul bit his lip in frustration. "It's not fair!" He finally blurted out. "You were frozen back then, and yet now all you want to do is help! Giving out food. Saving helpless little girls. That Floyd wouldn't have run away that day!"
Floyd considered the axe-wielder's words before letting out a long breath. "I… I'm only like that because of what happened to Silent…"
Soul just shook his head angrily. "Talk about irony. You take on a selfless streak only after your best friend gets killed."
A humorless chuckled escaped the blue-nette. "You make it sound like helping others is wrong."
"It is. Worry about yourself first." Soul glanced away in embarrassment, all his anger dying away.
Floyd tilted his head back, content to just stare at the ceiling.
Soul thought back to how he had almost killed Kate. He wasn't thinking back then; fueled only by his anger. Anger at what though? Angry at Floyd. Angry at the thief, Kate. Angry at Attila when she showed up. Angry at Cobb just because he could. The list was too long.
If he had killed Kate… he'd have to live with that. The knowledge that he killed someone like her. Someone who was risking her life looking for supplies to feed her fellow Crafters.
Even if he never said it, he was glad Attila had stopped him.
He was so used to just killing any enemy in sight… it was the only way he could think to become as strong and feared as the 'Angel of Death' herself.
But, though that worked for her… maybe it wouldn't work for him.
"Hmm… I think I got it." Floyd nodded to himself, catching Soul's attention. "You're right, Soul. Ever since Silent died, I have been looking after others. Hell, the very next day I saved Cobb from those same cultists."
Soul rolled his eyes. "Are you going somewhere with this? Because I still have to pee."
"Yeah, I'm getting to it." Floyd shushed. "I guess… whenever I see someone in trouble… I see us." Soul's eyes widened at that statement. "You, me, and Silent. The three of us, on that day, getting attacked by cultists. I see that every time someone's in trouble.
"Without even meaning to, my body just jumps in the way… because we were like them." Floyd gripped Soul's shoulders, looking him dead in the eye. "We were the ones in trouble. We needed help, and nobody came. But now, we get to be the protectors. We get to stand between a Crafter and death. The Silver Intent doesn't just have to exist to stop the Cult. We can choose to help."
"Choose… to help?" Soul questioned, thinking the blue-nette's words over.
"Yeah!" Floyd nodded eagerly. "We're strong enough, right? We can make sure nobody goes through what we went through."
Soul glanced aside. "I don't know… wouldn't it just slow us down?"
Floyd shook his head. "Not if we work together." He held out a hand to Soul, who just stared at it hesitantly. "You don't just have to kill everything you see. Try being charitable."
Soul raised his head, searching Floyd's expression for any sign of doubt. He seemed fairly confident in his words.
But just as Soul was about to shake his hand, he had to open his mouth to utter four memorable words.
"I have to pee."
And with that, the axe-wielder left Floyd to do his business.
"What do I do…"
Attila had her face buried in her arms as she leaned over a table. She was resting in the comfort of her room: a large office.
The meeting with the smugglers had gone anywhere but well. Scavenging that many emeralds was too tall an order.
And to make matters worse, her people were beginning to wonder when the next attempt on Ocan's life would be. They were eager to try anything… and that was the whole problem.
Ocan's Hacks… from their brief exchanges, Attila had concluded he had two. He had already called himself a Level 2 Hacker and she had seen them both in action. She thought that that information would have been useful in coming up with a way to counter him.
Sadly, that hadn't been the case.
She had tried and failed and tried and failed. Her plans had ranged from ambushing Ocan on the streets or blasting through Lunar Castle.
But each attempt was met with failure. A crowd of Griefers would show up. Ocan would fight back. Her people would be overwhelmed and forced to retreat to the safety of their skyscraper.
And like the waves of the ocean beating down upon Nitebane's cliffs, a bit of Crafters would be lost on each attempt.
It did little to dissuade her people from trying again. Their respect for her and all that she'd done was enough for them to endure countless failures.
They weren't discouraged from a loss.
But she was another story.
*Knock Knock* The rapping of knuckles against her door disrupted her rest.
She muffled a groan into her arms before lifting her head. "Come in."
The door slowly opened to reveal Kate. She looked angry and annoyed, making a show of slamming the door behind her after she entered.
"I take it back!" Kate shouted. "That Lost_Soul is by no means a decent person! He's an ass in every vile connotative sense of the word!"
"…Why are you venting in my room?" Attila asked flatly.
Kate turned on the brunette. "Because Soul had the nerve to call you… to call you a coward! Can you believe that? Gah! He has no idea what you've done for us—and what you continue to do for us!"
Attila shrugged uncaringly. "He's not entirely wrong." That had been the wrong thing to say since Kate had thrown herself on the table, cupping the brunette's face.
"Not you too!" Kate squished her face even more, trying to wring out the self-pity. "You. Are. Not. A. Coward!" She punctuated each word with a push and pull of Attila's cheeks. "You. Are. A. Good. Leader! Say it!"
"Mwy fwace ish stwarting two hwurt." Her face growing tired of the manipulation, Attila swatted Kate's hands aside. "Anyway, a good leader wouldn't have failed to reclaim her Kingdom a total of fifty-seven times."
Kate clicked her tongue. "You see anyone else volunteering to be leader? They all understand what you're going through. We all know we're facing Hackers… and we don't even know if they can be taken down… but we're sure that if anyone can do it, it's you. You're just taking a break for now. Regrouping."
Attila let out a sarcastic laugh. "Is that what I'm doing? Because I look like I'm sitting on my ass."
"No!" Kate huffed. "Re-group-ing!"
Attila shook her head. "I… I thought only I could reclaim Nitebane. That I was the only one with the power." She swallowed a lump in her throat. "But the truth is… even if I had the help… I'd want this settled within Nitebane, by Nitebane's own people." A weary sigh escaped her lips. "I just wish I believed myself as much as everyone else seems to."
Kate's expression softened as she offered the leader a comforting pat on the cheek. "You will. Just give yourself a chance."
Attila looked up, a genuine smile on her face. "Thanks for the pep-talk."
Kate smiled before subtly tracing the edges of Attila's desk. "So… while on the topic of help… I've been thinking…"
Attila raised an eyebrow. "About…?"
Kate fidgeted with her hair. "Well… about those Silver Intent guys."
"…Whatever it is, the answer is no."
"Well, good! Because I was gonna ask if we could not ask them to help with our supply problem. Because I know you're here moping because the smugglers acted like pricks again."
Despite herself, Attila smirked. "Calling them pricks would require they had any in the first place."
Kate winced sympathetically. "They were that bad, huh?"
"Worse." The brunette leaned back with a huff. "They had me begging this time."
"WHAT!?" The brunette covered her ears at the shrill indignation in Kate's voice. "Why those… those…"
"Greedy, scum-guzzling, bottom-feeding, douche bags?"
"…Add that they're smelly."
"Added." Attila laughed. It was times like these, times where she could easily chat with her friends, that she valued the most. They made enduring all the pain and humility worth it. "So… I'll bite. What do you want the Silver Intent group for?"
The topic change was enough to make Kate forget about her anger towards the smugglers. "Oh, right! Well, when you left, that Floyd guy—" Attila's eyes narrowed slightly, still not trusting that guy with the Hacker markings. "—He handed out some fish from his Inventory. I dare say he kept a lot of Crafters from starving."
"Really?" Attila tried to sound interested for Kate's sake. But really, it was hard for her to trust those eyes. They were the same as the Hacker ruling their Kingdom. She had every right to be wary of the blue-haired enigma.
"Yeah. He seems like an okay guy, even with the lines and junk. Not Soul, though." She quickly dismissed. "That guy has been eating crazy cakes. And he's so bloodthirsty that he maaaaaay be a vampire."
"Does he sparkle in the twilight?"
Kate thought for a moment. "…You're right, he can't be a vampire. But that's not important! What is, is that most of those Silver Intent guys seem decent and—more importantly—skilled!"
It was then that Attila finally realized what Kate was getting at. She was right in that it would solve their supply problems indefinitely… not to mention it would give Attila the chance to beat the snot out of those smugglers without fear of repercussion. However…
"I know what you have in mind." The brunette stopped Kate's explanation short. "Those guys aren't gonna help us out of the goodness of their heart."
"Floyd did."
"But he's not the leader. That purple-haired woman is." Attila folded her arms. "They've already finished their mission and they have the Endward Cult banner to prove it. Nothing we offer is gonna keep their attention long enough for them to help us."
At that, Kate smirked. "Oh, I'm sure there's something you can offer an organization hunting the Endward Cult."
Attila's eyes widened, catching on.
There was a chance it could work… no, it would definitely work. It would stir up the dark memories of her past—hell, those four might even attack her out of honor or whatever—but if it meant feeding her people…
Attila sat up, face set with determination. "Where are they?"
"So, where exactly did the pee go?" Floyd discussed with Soul as they walked down the halls.
"I don't know." Soul shrugged. "I guess it just runs down the skyscraper. Hope it hits a Griefer."
"Hoping it hits a Hacker." Floyd commented, earning a smirk and a friendly shove from the axe-wielder.
"Speaking of which…" Cara turned to face Floyd. The blue-nette currently had his face covered by the Zombie Head. "What did Attila mean about you being a Hacker?" She had the sense to whisper, understanding how much the community would despise a Hacker given how one was ruining their Kingdom.
"I'm fairly certain she was insinuating Floyd was a Hacker." Void pointlessly filled in, sloshing some Awkward all over his hoodie. "Also, did you guys *hic* know that Void rhymes with Floyd? Weird, right?"
"But why would she think you were a Hacker?" Cara pressed. "Are you not telling us something? Something about those markings around your eyes."
Void grumbled in annoyance. "The only marks under his eyes are those dark rings, and they only tell us he's not getting enough sleep."
"Wait," Floyd turned to the axe-wielder. "How did you know I'm not getting enough sleep?"
"Because of the rings under your eyes." Soul replied without missing a beat. "Anyway, that Attila chick is crazy. She thought the rest of us were Griefers. Griefers! I mean, do I look like a jerk that revels in the misery of others?"
"Yes, you do."
"Shut up, Cara." Soul scowled.
"Um… I didn't say that…" Cara commented before whispering, "I thought it, though."
"I said it." The Silver Intent group turned to see the dark brown mane of hair belonging to Attila. "Hello, again."
"Did you come here to insult us, girl?" Soul emphasized, causing Attila's eye to twitch.
"Well, little. Lost. Boy." She pronounced each word with a mocking tilt of the head, eliciting a sound from Soul that could have resembled a whistling tea kettle. "I actually came here to propose something to you four."
"Not interested." Cara cut her off, pulling Floyd and Soul with her. Void staggered after her.
"H-hey! Whoa! Hang on!" Attila downed a Potion of Swiftness and hurried to stand in the group's way. "Just hear me out first. No harm in that, right?" She fluttered her eyelashes, using the full power of her adorable teenage body to hit them with an explosive puppy dog look.
"No! Quick, men! Avert thine eyes!" Cara ordered as she shielded her face. But it was too late for her brethren. They had all been hit, forced to cave to Attila's devious puppy dog whims. "Damnit! 'Avert thine eyes' means don't look!"
"It can't hurt to hear her out." Floyd reasoned.
The others may have been willing to listen, but Cara remained defiant. She had already accomplished the mission that Brett had given her, and nobody had died yet. That was an A++ if she ever got one.
Whatever Attila wanted to propose, Cara was certain it would delay their departure of the accursed Kingdom.
Attila cleared her throat. "My community desperately needs supplies and the smugglers have squeezed us for our last emerald. The only way we have left of obtaining resources… is if we reactivate the EXP Factories."
Floyd's ears perked at that, as had Soul's. Those EXP Factories were the same ones they had first seen upon entering Nitebane. By those steep pits…
"I take it you're all familiar with them." Attila noticed the recognition flitting across their faces. "The EXP Factories were the draining point of the sewers, gathering all the discarded items and spawned Mobs and grinding them into EXP and resources. The water flowing throughout Nitebane's sewers was shut down, as was the redstone of the factories, when the Griefer attacks became too belligerent to manage.
"I need a team of skilled Crafters to accompany me through the sewers, both to turn on the water flow, and to reactivate one of the EXP Factories. Doing so should supply our community with enough bones, rotten flesh, and resources to get by." At that point, Attila bowed low. "Won't you please help us?"
Hearing all that, Floyd's first instinct was to agree. People were in need, and he was there to help. This was just the thing a Crafter like him could do…
But he didn't want to speak for the whole group. Cara already rejected her proposal before she could even explain it all. So she wouldn't—
"I'll do it."
Floyd blinked in surprise as Soul of all people stepped forward. Attila seemed surprised too, recalling how Soul was always insulting her. Yet for him to be the first to agree…
"Really, Soul?" Cara dragged a hand across her face. "Why do you want to jump head-first into danger?"
"This isn't like that. They're us and we're them." Cara looked perplexed, even as Soul turned to lock eyes with Floyd. "We can choose to help, right?"
A smile spread forth on Floyd's face, though Soul couldn't see it under the Zombie Head. "Yeah! You can count on us, Attila!"
Cara raised her hand. "Sorry, you two, but I'm exercising my leader veto right now."
"…Can we veto vetos?" Soul asked innocently.
"Don't you dare. And you!" Cara pointed dramatically at Attila's face. "What makes you think we can stay any longer. This Kingdom is dangerous, no matter how high up you are in this skyscraper. So nothing is gonna keep us from leaving!"
Attila smirked as if she were waiting for that statement. "Not even for information about the Endward Cult?"
…
…
"…Excuse me?"
"I've been around Nitebane for a long time. Three-digits and all." Attila bragged, though it suddenly turned into a reluctant admission. "In those early days… I did some things I'm not proud of… I didn't have connections with smugglers, so to feed my community… I had to join the Endward Cult."
Cara and Floyd gasped, while Soul tensely gripped his axe.
"But that's not me anymore!" Attila assured. "This community means the world to me, not some crazy cult logic. But I did manage to pick up a few tidbits of information before I was… ah… dishonorably discharged."
"What happened?" Soul asked.
Attila shrugged. "I quit. They said I couldn't. They tried to kill me. I blew them up."
"Heh. Classic." Soul chuckled, letting go of his axe and relaxing.
Cara stepped forward. "This information. Is it valuable?"
"Oh, yeah." Attila nodded. "I wouldn't offer it if it wasn't. I can give you the location of the Cult's Eastern Division, as well as the identity of one of its most dangerous Lieutenants. C'mon, you know you're interested." She was like a fisherman, baiting the Silver Intent with little nibbles of information.
Cara frowned as she considered the offer. Brett would be over the moon to know the identity of a Cult Lieutenant. And he'd be over the stars to know of the Eastern Division's location. It was too good to pass up.
But still, Cara had that niggling doubt that something would go wrong. That she should just quit while she was ahead. That it was better to get everyone out alive with their mission accomplished.
She ignored it.
Inventory (Floyd): Wooden Shovel, 1 Wooden Pickaxe, 1 Iron Pickaxe, 1 Iron Sword, 1 Wooden Axe {Weak}, 1 Bow, 1 Fishing Rod, 1 Furnace, 1 Crafting Table, 5 Sticks, 3 Ladders, 17 Cobblestone, 1 Oak Wood Door, 1 Minecart, 1 Bed, 1 Boat, 1 Potion of Fire Resistance {8:00}, 1 Banner {Endward Cult}, 1 Potion of Fire Resistance {8:00}, 1 Potion of Swiftness II {1:30}, 1 Potion of Water Breathing {8:00}, 2 Flint, 2 Gunpowder, 9 String, 10 Ink Sacs, 3 Wool, 1 Mob Head {Zombie}, 1 Iron Helmet, 1 Iron Chestplate, 1 Iron Leggings, 1 Iron Boots, 1 Book {Citizenship Information}, 1 Paper {Entry Pass}, 4 Emeralds
[EXP: 13]
AN: Well, I'm sure nothing bad will happen.
I got a few reviews talking about the Nitebane Arc. Yeah, I really screwed up the pacing. This Arc would have fit so much better after Noman's.
Ironically though, you could probably cut and paste this Arc after Noman's Arc and before the Halstatt Arc and it'll probably fit the story just fine. Though if I wrote it like that, there would have been a HUGE lack of Cobb.
I'm trying to make up for the Chapters by giving you readers tidbits about Nitebane's history. Puts a bit of wight behind the setting.
Attila's Skyscraper community is... pretty much just that. A skyscraper community. Think of a ton of refugees transforming an abandoned building into a cozy home. It's tight-knit and Nitebane is dotted with these small skyscraper communities. Though getting to the top via explosion elevator sounds like a... blast? Eh? Eh?
*PUNCH*
The smugglers though... what a bunch of assholes. I drew the begging scene from a T.V. show I watched when I was younger. Bonus points if you can figure it out.
I hope you all enjoyed this Chapter. Not much humor, but nobody's perfect.
Except that one guy named Tad Perfect. The guy could play a fricken violin! How perfect is that!?
Meh. Review. PM. Fav. Follow.