AN: I'm not dead. Back to Wednesday updates. Every Wednesday.
Congrats to The Perpetual Shadow (love the name) for answering last week's riddle correctly. The answer: Suicide. It wasn't spelled right, but, hey, I'll allow it.
We alll cant bee ass grate spellurs az mi.
Enjoy your cookie and your acknowledgement.
(::)
Puzzle: What starts with 'e,' ends with 'e,' and contains one letter?
Disclaimer: I don't own Minecraft. If I did, I'd add hardboiled eggs.
Chapter 105
Desideratum (Part 2)
[Lenz]
While she had been training me, Veronica mentioned that in a duel between archers, the victor would be the one with the higher accuracy.
And facing off against the formidable Ciro_Che, I was inclined to agree. His shots had a higher accuracy, but for one reason alone.
His arrows exploded.
Dodging the shots of an expert archer was tough enough (especially considering my weak physiology), but his shots did not aim for the head or the body. They aimed at my feet and the leaves of which I stood upon. And each one had the power of at least four blocks of TNT behind it.
Believe me, I felt it.
I threw myself to the side as one of his arrows came pelting in. I dodged it, but it struck the canopy of leaves and detonated, blowing me forward where I rolled to a halt.
My chainmail armor was helping to take the brunt of the damage, but it was clear I was fighting a losing battle. The canopy was flat; there was no cover to hide behind. And even if there was, Ciro could just as easily blow it up.
Attacking was my only option. But as I loaded an arrow, looking through the goggles I affixed to my face, an arrow sunk into the leaves before me and exploded, throwing me backward knocking the wind out of me.
Slightly smoking, I propped myself up by my arms and stared down the dark-haired man as his mismatched eyes regarded me. He calmly approached, without a care in the world, as he notched another arrow.
He could have killed me already. If he wanted to, he could blow out the canopy right from under me and send me falling to my death. Or he could bombard me until I was a pile of gear. Instead, he was holding back.
Why?
"You ready to give up yet?" He called out, pointing an arrow right at eye-level. "You're not going to be able to beat this. Don't make me destroy you."
"Who are you people!?" I asked, hoping to stall for time. "Why are you attacking us? We did not do anything wrong!"
"LIAR!" A new, yet familiar voice shouted. "Sic 'em!"
A set of barks was the only warning I received before I was bowled over by four dogs. Teeth sunk into my armored leg and I yelped as they tore away at my Hearts.
"Hunder, enough!" Ciro commanded before an arrow exploded near my side, knocking me over, but also shaking the dogs free of my leg. "We were told to bring them in alive!"
Hunderprest? I realized, making the connection with the dogs. And if they were working together, that meant these foes were Berserkers.
"Shut up!" Hunderprest shouted back as he landed on our level from above. "Lose most of everything that ever mattered to you and then you can tell me not to kill that four-eyed nerd! Hounds! Rip his head off!"
The dogs howled in agreement before charging me. I barely brought up my bow in time and shot them repeatedly while also crawling backwards towards the edge of the canopy.
"Soul! Help!" I cried out, hoping for assistance. "I am cornered, Soul! HELP!"
But Soul was too absorbed in his own fight to care. He and Brandr were crossing diamond weaponry, though Soul looked to be on the losing end.
Seeing I was on my own, I quickly backed up to the edge of the canopy and put away my bow, just as three dogs were lunging for me. With a quick whisper of hope, I willingly fell backwards over the edge, just as the dogs dove before I threw out an arm and snagged the side. The dogs sailed overhead, fueled by their forward momentum, and jumped right off the canopy. They whined piteously as they tumbled down through the air, sure to perish upon hitting the ground.
I may have taken out three of them, but doing so left me in a precarious position. Hanging off the canopy, I was helpless as more dogs approached.
"Damnit, Hunder! We have our orders!" Ciro shouted angrily.
"So what? We'll still have one to take back."
"Dahlia may want both of them… and I need that Journal Entry!"
Just as the remaining twelve dogs were about to doom me to fall, they all suddenly stopped in unison after a pained yelp echoed across the canopy. As one, they turned to face their master. I managed to catch a glimpse too.
Ciro had smacked Hunderprest across the face. He had caused harm to the dogs' master. Which meant the dogs would now be attacking…
The dogs changed targets, scampering towards Ciro instead. Although they barked angrily with bared teeth, the dark-haired bounty hunter looked unbothered as he raised his bow and took aim.
"Call them off, Hunder." Ciro warned, pulling back the string. "Or else they'll be vaporized."
"Grrr… Fine! Stop!"
All the dogs stopped in their tracks, though they growled menacingly at Ciro for what he had done to their master. While they were busy, I pulled myself back up and tried to make sense of everything.
The Berserkers must have known about Soul and me through Hunderprest. He had seen both our faces after all. And even after Cobbert had let him go…
Was he out for revenge for his dogs? The ones I had killed?
Whatever the case, it seemed that Ciro and the Berserkers wanted us alive more than they wanted us dead. But why? We did not have a bounty to speak of. Were we to be bait, perhaps, to lure Cobbert into a trap?
I would not allow it.
We need to get out of here! I thought firmly as I tried to inch myself towards Soul without the other two noticing.
I was stopped when an explosive arrow cut me off.
"Give it up." Ciro warned, stepping forward with his bow raised. Hunderprest stepped up beside him, looking disgruntled over the idea of letting me live. "The sooner we bring you in, the sooner I can get this over with."
"What do you intend to do with us?" I asked nervously as I held up my bow. "What do the Berserkers want with us?"
"I really don't know. I really don't care." He answered indifferently. "Dahlia's plans are Dahlia's plans."
With no escape, I turned my attention to Soul to see how he was doing. My eyes widened.
[Soul]
I got this. No more losing. I thought to myself as my diamond axe clashed against Brandr's sword.
Brandr let out a taunting laugh. "Not gonna lie. I didn't think I'd get to test out my new gear so soon."
"Likewise." I shot back, our weapons scraping against one another in a test of strength. "I feel invincible with this diamond armor on!"
The burly Crafter raised an eyebrow. "You think your paltry, unenchanted armor makes you powerful? HA!" He slid a hand into his belt, withdrawing a familiar looking potion. "I'll give you a taste of what true power is like!"
I tried to press forward to make him stop, but he quickly downed the Potion of Strength. As the dark red particles of strength swirled around him, his strength and taunting grin tripled. He suddenly pushed back, causing my arms to buckle and my chest to creak as he delivered a punishing shove.
I hit the canopy once, but rolled back to my feet despite the painful pressure in my chest. Had it not been for my diamond armor, my ribs would have all broken. My eyes shot back up just as Brandr bore down upon me with a powerful overhead strike.
I rolled to the left before twisting to my feet and lashing out with a razor sharp axe swing to the neck. However, my axe harmlessly skittered off of his skin like it was made of iron.
"What the…?" I leapt back as Brandr tried to punch me. He laughed at my obvious surprise.
"Armor makes the man. Diamond weapon against diamond armor would normally be an even match." He explained as he lashed out at the air with his sword. "But Protection IV tips the scales in my favor, deadbeat!" He pounded on his enchanted armor for emphasis. "You won't even be able to put a dent in my Health while I'm wearing this! But that's only half the equation. What use is a defense without a burning offense? You're about to find out why I'm called the Blazing Brandr!"
"Bring it on, Brandr! You don't scare me! I'm not losing!"
As Brandr readied his sword and charged, I prepared my axe to strike at his head. Powerful armor or not, if I wore it down enough it would break. I just had to keep striking a vulnerable spot, over and over, until—
Brandr lobbed something at me with his free hand and I had to bring up my axe to deflect it. It was an iron sword, and only meant as a distraction so that he could occupy my axe and land a direct hit at the same time.
The enchanted diamond sword struck my side and instantly I felt something crack, buckle, and crunch all in one. Diamond against diamond was an even match. But enchantments tilted the scales. And so did potions.
And what I felt, was a Potion of Strength aided strike, with a powerful Sharpness enchantment to boot. And something else. Something that washed over me like a burning wave.
Fire Aspect.
I skidded across the canopy before crashing into someone, all while flames licked away at my Health. I was in too much pain to cry out. Something in my side hurt so much it was blinding me with pain.
I couldn't even roll over in an attempt to put myself out. Someone else was patting me down, though I knew it wouldn't dissipate the flames. Without water, the only thing to do was ride it out.
"That's why they call me the Blazing Brandr! Cuz I leave a burning mark on anyone I face!" His taunting guffaws echoed in my head, making me gnash my teeth in anger. Even with all my armor, I was losing again!?
What was I even doing there!? Thinking I could protect those idiots when I couldn't even protect myself!
"Oh, so he gets to burn the criminals, but I don't? I see how it is."
"Nobody gets to burn anybody!" Someone else shouted. "Brandr, what the hell are you thinking? You could have killed him!"
"Sorry. Guess I don't know my own strength."
Eventually, the fire petered out. The feeling of pain did not. Looking up, I saw Lenz's worried face. I must have hit him when I was launched back. His efforts to put me out didn't do much, but…
"Okay, Lenz… I guess I can forgive you for calling the guards on me…"
Lenz narrowed his eyes. "Soul, we need to get out of here."
What? No… No I couldn't. Not yet…
I shakily got to me feet despite Lenz's protests and leaned heavily on my axe as I faced the three bounty hunters. Brandr, Ciro, and… Hunder?
"I thought you guys said you took care of him?" I addressed the nerd, to which he could only shrug helplessly. "Meh… Whatever… I'll take you all on!"
Hunder raised his eyebrows and Brandr laughed. But Ciro stepped forward. "You must realize how hopeless that sounds. You're surrounded and outmatched. It'd be better for everyone for you to just give yourselves up."
"Says… you…" I shot back, wavering slightly.
"Are you even looking at yourself?" Ciro asked. "You look half-dead."
"Says… you…"
"Alright, we're talking in circles here."
He shot an arrow at my feet, blowing up the canopy and sending me hurtling back into Lenz's brittle body.
"Ugk! Too heavy!" Lenz cried from my weight, but I couldn't get off of him. I was so exhausted and hurt.
There had to be some way out of this!
[Cobb]
"Wait, so like, the fishing rod can snag people towards you AND knock them back."
"Yeah. I call it bobbering."
"It sounds like it would be irritatingly annoying to anyone you use it on."
"That's exactly how it works."
Despite the urgency to find my friends, Jade and I had started up a conversation while we looked. It had started with simple things—favorite Kingdoms, foods, potions—but had quickly gone into other things. We traded stories and combat tactics. I told Jade about blocking Creeper explosions with a sword, and, although Jade claimed she was only mediocre with a sword, she had some surprisingly good advice on dealing with Witches.
"I've dealt with them before. They're tricky at first, but what you do is lay down water or lava. It sort of sweeps them away. The Witch knows to use a Potion of Fire Resistance on itself, but the force of the rushing water or lava still works at keeping it away."
"God, I wish I thought about that earlier today." I said, thinking back on the Witch in the mysterious Bough Terminus. "So, out of curiosity, what would you have done if we hadn't met like you wanted."
"Well…" She scratched her cheek before shooting me a glance out of the corner of her eye. "No judging?"
"All of the judging. Continue."
She puffed out her cheeks before looking embarrassed. "I… probably would have kept stalking you…"
"So even you admit it's stalking."
"No!"
"It's alright. Acceptance is the first step to fixing the problem." I replied sagely and with a bit of a smirk at her growing indignation. "But soon your stalking problem will be absolved."
"Ugh, I get it! It was stupid and silly, alright? You can stop rubbing it in my face." She crossed her arms and turned away before she suddenly jerked her head back in my direction. "What about you? Surely there's something you did that was super embarrassing that you regret."
"Nope. Not a thing."
"Reeeeeeally?" She pressed with added skepticism.
"Well…"
I remembered the time I dug up diorite and andesite thinking it was valuable.
I remembered mistaking lapis lazuli for diamond.
I remembered being forced to ride a donkey for two weeks while everyone else got beautiful horses.
I remembered Soul pouring ice cold water on me while I was sleeping.
I remembered walking in on Erin in the bathroom.
I remembered Erin walking in on me in the shower.
I remembered that one time I had to use the bathroom, but there was no bathroom present, so I had to dig a hole and—
"No, no. I have absolutely no regrets."
"Uh-huh. Well, I'll ask your friends the same question. See if they have any funny stories to share."
"What? No, there's no stories to share." I replied frantically. "I'm all cool, all the time. Screw whatever Soul says."
"Soul, eh? Good to know." I facepalmed at my slip-up. "So there's Soul, Floyd, and the last one is…?"
"Lenz." I filled in. "He's the redstone engineer of the group."
"The engineer?"
"He's a super smart archer with good eyesight."
"Hum…" She thought to herself. "Not many guilds have redstone experts. Is he better at archery or redstone?"
"He does both. Which is good since I can't do either to save my life." I joked before adopting a contemplative expression. "There's a lot I can't do. But that's what friends are for, right? They make up for what I can't do and I them."
"Is that what you look for in friends?" Jade asked, to which I recoiled.
"No. No, I don't look for them to do anything. I'm not the kind of person who would only take them along just because I would stand to gain something." I explained. "I didn't even know Floyd was a Hacker when I wanted to travel with him. People just wanted to travel with me. And then I got to know them. Then we became friends."
"Sounds like a dream." She remarked fondly before stuttering. "A-and then they make up for what you lack, right?"
"Yeah. But I genuinely care about them. They're like my brothers."
At that word, Jade suddenly went pale. "Brothers… huh..." She glanced aside and I saw a flash of disappointment. "So… what about female members? Would they be considered sisters? And nothing more?"
"Well…" I struggled to answer. "I guess there are some people I consider like sisters." I thought of Wynn back in Ringwood. "The Beginners don't exactly have any female members though."
Her head darted back, her green hair swishing in the wind. "How is that possible? I would have thought people would be eager to join a selfless guild such as yours."
Well, Erin had wanted to join, but we had to turn her down.
"…We only have four members." I admitted sheepishly, causing Jade's face to fall.
"…What?"
"Yeah, we're relatively new." I continued while Jade's face fell into her hands. She let out a pitiful moan.
"How… how can there be so little…?"
"Hey, we're still formidable." I said, speaking a little defensively. "We've done good deeds too. Both against the Cult and the Hackers."
"That's true…" She conceded, looking up from her hands. "But…"
I suddenly got an idea. "Hey, if this is making you think twice about joining our guild—?"
Her eyes widened and she frantically waved her hands. "Nonono! This doesn't change anything! Everything is fine!" She forced a smile.
"You're sure?"
"Yes! Because," she raised a finger dramatically, "quality, not quantity! Your guild must be a small force of specialized warriors."
"Uhhh…"
"Each one skilled in their own right!"
"I guess…?"
"Capable of subduing an enemy on par with a Hacker!"
"…"
She whispered to herself, and I could only catch a bit of it since I was staying silent.
"…won't stand out…"
"What was that?"
"…I said… er… what hope have I of standing out against such skilled Crafters?" She asked woefully, though there was a glint of happiness in her eyes.
"Hey, that's only if they accept you into the guild." I reminded her, causing her to wave her hand in dismissal.
"Please. They'll love me. I'm a master at first impressions."
"I beg to differ." I grumbled under my breath, which she caught.
"That was a one-off." She spoke aside before placing her hands on her hips and gazing proudly into the treetops. "Aside from you, I'm great at first impressions. I'm a social butterfly! Fluttering from flower to flower, sucking up all that delicious nectar from those social flowers, and maybe pollinating, I think, if enough pollen gets on my wings while crossing flowers. Again, I'm not quite sure what butterflies do… but they're friggen gorgeous and so am I so I'll get them to like me even if it kills me!"
I patted her back. "That's the spirit."
She swatted my hand away. "Don't patronize me. I'll do it. Just you watch."
"Just don't be disappointed if they say no. I wouldn't want all your plans to revolve around the Beginners." I ducked behind Jade as a couple of guards passed us. I only breathed a sigh of relief once they were gone. "Where were you even planning on going after this?"
"Oh, uh…" her eyes darted. "Where were you planning on going?"
My eyes narrowed. "Exter."
"Whoa, what a coincidence!" Jade suddenly gasped. "I was heading to Exter too!"
"Wow, really!?" I exclaimed with the same level of shock. "CraAaAaAzy! That means we'll still be able to travel with one another, even if the Beginners reject you! What are the odds!?"
Jade's expression fell. "…You lied about Exter didn't you."
"This obvious realization is brought to you in part by… Duh: A subsidiary of Doi Incorporated." I let out a sigh. "You shouldn't be so obsessed with the Beginners. You got to do your own thing. Be your own person."
She let out a bitter laugh. "Being my own person? That'll be the day. I'd rather blend in than stand out anyway."
"And why's that?"
"Well… hang on." She threw out a hand to stop me, looking closely at the map in her other hand; she turned her head and pressed a hand to her forehead. "Oh, hey, I think I see them—Uh-oh…"
"Uh-oh? Why uh-oh?" I followed her downward gaze and spotted what she meant. Lenz and Soul, surrounded by Jolin guards, and fighting a pair of Crafters clad in diamond armor. "Uh… oh…"
"Exactly."
Jade crouched low and I followed her lead as we both approached the edge of the wooden pathway overlooking the scene. We were quick enough not to get spotted and we had a good vantage point over everything. That didn't mean we had a solution to the current dilemma.
Not only were they surrounded by guards, but they were fighting what appeared to be trained Crafters. They weren't Captains, since they were lacking the brown-dyed leather caps that made up their uniforms. So they were… bounty hunters? Concerned yet badass citizens? Tacking them with a title wasn't important; whoever they were, they were attacking my friends!
"Why aren't they escaping?" I asked in between gasps as one of the foes shot an arrow that exploded on contact, nearly hitting Lenz. "Soul should have enough ender pearls for both of them to do that. Did he use them up already?"
Jade shrugged. "Maybe your friends are stupid." I turned to look at her. "…Sorry, just throwing it out there."
"No. You're right to get that blunt honesty out of the way. Better now than later when you want them to like you."
"Duly noted."
Also, I didn't want to admit that she had a point about my friends. Lenz wasn't stupid, but Soul… well…
"Bring it on, Brandr!" The axe-wielder shouted as if on cue. "You don't scare me! I'm not losing!"
"…Goddamnit, Soul." I cursed as I pressed a fist to my forehead. The guy was more invested in the fight than he was with escaping, let alone Lenz's safety. The engineer couldn't take those blasts forever. Something had to give.
"Oooh, are you thinking up a plan?" Jade asked as she turned her attention to me. "I just know you have an awesome plan to save your fellow Beginners, right?"
"Uh… right…" I sheepishly agreed before thinking of a way to get down there and bail them out. They didn't have bounties, so the guards must have been tracking them via their maps. That meant the only true way to take them off the radar would be to throw them away.
Or at least keep the maps in a safe place.
I needed Jade's help.
"Okay, Jade. You want to start proving yourself to me?" She couldn't nod fast enough, eager as she was to please. "You're good at that Parkour stuff. Can you get down there and pass Soul a message?"
[Fort Regal]
Elsewhere, at the top of the Gift Tree, within the royal Fort Regal where the King resided, two voices argued within the wooden throne room.
"You cannot deny that crime is lower now than ever before!"
"What pride is there in that?" A feminine voice called back. "It should only be something to boast of if it's a peace our own soldiers enforce. Not these shallow mercenaries!"
Sitting on a jungle wood throne suspended by a single fence post, King Ahote, a long-haired man with a long face, massaged the bridge of his nose in clear exasperation.
"I cannot deny their services come with a cost, but Jolin must make sacrifices in order to keep the peace."
"The people should be the ones to decide that." Princess Alaqua, a woman with short, sky blue hair, argued back with clear agitation. "The Law of Desideratum has given bounty hunters more power than the guards!"
"And that power is what keeps the people—the very lifeblood of this Kingdom—alive."
"A lifeblood being sucked dry by those leeches you call Berserkers."
King Ahote's mouth curled into a tired grimace. "Princess Alaqua. Please. Save your passion for the council. The Review is only a few days away. At least then the Berserkers' representatives can defend themselves."
"I'd have an easier time repealing the law after I've won you over." She reasoned, though she toned down her argument all the same. "Please, my King. I've talked with Captain Enyeto and he agrees that Desideratum has overstayed its welcome. He's trained his guards rigorously, and they're at a point where they can apprehend criminals just as well as bounty hunters."
"Exactly which one did Enyeto say had overstayed its welcome? The law or the Berserkers?"
Alaqua's silence was telling.
"I see. Well, whatever discussions you two get up to in-between training sessions is your own opinions." King Ahote stood from the throne. "As for me—and I'll stand by this case come the day of the Review—I attest that the Berserkers may be needed now more than ever."
The King walked to the side, his footsteps echoing across the wooden floor.
"Have you heard the latest news from Ringwood? A cultist-planned attack nearly wiped out the Kingdom. Or what of Nitebane? Two Hackers were deposed from the ruins. Such an act will surely incite retaliation." He folded his arms behind his back and stared off into the distance. "The evil grow bolder in this age. And I will not be remembered as the man who lost this Kingdom to those vile monsters. Grum gave his life for this Kingdom, and it will continue to live on, even if it costs the people a little bit of their freedom. It's a burden we all must bear."
Alaqua clenched her fists and lowered her voice. "It doesn't have to be, though." Her eyes hardened as she stared back into her King's eyes. "You're just afraid we won't be enough to stand up for ourselves. You're afraid we'll fail, but you're wrong! The guards are strong enough to protect this Kingdom and so are its people. It's the Berserkers who don't belong."
And with that parting remark, Princess Alaqua stormed out of the throne room, irritated to have so stubborn a King to follow. She had appealed to every possible angle to win him over. But, alas, it looked like the repeal would come down to the council's vote. She would need to choose her words carefully come the day of the Review. She and Enyeto were the major voices in repealing Desideratum, after all.
As Alaqua passed through the archway leading out into the grand hall, a nauseatingly familiar head of lavender hair caught her eye. Dahlia_Darko was leaning up against the wall, her arms folded, and the corners of her lips tilted up.
"My, my. Quite the argument in there." She commented, though Alaqua could tell she was just fishing for a response. It was probably better to just ignore her and walk on.
"What, were you eavesdropping?" Sadly, Alaqua despised the woman too much to just coolly drop a purposeful encounter.
"Not eavesdropping. I just had something to ask His Highness." Dahlia replied.
"You've been doing that a lot." Alaqua replied, trying to come across as aloof, but failing to hide her vitriol. "I suppose you can't do anything without him holding your hand, hm?"
Dahlia, far from being offended, chuckled lightly. "Perhaps there'd be less need for 'handholding' if Enyeto didn't always insist on making me come up here." Alaqua instantly frowned. "Honestly, that man must take pleasure in wasting everyone's time. It's the only logical explanation."
Alaqua's fists tightened. "Captain Enyeto is right to waste your time. I'm sure whatever reason you have for coming here is just another excuse to make demands of the people. There should at least be some resistance lest you rob us blind."
"Demands and requisitions are two different things, Princess."
"You're the first Berseker I've met who can tell the difference." Alaqua countered. "Mind teaching the rest of them?"
Dahlia let out a weary sigh. "I understand your distrust of us, Princess. Some Berserkers have abused the Law of Desideratum, and you have every right to despise them. But blaming me for the actions of a few?" She clicked her tongue. "Just what kind of example is that setting for your people?"
"Funny. You consider a majority a few."
"I know you think Desideratum is a blight on Jolin, but it's not." Dahlia said. "As bad as you think we are, we keep criminals off the streets and we haven't killed a single innocent. Despite our namesake, we're not merely wild bears tearing away at all available game with reckless abandon. We have a system of control. There's an order to it."
Alaqua's frown deepened, even as the high-ranking Berserker went on.
She pushed off the wall and circled the Princess. "What we do, we do to pay the bills. Just like any other guard. The King accepts that. The council accepts that. And the people—well, they stomach it because they know something worse would happen to them should we leave."
"I guess what I'm trying to say is that, at the end of the day—whether guard or Berserker—we're all trying to keep Jolin as safe as possible." Dahlia rested a hand on Alaqua's shoulder and smiled placatingly. "We're all on the same side. Pro-life. Anti-death. And I'm sure we can work out a compromise that doesn't involve repealing any laws. Maybe limit how much we can take or who we can take it from. Doesn't that sound like a good idea?"
Silence passed as the two females eyed one another. Alaqua looked on with a tempered glare, but Dahlia…
Dahlia's expression was all fake smiles. Shallow niceties that failed to fool the Princess like they'd fooled so many others before. This conversation was only meant to convince her to back off from the Desideratum issue.
Dahlia was about to find out her efforts had the opposite effect.
Alaqua shrugged off the Berserker's hand. "You're aware that the King doesn't choose heirs freely." She began, glaring at the lavender-haired woman. "It's a careful selection process, with numerous candidates handpicked by both the council and the King. It takes years of practice, study, and more to exemplify the characteristics necessary to govern a Kingdom."
The Princess took a step back, holding her hands out with a wide smile. "I'm only standing here as an heir because I devoted my entire heart, mind, and spirit into pursuing it. I didn't whine, I didn't balk, and I certainly didn't doubt I couldn't do it."
Alaqua dropped her hands and leaned forward to glare into Dahlia's eyes.
"Do you know why?"
Dahlia remained silent, though she was wary in a way she didn't show when talking to a Captain twice her size.
"Years ago, when I had a husband and was living at the border between middle and lower class, a certain bounty hunter invoked Desideratum, claiming it was to stop a criminal. That same bounty hunter—a female, mind you—proceeded to rob us of every emerald we had and sent us plummeting into the dark recesses of paucity." The Princess' expression darkened. "A life… my husband chose not to endure a day longer."
The Princess looked back up into Dahlia's widening eyes.
"Do you remember the name of that female Bounty Hunter?"
Dahlia gulped.
Alaqua's expression hardened. "All I've done has been for this one moment. This one chance to do away with the law that doomed me and so many others to the whims of greedy bounty hunters like you." She practically hissed, sending spittle into Dahlia's face.
"You damn better believe I'm going to do everything in my power to make the most out of this chance. No mercy. So you can take your little peace offering and shove it. Up. Your. Arse!"
And with that, Princess Alaqua plowed through Dahlia's shoulder with enough force to jostle her off balance. The bounty hunter only recovered after the Princess had turned the corner.
Alone in the hall, Dahlia was all set to enter the throne room to ask permission to requisition the criminal Floyd. Permission she was sure she'd receive.
"No mercy, huh?" Dahlia spoke to nobody, though her charcoal eyes were fixed on the ornate wooden walls before her.
"I'll keep that in mind, Princess."
And on that ominous note, the albino bounty hunter wiped the dark expression from her face like it was a mask and put on her most winning smile before entering the throne room.
[Soul]
"Soul! You cannot take them all on!"
"Screw… you… I… CAN!" I yelled as I surged forward with my diamond armor glimmering in the sunlight. I didn't buy all that armor my Lenz's money just to lose to a pack of… of…
Ugh, thinking up insults is tough when you're tired!
It didn't matter though. My charge was met with a brutal pommel to the gut courtesy of Blazing Brandr's cheap-ass sword. Maybe if I could steal enchantments like he could, I'd be a match for him. Instead I had to make do with useless gear.
Goddamnit! Why can't I ever win one damn fight on my own!?
My gut hurt from the attack and Brandr didn't even look like he was interested in our fight. "Notch, this is pathetic. It's like watching an ant try and lift an apple on its own. You can't do it, deadbeat."
"Shut… your… mouth…" I panted as I tried to refill my lungs with air. Lenz tried to hold me back, but I shook him loose.
What else could we do? We had to fight our way out. And if Lenz was ready to give up, I'd fight on my own. And win.
Just like the Angel of Death did against the Southern Division. If she could take impossible odds, then so could I.
As I got to my feet, teetering from the damage Brandr dealt, a few of Hunderprest's remaining dogs tilted their heads to the sky and growled in clear agitation.
"What is it my hounds?" The bounty hunter asked before suddenly getting excited. "Do you smell Cobb nearby?"
"Ah!" Lenz shouted, pointing the same way the dogs were staring. My eyes darted for a moment, but I was only able to catch the tail-end of the acrobatic landing demonstrated to us by the newest arrival.
Some green-haired chick in a leather jacket.
"Soul!" The woman said, urgently hurrying over with no weapon drawn. She only stopped when I leveled my axe at her. "Whoa, whoa, wait!"
"You're… one of… them… right?" I asked between gasps, my vision blurring slightly. If another bounty hunter wanted to jump in, bring it on!
"No, no, no! I… um… I'm friends with Cobb." She nodded frantically. "I'm the newest Beginner… candidate…"
"What?" Lenz asked, confused.
"That's... bullcrap…" I panted out. "Cobb… never… said…"
"He told me to give you a message." The woman, Jade, continued. "He told me to tell you to 'use your ender pearls to escape already, you log-for-brains dummy'."
"…Okay, so it's not total bullcrap." I conceded as the bounty hunters looked to one another in alarm at Cobb's message. The ender pearls! I completely forgot I still had them.
"Tell your Executive to show himself!" Hunderprest shouted, his dogs growling along. Jade flinched at the sight of the irate canines and backed slowly towards our side, despite the axe I still had leveled her way.
"He is not an Executive!" Lenz argued while I reached in my belt for the pearls.
Brandr was suddenly panicked. "Hey, what's this? Thinking about running away? I thought you wanted to finish what you started!?" My hand moved away from the pearls before clenching in anger. "Prove yourself a man!" Brandr taunted further, relaxing a bit.
"I know he's an Executive no matter what you say!" Hunderprest continued. "I saw the contraband in his pack! He's guilty!"
"What contraband?"
"You know what, dog-killer!"
I glanced between Brandr and Lenz. Teeth clenched as I struggled to choose. I hated the idea of running from a fight, especially with that smug Brandr taunting like that. However, staying put Lenz in danger. This was my fight and no one else's. So if it meant having my fight later, with no one else at risk of getting hurt…
My hand darted to my belt, withdrawing three pearls.
"NO!" Brandr and Ciro screamed, lunging for us with weapons drawn. Hunder sent his dogs after us.
I handed a pearl to Lenz and—despite my suspicions—Jade. They quickly accepted and, with a good toss, we were out of there.
But not before I caught Brandr's parting words.
"Coward!"
[Cobb]
"Good." I breathed a sigh of relief at seeing the three ender pearls land, warping my two friends and one maybe-ally before me. We were safely tucked away in a branch, far away from the guards and bounty hunters. "You're all oka—"
"Waaaah! Unhand me foul creature!" Lenz screeched, waving his hand back and forth. At the end of his thumb, with its teeth firmly fastened into nerd flesh, was a hissing Endermite. It must have been spawned from one of the ender pearl warps."I require that thumb for arrow pulling and repeater calibration! OW!"
We all stared at the spectacle until Soul walked right up to the engineer and smashed his new diamond axe into the creature, barely missing Lenz's fingers in the process. The pitiful Mob died with a screech and a puff of smoke.
"Thank you, Soul." Lenz nodded gratefully. He clutched his thumb with his free hand in an effort to comfort it. Only then did he notice Jade and back away. "So… er… who is this?"
"Hello!" The Parkourist greeted brightly with her best smile. "My name is AceOfJades. But you can just call me Jade. It's a pleasure to officially meet one of Cobb's friends."
Without asking, she walked up and firmly shook Lenz's floppy fish hand. The engineer was likely too taken aback to offer a rebuttal. Jade moved onto Soul next.
"And you're Soul, right? You were pretty brave back there standing up to those bounty hunters." She complimented as she took in his diamond-clad appearance. To be fair, I did the same. He had iron last time I had seen him. "You must be very brave."
"Or very stupid." I added as I cut across her to stand in front of Soul. The axe-wielder hadn't even raised his hand to shake. "What's the big idea fighting them like that? You had ender pearls. You could have escaped sooner."
"…I know that." Soul growled, looking away. "I had it under contr—"
"No, you didn't." I cut him off, causing him to gnash his teeth. "You had no plan. You were surrounded—both by guards and bounty hunters—and yet you wanted to fight them? What were you thinking?"
"I was thinking I was tired of losing a fight." Soul shot back, his red eyes narrowed defiantly. He stood up to his full height and took an imposing step forward. "And how is what I did any different from what you did in Halstatt?"
"…Excuse me?" I replied dangerously.
"You stayed to fight impossible odds. You didn't know you'd win, but you did." He shrugged. "I was just trying to follow your example."
"That's not the same and you know it!" I countered. "We had a plan. We didn't charge an army solo."
"Well sorry if I didn't have time to make a well thought-out plan!" Soul threw his hands up into the air. "We were ambushed. They knew who we were. Hunderprest was among them. Remember him?" My face paled at the name. The guy I let go…? "He knew who we were. And the guards tracked us somehow. And… where's Floyd?"
I bit my lip and glanced aside. It was all Soul needed to see as he hoisted me up by my hoodie.
"Where's Floyd."
"He's alive." I said first, which caused his grip to slacken slightly. "We got ambushed too. The guards knew about us somehow and jumped as at our Inn. They have his map. That's how he tracked us."
"Er… hang on…" Lenz was looking down at his map with worry before holding it up for us to see. "Four of the blips are right here. Which means…" He glanced towards Jade, who chuckled sheepishly. "The mysterious green-haired Crafter… the stalker…"
"Okay, seriously, how early did you relegate me to stalker status?" Jade accused with a blush. "I was only trying to help."
"Cobbert… who is this woman?" Lenz whispered as he slid to my side. Even though I was still hoisted a few inches above the ground by Soul's fist.
"This is Jade." I introduced, to which she curtsied. "She's… a…"
"Stalker." Soul finished, causing Jade to fume.
"Yeah… but she wants to be part of the Beginners."
"And you think it wise to trust her?" Lenz asked. "She could be a bounty hunter in disguise."
"I know. I considered that."
"Then why are you letting her work with us?"
"I couldn't shake her!"
"Dude, she's like… skinny. I mean, not in the chest, but you could probably pin her without much trouble—"
"Oh my~!"
"You didn't see what I saw. She's like a squirrel! She was doing moves I've never seen before. It was impossible to escape."
"So a very dedicated stalker. Hmmm."
"You know I can hear everything you guys are saying about me, right?" Jade suddenly interrupted, looking cross.
The three of us broke off our whispered conversation to look at her before Soul finally put me down and we formed a group huddle, definitely preventing her from eavesdropping this time. She let out a squawk of indignation before reluctantly accepting the secrecy.
"Look, I told her that maybe she could be a Beginner. She doesn't care that we're wanted and she helped us out."
"Anyone would say that! Duh!"
"She took that map from the fresh spawns." Lenz hissed. "If she did not admit it—"
She already admitted she stole it from them. They made it to Ringwood though—look," I began, lowering my voice even more. "I'm expecting her to betray us, since her story can be cut and pasted onto any money-hungry bounty hunter. But until she does, we won't know for sure. And I told her we won't let her join unless every Beginner said it was okay."
Lenz's eyes widened as he swapped his goggles back to his tinted lenses. "Ah, I see you thought-process. With Floyd captured and us working against the clock, we need all the help we can get. And it would be in Jade's best interest to help us free our blue-haired compatriot in order to win his and our favor."
"Exactly." I nodded, grateful that Lenz was making me sound smarter than it actually was. Jade's betrayal—if it ever happened—could be unsalvageable. If she somehow found a way to steal me away to Nitebane… "We keep an eye on her, she helps us save Floyd, then we can decide whether or not to let her join."
Soul looked to be considering it. "Well… we do need a female member. This is a sausage fest as is. And she doesn't look so tough. You said she was tough to escape? More a runner than a fighter?"
I nodded, which seemed to relax Soul. Lenz was still rubbing his chin.
"…I suppose… we could allow it." Lenz settled. "After all, obtaining new members is vital for any guild. Our criminal status has made that considerably harder. This could establish a precedent and help us rescue Floyd at the same time. Exactly how much does she know about us? What is her story?"
I took the time to explain everything Jade had told me, sparing no details. Though for some reason, Soul broke off to laugh to himself.
"Oh, man! This is too good!" he guffawed, causing me to raise my eyebrow. I turned to Lenz, but he too had a knowing look.
"Am I missing something?"
That made Soul laugh louder. "Cobb! You dense idiot. Every time she helped with her buckets of water, she helped you! Why do you think you were the one she approached first, out of all of us? She admires you alright. Admires you enough to blush when you talk to her—"
"And make up a specific scenario in which you rescued her. Like a prince charming saving the damsel in distress."
My cheeks flushed. "W-w-what?"
"Get it now?" Soul grinned cheekily. "She likes you."
"Like, like-likes you." Lenz added while adjusting his glasses.
"That housekeeper is gonna murder her. Hahaha."
"B-b-but… but…" I peeked my head over my friends to look at Jade, who blushed and looked away. "B-b-but… but… she doesn't even know me that well!"
"Which is why she wants to join the Beginners. Or rather join with you? Eh? Eh?"
"Stop talking!" I swatted his arm aside, blushing, as my mind struggled to come up with some alternate explanation. Sure, Jade was pretty, but I knew next to nothing about her. Was that why she was so interested in me? I never intended to make someone fall in like with me!
"This requires further looking into." Lenz whispered before lifting his head. "Excuse me, Miss AceOf?"
"Um… just Jade is fine—"
"Do you like Cobbert?"
"Wh-wh-wh-wh…" She stuttered, her face turning as red as Erin when she walked in on me in the shower. "What gave you that idea!? I admire him! That's it! Nothing else! Stop looking at me!" She covered her face while Lenz nodded with his lips pursed.
"Judging by the amount of blood rushing to her face, I can only deduce that mmphbrl…" Thankfully my hand slapped over his mouth, preventing any more words from coming out.
"Can you stop!? Shut up, Soul!" I nearly yelled while the axe-wielder was busy pounding the ground in laughter. "So are we bringing Jade along or not? We need to decide now while the guards aren't hunting us down. And I swear, Soul, I will tell everyone you named your bed Mr. Puff Puff if you don't stop laughing right this instant!"
There was a choking sound, like Soul was trying to suck back in his laughter, before he looked up, startled. Then he glanced down. "Sorry if I offended you."
"That's better." I nodded, the color in my face going back to normal. "So?"
Soul and Lenz looked to one another. Soul shrugged and Lenz nodded along. "We will allow it. Only until Floyd is rescued. Then this will be a problem for later."
I nodded at their concession before turning back to a worried Jade. "Okay, Jade, we discussed it. We still need to save Floyd for his vote of approval, but for now, we're going to put you on a trial period."
"Trial period?" Her eyes sparkled. "Does this mean you're giving me a chance?"
"For now." Soul clarified. "This trial period will be to see what you're made of. Then we'll come to a decision."
"I never had a trial period." Lenz muttered resentfully.
"We were in another dimension. That's kind of like a trial period." I offered, which brightened his mood.
"Oh, boy! A trial period! Don't worry!" She waved her hands before us. "I won't let you down! I'll prove myself."
"Glad to hear it." I nodded. "You can start by taking out your chest."
"Wh-wh-wh—" She blushed madly.
"Ender chest!" I quickly clarified, my own face getting redder by the second. "Take out your ender chest! I don't want to see your actual chest! I'm not creepy like that!"
"O-oh! Of course!" Jade realized, quickly taking out her ender chest and stiffly holding it out for me.
I set it down and, after a moment of caution, opened it up and placed my map into it.
"Cobbert, what are you doing?" Lenz asked.
"The guards will be able to track us if we keep our maps. We still need them to keep track of where we are in Minecraftia. I figure this is a decent compromise." Jade, seeing my reasoning, tossed her map into the same chest without hesitation.
Just to test it, I looked into the chest after she did, and found only my map. I couldn't access whatever she put in. Or anything else she had in there.
I thought about demanding she empty her ender chest, but there was really no point. I'd have no way of knowing whether what she was showing was the entirety of its contents or not. I'd just have to give her the benefit of the doubt.
Lenz and Soul followed suit in stowing their maps in the chest.
"There. We're officially off the radar." I announced.
"I have back-up chests, so we can just leave this one here." Jade pointed out. "So what now?"
"Now we must find Floyd." Lenz stated. "But not before we make a plan to rescue him."
"He's a Hacker. Does he even need rescuing?" Jade asked.
"His Hack is… temperamental." Lenz phrased carefully. "If he was taken by the guards, he must be at some sort of prison. Maybe at the top of the Gift Tree near the barracks?"
"Before we go running somewhere he may or may not be, we should probably find a place to lay low for a while." I suggested, to which the others nodded. "Somewhere the guards and bounty hunters would never think to look." I turned to the others. "Anyone got any bright ideas?"
"We could hide out under the supports like we did earlier." Jade suggested.
"I found a place hidden in a tree. It was called a Bough Terminus. I think it was an old public airship station."
"Impossible. Airships are a luxury meant for private ownership." Lenz pointed out. "They would never be used for public transportation."
Then what the heck was the Bough Terminus for? I thought to myself.
"Let's just go back to the Inn you guys paid for." Soul offered the worst idea imaginable. "It's literally the last place they'd think to look."
"Actually…" Lenz spoke up before I could chastise the axe-wielder. "I know a place we may lay low. A safe place with food and shelter."
"Care to share with the rest of the class?" Soul asked sarcastically.
Lenz smiled.
"My pen pal's house."
[Floyd]
True to her word, Dahlia returned to the Root Cellar bearing the smuggest of smiles, two Crafters that flanked her, and a signed book she carelessly tossed Captain Enyeto's way. She also went out of her way to show off the stacks of emeralds hanging off her belt; her latest requisitions from Jolin's treasury.
By his dark glare, Enyeto noticed.
"Surprisingly, King Ahote had no problem with the Berserkers taking custody of Flawwed_Floyd. What a shocking turn of events." She drawled sarcastically while the Crafters with her jeered. She waved a hand in Enyeto's direction. "Your name may have come up a few times. A dozen tops. The King's approval, as well as reprimands for his incompetent Captain, can all be found in that book. I took the liberty of skimming it, purely for amusement's sake."
"I hate you."
"And you wasted my time. I'd say we're even." Dahlia smiled as she turned to my cell, only to frown at seeing me upright. "I thought you had him anesthetized with potions."
Enyeto shrugged. "Didn't see the point since you were coming back to claim him."
"Mhm." Dahlia shot him a venomous glare before smiling sweetly. "Well, if you would kindly paralyze him now, that would be great."
Enyeto paused for a second—likely his anger for the woman momentarily blocking out reason—before he reached into a nearby chest containing both my Inventory and his potions. He walked up to my cell and, with little room to dodge, he splashed me with Weakness and Slowness. My body went limp and I fell onto the floor.
"Thank you, Captain." Dahlia simpered with too much sweetness. She was all smiles now that she was getting her way. She snapped her fingers and her two cronies entered my cell before dragging me to my feet and marching me out.
"Now if I can just have his Inventory, I'll be on my way." Dahlia asked expectantly. I didn't understand why she would need it though. Was it just her looking for stuff to sell to net the Berserkers more emeralds? I didn't think I had anything too valuable. Maybe my weapons?
Captain Enyeto was turned in a way so Dahlia couldn't see his face and her cronies—probably fellow Berserkers—were too busy hauling me to spot it. But I was able to see Enyeto lock eyes with me. He mouthed something and gave an almost imperceptible shake of his head before the moment was gone.
He turned to Dahlia and cleared his throat.
"I am afraid that, in his final moments of freedom, Flawwed_Floyd dumped his Inventory into an ender chest. Whatever he hid, he absolutely refuses to take out."
"Is that so?" Dahlia narrowed her eyes before raising her hand to halt her cronies. Then she moved in front of me and lowered herself level to my eyes. "Is that so?" She whispered, not taking Enyeto's words for face value.
Maybe it was because Enyeto would have been required to hand over my confiscated map if he admitted to having my Inventory. Maybe he just didn't want Dahlia to get a leg up on him. The map would have been invaluable to locating Cobb and the others. Maybe he didn't want her to sell my stuff just so the Berserkers could get more wealth. Maybe it was purely spite.
I remembered Enyeto's mouthed word.
'Don't.'
I closed my eyes. "I worked hard for that gear. I wasn't in the mood to just hand it over the second I'm caught."
Dahlia accepted the lie easily, missing the small breath of relief escaping Captain Enyeto. She patted my face and moved aside to allow the cronies to pass.
"There's just one little thing." Dahlia spoke as she walked back up to the taller, more intimidating Captain. She smiled sweetly.
And then punched him across the face.
Enyeto's face jerked to the side, but he made no protest or shout. He just stood his ground, slowly turning his face back forward to glare at the smaller woman.
Dahlia grabbed a bit of his shirt and dragged him down to her level. "Next time I ask you for something, know I'm not asking. I'm demanding."
And with that, she turned on her heel, her twin tails whipping across Captain Enyeto's face, before she waltzed out to follow us. The door to the cell closed, leaving Enyeto's face the last thing I saw.
After a few minutes of making turns and passing cells of people cursing Dahlia and the Berserkers for tossing them in there, Dahlia let out a huff of relief.
"Phew! Sorry you had to see that, Floyd. Can I call you Floyd?" She asked before waving aside the question. "I know you may have heard all sorts of baseless rumors from that Captain, but you should know that I take the safety of this Kingdom very seriously. The benefits are nice, but just an afterthought."
It was amazing she could say that with a straight face when she was showing off the amount of emeralds hanging off her belt. How much did she even take?
Instead, I studied my surroundings carefully. Before, I couldn't use my Hack since I had no idea how I got there, and I'd only have thirty seconds of speed to figure it out. After that, I'd freeze and be a sitting duck in a Kingdom that despised Hackers almost as much as Nitebane.
Not to mention I had no idea if my Hack would work against my Paralysis. I should have really tested its limits with Lenz earlier.
Best to wait for an opportunity.
"But now that you're out of that dank cell, I hope you can help me out with something very important." She hinted with a smile. "And then, maybe I can help you out in turn."
Her words caught my attention, but only in how they caught my attention. She was laying out bait and was hoping I'd take it. I couldn't say I wasn't a little bit curious."
"Help you out with what?"
She smiled, pleased to have my attention.
"You'll find out." She assured. "But later."
[Noman]
Danba Village was a peaceful place, considering how close it was to the western badlands. As one of Zeppil's villages, it was policed by guards wearing white leather caps. Most villages required a Crafter to obtain a Kingdom Entry Pass from the main Kingdom, so I needed to pay a visitor fee and promise to leave after two days at most. The houses were built along the hills as well as the valley, and the people were an even mix of Testificates and Crafters. Fenced pens containing sheep were sprinkled here and there.
Since I had plenty of emeralds, resupplying was no trouble. I purchased [COOKED MUTTON] at the first pub I saw and leaned back to enjoy the brief moment of respite. Beetroot waited outside, tied beside a post.
While I waited, I took a look around the pub in idle fascination. Over in the corner was a bard telling stories to a group of interested Testificates. The bar was full of Crafters happily enjoying their drinks, though I noticed one or two direct appraising looks my way. It was only natural. Not many Crafters wore diamond armor. Most of them stopped after I met their stares. Most, but not all. One table in particular seemed unusually interested in me.
I was snapped from my thoughts when I heard a sudden crash near the bar. Everyone turned to see what the commotion was, but almost immediately dismissed it after.
Two Crafters were shoving one another at one end of the bar. Maybe they were drunk on Awkward Potions, but one had taken it too far by throwing the other onto the floor. He quickly staggered to his feet and swung at the instigator, scoring a glancing hit on his cheek.
Spotting the signs of aggression a mile away—and noticing nobody else willing to break it up—I stood up and hurried over.
"Hey, hey, hey! Fellas!" I tried in a pleasant voice. "Let's not beat each other up, okay?"
"Oi! Don't stick your nose where it don't belong!" One of them slurred.
"Yeah! I was just about to teach this prat a lesson!"
"In your dreams!"
Just as their fists were about to connect with one another, I found myself in the middle. The edge of my shield pushed one fist out of the way while the broad side of it blocked the other. The two drunkards looked astonished at the swift action, nearly stumbling to the floor.
"Trust me. You guys don't want to do this." I tried again. "And think. If you cause too much of a scene, you might get banned from this place."
That made them pause for thought. "…I do like drinking here…"
"Same…" The other one muttered before shooting a cautious glance to the bartender. "I guess we can settle this outside…"
"Or!" I hastily interjected, not wanting them to fight at all. "You can talk about your difference like civilized adults?"
They looked at one another, mulling it aover.
"Hmmm… Nah! I'd rather we duke out our differences."
"Yeah. But thanks anyway, pal!" One of them slapped me on the back. "You're alright!"
"W-wait! That isn't what I…" They were already leaving. "B-but what about peace, and-and-and pacifism and… and all life is precious!"
As they left the bar to go fight (and several drinking Crafters followed to watch) I let out a miserable sigh.
"Well, I tried…" I moved to go sit back at my table.
"…Billionth…"
But then I froze after hearing that one word in passing. I quickly turned to the source and saw it was the bard in the corner. The one retelling a story to a group of Testificates.
Tentatively, I made my way over, catching more of the story.
"…showed up like a whirlwind, he'll tell you! I knew a guy, who knew a guy, who knew a guy that saw it with his own eyes! And that's what he told me!"
"Sounds rather farfetched." A Testificate frowned, her nose shaking.
"No! It's all true!" The bard attested. "Daymonte's villages were facing Griefer problems before they were resolved at Halstatt. But it wasn't the guards that did it!" The bard spoke in a reverent whisper. "It was the Billionth!"
Confusion warred in my mind and I gripped my shield tightly. I had never been to Daymonte or Halstatt. Nor had I given away my identity as the Billionth.
So who had?
"E-excuse me." I raised my hand, walking right up to the bard and ignoring the Testificates I had to push aside. "But this Billionth you mentioned. What did he look like? What was his actual name?"
"Ah, another interested listener, I see." The bard grinned. "Well, I can tell you that he was twenty feet tall."
…How?
"He had a weapon that blocked out the sun."
An artifact, maybe? None of them fit that description…
"And he tore a Hacker limb from limb! At least, that's what I heard from my friend's coworker's miner in Halstatt." The bard nodded. "Doesn't get much more trustworthy than that."
"Personally I think it's a load of baloney." That same skeptical Testificate folded her arms. "How on Minecraftia can a ten-digit defeat a Hacker? It's uncalled for."
"Well, Nitebane has already proven that Hackers can be slain. Maybe the Billionth did that too!"
"Then why is a female on the throne?" The Testificate challenged, though I tuned it out as I gripped the bard by the shoulders.
"A name! Do you have a name!?"
"A-Ah, Clarence the Bard—"
"No, no! The Billionth's name! Who was he?" I asked again, desperately wanting an answer. There couldn't be two Billionths!
…Could there?
"Alas, my friend's coworker's miner in Halstatt didn't get a name. All that stuck was the most extraordinary piece of information." The bard looked serious. "He was the first ten-digit Crafter. The first Hacker Slayer. The one and only Billionth!"
I released the bard and took a step back as I processed that.
Helena had told me I was the Billionth. That she had never once lost track of the numbers she assigned to every spawned Crafter.
But what if she had? A billion numbers was a lot to remember for one lonely Testificate. Who was to say her memory didn't fade with time.
What if… what if she made a mistake?
What if she named another as the Billionth without realizing? What if she wrongly gave me the mission assigned to someone else? This other Billionth was already well-known and had already accomplished much by slaying a Hacker (being the first to do so). But wasn't that what Notch warned against? That the attention would ultimately lead to ruin? That the Endward Cult would catch wind of it and seek to eliminate the Billionth before he could eliminate them!?
But he wouldn't have known about that. I'm the one who got Notch's messages. I'm the one who got the powerful armor. He has nothing… and yet he still killed a Hacker?
But… hang on…
I had willingly taken another number that wasn't mine.
To hide my identity, I took the number nine-hundred-and-ninety-nine-million nine-hundred-and-ninety-nine-thousand nine-hundred-and-ninety-nine. That was the number on my Citizenship Information.
Because I took a number that wasn't mine… was it possible this Billionth had to take a number that wasn't his? Did we trade numbers?
Yes… yes that had to be the reason. There couldn't be two Billionths. I was the one tasked with stopping the cult. I was the one meant to protect Minecraftia. I breathed a sigh of relief. It was still my job. I hadn't deprived Minecraftia of its true savior. All I had stolen was a number.
But this other 'Billionth'. He didn't know of the danger that came with that title. He didn't know that the Endward Cult would be looking for him. He didn't know that he was the only thing standing between the Cult and the end of the world.
I needed to find him. If only to warn him of the dangers.
As for how… that was where I drew a blank. The world was a big place, after all. And unlike the artifacts, I had no idea where to start looking. Halstatt, maybe, since that was the last place he had been seen. But how long ago was that story? He could be anywhere by now.
The Cult had thousands of agents to spread out and look for him. I was just one man.
It seemed hopeless, but I swore then and there to keep a lookout for the False Billionth. If he was famous enough to have stories sung about him in bars, there was a chance he'd have more. And each one would be a clue.
With that decided, I prepared to leave the bar. I was restocked and more than a little restless after my latest discovery. I wanted to go.
But before I could reach the door, the group of Crafters that had been consistently eyeing me crossed my path.
"Excuse me, sir." One of them spoke, sounding a little nervous. "But, may we make a request of you?"
I looked at the four Crafters, wondering if things were about to get rough. I still had my shield ready, and they must have seen me (sort of) breaking up that fight.
"You have good armor and seem pretty decent with that shield." Another of them nodded. "If you're heading to Zeppil, we might be able to help one another."
"How so?" I asked, hesitantly.
"We need an escort." The nervous female spoke tremulously. "Someone who can handle themselves. We were hoping that might be you."
Inventory (Cobb): 1 Fishing Rod {Backlash} [Knockback II, Luck of the Sea III, Unbreaking III], 1 Iron Pickaxe, 1 Iron Sword, 1 Golden Shovel [Silk Touch I, Unbreaking III], 54 Cobblestone, 19 Grass Blocks, 20 Torches, 37 Coal, 12 Jungle Wood Logs, 64 Jungle Wood Planks, 16 Jungle Wood Planks, 1 Crafting Table, 1 Clock, 11 Cooked Porkchops, 1 Water Bucket, 9 String, 1 Iron Helmet, 1 Leather Tunic [Dyed Green, Mending I, Unbreaking I], 1 Iron Leggings, 1 Iron Boots, 5 Emeralds, 2 Gunpowder, 8 Rotten Flesh, 1 Book {How to Kill Stuff for Numb Nuts}, 1 Book {Advanced Mob-Slaying}, 1 Book {Citizenship Information}, 1 Paper {Ringwood Entry Pass}, 1 Paper {Jolin Entry Pass}
[EXP: 23]
Inventory (Floyd): {Empty}
[EXP: 29]
Inventory (Lenz): 1 Bow, 1 Shears, 2 Levers, 1 Flint and Steel, 1 Stone Button, 5 Redstone Torches, 9 Redstone Repeaters, 3 Redstone Comparators, 28 Redstone, 18 Blocks of Redstone, 2 Hoppers, 3 Pistons, 2 Sticky Pistons, 21 Cobblestone, 25 Dirt, 1 Minecart, 1 Compass, 25 Gunpowder, 1 Leather Cap [Dyed Green], 1 Chainmail Chestplate, 1 Chainmail Leggings, 1 Chainmail Boots, 58 Arrows, 18 Jungle Wood Planks, 1 Crafting Table, 16 Sugar Cane, 18 Cooked Chicken, 11 Paper, 6 Ink Sacs, 4 Leather, 9 Emeralds, 1 Book {Airship Piloting 101}, 1 Book {Notebook}, 1 Book {How to Kill Stuff for Numb Nuts}, 1 Book {Advanced Mob-Slaying}, 1 Book {Citizenship Information}, 1 Paper {Daymonte Entry Pass}, 1 Paper {Jolin Entry Pass}, 1 Paper {Ringwood Entry Pass}
[EXP: 12]
Inventory (Soul): 1 Diamond Axe, 1 Iron Pickaxe, 64 Iron Ingots, 57 Iron Ingots, 12 Gold Ingots, 2 Ender Pearls, 1 Potion of Invisibility {8:00}, 1 Milk, 1 Diamond Helmet, 1 Diamond Chestplate, 1 Diamond Leggings, 1 Diamond Boots, 1 Crafting Table, 1 Anvil, 1 Bed, 1 Furnace, 35 Torches, 2 Cooked Chicken, 37 Dirt, 64 Cobblestone, 34 Cobblestone, 50 Coal, 38 Jungle Wood Planks, 1 Book {Citizenship Information}, 1 Paper {Jolin Entry Pass}, {Ringwood Entry Pass}
[EXP: 40]
Inventory (Jade): 1 Iron Sword, 1 Iron Pickaxe, 35 Baked Potatoes, 29 Cooked Porkchops, 1 Crafting Table, 1 Furnace, 24 Coal, 47 Torches, 38 Jungle Wood Planks, 20 Cobblestone, 1 Water Bucket, 1 Lava Bucket, 1 Compass, 1 Clock, 17 Emeralds, 3 Ender Chests, 1 Book {Citizenship Information}, 1 Paper {Ringwood Entry Pass}, 1 Paper {Jolin Entry Pass}, 1 Paper {Dover Plains}, 1 Paper {Lazuli Entry Pass}
[EXP: 16]
Inventory (Noman): 1 Diamond Chestplate {Severe Shield}, 1 Diamond Sword [Sharpness I], 1 Black Shield {Slight Shield} [Blue Cross], 1 Bow [Infinity], 34 Birch Wood Planks, 35 Iron Ingots, 19 Sticks, 13 Torches, 1 Bucket, 1 Crafting Table, 9 Beetroots, 10 Bread, 40 Cooked Mutton, 1 Birch Fence, 1 Bed, 1 Book {Notch Mission II}, 1 Book {Artifact List}, 1 Book {Citizenship Information}, 1 Book {The Art of Peace}, 1 Paper {Ringwood Entry Pass}, 1 Paper {Dover Plains Entry Pass}, 1 Map {Dover Plains}, 1 Map {Mesa}, 1 Compass, 64 Arrows, 2 Glass Bottles, 5 Sugar, 7 Enchanted Golden Apples, 1 Diamond Helmet, 1 Leather Tunic [Dyed Blue] {Weak}, 1 Diamond Leggings, 1 Diamond Boots, 64 Emeralds, 64 Emeralds, 64 Emeralds, 60 Emeralds, 2 Bones
[EXP: 7]
Beetroot the Horse
AN: Someone else added to the Inventory List? What madness is this!?
Anyway, next update is Wednesday. Figure I should say this now so I won't forget.
...When really I'm just setting myself up to miss another day.
Don't worry, though! I'll definitely update by next Wednesday!
...Definitely.