AN: Nothing earthshattering happens this Chapter. You can just skip it. Really. (¬‿¬)
The answer to last Chapter's riddle: Lobster! Congrats to Brookstar for guessing it correctly. Here's your Cookie and your acknowledgement.
(::)
Puzzle: What loses its head in the morning, but gets it back at night?
Disclaimer: I don't own Minecraft. If I did, I'd add cactus pears.
Chapter 140
Mess Kingdom
[Cobb]
Noman and I didn't immediately tell the rest of the Beginners about the artifacts or his mission from Notch. With all that happened at Shansi Village, we agreed it would be best to let things settle down before throwing any new information at them. But I could tell we both had ulterior reasons.
Noman didn't want competition in his quest for the super-powered items. He hinted at complications from the past, and I remembered Ciro_Che, the bounty hunter in Jolin with the peculiar bow that unleashed explosive arrows. There was an entry for them in the artifact list. I told him about it, but Noman waved it off, saying he had already met the man in question. Hence, why he was reluctant to share the knowledge of the artifacts with others.
I didn't want Floyd or Soul to hear about it, since the two had enough of a grudge against the cult to dedicate their lives to finding the artifacts. Even though I accepted they could take care of themselves, I guess I was worried they'd look for the artifacts on their own… and leave me behind. Having them work with Noman felt like meeting them halfway, since we could all protect one another as a guild instead of going solo.
We'd tell them—we agreed on that—but not immediately. We also needed to settle how much we should tell them. The two of us argued in secret, down in the engine room away from the others. I wanted him to reveal both the Bottes Zephyr AND the Severe Shield, but Noman was startlingly adamant about keeping the chestplate close to the chest—no pun intended.
It was a powerful resource. That was my argument.
Using it would mean someone had to die. That was his.
Once again, his Aikido philosophy was coloring his decisions. I didn't like it, but I knew it was something he felt strongly about. So I asked for a compromise; to use the chestplate if there was no other option and if it was to save a life.
Noman agreed, and we shook on it.
I couldn't help but compare my existing friendship with the others and this 'budding friendship' with Noman. We kept butting heads about survival and mercy, and every other conversation was like a business negotiation. The only thing we saw eye to eye on was the protection of the guild, and as far as I was concerned that was all that mattered. Under our two-fold protection, nobody was going to die. For that, I was grateful.
And just because I didn't have as much in common with him, didn't mean the others wouldn't. I coaxed him into getting to know the rest of the guild before we reached our destination.
Akasha.
Yeah, we were going to Akasha. Noman was eager to look for the Kingdom's artifact—the Vivlio Zythopoiias (ten points for pronouncing that right)—but we would have gone there regardless. The decision to journey to that Kingdom had been decided long before him. Long before Jade, even. It came from the Silver Intent.
Back in Ringwood, the Silver Intent leader, Brett, had given Floyd and Soul two missions in Zeppil and Akasha respectively. They were spread thin and Brett tasked them with completing the missions simultaneously.
Naturally, Soul said 'balls to that' and went with Floyd anyway.
I wasn't complaining, though. Soul's presence bolstered our guild and saved us a fair share of times. Even if it took longer, Brett should have kept the pair together.
The Zeppil mission was a mistake, but there were still reports in Akasha. Hundreds of cultist arrests over the past year. That spoke of large-scale Endward Cult activity, and it was the Silver Intent's job to investigate. When Noman heard it could be the headquarters of the Western Division, he understood how serious the threat could be and agreed that disrupting the cult's operations was first and foremost. The artifact could wait.
Now, if only Jade could be a little more optimistic about going there.
"Akasha, the Mess Kingdom." She wrinkled her nose at the name.
"I thought it was the Mesa Kingdom." Lenz added, looking up from the Advanced Mob-Slaying book.
"It is. But it's also a Mess of a Kingdom. That's why people call it the Mess Kingdom." Jade explained. "In fact, before Nitebane bounced back, it was the second worst place to live."
Floyd shuddered at the helm of the airship, remembering his time in Nitebane.
"Second to that post-apocalyptic city of torn skyscraper communities where Hackers and Griefers ruled?" Soul posed. "Wow, that's bad."
"You'll see why once we get there." Jade promised darkly, refusing to say another word about it. She excused herself and left the bridge, probably to retire to her room.
She clearly disliked Akasha and I vaguely wondered why. From her Entry passes, she'd never been there. I guess I'd have to do what she said, just wait and see.
"In other news," Lenz piped up, "I believe I have made some headway in translating these Herobrine books."
"Herobrine books?" Noman perked up.
"What've you got?" I leaned over him, interested.
"Well, I have been mulling it over for a while." He flipped How to Kill Stuff for Numb Nuts and Advanced Mob-Slaying to the back pages where the mixed up words were written. "And I believe I have reached a conclusion." He paused for dramatic effect. "These pages are written in Jibberish."
"We know they're gibberish." I rolled my eyes. "That's why we can't read them."
"No, no, no! I mean they are written in the language of Jibbermen." He waved the books before me. "Jibberish! With a 'J'!"
"Oh… Th-that's what I thought you meant."
"Jibberish… is a language?" Noman asked, stepping closer.
"Well, no… not from our understanding." Lenz began. "Scholars have always debated whether the garbled words uttered by Jibbermen are a kind of language. The vowels and consonants come out so quickly it is nearly impossible to transcribe—but remember that Jibberwoman with the Paragons?"
"The assassin with the daggers? Carys' right-hand woman?" Floyd described, having fought her once or twice.
"Yes. She spoke in a language similar to that of these pages. She even understood my feeble attempts at emulating it." Lenz flipped through the pages excitedly. "Herobrine must have mastered their language when he wrote this. Translating these tomes could pave the way to communicating with Jibberman all over the world."
"Why would he write these pages like this anyway?" Soul asked. "Did he think he'd have a Jibberman fanbase?"
"Doubtful. If he had published his findings on how to translate Jibberish, he would have revolutionized how we view unusually named Crafters. Think of how isolated they are from the rest of us, like they are a different species. If we had only known how to communicate with them—if we had known they had the intellect to communicate…" He shook his head. "Why did he not publish this discovery?"
"Maybe he didn't want anyone to translate this." Floyd suggested, sparing a glance over his shoulder. "Maybe he had a few secrets he wanted to keep to himself."
For some reason, I was reminded of the Creeper Hybrid in Daymonte, where I had found one of the books. Then there was the Ghast Hybrid in Shansi, screaming about the man whose fault it was she was like that.
Herobrine…
"Maybe you should take a break." I suggested, forcibly shutting the pair of books in Lenz's hands.
"What!?" Lenz sat up, outraged. "But Cobbert, I am so close to a breakthrough! My scientific curiosity could not be more piqued!"
"You can translate these anytime." I reasoned, trying to keep the nervousness out of my voice. A few weeks ago, I would have been eager to have those books translated. But suddenly, I was content with what I had from the author. The valuable information Herobrine passed down in his Mob slaying books that helped immature Crafters like me stay alive. That's how I knew him. There was no need to dig any deeper.
Why was I sweating so much about it anyway? Herobrine was a good guy. The First Crafter to spawn. He built Helena her house. He made the artifacts for Notch to destroy the Endward Cult. I was just being paranoid over nothing.
"Cobb's right." Floyd defended from the airship controls. "You've had your nose buried in those books the past two days. We're already in Akasha territory." He gestured to the Mesa biome out the window. "We should be thinking about how we're going to do this."
"How we're going to do what?"
"In case you've forgotten, Cobb and I are wanted as cultists."
"Oh, right, sorry."
Floyd sighed. "Zeppil was too far south for the posters to reach, but Akasha is closer to Ringwood than Jolin, and they had our posters. We should assume we're wanted men."
"Plus, how are we supposed to enter a Kingdom when we're flying around in this thing?" Soul asked, pointing out the Asmodeus.
That was actually a good point. How did Entry Passes work with airships? You could just fly over a Kingdom's walls. Did the airship need a special pass? Did Carys just ignore the tolls? I wouldn't be surprised. She'd think tolls beneath her, just like everyone and everything else.
"There is a fee if we bring the airship into a village or Kingdom." Lenz explained, putting to use his piloting knowledge. "Since we would be taking up airspace, it would be equivalent to us renting property. We would have to pay a reduced tax based on how long we intend to stay. The Entry Passes remain mandatory. We need to obtain them at the toll gates before setting foot in Akasha."
"But we can't without knowing if we're wanted or not." I pointed out. "The rest of you might be safe, but Floyd and I can't be spotted."
"How about a test run, then?" Noman suggested.
[Jade]
One of the prime features of the Asmodeus was the number of bedrooms available. The idea that you could lay down, go to sleep, and wake up hundreds of miles from where you started was groundbreaking in Minecraftia.
Of course, there was always some small part in the back of the head that said it wasn't that groundbreaking. That somehow, sleeping on a flight was normal in a sense. Nostalgic.
But that was besides the point. Since we had multiple bedrooms to choose from, there was no issue in offering Delaney and her Testificates one. The Testificates didn't sleep, they only went inside at night to avoid Mobs, but the sentiment was there. Their rooms were usually empty, Sue and Clyde preferring to stay with Delaney and comfort her.
That's how I found them when I looked into her room.
Delaney was sitting upon her bed, staring listlessly out the window while Sue and Clyde tried to get her to talk, or eat, or move. They were the only ones she'd let get close; she'd been avoiding the rest of us like Creepers. Most of her group had died and she blamed us. Not to mention she knew Floyd was a Hacker and was terrified to so much as catch a glimpse of him. Both were understandable, though incorrect if she could just think about it for a second.
Floyd had rescued her and her Testificates from the tender mercies of the Angel of Death, and Cobb had done everything in his power to keep Beican and the rest alive. The fact we were ferrying them to the nearest village should have been proof that we meant no harm.
But fear had a way of making all common sense go out the window.
I knocked twice, watching as the Testificates' heads jerked towards me. "Hey. Mind if I come in."
"Go ahead." Delaney mumbled without looking away from the window. "You've already kidnapped me. Why shouldn't you be allowed in my cell?"
"Thank you." I chose to ignore the last bit as I stepped inside, taking a seat at a small table near the wall.
"I don't really feel like talking right now."
"You don't feel like talking with me." I corrected. "That's fine, though. I'll talk, you just listen."
"I don't—" Her teeth clicked shut and her gaze hardened as she turned towards me. Sue and Clyde shuffled uncomfortably between us.
"You're under the impression," I began carefully, "that everything that happened in Shansi is our fault when it isn't. You know this."
"All I know," she snapped, "is that eight of you went into that mine, five came back out, and not one of them was my friend, my friend's husband, or my friend's husband's friend. Next thing I know you're blaming their deaths on some cockamamie Ghast Hybrid… but you seemed to make it out just fine!"
"I cracked my head against a cliff and was barely conscious." I said, perfectly calm. "And I only got out okay because Cobb made that decision. He and Noman found me and got me out. It's what we were trying to do for Mirabelle… before the… Hybrid… got her."
I never would have believed it either. Hybrid. It was an unknown term for an unknown element. I'd never encountered anything like that, but apparently the others had. Cobb, Lenz, and Noman. Creeper, Slime, and Ghast. The idea that those things could have ever been human repulsed me. Just thinking about that Ghast abomination and its horrible tentacles…
Just what was making those things?
"Whether you believe me on the Hybrid or not, there was a monster down in those mines and it killed your friends." I stated bluntly, causing Delaney to flinch. "Maybe it was partly our fault for needing coal and Mirabelle—being the saint that she was—went off on her own to get some, but we never—never—asked her to risk her life for us. You know that."
Delaney broke her gaze, her eyes tearing up as she glared down at the sheets of her bed, taking great bundles into her fists.
"Death happens everywhere." I continued. "Sometimes there's someone at fault, but other times it's just the world working against you and there's nothing you can do about it." I shut my eyes. "It's a hard truth to swallow… and I hope Cobb never has to take that pill." I admitted. "If I could pick and choose what to…" I trailed off, unsure of what I was about to say. I couldn't change time. What was done was done.
Delaney must have realized this too, because she just turned away, looking out the window once more. The only difference was that she would occasionally whisper the name of a fallen friend.
I wasn't obligated to say anything more. She wasn't my friend and she wanted nothing to do with any of us. I could have walked out of that bedroom without a care.
Instead, I thought about my past. My dead husband. The guilds that used me like a tool. My teacher who would impart small nuggets of wisdom upon me.
It was an uncomfortable topic, but…
"You know," I scratched the back of my head, "when I first lost my husband, I didn't know what to do. All thought kind of… shut down, you know?" Not all thought. I could still remember the moment it happened. His Head was just… there. "But my teacher believed that, when a Crafter dies, they don't, you know, disappear forever. She believed that they move on to a better place."
"You mean they return to the Void?" Delaney asked, listening intently.
"No, not the Void. Just… somewhere else." I let a sad chuckle escape me. "She didn't have any proof, but neither did her teacher. Nobody could ever conclusively prove that a Crafter passes on to a different realm when they die. But that's what they believed."
"…Do you believe that?"
"I go back and forth." I admitted. "Usually when someone dies it's more of a comfort believing they're just moving on to the next great adventure."
"Despite there being no proof."
"No proof for it, but no proof against it either." I gave a little half-smile. "I mean, there are so many fantastic things in Minecraftia. Is it so strange to believe in an afterlife?"
She remained silent.
"I believe," I said suddenly. "I believe that my husband is somewhere, living a new life, living a new adventure, maybe even settling down with someone else," I laughed a little, "and… that I'm free to do the same." An image of Cobb coming to my rescue down in those mines flitted through my brain. Herobrine, when did I get so corny?
"And Beican and Mirabelle," Delaney piped up, tears leaking down her face, "a-and Cormac and Bea… you think they're all together? I-In a better place?"
"I do." I said. "Without a doubt."
[Cobb]
For the first time, Delaney joined us in the bridge.
She walked with Jade, Sue and Clyde flanking her protectively, and she kept as far away from Floyd as possible, but she was out of her bedroom for the first time since we departed Shansi. It must have been Jade's doing. Whatever she said seemed to have comforted her to a degree. She was still upset, but it didn't look like she blamed us anymore.
Still terrified of Hacker Floyd, but there wasn't much we could do about that.
We made sure she knew we'd be dropping her off at the nearest village, or Akasha if she preferred. We gave her options. It was the least we could do, and she agreed that the nearest village would be fine. Sue and Clyde would be accompanying her when we landed for our planned 'test run'.
The 'test run,' as Noman called it, would be scoping out an Akasha village to check whether Floyd and I were wanted men or not, as well as purchasing the necessary Entry Passes to get through the Kingdom without trouble. Everyone else would handle the paperwork and fees, we just had to stay hidden on the ship.
While we were on the topic of Akasha's villages, Noman mentioned some information he heard from his old aikido master, Bailey. Apparently, the outer villages of Akasha had been raided by Griefers, led by one of Bailey's own students, Casimir. The farms would be barren and the people would have either left or died to swords or starvation.
Lenz had his doubts that any Kingdom would allow for Griefers to get out of hand like that, but after flying over three villages with empty farms and emptier streets, he kept his mouth shut.
Jade was right. Mess Kingdom.
On the plus side, Noman said that Bailey took care of the Griefer problem by offering to feed and teach them how to be farmers. I had to hear that again since it sounded like the stupidest resolution I've ever heard to a Griefer army. Where was the epic thunderstorm battle? Where was the duel with a Hacker?
"Not all battles are like Halstatt, Cobbert." Lenz rebuked. "Although there could have at least been a spectacular redstone trap…"
"They were just lost and hungry." Noman defended. "Personally, I'm glad Bailey found a peaceful solution. Those Griefers have a chance to reform, now. If they can learn to grow their own food, they'll never have to fight again."
"Small comfort to the Crafters who died in their raids." Soul grumbled, dousing the mood. Not even Noman could put a positive spin on it.
"What happened to the guy leading them?" Floyd asked. "Casimir said he was going to appeal to the Hackers to overthrow Akasha, right. Think he'll still try it?"
Leave it to Floyd to focus on the Hacker part of the story. To his credit, it would be a big problem if Hackers showed up. Noman and I were tied for the title of Billionth, like the one that killed Alec in Halstatt, and Floyd just barely got out of joining the Hack Clan after the incident at the Origin with Thed. The influx of cultists in Akasha was a full plate without piling Hackers on top.
"I don't think we'll have to worry about Casimir." Noman assured. "Without his Griefers, he's got no army. He's in no position to attack or request aid from the Hackers."
"I hope you're right…"
The Asmodeus floated above the arid Dryrock Mesa in search of a suitable village. Delaney helped by pointing us towards one she and her friends stayed at while en route to Zeppil. Chataan Village. It was a core village, deeper into Akasha with fertile land, guards, and people… at least since the last time she was there.
So, we set a course for Chataan.
[Carys]
At some point, you just need to take a step back and ask yourself…
Where did I go wrong?
That's what I asked myself, watching the sunrise while sat atop the sabotaged and immobile Anemoi. Baltic couldn't fix the Command Block; he was a pilot, not an engineer, and those things were complicated. No, only a certified airship technician well-versed in coding could fix it.
That left us no way of pursuing Cobb or his guild. I should know since I ran through every available option. No horses to ride (I'd die before mounting another pig), low on Potions of Swiftness (I'd never catch up), and I'd die to ender pearl damage long before I caught up to them, especially without my armor.
I ran a hand over my unarmored chest, remembering the sensation of my armor getting ripped apart.
'I am the Billionth.'
'It's more than a number. It's a title. One given to Minecraftia's savior. The one destined to defeat the Endward Cult.'
"That guy…" I murmured.
'I'm out to destroy the cult, just like you. I don't need you to fight for me. I can do it myself!'
My fingers curled into a fist before I leaned back, resting upon the roof of the Anemoi. Clouds drifted by and I counted them idly, my thoughts a storm.
I don't know how long I was up on that roof, thinking about the man with the powerful items handed down from Notch. At least, that was the yarn he spun. But considering he was opposed to any instance of cursing, he was far too innocent to lie.
That little, innocent pacifist nearly killed me.
One of the clouds looked like an annoying face. A tick mark bulged above my left eye.
That annoying, corn-fed bastard nearly killed me. And cost me two airships.
So what if it was really the blue-haired Hacker. As far as I was concerned, they all acted as extensions of Cobb. He was the stupid-faced brain and the rest were the noodly arms and legs.
There are only six of them… How do they keep escaping us?
His guild never took down a division of the Endward Cult. His guild didn't have specialized teams. His guild wasn't ruling a Kingdom! The Paragons were legends! Feared as one of the top three guilds, and a cut above the other two.
So why?
Why do I keep failing?
Why is this so frustrating?
I had taken out my frustrations on one of the Anemoi's spare rooms after reading the message left on the Command Block. Otherwise I was liable to kill someone and admit that Cobb's group killed fewer Paragons than I did. Nothing was left whole or undamaged. The room was a wreck.
My ears caught the creaking of wood below. Footsteps. My eyes opened lazily. There was only one person brave enough to speak with me after the fury I had just unleashed. The one man that could never fear me, no matter how intimidating I was. He alone was immune to my crimson glare.
"What, Baltic?"
He clambered up the ladder, but was content with giving me some space. I didn't turn to look at him, but I was sure he was frowning at me. He wasn't stupid. He probably put together that Cobb and his company weren't cultists. The others would blindly believe—they'd follow me anywhere—but he was smarter than that. Older and wiser, and weaker. But he had offered his services anyway. The most he could contribute was to provide potion support and keep a level head.
I thought he'd confront me about Cobb, or maybe berate me for lounging around, but he did neither.
"We got a message from Jillian."
I raised an eyebrow at that, giving him my full attention.
"The information Wing and Luis brought back from that one Endward Cult outpost has finally bore fruit. They investigated all the locations."
"And?"
"Most were cleared out. Seems the Endward Cult were a step ahead of their information leak. But there was one they couldn't move."
"Oh?"
He got closer, stepping beside me with a map in hand. He tapped a part just south of the Origin.
"Here. The Birch Forest. Jillian said our scouts reported a serious weapon-making operation under the direct supervision of the Northern Division. It's outfitting most of the cult with swords and potions and it's too important to abandon. There might even be an Executive guarding the place."
That's what I liked to hear.
I kicked up to my feet, feeling spurred into action. Cobb wasn't the only thing drawing my ire like a magnet. Sabotaging something integral to the Endward Cult sounded like the perfect distraction to get my mind off recent failures. If we couldn't pursue Cobb, we'd attack a different front.
And it would prove the Paragons were still capa—no, incomparable! We were beyond the feckless sheeple of Minecraftia! We were a guild of action! Paragons of glory and sweet revenge!
I would not be so easily stopped!
"Message Jillian to have Kal and Anibal meet us at the Birch Forest."
"Really? Kalmarin too?" Baltic questioned cautiously. "But that would leave Jillian defenseless if the Hackers or Lieutenants show up."
"They're already defenseless not knowing when the next attack will come." I reasoned. "Better to do it now, after having beaten their respective attacks back. Leave defense to Attila. This Endward Cult outpost takes priority."
"Priority. You mean like this wild goose chase for Cobb?"
"What was that?" I snapped.
The blue-haired old man sighed. "I'll pass on your orders."
"Good man. We'll need some powerful fighters, since I expect a conflict. Tell Kal I'll defer to his judgment on who to bring." As leader of the combative Team Alpha, this was right up his alley. His Hacks would be quite the surprise, too.
Surprise… a secret weapon…
"One more thing, Baltic." I stopped him right before he was about to relay the message.
Anibal was coming. As the Leader of Team Gamma, the theft and arms unit, there was no one better to raid the Endward Cult's weapons outpost. She was a natural thief and kept a sharp eye out for powerful enchantments and Tinker's weapons.
Maybe she knew something about Nowhere's boots and chestplate.
"…Tell Jillian and Anibal to look into anything related to Notch, powerful enchanted items, and the word 'Billionth'. I want to know everything."
[Lenz]
Without having to stop for fuel, the Asmodeus reached Chataan in half a day, and, as Delaney reported, the village had fertile farms and was populated… albeit sparsely.
Chataan Village did not have strong walls to deter Mobs and Griefers like most villages. Instead, it relied upon steep cliffs and elevation. The whole village was situated on a mesa.
Terracotta of red, orange, yellow, brown, white, and light gray made up the mesa in layers, carved away by Crafters to make it as steep as possible. Only Spiders and Endermen could traverse such an obstacle, and Griefers would need ladders to even think about attacking. A toll gate covered by guards wearing orange-dyed leather caps looked to be the only way of entering. Behind it was a tunnel that fed into the heart of the mesa.
It was a brilliant means of defense. Why construct walls when the environment had ready-made hills to build upon? It would not be surprising if all of Akasha's villages were like this.
While entering the village would have been a challenge for any other Crafter, it was a breeze with a fully functional airship. Hence, the need for a fee. It was agreed by the Kingdoms early on that airships just bypassing their walls was a no-no. They could be carrying criminals, contraband, weapons, etc. So a fee was established and entry into a Kingdom or village's airspace would only be allowed after an extensive search. Anyone foolish enough to attempt to sneak anything in would be banned from entry, their names circulated throughout the Kingdom.
It was what we expected after docking beside Chataan's toll gate. Seven of us stepped out. Floyd, Soul, Jade, Nowhere, Delaney, Sue, Clyde, and myself. Cobbert and Floyd remained aboard, out of sight.
Our group approached the two guards at the gate. Only two. There had to be ten gates to cover and they only assigned two guards. It would not be hard to break through them. What were the people of Chataan thinking?
"Ya don't see that every day." One of them remarked.
"Yes, thank you." I preened slightly, gesturing to the Asmodeus. "It truly is poetry in motion."
"I was referring to people actually coming to this dirtball village." He sighed. "Alright, how many of you need Entry Passes, raise your hands."
"I'm good." Delaney motioned while the rest of us raised our hands. "Here's my Citizenship Info." She handed over a book and her pass, then gestured to Sue and Clyde. "The Testificates are with me."
"Alright, looks to be in order. Just need to search your Inventory." The other guard said. Delaney spread her arms and allowed the guard to frisk her belt and backpack. Satisfied, the guard waved her through. "Enjoy Chataan."
Delaney nodded and offered us a short wave before proceeding through the toll gate with Sue and Clyde.
"As for the rest of you," the first guard shielded his eyes from the sun as he gazed upon the Asmodeus. "Tanner above, I gotta search this thing, don't I."
"Go right ahead. I'll wait here." The other guard leaned against the gate, smirking smugly.
"Ass."
"Language." Nowhere mumbled, shrinking under the guard's glare.
"Haaaa. Okay. Let's get this over with."
Just as expected. We allowed the orange-capped guard aboard to search. I was even kind enough to offer him the full tour complete with in-depth explanations of the finer points of the ship's redstone wiring. The tears leaking from his eyes were surely those of joy!
He never found Cobbert or Floyd on account of a Splash Potion of Invisibility Floyd had pilfered off of Carys' goons. The pair hid in one of the bedrooms and used the potion only when the guard arrived. The duration lasted long enough for him to pass.
He took a bit longer examining Cobbert's room (previously Carys' room) because of the Wither Skeleton Head hanging up. Before, it had held the Heads of Carys' victims, trophies of her battles. Since it would have looked weird to have a wall full of Crafter Heads, Jade had gotten rid of them, though she had left the Wither Skeleton Head as a new sort of trophy, dedicated to his triumph over the Angel of Death. It was Carys' trademark mask after all.
"Hmm, these are pretty rare." The guard nodded at the black skull mask. "I heard only one in a million Wither Skeletons drop it. So you've been to the Nether?"
"Yes, yes we have." Jade lied for us, smiling brightly. "We must have been in that Nether Fortress for days and gone through a thousand Mobs to find it. A memento of a thrilling adventure with my friends!"
She pointedly hugged us and the guard smiled indulgently before moving on. Once he was out of sight, Jade released us and her smile fell.
"How long is this guy going to search?" She grumbled under her breath, storming after the guard.
Not long, as it turned out. He warned us to disable our TNT bombers whilst flying, but otherwise reported nothing out of the ordinary. We exited the Asmodeus and he asked for the proper airship fee—a whopping fifty emeralds—but we explained we were not going to take the airship into Chataan. The whole point of stopping there was to see if Cobbert or Floyd were wanted and to do a test run of what we would expect in Akasha.
Also, there was the matter of our Entry Passes.
"That'll be ten emeralds per person."
"Sure thing, my good ma-ma-Repeaters, how much!?"
The others expressed similar outrage.
"Ten emeralds!? We're not buying the Kingdom!"
"Yeah, what gives?"
"That does seem too high." Nowhere was the most polite. "Every other Kingdom we visited charged one emerald per person."
"Well Akasha isn't like every other Kingdom." The second guard sighed, scratching his Head. "Look, you have every right to be upset, but those are the tolls around here. We have to keep them high."
"Why's that?"
"Because this is the Mess Kingdom." The first guard spat bitterly. "We've too many problems. Most Crafters realized this and cleared out a long time ago. The only ones staying are either too stubborn, or too tied down. Akasha and its villages used to have class. But now, we're a shell of our former glory."
"Told you." Jade piped up. "Mess Kingdom."
"But why is it a mess? And why increase the taxes with so few people living here?" Nowhere asked. "Wouldn't higher tolls keep people from wanting to enter?"
"We're already unfavorable." The first guard said. "We're now voted the worst Kingdom to live in after Nitebane's latest recovery. It's an all-time low! The King figures anybody who'd bother visiting this dump would pay the prices. With how low traffic is, ten emeralds is the only price that allows us to get paid. Why do you think we only have two guards here? They can't afford more!"
"I don't get what's so terrible about this Kingdom, though." Soul said, arms akimbo as he looked upon Chataan. "Sure it's dusty, and a mesa is a few cacti short of a desert, but it doesn't look too bad. You got farms."
"Yeah, and who do you think takes from our farms?" The first guard asked.
Nowhere's eyes widened. "Not the Griefers. I thought they—"
"No, the Griefers can't get past our defenses." The second guard shook his head. "Guess again."
Three of us were at a loss for guesses, but Jade was not.
She swatted our shoulders and pointed out in the distance. Away from Chataan, towards the west.
I had noticed it earlier, but did not know what to make of it. It was so far away.
Off to the west was a large tower of some sort. It was a thin line on the horizon, but it towered impossibly high. From how far away it was, even my sharp eyes could not judge the width of the mysterious tower.
For Jade to point it out, however, it must have been tied to Akasha's troubles.
"It's a tower." Soul eloquently said. "So what?"
"That tower is the Obelisk." The second guard stated. "The home of the Hack Clan."
Three pairs of eyes widened in dawning horror, and I am sure if Floyd was there, he would be sweating up a storm.
The Hack Clan.
The group of Crafters with mysterious yet superhuman abilities.
They lived in that tower…?
So close to a Kingdom?
Of course, it should have been obvious that they had to live somewhere. A Clan could not just exist separate. They had to have a base, a place to call home. But, for it to be so close to a Kingdom. For those Hackers that saw regular Crafters as pests to live so close to a Kingdom and its settlements…
It was no wonder most of Akasha's people fled.
"Judging by your faces, I assume you know how dangerous the Hack Clan is." The guard rested his chin in his palm. "When the Hackers showed up, they terrorized Akasha and demanded we build them a home. A massive stone tower. The Obelisk. Those that didn't help either had to leave or die. Of course, if nobody helped, everybody would die." He shook his head. "So Akasha built it in the Savannah we used to call our own. Now it's theirs. That was three-hundred and fifty-five years ago."
"As part of our 'arrangement' with them," the second guard went on, "we're to provide them food on the first of every month. Meat, grain, fruit, vegetables, you name it. In return, they don't kill us and stay out of our business."
"But… but that's horrible!" Nowhere blurted out. "They're… they're just using you for food! You're their slaves!"
"It's not as bad as you think." The second guard defended. "We're not feeding a whole other Kingdom. The Hack Clan numbers one-hundred-and-fifty… maybe two-hundred? Something like that. Feeding two-hundred people each month isn't that hard. Plus, with how little people we got, our farms have surplus to spare. I just wish we had more people, but everyone who left is too scared of the Hackers doing something drastic."
"Why shouldn't they be? They've basically made themselves to be Gods."
"Keep your voice down!" The second guard hissed, taking a cursory glance towards the Obelisk in the distance before averting his eyes as if he had just stared at the sun. "No telling if they can hear us." He whispered.
Nonsense, we were hundreds of miles away from that tower. They could not hear us. Unless… Did… Hackers have an ability like that?
…
Maybe we should stop talking about Hackers…
"Alright, so…" Nowhere looked upset and at a loss for words. "The Hackers can take whatever they want… and can even decide whether or not to abide by their own rules… and everyone here has to just be okay with that?"
"Fighting them is out of the question. We're not the Billionth." The guard unknowingly made Nowhere wince. It must have been because the very same Hacker-slaying Billionth was aboard the Asmodeus… along with a Hacker.
…
I winced too.
"Okay, now the lack of people makes sense." Soul commented. "It's a miracle you still have people around. And then there's the cultist activity we've been hearing about."
"Ugh, don't even get me started on that." One of the guards grimaced. "The ACC has been—"
"Shhhh!" The other guard shushed, shaking his head wildly. "They don't need to know about every little problem we're facing. Don't bring them up."
"Don't bring what up?" Jade asked, suspicious.
"Okay! Let's get you all your Entry Passes!" The guard bulldozed on, herding us towards the toll gate to check our Inventories. The cost for the passes may have been pricy, but we needed them anyway to enter Akasha. Our savings could afford forty emeralds, but we had to be careful. Without Cobbert's Silk Touch shovel, we had no way to earn it back.
Nowhere and Jade covered the cost and stepped forward to get checked after being handed their passes. They laughed at the cursed armor we wore, thinking us ignorant for putting the stuff on. One of the guards made mention of Nowhere's number and how close it was to the one-billion.
"You spawned before him, didn't you? What was he like?" He asked. "Was he tough-looking? Come on, give me details."
Nowhere gave vague answers, squirming uncomfortably while shooting glances up to the Asmodeus. It delayed him a bit, and Soul proceeded past him, his search check finished and his Entry Pass in hand. I stepped up last, accepting the pass and spreading out my arms to make it easier to frisk.
Nowhere looked visibly nervous when the guard took out his flying boots and his diamond chestplate, but relaxed when they handed them back without comment. Then the guard withdrew a book at the same time my guard withdrew a book from my backpack.
"'Artifact List'?" One of them read from Nowhere's book. "Written by…" His eyes widened impressively and he flipped open a few pages.
"It's nothing." Nowhere tried to wave off nervously. "Just a silly book—"
"HEY!" I jumped at the noise before being violently wrenched to the side by my scarf. "What do you think you're trying to pull sneaking this contraband past our gates!?"
"Wh-What…?" I asked, dazed. In answer, he held up a book.
It was my copy of Advanced Mob-Slaying.
"Well, what's wrong with that?"
He jabbed it with a fat finger. "The author you scum! The devil we dare not name!"
"You mean… Herobr—?"
"Bite your tongue!" The second guard came over and slammed a hand over my mouth, silencing me. "That name is taboo on Akashic sand! You murderers may throw his name around like a ball, but here that name is synonymous with the lowest, vilest being in all-recorded history!"
What were they talking about? All this hubbub over Herobrine? I wanted to ask why, but could not due to the hand muffling my cries.
"By Tanner, he's got another one!" The first guard brought out my copy of How to Kill Stuff for Numb Nuts next. Another piece written by Herobrine. "You must be a fanatic thinking you could sneak this past us! Greg! Get a flint and steel, we're burning these things."
"What's going on?" Jade spoke up, trying to intervene, only for Greg to violently shove her.
"Stay back! You're all under arrest!"
"For what!?" Soul brought out his axe and Jade her cutlass. "We didn't do anything!"
"You're carrying illegal contraband." The other guard stated, withdrawing his sword and holding it to my neck to keep the others from advancing. "Akashic law forbids any mention of the devil we dare not name, whether written or spoken. His possession of these books prove his association with the Endward Cult, and since he's with you, that makes you all guilty!"
"Books? What—?" Jade's eyes widened at the author's name on the two books. "Where did… Lenz, why didn't you…" She was shaking her head in disbelief.
"Please!" Nowhere stepped forward, though his shield and sword were kept out of sight. "This is… this is all just a misunderstanding. Just let our friend go and we can explain—"
"Silence! This book of yours has his name all over it, too!" He pointed to Nowhere's book threateningly. "And as for letting him go, do you think we're stupid? It's two against four! Keeping my sword on this sucker is the only thing keeping you from killing us." The guard growled, his previous affability vanishing. "Drop your weapons and surrender. Or are you willing to bet the life of a cultist means anything to me?"
"You kill him and it'll be the last thing you ever do!" Soul threatened.
"Soul, wait, violence isn't going to—"
"Get out of the way, Noman." Jade warned. "These people hate Herobrine. There's no sense trying to reason with them."
"AHA! She said the name!" The one guard pointed, his sword still at my neck. "That proves it! The ACC will want all of you in custody! But first… Greg!"
"I got the flint and steel, Lavi." The guard, Greg, said before setting the ground alight.
"Good. Now we can burn these secular texts." Lavi threw away Advanced Mob-Slaying and watched it burn.
"Hey!" Jade lunged forward, but someone else got to Lavi and me first.
I could not see who, but someone grabbed Lavi from behind and pilfered the second book he was about to burn, my copy of How to Kill Stuff for Numb Nuts. There was a shout of 'Arquero!' before the mysterious assailant flipped over us and vanished in a splash of Invisibility Potion. Gone before I could even see what he looked like.
"Book Burglar!" Greg the guard shouted, trying to find the assailant to no avail. Nowhere's book was knocked loose and caught by him before getting stuffed back into his belt. Meanwhile, I was still held by Lavi…
But then I was not. There was a smoky blue blur and suddenly I was out of Lavi's hands and surrounded by my friends. The guard sputtered in confusion and took a step towards us, sword raised, only for that same blue blur to clothesline him into the sand.
It was Floyd! He was using his Hack.
"What the…?" Lavi shouted while flat on the ground. "Greg! Call for backup!"
"What backup? We're understaffed!"
"Damnit, get some of those ACC guys, then! Hey! Stay where you are, cultists! FREEZE!"
We did not freeze and instead boarded the Asmodeus while Floyd kept the guards from following, knocking them back on their butts with a burst of speed. He was so fast the guards could not even tell a Hacker was present.
We climbed into the loading bay, up the ladder, and onto the bridge before taking to the skies. Floyd called up through the speaking tube, saying he was safely on board, albeit exhausted.
"Well, that could have gone better." Soul joked.
"What the heck happened down there?" Cobbert asked, confused. "Everything was going fine until you got to the Inventory check, then it all went crazy!"
"Ask him!" Jade accused. I was so busy piloting that it took me a second to realize she was pointing at me. "Why didn't you tell me you had those kinds of books with you? I could have warned you!"
That was right. Jade never knew we had those books. She was never around when we talked about them. If she had, then maybe…
"I… I did not know they had a ban on Herobrine books!" I tried to reason. "I-I am sorry!"
"A ban on…?" Cobbert questioned, taking out his own Herobrine books. The original copies.
"You have them too!?" A shocked gasp tore itself from Jade's throat. "For Herobrine's sake, how could I have missed this? I've been traveling with you guys for how long and I never—!"
"What's the big deal?" Cobbert asked, oddly defensive. And angry. "They're just books. They tell you stuff. And they've been teaching me about Mobs and their weaknesses. What's so wrong with that?"
He clutched the books tightly to his chest. "They taught me to block Creeper explosions. They saved me from a dimension of Endermen. I couldn't have killed half as many Mobs without reading these first! So why the ban? What does Akasha have against Herobrine?"
"Cobb…" Jade spoke softly, tenderly, as she walked up to our panicking leader.
"Herobrine is the founder of the Endward Cult."
Inventory (Cobb): 1 Iron Helmet, 1 Leather Tunic [Dyed Green, Mending I, Unbreaking I], 1 Diamond Leggings [Projectile Protection IV], 1 Iron Boots, 1 Fishing Rod {Backlash} [Knockback II, Luck of the Sea III, Unbreaking III], 1 Diamond Sword, 1 Banner {Beginners}, 64 Cobblestone, 61 Cobblestone, 64 Gravel, 64 Gravel, 64 Gravel, 4 Gravel, 1 Bed, 36 Dirt, 7 Coal, 24 Flint, 12 Jungle Wood Logs, 56 Jungle Wood Planks, 2 Sticks, 7 Torches, 1 Crafting Table, 1 Clock, 1 Lava Bucket, 1 String, 21 Emeralds, 2 Ender Pearls, 4 Snowballs, 9 Gunpowder, 30 Cooked Mutton, 27 Rotten Flesh, 1 Book {How to Kill Stuff for Numb Nuts}, 1 Book {Advanced Mob-Slaying}, 2 Maps {Minecraftia}, 1 Book {Citizenship Information}, 1 Paper {Ringwood Entry Pass}, 1 Paper {Zeppil Entry Pass}
[EXP: 33]
Inventory (Floyd): 1 Leather Cap [Dyed Brown, Curse of Binding I, Unbreaking III], 1 Diamond Chestplate [Projectile Protection IV], 1 Leather Pants [Dyed Brown, Curse of Binding I, Unbreaking III] {Weak}, 1 Leather Boots [Dyed Brown, Curse of Binding I, Unbreaking III], 1 Iron Pickaxe, 3 Iron Ingots, 47 Dirt, 1 Fishing Rod, 1 Furnace, 24 Cooked Mutton, 1 Crafting Table, 1 Minecart, 1 Bed, 1 Boat, 1 Emerald, 1 Iron Sword {Weak}, 1 Diamond Helmet [Projectile Protection IV], 1 Diamond Leggings [Projectile Protection IV], 1 Diamond Boots [Projectile Protection IV], 1 Iron Leggings, 16 Gunpowder, 4 Ender Pearls, 1 Splash Potion of Invisibility {6:00}, 1 Iron Chestplate, 1 Iron Leggings, 1 Iron Boots, 1 Map {Minecraftia}, 1 Book {Citizenship Information}, 1 Paper {Ringwood Entry Pass}, 1 Paper {Zeppil Entry Pass}
[EXP: 32]
Inventory (Lenz): 1 Leather Pants [Dyed Brown, Curse of Binding I, Unbreaking III] {Weak}, 1 Leather Boots [Dyed Brown, Curse of Binding I, Unbreaking III], 1 Bow, 1 Shears, 2 Levers, 5 Redstone Torches, 1 Bed, 9 Redstone Repeaters, 3 Redstone Comparators, 28 Redstone, 18 Blocks of Redstone, 2 Hoppers, 3 Pistons, 2 Sticky Pistons, 48 Cobblestone, 1 Minecart, 1 Compass, 25 Gunpowder, 32 Arrows, 16 Jungle Wood Planks, 1 Crafting Table, 45 Cooked Mutton, 2 Ender Pearls, 16 Sugar Cane, 8 Paper, 5 Ink Sacs, 3 Leather, 5 Emeralds, 1 Book {Airship Piloting 101}, 1 Book {Notebook}, 1 Map {Minecraftia}, 1 Book {Citizenship Information}, 1 Paper {Daymonte Entry Pass}, 1 Paper {Ringwood Entry Pass}, 1 Paper {Zeppil Entry Pass}, 1 Paper {Akasha Entry Pass}
[EXP: 15]
Inventory (Soul): 1 Diamond Axe [Sharpness V], 1 Iron Pickaxe, 64 Iron Ingots, 52 Iron Ingots, 20 Flint, 12 Gold Ingots, 1 Milk, 1 Diamond Helmet [Protection IV, Unbreaking III], 1 Diamond Leggings [Protection IV, Unbreaking III], 1 Diamond Boots [Protection IV, Feather Falling IV, Unbreaking III], 1 Crafting Table, 1 Bed, 1 Furnace, 24 Torches, 34 White Wool, 58 Dirt, 64 Cobblestone, 62 Cobblestone, 64 Gravel, 64 Gravel, 64 Gravel, 18 Gravel, 32 Jungle Wood Planks, 1 Armor Stand, 3 Ender Pearls, 28 Emeralds, 55 Cooked Mutton, 1 Map {Minecraftia}, 1 Book {Citizenship Information}, 1 Paper {Ringwood Entry Pass}, 1 Paper {Zeppil Entry Pass}, 1 Paper {Akasha Entry Pass}
[EXP: 26]
Inventory (Jade): 1 Diamond Helmet [Protection IV], 1 Leather Tunic [Dyed Brown, Curse of Binding I, Unbreaking III] {Weak}, 1 Leather Pants [Dyed Brown, Curse of Binding I, Unbreaking III] {Weak}, 1 Leather Boots [Dyed Brown, Curse of Binding I, Unbreaking III], 1 Diamond Chestplate [Protection IV], 1 Diamond Leggings [Protection IV], 1 Diamond Boots [Protection IV], 1 Iron Sword, 1 Diamond Cutlass, 1 Bed, 1 Iron Pickaxe, 1 Crafting Table, 1 Furnace, 16 String, 29 Cooked Mutton, 14 Torches, 30 Jungle Wood Planks, 64 Cobblestone, 64 Cobblestone, 24 Obsidian, 2 Buckets, 1 Compass, 1 Clock, 19 Emeralds, 1 Ender Chest, 1 Book {Citizenship Information}, 1 Paper {Ringwood Entry Pass}, 1 Paper {Dover Plains Entry Pass}, 1 Paper {Lazuli Entry Pass}, 1 Paper {Zeppil Entry Pass}, 1 Paper {Akasha Entry Pass}
[EXP: 36]
Inventory (Noman): 1 Diamond Sword [Sharpness I], 1 Diamond Chestplate {Severe Shield}, 1 Leather Boots {Bottes Zephyr} [Dyed White], 1 Black Shield {Slight Shield} [Blue Cross] {Weak}, 1 Flint and Steel, 1 Bow [Infinity], 28 Birch Wood Planks, 34 Iron Ingots, 18 Sticks, 1 Bucket, 1 Crafting Table, 20 Cooked Mutton, 7 Ender Pearls, 1 Potion of Healing II, 1 Potion of Healing II, 1 Potion of Regeneration II {0:22}, 1 Potion of Water Breathing {8:00}, 1 Bed, 1 Book {Artifact List}, 1 Book {Citizenship Information}, 1 Paper {Zeppil Entry Pass}, 1 Map {Zeppil}, 1 Paper {Akasha Entry Pass}, 1 Compass, 1 Arrow, 3 Sugar, 14 Bookshelves, 6 Enchanted Golden Apples, 1 Diamond Helmet, 1 Diamond Leggings, 1 Diamond Boots, 6 Emerald Blocks, 1 Map {Minecraftia}, 18 Bones, 64 Gravel, 64 Gravel, 64 Gravel, 49 Gravel, 9 Flint
[EXP: 25]
AN: I am shocked! SHOCKED! Well, not that shocked.
That's right. It's finally out in the open. Not like it wasn't obvious. Pretty sure a bunch of people put this together somewhere in the reviews or forums. This is the beginning of the Akasha Arc, which will explore more about Herobrine and his connection to a certain fisherman.
A little about Akasha's problems was mentioned. It's not called the Mess Kingdom for nothing.
Review, Fav, Follow, check out the Forum, and have a nice... National Punch Day? Is that right? Yep, September 20th is National Punch Day. They will make a holiday for anything, won't they.