AN: I'm really eager about this Chapter. Actually, I should come clean and say that this Triplex Arc is split between the three sides. Carys, Cobb, and the Endward Cult. Of the three, Carys' side is the one I'm least looking forward to writing. But these other two? They're golden. You'll see why, I hope, after reading this Chapter.
Disclaimer: I don't own Minecraft. If I did, I'd have a wider range of musical notes on Note Blocks.
Chapter 171
The Morel Islands
[Exter]
Tired black eyes scanned the crowded street as MarkAble leaned against a stone brick wall. He had to keep an eye out, for he was a fairly forgettable person barring his brilliantly clashing magenta hair. Forgettable face. Forgettable posture. Forgettable presence. Teal had always praised him for it, saying he was a master at blending in, though she also assured him that she could never overlook him. She only had eyes for him.
He agreed though. He didn't draw the eye with his looks, like Ember or Teal or Jade. He didn't have their confidence either. He was just a bland guy. The weakest Lieutenant. The lesser cultists only knew of him because they knew what Teal would do to them if anything ever happened to Mark on their watch. He was under her umbrella of protection, as it were. Still, he was appreciated. And he appreciated being appreciated, even if his character was almost non-existent.
But he wasn't in Exter just to stand around and meld into the background. No. He was there for a purpose. He had a mission, and he needed another Lieutenant's help to see it done.
"Speak of the Ogre." Mark muttered as a mountainous man with untamed, vermillion hair split through the crowd like an icebreaker, heading straight for him.
"Pink boy." Captain and secret Lieutenant XoX uttered, looking down upon the alchemist. "Where blue girl?"
"She can't help with this." Mark was thankful for XoX's simplistic nicknames for them, as it made concealing the identities of their wanted colleagues easier. Speaking of which, he noticed a man with a Skeleton Skull mask walking beside XoX. "Who's this?"
"Grey boy."
"Ah." Mark nodded to the masked Lieutenant. "So nice to see your smiling face again."
"Yuck it up." Leadstripe hissed under his mask. "After my involvement in Ringwood, I expect there are plenty of people looking for me."
"Well, many of us have had to surrender our identities." Mark replied carefully, not wanting to alert any of the passersby who recognized the bulky Captain. "Only the smartest and most cautious of us have maintained our anonymity."
"XoX want fight blue girl. Break her streak."
Mark blinked at XoX pointedly before turning to Leadstripe. "How did he keep his identity a secret longer than you?"
"Blame the Lighter Billionth." Leadstripe clicked his tongue. "His interference in Dover Plains cost me." He stared pointedly at his own wanted poster on a bulletin board not too far away. His face was there, right alongside Teal and 4Blite. "I can't walk around in public anymore."
"Well you didn't have to come. I only needed XoX." Mark explained.
"I passed on your message to him." Leadstripe explained. "If this is a mission important enough to take XoX off skull hunting duty in the Nether, you'll need all the help you can get. I'm surprised Te—the blue girl—couldn't come to help out."
"This is something she can't do." Mark's words had XoX and Leadstripe reeling. Teal was the strongest Lieutenant in the three divisions. To hear there was something she couldn't do was like hearing there was a material stronger than diamond. "Anyway, I guess you can help out, but I really don't think I'll need it. I only needed XoX because of his Captain's influence."
"Uohhohho! XoX is better than blue girl!" The large man boasted with a booming laugh and a swing of his warhammer. "Tell XoX what do! XoX crush any foe."
"There will be no crushing." Mark said patiently, used to dealing with boisterous tempers. "I can't stress enough the importance of this mission. If Abyssmal wasn't devoting his time to the Morel Islands thing, he'd be doing this with us. I won't allow any foul-ups. There's an item we desperately need and only one company that sells it. The stores are always packed and the number of reserved special orders have been pushed back years in advance. We can't wait that long."
"I think I know the company you're referring to. SutsCo, right?" Leadstripe guessed.
"Exactly."
SutsCo, or Suts Corporated, was a mysterious new company that debuted in Exter in August and seemed to explode overnight. It was already October of the same year and the company had locations in seven of the ten—eight—Kingdoms. Much of its unique and fantastical merchandise was sold out and its stores had lines out the door and around the block.
Among its finest merchandise was the SutsCo Brand Glowstick, the SutsCo Brand Chorus Fruit, the SutsCo Brand Lingering Potions, the SutsCo Brand Tipped Arrows, the SutsCo Brand Pocket Box, and, most coveted, the SutsCo Brand Wonder Wings. The Pocket Boxes were the most practical, the Endward Cult obtaining several dozen of these to aid in Head collection. In fact, Ember's Northern Division used the very same Pocket Boxes in their attack on Ringwood to hold a larger number of Crafter Heads than normally possible.
They were also SutsCo exclusive, hence the brand name on everything. You couldn't get the items anywhere else. Some had tried growing the Chorus Fruit after purchasing them, but they couldn't be planted on anything. The farmers in Dover Plains were the best in Minecraftia, but even they scratched their heads at how to cultivate the strange fruit.
SutsCo had monopolized all the items, slapped their brand name on them, and kept the secret of their acquisition a closely guarded secret.
Mark took out a book and quill from his backpack and read off from a list. "We need the Wonder Wings, some Pocket Boxes, and the Dragon Head."
"That'll be tricky." Leadstripe remarked, rubbing at his chin beneath the Skeleton Skull mask. "The Pocket Boxes are expensive, but the Wonder Wings and Dragon Head are exceptionally rare and astronomical. Why do we need the Dragon Head, though?"
"I'd rather not discuss it out in the open." Mark spoke, closing the book while glancing surreptitiously at the Crafters passing by. "It's significant. For the sake of this mission, we need to obtain all three."
"Say the word!" XoX startled the Lieutenants, flexing his muscular arms. "XoX will claim items blue girl can't! Surpass her! Show her what for!"
"We will be doing this normally." Mark hissed under his breath. "You're a Captain, XoX. A VIP. You enjoy special privileges."
"XoX is no Vee-Eye-Pee!"
"Very Important Person you big oaf." Leadstripe corrected. "It means you can get us to the front of the SutsCo line. Maybe even arrange a deal so we don't have to wait years to get the items we need."
"…That sound boring." XoX grumbled unenthusiastically. "How come blue girl not do?"
"Because she's not a Captain. Now can we quit lollygagging and get a move on?" Mark urged the two Western Lieutenants towards the SutsCo store.
"XoX not gagging on lolis." XoX muttered conspiratorially.
Even if Mark somehow got the address wrong, it was impossible to miss the store. Just follow the line of restless Crafters around the block and you were there. They had probably camped out all night for a chance at getting at the exclusive merchandise in the store. It was a shame that the Captain's privilege allowed them to cut them all. The three Lieutenants ignored the string of curses and outrage as they bypassed the line and entered the purple and cream colored building.
The color palette of purple and cream was the best way to stand out. Most buildings in Exter were built out of stone bricks so they wouldn't burn down from the lava lakes surrounding the Kingdom. The SutsCo building was no exception; it was also made of bricks. Bricks only available from the SutsCo store. Purpur Blocks and End Stone Bricks. The purpur blocks were more versatile and could be molded into slabs, stairs, and pillars.
The inside of the building was packed, both with customers and merchandise. Item frames hung within display windows, showing off a set of tipped arrows in a variety of colors and potions. Off in the corner, one SutsCo employee was demonstrating the use of Lingering Potions, creating a dense cloud of swirling particles at ankle-level and prompting customers to walk through it and enjoy the beneficial effects. Another employee was demonstrating the warping abilities of the Chorus Fruit.
Shelves were lines with chests, filled with not only SutsCo exclusive merchandise, but also some normal shop items, like iron weaponry, armor, meats, and torches, among other things. The shelves were closely watched by thuggish employees to prevent thefts, and many Crafters had their arms full of stuff as they patiently waited in line. The packed atmosphere was making the claustrophobic Leadstripe tense.
Meanwhile, above them, note blocks circulated the catchy SutsCo jingle—a combination of guitar, string bass, and bells.
🎵If you want the best stuff,🎵
🎵No ifs, ands, or buts!🎵
🎵Don't be a Putz, Go,🎵
🎵Shop at SutsCo!🎵
"The marketing team must be a gaggle of mad geniuses." Leadstripe remarked as XoX couldn't help but hum along.
"Let's just hurry out of here before it gets stuck in our heads." Mark soldiered on, stomping down on the urge to tap his feet in time to the beat. Navigating the SutsCo store and merchandise required an iron will. He had to resist the paltry Glowsticks, rare building blocks, and even the Lingering Potions which called out to the alchemist within him. They were nothing compared to the Pocket Boxes and Wonder Wings kept under lock and key in the ender chests. Only a SutsCo employee had access to those. Like the guy behind the counter the three Lieutenants were currently line-cutting to approach.
"Welcome to SutsCo! How may I help you?" The man behind the counter smiled before XoX slammed his fists upon the counter.
"As defender of this great kingdom, XoX demand all of merchandise! Fork over before XoX throttle you with—COLD!" XoX wailed as Leadstripe pressed a block of ice to his bare six-pack and neck. "COLDCOLDCOLD! Cold… cold…" He began to hibernate back to calmness, allowing Mark to step up and flash an apologetic smile.
"Sorry about him. What he meant to say, was that we'd like to purchase some of your fine wares."
"Sure thing!" The man behind the counter flashed an exaggerated smile, his lips stretched taut. It was the kind of forced politeness someone had when dealing with rude customers, who, Mark was sure, they had their fair share of. "What would you like?"
"How about… three Pocket Boxes—"
"What color would you like them in?"
"Blue. Or, actually, light blue."
"Excellent choice."
"Does the color have significance to your mission?" Leadstripe whispered.
"Very much, yes. I'll also take a Dragon Head and a pair of Wonder Wings."
"Ohh, I'm terribly sorry." The man gave an apologetic smile. "The Pocket Boxes are reserved a month in advance, so we can get you those in five to six weeks, but I'm told the Dragon Head and Wonder Wings are more difficult to acquire. We only have a few and they've already been bought."
"By whom?"
"I'm not at liberty to divulge that information." The man said automatically. "However, they've paid top dollar—even put down a deposit a month before we obtained them."
"Well, is there any chance we can outbid them?" Mark tried instead, pulling out the emerald blocks he saved up. "How much could it be? Two-thousand emeralds? Three-thousand?"
"Ten-thousand."
The emeralds slipped out of Mark's numb fingers.
"That's each, mind you." The man smiled sympathetically. "The customer wanted them badly. Even if you had the money, he put down the deposit first. We can't just throw items to the highest bidder like it's an auction. We're a business."
"Isn't that price far too exorbitant?" Leadstripe spoke from beneath his Skeleton skull mask. "It's only for a Dragon Head and a pair of wings."
"A pair of wings that allow you to fly." The man behind the counter pointed out. "And their price has gone up recently, now that the latest Bounty Day has provided a means to repair them. A pair of SutsCo Brand Wonder Wings has the lifetime guarantee!"
"You mean it didn't have the lifetime guarantee before?"
"Uhhhhh… Please direct all complaints to our complaints department!"
He pointed off to the side and the three Lieutenants looked to a trash bin before turning back.
"Where even get this stuff?" XoX asked something intelligent, despite the phrasing.
"Sorry again! That's a SutsCo trade secret!" The man pressed a finger to his lips, his eyes crinkling. "Our sources are known only to the highest level employees. A lot of backroom stuff our customers aren't privy to. Even we low-rung employees don't know. That information is kept under lock and key to only the most devoted—the most senior salespeople. To climb the corporate ladder like that requires intense passion and dedication. Also your soul."
"What?"
"What?" The man blinked back innocently before giving a slight titter. "Now if you'll excuse me, I need to obtain my next bad—I mean, er, deal with the next customer in line."
"But what about our order?" Mark complained.
"Your three light blue Pocket Boxes will arrive in five to six weeks. Would you like them delivered or will you pick up? I recommend delivery, since this place gets packed often—"
"What about the Dragon Head and Wonder Wings?"
"I'm sorry, sirs, but we're sold out. If you put down a five-thousand emerald deposit, we can reserve a set for you and contact you when they're ready. I expect it to take a year or two, though. The list is getting longer every day and SutsCo is turning quite the profit."
"These prices are downright criminal." Leadstripe complained. There was something ironic about three Lieutenants of a killer group of cultists saying that.
"They're no different in any SutsCo store."
"XoX Captain of Exter." XoX towered over the smaller salesman, his muscles twitching in anticipation. "You will move us to top of list and slash price on my authority."
The salesman wasn't cowed into compliance. "Separation of business and state, Captain. You can cut the line, but you can't cut the cost. If you have a problem with our prices, you could always shop elsewhere. Oh wait!" The man exclaimed, slapping his forehead in an act of mock remembrance. "We're the only company that sells them! So you can't take your emeralds elsewhere! Monopoly! Gosh, it certainly has its complications…"
Mark and Leadstripe held XoX back—a challenging feat since he was as big as a mountain and Mark was feebler than a twig. Alchemy didn't do much for the biceps. Still, with a healthy coating of ice, the two managed to cool XoX down enough to drag him away from the counter and out the SutsCo building.
"We need those items." Mark outlined after the three ducked into an alley, away from prying ears and eyes.
"You still haven't told us what they're for." Leadstripe said, lifting his mask slightly. "If it's so important, we can organize a raid on the building. We'd need a few weeks to map out the place—"
"We don't have a few weeks." Mark shot down. "I need those items within a few days."
"…A few days? Shit." Leadstripe cursed. "I didn't know you were strapped for time like this. What does Abyssmal have plan—?"
"XoX say we storm place!" XoX growled, hefting his iron warhammer. "Go all in! Find wings and Dragon Head and Pocket Boxes!"
"Too reckless." Mark folded his arms, deliberating. "We can't risk our identities. You especially, Captain. We need to be stealthy. Find out where they're getting these items from. What recipe they're using." The alchemist pulled out a pair of Splash Potions of Invisibility. "We'll break in tonight and work from there."
"XoX hates stealth." The vermillion-haired Captain complained.
"Actually, XoX, you don't have to be a part of this anymore. We only needed your influence to cut to the front of the line. Unfortunately, it seems your influence wasn't enough to sway them." Mark explained. "Really, you shouldn't be anywhere near us when we're breaking in. Your body type is too distinctive. The two of us can—"
"NO! XoX want go! XoX want GO!" He wailed like an oversized baby. "Do something blue girl can't! Better than blue girl! XoX will go! XoX will GO!"
"Okay, okay! Just keep your voice down!" Mark gave in, rubbing the bridge of his nose as he felt a migraine coming on. "You can come with us. Just please be stealthy. You can't be seen or it'll cause problems for your Executive."
"YES!" XoX pumped his fist in triumph. "Don't worry, pink boy! XoX is master of stealth! Just wait!"
"…We better bring loads of ice." Leadstripe added.
"Agreed."
[Morel Islands]
The Morel Islands were a curious place. A unique biome unlike any other.
These two islands, nestled in the Western Ocean, were covered not with dirt, but with Mycelium, a purplish grey material that released miniature spores and could only be mined with the Silk Touch Enchantment. The spores weren't harmful, and couldn't do anything like transform people into flesh-hungry Zombies with mushrooms for faces, but the mycelium was found to spread to adjacent dirt and grass blocks, brushing aside grass and flowers and covering every available surface with that purplish gray gunk. Fortunately, the mycelium was stuck on the islands. Only a colossal jerk-wad with a Silk Touch tool could carry the mycelium to the mainland and let it run rampant. But even then, it could be broken and replaced with dirt. The farmers of Dover Plains were particularly worried about the strain ever messing with their crops, and treated mushroom farms like ticking time bombs.
In addition to the mycelium, giant mushrooms covered the islands like trees. They closely resembled the brown and red mushrooms, and, in fact, were what happened when applying bone meal to the smaller versions. The giant red mushrooms had a domed canopy while the giant brown mushrooms had a flat canopy. Breaking them would yield mushrooms of their respective type.
Normally, mushrooms could only be planted and fully grown in dark areas. However, when planted on mycelium, the light didn't matter. Anyone ever visiting the islands could cut down the giant stalks and gorge themselves on mushroom stew.
Lastly, a unique Mob populated the islands: The Mooshroom. Red cows with red mushrooms growing on their backs. These mutated cows spawned in herds on the mycelium covering the islands. They could be bred like cows, milked like cows, and killed like cows for leather and raw beef. The only difference was that milking them with a wooden bowl would produce mushroom stew, and shearing them would remove the mushrooms from their backs and turn them back into standard cows. Other than that, they were docile Mobs.
Despite the tranquility of the Morel Islands, most folks stayed away from them. The Mooshrooms may have been harmless, but they were viewed as abominations of nature. An animal overgrown with fungus living on a land claimed by fungus. Crafters were worried of winding up just like them if they stayed too long.
As a result, the islands were largely left alone. Untouched by miners and Dover Plains settlers. You'd get the odd explorer or adventurer visiting the place, but the Morel Islands remained an undeveloped land of fungi.
"Hardly the place for Herobrine to set up shop." Abyssmal commented, his lone eye scanning the island.
He and several dozen cultists were busy setting up tents in a perimeter around the coordinates Herobrine had conveyed in his Command Block message. Their Founder had set up some challenging trials for them to pass, but pass them they did. They proved their worth, and the Founder pointed them here next.
Something worthwhile was on these islands. Abyssmal could feel it in his bones.
The perimeter of tents encircled the exact point Herobrine pointed them to. Then, a type of wooden skeletal tower, like an oil rig, was erected over it. It was called a blasting rig. You could get to the top via ladders, and there were set levels from which a Crafter could set off TNT. It would fall and explode, digging into the dirt and stone with controlled explosions.
The whole thing had been overseen by the Eastern Division's latest recruit, KillRoy—a brilliant yet diminutive redstone engineer attracted to the Endward Cult following the Wither attacks in Ringwood. Many new recruits had flocked to the cult's side following the Tragedy of Ringwood. They saw their power on display, and they were impressed.
Abyssmal just wished KillRoy was a little more… menacing.
Abyssmal spied the diminutive redstone engineer at the top of the blasting rig, already priming TNT. It fell to the mycelium surface, hissed for a few more seconds, and then detonated, scattering bits of mycelium and dirt everywhere. KillRoy continued to set off TNT near the top, pausing between blasts so the explosions would stay in one area. Spam too much TNT and the primed explosives could scatter chaotically.
The crater grew larger and larger with each successive blast, the excavation well underway. If the primed TNT took too long to fall from the top, KillRoy would move to the lower levels and resume there. He knew what he was doing. Abyssmal had been right to bring him.
But there were other guests to wait for. No sooner had that thought crossed his mind than four Crafters emerged from the Nether Portal he set up on the island. Ember, 4Blite, and a pair of grunts named Sam_Vatar and Spring_Fever. Abyssmal recognized the latter as a person of interest Ember spoke often about, but he was surprised about the absence of her other Lieutenant.
"Still no word on Jade?" Abyssmal asked immediately as Ember and her group approached. It made her grimace.
"None. I've examined everyone having to do with that mission thoroughly." Ember clicked her tongue in frustration. "Soul-Gaze has turned up nix. If I could just find the right person to ask…"
"You don't think she could have died to the Wither or fires?"
"Not possible." Ember had already ruled that out. "She was setting the fires and wouldn't light herself into a corner. She also had milk on her at my insistence."
"So then what happened to her?"
"…I don't know." Ember admitted distractedly. "Jade has knowledge on portal locations. She could get to the hub and reconnect wherever she pleased. There should be no reason for this continued delay."
"There are two options then." Abyssmal outlined. "Either she got locked up or killed."
"…Or she turned." Ember whispered to herself, thinking of Jade's reluctance to attack Cobb's home kingdom. Not once had that Lieutenant talked back to her. But throw in the Darker Billionth, and…
If she valued him like she valued Herobrine, wouldn't she do anything for his sake? Even switch sides?
"So then why did you bring these two?" Abyssmal pointed to Spring and Sam_Vatar.
"I'm—" Spring began before Ember cut him off.
"He's just here to watch. Don't pay him any mind." She spoke the words coldly and Spring's gaze turned despondent. 4Blite, jubilant at the lost favor of one annoyance, knocked his shoulder into Spring's and approached Abyssmal with Sam_Vatar beside him.
"This is Sam." He introduced. "He's a new recruit. Very loyal."
"I came to see what's what." Sam added, his light-grey eyes on Abyssmal. "The Endward Cult's got a lot of momentum after its attack on Ringwood. Recruitment is way up from what I hear and the kingdoms are scared of earning your attention next. They don't know you don't have any more Wither skulls."
"Aren't you a shrewd one?" Abyssmal commented, folding his arms and smirking. "We're working on gathering more skulls."
"But you need to stay active to ride this wave of popularity." Sam said, his eyes glancing to the blasting rig and the ever-expanding crater. "4Blite tells me there's something worthwhile down there. You better hope there is. Might be the one thing capable of keeping the cult in the spotlight until you farm more skulls."
"You don't sound like you believe there will be." Ember spoke dangerously.
"With all due respect, ma'am," Sam drawled, "I've long since lost interest in life on the outside. It was why I turned myself in all those years ago. I doubt there's anything left that can interest me nowadays. Let alone something down there."
"There'll be something." Ember promised. "Herobrine wouldn't guide us to this mushroom covered rock for fun."
4Blite nodded before tilting his gaze to the blasting rig and the Crafter lowering himself to a new level for priming TNT. "Is that the promising new recruit I heard about?"
"Yes. And before you even think about killing him," Abyssmal warned, "he's not in the running for the Southern Executive position."
"I wasn't thinking that." 4Blite lied. He did relax his glare, however. "What's so special about him?"
"Roy's a redstone prodigy." Abyssmal explained. "Specializes in Mob grinders, though I had him build a Simulation Room at the Eastern HQ for Teal. I don't think the two would get along—she despises redstone—but she should be pleased with his work once she sees it."
"Mob grinders, huh?" Spring mumbled to himself as he laid his eyes on KillRoy. More and more TNT was dropped from great heights, blasting deeper into the mycelium. The growing crater was far enough away from the ocean so there was no fear it would flood.
"How long's he been at it?" Ember asked, standing beside Abyssmal and glancing down. With it being noon, the sunlight had no trouble penetrating the darkness of the hole. She couldn't see anything, though.
"Not long." Abyssmal scratched at his eye patch. "Hopefully KillRoy won't blow up whatever it is we're looking for."
Ember let out a short laugh. "You think our Founder would be foolish enough to leave something behind that could be destroyed?"
Abyssmal didn't have to answer, for in that exact moment, KillRoy stopped his bombardment from the rig. The Eastern Executive's one working eye widened as he spied what was at the bottom.
"Herobrine's beard…" He muttered wordlessly.
"What? What is it? What do you see?" Ember asked excitedly.
"It's… bedrock." Abyssmal gaped, kneeling down as close to the crater as he could manage and peering down. "But it's… higher than normal. The bedrock level should be further down. And it's… perfectly flat. Almost like it was molded that way. Usually bedrock is uneven and coarse, full of peaks and pockets."
"Another bedrock structure, is it?" 4Blite asked, his eyes alight with greed. "What power could be inside…?" He muttered to himself so that only Sam and Spring heard him.
KillRoy, seeing that he had struck bedrock, climbed down from the blasting rig and walked over to the Executives to advise the next course of action. It allowed the new arrivals to get a better look at him.
"Don't bring up his size or voice or looks." Abyssmal whispered to Ember before stepping forward to greet the diminutive redstone prodigy.
If there could be one word to describe him, it'd be adorable. KillRoy had beady black eyes reminiscent of Notch's, a round, button nose, and a baby face of smooth, apricot-colored skin. His blond hair was stylized so that the top part was arranged in a cowlick while the bottom section was worn swept backwards.
He wore a light blue dress shirt with a red vest over it. The vest had a distinctive yellow lightning bolt atop where his heart would be. He had light blue jeans, red boots, and a metallic grey backpack and belt laden with redstone gear.
He was also short. He looked diminutive from afar, but up close, the cultists found themselves looking down their noses at him. Most Crafters were about five or six feet tall. KillRoy, however, couldn't have been more than four feet tall. He was a shrimp, and despite Abyssmal's subtle warning, Spring and Sam could barely hold back their amusement towards the midget.
And then he decided to utter words. Holy hell…
It was like a cross between a high-pitched squeak and a helium-filled rubber duckie. The combination of these two created an alto tenor that was 50 cc's of undiluted D'aaaww.
"Bedrock has hindered our progress." He squeaked, trying and failing to sound serious. "Permission to expand the blasting perimeter to unearth more of the bedrock monolith?"
"Sounds like a plan, KillRoy. Go right ahead—"
"That's KillGORE!" He snapped, his voice, if possible, rising higher. "How many times must I outline this one simple mislabel? I intended to be KillGore, and only a brief lapse in thought forever doomed the words above my noggin to spell out 'KillRoy'! But I am KillGore, do you hear me? KILLGORE!"
"Here we go…" Abyssmal rolled his eye. Clearly KillRoy—sorry, KillGore—was as short as his temper. And once he got started, he couldn't stop.
"Burn this into your brain! I am KillGore! The supreme! The merciless! Ravager of Kingdoms! I am the destroyer of worlds! The rankest compound of villainess odor that ever offended a nostril! For I am the scourge of man! I am—!"
"The cutest thing ever!" Ember squealed before rushing forward and scooping KillGore up in her arms, hugging him to her chest.
"What!? Nooo! Put me down!"
Spring and Abyssmal bit their fists in envy as Ember spun the diminutive man around, so short his feet left the ground.
"He's like a little bundle of evil! Are you the adorable new recruit Abyssmal's been talking up lately?" Ember cooed while looking down on the midget in her grasp. Her eyes widened when KillGore strained against her arms, actually pushing back her strength. She spied his EXP level and her eyes widened happily. "Well, aren't you a tough little scamp?"
"I will destroy you! But more importantly I am in no way, shape, or form A SCAMP!" He broke out of her grip with a swat and an exclamation of 'SMACK!' before putting a few feet between them. "You see this?" He pointed to the name above his head. "Does it say 'Scamp', foolish Executive who can't read? Look into my cold black eye. What do you see?"
"A bundle of cuteness?" She teased.
"NOOOOOOO! Your doom, fool! Your dooooom!" He flailed his arms in furious mortification. "KillGore should crush you for such disrespect! Things were supposed to be different in the Endward Cult so people would see that KillGore is a force to be reckoned with! Not belittled, not humiliated, BUT RECKONED!"
"How are you supposed to be reckoned? You're four feet tall." 4Blite said coldly, walking up and throwing out a palm to push the squirt back a step.
Instead, 4Blite's palm slammed into his chest, immovable. 4Blite's eyebrows lifted before 4Blite himself was lifted by KillGore's smaller frame…
And 97 levels of EXP.
"That's four and a quarter!" He exclaimed before bodily throwing 4Blite into one of the nearest tents. The watching cultists leapt out of the way to avoid getting crushed by the Lieutenant.
"Holy…!" Spring muttered breathlessly as he watched the equivalent of a mouse upending a rhinoceros. Sam hurried over to help 4Blite out of the wreckage while KillGore stood in triumph.
"Aha! Victory is MINE! Let that be a lesson to all, that although KillGore is small, he has the power of EXP coursing through his veins! None can match my strength!"
"Oh yeah?" Ember asked, leaning down and grabbing KillGore by his shoulders.
KillGore exerted his tiny muscles, desperately thrashing to throw off the Executive, but although her arms trembled from the strain, she could hold out. Her EXP level was 105 and she was taller. He was close, probably the closest in strength she'd ever seen, but he still came up short. No pun intended.
"…Fine. One can match my strength." KillGore conceded reluctantly, prompting Ember to release him. "But mark my words, KillGore will collect more EXP from his many Mob Grinders, and then no one will ever hug KillGore again!"
"But until then, you're our lovable little scamp." Ember teased with a smile.
"I shall eviscerate your BOWELS!"
"D'aaaww."
"Well, I see you and Ember have gotten acquainted." Abyssmal said while nibbling on some dried, dark green foodstuff. "The other guys will be coming with us to check out whatever's under that bedrock. Lieutenant 4Blite, you've already met and flipped. And not a Lieutenant Sam_Vatar and Spring_Fever."
"I've deduced as much. KillGore is small, but he is not illiterate."
"KillGore here joined up recently." Abyssmal gave a quick run-down of the midget's life story. "He was among the swell of recruits following the Tragedy of Ringwood. He's not much of a fighter, but he's great with redstone and making Mob Grinders. He built one back at Eastern HQ and my guys are all boosting their levels. He'd give the EXP Factories in Nitebane a run for their money."
"KillGore has long since perfected the art of grinding Mobs into delectable EXP orbs. Crafters are no different." He pulled out a Bottle o' Enchanting and tossed it at his feet. "SMASH! Just like that, they will all be devoured and turned into KillGore's flesh and blood! Mwahahaha!"
"If I didn't see you flip 4Blite, I wouldn't have believed it." Spring peered at the recovering Lieutenant with Sam at his side. "I do not want to cross you."
He narrowed his eyes suspiciously. "Are you mocking me?"
"No! No, you've got plenty of EXP on me." Spring showed the green '34' on his arm. "I'm not itching to pick a fight with a guy stronger than me."
KillGore considered the words before preening proudly.
"Finally, some recognition. Indeed, KillGore is far stronger than your puny EXP bar allows. Fret not, for your honest praise has pleased me. You will not be among KillGore's victims this day."
"Awful nice of you." Abyssmal rolled his eye, tearing another bite of the dried foodstuff in his hands. "Anyway, weren't you asking for the go-ahead to expand the blast perimeter, KillRo—Gore."
"Aha! Yes. Herobrine's weapons must be revealed and unleashed by KillGore's own diabolical hands! On with the search!" He hurried back to the outside perimeter, barking orders like a Chihuahua and grilling anyone who snickered at the pitch of his voice. Under his command, the tents were relocated and the blasting perimeter extended.
"Shouldn't you be giving those orders?" Ember asked her fellow Executive.
"I'm delegating the tiresome task to KillGore. This is his show. Besides, look how good a job he's doing." Within minutes, the TNT explosions resumed, the blasts going off in a grid-like pattern to expose more of the bedrock from beneath the mycelium.
Abyssmal opened his mouth for another bite of dried food but paused when he saw Ember and Spring looking at it. "This? This is a new foodstuff from the latest Bounty Day. [DRIED KELP]. Here, have a taste." He tossed them each a handful from his belt. "It's light and salty. The perfect snack."
"Where'd you get them?"
"From kelp. The oceans became filled with the stuff after the latest Bounty Day. Not only that, but we got coral, fish, turtles, fucking dolphins—it's like the oceans are suddenly bursting with life. Oak Docks is already developing new businesses to make the most of it. Tourism is gonna explode."
"Which means more Crafters will inundate the resorts and vacation spots." Ember smirked. "Ripe for liberating."
Abyssmal nodded, tapping his nose knowingly.
Spring took a bite of the dried kelp and chewed it thoughtfully. It was salty, brimming with the taste of the briny deep. Not very filling, though. It also dried his throat something awful. He pocketed the rest and guzzled down a bottle of water. Ember enjoyed the savory flavor, the explosions reflected in her eager light-blue eyes.
Soon, Herobrine's legacy would be uncovered, and Minecraftia would never be the same.
[Exter]
In the punishing Exter heat, a line of sweating Crafters trickled into the SutsCo store to sample some of its fine wares. The store stayed open until the last light of the sun winked behind the Actin Mountains. After that, the store closed and all shoppers were led out, by force if necessary. They were welcome to camp outside on line and wait for the store to reopen first thing in the morning, and they did. Such was the sensational demand of the SutsCo merchandise.
The merchandise in question was then packed up and placed in safe ender chests by the employees, to be unpacked before the morning shift the next day. The employees locked up and left, stretching out their aching bodies and chatting animatedly about another profitable day of sales. Emeralds just seemed to keep flowing for SutsCo, even if they had no idea where the Senior Salespeople obtained the strange merchandise. Whenever they were running low, a new shipment would just always show up in the shop, ready to be sold, no questions asked.
The low-rung employees reckoned it had something to do with that mysterious backroom they were forbidden from entering. But it was beyond their pay grade to look into.
The three Lieutenants, on the other hand…
Mark, Leadstripe, and Xox all crept down the alleys between the ordinary stone buildings and the purple and cream colored SutsCo store. They wore matching Skeleton masks and had willed off their usual attire in favor of dyed leather in various colors. That way it'd be impossible to identity them. If that didn't cut it, Mark had some potions of Invisibility to further conceal them. XoX would definitely need them considering his barrel chest, rippling frame, and bulging muscles.
"I'm already regretting bringing him along…" Mark bemoaned.
"XoX show you! XoX can—!"
"Don't shout." Mark shushed. "Don't refer to yourself in third person, don't say anything incriminating—In fact, don't speak at all. You're a shadow. Shadows are quiet. Shadows are stealthy."
XoX's head tilted down and he kicked the ground dejectedly. However, he remained silent.
"You really have a way with big babies." Leadstripe whispered, unheard by XoX.
"Years of practice with Teal." Mark answered back. "Now, to avoid detection, we go by code names. You're Grey, I'm Pink, he's Red. Good?" The two Lieutenants nodded. "Good. Now, from what little intel I've gleaned, there are never any public shipments to the SutsCo stores throughout the Kingdoms. The stores are always inexplicably filled with fresh merchandise every morning. That means that transportation is happening inside the premises. Out of sight. It's also our only method of acquiring the good stuff, since everything is secured in ender chests after hours, and during hours there are too many people and too much security. Red could easily crush them," Mark was quick to pacify, "but he'd reveal himself in the process. We can't have that."
"So we break in and wait for the next shipment to come through." Leadstripe guessed.
"Bingo." Mark adjusted his mask. "We break a hole in the street, climb up into the store, and figure out how the new shipments are coming in. Then we rob one and hope we get the Wonder Wings, Dragon Head, and Pocket Boxes."
"…Sounds like a half-baked plan." Leadstripe said.
"It's the best I could come up with." He shrugged. "Gather round and grab your picks. And Red, keep your hammer in your backpack. It's too recognizable."
Despite the mask, Mark could feel the mope on XoX's face. Nevertheless, the three gathered and Mark threw down his Invisibility Potion. They became a set of floating skulls and leather clothes before they started digging into the ground with gusto. They covered the hole they made so it wouldn't get noticed and proceeded to tunnel in the direction Mark pointed, XoX doing most of the work. Leadstripe, meanwhile, muttered under his breath with his eyes shut to help deal with his fear of confined spaces.
Before long, they angled upwards and broke through the SutsCo floor. XoX got up first and then lifted both Leadstripe and Mark out of the tunnel at the same time.
The store was lit with the SutsCo brand Glowsticks so that Mobs wouldn't spawn, but everywhere else had bare shelves. Whatever merchandise left was locked up in the ender chest by the counter. The three Lieutenants used the shelves as cover from the front of the store, in case anyone on the line got any ideas to look inside.
Annoyingly enough, the SutsCo jingle continued to emanate from the ceiling. On loop.
🎵If you want the best stuff,🎵
🎵No ifs, ands, or buts!🎵
🎵Don't be a Putz, Go,🎵
🎵Shop at SutsCo!🎵
"Start looking for any secret entrances or portals." Mark ordered. "Quickly. Before this catchy song drives us to madness."
The three set off to search the place. Leadstripe got on hands and knees and examined the floor closely, experimentally knocking on certain parts to test for secret passageways. Mark went behind the counter and looked for buttons, levers, redstone, pressure plates. Anything that could be triggered. Finding nothing, he extended his search to the walls. XoX, meanwhile, went through the 'Employees Only' door at the back.
Mark and Leadstripe searched every corner of the store, well into midnight, and found nothing. No secret passages or switches except for the one to turn the blasted music off. They couldn't even do that, however, since a stop in the music would alert the waiting line of Crafters outside that something was wrong.
When their Invisibility wore off, they were forced to concede that the store was perfectly normal. All that was left was to wait for XoX to report back with the same.
…
He was taking a lot of time…
Mark and Leadstripe walked to the back and entered through the 'Employees Only' door. They were expecting something fantastical being the reason for XoX's extended absence. However, all they found was a break room for the employees. A simply fridge and table, at which XoX was seated, munching on some watermelon.
The two stormed up to him and rested their hands on their hips.
"Red!" Leadstripe hissed. "How can you eat at a time like this? We're on a mission!"
He swallowed past his mask. "Was hungry." He answered before taking another bite. The two threw their hands up. "Oh. Found something in back." XoX added, as if suddenly remembering.
He pointed to a back door off in the corner. Mark and Leadstripe stared, reading the dozens of signs posted all around the iron door.
'DO NOT ENTER!'
'SENIOR SALESPEOPLE ONLY!'
'SUTSCO SECRETS! HUSH HUSH!'
'TRESPASSERS WILL BE SUED LIKE HELL!'
'YEAH, WE'LL SUE THE PANTS OFF YOU!'
'SO DON'T ENTER!'
'DON'T EVEN LOOK THIS WAY!'
'BUT LOOK ENOUGH TO READ THESE BEFORE LOOKING AWAY.'
'YEAH, WE WORKED HARD TO WRITE THESE.'
Mark and Leadstripe sweat-dropped under their masks while reading the signs.
"…There can't actually be anything behind there, right?" Leadstripe said. Surely company secrets wouldn't be left out so openly when the only protection was a couple of warning signs and the threat of litigation.
"It's the only place we haven't checked." Mark walked forward and ran his hand over the iron door. There was no button to get in. It probably only opened from the inside. But with the proper materials, a simple wooden button would—
A pickaxe was driven into the door with blunt force, shattering the obstacle and allowing the trio to enter.
"…Thank you, Red."
"My pleasure, Pink Boy."
"Okay…" Mark stepped past the threshold and found himself in a small room, similarly lit with Glowsticks. And over there in the center was a… a… a…
Bed.
It was a purple dyed bed (one of the latest features from a Bounty Day), but it was a bed all the same. There was nothing else in the room. No chests, no signs, no records, no Nether portals, and no secret passages. Just an empty room with a lone bed.
Leadstripe and XoX entered and saw the same while Mark just sunk to his knees and tossed his mask off in defeat.
"There's nothing here. This was the last place to look and it's just a break room." His voice was full of disappointment. "This mission is a failure."
"Refuse to fail!" XoX bellowed while Leadstripe rubbed the chiseled man with ice to calm him down.
"There can't be nothing. What was the point of all those signs, then?"
"Maybe it was just a workplace joke?" Mark guessed, his eyes flat as he rummaged at his belt. "Anyway, we're leaving before we get caught. Gather round and I'll splash us."
"What about your important do or die mission?" Leadstripe asked. "You're just going to give up?"
"What can I do? There's nothing here." He argued back. "We've searched the place and there's nothing. Lingering will only get us caught."
"But we still don't know how SutsCo is shipping materials to this store?"
"Look, if there was something I could look into, I'd go for it. But," he gestured to the empty room, "look at what I'm left to work with? No clues or evidence. Just a purple bed—"
In that moment, a diamond-clad Crafter suddenly appeared laying down on the very bed Mark was pointing to. He sat up just as suddenly and stretched his arms with closed eyes, a slight moan working free from his throat as he popped his back.
"God, what a supply run that was. I'd better get my Unappreciated Overtime Badge for this." He rummaged in his pack and pulled out what Mark and Leadstripe recognized as purple halves of Pocket Boxes and… and…
A pair of Wonder Wings!
"Lucky I found that flying boat. Wait until the shop owner gets a load of these. He'll probably…" The diamond-clad Crafter trailed off as he realized the room he had returned to wasn't empty. He looked at the two masked men and the one unmasked man with the magenta hair.
He blinked dumbly before working his eyebrows into a glare and folding his arms. "Okay, who ignored my signs? I'm going to get my Sue The Crap Out Of You Badge, so you better fess up—"
Leadstripe and XoX were on him in an instant, covering his mouth and choking him out while also slitting at his neck with an iron dagger. The man let out a muffled cry of pain as the Lieutenants worked away at his Health, all while the SutsCo jingle played.
Their quick action had saved Mark. His face had been seen and he would've lost his secret identity had they not pounced on him. The diamond-clad Crafter was putting up a fight, but XoX had a firm hold on him. The life was slowly draining from him and Mark didn't have to worry.
Just then, a second diamond-clad Crafter spontaneously appeared on the purple bed. Like the first one, this one had his belt and pack laden with SutsCo merchandise. Including, Mark was pleased to see, a Dragon Head.
But a second witness was a problem. Just as the second Crafter recognized XoX and Leadstripe killing the first one, Mark chucked a pair of splash potions at him. Both Splash Potions of Harming II. Even with diamond armor, that was twelve Hearts of damage. He died before he could utter a word and the SutsCo merchandise spilled out like blood. A Crafter Head fell beside the Dragon Head.
Mark scrambled for the Dragon Head while the other Crafter got his neck snapped and slit by XoX and Leadstripe. His gear spilled out too and Leadstripe hastened to gather the Pocket Boxes and Wonder Wings.
Only they weren't called that.
"[SHULKER SHELLS]?" Leadstripe removed his mask and took a better look at the items in his hands. "And what's an [ELYTRA]? I thought they were called Wonder Wings?"
"The shells must be the raw material? I'm more concerned with how they spontaneously appeared on this bed." Mark hastened over to it and, after taking a moment to examine it for any strangeness, he broke it off the floor and tossed it into the furthest corner.
"Why'd you do that!? That bed could have been the secret to where they get this stuff!" Leadstripe went off on the alchemist. "We still don't know how they came in here or where they came from—"
"If two came, more might show up bearing more merchandise. We can't risk being seen or having anyone alert the Crafters outside." Mark explained reasonably. He was thinking with his head. While it would've been nice to discover how SutsCo was getting their goods, it wasn't worth waiting on more witnesses to appear. He took away that possibility by breaking the bed. "These guys were obviously here to resupply. Just look at how much they were carrying. Grab what you can and let's book it. We got what we came for."
Leadstripe conceded the point and began to pick up [CHORUS FRUIT] and Glowsticks, though they were called [END RODS]. SutsCo must have been renaming some of the items they obtained through anvils, either to give them snappier names or conceal something. Wonder Wings were Elytras, Glowsticks were End Rods, and Pocket Boxes were Shulker Shells. They were literally slapping their names on the brand.
"Want wear Dragon Head!" XoX grinned, snagging it out of Mark's hands and swapping it with his Skeleton Mask. "Uohhohho! Look like mighty dragon!"
"Quit messing around!" Mark hissed as he scooped up as much as he could. It wasn't just SutsCo merchandise those two carried. There was also diamond gear of… exceptionally rare quality. Silk Touch and Fortune Pickaxes of Diamond and Iron. And a Diamond Sword with Looting III! That would be useful for Wither Skull farming! Would give XoX some help.
"Mark, these Shulker Shells aren't like the Pocket Boxes." Leadstripe pointed out, trying to combine the purple halves together to no avail. "Herobrine above, there must be a recipe to make them into the boxes."
"We'll figure it out after we're out of here. Come on." Mark hurried the group along, out the room with the bed, out the break room, through the store, and into the tunnel.
They refilled the floor of the store and scrambled back to the tunnel entrance in the shadowy alley. They filled everything up, shed their disguises and masks (except for Leadstripe), and melded back into the crowd of the main street without batting an eye.
As the trio of Lieutenants left the scene, they paused to glance at the SutsCo store and the line patiently camped out to purchase wares inside in the morning. They would be in for a surprise when the merchandise wasn't restocked and two Senior Salespeople were discovered missing.
"We did it." Mark breathed out a sigh of relief only when they were safely inside the Cult's Western HQ. Leadstripe handed him the Shulker Shells and Elytra while XoX reluctantly handed over the Dragon Head. In return, Mark presented the Looting III Diamond Sword, the Silk Touch I Iron Pickaxe, and the Fortune III Diamond Pickaxe. Leadstripe and XoX gazed upon them with awe.
"They haven't even been used." Leadstripe noted as he picked one up. "I thought they brought these along to mine for these Shulker Shells, but… is it possible they just found them?"
"High end tools." XoX noted, running his hand over the Silk Touch pickaxe. "Each worth a king's ransom." He then looked up with a contemplative expression. "Nether fortresses sometimes have chests with tools. None this rare, though."
"Seems like Suts Corporated is sitting on a gold mine." Mark noted, dumping all the stuff he picked up from the dead guys. "[END STONE]. There's a lot here. Must be as common as cobble. [CHORUS FRUIT] Also a lot. They carried plenty of ender pearls." He picked one up and frowned at it. "Must have needed to warp a lot."
"Or fought Endermen." XoX suggested.
"Where would they find enough Endermen for this many pearls?" Mark dismissed.
"Maybe the same place they'd find any of this stuff." Leadstripe spread it all out. "Damnit, I really wish we could've questioned one of them. I want to know where they're obtaining all these resources. You think if we make a purple bed we can do the same?"
"Something tells me there's more to it than just dying a bed. SutsCo's been at this for months and the bed thing only happened two weeks ago."
"Sdraw will want to hear about this." Leadstripe excused himself from the group and hurried to find his Executive. Hopefully he'd have time to spare in between tracking down vagabond Hackers.
Honestly, there were too many questions concerning that monstrosity of a company. They were making waves and making emeralds, and they kept their secrets close to the chest. Though Mark felt one of the Crafters they killed had said something incriminating, he couldn't focus too much when he was busy figuring out how to make Pocket Boxes out of the Shulker Shells. Also, how to dye them light blue…?
"Maybe I need a chest…?" He thought, taking out some planks and making a Crafting Table then a chest, and then trying different combinations for the Pocket Box. His black eyes brightened. "Aha! Two shells and a chest in the middle! Like a chest sandwich." The item molded itself together and became like the Pocket Boxes Mark was used to. However, like the shells, it was named differently.
[SHULKER BOX].
"A Shulker. Shul-ker." He sounded the word out. "Herobrine above, what even is a Shulker?" He made two more and then tested them out, putting potion ingredients inside and then breaking it. The items didn't pop out like with a chest, and he found, when he picked up the Shulker Box, that his items were still safely inside, to be recovered whenever he placed the box down again. "Nice! It works! Now to dye it light blue…"
"For mission?" XoX asked, making Mark realize he forgot he was standing there.
"Yes." Mark nodded seriously. "For a very important mission." He then grabbed the Elytra and the Dragon Head, wondering if he should use the anvil and rename them to the appropriate SutsCo counterpart. The corporation would know they were stolen if they didn't have the right names. It'd invite trouble, though Teal wouldn't call it that.
Better safe than sorry. He'd rename them after he found a way to dye them. All that was left was to devise a clever way to get them to Teal.
"A very important mission indeed."
[The Morel Islands]
KillGore's expansion of the blast radius pushed the perimeter of tents further and further away from the initial coordinates. With each new blast location, mycelium, dirt, and stone were churned up and exploded into oblivion. And, similarly, bedrock was encountered at the same unusual level, perfectly flat.
After a while of running into bedrock, KillGore decided to expand the blasting range as far as he dared just to check whether the whole island had a higher bedrock level. He chose a far-flung region and set off TNT. What he found was the standard bedrock level, jagged and normal, as it should be.
So the bedrock was flat and at a greater height only around a certain area. Only around the coordinates Herobrine gave.
More and more TNT was dropped—KillGore having to take a break to make more—until, at last, a corner was unearthed. The bedrock formed a smooth edge, which then fell beneath the dirt and joined with the natural, jagged level of bedrock.
More digging revealed another edge joined to the first. It was like unearthing an object buried in the sand. More mycelium was torn aside in tumultuous blasts until the shape was fully revealed to the cultists.
It was a bedrock cube. At least a hundred meters in length and width. The depth was only about fourteen meters, but it was no natural collection of bedrock. Someone had chiseled a bunker out of an unbreakable, unobtainable mineral.
Who else but Herobrine?
Completely exposing the bedrock bunker and its five sides revealed an entrance as well. A small two by one meter hole—really only big enough for one person at a time—along the southern face of the monolith.
Ember, Abyssmal, and their group stood before the entryway along with a band of ten cultist grunts.
"This is it." Ember whispered breathlessly. "This is the opened door he was talking about. Abyssmal, this is it!"
"Yeah." He swallowed thickly, his lone eye gazing upon the entrance with excitement… and nervousness. "Anything could be in there." Unconsciously, the Eastern Executive loaded his bow.
"Well, what are we standing around for?" 4Blite said before taking the first step.
He was forcibly yanked back by his blue beaded necklace. So hard it choked him.
"Ladies first." Ember spoke without looking at him. Her light blue eyes were only for the entryway she squeezed through, her rapier at the ready. Abyssmal followed, then 4Blite and his Plague, Sam. Then KillGore and Spring. And then the rest of the cultists.
The first room they came across was a sort of vestibule. A small lobby illuminated by redstone lamps set into bedrock walls and ceilings. There was only one way to proceed; an iron door with a lever beside it as well as a written sign.
[TEST SUBJECTS]
"Hmph. Fairly straightforward." KillGore squeaked before walking up and flicking the lever. The door swung open and the Executives and cultists entered.
This room, unlike the previous one, was kept dim. Only a few pinpricks of red light from redstone torches could show the expansive dimensions. It was a long hallway with thin gaps between the bedrock walls on either side. Too narrow for a Crafter to slip through.
Based on the outside dimensions, this was the biggest room. What it was for, however, was unclear.
"Look for a lab." KillGore advised. "There must be a record of this place or some notes…"
"wHo'S tHaT…?"
The cultists all tensed, drawing weapons and pointing them at the unexpected voice. It came from the side and was… oddly distorted.
"sEnD mE a dReAm… bEsT I'Ve eVeR sEeN… wE'rE sAvEd…"
"Someone get us some light!" Ember ordered. Spring was quick to comply, setting down some torches and illuminating the bedrock walls and the narrow gaps between meant to keep things out.
And in.
Several cultists screamed when the light hit the walls. A pale, spindly arm was reaching through the gap, fingers like bones scratching at the bedrock wall. A sunken face with empty eye sockets stared from within, its jaw unhinged on one side to create a lopsided leer.
"Holy fucking nightmare fuel!" Spring recoiled, backing away from one wall only to unwittingly bump into the other.
Three pairs of arms extended behind him, curling as if to entrap the cultist. He narrowly ducked before rolling out of reach and back to the group who proceeded to illuminate the other wall.
It was another grotesque sight. The six arms all belonged to one black skinned creature who shirked away from the light. It had four eyes on its forehead. The place where the eyes should have been on a human being only had chitinous black skin stretched tight. Blond strands of hair poked out of its head in patches and the endings of its arms had no hands or fingers. Only sharp points. And where its mouth should be was half a pincer.
The spider thing had more cultists screaming. Even Ember looked unsettled by it.
"You scream and snivel at such sights? Ha!" The diminutive man said bravely. "Hide under the skirts of greater men! KillGore is not afraid!"
"Oh, but you should be, little man." Rumbled a voice from above.
"Little!? Who dares call KillGore, destroyer of worlds, lit…tle?"
As the plucky Mob Grinder tilted his beady gaze up, he spotted a hanging bedrock cage with iron bars, and within, a ten foot tall and seven foot wide metallic homunculus. One of his arms was so beefy that it dragged beside his stumpy feet. The other was normal sized, giving the creature a look like he only worked out his left side. Vines covered half his chest, silver hair, and a giant nose. And its eyes. One was black and red and metallic, but the other one—within a cracked face—looked almost human. They were both shadowed by a jutting forehead.
"Now that's something different." Sam noted wryly while KillGore made a surprised duck face.
As more torches were placed, light was cast upon the bedrock cells and the monstrosities within—hideous, deformed amalgamations of man and Mob. It looked as if somebody had mashed the two together with horrific results. Almost all of them had missing or warped human features that made them look more like the Mobs they had taken the appearance of. There were Skeletons, Iron Golems, Spiders, Cave Spiders, Creepers, Witches, Slimes, Zombie Pigmen, Blazes, Wither Skeletons, Guardians, etc. The only Mobs missing were the Zombies and the Endermen.
They weren't just aggressive Mobs present. There were animals too. Half-sheep, half-cows, half-cats. All twisted into some hideous monstrosity.
Another thing of notice were that, while some of them could talk, their speech was somewhat distorted. Slow, disjointed, or cracking in pitch. Some couldn't even talk, and only moaned in anguish, their features being the most deformed. It was as if their minds were affected by whatever horrible process they went through.
"They're Hybrids." Ember muttered to herself. "Just like what Jade reported seeing at the Wailing Vale…"
"What the hell is this?" 4Blite snarled, beside himself with fury. "We came here for power, not a circus of freaks!"
"tAkEs oNe tO kNoW oNe."
"Quien es ese?" Came a feminine vibrato from one of the bigger cells. Large, glowing orange eyes—as big as ender pearls—peeked out between the bars. The cell also trembled noticeably. "How'd you get in here, extraños?"
"Is that thing speaking Jibberish?" One cultist muttered while Abyssmal stalked forward.
"We got in through the front door." He answered, his one eye trying to discern the owner of the feminine vibrato.
"Told you I heard explosions." The Iron Golem man hanging from the ceiling remarked.
"Who… what are you?" Ember asked, putting on a sympathetic face. "How'd you end up like this?"
"LeT uS oUt aNd wE'lL tElL yOu…" The Skeleton man clacked his teeth together.
Ember paused, appearing to mull it over. Meanwhile, Spring was gazing upon the creatures within the cells with disbelief.
Spring_Fever enjoyed killing, but he couldn't stand being hounded by authorities or bounty hunters. He joined the Endward Cult so that he could have some protection; safer and easier to kill as part of a group. He also loved looking at Ember_Waves. Her beauty was unmatched. All he had to do was follow orders and occasionally buy in to the hogwash about Herobrine.
Oh, he heard the tales and rumors about the man. How he supposedly could work miracles with Command Blocks. How he arranged for the Kings to be killed by the Hackers. How he fought Notch in man-to-man combat and left the King of Ringwood dead.
He hardly believed half the things he heard, chalking it up to the cultists' fanatical worship of the guy. More likely, Herobrine did a few impressive things and the cultists blew it out of proportion or embellished to fluff up his myth. Glowing High-beam eyes? C'mon.
All the time he served the Northern Division, he pretended to believe Herobrine's actions to stay on Ember's good side. She believed them, even if she had nothing to show to prove it. There were no 'miracles' that could convince Spring.
But now he was starting to change his mind. Now, he was looking at half-man, half-Mob monstrosities inside a bedrock bunker. Bedrock couldn't be broken. It couldn't be mined. It couldn't be shaped. These things staring at him with extra Mob bits couldn't exist! They shouldn't exist!
Yet he was staring straight at them.
It meant that Herobrine could do the impossible. He could work miracles.
But then… that would mean that Ember and the Endward Cult weren't just tooting their Founder's horn.
Spring swallowed nervously and tried to sit down, wondering what else Herobrine was capable of.
Ember, having gathered her thoughts, finally spoke. "We're looking for a lab. If you'll tell us where to look, we'll—"
The Spider girl laughed, her one pincer chattering erratically.
"Oooh, you MUST be desperate to find his lab." Her six arms folded around herself as she doubled over. "We're so hideous that most would shriek and flee! They wouldn't bother talking to us." The large cell off to the side shook as the feminine vibrato within sobbed. "Not that we've seen anyone in a long while. You're the first since he left. You must have a strong stomach, woman."
"He? He who?" Ember urged, her Soul-Gaze scanning the Spider woman. She found the answer and her mouth parted in a breathless whisper. "Herobrine…?"
"What year is it, rezagados!?" The feminine vibrato demanded, the large glowing orange eyes pressed close to the bars. The cell shook noticeably, prompting the cultists to back away. It was Spring who answered, his face covered in a cold sweat.
"I-It's 500. The year is 500."
Immediately, all thirty-six bedrock cells shook as the inhabitants cried out in anger.
"Three-hundred-and-eighty-two years!" Wailed a Hybrid smaller than KillGore with a cat ear where a human ear should be. "We've suffered a lifetime in hereeeeow!" Her cry rolled out into a cat's meow. She slapped a paw-hand to her face, hissing. "I hate that!"
Without windows, it was impossible to tell the passage of time. The thirty-six Hybrids were stuck under the Morel Islands for so long…
"Hang on." Sam piped up. "You couldn't have been here for nearly four centuries."
"wAnNa bEt?" The Skeleton man clacked.
"You couldn't have, all on your own, because you would have starved to death." Sam folded his arms. "Starved long before we got here. Somebody must have fed you."
"Maybe for a normal Crafter…" A half-Witch crowed. "But we're more Mob than man. And Mobs don't need to eat."
Sam recoiled. "You're… you're saying you were human once?"
"You read the sign outside." Abyssmal said. "They're test subjects. Experiments."
"We have names, cabrón!" The feminine vibrato snapped before softening. "Or… we did…"
"Quit wasting our time." 4Blite spoke callously. "Where's Herobrine's lab? Tell us now and we might just set you all free."
The change in mood was palpable, even if none of the Hybrids uttered a word. Herobrine's name had been dropped, and the stale air of that underground bedrock prison became charged with a kind of energy. The cultist grunts all closed ranks, their weapons out.
"…Why are you looking for Herobrine?" The Iron Golem man asked from above.
"We're searching for him." Ember answered, her words yearning to break free. "Where is he? Have you seen him?" Her Soul-Gaze scanned each face, one by one, searching for the answer she sought.
"Estúpida." The large orange eyes seemed to glow with contempt. "There's only one reason I'd want to know where that puta madre is hiding, and that's to put him in the ground myself!" She hocked up a glob of spit and spat it on the ground.
Needless to say, Ember took offense. Enough to stop her Soul-Gaze.
"Watch your mouth, monster." She said, approaching the large cell and trying to see what was inside. Something was moving strangely. Dark red and large with big glowing eyes. "Say what you want about me, but I won't let you insult our Founder."
"Your Founder!? That means you're cultists!" The creature within writhed angrily, as did the thirty-five other Hybrids. She spewed a bunch more of those odd sounding words with clear malicious intent. "Your Founder is the one who did this to us! He made us freaks! He left us in here!"
"You have my sympathies." Ember replied without any real emotion. "Life in Minecraftia is already a prison without being trapped within bedrock and warped flesh. We can free you if you wish, though not in the way you wish." Her diamond rapier rattled against the bars of her cage.
Ember suddenly leapt back as a massive hand shot from the darkness and slammed into the bars. The skin was dark red and black… and jiggled in the torchlight. The large glowing eyes narrowed as the feminine vibrato within swore angrily.
"Vete al demonio, bitch…"
"Where's the lab?" Ember demanded, turning her Soul-Gaze upon the large creature. It only took a moment before her eyes shifted to the other side of the hall. A door with a three-by-three grid of stone buttons beside it. Ember jerked her head towards it and KillGore and Abyssmal moved to inspect.
Meanwhile, Spring and Sam were gazing upon the Hybrids. The former looked to be questioning everything he thought he knew about Herobrine. The latter, however, had a sharp gleam to his light-gray eyes.
"Intriguing. Very intriguing. Have you ever seen anything like this, because I haven't?" Sam got as close to the cells as he dared, observing a legless Guardian Hybrid with a freakish eye and spikes sticking out of its skin. "They've been around for hundreds of years, before any new Bounty Days. Is this the work of Command Blocks? Was Herobrine melding men and Mobs together?"
The Guardian Hybrid, angry at being observed like a sideshow, fired a helix-like beam from its eye, directly striking Sam in the chest.
The Plague fell back, rubbing at his torso after losing four-and-a-half Hearts. However, far from being upset, his face lit up.
"They even have the Mob's powers to some degree! This must have been what Herobrine was after! Giving Crafters the powers of Mobs!"
"It couldn't be worth the trade-off." Spring noted grimly. "That one doesn't even have legs. Why would anyone want this?"
"Maybe Herobrine was after certain Mob abilities. Think about if you had the firepower of a Wither, or the teleportation of an Enderman, or…" Sam paused, glancing around the cells. "Hang on. There aren't any Endermen. Or Zombies now I've come to think of it."
"cAn'T cAgE aN eNdErMaN." The Skeleton Hybrid clacked, running a boney finger along his bowstring. "aNd tHe zOmBiEs wErE aLl pUt dOwN."
"Why's that?" 4Blite asked before KillGore and Abyssmal called from the door.
"DRAT! This door requires a combination!" KillGore raged.
"Just bust it down." A cultist suggested.
"Fool! You think I would have exclaimed had I not exhausted every available option? The door does not break!" KillGore demonstrated by smacking his fists futilely against the iron door. "It is protected by Command Block magic. Nothing can break it. I can only assume the correct combination along this three-by-three grid will open the door."
"Herobrine never gave us a combination." Abyssmal groaned. He raised a hand to shadow his eye as he peered through the gaps in the door. "I can see chests and a lab in there. We're so close!"
"You." Ember turned her Soul-Gaze on the Hybrids. "You've been here all this time. One of you must know the combination."
"Sure. We'll tell you." The Iron Golem Hybrid drawled. "Just let us out first and we'll give it to you."
At that, Ember smiled. "So long as I have Soul-Gaze, I don't need to make any deals." She strode up to the three-by-three grid of buttons and held her finger over each one, her light-blue eyes watching the Hybrids as she hovered. When she caught a reaction off enough of them, she pressed the respective button her finger was over. Five. "If you're a bad liar, Soul-Gaze can give me the answers without much trouble. If you're a bit harder to read, or you have inhuman features," there was another reaction over the second number, Two, "then I can only really see through yes or no questions or, in this case, the appropriate number from a set of choices."
Another reaction over the third number. Nine.
"There's always a reaction when you're close to the truth." Ember continued. "Some are better at hiding it than others, but Soul-Gaze can see right through you."
Four.
"And right now, your reactions are telling me that this combination will open up the door."
One.
"Very clever, bruja." The feminine vibrato complimented, the large cell shaking. "But you've neglected one thing."
"What's that?"
Ember pressed the last button, Eight, and the lab's iron door swung open.
At the same time, all the bedrock cells opened up. The Iron Golem Hybrid on the ceiling was dropped onto the floor, grinning dangerously. The bedrock walls turned to air, allowing the Hybrids their long-awaited freedom. And the massive cell containing the creature with the feminine vibrato cracked open to reveal an eight meter tall giant with black and dark red skin, long, dark red hair, and glowing orange eyes. Aside from her height and skin, she alone looked more human than the others. Indeed, she looked beautiful. And wrathful.
"Every Hybrid here was thinking of the combination that opens the door AND sets us all free."
The cultists all drew their weapons as the Hybrids attacked.
AN: See? The Endward Cult is doing a ton of interesting stuff. Ember takes her band of six to the Morel Islands while the male Lieutenants go on a manly men-only man-mission for manly men. Full of testosterone and manliness. Man!
First introduction to Suts Corporated. They've played Monopoly a lot and have instituted one on their fabulous merchandise. Where oh where could they be getting them from?
The SutsCo song I came up with the lyrics and tune myself. I then recreated it in Creative Mode using the available musical sounds from 1.13 Note Blocks. It took a solid hour, but I made the jingle into something I'm proud of. If there was a way to record and play it on Discord, I'd do it. Helps to set the SutsCo mood. I also found a way to paste in musical notes. First time seeing those in text🎵
Also, introducing a few new faces for the Endward Cult.
FAV. FOLLOW. REVIEW. PM. FORUM. DISCORD. TIC TACS.