The Minecraft Story: The Beginning: Chapter 31
The knights stood at the second gate, waiting. From the other side, they could hear the Garrison Knights being slaughtered. Screams of agony and terror radiated from the other side like hearing a dying animal in the night. Roaring erupted from the other side, a scream from another world invaded their eardrums. Commander Vesch had ordered the knights to stand in formation in front of the gate. Thomas and the other carrier slaves were close behind them.
As much as Thomas hated the knights, he was glad to be behind nearly the entire army of the Holy Notch Empire. They had no idea what was awaiting them on the other side of the gate, but they knew it was large enough to bust through the first gate. Many of the slaves were talking about what it could be.
"What if it's a giant pigman?"
"Did a whole pigman swarm bust through?"
"Maybe Herobrine himself knocked down the gate?"
Nobody knew for certain, but the idea of anything being able to break into Fort Deepslate shook them to the bone.
Please Notch, hear me. Thomas prayed. Please don't let me die in this hellhole. Please help me survive this. All I want is to see my village one last time before I die. Please hear me, Notch.
Slowly, the sounds of death and roars died down. The sounds of a large group of people dying went down to a few unfortunate individuals. They heard them beg whatever the creature was for their lives. From the sounds of bone and flesh being ripped apart, their pleas were rejected.
"Stand your ground!" Commander Vesch ordered, "From the sounds of it, we are the next targets! Whatever is behind there, you will fight to the last breath. Do not be afraid for your own lives, be afraid for your families and all the innocents living in our great kingdom!"
Commander Vesch's quick speech created a new spark of morale in the knights. They gripped their weapons more tightly. They stood at the ready. They braced themselves for the beast.
CRAAAASSSSHHHH!
Pieces of wood came flying at the knights and a dust cloud engulfed them. They quickly ducked down, bracing for impact. The gate rain on the knights like meteors. Several knights were killed instantly, either being crushed or stabbed by flying bits of wood. The knights at the front suffered the most casualties and those who survived were severely injured.
Thomas's legs began to shake with fear. Through the dust cloud, he could see the outline of something large, something big enough to smash through the gate all on its own, something that was coming for him.
The beast bursts through the dust cloud and began to attack the knights at the front. Thomas could see it now, it was a giant zombie. With each swing of its giant muscular arms, dozens of knights were sent flying. Some were killed by the impact of the mutant zombie's arms. Some were killed in the fall. However, some unlucky souls survived the arms and the fall. They lay in the grass, blood pooling all around them, they didn't know if it was their own or their comrades.
Every hit from the mutant zombie sent a rain of blood and body parts towards Thomas and the other carrier slaves. A few already turned and tried to run, but some knights behind them cut them down before they got far. He was stuck there. He was completely unarmed and stuck in this large group with the mutant zombie slowly gaining ground on them.
The knights desperately tried overwhelming the mutant zombie, but they bottlenecked themselves and made themselves a large easy target of bodies. Those that tried to go around would get hit by their flying comrades. The blood was starting to create a mist of red on the battlefield. Knights couldn't move anywhere without it getting in their eyes. And now in their blind terror, they began to panic.
"Do not falter my knights!" Commander Vesch yelled while charging towards the mutant zombie, "If we fall now, this monster will tear our families apart! Fight! We have to fight for the people of the Holy Notch Empire!"
The remaining knights turned to Commander Vesch.
"Break up into two groups!" He ordered. "We'll attack this beast in a pincer maneuver! Do not charge it head on!"
The knights obeyed and began to divide their forces. The mutant zombie was preoccupied with the remaining knights unfortunate enough to be close to it. Many knights had backed off, either due to panic or Commander Vesch's orders. However, some knights still remained at the center and were being mutilated. One knight was ripped in half. Two knights were slammed into each other in the beast's fists. One was picked up and squeezed to death.
"We're going to need all our troops to take it down!" Commander Vesch yelled. "Knights in the back, join the two groups!"
The knights previously watching the carrier slaves ran to join attacking knights. It was the opportunity Thomas had been looking for. He slowly began to move through the pack of carrier slaves. Some noticed what he was doing, but they didn't stop him. A few began to follow him. Soon, he was out of the main pack and walking away.
Thomas wasn't sure what to do. His eyes searched everywhere for a way out of this nightmare. During his search, a large group of carrier slaves followed him and were not standing by his side. This wasn't what Thomas had wanted. He wanted to be able to slip away undetected, but now he had a big group with him. Fortunately, the blood mist impairing the knight's vision gave him comfort.
He scanned every inch of the second gate's interior, until he noticed some green on the walls. It was vines. That was it. "The vines!" Thomas yelled, "We can scale the vines and retreat over the walls!" Thomas was surprised with himself. He didn't understand why he was telling the others his plan. It would be much easier to make a run for it and escape on his own. However, he knew these people, maybe not personally, but he knew their situation was just as dire as his. He knew they too were taken from their homes and they wanted out just as much as him.
"Come on! Follow me!" Thomas called out to the carrier slaves that didn't initially follow him. They were hesitant. "Do you really want to remain here and break your backs for them until you die! Come with me and you'll at least have a chance!" Many more carrier slaves began to run towards Thomas's group and together, they made a break for the wall.
Commander Vesch led the knights on the right, while another commander led the knights on the left. He knew after what they'd just witnessed, nobody would've dared to be first. Unfortunately, he knew this also meant he'd likely be killed. The mutant zombie had finished up with the poor knights at the center and was confused. It didn't know what group to focus on. It violently jerked its head from left to right.
This is our only chance. Commander Vesch thought. Its confusion will give them a chance to take it out.
"Strike the legs!" He yelled, "Bring it down and cut its head off!"
While he ran, the screams of the other knights seemingly vanished. All Vesch could hear was his breath and his heartbeat. What a strange sensation. He thought. It felt as if everything was in slow motion, while at the same time the beast quickly became closer.
If we don't kill this thing, everyone will be killed. They will be killed. The beast was much closer now and it seemed to have spotted them. Vesch made eye contact with it. They were dark, hallow, lifeless eyes. It truly had no care in the world, no quorums of the death it had caused in just the past ten minutes.
They were much closer, merely a stones throw from the beast. For a moment, the beast's confusion was gone and it seemed to be focused on Vesch. I guess this is how I die. He thought. The beast raised its giant arm, ready to swat them away like flies. I just hope it doesn't hurt. Hopefully I'm killed instantly. The mighty swing came down and all Vesch could see was its disgusting green skin. I love you Melina.
SMASH!
Bodies were sent flying through the air. Almost two dozen men splattered into blood and guts on the right side. Luckily, this diversion gave the left side just enough time to smash into the beast. Their swords pierced its giant legs. They stabbed the kneecaps and slashed at the back of its legs. The mutant zombie jerked its head toward its attackers, giving the right side just enough time to smash into it as well.
The combined attack did just enough damage to throw the mutant zombie off balance. It fell to its knee, but it caught itself with its arms. The arms were quickly attacked and the mutant zombie lay on the blood soaked ground. The mutant zombie's head was soaked red. It was time, time to kill the beast and save the empire.
As the knights moved in to strike the head, the mutant creeper appeared from the second gate.