The Minecraft Story: The Beginning: Chapter 32
The Pope's secret bunker was dark and hadn't been maintained well. A thick layer of dust caked everything. Cobwebs strew all over like party streamers. General Ausmin was in complete silence. The only thing that could be heard was a constant ringing in his ears. It was a total contrast to the chaos he heard outside just a minute ago.
He activated a system of redstone lamps that collected sunlight from hidden daylight detectors above ground. This room had never been used in the many years Fort Deepslate has served the Holy Notch Empire, so plenty of power had been stored up. There was enough power to last years. However, there was one big problem, food. There was no way to keep food fresh for long amounts of time, that's what the indoor farms were for. General Ausmin gaged at the thought of growing food himself down here.
I'll only be here for a little bit. He thought. Our knights are powerful. And with most of the army here, Herobrine can throw anything he wants at us. We'll be okay.
…
The mutant creeper barreled through the knights as if they were children's toys. The long neck swung like a whip, cracking into the bodies of whatever poor souls are unfortunate enough to be standing in its path.
Thomas could hear the sounds of bones cracking all the way from the base of the wall. He looked up at the thirty block high wall. His body trembled just from looking up. This sucks. He thought. It seemed as though the feelings were mutual. None of the other carrier slaves dared to go first. Everyone simply stared up like wolves when someone approached them with a bone.
"Alright everyone," Thomas addressed the crowd, "this is our one chance to escape. We can't stay here, especially not with that thing around." Thomas pointed at the mutant creeper. The idea of something like that exploding shook him more than the wall. It also appeared his feelings were mutual on that as well. He could see knights retreating from the monster, trying to put as much distance between them and the explosion they knew had to be coming. "All we have to do is climb some walls, and we can go home!" Thomas grabbed the first vine. "Take it one step at a time, and don't look down."
Thomas began to climb. The vines were soft and moist. It almost amazed him they could hold their weight. With each block he climbed, more and more carrier slaves gained the confidence to follow him. Luckily, the vines stretched far enough that they didn't have to worry about a bottlecap at the bottom. One block after the other, Thomas carefully climbed. He slowly got higher and higher, his thin, weak body got more exhausted the further he went up. However, as he said, this was their only chance for freedom. If climbing a couple walls was what it took, then he would climb until he physically couldn't hold on anymore.
…
The horse galloped through the now peaceful fields. Marcus and Franz could feel the wind on their faces. They looked up at the bright blue sky like the ocean. The sun shone bright and yellow, it almost appeared to be smiling at them. The intoxicating aroma of blooming flowers filled their nostrils.
"It's such a beautiful day," said Marcus.
"Yes it is, given our circumstances," Franz replied.
"Do you think the Garrison Knights held those beasts off?" Marcus asked, slightly looking behind toward Franz.
Franz thought about it for a moment. Truthfully, he wasn't sure. They'd never fought something to this magnitude before. The weight of everything had been crashing down on him. If Herobrine was truly back, then they were fighting a literal God with swords and bows. However, this wasn't what Marcus needed to hear, "Yeah, I'm sure they can handle it. I mean they're huge targets after all."
Marcus knew Franz was simply trying to comfort him. He wasn't sure why he asked the question in the first place. The ride over had just been very quiet aside from the galloping horse. He pondered if he'd made the right choice not to hide out with Franz. After all, what were two knights going to do, not only against those beasts, but against Herobrine. It would be easier to just live the rest of their lives somewhere safe. But, the idea of cowering away, when so many people needed their help, made him want to puke.
Soon, they could hear the sounds of chaos in the distance. At first, it was a few distant screams. But then, they got louder. Soon, they could see the top of the walls from over the hills. And what they saw made their blood run cold. The gate had been smashed in.
…
Atop the deepslate wall, Thomas had quite a view. A set of trees was visible right below them, one of the few places not overcome by the deepslate huts. He could see the northern forest where they had come from. The trees danced with the flowing wind. The forest had felt like a prison on the walk over, but now he could see the beauty. He turned to the south and could see the fields. The flowers were a work of art, filling the green void with a tapestry of colors. And across this field, was their home. Across that field, was freedom.
Thomas could see the first wall also had plenty of vines strung across. All they had to do was get down and climb one more wall. Thomas and the faster carrier slaves began to help the stragglers get up the wall. As he was helping, he could see the mutant creeper had killed what remained of the knights. The smart ones had run away toward the gate, a few knights had even begun to climb the vines below them. This worried Thomas, he didn't know if they were trying to run or if they were trying to catch them. Either way, they'd run as fast as they could once they were out. Suddenly, the mutant creeper began moving toward the Citadel.
…
General Ausmin sat in the now illuminated bunker. It had been about twenty minutes of sitting in silence. It was beginning to drive him crazy. Everytime he got up to go back out, his body froze. It felt as if he wasn't in control, as if his body was telling him to stay in the bunker where it was safe.
The Pope is dead. He thought. I'm the General. If I die too, there will be nobody capable of leading this army. General Ausmin gritted his teeth. You coward, you should be out there! He hit himself in the head. I can't, they need me! He sat back down. Don't act like you're doing this for them. You're just trying to save your own ass. He hit himself again. Shut up! I can lead us against the southern heretics and Herobrine! I've won countless battles! I have to live! Ausmin closed his eyes and put his hands on his ears.
They, have won countless battles. Your loyal knights who you abandoned to whatever new abomination Hereobrine has created. You can come up with all the plans you want, but without your knights, you'd be nothing.
Ausmin hit his head over and over again. Shut up! Shut up! SHUT UP!
You never gave them a plan before you hid down here. You just crawled into a hole and left them without leadership. At least before you came along to the battles. But look at you now.
Ausmin opened his eyes and slowly lowered his head. But if I die now-
Then don't die. I didn't say you have to fight on the front lines. Just do what you always have done. Just hold up the rear and lead your troops to victory. Imagine the glory, the fame, the wealth. You might even get a statue. But that won't happen if you hide.
General Aumsin slowly stood up. You're right. I need to be out there. I'll be the hero. I'll be the one to save the empire! Everyone will remember my name!
Suddenly, a loud boom could be heard from above and the entire bunker began to shake.
…
Thomas saw the mutant creeper charge up. He was still atop the wall. There was nothing he could hold onto, nothing to stop himself from flying off the wall toward the ground.
…
Marcus and Franz were almost to the destroyed gate. Images of the zombie or creeper smashing through the gate played on repeat in Marcus's mind. He shook his head. There isn't any time to wonder what happened. He thought. We just need to get in and do what we can-
BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOMMMMMMMMMMM!
Marcus and Franz were blinded for a moment when it happened. The shockwave blew them off the horse and onto the grass. Marcus managed to open his eyes for a second. All he could see were pieces of Fort Deepslate flying through the air as a giant mushroom cloud loomed overhead.
We were too late. He thought. We didn't help anyone. Just like Morzen and Zamafar, we were completely useless. We're nothing.
The walls began to fall and pieces of debris were flying towards Marcus. He closed his eyes and braced himself.