The Minecraft Story: The Kingdom: Chapter 1

There it was again, that strange figure. It stood in the shadows, so dark, Steve couldn't make out any details except for the eyes. They stared at each other for a long time, never breaking eye contact.

"The egg," said the figure. Its voice echoed all around Steve.

"The egg? Again?" Steve responded. The figure had appeared many times and every time, it spoke of an egg and nothing else.

"Find the egg before he does," the figure said again.

"I don't know what you're talking about!" Steve yelled, "What egg? Who's trying to find it? Tell me!"

The figure remained calm, "Find it"

…

"Everyone up! Get up now!" a voice yelled.

Steve jerked awake. The yelling was coming from his drill sergeants. It was early morning; the sun was barely out. It was time for morning training. He sat up and took a look at the barracks. Rows of beds lined the giant room with his awaking comrades. He jumped out of bed and accidentally bumped into Titus. The sun shining through the windows glistened off his dark brown skin. His hazel eyes jerked backward to Steve's direction. His shaved black hair swung slightly with the spin.

"Woah, watch your big ass there, Steve," Titus laughed.

"Aw shut up man, it's early," said Steve as he jabbed Titus in the side.

"Report outside in five minutes for morning drills!" yelled the drill sergeant.

"Hey, I was thinking of hitting the tavern tonight since we got tomorrow off, you down?" asked Steve.

"You know it man, I heard the chef has a new pumpkin pie recipe I've been wanting to try," Titus agreed.

"You guys going to the tavern?" said a voice from behind Steve. He turned around to see Rolf standing there with his wide blue eyes staring at him. His pale skin reflected the sun directly into Steve's eyes.

"Hell yeah bro, you wanna come?" asked Steve.

"Of course, it's been a while since I heard the sweet voice of the woman that sings down there," said Rolf.

"You mean Tilly?" asked Titus.

"Yes, she has the voice of an angel," said Rolf with stars in his eyes.

"Well for now, we got to run laps around the cave," said Steve as he donned his iron armor.

…

"Attention!" yelled the drill sergeant. The row of knights stood at the ready, waiting for instruction. "Today we will be focusing on cardio and practice drills in the case of a breach! We start with ten laps around the cave with your armor on!"

A breach? Steve thought. What a joke, there hasn't been a breach in over one hundred years. That's the benefit of living in a cave. That's the benefit of living in Brines Sanctuary. Steve looked up at the cave ceiling. It stood a hundred and fifty blocks up. The cave in which Brines Sanctuary was located, provided natural protection on all three sides. The massive wall of cobblestone and wood protected the cave entrance from mobs outside.

"Begin!" yelled the drill sergeant.

The day had been filled with nothing but rigorous exercises while wearing heavy iron armor. The only relief he got was the natural coolness that radiated in the cave. The worst was the sparring session.

Steve and Titus chose each other as sparring partners. They stood in an enclosed area with several of their peers who were also sparring. For their safety, they fought with dull wooden swords.

"Alright man, let's do this," Steve said confidently.

As the two approached each other, Steve realized he stepped in something soft. He looked down to see they had walked into a gravel patch. He paid no mind to it as it would just make the sparring area a little bit slicker.

Steve readied his sword as Titus approached with his. He took on a defensive position and kept his eyes focused on his friend. However, Titus did something strange. When he approached, instead of swinging his sword up or to the side, he swung down. Confused, Steve followed the blade as it dug into the gravel below. In an instant, Titus sent a wave of gravel into Steve's eyes. He covered his eyes and clumsily stepped back. The next thing he felt was a boot kicking him in the stomach and the soft, but jagged gravel poking into his back.

Steve opened his eyes to see Titus standing over him with the tip of the sword near his neck, "Ow you son of bitch! What was that? That's some bullshit you cheater."

"Cheater?" Titus laughed, "Come on man, we learned this ages ago; use your environment to win the fight. It doesn't take a genius to figure that out." Titus pulled back the sword and extended his hand to help Steve up.

Steve scoffed, "Whatever man, but I want a rematch…away from the gravel."

When everything was finished, they were dismissed. Steve, Titus, and Rolf dropped all their stuff at the barracks and began walking to the tavern. On their way there, Steve felt like his legs were going to give out.

He sat down next to a statue and said, "Go on without me, I'll be there in a little bit.

"All man, just hurry up alright," said Titus.

"I'll order you a cold one, just make sure you pay me back," said Rolf.

As they left, Steve leaned against the statue. He looked up and saw he was sitting right up the statue of Thomas Brines. He also noticed a little boy and his father admiring the statue.

"Daddy, who is that?" the boy asked.

"Him?" said the father, "That's Thomas Brines. He's the one who founded our little town here. They say that three hundred years ago, he used to live in a large city called Redwater. But about three years after the mobs first showed up, Redwater was overrun by a massive horde. A lot of people were lost; but Thomas Brines led the survivors here to this cave. He helped clear out the mobs who were hiding inside the cave and turned it into our home. And we've lived here ever since."

Steve stared up at the old statue. He'd heard the story of Thomas Brines many times before. He'd also heard the story of Herobrine and Notch. Allegedly, there was a battle at Redwater during what they referred to as "The Dark Ages." It was the time when the mobs first showed up and terrorized the land. About three-quarters of the world's population was killed in just one month. During that time, the gods known as Herobrine and Notch battled each other at Redwater.

After the Battle of Redwater had concluded, Herobrine managed to slip away. The next morning, Notch and a group of knights went after him. Neither, Notch, Herobrine, or any of the knights were ever seen again. It was quite an interesting story. However, Steve never really believed it. Many people today debate the validity of Thomas's story.

I'm feeling better now. Steve thought as he stood up. Let's get back to the guys. They better not be chatting up all the girls.

…

They could see the walls of the sanctuary through the spyglass. The large walls were nothing new to them. To the spies, this was just another target.