Chapter 9: Setting Up Camp
Following the demigod back into the forest felt less like a pitiful walk of shame this time around for Steve, as he was thankfully free from being dragged around by the wrist. Though he kept his distance away from the other, his mind wasn't all too far away.
Making friends with a god was apparently easy, so what was stopping him from making friends with Herobrine?
…
The answer was obvious, but Steve posed the question anyways.
Herobrine was unreadable. Whether it be in combat or otherwise, the other didn't let up; always keeping on a mask, never really letting it slip unless otherwise provoked. There were brief moments when the other laughed or became filled with anger, but those emotions didn't reveal any sort of underlying personality that suggested approachability; they were immediately buried underneath the hard exterior of being a tough, commanding presence. The only evidence he was given that supported his theory of the other somehow having a soul was from Minos, a person who watched him grow up, and yet, he still had mostly nothing to work with.
What would it take to fully break through the other's rough, human-hating exterior?
Following orders? He'd tried doing that, and that didn't necessarily work out.
Acting friendly? Being somewhat genial earned no positive response from Herobrine thus far.
Acting terribly? That might just convince the man to willingly snap and kill him on the spot. Or, worse, maybe the demigod would encourage him to be meaner in order to lose more of his own personality in order to better fit him.
What did that leave, pure kindness?
Steve stared at the other's back, considering the option once again.
If he responded to the other with positive words, would he convince the man to act kindly in return? If he offered himself up to be someone to rely on emotionally, would Herobrine consider confiding in him? If he directed the kindness he was planning on treating the mob generals to him as well, would there be a difference in the overall tone of their conversations? He had already made a plan to befriend Herobrine's minions, but was there a way to work his way up to the demigod through them, essentially hitting two birds with one stone? If he fully gained their trust and respect, would they defend him against Herobrine? Would they put in a good word for him? Could he possibly become good enough friends with them in order to make the demigod jealous?
Lost in his own thoughts, Steve didn't even realize the other had led him to the mob generals once again, and the group had been made whole. Though Constiere ran up excitedly to the demigod, a groan escaped his lips as he went to answer the boy's question, which Steve had missed due to his occupied brain.
"...Only managed to slightly damage the portal. Steve happened to make a little friend while we were there, so we had to cut things short." Herobrine stated, casting a glance back at the miner before turning back to Constiere once again.
"Who?" Constiere asked, looking over at the miner with a raised brow.
"Minos, that's who."
All three of the mob generals stared in shock back towards the miner, who froze up in embarrassment as all eyes fell on him.
"You...what?!"
"How'd you-"
"Huh?!"
Herobrine held up a hand, silencing them after a few moments of astonished reactions.
"Minos found him, and he responded as if he would with any other stranger. The specifics aren't important right now. What is important is making sure we put enough distance between us and the old fool so that we don't have to see him again."
Herobrine walked past the others as their gazes now went to focus on him, which Steve sighed a breath of relief for.
"But the porta-" Andvari began.
"-Is compromised. Not the most ideal situation, but we'll have to make do and leave while we still can."
Without many other objections, the three began to follow Herobrine as Steve stayed behind once again, a small smile appearing on his face as he processed the events that had just occurred.
Did Herobrine just...somewhat defend him? From criticism, no less?
Not wanting to be left behind as he relished in the idea, Steve slowly began to trail after the others.
It might've been just the threat of Minos being within the area pushing away the opportunity to yell at him, but Steve hoped that Herobrine had genuinely directed attention away from him out of some sort of sympathy or concern, even though it was highly unlikely. It was a start, nonetheless, despite being a rather uncertain one.
As Steve found the distance between himself and the others closing, the realization that he had no idea where they were going arose rather quickly.
Where would they run off to now that Minos was close around? Would they head back to his village to gather themselves? Would they go deeper into the forest in the hopes of covering up their tracks? Where would they go?
Hesitantly, Steve spoke up his concerns.
"Uhh...Where are we heading now?"
Without looking back at him, Herobrine answered.
"Anywhere. We'll travel until sunrise, find a cave to set up camp in, and plan from there."
They had no idea where they were going. Great.
Sighing, Steve turned his attention towards his surroundings, watching as the sprucewood trees passed them by in a seemingly-never ending pattern that refused to let up. As much as he loved the fact that he was finally getting to see new surroundings, he had been expecting for them to be more...diverse with the more he traveled. Granted, he'd only gone so far from his village, he was being forced to accompany others rather than travel on his own (for which he was slightly grateful for), and he'd just explored a massive, unfamiliar area that absolutely stunned him with its beauty, but just on the adventuring trail alone, he expected for there to have been more to see. Not only that, but he was going to be spending time with the others in the most familiar sight of all-a cave, each time they needed to halt their operations to accommodate the one individual in their group who would literally perish if they didn't.
Now that he was aware of the fact that Herobrine wouldn't let him die so easily if he considers him to be merely an "asset" for use, it was slowly dawning on Steve that his journey would be rather long instead of needlessly short. Whether he was glad for that or not, he wasn't sure at the moment, but he was at least thankful for the fact that he'd be able to avoid death for the time being, at least.
When the sky began to turn a lighter blue with the promise of a new day, the group found a suitable cave hidden by trees within the ground and ducked right into it.
Steve sat by the very edge of the entrance as he stared up at the sky, watching quietly as the colors slowly shifted as the cold breeze brushed against his skin. While he was doing that, the others were on their own deeper into the cave, steering clear of the minimal light that could've reached them through the opening.
Constiere found a place against the wall, plopping down against it with a sigh as he nearly collapsed from what appeared to be exhaustion. Malgun found a place against a large rock that sat deep within the shadows of the cave, sitting down carefully so as to not damage his quiver, bow, and arrows. Herobrine remained standing, as did Andvari by his side, both overlooking the others.
With a sigh, Herobrine began to pace within the cave.
"We have until sundown once again to decide which direction we run off to next. There's not much else we can do until we get far enough away from this last portal so that I can no longer sense it as strongly, and Minos can no longer find us."
Constiere looked up at him with tired eyes.
"So...We just go wherever until we find a pulse that's not this one?"
Herobrine nodded.
"Correct."
Looking the other over momentarily, Herobrine cast a glance that held a dimmer light from his eyes.
"...Is it an energy problem you face, or a functional one?"
Constiere shrugged.
"...I dunno. Probably energy, my bones and stuff feel fine for now."
Herobrine nodded, turning towards Andvari.
"Andi, you know what to retrieve."
The enderman nodded.
"How much this time around?"
Constiere's eyes lit up at the question, holding out a palm with outstretched fingers.
"Bring me five canes! I can carry around whatever I don't finish for later!"
Nodding, Andvari blipped out of existence in a cloud of purple particles, leaving the rest of the group. Within a minute or so, the other returned with a bundle of green sticks in his hand, walking over to Constiere and giving them to him shortly after.
Almost immediately, the boy started to gnaw on the first cane he received, placing the others right beside him as he stuck the one in his mouth.
Curiously, hearing the sounds of furious eating, Steve glanced back into the cave to see the other chewing on the cane excitedly, finding Constiere's gaze placed back on him shortly afterward.
Pausing in his attack, Constiere gave the other a grin.
"Jealous?"
Steve shook his head, a smile forming on his face at the other's playful words.
"Nah, just interested."
Andvari and Herobrine turned their gazes upon him as he responded, with Andvari giving him a smile.
"In case you weren't aware of it, it takes a lot to keep a body that has been reanimated running. Sugar definitely helps, in that regard." Andvari stated, glancing back at Constiere as he spoke.
Steve tilted his head in confusion.
"Wait, how much does it help?"
"A lot!" Constiere chimed in. "Better than anything else, actually! Can't really take potions since Nether wart doesn't agree with me much, so sugarcane gives me all that I need."
Nodding, Steve turned away from the other, staring back out to witness the rising sun. Even though his eyes had shifted focus, his thoughts hadn't.
How awful it must have been to have died, only for your resting soul to be dragged back into the realm in order to serve somebody as malicious as Herobrine. Though, given the fact that Constiere seemed to enjoy doing what he did, Steve guessed that the situation may not have been as horrible for the other as he originally thought. Despite that, he wondered how it would've felt for him if he were to find himself in the same situation.
If he died, would Herobrine revive him? If he hadn't served his purpose yet, there was a good chance of the other doing so, but what if he simply didn't? How did Herobrine even manage to do such a thing? How was Constiere able to function normally on a daily basis? How do you even go about, living in what was your own corpse, knowing that that was the case? Knowing that you died? Knowing that you were no longer what you once were?
The thought disturbed him greatly, almost making him wish he'd never thought of it in the first place. Though it was a deeply personal question that he would likely never get an answer for, Steve wanted to ask the boy what it was like to lose such a grand portion of his humanity.
Standing up, Steve moved to start walking outside, only for a voice to stop him in his tracks.
"Where do you think you're going?"
Glancing back, Steve looked to find Herobrine glaring at him expectantly, waiting for an answer.
"I...I was going to walk around for a bit."
"And get lost? With Minos around?"
Steve looked at the other in confusion.
"Aren't we far enough away from the city?"
Herobrine continued to glare at him.
"...When I was accompanying you in the museum, did you not hear him teleport in?"
Thinking back on the events, Steve began to shake his head slowly, before his eyes lit up in sudden realization.
"Wait, that's what it's called? Teleporting? Is that what you did to get us out of there?...Andvari does it too, right?"
Shock filled the other's expression.
"You...what. You didn't know what it was called?"
As the others all directed their attention towards him, Steve felt slightly embarrassed with the attention. Feeling shameful for his lack of knowledge, he shrugged.
"...No?..."
Herobrine blinked in disbelief, before sighing and turning away from the other.
"...Yes, Andvari does it too." He answered, pausing momentarily before he continued. "...I can as well, as you've realized."
Slightly intrigued, Steve stared at the other with a tilt of his head.
"Is that just a power? Is it something everybody has?"
While Herobrine didn't look back at him, he answered.
"...No."
Andvari stepped forward.
"It's mostly an innate ability that enderman have, but only a select amount of other people can do it as well. Minos and the Master are a couple of them."
As Steve nodded, Herobrine began to speak once again.
"...Anyways, given that we have to go by foot since teleportation is not ideal given my current state, and Andvari cannot move that many people at once, Minos currently has the advantage of being able to teleport so freely. He's not afflicted by the same issues that I am."
Herobrine turned to look at the miner.
"What I'm saying is that Minos can make up ground much faster than we can. He could very well be right outside, looking for us amongst the trees. If you want to risk death and us being found, go ahead."
Looking at the other with conflicted thoughts, Steve nodded in understanding.
Minos was kind. Minos was a man who wanted nothing but to talk Herobrine down from whatever plan of action that he had in mind, yet, Herobrine clearly hated him. Why should he do the same?
Why? Why, when Minos didn't even move to attack him in the streets, despite his identical appearance to Herobrine? Why, when Minos clearly wants to do anything but kill, even when there's seemingly no clear way to deter someone from their actions?
Herobrine's words were spoken calmly in an informative manner, but all they intended to do was cause fear. Everything Herobrine did was done so in a way that caused fear; whether it was a fear of the demigod doing something, or fear that came after he'd already done something. He was more of a threat than Minos, and yet, Steve found himself wanting to make just as good of friends with him as he did with Minos. Heck, he would be happy just to get the opportunity to have a say in whatever happened to him.
Minos wouldn't kill him, but Herobrine thought that he would. Though Steve wanted to rebel, he stepped away from the entrance, finding the opportunity well enough to possibly prove to the other that he would listen, as he hoped that Herobrine would do the same for him.
Moving towards the center of the cave, Steve glanced around before his eyes fell upon the demigod, who continued to stare at him.
"I'll just...sit, I guess. Might as well rest until we have to get up and move again, wherever we're going…"
Walking past the other rather awkwardly, Steve went towards the cavern wall, not paying much attention to where he was going to rest due to his slight embarrassment. Noticing a subtle, but growing smell of exposed, rotting flesh, the miner guessed that he was near Malgun. Sitting down against the wall, Steve sighed, glancing at his gauntlet as he attempted to find some sort of way to force himself to sleep in order to pass the day away. He would have to fix the damaged armour somehow, though, he wasn't very knowledgeable in the field of blacksmithing.
A minute or so into his own thoughts, Steve was broken out of them by a voice that spoke up next to him, quiet, but gruff.
"...You holding up, kid?"
Flinching, Steve turned to face Malgun, who sat somewhat closer to him, having moved without him noticing. The general stared at the cavern wall opposite to them, silver eye heavy with hidden emotions that did not reflect upon the rest of his mostly-missing face. He almost missed the other's words in his surprise, still not really getting over the fact that the other had spoken to him once again.
"...I said, are you holding up? You okay?"
Nodding harder than what he initially intended, Steve responded.
"Y-yeah, I'm pretty good."
Silence filled the space between them before Malgun began to speak once again.
"...There's something admirable about facing Minos and being able to leave from the encounter."
Did Malgun have the same feelings about Minos as Herobrine? What was his experience with the god?
Steve shrugged.
"Well, the guy was pretty nice when I met him. He showed me around the city and bought me a meal, so…"
Malgun let out a small, condescending laugh.
"...It was probably a set-up to get you to let your guard down."
Steve shook his head.
"Not everybody has bad intentions, y'know. I'm sure that if he wanted to, he would've-"
"-Yeah, doesn't it seem that way? Unfortunately, Minos doesn't operate in a straightforward fashion. He may seem nice, but there's only so much you can do against someone who can remove your entire existence in the blink of an eye."
"But what if he never does?"
Both sat in silence for a moment, before Malgun spoke up once again.
"...How old are you, kid?"
Steve blinked.
"...What?"
"How old are you? I'm guessing that you're pretty young given that you're a bit too naive with these things."
"Hey!"
Steve glared at the other for a moment, before turning away, sighing.
"I'm not that naive."
"Really?"
"Yeah. I know what I'm doing, okay?" Steve huffed.
Malgun let out a small sigh.
"...Don't we all?"
The general turned towards him, gaze stern.
"Listen, what you think won't hurt you always has the capability to do so. Don't think that someone wouldn't take the opportunity to betray your trust if you let them."
Whether the advice was genuine or a thinly-veiled threat, Steve didn't know, but he nodded in response to the other's words. Even as he did so, he couldn't help but ask the other another question.
"...Why have that fear if that never happens?"
Malgun thought about his words for a moment, before shaking his head in slight disappointment.
"...Again, you're too naive for your own good."
Before he could make another rebuttal, Malgun moved to stand up, walking away from him as he continued to sit by himself. Skeletal hands reaching for his bow, Malgun took the weapon from his back, looking over its wooden surface before sighing.
"...You clearly have some sort of talent for getting yourself into trouble, but you need to sharpen your perception skills so you don't have to get into those situations. A careful gaze and trained ears go a long way in terms of survival."
"My perception is pretty fine, last I checked. I don't purposefully get into trouble, y'know." Steve replied.
Malgun looked at him with the best unimpressed expression he could muster.
"...That may be the case, but you've cost us a portal, and we already have a god on our trail. So, suffice to say, you getting into trouble is something that we should avoid no matter the cost."
Hearing a short scoff from across the cave, Steve turned to find Herobrine, arms crossed in front of his chest with a look of amusement on his face.
"Finally, you see things from my point of view." the demigod remarked, sending the miner into a bit of confusion mixed with offense.
"Hey, what do you mean by that?!" Steve asked, leading to the demigod rolling his eyes at the question.
"...Like I've said before, you're too foolish to leave alone. Though, I suppose we can substitute that term for naive instead."
"Why do you both think I'm so naive?" Steve glanced between the two.
Pausing from chewing his sugar cane, Constiere looked at the miner with a smirk.
"Well, technically, three of us think you're naive."
With a bit of sheepishness, Andvari raised a claw as well.
"...Make that four. I don't think you're naive in an offensive way, just...you're more used to acting towards humans as a human yourself."
Herobrine nodded.
"Yes, and you've managed to translate treating humans like they're human to treating gods like they're human, as well. Which, for you, went well with Minos, but I guarantee you, there will not be a similar opportunity with any of the other Aethren divines. Maybe that won't be the case for one, but that's the sole exception."
Malgun slowly nodded his head in agreement.
"Not only that, but mobs don't act in the same way, I'm sure you realize."
Rolling his eyes, Steve glared at the others.
"Yeah. I know. I. know. But it wouldn't hurt to try and see if anybody was willing to consider not attacking, right?"
All four gave him an unimpressed look.
"And how well has that worked out for you so far?" Herobrine asked condescendingly.
Once again finding himself embarrassed by the others' expressions, Steve lowered his head in a bit of shame.
"...Not...really great, I guess. Doesn't mean I can't continue to try, right?"
Constiere snorted loudly.
"Geez, you're stubborn!...I guess you do kinda fit in with us pretty well, huh?"
Andvari let out a chuckle at the boy's remark.
"Determination paired with kindness, no less. If anything, that's even more admirable."
Leaving a bit of silence in the air before continuing, Andvari cast a slightly saddened look to the side.
"...I saw his tears back in that village. They were genuine, despite being shed for a mere mob. One that could've surely killed him, no less."
Constiere and Malgun looked up at the enderman with slight surprise, though Herobrine didn't follow, expression falling unreadable.
Andvari smiled at Steve.
"It's still rather naive, but your willingness to attempt to approach others with mercy and care is quite notable. We might not be so inclined to follow, but I guess we all have our own little quirks, don't we?"
Malgun's attention turned back towards Steve, his gaze falling into sternness once again.
"Mercy is a wonderful thing, but in the battles we face, it's the one thing that's sure to get you killed should you give it to the wrong opponent. In the end, for a human like yourself, you must be perceptive enough to recognize who should be given such a thing, and who shouldn't, to preserve your life and ensure that you don't get everybody else around you in dire trouble." The other explained to him, posture straightening out to make his presence more commanding.
Herobrine nodded in agreement with the skeleton's words, though he said nothing.
Constiere scoffed.
"I say you go on and figure things out by trial-and-error, but yeah," the boy shrugged. "Malgun's right. Watch who you work with, and all that."
Bringing agreement from the enderman as well, Andvari drew closer to Steve.
"Having compassion in the face of all opposition is certainly difficult, but as I'm sure you've put together by now, we're recommending that you push it aside and choose to attack first to have the upper hand."
Herobrine blew a strand of hair away from his face.
"Don't play nice when your life and our mission is on the line."
Constiere gave a wide grin.
"Play dirty!"
"And never, ever pass up an opportunity to pull out the rug from underneath your opponent's feet. Because given the chance, they surely would do the same to you." Malgun added, moving to tighten the string on his bow a bit.
Slightly surprised that the situation had turned into a group advice session, Steve sat quietly as he watched the others speak. Their words sunk deep into Steve's brain, echoing as he thought about their advice over and over again.
His brain was trying to make an excuse for not being so ruthless, and of course, all he could bring up was the fact that he only wanted others to treat him with kindness, compassion, and mercy as well. If he were to be attacked, he thought that there was a slight possibility that being hesitant would show that he meant to cause no harm. Of course, should his intent not be realized and his attacker kept on attacking, he'd change course, but if there was a chance to talk instead of fight? He'd take it.
Andvari broke him out of his deep focus.
"Again, no offense from me-"
"-I mean offense, if it breaks through his thick skull." Herobrine spoke up.
"-Full offense from me!" Constiere chimed in, raising a hand.
Expression full of exasperation, the enderman turned towards the skeleton general.
"...And you?"
"...I only want him to be wary of those he faces. Whether he finds my words hard to hear or not, that shouldn't matter. I want him to realize the truth."
Nodding, Andvari went to continue his earlier thoughts before he'd been interrupted.
"...as I was saying, no offense from me, but your compassion needs to be moderated. You clearly haven't experienced that many situations where misplaced kindness got you into unfortunate circumstances, and that's where your naivety stems from."
Not wanting to be at the end of their jokes anymore, Steve sighed, nodding in response.
"...I understand that."
The enderman was slightly wrong, but Steve agreed, nonetheless.
"...But since you're human, you're prone to such a thing, anyways. We can't fault you on that." The enderman added.
Casting a glance towards Herobrine, Steve saw the other shrug as he added onto the other's words.
"...Humans do tend to do stupid things for stupid reasons. It's only part of your nature."
Before Steve could express his offense, Herobrine let out a sigh.
"...So little I have seen of situations where a human is so weak, so tender-hearted, that they weep tears of sorrow for a monster. I've heard of tyrants who don't bat an eye at the idea of extinction, of mortals so wicked they make the Nether seem like a paradise, of warlords so in over their heads that they'd wipe out continents at the drop of a hat but drop dead in the face of a real, personal challenge...but so rarely I've heard of those willing to bare their soul in front of creatures who lack ones of their own."
Without moving his head towards the miner, Herobrine gave him a look that expressed a bit of the judgemental nature he was used to the man having.
"You are naive in believing everybody deserves kindness. You are not so in knowing that doing so can lead to your death."
Herobrine then turned towards him fully, beginning to approach him slowly.
"Why, are you so careless? Do you not fear death? Do you fear it, yet decide to do what you do anyway?"
Steve didn't exactly know how to answer that question.
Sure, he wasn't looking forward to dying, but he knew that the risk would at its highest while he was adventuring. It had been the same case for Selwyn, and so he expected it fully. He suspected that he'd die on the trail anyways, he just didn't know how he'd go out. Sure, it could be the world of nature that ended up taking him out, but he could also meet his demise at the hands of anybody that came to point a sword at his throat.
"...Honestly, it terrifies me. Death, I mean. But I don't mean to be careless. I didn't mean to screw everything up, I...I just-"
Herobrine held up a hand for him to silence himself.
"Your errors are egregious, but my words were not meant to be a complete judgment on what you did. You didn't screw everything up. Just a couple of things."
If that was the other's way of saying "hey, don't be so hard on yourself," then he'd take it.
"...I'll do better, in the future."
"We're expecting you to."
Nodding, Steve turned away and looked towards the entrance of the cave, finding that the sun had finally crept high enough into the sky to send bright rays of light into a bit of the cave, however, it didn't reach far enough to touch any of them.
"...So, where do we go from here, once the sun goes down?"
Looking off to the side momentarily, Herobrine shrugged at his question.
"...Like I said, we need to put more distance between us and the city's portal."
Briefly thinking to himself for a moment, Herobrine began to pace around the center of the cave.
"...I'm not entirely sure, but I've heard that in this world, there are some temples that were made to worship the Aethren divines that are pretty scattered throughout the world. I do not know where they are, but there could be a chance that portals can be located there, as well. Maybe we can try heading for one of those, maybe not. We have no other location in mind to go."
Steve thought to himself for a moment, before remembering something that had been buried deep within his mind.
Selwyn had found a temple.
"Oh! Are...uh...I think I've heard before of one of those!"
Eyes widening in surprise, Herobrine turned towards Steve in expectation.
"Well? Go on, what did you hear?"
Digging back in his brain for a bit, Steve tried to remember what the trader had said to him.
"...I think there's supposed to be one in a desert, somewhere? A friend of mine travels a lot, and I think she found one there, or something."
"Desert?..." Herobrine thought about the miner's words for a moment, before letting out a groan and burying his face within his hands. "...I forgot. Yes, you're correct. Desert temples are rather common, actually…"
Rubbing his face a bit before lifting his head, Herobrine looked back at the other.
"...They hold no portal, but they might hold information about portals. Ancient art usually covers their walls, and a few of them depict the history of nearby civilizations. I tend to not pay much attention to them, but if we focus our attention there, we might actually find something noteworthy."
Steve nodded in response to the other's proposition.
"...So...we're going towards one of those next?"
"We'll have to find a desert first, but that's now our objective, yes. Get some rest, we'll head out as soon as possible. Eventually, we'll find one."
With a short sigh, Steve turned his attention to his gauntlet once again, before moving to lean back against his pack. He stared at the cavern ceiling for a few minutes before dozing off, not paying much mind to the others that were around him.
Waking up a rhythmic tapping on his shoulder, Steve's eyes fluttered open as he came face-to-face with Andvari, which caused him to immediately avert his eyes as the other simply smiled.
"It's about to be sundown. I thought that it would be good to wake you up beforehand so that you could get your things in order."
"A-ah. Thank you." Steve stammered, clumsily moving to adjust his bag before standing up, making sure that it was secure against his back before stepping forward.
Looking over the cave, Steve found that Constiere had moved closer to the entrance of the cave, Malgun was still tucked away in the shadows, and Herobrine was leaning against one of the cavern walls, eyes directed toward the entrance as well. Sunlight had turned a light orange hue as the sky slowly changed colors from a bright blue into a dazzling gradient of orange, yellow, and pink. Even though the trees outside slightly blocked his line of vision, Steve was willing to bet that stars were beginning to peek out from the darkness of the world beyond, dusting themselves across the dimming skyline.
Night truly was beautiful now that he had no fear of being killed if he tried to fully enjoy it.
Moving towards the entrance of the cave, Steve began to walk out of it, glancing around at his surroundings before doing so.
Now they had a place to go towards, they had to start walking. Hopefully, there wouldn't be much in their way as they traveled.
AASWJWKAWOSRRSIFHFJGK NOT ME ALMOST MISSING MY OWN DEADLINE SORRYYYYY
I set a schedule and almost immediately screwed it up DX I had a surprise project to take care of that derailed me pretty hard. Plus, I was kinda deciding on whether or not to have this chapter be a little filler chapter, or a chapter where we kinda start getting into another big part of the overall plot, lol. I ended up having it be a bit of an in-between chapter so that I can start kicking things into high gear without having it be too abrupt.
We have a shorter chapter today, mainly just to demonstrate the group's slightly new dynamic now that Steve's involved, lol. A few of the mob generals' walls are coming down! They're impressed with how he managed to survive Minos, lmao.
Fun Facts!:
1.) I was debating on how old I wanted Steve to be for the course of the story, and idk how I ended up settling on a number, but that number was nineteen. He's young as hell, but still pretty capable!
2.) Malgun isn't as unapproachable as previously thought, lol. It's just hard for him to communicate much, with the whole "being a skeleton" thing. The magic of the world helps him out a bit, but not as much as he'd like it to.
3.) Yes, Constiere likes sugar canes because they help to give him energy. He's tried potions before, but they were made with Nether wart and boiled with blaze powder, which, as you probably may have already guessed, didn't work out so well for a person with the ability to combust, lmao
Anyways, that's it for now! If you have any thoughts or criticisms, leave a review!
(BTW, if y'all have any questions or want me to clarify anything, feel free to send a PM!)
