AN: Sorry for the delay. I had to get the planning for the next few Chapters more solid. I had a general direction on where I wanted the plot to go, but I needed to finetune it. Add in that it's on the Carys side of things which is always harder for me to write for and this Chapter was downright annoying to write down. I think I'm satisfied with what I got, though.
Disclaimer: I don't own Minecraft. If I did, I'd add ice sculptures.
Chapter 229
Shiroyuki
[Soul]
It was midday. November 29th.
An adorable and delicious hare was hopping out in the open in the otherwise barren Lacquerlands. It was adult sized. Good eating. The only meal for miles.
I bellowed loudly as I lunged from behind a chunk of obsidian, my axe coming down hard. The startled hare bolted away, the axe blade missing by a few scant inches.
As it hopped away, a dark, smoky blur shot out at incredible speed. Floyd employed his Speed Hack to snatch the tasty morsel, but as he bent over to snatch it, the hare changed direction and Floyd got his legs tangled up before crashing into the rough obsidian ground and sliding several meters.
Loyal Cat-Face pounced next, blocking the hare's route and forcing it to scamper a different way.
"Noman! It's going your way!" I shouted. "Grab it!"
Noman jumped out with his wide shield like a wall, blocking the hare and penning it between Cat-Face and me. It had nowhere to escape. That adorable meal was ours-
The hare wiggled its nose and fixed it's big, round, innocent eyes on Noman. It sensed weakness. Noman hesitated.
"Noman. NOMAN, DON'T YOU DARE-!"
Noman stepped aside and the hare took its chance and bolted. I barely had time to cry out before it slipped through a crack in the ground and vanished. That's when I really cried out.
"AAAUNGH! NOMAN!" I moaned. "That was our lunch!"
"I'm sorry! It just looked so cute wiggling its wittle nose. I couldn't."
"Well I'm glad we sorted this out early before we committed to using Hacker powers. Otherwise, I might have been laid out on the ground like a limp goldfish."
"I'll be with you in a second, Floyd. Keep your turtleneck on."
I went over and picked up Floyd while he was at the mercy of his Hack's cumbersome cooldown. I barely had the energy to support him due to the lack of food. After several days of traveling the Lacquerlands without rest, the three of us came to the realization that food in an obsidian wasteland was scarce. There was only stone under an outer shell of obsidian, with sparse dirt being deep down in caves. We were also lacking in seeds, as we were animals. That skinny hare had been the only animal we saw in a week.
"I'm really sorry, guys."
"Sorry doesn't fill my belly." Floyd complained.
"You hungry for failure? Maybe a side of disappointment? 'Cause that's what's for lunch." I added bitterly. Noman wilted. Maybe I was being too hard, but we were starving, and the Paragons refused to share at Carys' insistence.
"Don't go feeding them." She had said while using bone meal on a chunk of tilled dirt and potatoes she brought with her. "They have to learn how to put food on the table lest they wind up like inept Griefers. Like the old saying, teach a man to fish and all."
She could've been withholding food because of her foul mood. Ever since hearing about Cobb's heroic deeds in Nitebane, she had been exceptionally crabby. Snapping or shouting at us, barking orders, getting up earlier and earlier to train with her scythe, furiously reading map messages from Jillian, beating up Noman under the pretense of sparring, accidentally shooting arrows near enough to almost kill Christopher Squawken. She was clearly resentful that Cobb was doing more for the alliance than herself.
And... I was feeling a little resentful too.
It was hard not to be, hearing all the amazing things Cobb was up to. It made me feel... inferior.
By all accounts, Cobb was a normal guy like me. He didn't have artifacts or magical mascara, yet he could go toe-to-toe with Hackers. I, on the other hand, fled from them when they attacked Akasha. If I could do what he did, maybe I could have stopped it, or, at the very least, stopped Giovanni. What made Cobb stronger? What did I lack - actually, no, what did I even have going for me? That was the problem. Cobb is unpredictable, Noman has the Severe Shield, Floyd has an ever-expanding arsenal of Hacks, and Lenz has his archery. Every Beginner had something they were good at, and all I had was an axe.
An axe alone couldn't beat a Hacker. I couldn't even beat Mona at that outpost. In other words, the weakest Beginner... was me.
I needed something more. Something to set me apart. Some weapon or technique that no one could match. Something to make the name 'Lost_Soul' as feared as Carys_Angel.
While I was contemplating if the approaching Bounty Day on December 3rd would inspire me with the technique or weapon I craved, Floyd and Noman were divvying up the last morsels of our collected food: Four steaks and an enchanted golden apple Noman guarded fiercely.
"This is the last apple of the care package Notch left me at the Origin!" Noman protested. "It's for emergencies!"
"This is an emergency!" Floyd hissed. "Either give me something to eat or I'm gonna eat Squawken!"
"Raaawk! Eat a dick!"
"Language!"
"You half-wits are pathetic." Carys insulted smoothly. In her hands was a steaming baked potato and a couple strips of rotten flesh, which she ate without complaint. The three of us recoiled in disgust. "What's that look for?"
"You actually eat rotten flesh!?"
"When food is low, yeah." She chewed blandly.
"Why!? You have baked potatoes!"
"Rotten flesh is for packing the Hunger Meter. Any survivalist worth her salt knows that." She wiped her mouth with the back of her hand and proceeded to devour the baked potato. "I only top off the meter with good food. The rest may as well be rancid packing peanuts."
"It's true." Anibal added as she sashayed into view. "People used to eat tree bark - the inner part of it - in times of hunger in much the same way. It fills your stomach. While rotten flesh afflicts you with Hunger, it won't drain your Hunger Meter if you don't move. If you wait it out, you could go from starving to a full belly in no time."
"So you eat rotten flesh too?"
"Fuck no." Noman covered his ears. "That Zombie jerky is rank. I'd sooner starve. Carys is just weird." Tears came to Anibal's eyes as Carys blew her rancid rotten flesh breath at her. She pinched her nose. "That is just foul!"
"Cobb eats rotten flesh too." Floyd commented idly. Carys twitched at being compared to him.
"So what? I was doing it first. He's not special."
"That's not what I-"
"Whatever." Carys turned to Noman. "If you're so hungry, take a bowl into the Nether and pick mushrooms. That should keep you busy."
"...If we're breaking here, I'll do just that." Noman nodded before he moved away to poke around the obsidian surface for caves. He was looking for a lava source to make a Nether Portal without the need for a diamond pickaxe. Floyd had his own ideas for foraging. The enterprising blue-nette had filled a hole with water and was casting a fishing rod into it in search of fish. It wasn't very reliable as the hook kept snagging on the bottom or sides of the hole.
Carys waited a few minutes after Noman went underground before she brought out a firework and set it off. The high-pitched whistle startled a few Paragons who remembered Gunnah's ambush. They were already drawing weapons when the firework exploded in a shower of colorful sparks.
"What are you doing, ma'am?" Albert asked.
"Feeling restless. Want to stretch my legs." She threw out before pulling her scythe out with a twirl. "Get ready."
Floyd and I raised a brow before the reason behind Carys' firework became apparent. Figures started approaching from the obsidian hills. Griefers.
"I sent him off to the Nether so he wouldn't witness this. Life is too short to listen to Notaman's pathetic, pacifistic whining." Carys explained before she darted for the closest and largest band of Griefers. Mean as it sounded, I had to agree. Noman wouldn't have tolerated such violence.
Maybe the Griefers had food on them.
I pulled out my Sharpness V axe and rushed towards the Griefers only for a firework rocket to whistle past my head and detonate in an explosion that blew them all back. I took a bit of damage.
"Sorry!" Anibal called half-heartedly. She had learned how to use crossbows with explosive rockets from Cobb's group and was now using them liberally to dispatch the Griefers. She whooped as she loosed another firework. "This is fun! Like shooting clay pigeons."
"Mind Cat-Face and Squawken!" Soul protested. He didn't want his beloved pets to get 4th of July-ed to death.
Carys was dueling six Griefers at once, her scythe spinning in a deadly arc before slamming into the ground in a shockwave that injured those standing before her. She punished them for their inexperience, the butt of the scythe's shaft slamming into temples, joints, guts, and groins. Any weak point she could target, she sought with brutal precision. She was being more aggressive than usual, spurred by her frustration with Cobb's success. Her opponents were reduced to gear in seconds, prompting her to move on to the next band of Griefers who were a little more wary and a lot more terrified.
I wanted to prove myself too. I dodged some arrows and ran for the shooter amidst a band of four that I knew I could best. However, before I got there, Kalmarin EnderPorted over - having purposefully been hit with the very arrow I dodged - and used his Strength Hack to bodily fling his foes into obsidian boulders. The nearest Griefers threw down their arms and apologized profusely for not recognizing a Hacker lord, but Kalmarin ignored their pleas and dispatched them with all the mercy befitting a Hacker Lord.
Again, I tried to take on an approaching group of Griefers only to have them stolen by a blue blur leaving a trail of dark smoke behind. Floyd zoomed between the enemies at impossible speeds, though anyone he impacted was sent hurtling away as he was combo activating his Speed and Strength. It wasn't hard for him to believe himself strong against pathetic fodder like the Griefers. Like with Kal, the Griefers tried to apologize for attacking a Hacker, but also like with Kal, their cries fell on deaf ears.
Realizing this was a battle they shouldn't have started (or been baited into), the Griefers tried to flee only to get cut off by Carys and then have their Heads get cut off by Carys. The rest were blown up by Anibal's rockets. The fight was over in minutes.
And I didn't fight a single one of them.
I threw my axe down, frustrated at my uselessness. Even worst, the Griefers didn't have any food amongst their fallen gear. Their attack was likely fueled by starvation. Floyd was lying prone on the ground because of his cooldown, even hungrier than before. Kal tried convincing Carys to let him share some food, but Carys was as unyielding as ever.
I slumped over feeling even more inadequate with myself. Everyone had something special to fight with except me. I alone was ordinary. The weakest, most mundane of the Beginners. I hated it!
Nobody brought up to Noman our skirmish with the Griefers when he returned in the evening with dozens of red and brown mushrooms. We were grateful for his foraging as it allowed us for some stomach-filling mushroom stew. I made the bowls - my one contribution, and only because I had planks - and we ate quietly. Still, the stew couldn't get the taste of anguish out of my mouth.
It started to rain.
[Cobb]
When it began to rain in the evening, I saw it as my chance to properly test out my tridents. I had gotten much practice with them during my battle with the Hackers, but I still wanted a better idea of their capabilities. Plus, I wanted a better grasp as to which enchantments I should request from Jillian. A little testing would help figure out what paired well with the tridents; Supposedly there was a whole slew of trident exclusive enchantments that Nitebane didn't know what to do with.
I went out into public as a free man for the first time in months. No longer did I have to worry about getting jumped by bounty hunters or guards. I still drew eyes as I was something of a legend after beating those Hackers, but it was free of hatred, which I appreciated. Jillian had proven herself a woman of her word, and I was grateful she held up her end by clearing our names despite the sizable loss in Nitebane's population that resulted from it. She would have lost more people if not for the promise of totems.
Oh yes. Jillian was currently at the walls using the Vivlio Zythopoiias to imbue people with Bad Omen V so that they could trigger Raids and feed the EXP grinders on the capital's borders with Totems of Undying. I told her to fight Raids at a safe distance. I had given her a thorough report on the Mobs she could expect (Pillagers, Evokers, Vindicators, Vexes, Witches, Ravagers), and she had taken that knowledge (and a few Paragons who had lived through the attacks) and used it to profit off the Raids. I had originally been worried about the Vexes that could slip through walls and attack the capital's Testificates, but I needn't have bothered. Team Delta's archers had keen eyes even through the rain, and the walls had plenty of Crafters to cover everything. Bells had been set up along the wall to be rung and illuminate the nearby Mobs as they approached so that none would slip in.
It was a thousand times easier defending a massive capital from a small band of Mobs than a meager village. Especially with so many hands on deck. They could even trigger multiple Raids in one day and manage them fine. I didn't even need to be present; Nitebane and the Paragons had it covered. I expected the Totems of Undying would be distributed to every citizen within a few weeks.
I made my way down Nitebane's cliff trails to the beaches northwest of the castle with the aid of a Night Vision Potion to see in the dark. The beaches were so far removed from Nitebane's stone jut biome that it felt like its own world millions of miles away. The misty backdrop of the steep cliffs and the rocky outcropping of which Lunar Castle sat upon was just enough to remind me of its proximity without detracting from the sandy beach.
The sand was damp from the rain and there were more than a few Skeletons and Drowned to practice my tridents on. There were also sea turtles crawling around, answering the question as to where Team Beta got its turtle shells from. Why the Drowned seemed to enjoy bullying the sea turtles and their unhatched young, I had no idea. Pretty messed up, even for Mobs. Maybe there was some lore about Zombies getting dragged under and drowned by turtles - I don't know.
I spent the late hours chucking tridents, Riptiding around, experimenting in the rain and water, and even throwing in the cutlass at times. Through practicing, I was able to learn a few things about Riptide and Channeling.
For one, Channeling only worked in a lightning storm, not a standard rainstorm. You could have rain without lightning, and it was only by lucky happenstance there was a lightning storm at all on the day the Hackers attacked. Also, the Channeling could only summon lightning if the trident struck an entity - some Crafter or Mob. Slamming it into the ground would yield nothing.
Riptide was more versatile. It worked in rain and water. Even a poured bucketful was enough. It was fun torpedoing underwater and then corkscrewing up and taking to the skies fluidly thanks to the rain. I was like a flying fish. And since the Riptide corkscrew was me throwing the trident, it also did damage. I couldn't pick or choose between throwing and corkscrewing. It was entirely dependent on the presence of water.
These were important things to keep in mind for the future, as I'd look really stupid shouting 'Stepped Leader!' if no lightning came out.
Brain: As if you don't already, shouting out move names like some shounen protagonist.
No one asked you.
Brain: Cringy-ass weeb.
The rain let up close to midnight, the clouds lifting. It was about time to head back to the capital. I wasn't looking forward to the uphill climb back to the castle, but I knew people would worry if I didn't show. My night vision had worn off, and when I took out a new bottle to replenish it, I saw I wasn't alone.
"Oh! Baltic." I nearly jumped seeing the old man. "It's late. What are you doing up?"
"Saw you leave. Figured I'd walk you back. Even with your latest achievements taken into account, it's still dangerous." He inclined his head towards the tridents. "Testing their limits?"
"Yeah." I held up the two tridents. "Shock only works in lightning storms like the one we had with the Hackers. Awe can work in any water. Rain, oceans, bucketed streams-"
"Sorry, what are you calling them?"
"Shock and Awe. Shock for Channeling and Awe for Riptide. Nice don't you think?"
"...That is an adjective."
Brain: Cringy-ass weeb.
I grumbled at his disapproval for my choice in names for my weapons. In an effort to shift topics, Baltic posed an intriguing question.
"Have you done any polearm training?"
"Polearm training?"
"Yeah. Polearms are any weapon with, well, a pole. Halberds, axes, spears, tridents." He added meaningfully. "Polearm training makes use of the long handle, spinning it, extending your reach, tripping up your opponent, hoisting people into the air, bashing it into people's faces, using it like a pole vault. There's a lot you can do with it."
It sounded like a good skillset to have now that I was adding tridents to my arsenal. They were stronger than some swords and worked as a projectile, and that wasn't including the new enchantments I was looking forward to.
"I'll take whatever I can get." I told him. "You have a polearm expert?"
"Not here in the capital - only polearms anyone has practiced with are Tinker's weapons, which are rare - but there's one person in the Paragons that knows their stuff."
"Who?"
"Car-"
"No." I shot down before the word was out of his mouth. Baltic expected it.
"I thought you two were past your grudges. Scythes are polearms too, and she's continued to hone her skills to this day. Imagine what you could pick up from her!"
"I don't want her to be my teacher any more than she would want me as her student." I told him firmly. "If we're going to fight each other one day, there can be no leg-ups. I'll train my way and she can train her way. Besides, how good of a teacher can she be on the other side of Minecraftia?"
"You'd be surprised." Baltic frowned. "Are you sure, though? We could just ask her for tips anonymously. She doesn't have to know she's helping you."
"She'd figure it was me in an instant. Girl's a petty bitch, but she's smart."
"Why is it any compliments you have for one another are backhanded ones? You really are alike..."
"Lies and slander. I'm a lovable goofball and she's a mad dog. Have they reached Tinker's yet?"
"They think by tomorrow." Baltic replied. "They'll be able to ask the blacksmith how his weapons got into the hands of the Endward Cult. We'll see if your theory is right."
"Yeah..." Just as we were about to walk back, I abruptly stopped. Baltic stopped too, his curious gaze on me. I gave him an appraising look. We were alone, so there was no better time to ask without airing it to everyone else back at the castle, especially Lenz.
"Hey, so..." I started awkwardly before thinking 'screw it' and withdrew Jade's diamond cutlass from my backpack. Baltic showed no reaction, proving he noticed me wielding it during the Hacker fight. "You saw this." I said pointlessly.
"I did."
"You... know whose this is?"
"I do."
"Oh." I muttered lamely. He still wasn't saying anything. "Do you... want to ask about it?"
"Do you want me to ask about it?" He said after a long pause.
A silence hung in the air as thoughts of Jade's gruesome fate in that cell replayed in my head.
"...No."
The wisened alchemist nodded his head slowly. Grimly. "Then I won't ask the details. I haven't told anyone either in case you were wondering." I breathed a sigh of relief. "However, given our mission against the cult, I'm obligated to ask this." His black eyes surveyed me carefully. "Will she be a problem for us?"
"No."
"You're sure?"
"She won't bother us again." I spoke with grim absolution.
"Then there'll be no further talk of it." He concluded the conversation.
"Thank you." I breathed another sigh of relief. We then resumed our uphill trek back to the capital.
"You should tell your friends." Baltic advised after a while.
"..."
"Their feelings of betrayal run deep. They're hunting for a Lieutenant they don't know is gone. It's like chasing a ghost."
"...What am I supposed to tell them?" I asked helplessly. "Hey guys, Jade is gone for good, you can stop looking for her. They'll ask for details and... and I can't give that to them because I shudder to relive that moment."
"You've done things that frighten you." Baltic summarized. "And you don't wish to frighten them."
"It was a Dark Moment. I didn't have to, but I... I couldn't... think..." The words were becoming harder and harder to get out. I felt my face burn as an uncomfortable feeling wriggled in my gut. My throat felt dry.
I didn't want to admit to my friends what I did. What kind of sick person would lock someone in a cell and watch them starve to death? It would only frighten them.
"Well, if you can't confide in your friends, you can confide in me." Baltic told me. "I can be your outlet. It must be easier since you don't think of me as-"
"I think of you as a friend." I told him plainly, stunning him. "We're friends, Baltic. It's just you've seen me at my worst, so I feel like you understand what I did and why I did it, and you won't frighten like the others."
"My mind is already cooking up the most heinous things imaginable you could have done to Jade." Baltic said. "Hanging with Carys will do that to a person."
"...Has Carys ever done something that made you afraid of her?"
"Twice. What she had planned for you in Zeppil, holding your friends hostage and making you fight for their lives. That was cruel enough despite me thinking you all were cultists. I was frightened by her then. It was the second time."
"And the first time?"
"The first time was when I..." He faltered a bit, the old man looking older than he ever had. "It was when I watched her kill a cultist. With her teeth."
My eyes widened. "Geez... that does sound pretty visceral."
"That was the first time she killed someone." Baltic continued, surprising me further. "It wasn't just the way she did it, though. It was that it affirmed the kind of person she wanted to become. It was that moment that proved she was actually capable of destroying the Endward Cult. And her intensity... the jarring shift in her personality... it scared and saddened me." He shuddered. "You speak of Dark Moments like you had a choice, but for Carys there was never a choice. It was always kill or be killed, but she found that suited her just fine. That's what scared me the most. Whatever horrible thing you did to Jade, it can never compare to the horrible things done to Carys that forever changed her into something more ferocious. I know you couldn't have done that to Jade, Cobb. You can't frighten me."
The rest of the walk back was in total silence as I was left to wonder what horrible things the Endward Cult did to Carys, and why he was so sure I hadn't done the same - or worse - to Jade. Nevertheless, I wasn't interested in proving who was crueler. I wouldn't share what I did to Jade any more than Baltic would what befell Carys.
[Noman]
On the morning of November 30th, after a hearty stew of the mushrooms I picked in the Nether (and a raw chicken Cat-Face left on Soul's bed), I noticed something of note about our linked maps.
"It's Ciro. He's coming to us."
Soul, Floyd, Carys, and Anibal all showed interest at the news, prompting me to spread my map on the table for everyone to see. The last time we met Ringwood's former Captain, the heterochromatic millionth Crafter Ciro_Che, it had been after the Wither attack on Ringwood. I had trusted him with one of the Beginners' linked maps, and he had trusted me with the knowledge that the Hack Clan possessed two of the artifacts we were seeking: the Arcticum Arma and the Stivali Magma. I gave him the map to keep in touch as when last we met, he was contemplating attacking the Obelisk for the artifacts. Though he tried to attack me for my artifacts in the past, we had since come to an understanding that we should work together to stop the Endward Cult. For Notch's sake.
Now, his white blip was heading straight for us at an alarming speed. Faster than on foot and faster than horseback. Minecart, perhaps? It couldn't be ender pearls since his blip wasn't jumping.
"Ciro's coming here?" Anibal asked with a wide grin. "Good. I've been wanting a closer look at his artifacts. Maybe if I turn on the charm he won't mind parting with one."
"Haven't I told you those artifacts are a crutch?" Carys talked down to the dark-skinned beauty. "Hone your basics. Anyway, I doubt Ciro will give up anything." She hummed at the speed his blip was travelling. "We can't be sure it's him - anyone can steal a map - but we can be sure the owner of this blip is moving via airship. It's the only mode of transport that fits."
Leave it to Carys to use her brain. She could really be smart, despite her proclivity towards savage violence. "So Ciro is flying here?"
"Whoever has the map is flying here, and likely to your blips." Carys gestured to the three of us Beginners. "There's a chance this is trouble, but if this really is Ciro, I say keep your maps out. We could use another reliable powerhouse on our side. One who isn't afraid to wield an artifact."
"I'm just honing the basics." I threw her words back at her, making her snort.
"We do owe him for the weapons outpost." Kal commented, scratching his nose. "We can see what he wants, but I'd rather not wait until he gets here."
"Don't worry, we're not. Today, we're reaching Tinker's mansion."
"He has a mansion?" Soul asked around a mouthful of stew.
"Commissioned and constructed in exchange for a Tinker's weapon." Anibal answered, a gleam in her eye. "I always wanted to know the secret behind his smithing skills... anyway, his mansion is purportedly as grandiose as any of the kingdoms' castles and keeps."
"You've never been? Not even when Carys picked up her weapon?"
"My scythe was mail ordered, though it required a rather annoying price." Carys wrinkled her nose in disdain. "Tinker is a rather eccentric hermit."
"First hermit I know lives in a mansion."
"Nevertheless, the prices he places on his custom weapons are... unique. He only rarely asks for money, usually demanding favors or bulk supplies, sometimes asking for more..."
"What'd he ask of you?"
"For the scythe, he first wanted to know who I was. I wrote to him as the Angel of Death, but he wanted my true identity. He swore to keep it secret - not like it matters thanks to you chuckle-fucks-"
"Langua-"
"Whore-ass chuckle-fucks. Fuck you telling me what to say, little bitch-boy." Noman found himself gobsmacked at such vulgarity, prompting Carys to continue. "He wanted money too. A king's ransom in emeralds. But he also demanded something personal of me - the woman dreaded as the Angel of Death. A hardcore killer like me, he sought to humiliate by requesting the happiest moment of my life, followed by the worst moment of my life. If he deemed the juxtaposition of best and worst moments 'tragic' enough, he agreed to make me the scythe."
"Worst-? What did you tell him?"
"That's between Tinker and I." Carys told Floyd firmly. "Though, if I can help it, it'll just be me. I don't like that blacksmith knowing too much about my past."
"Couldn't you have just made something up?" Soul suggested.
"I wasn't about to risk the scythe I wanted by making up some crap melodrama."
"Lang-"
"Ass-hat crap fuckstick of a melodrama. This is how we'll keep doing this until you knock that shit off." She glared at me. "Anyway, I told Tinker about me and it seemed to satisfy him. He makes a lot of weird requests like that, so don't act all surprised if he makes demands."
"We just want to know who he's sold rapiers, cutlasses, battleaxes, and daggers to." Kal finished. "If Cobb's theory is right, we'll find out exactly where these weapons were sent and to whom. If the Endward Cult is involved, we'll find out about it."
"I'll say this now, but if that blacksmith knowingly sold to cultists, he'll see firsthand the sharpness of the scythe he made me." Carys swore. I grimaced with dread.
"Nobody has to die, do they? We're strong enough to subdue and arrest if need-"
"Who is this 'we're strong' you're referring to? Not you, I hope."
"Let's just get moving." Kal headed off the bickering before it could start.
We journeyed south in silence, the eleven of us. I tried to reason to myself that Carys wouldn't kill Tinker because there was no way he would arm cultists with weapons. The blacksmith had to know what those Lieutenants and Executives would do with such tools. They could only have ended up with the cultists by chance. Stolen or ordered through false aliases. It would give us a trail to follow and spare Tinker from Carys' wrath.
I can't keep letting her dictate things. If it were up to her, she'd kill every Griefer or cultist we came across. I thought to myself. I need to act next time. I'm supposed to save lives.
We were circling a steep obsidian mountain when Reuben ahead of us came to an abrupt halt. "Oh for the love of-"
"What-?" Anibal stopped next. "Oh."
"Of course." Spaatz gave a humorless chuckle. "Would've been too simple. Too easy."
The rest of us understood what they were talking about when we rounded the bend and saw the sight before us in full clarity.
It was a lush mansion; A sight far removed from the obsidian wasteland we were used to. To hammer in the contrast with the Lacquerlands, the mansion was stood atop a bed of fertile grass. An island of grass where hard obsidian ended and flowers and foliage flourished. There was tilled land in a fenced garden where crops could be seen growing. Trimmed hedges in the shapes of various animals. There were trees and livestock - cows, chickens, pigs, sheep - as well. A pond of crystal-clear water reflected the sun and made me want to jump in and wash myself. It was like an oasis in the Lacquerlands.
It was also littered with small craters. As if Creepers had gone off in sections to leave pockets in the otherwise immaculate lawn.
The mansion had suffered damage too. What had used to be a fine four-story mansion of wood and brick was now full of holes as if a wrecking ball had been forced through it. Windows were broken and parts of the roof had been ripped up. This was only what I could tell from the surface; The interior would likely look worse.
If this was Tinker's mansion, it looked like someone had laid siege to it.
"Weapons out." Carys ordered, her scythe already in hand. "I doubt this happened recently, but we best be ready." The Beginners and Paragons obeyed without complaint. "Noman. Get that chestplate on and take point. Kal and I will follow."
I was reluctant to don the deadly armor, but Carys was just being careful to keep me safe. She probably hoped any hidden assailants would attack me and die, but I intended to keep my distance no matter who we encountered. I slipped on the Severe Shield and approached the ruined mansion with Carys and Kal following in my wake.
"Stayer, Dyson, Spaatz, Albert, Reuben, Floyd. Secure the perimeter." Kal ordered. "Don't let anything in or out. Soul and Anibal, you're with us."
The Beginner and Paragons spread out to encircle the grassy oasis while the five of us got a closer look. The mansion was intricately detailed with slabs and stairs. It was likely the work of a skilled architect - a luxury afforded by Minecraftia's greatest blacksmith. We could've entered the premises through one of the numerous holes in the wall, but manners dictated we use the front door first. I pushed open the spruce wood doors, which were miraculously intact, and-
"AGH!"
I fell back on my butt as I recoiled from the wide-eyed, terrified female face that had been an inch away from mine on the other side of the door. I heard Carys' scythe come up to point at the terrified face only to lower slightly as she took it in.
The woman standing on the other side of the door was encased in solid ice and frozen with a rictus of terror on her features. Her arms had come halfway up her body as if to shield herself from some oppressive force, but now she stood there, still and unmoving, her nametag on display. Katherine_Majestic. Carys raised a hand to roam over the ice's surface.
"Don't touch her!" Soul shouted, his warning arresting Carys' outstretched hand before it could make contact. "I recognize this. She's been frozen by the Arcticum Arma. Giovanni used this against Captain Obsidian." He recounted bitterly. "They're incredibly fragile like this. Any careless contact could... well..."
"Yeah, you're right." Anibal nodded. She came up to examine the frozen statue. Examine but not touch. "Noman, can you give us a brief refresher of this artifact?"
I was already digging in my ender chest for the Artifact List. Carys and Kal slid open the other door and carefully shimmied past the frozen Crafter to get inside. After flipping past a few pages, I read the entry for the Arcticum Arma aloud for everybody.
[Arcticum Arma]
Another armor piece handcrafted to appeal to C418 and his dream of a populated kingdom on the far-flung peninsula to the east.
C418 and the first settlers of Oak Docks braved the treacherous Guardian-filled waters of the Eastern Ocean to reach the coastal lands they now call home. Many perished in the voyage, and the memory of such a loss has dissuaded present-day Crafters from making the same journey. C418 craves an influx of Crafters for his kingdom, and his people wish to travel back to the mainland to open up trade. A bridge would be a permanent solution but would take decades to be constructed.
The Arcticum Arma is a more readily available solution. It has the following effects:
-Freezes water in a large radius whenever the wearer walks atop it. The ice summoned this way lasts a full day before melting.
-Able to permanently freeze Crafters and Mobs upon contact with the chainmail surface. Entities frozen this way will be petrified and encased in blocks of ice. Frozen Crafters will behave as if frozen in time; they will not Hunger for food, nor will they have any awareness of their surroundings.
-Frozen Crafters will have their worn gear frozen off. Anything worn or held at the time of being frozen will be stripped and deposited at the frozen Crafter's feet.
-A frozen Crafter or Mob is incredibly brittle and will shatter and die with a strong enough impact, regardless of Health or potion effect.
Appearance: Chainmail Leggings with the name Arcticum Arma.
Weakness: As stated above, the freezing is permanent. Only the eternal fires of the Stivali Magma can thaw the eternal ice, just as the Arcticum Arma is the only force cold enough to quell the Stivali Magma's flames. They counter each other.
Alternatively, since contact needs to be made to become frozen, attacking at a safe distance with bows or splash potions would be smarter than close combat.
Location: Oak Docks
I lowered the book once I was done and gazed at the frozen Crafter helplessly. The only way to thaw her out was with the Stivali Magma, another artifact owned by the Hack Clan. They had the illness and the cure. There was nothing we could do for Katherine_Majestic.
"Hey!" Carys called out from inside. "We got two more frozen stiffs in here."
Soul, Anibal, and I made sure not to touch the frozen Crafter as we slid by her and followed Carys' voice into the wrecked mansion. The foyer looked ransacked with bits of carpet pried up and paintings and item frames knocked off walls and littering the floor. The redstone wiring in a ceiling lamp was exposed. Water was pouring through a hole in the ceiling. It was awful.
Past the foyer into what I think was a living room (there were remnants of sofas), Carys and Kal stood beside two more Crafters encased from head to toe in ice. Like Katherine, these two showed looks of terror on their frozen faces. From their posture, it looked as if they were frozen mid-run.
"Two more ice statues." Anibal observed. "But who are they?" Neither one of them was named Tinker.
"I'm guessing they're servants. Maids and housekeepers or something." Carys craned her neck as she scrutinized them. "Tinker must have hired people to take care of a property this big. Feed the animals, fend off Griefers, that sort of stuff. He certainly had enough wealth to throw around."
As we explored the rest of the mansion, we discovered more Crafters frozen in ice with varying degrees of fearful expressions. They were all trying to get away from something. Or, more likely, someone.
"Giovanni did this." Soul spoke with certainty. "He had the leggings. He froze them just like he did with Obsidian."
"Why though? Why not just kill them?"
"Maybe he didn't want any unnecessary deaths." I suggested, earning a snort from Carys. I scowled at her.
"Oh, you were serious."
We went upstairs to the second floor and found what must have been the servants' quarters. Six rooms, each one containing four beds stacked in twos as bunk beds. Twenty-four servants. We only found twelve frozen.
We didn't need to wonder what happened to the other twelve, as one of the servants' rooms was full of spilled gear and Heads. I felt sick.
"There you go. Agents of mercy, the Hackers." Carys pointed out sarcastically.
"This just happened." Kal spoke his thoughts aloud after examining the fallen gear. "A day or two ago. Any later and the Griefers would have noticed and pounced. The livestock are intact."
"Nothing was stolen either." Carys reported after exiting a treasure room overflowing with diamond and emerald blocks. It was sealed by iron bars and an iron door. "Robbery wasn't the motive. Or if it was, Giovanni wasn't looking for riches - Anibal, what are you doing?"
Anibal was hastily scooping diamond and emerald blocks into her backpack when Carys called her out. She looked slightly guilty, which is more than I can say for Soul who also started helping himself to Tinker's wealth.
"We might, uh, need the money later." She threw out an excuse. Carys just shook her head before prowling out of the room.
That's when she snapped her head up. Being next to her, I heard it too. Creaking floorboards. The sound came from above. Third floor.
She hurried to the stairs while I simply donned my Bottes Zephyr artifact to walk on air and reach the third floor through one of the various holes in the ceiling. It was dark up there as the lights had been completely wrecked. As I narrowed my eyes to see, I thought I saw something white dart across the hall into one of the rooms.
Carys caught up with Kal, Soul, and Anibal right behind. I pointed to the room and we quietly approached with weapons drawn. I pushed open the door and Soul placed down torches to light things up. It was a giant bedroom with a luxurious bed, furniture, a bathroom to the side, chests and framed pictures. It looked to have survived the ransacking as it was in pristine condition. I could see the grounds and the pond from the windows along the wall.
"There! I saw something go in there." Anibal pointed to the bathroom. Carys took the lead, her scythe out as she slowly creaked the door open, her body tense and ready to strike.
*Yif!*
Carys let out a little gasp before lowering her scythe. The high-pitched bark had come from a fox curled behind the toilet. It blended in well with the quartz tile of the bathroom as it was a fox with fur as white as snow. It was as big as a dog, its eyes wide and alert, its bushy tail tinged with flecks of pale blue. It was my first time seeing a fox, but my Normal Sense was telling me this was a snow fox - an animal suited to snowy terrain. Above its head was the name, Shiroyuki.
The fox barked again and Carys made some strange high-pitched sound I never heard before from the back of her throat. Her crimson eyes, usually so hard and sharp, were twinkling as she gazed adoringly upon the creature before her. Her hand reached out with questing fingers to pet the animal only for Kal to clear his throat.
Carys' hand retracted as if burned and she whirled on us accusingly as if it was our idea for her to pet the snow fox. Her desire to appear tough and her desire to cuddle fluff seemed to be warring inside her. It was kind of cute. Anibal was grinning ear to ear and Kal pretended not to notice, though his gaze was elsewhere.
"J-Just an animal." Carys announced with forced indifference.
"Look at how glossy its coat is." Soul commented appreciatively. He had no reservations picking up the animal, but as he leaned forward to grab it, Cat-Face hissed from Soul's legs and pounced at Shiroyuki who replied in turn.
The two animals became locked in a vicious battle as they scratched and bit one another in a fearsome tumble along the bathroom floor.
"No Cat-Face!" Soul cried out before drawing the feline away. The snow fox let out a triumphant bark before scampering out the bathroom door, past our legs, and back the way it came.
"I've never seen an animal like that before." I said as we all exited back into the third floor hallway.
"It must be a Bounty Day Mob. A passive one for once, though Cat-Face might disagree." Anibal smirked at the feline before a pair of claws sunk into her eyes.
While Soul tried to remove Cat-Face from Anibal's eyes sockets ("I'm trying, but its claws are stuck in your corneas!"), Carys went snooping into one of the other rooms on the floor.
"What are we looking for?" I asked her.
"Clues." Carys replied curtly. She opened a chest in the corner and rummaged around before shutting it with a huff. "None of the Heads littered around were Tinker's, and none of the frozen stiffs are of him either, so where is he? What happened here? There has to be some clue lying around."
She opened up another chest and her eyes lit up. "Paydirt! A journal! And it's Tinker's too!" She swiped a thick book out of the chest and flipped it open to the very last page. Her eyes swept across the words as she read it to herself. "Hmm..."
"What?"
"The last entry is dated five days ago. It looks like Giovanni came requesting - more like demanding - a weapon for one of his siblings. Giovanni said his new brother was feeling uncomfortable suddenly being called a Hacker. He asked Giovanni for a Tinker's weapon to take his mind off things. It was a weapon he always wanted but could never afford given Tinker's selective nature. Giovanni came demanding the weapon be made, but Tinker refused."
I thought about all the Hackers being rounded up across Exter. It was like Pheo's situation, a Hacker never raised by the Clan forced back into it against their will after growing accustomed to life as a regular Crafter. Many of them would feel uncomfortable with the mantle of godhood the Hackers kept foisting on them. Tinker's weapon was meant to ease the process. A bribe for a younger sibling.
"What was Tinker thinking refusing a Hacker? Guy must be suicidal." Kal murmured.
"He probably assumed Giovanni wouldn't do anything to him as long as he needed the weapon." Carys flipped a page in the journal. "He had no idea he was packing an artifact."
"What happened next?"
"He gave Tinker a day-long ultimatum to change his mind. That's the last of what's written in here." Carys snapped the book shut and tossed it back in its chest. "It's looking more and more like the blacksmith got either killed or kidnapped." She clicked her tongue. "So much for questioning him."
"I don't think Giovanni killed him." Kal pointed out. "I know Giovanni. He delights in humiliating his victims. Wrecking Tinker's mansion and freezing his servants sounds like something he'd do."
"None of this seemed alarming when you were part of the Hack Clan, eh?"
"I was a cocky brat who didn't know right from wrong, alright? I'm not proud of it." Kal grimaced.
"But would Giovanni kidnap Tinker?"
"No. He'd see it as too much trouble. He has Flight and Strength, but still, he'd never bring a non-Hacker to the Obelisk."
"Then where is he? Could he have run and left his servants behind?" Carys rested her hands on her hips as she contemplated the mystery. "We need more clues. Let's search the fourth floor."
However, the fourth floor didn't yield any more than the three floors before it. Carys grew more and more frustrated as our search turned up nothing. The sun was starting to set outside when we finally gave up and returned to the first floor of the mansion.
*Yif! Yif!*
As we were making our way out, we heard and spotted Shiroyuki barking at us from the first-floor hallway. It wagged its tail before turning in place three times and looking towards another room. It seemed to be jerking its head in that direction.
"...I think it's trying to tell us something." Soul guessed before approaching the snow fox.
Shiroyuki barked again before padding towards the room it was pointing at. The room was a private library with an entire back wall of bookcases and a few comfy tables and chairs. Also on the back wall were five item frames containing sticks in various orientations. Some faced up, some diagonal, some sideways. The snow fox padded to the back wall and began to scrape its paws against it while whining softly.
"Something behind there, little guy?" Carys asked in a gentle voice that left us baffled. Realizing her mistake, she coughed roughly and went back to her husky tone. "Ahem. Something in my throat. Ahem."
Kal and Anibal approached the back wall and began prodding at it, but I was more focused on the sticks in the item frames. Their odd orientation reminded me of something I saw in Akasha.
"It's a frame combination lock. I saw Lenz get past one of these to get to the Akashic Records." I announced as I stepped forward and twisted the sticks in the frames idly. "A certain orientation is supposed to send out a redstone signal and reveal a secret door. If we try out all the possible combinations-"
Kal pulled me out of the way as Soul, Carys, and Anibal proceeded to hack away at the bookcases with an axe, scythe, and sword respectively.
"Or that. We could do that."
I was reminded how patient Lenz had been solving the combination lock to the Akashic Records. To witness people disregard the hard work involved to set up such a lock just by bashing their heads against it with blunt force was quite a contrast to the engineer's methodical and purposeful investigations. Lenz always showed distaste for such callous disregard. However, I couldn't deny it got us through the bookcase faster.
Past bookshelves and pistons that were meant to retract solving the combination lock the normal way, we discovered a staircase that took us under the mansion's garden. Shiroyuki ran on through ahead of us. There was a short corridor illuminated with torches, but it led to a wide chamber cast in tinted blue light. There was a large tank made up of Nether brick in the middle. Surrounding it was a pattern of redstone in the shape of an eye with the Nether brick tank at its center. The ceiling was made of blue stained glass, but, upon closer look, there was water flowing atop it. We were right underneath the pond from the grounds.
Last but not least, there was a Crafter encased in ice beside the Nether brick tank. The name above his head was Tinker, but I had to avert my eyes because of the obscene pose he had struck when frozen. He was turned around, bent over, two middle fingers on display, his pants and underwear willed off, and his naked rear mooning us all. He showed no fear on his face, just a cheeky smile... and a cheekier bottom.
"Huh. Anyone else turning into a Werewolf? Because that is a full moon if ever I-"
"Anibal..."
"It's just a joke!"
"A bad one." I grimaced at her sense of humor, my eyes looking anywhere but at Tinker. "Can someone put a banner over him, please?"
"You are by far the biggest prude I have ever known." Carys criticized.
Tinker's lower region was somewhat obscured when Shiroyuki padded forward and jumped on his bent over body. The snow fox gave a piteous whine before nuzzling into the frozen blacksmith. The fox's tail drooped sadly to cover Tinker's bottom. It allowed me to take in features other than the number of dimples on his butt.
He had dark hair done up into a top-knot, a wild beard, and orange eyes that burned like fire even through the ice he was encased in. He wore... well... whatever he wore to cover his bottom half had been willed off, leaving him in a white undershirt. He had brown leather gloves that ended in shining metal bands on his wrists. His belt and backpack were black, and he had tan sandals. Considering Shiroyuki's closeness, it was most likely Tinker's pet snow fox.
"Guess Giovanni got him after all." Kal commented. "He probably froze him hoping he'd reconsider and make the weapon."
"And he just left him here, behind the secret door where the Griefers wouldn't find him when they eventually showed up."
"I doubt Giovanni was thinking that far ahead. He was quick to anger at the best of times, but with Sandra gone I'd wager he's completely unhinged."
"Who was Sandra to him?"
"His girlfriend."
"...And sister?"
"I mean, not by blood, you know, but-"
"Still messed up."
"Gross."
"It's not-"
"How did nobody stop this?"
"Incest is not wincest."
"Look, it wasn't unusual, alright!? Not around the Obelisk. You had a hundred-plus hormonal guys and girls with needs and nobody worthy of their time, save for fellow Hackers. Everyone knew there were no blood relations to it! Brothers got together with sisters; no one thought it weird!"
"Alright, alright. Sorry for being judgy." Soul let it go. "I'd feel worse about killing Giovanni's girlfriend if he wasn't a massive asshole."
"I thought Floyd killed Sandra." I clarified.
"He helped... but I was largely responsible."
"That's not how Floyd told it."
"Well he's wrong. I did it."
"But-"
"It was mostly me. End of story." Soul skated over the truth. "Anyway, you gotta admire Tinker's cheek."
"Agreed. Those are some fiiine cheeks - oh, come on!" Anibal bemoaned to Carys' glare. "He set that up perfectly!"
"I meant," Soul's voice shook as he held back laughter, "he knew Giovanni was about to freeze him, but instead of cowering in fear or begging for mercy, he strikes a mocking pose." Soul nodded respectfully. "He's no coward."
"When you live as long as he has, even death doesn't bother you." Carys commented. She had a displeased frown on her face as she stared unashamedly at Tinker. "I wanted to interrogate him..."
"There's nothing we can do about it. Not without the Stivali Magma." Kal pointed out.
Carys looked pensive. "Hmm..."
"What is this place anyway?" Soul asked as he gazed around the room. "Secret panic room?"
"...I think..." Anibal walked up to the Nether brick tank and examined it. "I think this is Tinker's Forge." Anibal spoke breathlessly. "Yeah! This is his forge!"
"What? You mean... he makes the weapons here?" Soul asked with interest.
"Yeah! This giant tank," she kicked it, "it's hot to the touch. It's shaped like a giant smelter. Why else would he have it? This is the secret room he makes the weapons in!" Her expression lit up as another wild possibility crossed her mind. "I bet you we can make unique weapons with this equipment! We just need to figure out how to use it!"
"You think so?" Soul joined her in examining the smelter. "You really think we can make rare weapons? Like a cleaver?"
"Why not? How hard can it be? We have all the tools."
As excited as they were, it was a more difficult task than they thought. There was an ender chest in the room, implying that Tinker had stored tools for his blacksmithing process. If it was really so easy to make the unique weapons, Giovanni would've been able to make one himself and kill Tinker without a second thought. No matter what Soul or Anibal tried with the giant Nether brick smelter, it refused to yield its secrets. They climbed atop the rim and discovered the smelter to have a layer of lava at the bottom, but such discoveries were fruitless when it came to Crafting Tinker's weapons. The frozen blacksmith's bent-over pose almost seemed to mock us for thinking we could do what he did. Carys let the two tucker themselves out with the smelter while she sat in silence next to the wall. She appeared to be deep in thought.
"...chance to one-up him." She muttered to herself. "Prove I'm just as good... what's four Hackers compared to that..."
"Are Tinker's weapons that good?" I asked, trying to get Soul and Anibal to call it quits. "The two of you are already exceptional with your weapons. What more will a cleaver or warhammer do?"
"Easy for you to say when you got two artifacts to rely on." Anibal threw out defensively. "The rest of us are struggling to stay afloat while you have safety floaties. A Tinker's weapon gives you an unexpected edge."
"I could really use that." Soul agreed. The two of them were hungry for Tinker's weapons. Did they really think themselves weak? Had Cobb's recent triumphs left them feeling inadequate?
"You guys are deluding yourselves thinking you can make these weapons." Kal piped up as the voice of reason. "Blacksmiths the world over have been trying to copy Tinker's craftsmanship only to fail. This isn't something you can experiment on. Only Tinker can make Tinker's weapons."
Shiroyuki gave a bark, seeming to agree.
"Well then we're out of luck, because Tinker is an ice cube!" Anibal shouted.
"Noman." Carys spoke suddenly. She stood up tall and marched over. "Is Ciro still on his way here?" She didn't wait for an answer as she snatched the map at my belt and examined it. "Yeah, he's definitely riding an airship..."
"Why do you want to know?" I asked, confused. She shot me a crazed, shark-like grin, her eyes shining.
"Because we're gonna get together with him and stage an assault on the Obelisk to get those artifacts."
Jaws hit the floor. Even the fox's.
"If we want answers and Tinker's weapons, we have to thaw this blacksmith out." Carys reasoned like she wasn't talking about the worst idea ever. Shiroyuki wagged its tail at the prospect of liberating its master. "You want the artifacts - so does Ciro - and it'll boost our side's combat strength once we steal them off the Hackers. Plus, assaulting the Obelisk is something Cobb would never dare to do. It'll put me back on top. Show him we're not slacking."
I felt a great wave of dread hearing how she talked. In my mind's eye, I saw a pile of Heads belonging to either Hackers or Paragons as a result of such a dangerous mission. In either case, it would be a poor waste of life.
"Carys, NO!" Kal shouted his refusal. "Absolutely n - Are you insane!? 303 and Null, not to mention two-hundred riled up Hackers, are guarding that monument to excess, and you want to go running in there half-cocked? It's hopeless! A suicide mission!"
"Not entirely." She clarified. "Remember Jillian's report. The Hackers were told by the Endward Cult about Bounty Days, and there's a Bounty Day in three days. They'll know a sibling has died."
"Yes! And they'll be pissed! Like a swarm of angry wasps-"
"And then what'll they do?" Carys asked, grinning. "What will 303 and Null do when they realize one of their siblings died in Nitebane. Jillian's always been preparing for it."
"They'll... leave the Obelisk." Kal realized with dawning comprehension. "Just like with Akasha, they'll mobilize everyone to attack-"
"-And leave the Obelisk defenseless." Carys continued. "It might even be down to a skeleton crew. Marginally easier to invade, and, with a bit of luck, they'll leave the artifacts behind."
"It'd be a hell of a coincidence if we were so lucky." Anibal groused. "Certain death? Small chance of success?" She scoffed. "Sounds like a Paragon gambit to me. Let's rob those Hackers blind."
Inventory (Cobb): 7 Obsidian, 1 Ender Chest, 44 Chorus Fruit, 62 Cooked Salmon, 62 Cooked Chicken, 8 Rotten Flesh, 2 Glass Bottles, 1 Potion of Night Vision {8:00}, 26 Snowballs, 3 End Crystals, 1 Fishing Rod, 1 Fishing Rod, 1 Fishing Rod, 1 Trident {Awe} [Riptide III, Unbreaking III], 1 Trident {Shock} [Loyalty II, Channeling], 1 Diamond Cutlass, 1 Map {Minecraftia}, 1 Green Shulker Box {Pocket Box}
Green Shulker Box {Pocket Box}: 53 Eyes of Ender, 32 Blocks of Emerald, 8 Emeralds, 1 Lapis Lazuli, 64 Books, 2 Books, 1 Enchanting Table, 1 Book {How to Kill Stuff for Numb Nuts}, 1 Book {Advanced Mob-Slaying}, 1 Book {Mobs of the Nether}, 1 Book {Mobs of the Bounty Days}
[EXP: 34]
Inventory (Lenz): 1 Chainmail Helmet, 1 Dragon Head, 1 Chainmail Chestplate, 1 Chainmail Leggings, 1 Chainmail Boots, 1 Iron Dagger, 9 Ender Pearls, 1 Bucket, 1 Compass, 1 Bow, 1 Bow [Infinity], 1 Crossbow, 1 Crossbow, 1 Crossbow, 1 Crossbow, 1 Crossbow, 1 Crossbow, 1 Crossbow, 1 Crossbow, 1 Crossbow, 42 Arrows, 16 Firework Rockets {Flight Duration: 1, Small Ball x 7, Gray x 7}, 16 Firework Rockets {Flight Duration: 1, Large Ball x 7, Gray x 7}, 1 Crafting Table, 1 Furnace, 62 Dark Oak Planks, 50 Chorus Fruit, 63 Cooked Salmon, 62 Apples, 1 Book {Citizenship Information}, 1 Paper {Daymonte Entry Pass}, 1 Paper {Ringwood Entry Pass}, 1 Paper {Zeppil Entry Pass}, 1 Paper {Akasha Entry Pass}, 1 Red Shulker Box {Pocket Box}, 1 Gray Shulker Box {Pocket Box}
Red Shulker Box {Pocket Box}: 1 Shears, 1 Lever, 9 Redstone Torches, 8 Redstone Repeaters, 3 Redstone Comparators, 18 Blocks of Redstone, 2 Hoppers, 3 Pistons, 2 Sticky Pistons, 1 Book {Airship Piloting 101}, 2 Fire Charges, 36 Charcoal, 4 Torches, 32 Pumpkin Seeds, 1 Book {Redstone Textbook}, 1 Book {Notebook}
Gray Shulker Box {Pocket Box}: 53 Arrows of Poison {0:11}, 64 Arrows of Harming II, 57 Arrows of Harming II, 52 Arrows of Weakness {0:30}, 49 Arrows of Slowness {0:30}, 64 Arrows of Fire Resistance {1:00}, 64 Arrows of Healing II, 64 Arrows of Invisibility {1:00}, 64 Arrows of Leaping {1:00}, 64 Arrows of Slow Falling {0:30}, 64 Arrows of Night Vision {1:00}, 63 Arrows of Strength II {0:12}, 64 Arrows of Swiftness {1:00}, 63 Arrows of Swiftness II {0:11}, 64 Arrows of Water Breathing {1:00}
[EXP: 25]
Inventory (Baltic): 1 Iron Helmet [Protection III, Unbreaking III], 1 Iron Boots [Protection III, Unbreaking III], 1 Iron Sword [Sharpness II, Unbreaking III], 1 Shield, 1 Bow, 1 Diamond Pickaxe [Silk Touch I, Mending I, Unbreaking II], 10 Arrows, 3 Brewing Stands, 1 Water Bucket, 64 Bones, 1 Ender Chest, 1 Book {Citizenship Information}, 1 Paper {Gold Citizenship Pass}, 20 Emeralds, 64 Cooked Chicken, 59 Cooked Chicken, 1 Lingering Potion of Slowness {1:00}, 1 Lingering Potion of Slowness {1:00}, 1 Lingering Potion of Healing II {0:05}, 1 Lingering Potion of Regeneration II {0:05}, 1 Blue Shulker Box {Pocket Box}
Blue Shulker Box {Pocket Box}: 41 Glass Bottles, 64 Dragon's Breath, 59 Dragon's Breath, 64 Blaze Powder, 64 Nether Warts, 30 Soul Sand, 62 Phantom Membranes, 64 Blaze Rods, 64 Fermented Spider Eyes, 64 Carrots, 64 Melon Slices, 64 Rabbit's Feet, 64 Gold Ingots, 64 Gold Nuggets, 64 Gunpowder, 64 Redstone Dust, 64 Glowstone Dust, 64 Ghast Tears, 64 Sugar
[EXP: 32]
Inventory {Jillian}: 1 Book {Vivlio Zythopoiias}, 1 Bow {Artemis} [Unbreaking III, Punch II, Power V, Knockback II, Curse of Vanishing, Infinity], 1 Bow {Apollo} [Unbreaking III, Flame I, Punch II, Knockback II], 1 Crossbow, 1 Crafting Table, 1 Clock, 35 Torches, 1 Book and Quill {Planner}, 1 Book and Quill {Notebook}, 43 Cooked Cod, 53 Cooked Salmon, 56 Arrows, 16 Firework Rockets {Flight Duration: 1, Small Ball x 7, White x 7}, 16 Firework Rockets {Flight Duration: 1, Large Ball x 7, White x 7}, 1 Map {Paragon Minecraftia}, 1 Paper {Gold Citizenship Pass}
[EXP: 53]
Inventory (Z7): 1 Diamond Helmet [Protection III, Unbreaking III], 1 Diamond Chestplate [Protection IV, Unbreaking III], 1 Diamond Leggings [Protection IV, Unbreaking III], 1 Diamond Boots [Protection III, Unbreaking III], 1 Iron Dagger, 1 Iron Dagger, 1 Iron Dagger, 1 Iron Dagger, 1 Iron Dagger, 1 Iron Dagger, 1 Iron Dagger, 1 Iron Dagger, 1 Iron Dagger, 1 Iron Pickaxe, 32 Cobblestone, 1 Crafting Table, 1 Furnace, 21 Charcoal, 14 Torches, 9 Oak Wood Planks, 1 Cake, 1 Cake, 1 Cake, 37 Cookies, 60 Baked Potatoes, 2 Buckets, 1 Book {Citizenship Information}, 1 Paper {Gold Citizenship Pass}, 1 Purple Shulker Box {Pocket Box}
[EXP: 47]
Inventory (Floyd): 1 Mob Head {Creeper}, 1 Iron Sword, 1 Diamond Helmet [Projectile Protection IV], 1 Diamond Chestplate [Projectile Protection IV], 1 Diamond Leggings [Projectile Protection IV], 1 Iron Pickaxe, 1 Shears, 2 Iron Ingots, 2 Sticks, 29 Coal, 20 Torches, 1 Fishing Rod, 1 Furnace, 1 Crafting Table, 1 Minecart, 1 Bed, 1 Boat, 1 Diamond Boots [Projectile Protection IV], 16 Gunpowder, 16 Ender Pearls, 2 Ender Pearls, 1 Splash Potion of Invisibility {8:00}, 1 Bucket, 1 Map {Minecraftia}, 1 Book {Citizenship Information}, 1 Paper {Ringwood Entry Pass}, 1 Paper {Zeppil Entry Pass}
[EXP: 48]
Inventory (Soul): 1 Diamond Axe [Sharpness V], 1 Iron Pickaxe, 61 Iron Ingots, 20 Flint, 12 Gold Ingots, 12 Blocks of Diamond, 16 Blocks of Emerald, 1 Shears, 1 Milk Bucket, 1 Diamond Helmet [Protection IV, Unbreaking III], 1 Iron Chestplate, 1 Diamond Leggings [Protection IV, Unbreaking III], 1 Diamond Boots [Protection IV, Feather Falling IV, Unbreaking III], 1 Crafting Table, 1 Jukebox, 1 Music Disc {chirp}, 1 Bed, 1 Furnace, 24 Torches, 34 White Wool, 61 Cobblestone, 23 Jungle Wood Planks, 4 Bowls, 1 Armor Stand, 1 Map {Minecraftia}, 1 Book {Citizenship Information}, 1 Paper {Ringwood Entry Pass}, 1 Paper {Zeppil Entry Pass}, 1 Paper {Exter Entry Pass}
[EXP: 41]
Cat-Face the Cat
Christopher Squawken the Parrot
Inventory (Noman): 1 Diamond Sword [Sharpness I], 1 Shield, 1 Diamond Chestplate {Severe Shield}, 1 Leather Boots {Bottes Zephyr} [Dyed White], 1 Iron Helmet, 1 Diamond Chestplate, 1 Iron Leggings, 1 Iron Boots, 1 Iron Chestplate, 1 Iron Pickaxe, 60 Nether Warts, 20 Soul Sand, 1 Flint and Steel, 1 Shears, 10 Cobwebs, 1 Milk Bucket, 1 Water Bucket, 5 Buckets, 1 Bed, 1 Crafting Table, 1 Brewing Stand, 33 Glass Bottles, 4 Packed Ice, 16 Ender Pearls, 4 Ender Pearls, 3 Phantom Membranes, 61 Glowstone Dust, 29 Gunpowder, 18 Redstone Dust, 61 Blaze Powder, 62 Gold Nuggets, 49 Brown Mushrooms, 23 Red Mushrooms, 1 Book {Citizenship Information}, 1 Paper {Zeppil Entry Pass}, 1 Paper {Exter Entry Pass}, 1 Map {Minecraftia}, 1 Book {The Art of Peace}, 1 Book {Artifact List}, 1 Enchanted Golden Apple
[EXP: 35]
Inventory (Kalmarin): 1 Diamond Helmet [Protection III, Unbreaking III], 1 Diamond Chestplate [Protection IV, Unbreaking III], 1 Diamond Leggings [Protection IV, Unbreaking III], 1 Diamond Boots [Protection III, Unbreaking III], 1 Mob Head {Skeleton}, 1 Diamond Sword [Sharpness III, Unbreaking I], 1 Map {Paragon Minecraftia}, 1 Book {Citizenship Information}, 1 Paper {Gold Citizenship Pass}, 19 Cooked Chicken, 24 Apples, 1 Bow [Power I], 36 Arrows, 12 Ender Pearls, 1 Bed, 1 Crafting Table, 1 Furnace, 40 Torches, 31 Sand, 12 Cobblestone, 21 Oak Wood Planks, 1 Water Bucket, 1 Lava Bucket, 1 Milk Bucket, 43 Coal, 1 Clock, 1 Compass, 1 Iron Pickaxe [Unbreaking I], 1 Wooden Pickaxe {Old Reliable} [Unbreaking III, Efficiency V], 1 Book {Meetup}
[EXP: 42]
AN: It's not All Out Spaghetti without an attack on the Obelisk.
Cobb: I killed a Hacker in Halstatt.
Carys: I killed two Hackers in Nitebane and reclaimed it from the Griefers. A Kingdom is mine!
Cobb: Oh yeah? Well, I defended Nitebane from four Hackers at the same time! Nyeh!
Carys: Well... I'm... uh... I'm gonna attack the Obelisk and steal their artifacts!
Cobb: You fukin wot mate?
FAV. FOLLOW. REVIEW. FORUM. DISCORD. CHOCOLATE COVERED COOKIE DOUGH BITES.