AN: What? A Chapter within one week of the last? What madness is this? Well, I'll tell you.

Considering how my writing has improved quality-wise over the years, you guys and gals are getting this Chapter this early for one of two reasons. One: It's short. Two: I was really, really, really excited to write this bit and typed it out in record time. I think you know which reason applies to this Chapter.

Did I mention that I loved writing this Chapter? One scene in particular, which had been planned for a while, and which I'll go into more detail about at the closing Author's Note.

Ahhhhhh, I can't believe I'm finally here. I've been looking forward to this for a while. I struggled with the upload again because I think it was too big a text file to convert, but I resolved it, once again, by splitting the Chapter up and converting the files separately.

Oh, but rated M warning, this Chapter touches a bit on suicide. Not sure if that warrants an M rating, since we've seen cultists give their lives in suicide bombs before and nobody was upset by it. Nevertheless, M warning. Slight talk of suicide. M warning. Also, maybe you find the title of the Chapter offensive? It's a Latin term, so it doesn't mean what it's spelled out to be. Didn't stop the forum from censoring it, though. Hopefully it won't be censored the same way in the Chapter.

No more delays. Enjoy.

Disclaimer: I don't own Minecraft. If I did, I'd add Balloons.

Chapter 246

Summa Cum Laude

[Eastern Division HQ: Teal's Room]

It was just after midnight. The first moments of December 13th. The day of the decisive duel between the long-time Lieutenant 4Blite and the promising upstart Spring_Fever. Half of the division had already gone off through the Nether Portals with Executive Abyssmal to reach the Northern HQ's special arena. They would all be watching a thrilling, high-stakes bout, with the prize being the Southern Executive seat.

Teal_Larkspur was hunched over her room's desk - a thing she hardly ever used - with two full double chests of paperwork books to get through - things she hardly ever did. The room was cast in a somber blue glow from the new [SOUL TORCHES] she finished putting up. She wore a miserable expression as she raised the quill with great effort and proceeded to slowly fill in and sign the books. She was barely even reading them like she was supposed to.

Instead, she was thinking of what Mark said to her when they got back to base.

'Why are you heading back to the prison again?'

Teal shrugged. 'I wanna take another crack at interrogating Lenny. Maybe I can get more intel out of him. He's been very obliging, after all~ Hmhmhmm~'

Mark got in Teal's way. '...I heard from Abyssmal how you gave them too much intel while playing your 'games' with them.' He revealed, causing Teal to look away guiltily. 'Why would you keep something like that to yourself? You had me introduce myself in front of them. How could you allow such a thing so carelessly?'

'They'll all be dead, I promise!' Teal swore urgently. 'They'll never breathe a word of what they saw! I'll make sure of it personally. Your identity will be kept secret, Mark.'

Teal scribbled down her name in another book, barely reading it before she slid it across the wooden surface into a small, growing pile at the foot of her desk. Then she started another. The clock ticked by sluggishly to match her dull work.

'You say you'll kill them, yet you're acting all friendly with Lenzington? Why him? What has you so interested in him that you'd risk everything just to play a game with him?'

'I'm ready to kill that dweeb at a moment's notice. He's just some wind-up toy I find entertaining. I enjoy making him uncomfortable.' Teal asserted before grinning vindictively. 'Messing with him is too much fun. The big brain college boy, getting outsmarted by the dropout blue-haired bimbo~ Who's smarter now~? Hmhmhmm~?'

Mark took a step back as he saw the situation in a whole new light. '...Is that what this is about? You're singling him out in particular because he's from the college you dropped out of?'

'No.' Teal answered unconvincingly. She was unable to look Mark in the eye.

'Teal, you have nothing to prove. You can't even really blame him. It's not like he was there.'

'I know that. It's just the principle of the thing.'

'NO, TEAL!' Mark suddenly raised his voice, making the stronger Lieutenant shirk away in fear. 'You shouldn't get so close to Lenzington, even just to tease him!'

'Mark... um... if this is about you being jelly-'

'I'M NOT JELLY!' Mark vehemently denied before taking a great effort to regain his cool. 'You're powerful enough to treat your fights like games, but it's not a game where the Beginners are concerned. The Lieutenant that infiltrated them is MIA, don't you get it? Knowing what we know about them, we shouldn't underestimate them for even one second. Lenzington included. If you give them an inch, they're sure to fight tooth and nail for a mile, and they'll get it too.'

'Abyssmal left us to hold down the fort while he's gone.' Mark continued with his point. 'What we do matters. The cultists look to us on how to treat threats like the Beginners. We don't go getting close with them, even just to tease. My advice is to cut off all interactions with Lenzington until you're ready to kill him. Otherwise, you're just needlessly endangering yourself.'

Teal's quill bit harder into the paper as she signed with more force than necessary. She threw that book off the side to join the others.

'Don't grow close with noodles, even just to tease them?' Teal questioned icily. 'Would we have gotten together if I did that?'

'That was different.' Mark asserted. 'I was a suicidal nobody. You were never in danger.'

'I'm not in danger now. Didn't you say I was strong enough? Or were those just empty words?' The lack of a flirty lilt showed that Teal was serious.

'I didn't-'

'Now you listen here, mister.' Teal steamrolled past his meager protests. 'The Beginners are only feared because the cultists are allowing them to be intimidating. I fought most of them myself and handily took them down. They're as killable as any Crafter I've faced, and I see no need to back off and buy into their reputation. Overestimating your opponent is just as dangerous as underestimating them. If anything, treating the Beginners like the butt of a joke will lessen the terror they have over the cultists. If our men look to us on how to treat threats, like you said, I say we puff out our chests and show them that the Beginners are nothing to fear.'

'And this is how you do it?' Mark asked incredulously. 'By pretending to be his friend and groping him at the negotiation-?'

'That was only to tease Scarface. I've got little Lenny boy wrapped around my finger. He's domesticated and scared. He spilled his guts like that.' She snapped her fingers for emphasis. 'He's scared of deep water and he's a redstone dweeb. What part of that sounds like some great terror~?' She grinned and regained her easy confidence. 'I'll kill him when he stops being fun anyway, so what's the difference if I play with him some more~?'

Mark groaned. 'If you approached your paperwork with this same level of fervor-' He cut off. 'I got to keep things running smooth around here. Just keep your distance from Lenzington. I mean it, Teal!' He berated her just as she was about to roll her eyes. 'No matter what you say, you can't convince me he isn't dangerous. I treat him as much of a threat as Carys or the two Billionths, and you should too.'

Teal shoved the latest book away from her and leaned back in her chair, her blue eyes on the ceiling. The clock ticked along sluggishly.

"So bored you can surf me." Teal mumbled to herself. Mark had recommended she take care of her backlogged paperwork to occupy herself. Distract her from Lenny. It didn't work for long. She couldn't sleep with Mark while he was covering for Abyssmal.

The past few days had been so entertaining messing with Lenny. All the games they played in the simulation room. It was a different high than she was used to, but that made it fresh and exciting. She loved teasing that little dweeb, and she still had a lot of mileage left to go on his love life with Scarface.

Teal's eyes roved towards the pair of Dragon Masks she had on the wall like trophies. One was hers, while the other was Lenny's. Her light blue Pocket Boxes were also sitting at the base of the same wall.

Her bored frown slowly spread into a devious smile before she grabbed some stuff and skipped to the prison to check up on her new best friend, Lenny.

[Eastern Division HQ: Prison]

Another hard night on a hard stone floor.

Lenz shifted and rolled as he struggled to find an ideal sleeping position in his cell. The faint sunlight that could cut through the ocean to grace his barred cell was gone. It was surely past midnight, and still he couldn't sleep. The floor was too uncomfortable, and it made his neck and body stiff. The cult was too cruel not to at least include beds in their holding cells. He was also lying in the corner furthest from the barred window facing the ocean so as to stave off his Thalassophobia.

With Teal's 'peace offering' there was no shortage of food, though. He still had leftovers of the meats and vegetables Teal brought. He wouldn't have to stomach stale bread like the other prisoners. All because Teal took an unwanted liking to him.

I am just a pet to her. Lenz thought miserably. Why me? Why does she only tease and torment me? Is it because Z7's her nemesis and I am dating her? Is it because I beat her in tag? I would not have if I knew it would garner this kind of attention. I hate it here. I hate being bullied. I hate having to give up intel. I hate her!

He shivered as he hugged his knees to his chest.

I wish I was back aboveground with my friends... and Z7...

He started to tear up under his tinted glasses, as he missed Z7 and her jokes, both clever and corny. A few sobs slipping out his mouth while his shoulders shook.

I want to go home...

"What are you... sobbing over...?"

Lenz looked up as he heard Perry's weak voice from across the corridor. "Perry...?"

"You haven't even been tortured... and you're eating like a king while we abstained from food, choosing to die like men. What do you possibly have to weep about, you candy-ass!?"

Lenz glanced away in shame. "...I did not have a choice. What good was getting tortured going to do?"

"No, you always had a choice, you just chose the less painful option! Ngh!" Perry winced as his body hurt. Teal had healed him with a splash potion only to rebreak his and Dwight's arms and legs. Their Hunger Meters were too low to fix any of it. "...You're a disgrace to every Crafter we ever lost. We'd never sell you out."

"...I am sorry, Perry. Dwight." Lenz could only apologize out of shame. "I am weak. The threat of torture was too much. There is no hope of rescue for us, not while Cobbert and the Paragons are lost on where to attack."

"Yeah, well, we'll see..." Dwight remarked knowingly, including himself in the conversation. He and Perry knew that the Paragons received their Morse Code message about the Eastern HQ's location. They couldn't tell Lenz that, though. Not while cultists patrolled the corridor, and not when the engineer would just as easily spill that information under threat of torture.

No matter what happened to the three of them, the Paragons' forces would attack. Hopefully it would happen today, the optimal time to attack, while half of the division was away with their Executive.

"You're not paralyzed." Perry pointed out. "You've still got use of your limbs. Start punching a way out!"

"Perry, this is solid stone brick and iron-"

"I'd pummel it if I could!" Perry raged. "Godamnit! You have all the freedom in the world and you won't even try!?"

"I did try." Lenz asserted, remembering his attempt at the redstone lamp above. Even if he could reach it, it was probably powered by dust rather than a block of redstone or a redstone torch. He had nothing to tinker with. He had six years of college curriculum to draw from, but his brain was giving him nothing but blanks. "There is nothing left to try."

"Try harder." Perry urged. "Don't be a fucking quitter."

"I am not a quitter." Lenz emphasized with a scowl. He hated being called a quitter. He wasn't a dropout like Teal.

"Just leave him alone, Perry." Dwight told his fellow Paragon. "You know what's in the works. We should just bide our time for now."

"Hff! Like I can do anything else..." He complained while prone on the floor.

Lenz hung his head in frustration. He once reassured the Paragons that no Beginner would ever let them down, yet that was exactly what he was doing here.

...Am I really giving up like this? Lenz reflected. Have I truly exhausted every available option?

Just then, Lenz recalled a memory of Cobbert. A promise they made.

'…Let's make a promise out of it, then.'

'Huh?'

'A promise. After this whole Endward Cult business is dealt with, let's promise to get you through college and into a cushy engineering job—what's the best job for that?'

'Probably the CEO position at Potato Tech, but I do not see myself—'

'Then yeah, that.'

'Cobbert, I do not think you fully grasp how high such a position would be.'

'Gotta shoot for the stars sometimes. The loftier the better.'

'I see. A promise, then?'

'Yup. For courage. And to remind us why we fight. Even when things get tough, remembering there are things left for you to do—well, it'll help give you strength.'

'An interesting proposal. Alright, then. It is a promise.'

"For courage..." Lenz murmured to himself, his fist clenching before he rammed it through the stone brick wall.

The wall didn't break. No, the only thing that broke was his hand.

"NNNNNNNN!" Lenz whined through sealed lips before he cradled his busted hand and gorged on food to fix the damage. So much for busting out with brute force. He really should have known better. The brick didn't even crack.

A light skipping echoed down the corridor, growing louder and louder.

"TEAL YOU SLUT! YOU BITCH IN HEAT THAT SHAKES HER ASS AT MARK!" Lathrop roared a few cells down, signaling Teal's arrival. The skipping stopped and an iron door opened. "WHEN I GET OUT OF HERE, YOU AND THAT TRAITOR ABYSSMAL ARE-"

The Snowy Sabrewing's voice was cut off by a sickening crack, followed by a couple more sickening cracks. There was a light dusting of hands, a sigh of enjoyment, and then the iron door sealing shut.

"I draw the line at bitch in heat, thank you very much. Hey hey hey, Lenny boy~!" Teal greeted as she stepped into view of the barred window to peer inside like he was some caged animal. "You got enough food still~? Wouldn't want Scarface's boytoy to starve to death~ Hmhmhmm~"

"...Please leave me alone." Lenz begged, not wanting anything more to do with her. She did the opposite, opening up his cell and strolling inside without a care. Lenz scooted backward from her, even as it brought him closer to the bars facing the ocean.

"Now don't be so cold. We're friends, aren't we~?" Teal teased, plopping down beside him and wrapping him in a one-armed hug.

"You do not want to be my friend. Why kid yourself?" Lenz asked, visibly uncomfortable with the close contact. It was nothing like with Z7. Being this close to the Lieutenant repulsed him.

"Kid myself? No, no, nooo~ I really mean it, Lenny~ I wanna be your friend~" She ruffled his hair playfully. "You were full of such useful information, and I bet you're chock-full of much more! It's why I can personally give you a Lieutenant promise that you'll be A-Okay for the next four days~ And then, even after that~!"

"...You mean you will let me go?"

"Let's not get ahead of ourselves." Teal shot him down. "I'm just pitching the idea that you can survive a little longer as part of my Survival Games~! Whaddaya think? It's a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity~ Hmhmhmm~"

Lenz adopted a look of horror. "B-But that is a death sentence! You-You promised Cobbert we would be safe!"

"Oh, come on. You saw that 'negotiation'. It was an absolute trainwreck~" She giggled. "It's only a matter of time before you become collateral damage. And, spoilers, your boy Cobb is gonna be blitzed at the next meeting. Those six are as good as dead if they show up. No more Attila, no more Baltic, and no more Z7."

Lenz's shaking hands grew still.

"That reminds me. I got a serious question for ya. Do you think it's better to die before your loved one, or after?" Her tone was innocent, but the subject matter was anything but. Lenz's fists clenched as he thought about Z7's warm smile. "I'm asking because I just love my boo, Mark, but I don't know what I'd do if I lost him. I have nothing to compare to, so I figured I could run the question by a fellow romantic and judge for myself which is worse later down the line. So what do you think~? Is it better to die before your loved one, or after~?"

As if recalling it from a distant fog, Lenz remembered Beican and his wife Mirabelle from the Wailing Vale. He recalled the nightmarish wail that had nothing to do with the Ghast monster. It was a sound full of grief, from a husband discovering his wife's Head.

"...It is better to die before your loved one." Lenz decided in a flat tone. "But that is never possible for both. One is destined to feel the sting of loss."

"Yeah, I feel the same." Teal nodded, accepting his answer. "I've been with Mark for two-hundred-and-fifty-nine years. How long have you and Scarface been a couple~?"

"...Five days? I was kidnapped for four of them."

"Oof. Yikes." At that, Teal actually winced sympathetically. "Bad luck, friend. Well, if Next Life is real, maybe you'll be reborn in a world where you two can be together~ I'll be rooting for ya~" Teal grinned, acting to all the world like she was doing Lenz a favor. "But back to my previous question. Once the Paragons are Para-goners, I think I'll have an open slot in my Survival Games with your name on it~"

"How is that any better than being executed on the spot?" Lenz asked tiredly, his gaze drifting to the left. Teal directed it back to her as she gave her response.

"There's always the slim chance you'll survive the Survival Games, Lenny. Otherwise, they'd be called the Execution Games~! I hunt fairly, after all, and if you escape, you're let go. Course, no one ever escapes or wins. Mark's the one exception."

"Lieutenant MarkAble beat you?" Lenz asked incredulously, thinking the unassuming Lieutenant was more than meets the eye.

"Pft. Not exactly. He wanted to die." Teal replied, shocking Lenz. "He was in the middle of committing suicide when my cultists nabbed him for my 58th Annual Survival Games. It was the first time I met someone ready to embrace death. Mark was everything I feared becoming, but I was able to pull him back from the brink. It's kinda ironic how we met. Like if fate had a sense of humor. I'm not complaining though~ I got a rockin' boyfriend~💙" She gushed happily before her tone twisted. "And your boy Cobb threatened to kill him. My most precious partner. I can't let that go." The hand she had draped over Lenz's shoulder dug in its nails through his clothes and into his flesh, making him wince. They retracted almost immediately as her mercurial personality switched again, this time to something brighter. "Oh! Take a look at what Mark got me~! He's such a great boyfriend~"

Teal released Lenz so she could dig excitedly into her backpack. She withdrew some light blue Pocket Boxes. "Check it out. You saw my Wonder Wings, but Mark also got me three SutsCo Pocket Boxes, in my favorite color, and," she pulled out her own Dragon Head and pulled it on, "a Dragon Head. You and me have similar tastes, it seems~" She held up the extra Dragon Head she stole off Lenz. "I loved the Wonder Wings the most though. It was the best Spawnday gift I ever got~"

Lenz paused. "Spawnday...?"

"Yeah. My Spawnday was October 22nd~" Teal explained happily. "I'm a borderline Libra." She sing-songed.

Lenz made a show of contemplating to himself, thinking on what day it was. "Yesterday was the 12th, was it not?"

"Yep. December 12th."

"So today is the 13th? Truly?" Lenz asked with a humorless chuckle that devolved into pitiful sobbing. It threw Teal off. Had he finally been broken?

"What's the matter, Lenny?" She asked without her usual teasing lilt.

Lenz held out his hands in supplication. "I just realized today is my Spawnday!" He wailed before sobbing into his hands.

Teal's blue eyes went wide. "No way! For real?"

"Yes! December 13th! Sagittarius!" Lenz insisted before his body was wracked with sobs. "What a Spawnday! Trapped in an underwater cell at the mercy of the Endward Cult!" He lifted his tinted glasses to wipe at his eyes. "This is the worse Spawnday ever! And here you are just bragging about what was your best Spawnday, showing off presents while I have none! I hate this!"

As he broke down in tears, Teal was starting to feel a little guilty. A Crafter's Spawnday was sacred. It was the one day a year where a Crafter was allowed to be treated like a king or a queen. The day they came into this world was supposed to be celebrated by friends and loved ones.

Lenz was stuck in a prison, his Thalassophobia making him terrified out of his mind.

"Lenz, you crybaby!" Perry shouted at him from across the corridor. "Quit sniveling in front of the enemy!"

"Are you really intent on throwing away your pride with both hands!?" Dwight berated next. "Show some grit!"

Guilt niggled at the back of Teal's mind as she sheepishly ran a hand through her ponytail. All while Lenz continued to sob. This wasn't fun. Now she felt she really was bullying him.

"Ahhh..." Teal let out a sigh before coming over and patting the sobbing engineer on the back. "There, there. Um... look, I feel a little bad about you being like this on your Spawnday. Nobody deserves that. So... tell you what, Lenny, how about I celebrate your Spawnday for you."

Lenz turned away from her and sniffled angrily. "Oh, quit messing with me!"

"No, no! Really!" She insisted, her lilt gone. "In fact, I'll grant you three gifts. Three Spawnday gifts from me to you. Whatever you want, Lenny. It's your special day."

Lenz sniffled again before wiping his eyes and looking to the Lieutenant. "...You mean it? If-If this is another prank or something-"

"I swear on my boyfriend, this is legit." Teal swore, raising one hand as she placed the other on her heart. "Lieutenant's promise. What would you like on your Spawnday?"

He hesitated for a moment before turning to face her, his hands wiping more tears from under his glasses. "...I can ask for anything? Anything at all?"

"...Within reason." Teal clarified carefully. "I'm obviously not handing you any pickaxes or weapons. Or redstone." She stated the obvious. "Aside from those things, though, I'll get you whatever you want if it's in my power." She smiled encouragingly. "So what'll it be, Spawnday boy~?"

Lenz contemplated for a bit. "Well, I... would not say no to a bed..." He suggested tentatively. "The floors are hard and cold. A bed would be an inexpressible comfort."

"You got it. I'll even dye it gray for you." Teal offered kindly. "What else?"

"Well..." Lenz hesitated. "My Thalassophobia flares up a lot while I am down here. I find myself overcome by bouts of trembling and shivering. My breathing grows erratic. It is like a panic attack. I would like something to help distract me from my phobia. Something I can toggle and tinker with to occupy my mind and calm down. I would settle for a Redstone Comparator-"

"No redstone." Teal stonewalled.

"No, it is harmless! I swear! That is why I said I would settle. Comparators do not generate a redstone signal on their own. They are like Redstone Repeaters."

"Speak english, why don't you."

"Er... they do not turn things on...?"

"Hmm." Teal frowned suspiciously. "A Redstone Compactor-"

"Comparator."

"Whatever. They really don't activate things?" Teal tapped her chin thoughtfully. "I don't even know where to find one."

"My red Pocket Box should have had one." Lenz suggested. "You can bring that and-"

"Oh, yeah, no. I dumped those contents. Dumped them in fire. Sorry." She shrugged unapologetically. "Kept the Pocket Box, though."

"...This Spawnday just gets more soul-crushing by the minute." Lenz bemoaned. "I suppose you can fetch me the materials and I can build a new Comparator. The recipe is simple. Three stone, three redstone torches, and one Nether quartz."

"There are torches in this thing? Don't those generate power?" Teal spoke suspiciously. "What does this Comparator thing even do?" Her redstone knowledge was woefully nonexistent.

"Well, it is supposed to repeat a signal without changing its strength. It can also be set to either stop outputting a signal when its side input receives a stronger one (front torch off), or subtract its side input's signal strength from its output (front torch on). But that is only if it has a signal to work with, which it will not."

Teal crossed her eyes, looking like her brain was short-circuiting. Lenz hastened to explain.

"On its own, it will just be something for me to click and toggle without sending out any signal. Completely harmless, and you can test it yourself to verify. Please." He begged. "It is the one redstone I am willing to settle for. Without it, I will slowly lose my sanity in here. Imagine your life without being able to play any games."

"Fuck, that does sound awful. Alright, alright." She relented. "I'll fetch you your Comparator stuff. But I'll be testing it just to be safe."

"Of course." Lenz nodded, a hopeful smile spreading on his face.

"That's two. What's your third gift?"

"Third?" Lenz smiled. "A Spawnday cake, of course."

Teal grinned. "Oh, Amen to that, brother~ Can't have a Spawnday without a Spawnday cake~ You got it! I'll have the cooks whip up something special." She promised before walking backwards to the door. She fired fingerguns at Lenz as she left, winking playfully. "Be right back, Spawnday boy~ Don't go anywhere, hmhmhmm~!" She teased before locking his cell door. Her footsteps echoed down the corridor out of earshot.

"Unbelievable." Perry spoke with disgust. "She threatens to kill your best friend and your girlfriend, and you warm up to her for just a few paltry gifts?" Perry spat at the floor from his prone position. "To think I had faith in you! I won't make that mistake again. You're no longer one of us, Lenz."

The engineer stared out of his barred window as he accepted those words. A black-capped cultist walked by on patrol. Lenz watched him go from behind impassive tinted glasses before slowly walking to the wall and sitting down. His head tilted back to stare at the single redstone lamp on the ceiling. Out of reach.

"No Beginner will ever let you down..." He murmured to himself as he closed his eyes and waited.

[Cobb]

The sun was dawning on December 13th. We got up bright and early for the briefing.

"I'll keep this briefing brief." Captain Paolo_DeLucca stood before a mix of our landing party and higher authority Oak Docks guards. He had dark brown hair and intelligent blue eyes, high cheekbones, and a chin-only goatee. He wore a cyan-dyed leather tunic and cap, the same colors as his kingdom, despite the armor's weakness in battle. I liked him already. The map was behind him, and he used it as a visual aid to show our plan of attack. It was a good opportunity to see his lauded strategic mind in person.

"Our best bet is to come at them from two angles. Our fleet of airships are docked at the southern end of the peninsula." He pointed to the south of Oak Docks. "Our troops are being loaded up as we speak. This is to keep the cult unaware. Their HQ has been identified here." He pointed to a spot of ocean to the northwest of our position. "Six miles due west of the Rimini Beach. There is also a hidden entrance into the base, on foot, near some boulders at the north end of the same beach. I shall lead a force of three-thousand Oak Docks guards to secure this entrance and have our troops invade."

"At the same time," Captain Fo took over, "the high-ranking landing party will be picked up by the fleet carrying the remaining seven-thousand troops as it flies northwest to the dropzone above the Eastern HQ." She sharply jabbed the spot of ocean that was our strike range. "TNT bombing may be useless, but we will instead be dropping Crafters into the water. They will have Water Breathing and Slow Falling to ensure they have ample time to maneuver. These troops will enter by breaking through the fragile underwater glass corridors of the base. In this way, our forces will be spread out within the HQ, hopefully before the cult has time to react. I shall circle the airspace above the HQ with the fleet, and a reserve of one-thousand Zeppil guards, to be deployed where needed. We will be coordinated via map messages of the Paragons staying behind here. These same Paragons will be operating the Stasis Chambers for our critical personnel."

"We have several high-level targets to secure." Captain Attila went last. "There are two Portal Hubs we need to sabotage to cut off escape and reinforcements. I shall be leading a team with Alfonso to destroy the one, while Baltic leads a team to destroy the other. There is also a stockpile of Withers it is imperative we eliminate." At the mention of Withers, the crowd - and Alfonso - grew nervous. "It'll be a race to reach the Withers. We need as many people inside as possible to locate it. Same goes for the three hostages: Lenzington, Agent_P, and Dwight. If you find them, get them out of there." I nodded determinedly. "You've been briefed on the Lieutenants to expect. Their Executive, Abyssmal, will be gone at the time of the attack, but we shouldn't rule out his return before we're done sabotaging the Portal Hubs. Be on guard. If you encounter an Executive or Lieutenant, overwhelm with numbers."

There was a murmuring of assent as the troops understood their orders. The three Captains went on to touch on a few more things. Meanwhile, I felt a swelling combination of comfort and hype. With so many allies from all across Minecraftia, and a high-quality army of capable troops, I didn't feel nervous at all. I felt confident. Powerful.

Now if only Lenz could be here.

"Cobb, Cobb!" I turned to see Daisy and Milton approaching. They looked worried, and they spoke in an urgent whisper.

"What is it now?"

"We can't find Neiro anywhere. We think she's gone somewhere to guzzle Thick Potions."

"Well, who gave her those?" I asked somewhat annoyed. This had been a problem yesterday too. The Team Delta member had gotten self-deprecating over her charred face and had taken up drinking. "Look, this is a little more important right now. Can it wait until the briefing is over?"

"I'm afraid it can't." Milton spoke grimly. "Neiro has been saying some scary things lately."

"We're afraid of what she might do to herself." Daisy added, her eyes pleading. "Please, Cobb. The Captains and Team Leaders are too busy to help us look."

"Ugh. Fine." I relented, weak to her puppy dog eyes. "Where have you looked so far?" I asked as I was ushered away.

"We've checked the safehouse interior, the bathroom, and the canal area where our Stasis Chambers are stored." Milton filled in. "We were thinking of checking the neighboring buildings next. Her blip isn't showing on our maps. Either she ditched her linked map, or she took her own li-" Milton cut off abruptly as he threatened to upset Daisy. "I'm sure she wouldn't. She isn't the type." He tried to reassure her.

"This really isn't the best time." I sighed. "Have you checked the roof?"

"No. How are we supposed to get up there?"

"I'll take the roof, then." I volunteered. "You guys search the nearest buildings. Shout if you find anything."

We nodded in agreement before exiting the safehouse and splitting up.

I rounded to the canals side of our safehouse. While I could try parkouring the building to get to the roof, I had a quicker idea in mind. I needed a refresher anyway. I took out one of my three Riptide III tridents, then hopped in the canal. The water covered me so that when I threw my trident up, it brought me along for the ride in an ascending corkscrew.

Dart Leader! I mentally shouted my technique name as the momentum of the trident carried me right to the roof of our safehouse in no time and all.

Neiro was there waiting. She had a bottle in hand, and several more empty around her. She also gave a start when I suddenly appeared, only to calm down and ease up on her rocket-loaded crossbow.

"Oh, joy. I've been found out by the luminary warrior of legend, the Darker - hic - Billionth!"

I rolled my eyes. I was about to shout for Milton and Daisy that their drunk friend was here, but I paused on account of her slurred ranting.

"Hic!" She hiccupped drunkenly. "I didn't miss the siege, did I? I gotta be there for - hic - that!"

"It hasn't started yet. Why are you so sloshed?" I smelled the air around her and recoiled. She reeked of alcohol. The smell of Thick Potions was, well, thick.

She waved one bottle. "I'm just living up my last day on Minecraftia. Today, I end it. Hic!"

My eyes sharpened as I gazed at her coolly. "That's a serious thing to joke about, Neiro."

"Who's joking? Look at me - hic - I'm a freak!" She clawed at the raw skin of her blackened face, no doubt causing herself incredible agony. "You - hic - failed to stop the Hackers in time. My face looks like beef jerky because of you!"

My mouth was a thin line as she continued her drunken tirade.

"I was one of the - hic - beautiful people." She recounted sadly. "Maybe not the prettiest, but the men took notice. Now everyone takes notice; takes notice of how ugly I've become!" She waved her crossbow angrily, the rocket getting misfired into the air, where it emitted a high-pitched whistle before exploding in yellow sparks. "I can't live like this anymore. The agony. The looks of revulsion and pity. The knowledge that I'll be scarred for life and never find a significant other. Who'd tolerate a face like this!?" She let out a drunken sob. "At least I can die in a blaze of - hic - glory. I'll invade the Eastern HQ and be remembered as a hero. Minus the raisin face, I hope."

So that was it. She planned to be reckless and get herself killed in the siege rather than live a life of disfigurement. This was just her living it up before her final moments.

Neiro busted out another bottle of Thick Potion, preparing to guzzle it down. I pointed to it.

"Can I have that bottle for a second?"

"No!" She brought it away childishly. "Get your own - HEY!" She squawked indignantly as my fishing rod snatched the bottle out of her grip. "What'd you do that for!?"

"I got my own." I countered coolly. I turned the bottle over in my hand and quietly examined every angle of it before I brought my arm back and lobbed the bottle clear off the side of the building. There was a light splash as it landed in the canal. Neiro protested mildly before giving up and reaching into her backpack for a fresh bottle. I knelt down in front of her and stopped her before proceeding to stare into her eyes. Her gaze was unfocused as she tried and failed to stare back.

I slapped her.

It was sudden and unexpected, and it sent Neiro sprawling into her pile of empty glass bottles. I slapped her. Hard. With my whole, undamaged hand. Also, her tender skin would only make the pain worse. I wasn't in the habit of slapping people, but I was a little on edge considering my friend's life was on the line while she was drinking herself to death. This siege was supposed to be done by the very best, not a stinking, suicidal drunk.

"The world is full of people ready to put you down. Don't be one of them."

Neiro was unable to respond or move as she was still reeling from the slap. All she could do, in her drunken and stunned stupor, was listen. I pressed my advantage.

"My face didn't come out unscathed either, Neiro." I pinched at my charred cheek, ignoring the raw pain. "I may not be as disfigured as you, but I'm still affected. But letting it ruin me and drag me into an early grave is only doing the Hacker what did it a favor."

"I want to get my friend out of this mess alive!" I snapped at her. "I need every able fighter we got to help. That includes your depressing, alcoholic ass, so you better sober up fast." I poured a bucket of water on her, shocking her out of her stunned state. She spluttered and thrashed for a bit before pulling her blackened head up for air. She glared at me through reddened eyes and with a lot more focus.

"You want people to stop looking at you with disgust and pity? Then be an example of strength." I told her while bucketing my water back up. "Live with the pain. Live with the agony. Even if it's just to spite Thed. You'll find someone who loves you for you, and not care about your face. That's how you'll know they're the one." Neiro paused to consider my words, her glare lessening. "And you'll fight and get stronger. You'll live past this siege and see many more battles. And everyone will know your face and see it as a symbol of persistence in the face of disfigurement."

"You'll inspire a new generation of fighters. You'll be a source of strength to anyone wronged or marred by a Hacker. Own your disfigurement. Don't make it own you." I spoke harshly to beat it into her drunken skull. "Maybe I could give you a more empowering speech about the enduring human spirit, but I've got a siege to take part in and a friend to save. I can't coddle you. Either you get over yourself or you don't. Your choice."

There was no technique or concluding line. Neiro tried to say something as I turned my back on her, but I just ended it there. I leapt off the building and into the canal before I pulled myself up onto the lower walkway. I then found Milton and Daisy and told them that Neiro was on the roof of our safehouse.

"Is she okay?" Daisy asked. "Is she coming down?"

"Who can say." I shrugged indifferently before getting back to the briefing. I did the absolute minimum to help Neiro get over her depressing funk. What she did next was up to her. I couldn't make her feel better when Lenz's life was on the line.

Take a number and get in line, Neiro.

[Eastern Division HQ: Prison]

"I'mmmmmmm baaaaaaack~! And I bear gifts~!" Teal beamed happily as she walked into view holding a cake. "Want me to sing the Happy Spawnday song?"

"Er, thank you, but I really do not think it will be ne-"

"Haaaaaappy Spawnday to you~🎵!" She ignored Lenz's protests and began the verse, embarrassing him in front of the prisoners and patrolling cultists. "Happy Spawnday to you~🎵! Happy Spawnday dear Lenny~🎵! Happy Spawnday to you~🎵! And many moooooore~🎵!" She put down the cake to clap and whoop exuberantly, making the engineer embarassed.

"Boooo! Your singing sucks!" Perry heckled.

"Don't make me come in there and break your jaw again~" Teal threatened with a malicious grin before she returned her attention to Lenz's closed cell. She pulled out a gray bed to show Lenz through the bars, then she placed a crafting table. "I got you your Comparator stuff. Three stone, three redstone torches, and one quartz, right?"

"Yes. That is everything I need to make it-"

"Whoa, whoa, whoa, Lenny. Who said you'd be making this? It has nerdstone in it, and there's no telling what else you can make from these items, so I'm gonna make it."

"Really? You want to make something redstone related." He made a hopeful sound. "Have you fallen for its beauty?"

"Yeah, no. I just don't want you pulling any funny business. Just direct me how to craft this thing. I feel like I'm getting geekier just by holding this junk."

"Okay. It is... three stone on the bottom row," Lenz recalled the recipe, "quartz in the center middle row, and then a redstone torch to the left, right, and above the quartz. You got it?" Teal arranged the blocks as directed before coming away with the thin slab-like comparator. Her blue eyes narrowed as she examined it.

"It looks a little like a Redstone Repeater, except with three torches instead of two." She commented idly.

"You remember Repeaters, I see."

She flinched and blushed as if caught saying something embarassing. "So what? Not like I remember anything else about nerdstone."

She didn't open the cell right away. Being suspicious of the device, she first tested it out by placing it in front of the iron door to see if it could open it. Nothing happened. She ran her hand over it, looking for some togglable portion, and found that the third sunken redstone torch in the comparator could light up with a click. However, no matter how often she made it light up, the door refused to budge. She even checked with different orientations of the comparator in relation to the door. Sideways, frontways, backwards. It had no effect on the door, and the other two torches of the Comparator remained dormant. Lenz was right; it couldn't send out a redstone signal.

Having deemed the device safe, Teal pulled it up off the floor and finally flipped the lever beside Lenz's cell, opening the iron door. She sashayed inside where Lenz stood waiting.

"That cake looks quite delicious." Lenz noted, his tinted gaze fixed on the dessert. He held out his hands to take it, but Teal merely set it down on the floor at the back of the cell, across from the door. Exactly three blocks away from the iron door.

Lenz swallowed.

"It does look good, but it gets better. Check this shit out~" She produced some gray lump of wax from her backpack before placing it on the cake. It was a [GRAY CANDLE]. "When I said it was a Spawnday cake, the girl who made it gave me one of these. Candles from one of the new Bounty Days~! It must be fate with your Spawnday coinciding with all the new stuff. I was the one who dyed it gray~" She took due credit before flicking open a flint and steel and lighting the candle. "There. Now it's a real Spawnday Cake. Gosh, I'm jelly~ Next Spawnday, I'm having Mark make me some light blue candles for my cake."

The gray candle added a little bit more of a glow to the lamplit cell. Teal set Lenz's other gift - the gray bed - down against the side wall, facing away from the barred window looking into the ocean. She was being considerate of his fears, at least.

Finally, she tossed him the Redstone Comparator. He fumbled it slightly before catching it with both hands. Then he set it down on the floor and proceeded to toggle the light on and off, visibly relaxing as he did so. Teal watched the whole display before accepting it helped put him at ease and forget about his phobia.

Lenz was watching Teal out of the corner of his eye, from behind his tinted glasses, the whole time.

"Mind if I steal a slice?" Teal sat cross-legged and helped herself to the first slice without waiting for Lenz's permission. The lit gray candle popped off as soon as she took a bite, and she collected it before returning it to her backpack. "Wouldn't want you celebrating your Spawnday alone. Mmm. So good~"

Lenz eyed the cake worriedly before joining Teal in sitting down beside it.

"So how old are you now?"

"Six. How old are you?"

"Some free advice with the ladies, Lenny. Never ask a girl how old they are~"

"Ah. Sorry." He bowed his head.

"It's all good~" She winked. "It must be annoying having a Spawnday the same month as Christmas. Or do you get gifts for both?"

"Ah, only the one, I am afraid."

"Yeah, I wouldn't be able to take it. If it were me, I'd demand two sets of gifts each day." She took a second slice of cake, but then eyed Lenz inquisitively. "You gonna take a slice? This is your cake. I'd feel bad eating it all."

"Er, yes. Yes, I will." He hastily took a slice for himself and chewed thoughtfully. His mouth felt dry, and he had trouble swallowing the sugary dessert. The cake was growing smaller and smaller. He relaxed his nerves by toggling the Comparator, clicking the light off and on.

"Really, Lenny. I don't get how you find that stuff relaxing." Teal pointed at the Comparator as she finished her second slice and started on her third. Lenz was forced to take another to not look suspicious.

"I just find redstone fascinating." Lenz shrugged helplessly.

"Meh. I can never get into it."

"You do share a past with it, though." Lenz pointed out, making Teal put on a grumpy pout and stuff another slice of cake into her mouth. "Deny it all you wish, but, even if just for a fleeting moment, you had a passion to learn it. Really. If you open your mind, you will find that redstone is a lot more versatile than you give it credit for."

Of course, Teal rejected such a notion. "Nerdstone is for nerds. You wanna be one? Fine. But don't drag me into it. I was a fool to waste my time on such a whim. I found my true calling hunting Crafters." She grinned over the cake at him. "Speaking of which, have you given my invitation to the Survival Games any-?"

"But anyone can learn redstone!" Lenz interrupted earnestly as he leaned over the nearly-finished cake. "You proved how clever you can be, Larkspur. You outsmarted an engineer. You can learn anything I can learn."

"No, no, no. That is different. Street smarts over book smarts." She hastily denied.

"Smarts are smarts. You just need an easily digestible lesson. Here! I can give you one." He gestured to the Redstone Comparator. "The Redstone Comparator is a redstone device useful in-"

"Oh, wow! Is that the time?" Teal hastily stood up and pulled out a clock that she hadn't been checking before. "I gotta go do some, uh, paperwork. Yeah." She excused herself from the redstone lecture, hoping to get out of there fast. Her hand reached down for the last slice of cake.

"You are taking the last slice for yourself?" Lenz asked sharply, stopping her. "You said yourself it is my Spawnday cake."

Teal looked like she was caught in a wrongdoing. "Oh, ah. How many slices did you have?"

"Two."

"Fuck, I had four. Alright." She pulled back her hand with an unhappy sigh. "I burn up food fast, sorry. Last slice is yours. I'll bring another cake over to make up for it."

Lenz smiled. "I would like that. Thank you for being so considerate."

"Yes, yes. I am transcendentally magnanimous~ Praise me more~" Teal grandstanded before exiting through the iron door. She waved goodbye to the nerd through the barred window before walking out of sight down the corridor. Lenz got up and pressed his face against the bars just to listen to her footsteps die away.

He silently counted a solid minute after she was gone before scrambling into action.

"Have a good Spawnday you fucking sellout..." Dwight insulted weakly from his cell. "I hope that cake was worth it..."

"Oh it was." Lenz whispered to himself with a kind of nervous excitement. "It certainly was."

She thought she brought him a bed, a Comparator, and a cake, but what Teal really brought the engineer was deus ex machina - god in a machine.

He wasn't a Sagittarius, and his Spawnday wasn't really December 13th. He was an Aquarius (ironic given his aversion to deep water), and his real Spawnday was February 12th. He just said that it was today so that Teal would gift him everything he needed to escape. He would have preferred to place the cake himself, closer to the door, but he could make do. Teal may have eaten most of it, but she left him with one sliver of cake. One slice.

One slice was all the engineer needed.

Lenz pulled out the gray bed placed against the wall and collected his Redstone Comparator and all the excess food Teal had provided him during his imprisonment. He took anything not nailed down; anything he could use. He then placed the Comparator beside the sliver of cake, facing towards the door.

The other two torches of the Comparator lit up for the first time, matching Lenz's hope.

He really hadn't been lying. The Comparator couldn't generate a redstone signal. Not on its own. It could, however, measure certain block states behind it as power sources and output a signal proportional to the block's state. He learned that in his third year of college. You would usually see Comparators paired with chests, hoppers, furnaces, and item frames.

Lesser known was the Comparator's ability to measure cake slices. A full cake, when placed beside a Comparator, could generate a signal strength fourteen blocks long. A single slice would be a fraction of that distance, only two blocks long, but it still provided a source of power, and passing it through a Comparator matched the signal strength, keeping it at two. That iron door was only three blocks away. Two now with the Comparator extending the signal. If Lenz could carry the signal the remainder of the way, he'd get the door open.

"Redstone is quite versatile, is it not, Larkspur?" He whispered to himself.

There had been stories of cakes being used to smuggle in miniature rock hammers or files for prisoners to escape with, but in this case, the nearly-finished cake was the instrument of the engineer's escape.

Lenz checked on the patrolling cultists in the corridor to make sure it was safe before proceeding with the next step of his escape plan. He was able to place the bed on top of the Comparator. In the case with half-blocks like the Comparator, there was no space for a block to exist with the Comparator's torches in the way, so blocks placed atop it would hover another half-block up. It would appear like it's floating, and that was exactly what the bed did. However, even though it was floating, unsuspended by anything, it was still very much stable.

Lenz used the last slice of cake like a step (it somehow didn't crush the cake), then hoisted himself onto the floating bed. It was springy. Good. Lenz stood shakily on the bed as the springs pushed back. He stood to his full height, then tilted his head back to look at the ceiling.

The lit redstone lamp was a lot closer now. He started jumping on the gray bed, the springs bouncing him and maintaining a good height as he swung his fists at the lamp, breaking it a little bit at a time.

"No Beginner...

*jump*

"will ever..."

*jump*

"let you down...!"

*smash*

The cell was bathed in darkness the second Lenz broke the lamp, which fell onto Lenz's face and got absorbed into his nearly-empty Inventory. The only light came from the corridor outside as it streamed through his barred windows. With his ability to see diminished, Lenz stumbled in the dark and slipped off the bed, banging his knee painfully upon the floor. Though his eyes watered beneath his yellow tinted glasses, he bit back his cry of pain and felt blindly along the floor until he found the Comparator. Then he felt in his backpack for the lamp he picked up and set it down beside the Comparator.

The redstone lamp lit up now that it was getting its signal from the cake, and the cell was once more swathed in light. In addition, the lamp - an opaque block - had now become a 'strongly-powered' opaque block after having the Comparator's signal pass through it, meaning it could now power adjacent redstone dust, as well as other redstone components. The same could be done with Redstone Repeaters. Lenz learned that in his first year.

Now he only needed to carry the signal one more block to the door. Fortunately for him, breaking the redstone lamp had dropped something else. Something he had been hoping for.

Maybe the cultists who built these cells felt it was too risky to place any redstone torches or blocks of redstone as power sources right above the lights. Instead, they opted to power them by placing a trail of redstone dust above them.

Their mistake. Because when Lenz broke the lamp, a single item's worth of redstone dust fell with it, landing on the floor. Lenz easily found it in the illuminated room and snagged it before placing it in the last space between the lamp and the door. The dust lit up.

The iron door swung open.

Summa Cum Laude. Lenz thought proudly before sneaking to the threshold of the opened door and looking both ways. Two black-capped cultists were patrolling opposite ways of his door. They hadn't heard it open.

Lenz scurried across the corridor and opened up Perry and Dwight's cells with the levers before going into Perry's. The Paragon was prone on the floor with his arms and legs bent at sickening angles, but his eyes widened to the size of saucers when he saw Lenz was free and got his cell open.

"How - How did you escape...?"

"I did my homework." Lenz remarked with the badass one-liner he thought up half-an-hour ago for just this moment. He knelt down with food and shoved a piece into Perry's mouth. "Eat fast and heal your limbs. I need to do the same for Dwight."

Lenz didn't wait for a reply as he didn't have a lot of time. None of them had any weapons, and the patrolling cultists were armed. He needed a bow and arrows.

He went into Dwight's cell and gave him some food as well. Dwight was just as baffled as Perry over how the nerd engineered his escape, but he obediently chewed his food to fix the damage Teal had done to his limbs. With his Hunger Meter full, Lenz saw his Hearts start to tick back up.

"I don't believe it..." Dwight muttered in breathless disbelief. "How did you break out...?"

"I told you. No Beginner will ever let you down." Lenz promised before glancing back to the corridor cautiously. He was thinking fast and pragmatically. Three unarmed Crafters weren't going to be enough to make an escape. They needed more hands. He turned back to Dwight. "When you can move, and it is convenient for you, come find me."

"When it's convenient-? Lenz! Where - what are you doing!?" He hissed, immobile and healing, as Lenz made for the door and peeked out into the corridor again.

The black-capped cultists were still facing away, but they were about to turn and make their rounds. Lenz moved in a sideways gallop to the next iron door down, flicking open the lever and hissing at the prisoner within to get moving. There was a noise of astonishment before Lenz flicked the lever of the next cell. Then the next. Then the next.

Then he was at Lathrop's.

"Psst! Bird of Prey!" Lenz hissed as he flicked the lever of the door.

Lathrop - the Snowy Sabrewing - was curled up against the wall, his arms and legs still broken from Teal's earlier tantrum. Lenz hurried inside and knelt beside the barrel-chested man before holding out the last of Teal's food to his mouth.

"Please, eat! We need your help to escape! We need a big fighter!" Lenz urged. Lathrop's violet eyes stirred slightly as he smelled the cooked meat. "You are a Bird of Prey, correct? So am I. The Gray Eagle, taught by the Golden Hawk." He twitched, recognizing the name. "The Birds of Prey are not dead. Not unless we let them. Are you going to let it end like this?"

"N-Noooo..." Lathrop growled before tearing into the cooked meat with his teeth. His Hunger Meter refilled, and his Hearts started ticking up.

"Good." Lenz encouraged, feeding him the rest of the food. "I am a skilled archer, but I am not helpless without a bow. I have redstone to fall back on. You better have some strength to fall back on, because I cannot win a fistfight to save my life!"

"Hey... HEY!" A furious voice howled from the corridor. A cultist. "Why are there prisoners out!?"

"Heal up fast!" Lenz gave a parting remark before running back to the cell door and sliding out into the corridor. The patrolling cultists had gathered on either side and were closing in on the prisoners he had released. Three coming from one end, four from the other. The prisoners were racing to open the closest cell doors of the other prisoners, as they all had a miserable confinement in common, making them look out for one another.

It looked like the cultists had potion experience, though. Most likely they were members of Lieutenant Mark's subdivision. They threw out Splash Potions of Poison and Harming, killing and injuring many without bothering to recapture. In the case of escapees, the cultists took no prisoners.

All the prisoners could do was back up as the cultists closed in from both sides. Lenz figured this might happen. Freeing the prisoners was only meant to buy time, and it looked like they had bought just enough. A fully healed Perry and Dwight barreled out of their cells before riling up the remaining prisoners into attacking the side of the corridor with the least number of cultists.

"Charge! They can't stop us all!"

"You wanna get out of this shithole? Then charge, men! CHARGE!"

"CHAAAAAARGE!" They all shouted in unison, though Perry and Dwight hung back a little to use the first wave of prisoners as a shield. Only after the cultists threw down their first salvo of splash potions did the Paragons surge past the poisoned and dead and tackled a cultist each. That allowed the remaining prisoners to overrun the line and start dishing out damage.

"Oh, shit! They're breaking through!" One female cultist panicked from the other side of the corridor.

"Forget the small fry! Take out the one with the glasses!" Another advised. "I heard he's the Darker Billionth's right-hand man!"

"Redstone Lamps, who made that up!?" Lenz shielded his head and ran away as they started raining arrows at him and missing because they had no skill. A few arrows struck past him into the floor, which he scooped up.

"Ah! My weapon!" The cultist Perry was pummeling protested as his loaded crossbow was ripped away.

"Nerd! Here! Do your thing!" Perry yelled before sending the crossbow Lenz's way with an underhanded toss. Lenz caught the crossbow and pointed it at the cultists in one fluid motion before firing and nailing an eye. The cultist howled in pain, and Lenz hurriedly hunched over to pull back the string and reload.

A giant hand eclipsed his own.

"Mind if I take a turn, Gray Eagle?" Lathrop asked, the barrel-chested man now fully healed. Lenz let go of the crossbow and let the Snowy Sabrewing take it. "Spare some arrows?" Lenz held up the five he managed to snag from the cultists' missed shots, but Lathrop only took two. "Should suffice." He noted calmly before sucking in a great breath and roaring a battlecry with a fierce, open-mouthed, demonic smile. The cultists recoiled from the intensity before one caught Lathrop's arrow in the arm.

Lenz was about to see the Snowy Sabrewing in action. And how did the Snowy Sabrewing fight? Not like an archer.

Lathrop charged recklessly at the four cultists, reloading the crossbow with the strength of one hand and shooting a splash potion out of one cultist's grip. The potion shattered on the floor, spreading its Poison effect amongst the cultists. It disorganized them enough to allow Lathrop to get up close, but now he had no more arrows. He rectified this by reaching for the arrow sticking out of the arm of the cultist he shot and wrenching it out with great force, causing the cultist to scream in agony before it was cut off as Lathrop rejammed the arrow down the cultist's throat. Then he brought it back and stuck it into the cultist's eye.

He was using the arrows like melee weapons, combining archery with close-combat. Whenever he was done stabbing, he'd load the arrow into the crossbow and shoot someone before violently retrieving that same arrow and performing quick and precise stabs to a foe's vital areas. Lenz had never seen a style of archery like it before. Could it even be called archery!? It was a way to have archer's cover their greatest weakness: Close range.

A normal arrow would break under such violent handling, but arrows in Minecraftia couldn't break, making it a viable, if unorthodox, combat strategy.

It wasn't just that, however, as the Snowy Sabrewing, when he was without any arrows, swung the crossbow like a blunt flail, bludgeoning one female cultist and knocking her down for the count. The jagged mechanisms of the crossbow raked across the cultists' bodies, doing damage akin to a medieval mace. Normally, the delicate, finely calibrated bits of a crossbow could not be swung so recklessly without suffering damage, but, again, in Minecraftia, it was different. They only used up durability when they were fired. Lathrop likely used bows in a similar melee style.

Despite being outnumbered four to one, Lathrop was able to take them all out in the time it took Perry, Dwight, and the other prisoners to dispatch their three cultists. The patrolling guards were all killed and their weapons, food, and gear commandeered. Perry and Dwight each laid claim to swords and armor, while Lenz was given a spare crossbow (he would've preferred a standard bow) and twenty arrows. The other prisoners took their time freeing those that remained until everyone was free. Thirty-five prisoners, including Perry, Dwight, Lathrop, and Lenz. Seventeen prisoners had died, their Heads burned respectfully by Perry while the cultist Heads were left to rot.

"Many thanks, little one." Lathrop gave a slight bow to Lenz. "If it's alright with you, I think I will hold onto this crossbow for a little while."

"Er, of course. Go ahead. But, if I may," Lenz began, "what do you call that melee style you used?"

"It's a style of my own design. I call it Kyūdō, or Martial Archery." He explained. "It's sort of my thing."

"I would say it works."

"What are we standing around for!?" One of the prisoners hissed urgently. "We need to clear out of here before a cultist comes back - or worse, Teal herself!" There was a ripple of frightened assent from a majority of the prisoners.

"Let them come." Lathrop accepted with a feral glint in his violet eyes. "I shall pay back their insolence a thousandfold."

"With just a crossbow and two arrows?" Dwight asked skeptically.

"Larkspur and Abyssmal must be made to pay!" Lathrop raged. "I will not run away like a tiger with its tail tucked between its legs."

"You won't have to. We got backup on the way."

"Do we not need to locate an ender chest, first?" Lenz asked. "To retrieve our linked maps and give the Paragons coordinates-?"

It was then that Dwight and Perry revealed that they already got a message out to the Paragons through their Morse Code blinking. Lenz went slack-jawed.

"You mean my brilliant escape was all for naught!?"

"Not for naught. We're out." Dwight clarified. "When the siege happens today, the cult can't make any last-ditch bids with us as leverage anymore. We have the advantage."

"How are you so sure the siege will happen today?" A prisoner asked doubtfully.

"There's no better time for it with half the Eastern Division on a field trip." Perry reasoned. "We just need to hold out until the cavalry comes. Although..."

"Although what?"

Perry considered things a moment. "We could make our way to the Portal Hubs and sabotage them in a preemptive strike."

"Uh-uh. No way. I'm not staying a second longer." A prisoner refused. "Thanks for rescuing me, but I'm going home to my wife."

"Same here. I wanna forget this nightmare."

All the prisoners aside from Dwight, Perry, Lathrop, and Lenz wanted to leave. Their plan to do so was to break through the underwater glass corridor and make a swim for the surface.

"You know how deep we are? You'll drown if you can't make it up. And what about the Guardians and Drowned floating out there?"

"We'll take our chances." One prisoner assumed the leadership role. "What do you say, men? Ready to swim for it?"

Only half of them agreed. The other half felt that, if a trained army of Paragons was rushing in to rescue them, then staying put and waiting for their arrival was the safest plan. They were content to stick with Lathrop and the Paragons.

"We can't babysit you all." Dwight made clear. "Perry's right. We infiltrated this place because we had a job to do, and until that job is done, we can't run away."

"It is not running away. You did your job splendidly. They only know where to attack thanks to you." Lenz hastily insisted. He wanted to leave that underwater hellhole as soon as possible. That and get away from the nuclear fallout that would be Teal_Larkspur. "Look. We can escape this place and give the Paragons ease of mind that we're free. We can help with the siege a safer way, once we have totems, and I can fight at a distance, and I am ensconced amongst our troops. Please."

"You should come with us." The prisoner who assumed leadership of the escape group offered. "Swim with us to the-"

"I am not swimming, thank you." Lenz answered stiffly.

"Then how do you intend to escape?" Dwight asked.

"Uh..." Lenz drew a blank. There was no way he was going out into that deep dark ocean. That was like escaping one hell through a worse hell, or like having to cut through the perfume department at the mall. "...M-Maybe we can sneak to the exit...?"

"Without getting spotted? Fat chance. We're too deep in." Perry shook his head. "Sorry, Lenz, but the only way out is further in."

"...You think if I lock myself back in my cell, that Teal will notice?"

"Lenz."

"Okay, okay, fine." He reluctantly conceded. The prisoners aiming to make a swim for it didn't wait up. Eighteen of the thirty-five jogged down one end of the stone brick corridor, going for the glass tunnel that would be easier to break and reach the ocean. Whether they drowned or died was on them. "So which target are we going for? The Portal Hubs or the Wither Skull stockpile?"

"We'll go for the hub deeper in." Dwight decided. "I know the way."

"What do we do if we encounter any cultists?" One prisoner asked fearfully.

Lathrop adjusted the grip on his crossbow. "Then we clear a path."

"Couldn't have put it better myself." Perry grinned.

"Must we do this?" Lenz tried one more time, though he was already loading his crossbow.

"No getting out of it. As infantry, we have a job to do." Dwight spoke resolutely with sword in hand. "Let's move people!"

"Just to be clear," one prisoner piped up, "we're only sticking with you to be rescued, and because there is safety in numbers. We didn't sign up to be fodder for the Paragons." Hos fellow prisoners - now escapees - murmured their agreement. "We'll only stay with you until a safe escape route becomes evident."

"And I have my own agenda." Lathrop growled.

"Whatever. We'll take point. Just be ready for a fight." Dwight told them as the group of seventeen escapees filed out of the other end of the corridor. "No chance of us avoiding one."

[Cobb]

[FEELING TENSE?]

[OBVIOUSLY.]

[SORRY. I'M TENSE TOO.]

[IT'S THE WAITING]

[SOUTHERN DIVISION WORSE.]

[HOW SO?]

[SOUTH WAS BIGGER. LESS PARAGONS. DIDN'T HAVE FLEET. WAS JUST US.]

[YOU WON, THOUGH. CARYS WON.]

[WE LOST PEOPLE.]

[WON'T LOSE LENZ.]

Z7 nodded, jotting down her next short sentence, which I translated a little faster now that I was getting accustomed to the letters. [I KNOW.]

We were in the Icarus lead ship. The two of us spent the whole flight passing the book between us and deciphering our intentions from a few translated words. It helped make the time go by, but it did little to settle our nerves. We were both twitchy and ready for action, both of us wanting to eliminate the Eastern Division and rescue our friend. My friend, her boyfriend.

We sat side by side on the floor while the troops surrounding us did final preparations on their gear. Our gear had long since been set, so we just waited. Nobody disturbed us. They knew we were among the top fighters from the Captains. We each had on a set of armor that was designed to be Teal-proof and Abyssmal-proof, despite the Executive's reported absence.

Our fleet of airships was ascending to a suitable altitude before we passed over the drop zone. We were using the clouds for cover, the idea being to buy as much time before the cultists realized the hammer that was above them. Captain Paolo and his troops were making their way to the secret entrance on the beach. It was all coming together.

I looked out and saw Neiro talking to Daisy, Milton, Trenay, and Eustace. She handed a bottle of some Thick Potion back to Milton and bowed her charred head in apology. She looked to have sobered up too. Daisy and Milton looked cross with her, but they had her lift her head before they seemed to make up. They must've understood, to some extent, that she was suffering a lot with her face like that. As long as she was willing to fight without dying in a blaze of glory, they were ready to let bygones be bygones.

I wrote something else in Jibberish in the book before passing it to Z7.

[THIS GOOD SIEGE. BETTER THAN CARYS'. WILL MAKE SURE.]

As she read it, I looked out the window at the vast ocean below. Lenz was somewhere down there, and I had to get him out. My fist tightened as I thought about Erin, the friend I couldn't save. Lost to the cult. I even thought about Jade, another friend(?) I couldn't save. Also lost to the cult, I guess. Gazing around the loading bay at the gathered troops, I had to wonder how many of them lost friends to the cult, and how that loss drove them to make this one unified stand.

Z7 nudged the book into my side, having read my words. She responded with some of her own.

[WINNING ISN'T CONCERN. THIS FEELING HURTS. NEVER FELT BEFORE.] She clawed at her chest and gnashed her teeth through her curtain of hair. [TERRIFIED FOR NERDLING. NEVER BEEN THIS WORRIED. NEVER KNEW WORRY COULD HURT THIS BAD. HURTS WORSE THAN WOUNDS.] She was violating the three-word-sentence rule we had been following for ease of translation, but then there was surely a lot she was feeling. She had no way of expressing it through anything but that book.

[I'VE BEEN THERE.] I answered back, feeling hollow. [WITH JADE.]

[HATE THIS FEELING.] She scowled, still clawing at her chest.

This time, I broke the three-word-sentence rule. I wrote carefully, making sure not to make a mistake.

[IT ONLY HURTS SO BAD BECAUSE THE LOVE FELT SO GOOD. WOULD THAT YOU COULD LOSE ALL THAT HURT BY LOSING ALL THAT LOVE?]

The reply was instant.

[NOT ON YOUR LIFE.]

I smiled as I read her words before scratching the quill on the paper.

[LENZ IS A LUCKY GUY. IF I CAN'T SAVE HIM, YOU HAVE TO.]

[I WILL.]

[OKAY.] I passed her the book for the last time before I stood up and withdrew my Riptide trident. We were in the drop zone now. [I'M GOING FIRST.]

Z7 looked between the book and me before bolting to her feet. "Dszg? Svb! Dszg ziv blf wlrmt? Blf'iv mlg ivzoob-!"

I ignored the confusion from the troops as I kicked open the loading bay doors and allowed wind to whip through the airship's interior, blowing everyone's clothes and hair into disarray. None more so than Z7's curtain of locks as she stood to watch me leave. Baltic and Trenay might've said something, but I couldn't hear them over the wind.

Not that I would've listened.

I wasn't violating or ruining anything. This was their siege plan. I was just the opening act.

I jumped out of the airship and spread my arms and legs out as I skydived hundreds of meters down. The clouds surrounding me cleared up, allowing me to see the vast blue ocean. Beneath which was the Eastern HQ.

The tension inside me was broken. I was finally doing something with all my pent-up worry. I was hurtling downward at terminal velocity with my trident in hand. I was going to fuck. Shit. Up.

I wonder if this is what Carys felt before she exterminated the Southern Division. I thought to myself as the water came up fast. I downed a Potion of Water Breathing, then a Potion of Slow Falling. My hurtling velocity slowed to a gentle descent just before I hit the water, and when my body was fully submerged, I launched one of my Riptide III tridents and corkscrewed downward. I kept Quickswapping to new tridents in either hand, using the Riptide to propel myself further down, to where the light of the sun couldn't penetrate. Any Guardians that moved to impede me were quickly blended to bits.

My last attack on an Endward Cult base was a stunning failure. This time was going to be different. I wasn't the same stupid kid.

I drank from a Potion of Night Vision when it became too cumbersome to see. The difference was like night and day, as the undersea world came alive with vibrant light blues. I could see the stone brick and glass corridors of the Eastern HQ. I had no trouble navigating the water with my Riptide, Water Breathing, Night Vision combo, so I continued my descent, corkscrewing towards what may be my toughest fight yet.

Hang tight, buddy. Help is on the way!

[Eastern Division HQ: Prison]

Lenz's second Spawnday cake toppled out of Teal's numb hands and was squashed underfoot as she gazed at one of many vacant cells. The cell she peered into had the only accompanying lever not active. The redstone signal came from within. From a slice of cake, a Comparator, a floating bed, a redstone lamp, and a single iota of redstone dust.

The look Teal wore upon discovering Lenz's open cell door and the lit Comparator within was one that indicated a drop in sanity. Anyone who saw her would steer clear of her with a face like that. She was seething. Her face darkened. Her pupils and irises constricted into tiny pinpricks. The hand she had resting on the slats of the open iron door tightened, cracking the metal.

Teal dropped out of college because the nerds around her made her feel stupid. Once again, she was made to feel the weight of her own stupidity at the hands of a nerd and his nerdstone.

"Did he just freaking MacGyver a battery out of CAAAAAAAAKE!?"

Teal ripped the iron door clean off its hinges and whipped it across the corridor, where it noisily clattered to a stop. Her expression was demented.

She started to think today wasn't Lenz's Spawnday!

"Nerds just keep making me feel stupid..." She muttered to herself, half-crazed. "Just keep on flaunting their smarts... Putting me down... You try to do something nice for someone... And after I sang him Happy Spawnday..."

Her sanity nosedived further as she remembered what Mark and Abyssmal had warned her about playing with her food. This was her fault. She'd disappointed Mark, even after he warned her not to be careless. This was a colossal fuck-up.

Her madness and instability and fear of disappointment nearly snapped her mind like a twig before she grabbed one of her fingers and broke it. The sharp crack of pain dulled the spike of lunacy and brought her back to her usual boisterous mental state. Her smile was wide and full of teeth, her pupils sharpening like a predator.

"Okaaaaaaay~" She drew out the word as she cracked her finger back into place. Her eyes strayed to the long corridor where her 'contestants' had wandered off. "Looks like we're starting the Survival Games a little early, and with a different venue~"

She drank deeply from a Potion of Swiftness before sprinting down the corridor with murder in her heart.

The hunt is on~! She sang in her head. And we'll see how good an engineer Lenny is after I PULL HIS FUCKING ARMS OFF~!

[Eastern Division HQ: Corridors]

As Dwight predicted, a fight was inevitable.

The seventeen escapees first encountered cultists in the glass corridor outside their prison. Dwight, Perry, and Lathrop dispatched them up close, while Lenz kept at the back and helped at a distance. Whenever they dropped arrows, Lathrop would take some and generously throw Lenz the rest. The Gray Eagle had earned a bit of the Snowy Sabrewing's respect as a fellow Bird of Prey.

The other escapees did what they could. Not all of them were trained in combat, but they were all beefy guys and girls as per Teal's criteria for her Survival Games. They had a lot of weight to leverage against the thinner cultists.

The bands of cultists the escapees encountered were in groups of five or six, meaning the numbers were favorable. After nearly eleven of these encounters, the escapees made significant progress towards the Portal Hubs and away from the prison. No one was out looking for them yet.

That changed when a sing-song voice sounded from the stone brick floor. There were speaking tubes in the floor; small open divots from which sound could reverberate and be heard.

"Attention all cultists~!" Teal's voice echoed from the speaking tube. "My Survival Games prisoners have escaped~! Remain calm. Form groups of fifty or more and take position at key intersections and corridors. Do not let them reach the Portal Hubs or our Wither Skull stockpile."

"Aw, balls!" Perry exclaimed.

"There should be no more than fifty-two escapees, and they should only be armed with the scraps they've picked up from the cultists they've picked off. The important thing is not to panic. Except for you, Lenny~" Lenz shivered at being called out. "You can panic all you want 'cause I'm gonna pull your arms off~ Rip them right the fuck off~💙!" Lenz recoiled, hugging his arms and wearing a doomed expression. "Hmhmhmm~ Try to make it fun for me~ See you sooooon~!"

The speaking tube went silent.

"Wow. She's gonna beat your ass." Perry added unhelpfully before the group sped up. The HQ would be on high alert now.

"If he's her target," one escapee posed the question, pointing at Lenz, "shouldn't we get as far away from him as possible?"

"You know, you're right." A few escapees agreed.

"You think you'll have a chance without us as your best fighters!?" Perry yelled at them challengingly. "Splitting up makes us easier to pick off! They're setting up checkpoints!"

"When is this siege supposed to start!?"

"Soon!" Dwight insisted. "Just keep moving!"

But it wasn't long before they came to a four-way intersection that had a large group of cultists barreling towards them. They were forced to take a detour towards the cafeteria.

"The cafeteria!? Really!?" Lenz criticized. With the number of cultists there, they would be vastly outnumbered.

"It's the only way we got! Just make for the other side!"

They burst into the cafeteria where hundreds of cultists were there waiting for them. They fired bows and charged with swords. The escapees with shields raised them to block, while Perry, Dwight, and Lathrop did all they could to fight them off.

Lenz spun around towards the door they just came through and called some escapees to help barricade it. The pursuing groups of cultists that chased them this way would soon flank them. They used obsidian and cobblestone blocks to block the way, then added a liberal layer of lava. It would buy time, but not for long.

Lenz then spun with his crossbow and shot a cultist about to decapitate Dwight. He bent down and anchored the crossbow with one foot before pulling the string back with both hands. He wished he was strong enough to load it with one hand like Lathrop.

Splash Potions were thrown, and those without shields fell back as their skin burned angrily from Poison. Lathrop was the most ferocious, jamming arrows into anyone that got close and handling a fair share of cultists. But he was only one man. Dwight and Perry worked as a team, but even they were being pushed back. There were also other entrances from which cultists were pouring in.

And then, when he thought things couldn't get much worse, he felt true despair.

"Leeen-ziiing-tooon~!"

Lenz's blood ran cold as he slowly turned and saw Teal_Larkspur sashay into the room. She smiled and winked at him, and he brought up his crossbow and fired on reflex. The arrow slowed when it came in contact with her Voda Shlem water field, and she merely walked around it.

"Don't let these two-bit grunts come and take your life~" Her smile took a feral edge. "Not before I get to tear you limb from limb~!"

Lenz was ashamed to admit he never truly understood what Cobbert was going through being hounded by a crazy woman. Now he did. Teal was to him what Carys was for Cobbert. A waking nightmare. A belligerent demon that couldn't be stopped. He felt primal fear staring her down, the terror sharpening his vision and giving him heightened focus. His body became flooded with adrenaline, dopamine, endorphins, oxytocin, and serotonin. He could feel his heart beating desperately beneath his chest.

'So, whenever you're sweating over being scared, instead think of how your body is getting ready for what comes next. Fear is your body's way of making yourself stronger.'

He was supposed to be pragmatic and sensible. He knew firing more arrows would yield the same result. He loaded his arrow anyway.

"You got me pretty good, MacGyver," Teal complimented, "but I'll get you back~!"

Teal darted for him, grinning like a loon and ignoring all other escapees, her speed upped by a Swiftness Potion. He had nothing to bypass the Voda Shlem. The light-blue leather cap she wore would slow down any projectiles or attacks made. If he had rockets, he might have a chance, as they worked before, but all he had was a crossbow and a couple dozen arrows.

He watched her movements anyway - unflinching and with a laser focus brought on by fear - and took a shot at her center of mass. She strafed wide to the left, sliding past him and taking his back in an instant. Taking a page out of Lathrop's book, he tried swinging the crossbow like a melee weapon, but his movements slowed as if he was wading through water, and Teal playfully limboed under the telegraphed swing before popping back up and grabbing Lenz's shoulder. She brought her face close.

"Getting all these people killed? Tsk tsk, Lenny~" She wrapped her arms around the nerd's waist and linked them together, heedless of Lenz's struggles. "How do you take your face, egghead~? Fried or scrambled~?" She teased before falling backwards and bending her back double to tiger suplex his face into a cafeteria table. He grabbed at his face as he crashed away from her, his tinted goggles feeling like they just got jammed into his brain. He whimpered painfully before feeling a sneaker stamp on his back.

"Should I ship to your girlfriend what's left of you in a box~? I wonder what face she'll make~? Hmhmhmm~"

As Lenz was stamped flat as a frog, Teal's hands seized his wrists and pulled them backwards and apart. She applied more pressure to her foot and tugged with her arms, the strain on his shoulders becoming unbearably tight. He was helpless, and her Voda Shlem would make any attempts on her as slow as molasses. He clenched his jaw as he knew what was coming. She was going to deliver on her promise to pull his arms off. She'd pull the bones right out of their sockets. She giggled.

"Hmhmhmm~ This is gonna hurt you a lot more than it's gonna hurt-"

A spinning torpedo punctured through the glass walls of the cafeteria, sending water gushing in, and struck Lieutenant Teal like a meteor, drilling through her Voda Shlem forcefield without impediment. Her mouth flew open in pain and shock as the three prongs of a trident buried themselves into her halter top covered torso, and then made her spin along with the corkscrewing momentum, away from Lenz.

The momentum carried Teal into a table where her back was bent painfully against it before a hand reached down and slammed her face sideways against the surface. King_Cobb's half-marred face and furious green eyes took up her vision.

"GET AWAY FROM MY FRIEND YOU DEVILISHLY SEDUCTIVE BATTLE JUNKIE!"

Inventory (Cobb): 1 Diamond Sword [Sharpness III, Fire Aspect I, Sweeping Edge III, Unbreaking III], 1 Diamond Pickaxe [Efficiency II, Unbreaking III], 1 Iron Helmet [Thorns III, Projectile Protection IV], 1 Iron Chestplate [Thorns III, Projectile Protection IV], 1 Iron Leggings [Thorns III, Projectile Protection IV], 1 Iron Boots [Thorns III, Projectile Protection IV, Depth Strider III], 26 Obsidian, 6 Ender Chests, 43 Chorus Fruit, 43 Cooked Chicken, 3 Glass Bottles, 64 Oak Planks, 64 Cobblestone, 1 Crafting Table, 1 Furnace, 1 Bed, 30 Blocks of Coal, 64 Torches, 1 Lava Bucket, 1 Water Bucket, 1 Milk Bucket, 64 Snowballs, 64 Snowballs, 11 End Crystals, 16 Ender Pearls, 1 Fishing Rod {Backlash 2.0} [Knockback II, Luck of the Sea III, Lure II, Unbreaking III], 1 Trident {Awe} [Riptide III, Unbreaking III], 1 Trident {Shock} [Loyalty II, Channeling], 1 Trident [Riptide III], 1 Trident [Riptide III], 1 Map {Minecraftia}, 1 Book {Mobs of the Bounty Days}, 1 Book {Citizenship Information}, 1 Green Shulker Box {Pocket Box}, 1 Totem of Undying, 1 Totem of Undying, 1 Totem of Undying, 1 Totem of Undying

Green Shulker Box {Pocket Box}: 35 Eyes of Ender, 30 Blocks of Emerald, 6 Emeralds, 1 Diamond Cutlass, 1 Diamond Helmet [Protection IV, Unbreaking III], 1 Leather Tunic [Dyed Green, Protection IV, Unbreaking III], 1 Diamond Leggings [Protection IV, Unbreaking III], 1 Diamond Boots [Protection IV, Feather Falling III, Unbreaking III], 25 Lapis Lazuli, 64 Books, 64 Glass, 64 Glass, 64 Glass Bottles, 1 Fishing Rod, 1 Fishing Rod, 2 Books, 1 Enchanting Table, 1 Totem of Undying, 1 Totem of Undying, 1 Totem of Undying, 1 Totem of Undying, 1 Totem of Undying, 1 Totem of Undying, 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: 53]

Inventory (Lenz): 13 Cooked Rabbit, 1 Crossbow, 37 Arrows, 1 Bowl, 24 Cobblestone

[EXP: 25]

Inventory (Baltic): 1 Iron Helmet [Protection III, Unbreaking III], 1 Diamond Chestplate [Protection IV, Unbreaking III], 1 Diamond Leggings [Protection IV, 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], 35 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, 32 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 Potion of Slow Falling {4:00}, 1 Potion of Water Breathing {8:00}, 1 Potion of Night Vision {8:00}, 1 Blue Shulker Box {Pocket Box}, 1 Totem of Undying, 1 Totem of Undying, 1 Totem of Undying, 1 Map {Paragon Minecraftia}

Blue Shulker Box {Pocket Box}: 12 Glass Bottles, 64 Dragon's Breath, 59 Dragon's Breath, 52 Blaze Powder, 39 Nether Warts, 30 Soul Sand, 40 Phantom Membranes, 64 Blaze Rods, 62 Fermented Spider Eyes, 39 Carrots, 64 Melon Slices, 64 Rabbit's Feet, 47 Gold Ingots, 17 Gold Nuggets, 62 Gunpowder, 13 Redstone Dust, 64 Glowstone Dust, 64 Ghast Tears, 64 Sugar

[EXP: 32]

Inventory (Z7): 1 Iron Helmet [Thorns III, Projectile Protection IV], 1 Iron Chestplate [Thorns III, Projectile Protection IV], 1 Iron Leggings [Thorns III, Projectile Protection IV], 1 Iron Boots [Thorns III, Projectile Protection IV, Depth Strider 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, 1 Flint and Steel, 1 Crafting Table, 1 Furnace, 21 Charcoal, 39 Torches, 59 Oak Planks, 1 Potion of Slow Falling {4:00}, 1 Potion of Water Breathing {8:00}, 1 Potion of Night Vision {8:00}, 4 Glass Bottles, 1 Cake, 1 Cake, 23 Cookies, 36 Baked Potatoes, 1 Milk Bucket, 1 Bucket, 1 Book {Citizenship Information}, 1 Paper {Gold Citizenship Pass}, 1 Purple Shulker Box {Pocket Box}, 1 Totem of Undying, 1 Map {Paragon Minecraftia}, 1 Book and Quill

Purple Shulker Box {Pocket Box}: 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]

[EXP: 47]

AN: IT'S ON!

I love this Chapter. Or should I say I love this scene. Back at the start of Part VII (around Chapter 200) I had this planned, thinking I'd get to the East Arc sometime during Part VII. Boy was I wrong. Had to shift it to Part VIII. But the idea was, Lenz is trapped in a cell with a locked iron door and nothing on him. How does he escape? I was inspired by those Minecraft escape maps you see on youtube, where there are chests littered around with certain items and you have to use them in a way to craft something or escape.

That's what Lenz does. He fakes his Spawnday to get gifts from Teal, then uses them to 'engineer' his escape. Huehuehue. And I actually tested this to make sure it worked. It did, and I felt so giddy, knowing Lenz would get his Big Brain play in the sun. Summa Cum Laude indeed you brilliant bastard. Maybe it's just my love of redstone shining through, but I adore it when characters MacGyver a clever way out of a solution. It shows how smart and resourceful they are.

Then we have Lathrop's 'archery' style. Kyūdō is an actual Martial arts form of archery, but it doesn't involve using the bows and arrows as melee weapons, as they're designed to be light and flexible and would break if used in such a way. You can think of Kyūdō as its own thing in this world. Lathrop calls it Martial Archery, and it's a technique of his own design. It doesn't need to be associated with real life Kyūdō. Just something I felt I should mention.

The contenders for Cobb's closing line were either 'Devilishly seductive', 'Sinfully Seductive', 'Criminally Seductive', or 'Fiendishly Seductive'. Devilishly just had better vowel and consonant sounds in the sentence, so I went with that.

Using more of the Blue Heart Emojis and Musical Note Emojis for Teal. Note sure if you guys are able to see them, but I add them to add a little bit more to the character's style.

FAV. FOLLOW. REVIEW. PM. FORUM. DISCORD. CANDY CANE.