AN: I DID IT! I got this chapter out before the end of the month!
And you know what else? You can expect another new chapter within the day. Just take some time to give a review. I like reading long reviews.
Though technically I guess I can enjoy that on our discord server. Hm...
Whatever, enjoy.
Disclaimer: I don't own Minecraft. If I did, I'd add video cameras.
Chapter 261
Sinarka Volcano
[Carys]
The two 'guards' found themselves paralyzed and forced into chairs when they awoke, their eyes darting to our stone cold faces in a mixture of outrage and fear.
"W-What is the meaning of this?" One demanded.
"I'll spell it out for you." I replied curtly before looking each of them in the eye and reading their names. "Collin_Kiril." I turned to the other. "Ned_Martins." I addressed. "We know you two are cultists, and you'll tell us what you know. The only question is whether you'll divulge your information before the pain, or after."
"What are you - this is crazy! We're not cultists!" Collin denied.
"Yeah, you've got the wrong guys!"
"Oh, do I? And I suppose the Sinarka Volcano doesn't mean anything to you, either, hm?"
There was no flash of recognition on their faces. "It doesn't!"
"Okay, you wanna play it like that? We can play it like that." I shot back coolly before snapping my fingers. At once, Reuben and Albert brought forth Splash Potions of Poison, making the 'guards' eyes go wide. "Who's your Executive?"
"Y-You can't seriously do this! We're official guards! His Highness would never allow-!"
Ned_Martins' voice devolved into a painful scream as the splash potion broke against his face, burning his eyes like acid. Green particles swirled around him as he screwed his eyes shut, hissing in pain as the poison slowly wore away at his Health Meter.
"Who is your other Lieutenant besides Leadstripe?" I demanded of the other guard while Ned was groaning. Albert held the splash potion aloft as a threat. "Did you assist Leadstripe's escape?"
"I'm telling you, we're not cultists!" Collin insisted, only to get a face full of poison that made his eyes screw shut and his face burn. "Augh! Cease this!"
"I'll stop when I start getting answers." I swore, ready to take things up a notch.
"Carys, this is too cruel!"
Predictably, Notaman had something to say about my torture methods.
"If this is too much for your delicate sensibilities, you can get lost. I don't need you here." I gave him a dismissive gesture, not bothering to even look at him.
"You still haven't told us what makes these guys cultists. They sound innocent."
"Everyone sounds innocent when they're at your mercy." I rolled my eyes. "Ever heard of lying? It's this thing people do when they don't want to tell you the truth."
"But what makes them cultists?"
"BECAUSE I SAID SO!" I rounded on him, bodily shoving him out of my personal space. "If you can't stomach this, get out. You're in the way."
Noman bared his teeth and scowled at me before he got to his feet and darted out of the room. Floyd, Soul, and Ciro exchanged wary looks, finding my reasoning suspicious.
"W-We're... not... cultists!" The guard named Collin repeated between his groans. "We... have served... this bastion... faithfully... for years. What... do we... have to do... to prove it to you?"
"Just tell us the truth and this'll go a lot better for you." Anibal chimed in.
"We're... telling... the truth..."
In response, I took a flint and steel to Ned's legs, burning away more Hearts and setting him ablaze. His screams drowned out the protests from his fellow guard, and the alarm from the Beginners. As quickly as I ignited him, I put him out with a bucket of water.
"Feel like talking yet?" I asked.
"Is this... just because... we couldn't hear what you heard?" Ned shot back, his voice hoarse from shouting it raw. "The... pig squealing...?"
I smacked him to shut him up, but the damage was done. Kal and Anibal shot me wary looks.
"...What is he talking about, ma'am?"
"I know they're cultists." I affirmed before explaining in more detail now that the cat was out of the bag. "For two nights, I came back from flight training and heard pig squeals echoing down these very halls. I heard them loud and clear, but these two, who were with me when I heard them, claimed there was nothing."
"There was nothing!" Collin insisted, earning a kick.
"Quiet! They're trying to get to me." I continued explaining. "They think this'll rattle me, so they're pretending only I can hear these pig squeals. They played deaf. If one of you were with me, you would've heard them too!"
"...You're saying you heard pig squeals?" Ciro questioned just for clarity. "Pig squeals only you could hear. And that's your basis for claiming they're cultists?" He blinked incredulously. "You need better evidence than that."
"What, my word isn't good enough?" I whirled on him. "Either they were playing deaf, or you think I'm the one hearing things. That it's all in my head. Is that what you're insinuating, Ciro?"
"Carys..." Kal tried to touch my shoulder only for me to throw off his arm.
"Don't you 'Carys' me! These two 'guards' are guilty! They're cultists in disguise, and I'm gonna get a confession out of them if I have to use every torture method at my disposal."
As I grabbed my scythe by the diamond blade with the intent of sticking it under some fingernails, the bedroom door was kicked open. In strode an appalled Captain Lizabet in her nightwear, flanked by Noman.
"What in Zipshin's name are you doing to my guards!?" The Captain's coarse, authoritative voice boomed. It had the Beginners and Paragons flinch and look away as if caught doing something shameful.
"C-Captain, help!" Collin yelled with his eyes screwed shut from the poison. "They knocked us out... thinking we're cultists... their leader isn't seeing sense!"
"They're torturing us!" Ned shouted after.
I glared at Noman. "You snitched on me? You slut-"
"Hey, you don't talk to him, you talk to me!" The Captain strode forward. "I have to appreciate Sir Noman waking me up to bring this atrocity to my attention. Since when did His Highness give you permission to torture sanctioned guards over the course of your investigations?"
"When I want the opinion of someone who left Leadstripe to his escape, I'll ask for it." I shot back, the Captain's slate blue eyes narrowing dangerously. They roved to the guilty Paragons behind me.
"You're her subordinates. Did she have any evidence tying these guards to cultist activity?"
I threw my hands up. "If we waited on evidence for everything, nothing would get done! The same as with Ringw-"
"I'm not talking to you! Well?" Captain Lizabet turned back to my Paragons, who could only shift uncomfortably as I added my glare to Lizabet's.
"...No evidence per se." Anibal answered slowly, the traitor.
"So what makes them cultists?"
"...Carys heard, uh, pig squeals, and... and they didn't, um..." Spaatz struggled to try and piece it together, since I didn't give a clear enough explanation. The shoddy reply lent credence to the Captain's argument.
"Interrogating without evidence is nothing more than a witch hunt." The Captain spoke as if it settled the matter. "What sort of confession are you hoping to get from them under torture when they'll say anything to spare themselves further pain? This is crazy, and not how we do things in Exter!"
"Carys' methods may not comply with what you call 'due process', Captain," Reuben conceded, "but they've also aided in the subjugation and extermination of tens of thousands of cultists."
"So this person has never been wrong before?" The Captain stressed. "And you have no reason to doubt her claims?"
Reuben opened his mouth to deny it, but then froze, no sound coming to his lips, as he remembered the wild goose chase that was our hunt for Cobb and the Beginners. I'd been wrong, then. Intentionally, but it planted a seed of doubt that other Paragons, besides Reuben, were unable to refute.
"I'm taking these guards back with me." Captain Lizabet stated her intent clearly. "Unless you can produce a shred of evidence to back your claim, they're to be free of your custody. Administer milk to them. If you refuse, or attempt to stop me from removing them from this place," the Captain drew her iron longsword in one hand and her iron battleaxe in the other, wielding both without straining her arms in an impressive display of strength, "I will force the issue."
"You realize I'm the Angel of Death, right?" I asked mockingly, my hand gripping my scythe handle. "Have you forgotten how our spars went? You don't want to fight me."
"Actually, it's you who wouldn't want to fight me, unless you can think up an excuse for why an Exter Captain got into an altercation over some tortured guards. This'll go straight to His Highness, who I guarantee will not be so sympathetic to your draconian methods."
Time seemed to slow to a crawl. A silence hung in the air as the Captain and I stared one another down. A few days ago, she was cowed into letting us have our free reign after talking big and letting Leadstripe get away. It had been a humbling experience for her, yet now she was biting back. She clearly cared for her guards, even when those guards turned out to be cultists. If this was XoX coming in, demanding their release, I would have called him out as a cultist for sure.
But this Captain seemed more genuine in her outrage. It wasn't phoned in. She just couldn't see that Ned and Collin were cultists, and she would surely cause problems bringing this to Sdraw's attention. He gave us authority with the understanding we would be making his burden less stressful, not more.
So, with great reluctance, I waved my hand to Albert and Reuben, the message clear. They administered milk to the two paralyzed 'guards', while Noman, that bastard, walked up without asking and doused the two in a generous Splash Potion of Healing II. The 'guards' flinched at first, but soon let out noises of relief under the soothing healing effects. They thanked Noman profusely, not just for the potion, but for alerting the Captain of their plight.
He ratted me out. I thought, feeling deeply betrayed. Out of all the things he's done to undermine me, he goes and tattles on me like a kindergartener!?
"I'll take you two back. I'm sorry you had to endure that." Captain Lizabet spoke gently to the two 'victims'. "Had I known sooner, I would have stopped it in a heartbeat. Thank you again, Sir Noman." She thanked him again before sparing a glance at my livid expression. "Hey, if you need a different room to stay, you can bunk with me."
"Thanks, but I'm good." Noman assured. He could tell the Captain was trying to help him out of getting chewed out, but he was ready to accept the consequences of snitching on me. "Just take care of them, Captain. I'll be alright."
"...If you're sure. Okay, then." The Captain nodded somewhat reluctantly. "My door's always open if you change your mind. Don't hesitate to come to me if this happens again."
"I'll keep that in mind. Thank you, Captain, and goodnight."
She nodded and left with Ned and Collin.
Understanding that he had no witnesses, Noman turned and held his hands out. "Now, I know what you're thinking-"
"You ratted me out." I cut off his bullshit immediately, my tone filled with contempt. "I don't believe it. And after I saved your life..." I shook my head after reminding him of when I saved him from Gunnah in the desert. "Has the Captain done as much that you'd side with her over me, the person you're allied with? You're supposed to be on my side!"
"You had no evidence!" Noman shot back, though he showed a bit of guilt being reminded of the Gunnah encounter. "You wouldn't even tell us why they were suspects, and now we know why. You were hearing things that weren't there. Pig squeals, was it? Maybe because you're feeling affected by Baltic's absence-"
"DON'T PRESUME TO UNDERSTAND ME!" I bellowed, my voice loud enough to wake up half the castle. The Paragons cowered at the intensity. "You snitch on me and claim I'm the one hearing things!? You intend to make me look unhinged in front of my guild!?"
"...You're doing a good job of that all by yourself." He countered coldly, enraging me further. For one mad moment, I thought about lunging at him, of hurting him. Hurting him like the way I taught myself to. Like the way I disassembled Cobb on the ramparts of Cloud Castle.
"Mom, Dad, please stop fighting." I was snapped out of my delusions by Soul's half-humorous, half-nervous comment. It was spoken to defuse the tension, even if it had Noman and me glaring at him.
Anibal grabbed Soul's shoulder and turned him around, taking him gently aside and speaking to him like a parent to a child. "There's a time to talk and a time to shut up. Now is the time to be quiet, Soul."
Noman took a deep breath before letting it go and turning to face me again. "Sorry. What I said was spoken out of turn. But you have to admit, torturing those guards under the pretense that they didn't hear something you heard is impetuous. I mean, none of us heard what you claimed to hear. Does that make us cultists too?"
I scowled at him. "So then what are you saying, hm? What's the alternative? Am I to believe I heard something that no one else did? Am I to believe I'm hearing voices that aren't there? I'm not crazy."
"No one's saying you are-"
"What else can it be but that!?" I snapped, my anger rising. "Either I'm hearing things that are there, or I'm hearing things that aren't there! And you seem to have made up your mind on that; you're doubting my decision-making, actively undermining me. You betrayed what little trust I had in you."
"That's not-"
"And you know something else?" I cut him off with a bitter laugh. "I WAS RIGHT!" My hand dove into my belt and whipped out my linked map, brandishing it with vindictive glee. "The hostage trade was a farce, just as I knew it'd be! Jillian finally worked up the courage to send me a message about how it went down! Guess what? Lenzington was never there!" The Beginners breaths hitched at the news. "It was just a Hacker with a disguise ability - one Kal didn't know about!" Kal looked up, surprised. "So we lost another of Nitebane's shields and have nothing to show for it, all because Jillian doubted my judgement! And now you've the gall to question what I'm doing? HA! I'm the only one able to think clearly! You can't afford to doubt my judgement!"
"Wait, so then where's Lenz?" Soul asked.
"Who knows!" I whirled on him. "Maybe he's dead! Jillian seems to think he might be alive on Teal_Larkspur's Survival Island, but I think she's just grasping at straws trying to salvage the mistake she's made. We're one Hacker away from losing all of Nitebane all because she wouldn't heed my judgement. I'm not the leader of the Paragons for nothing!"
Even if Lenzington was still alive, if he was a piece in Teal's Survival Games, he would soon be dead. I couldn't imagine someone like him surviving that, even though I'd never experienced it.
Baltic and I had almost been a piece in those very games. Almost, but we just barely eluded them. Not that the Beginners or Paragons needed to be privy to my past.
"I warned you about further insubordination." I told Noman. "I warned you about the consequences of your own actions."
"I remember. And I'm ready to face them." He assured. "I don't regret bringing it to the Captain's attention. And whatever you'd have me do to make it right-"
"You're to buy me firework rockets and Phantom membranes with your money." I replied readily, making Noman my errand boy bitch. "I want the rockets to have maximum flight duration - three gunpowder for every one piece of paper."
"...Of course."
"I want them immediately. Not after breakfast. Now. I don't care that it's not light out yet. Fetch them and get out of my sight."
"...Sure, Carys. Whatever you need." He replied tonelessly.
"What I need is no traitors." I shot back, speaking not just to him but to all the Paragons who had begun to doubt me. Me! The one who brought them all together under one banner. "And I'm not sure you can deliver, Notaman."
His blue eyes held my glare unflinchingly for a good few seconds before I hastened him out with, "NOW, Noman!" Then he retreated out the door, slamming it shut behind him.
I looked to the Paragons and Beginners, noticing how they averted their eyes under my smoldering gaze. I ignored the tense atmosphere, taking a seat on my bed and making an effort to calm down now that the source of my ire was out of the room.
[Noman]
I figured it was best to just get Carys what she wanted and move on. Luckily, I didn't need to go on some convoluted side quest this time. The paper and gunpowder were easy to obtain from the Testificates - a Cartographer and Wandering Trader respectively. I got twenty-four paper for one emerald, and seventy-two gunpowder for seventy-two emeralds.
The problem came from the Phantom Membranes, something no Testificate sold. I had to look around the marketplace until the wee hours, when I found a shopkeep specializing in Mob drops willing to see me membranes for two emeralds a pop. I bought twenty for forty emeralds, leaving me with seven emeralds. Out of the four-hundred-and-eighty emerald reward for apprehending Leadstripe, all I was left with was seven. Food shopping and Carys' errands had nearly tapped me out.
While I was shopping, however, I heard some interesting news about a commotion during the night, coming from somewhere in the sewers below. More than once, I witnessed squads of guards prying open iron trapdoor manhole covers and lowering themselves down to investigate. Using my knight status, I singled out a squad and asked them what was up.
"We got reports of explosions and rumblings in the sewers." One guard reported. "Captain XoX is spearheading the investigation, but from what we can tell, the Ten Eyes spy guild was the focus."
"...The Ten Eyes?" I asked warily, remembering that the women from last night, Laplap, belonged to that very guild. "Their base was in the sewers? What happened with them? Was there trouble...?"
"There was trouble, alright, just not on our end." Another guard supplied. "Squads all over down there are reporting signs of a fight - a big one. No Heads or gear to speak of, though. Just a bunch of fire and craters. Whoever the Ten Eyes were fighting, it looks to have been a total rout. Bad for them, but I'll be glad to be rid of them."
"The Ten Eyes lost?"
"Unknown. They could've just as easily fled since their sewer base got revealed. I'm banking on that. I mean, those spies were nosey, ball-less assholes, but can you imagine a group of people big enough to decimate the entire spy guild? I can't."
I could.
I wore a troubled expression as I considered the timing of it all. Last night, Laplap tipped us off about the cult's Western HQ being hidden in the Sinarka Volcano. It was done as a punishment to their Executive for failing to comply with the Ten Eyes' unknown demands. And yet, that same night, the Ten Eyes were attacked and either perished or abandoned their base. It sounded too much like an eye for an eye, and I was sure the Endward Cult had exacted their own payback on the spies. My companions would agree with my theory.
"You okay, Sir Nowhere_Man? You look pale."
"No, nothing. It's nothing. Sorry to disrupt you. Be safe, and keep up the good work." I let them get back to their duties and quickened my pace back to the Brimstone Bastion.
Past the front doors, up the stairs, and down the halls, I returned to our shared room to find the Beginners and Paragons gearing up for their scouting mission to the Sinarka Volcano. I made my way to Carys immediately.
"Here." I held out the Phantom membranes and seventy-two crafted fireworks rockets. "I hope you appreciate the money and effort it took to-"
Carys snatched them without a word and proceeded to repair her Wonder Wings on an anvil. It took four membranes to fully patch them up, making them look as good as new. She nodded with a satisfied grin, though she didn't thank me.
Then again, why would she? This was a punishment for snitching on her, conveniently ignoring the fact that she'd been unlawfully torturing those guards on questionable evidence.
I knew I did nothing wrong. That's what mattered.
I then turned to Soul and Anibal, explaining to them about what I heard on the streets about the Ten Eyes. Carys and the rest listened attentively, and they agreed with my theory that the cult and the spy guild fought each other last night.
"Only time will tell whether they were truly eradicated or not." Carys commented. "It's in our best interests if the spies survived, as they'd be willing to share more intel about the cult just to be petty."
"We still have what they gave us on the volcano." I added optimistically. "How far away is it?"
"Oh, that reminds me. Noman. There's one last thing I need you to do as punishment for ratting on me."
I sighed. "What is it?"
"You're not coming with us."
"What!?" I recoiled, looking between Carys' impassive face and the uncomfortable faces of her Paragons. "But... but I'm part of the team! You need me!"
"You're half right. We just need your artifacts, so they can be given to people who won't undermine me at every opportunity. I mean, honestly, why would I bring you along? You ratted me out, you returned me from the Obelisk early, you went after that giant Zombie when I tried to stop you, you doubt my judgement, you never kill anything, you're more invested in an empty knighthood than stopping the cult." She rattled them out one after the other. "There's a million reasons for not bringing you along, but the biggest one is this: I can't stand you. You are intolerable."
"Oh, come on, Carys." Ciro drawled like we were unruly children arguing. "Noman's the most experienced with those three artifacts. It doesn't make sense not bringing him."
"If a fight erupts at this thing, I guarantee you he won't kill a single cultist. He'll be wearing some of the most powerful equipment in Minecraftia, and the most he'll use them for is as a fashion statement. What am I supposed to do with that?" Carys asked rhetorically. "I don't want him there."
"And you want my artifacts."
"Give them to your friends, then!" She threw out airily. "Doesn't have to be a Paragon. I don't care, I just don't want you with us!"
This was vastly different from the Obelisk situation, where I at least got to accompany everyone as a fighting asset. Here, I was being cast off. Carys wanted nothing to do with me.
"So what's Noman supposed to do while we're out scouting?" Floyd asked sharply.
"I am sure he will figure that out." Carys answered indifferently before she sent a harsh, shark-like smile my way. "Maybe he can go do boyscout work with his Captain friend. He trusts her more with my secrets than me."
Something about the way she said that just rubbed me wrong. "You know what? FINE! I'll do just that!" I spoke heatedly as I divested myself of the Severe Shield, the Bottes Zephyr, and the Stivali Magma. "At least I'll be going where I'm appreciated, helping people with Captain Lizabet rather than bathing in the blood of my enemies." I crammed the artifacts into Carys' hands. "There! Be gentle with them, if you even know the meaning of the word 'gentle'."
As I stormed off in anger, I stopped myself when I noticed Floyd, Soul, and Ciro not immediately following. "You guys following or what?"
"...Regrettably." Ciro accepted, moving to follow me. Floyd also looked reluctant, but he ultimately chose to tag along.
Soul remained rooted in place, his mouth thin.
"...Soul?"
"...Can't do it, man." Soul sighed as he stood with Carys and the Paragons. "The cultists are who we're after. Exter needs to solve its own shit."
My mouth hung open in outrage while Carys smirked at the reversal. "We're supposed to help people!" I protested. "We caused Exter's problems!"
"I already got burned helping you yesterday, remember?" Soul pointed out. He showed bits of his armor in his outstretched arms, shaking the individual pieces. "My armor got beat up and nobody from Exter chipped in to fix it. And after they tricked us by not trading us Lenz, we need a win on those bastards. This is the Western HQ we're talking about. This is BIG! We need all hands on deck for this."
"And we just let Exter suffer? They're on the brink of war because of us!"
Soul could only shrug helplessly. "...These are complex, political issues, Noman. I'm a simple man who fights what he sees. I can't fight politics." He gestured to Floyd and Ciro. "They don't wanna do charity work either, but they got you guilt tripping them." Floyd looked away in discomfort. "I'm sorry to tell it like it is, but that's how it is."
I couldn't believe how callous he was being. He himself had a hand in Sandra's death, which catalyzed the whole situation with Akasha's ruin and Exter's supplying of tribute. Yet now, he wanted to turn a blind eye to the people in trouble.
"What a rare moment of you talking actual sense, Soul." Carys praised before handing the artifacts to him. "Just for that, you can go ahead and divvy these up amongst us. Keep 'em all if you like." She offered, not even wanting one for herself. She saw them as too much of a crutch.
Soul picked out the Severe Shield and held it out to Anibal, but she frantically shook her head, her black eyes wide, and looking frightened to touch the thing. Her last stunning failure with it was fresh in her mind. Instead, the Severe Shield went to an eager Spaatz, while Anibal hesitantly accepted the Stivali Magma. The Bottes Zephyr went to Reuben.
I scowled at Soul, more disappointed than angry in him. "Fine. Go with them. Kill plenty of cultists and leave Exter to rot for all you care. Meanwhile, we'll be upholding the peace. Saving lives."
"Just don't come bawling to us when the walls fall down." Carys dismissed cruelly, throwing in a little shooing motion as she bid us to leave. Furious with her, I stormed off properly this time, with Ciro and Floyd loyally, if reluctantly, following along.
I took us straight to the Captain, desperate to lose myself in any gratifying charity work that would make a difference without shedding blood. The Captain had just the thing.
[Cobb]
"Wonder how Anibal is doing?"
I raised a brow at Dwight. The three of us were jogging along the netherbrick highway as it stretched across a dry valley of soul sand. There was a cyan fog all about us, like we were looking at our surroundings through Frost Blue flavored Gatorade. Blue fire dotted the valley, and shapes that looked like fossils of great, big creatures jutted out of the soul sand. We were jogging because we wanted to be clear of a biome that seemed to have a high spawn rate of Ghasts. Some of the highway had been damaged in our attempts to knock the Ghasts' fireballs back into their great, pale faces. The fireballs that went wide and ignited the soul sand valley resulted in blue fire.
"You're worried about her in a situation like this?" I asked incredulously, using my diamond sword to deflect a fireball.
"I'm allowed." Dwight got defensive. "I mean, other than Dawn, I'm her second in command of Team Gamma. Why shouldn't I worry for her? And she's lost Buckner and Devers. All she's got left traveling with her is Spaatz." He looked down, his eyes momentarily losing focus. "I didn't do her any favors getting caught by Teal and winding up here."
"She's fine. Probably busy." Baltic reassured while darting to the left of a fireball that would have hit his face. "By now, they've likely made contact with Straw."
"Who's Straw?" I asked.
"Straw, the King of Exter." Baltic pointed out. "You've never heard of him? He's a staunch advocate of non-aggression, and a humanitarian beloved by his subjects. His aversion to violence reminds me a little of Noman."
"Oh, Carys must hate that." I smiled evilly, imagining her trying to do her thing around two pacifists.
"Stop grinning." Baltic berated. "Anyway, I'm sure Anibal and Carys are up to their necks in work right about now. It's us we need to worry about. Escaping this realm as soon as possible should be our top priority."
Especially since the Bounty Day additions kept throwing curveballs - or should I say Ghast fireballs - at us. At least we were nearly clear of the cyan fog. Up ahead, the soul sand valley ended, and the netherbrick highway once again stretched over netherrack. It was the default biome I had come to identify with the Nether.
"Hey, hey! It's the OG Nether again!" Dwight celebrated as we crossed into the maroon-tinted biome, losing the Ghasts to the soul sand valley. "Finally back in familiar territory, eh Baltic?"
"Familiar isn't always better." Baltic's reply was clipped. "Don't relax your guard."
I got the feeling the old man had a serious problem with the Nether. His extreme reaction when he had to accept we'd have to traverse it was the biggest giveaway, but with every meal break we took - as our meals were our only means of judging the time - he grew more and more disturbed. I thought that nobody more than me wanted to get back to Minecraftia as soon as possible, but Baltic was giving me a run for my money.
Why though? We weren't fighting invincible Mobs. We had a considerable supply of food. And didn't alchemists like Baltic get most of their ingredients from the Nether? Why would he be so averse to it?
Maybe there was bad history involved, and I was too polite to pry into his business when he didn't pry into mine. About Jade.
He'll tell me when he tells me. I thought to myself, deciding to obediently follow his advice to keep my guard up.
My eyes narrowed as I spied a quartet of Mobs with pink flesh up ahead. They were meandering along the netherbrick highway "Hold up." I raised my hand and pointed. "Pigmen. Four of them. So long as we don't attack, though, we can walk right past them."
"Sounds good to me." Dwight agreed, grabbing the shoulder of his sword arm and rotating it in a stretch. "No sense wasting energy."
I thought passing them would be a simple matter, but, upon noticing us, the quartet let out angry squeals and started marching towards us. We stopped in our tracks.
"Why are they aggroed? Why are they aggroed? Why are they aggroed?" Dwight repeated with a hint of panic as he and Baltic raised their swords.
I took a second glance at the Mobs as they got closer, realizing I had called them wrong. They had the pink flesh of Zombie Pigmen, but without any of the sickly green rot and exposed bones. They raised their weapons, which were decidedly less sword-like.
Four arrows sailed our way, and I purposefully acted as a human shield, tanking three in the chest to guard Baltic and Dwight. The last arrow missed, going wide. My Projectile Protection IV armor set made the arrow's damage negligible, and the addition of Thorns III on my armor set ensured that three of the four porcine Mobs took retaliatory damage.
"Not Zombie Pigmen!" I corrected myself, raising my arms to both draw fire and shield the Paragons behind me. "I saw those Mobs in my Bounty Day vision. They're new."
The porcine Mobs were whole and undamaged, wearing dirty brown tunics and shorts, with golden belt buckles. They all carried crossbows, unlike Zombie Pigmen, and they also had droopy pig ears, white eyes, and pronounced snouts and tusks. One of them wore a golden helmet, and another wore golden leggings.
"How dangerous you think they are?" Baltic asked from behind me.
"I mean, we can let them riddle me with arrows and Thorns themselves to death." I suggested, taking another salvo of arrows without batting an eye.
"You can take the abuse?"
"Yeah, this armor set was designed to hold up against Teal and Abyssmal. I'm golden." I scowled and closed the distance, my arms still held out. "T-pose to assert dominance, motherporkers!"
"REEEE!"
Despite outnumbering me and encircling me, it took the Zombie Pigman knockoffs about six shots each to die, leaving behind a couple orbs of EXP that did nothing for my high level. I was a pincushion, but was down only three Hearts, which I easily regenerated from a meal of cooked chicken.
"Nice work." Dwight praised upon realizing the damage I took was barely an inconvenience. "Those Pigmen weren't rotting. Should we just call them regular Pigmen?"
"That might get confusing." I pointed out, not wanting to mix them up with Zombie Pigmen. "How about Swinemen? Or Hogmen?"
"Hogman sounds alright enough." Dwight sighed.
I took out my Mobs of the Bounty Days book. "I'll add it to the list."
"Why add it? They're just Zombie Pigmen with a makeover."
"They're wielding crossbows. That's new." I pointed out. "And have you noticed we haven't seen hide nor hair of a Zombie Pigman since coming here?"
Dwight conceded the point. "That is strange, but then I haven't seen the Mob from my Bounty Day vision yet either. The red, scaled one with the long legs."
"Yeah, but Zombie Pigmen were everywhere in the Nether. We should've seen one by now, but we haven't." I explained, my eyes turning to scan the netherrack landmasses. "It's weird."
"Now is not the time to look for and research these Mobs." Baltic plowed through our musings with determined focus. "The Mobs are cleared. Let's keep moving before more roam in."
"Hey, you don't have to tell me twice." I happily agreed, putting the Hogmen to the back of my mind. Again, Baltic wanted out of the Nether immediately, but I was right there with him in wanting out.
But I recalled he was a lot more relaxed when the plan had been waiting at an existing portal. It was only when we were forced to navigate the Nether that he had an outburst of emotion. He didn't want us moving about the realm.
Didn't know why, but I filed it away for later.
Brain: YURR!
[Soul]
It took about half a day to reach the volcano, and that was with the horses Carys requested from King Sdraw and the Brimstone Bastion. Six horses for six people, and the wings for herself. Being faster with her wings and rockets, she went ahead to do some reconnaissance, planning to fly overhead and use a new item Anibal crafted for everyone out of amethyst shards and copper ingots called a [SPYGLASS]. It could be used like a telescope to view far away things like they were close up. It was like having Lenz vision.
And now I was thinking about Lenz. Great.
He's gonna be fine. I told myself, thinking about the fleet of airships going to check possible locations of that whackjob Teal's sick Survival Games. Jillian's theory was that the nerd was there, fighting for his life. Everything'll be just fine. The nerd's resilient when he needs to be.
I wanted to discuss it more with Floyd or Noman, but I was the sole Beginner amongst the Paragons. We split off into pairs and encircled the volcano to conduct reconnaissance, coordinating and checking in via map messages. I was with Anibal, Kal was with Albert, and Reuben was with Spaatz. With Noman, Floyd, and Ciro not with us, we were down some heavy hitters. If our scouting mission turned into a fight, we'd have a tough time.
Anibal, however, craved a fight. Her EXP levels were at an all time low after enchanting her crossbows and a fresh set of diamond armor. I could see the difference in how she slogged carrying her gear; it was heavier on her now, and she no longer had the EXP strength to carry it. She needed the Western Division to be in that volcano, so she could slay them and harvest their EXP. Bump her levels back up.
And I wouldn't say no to more levels either, even if it meant upsetting Noman. I needed them to wield my Cleaver efficiently.
I was playing with my pets, watching Axolittle flop around on dry land before bucketing it back up. Anibal glanced down at her map blip, seeing it flashing. Under the shadow of an obsidian chunk, she laid down and peered through her spyglass towards the volcano. Then she went back to her map and sent out a message.
"No change." She spoke the message aloud before rolling on her side and resting her chin on her palm. "There's been no response from the volcano."
"Not like it can erupt."
"You know what I mean. The cultists aren't setting up a response, or doing anything. And if anything is gonna erupt soon, it'll be Mt. Carys. You gotta get that pacifist under control." Anibal frowned to herself. "Carys has been growing increasingly agitated of late. Her stress levels are through the roof, and Noman is only making it worse."
I paused, wondering how to field such a request. "Look, I'm all for putting the mission first - I'm here and not with them, aren't I? - but you gotta admit what Carys was doing was unsanctioned torture. And she was being cagey as hell not immediately telling us why those guards were suspects." Anibal averted her eyes, unable to argue. "If she was hearing things the guards couldn't, why not start with that? Why keep it to herself unless she knew we'd doubt her? The Beginners got burned before by you guys blindly believing her word as law. What if this is that?"
"She's not... she's not crazy." Anibal valiantly tried to defend. "Nobody spontaneously starts talking crazy."
"Hey, this is off the record." I reassured her. "None of this will reach her ears. What do you really think?"
Anibal paused for a moment, her expression wary, before she let down her walls.
"...I think she's under a lot of pressure. And that pressure makes her lash out. One time, she hurled me out a window once she found out the Billionth she'd been admiring was Cobb." She sighed. "Some people can go mad being angry. Maybe... maybe it was always beneath the surface. Baltic being gone has only exacerbated things."
"I told you those guys are fine. They'll be back."
"Even Lenz? That nerd is presumably being hunted by Teal, if he isn't already... you know..."
"He's fine. They're all fine. They have to be." I sighed. "Anyway, back to Carys. How did you guys lower her stress levels in the past? What did she do to relax?"
"Usually she just doted on her pig."
"Well, there's your answer!" I exclaimed, surprising the dark-skinned thief. I held up Cat-Face before me by its front paws, its lower body hanging limply as it wore a bored expression. "You just gotta get her an adorable little creature to dote on. Cha cha real smooth." I sang while shuffling Cat-Face's front paws in a little shimmy.
"...Whaaat?" Anibal looked unamused.
"Oh, come on! You saw how she was with Tinker's snow fox. Cooing and wearing the thing like a scarf." Anibal paused as she recalled her leader's behavior. "Deny it all she wants, she's an avid animal lover. Get her something small to pet and care for and her stress levels will go down."
"Yeah, and she'll pummel me for presuming she likes small animals."
"...But she does like small animals."
"That doesn't mean she'll admit to it! She'll see it as a weakness. A vulnerability. Big bad boss ladies don't care for tiny, weak creatures. Only the strong thrive; that's her creed."
"If it'll avert Mt. Carys from erupting, don't you think it's worth a try?"
"Then you buy it for her."
"Psh, I don't wanna get pummeled - Oop!"
"See!? Ha!"
"Well, you'll have more success getting a pet for Carys than I will convincing Noman to pull back on the chivalry. I dunno what it is; it's like the knighthood has lit some fire in him."
"Yeah, I'll just go buy a pet with all that money I don't have." Anibal spoke sarcastically. "And is being a knight so amazing? You can speak of chivalry and loyalty and honor all you want, but at the end of the day, knights are just the king's dogs."
We chatted back and forth for a little while longer while maintaining surveillance on the Sinarka Volcano. Messages were sent and received regularly from the other groups. However, we finally got word of some action when Carys decided to drink a Potion of Fire Resistance and dive in for a closer look. Anibal handed me the spyglass so I could watch the peak of the volcano and see Carys rocket herself into the crater. If what that Ten Eyes spy said was true, the lava filling the crater was just a thin layer, concealing the hollowed out space that was the cult's Western Division HQ.
We didn't wait long, as soon after Carys rocketed in, she sent out a message.
"Intel is good. HQ is here." Anibal read her map with a smile before it devolved into a frown, complete with a furrowed brow. "But there are no cultists on guard. Exploring deeper. Position yourselves closer to the volcano and be on standby."
"She doesn't want us in there?" I asked, already mounting my horse with Christopher Squawken on my shoulder and Axolittle in a bucket of water at my belt.
"She's probably worried it's a trap," Anibal surmised while mounting her horse, "but she wants us in position to join her when she gives the word. Let's get going."
Our horses took off at a gallop, bringing us closer to the imposing volcano.
[Carys]
Just under the crater of the Sinarka Volcano, there was a layer of lava like what the Ten Eyes spy told us. With my wings and Fire Resistamce, I was able to plunge straight through it, unharmed, and come out into a large antechamber for a landing. Looking up, the layer of lava was held up by an interconnected web of signs. The signs held back the lava, but Crafters could pass through no problem. There was a danger there if the signs were ever broken; the lava would fall unhindered and flood the HQ. It was one of the reasons I messaged my Paragons to hold off on entering, in case the cult were up to their old tricks.
The East HQ was under water, and the West HQ was under lava.
Though, there was a noticeable absence of cultists. No one was there guarding the entrance, and there was a set of stairs leading down from the antechamber, made out of pristine, alabaster quartz.
I readied my scythe after sending my map message and crept down the stairs. It led down into a wide hallway, and the quartz building material was nearly blinding. Everything was pristine alabaster. The amount of Nether Quartz required to build it all was mind-boggling. And this was on top of the effort needed to hollow out a volcano full of obsidian and lava.
"Would've taken them decades to build this." I remarked aloud, my voice echoing throughout the empty halls and stairwells. Where the hell was everybody?
The clicks of my footsteps echoed down the halls as I walked them.
*tk tk* *tk tk* *tk tk*
The layout of the place reflected the volcano it was built within, with layers of floors and hallways that grew wider the further down you went, and all connected via multiple stairwells. The higher levels weren't assigned living spaces, but rather utilities and meeting rooms, including a cafeteria, a gym, an auditorium, armory, quartermaster, potion station, library, filing rooms, a treasury, and a place sinisterly labeled 'Western Head Depository'.
However, there was nothing of value in any of these rooms. They all had empty chests, and looked to have been stripped of anything useful. No cultists or spilled gear to be found.
"Clever Executive." I hissed under my breath as I kicked open an empty chest in the Head Depository only to slam it shut in frustration. "Clever clever Executive."
The Western HQ had been cleared out and evacuated, probably the second its mysterious Executive caught wind of the Ten Eyes' intention to leak their base. They picked up all their stuff and left in a hurry, and I confirmed as much when I reached the base levels designated for housing the cultists. Barren rooms and beds, with nothing of value. Intersections of corridors had suspicious campfires, which I assumed the cultists used to burn anything incriminating they couldn't carry. All the files and records in the filing rooms were gone, and their Nether Portal - found in the lowest possible level - was disabled. They left nothing behind; no evidence or trail to follow.
"And here I was hoping to get some exercise. A little something-something to relieve some stress." I spoke to myself while ascending the alabaster levels with a dismayed frown. My scythe was aching for some action. I sent out a map message letting the others know it was safe to come in. I would need their help to investigate every nook and cranny, even though I doubted there was much left to find. They really abandoned a whole HQ, without even trying to defend it.
"Guess my reputation as a Division crusher precedes me." I smirked to myself, pleased that my enemies weren't doubting my capacity like my guild were doing.
With it looking like the Ten Eyes are either dead or on the run, I won't hear from them who the Executive mastermind really is. I thought to myself. Which means we gotta go back to our old plan of investigating the Brimstone Bastion's bigwigs. Maybe have some Paragons surveil Collin_Kiril and Ned_Mart-
"Reeeeee~"
I was torn from my thoughts by that familiar, eerie squealing. I whipped my body around, trying to pinpoint the source, even as it reverberated off the abandoned quartz walls.
"Hmph." I injected some humor into my scoff as I glanced around. "Gotta admire the commitment to the bit." I called aloud, a shark-like smile on my face. "Oh me oh my, I'm sooooo scared by these ghostly pig sounds. How convenient that I'm hearing them all alone again, maintaining the illusion that only I'm hearing these sounds."
"Reeeeee~ CaaaaaaReeeeee~" The squeal continued uninterupted, sounding my name. "CaaaaaaReeeeees~ CaaaReees~"
"And I just so happen to hear this in an abandoned cultist base. You know what, just stop." I called out with a note of exasperation. I even faked a yawn. "You're only embarrassing yourself with these pathetic scares. They don't affect me. You're not gonna convince me I'm going crazy. These sounds are real, not some delusion."
"CaaaReees~! CaaaReees~!" The voice continued to squeal, picking up pitch.
"Oh, yes! Very terrified!" My voice was laden with sarcasm as I prowled forward with my scythe out, trying to pinpoint the source. "Hey, why don't you show yourself so I get a turn scaring you. Would make for a nice change of-"
"CaAaReEeS~!" A different voice - both in timber and tone - squealed in a wavering echo from behind me. I whirled on my heel, my eyes roving over the empty hallway. "CaAaReEeS~!"
It wasn't the same... whatever it was... throwing its voice. The sound came from two sources overlapping, each from a different end of the pristine, alabaster corridor. Both unseen.
I forced a laugh as yet another squealing voice joined the chorus, followed by a forth. Each one vied over the others to be heard.
"Q-Quite a convincing performance!" I cursed myself for my stammer. "You've clearly put a lot of thought into this! But you won't break me!"
"CaaaReees~! CaaaReees~!"
"CaAaReEeS~!"
"CarEEEEEES~! REEEEEES~! REEEEEES~!"
The voices grew louder and louder, bouncing off the walls so that I could no longer tell how many voices were belting out my name in a high-pitched squeal. I swung my scythe wide in an attempt to hit whatever invisible entities were tormenting me with that noise.
Then, all too suddenly, just as the cacophony of noises reached their loudest volume, the squeals died out like an extinguished flame. The resulting silence was unsettling, and I held my breath, expecting an attack.
Down the corridor, stepping out from an intersection fifty meters away, was a pink-tinged figure. The echo of its footsteps reached me in the silence, even as my eyes widened at the name over its head.
It... was a pig-man.
Not like a Zombie Pigman, but like a Crafter with the face and skin of a pig - a docile, innocent pig. It was naked as any animal, and it walking on two hooves. No belt or backpack.
The name above its head... read Mr. Piggles.
I tried to force out a laugh only for no sound to come from my dry throat. I stopped, swallowed thickly, then tried again.
"I-I was wondering when a c-cultist would show up!" I yelled at the figure, ignoring the name over its pig face and the stutter in my voice. "W-What is this, another Hybridization experiment? I-I hope for your sake its reversible, because you look l-like o-one ugly motherporker!"
"...Why did you leave me, Carys?" The pig-man I refused to name asked.
"...What?" I asked shakily.
"Why did you leave me alone and tied up, for the bad man to devour?" The pig-man asked, his head tilting slightly. Innocently. "Did you not want me anymore?"
"N-No... I..." I blinked, completely thrown-off by this thing's words. I couldn't look away.
"Why is the bad man still alive?" The pig-man asked next, his gaze turning elsewhere with a curious innocence. "Weren't you going to avenge me? He devoured me, Carys. Didn't you love me?"
"N-No, shut up. Y-You're not real-" My voice hitched as I backtracked, clenching my eyes and shaking my head. "I-I-I mean you are real! I'm not seeing things, and you're a real cultist, standing there, wearing his f-face and name, and I'm not crazy, but y-you-you can't be..." I trailed off before letting out an animalistic growl and smacking the side of my head. My eyes snapped open and I readied my scythe with a flourish. "QUIT MESSING WITH MY HEAD!"
I propelled myself at the figure with my rockets and wings, intent on proving just how real he was by breaking him open like a piñata to spill out gear and EXP. Someone was screaming their head off angrily and I didn't realize it was me. The pig-man didn't budge, even as I crossed the fifty meters in two seconds. Just as I was about to time my scythe-swing, however, my vision suddenly blacked out, and I swung at nothing.
Unable to see, I crashed into the quartz floor, skidding onto my front until the friction proved too much, forcing me into a vicious rolling tumble that sent me into a wall and left me bruised and banged up. I brought a hand over my face, trying to remove whatever had obstructed my sight, but my hands grasped at nothing.
Then the chorus of pig squeals resumed.
"Careeeeees~! CarEEEEEES~! REEEEEES~! REEEEEES~!"
The sound grew unbearable, and more startling now that I couldn't see enough to mount a defense. I shot to my feet, keeping the wall at my back and using it to find my way while I waved my scythe wide to ward attackers off. I shouted, but it was drowned out by the squeals.
Then, just as suddenly as the chorus began, and just as before, it ceased. The darkness over my vision lifted. I blinked back in shock as I could suddenly see, with no sign of the pig-man or the invisible sources that made those haunting sounds.
My chest was pounding as I pressed a hand to it. My breaths were shallow as my crimson eyes roved frantically over the alabaster corridor. I couldn't think straight, still reeling from what I had experienced. I felt sickened and unsettled. All I wanted to do was collapse.
"Carys?"
I spun in a nanosecond, my scythe raised overhead and ready to swing down until hurried voices urged me to stay my hand.
"Whoa, whoa! Ma'am, it's us!" Spaatz reassured, his hands held up, empty. Behind him, Anibal, Kal, Soul, Reuben, and Albert stepped into view. They were wide-eyed at how aggressively I held my scythe, but they calmed down when I lowered it.
"Y-You heard it?" I asked before coughing to cover the stammer.
"...Heard what?" Anibal asked cautiously. Warily.
Disbelievingly.
They hadn't, then.
"...My message." I covered smoothly. "You heard it alright?"
"...I mean, yeah, that's why we came here." Anibal pointed out the obvious. "The cultists abandoned this place, huh? Cowards who cut and run?"
"Yeah, looks like." I loosened up, acting to everyone like everything was normal, and that the pig noises and the pig-man never happened.
Without the evidence to prove it, I would just look crazy again, and they'd doubt me further. How did they not hear that cacophony of squeals? It was loud enough to rattle the volcano! Did the cultists cut the squeals right when my Paragons were within earshot?
Obviously what had happened was staged by the cultists to unhinge me, the same way the squeals at the Brimstone Bastion were. And they had unhinged me. I was utterly baffled on how they made that pig-man with the name of my beloved steed hanging over him. Hybrids weren't supposed to keep the names over their heads, nor were they meant to have a name so strikingly familiar. And then there was the sudden unexplained darkening of my vision that cleared up just as quickly.
But I couldn't let on how rattled I was. I needed to appear strong. Sane.
"...Carys?" Kal asked cautiously. "You good? You look a little hopped up... and pale."
"I'm fine. Just alert." I dismissed quickly. "And everything looks pale in this quartz. We've got a lot of work to do searching this place, so let's move. In pairs." I added quickly, not wanting to be on my own again. Not because I was scared of those squeals returning or anything.
"Ugh, bummer." Anibal groaned, waving one of her crossbows. "I really wanted some cultists to farm EXP from."
[Noman]
"Oh, bless you, young knight. Bless you."
I smiled happily as I handed out food to the old Dover Plainer. "Just doing the right thing. No need to thank me."
Captain Lizabet smiled beside me before she too handed out a sizable portion of food to a different Dover Plainer.
Yesterday, we fed the Exterians. Today, the work the Captain had for us was feeding the Dover Plainers still holding out in the capital. Obviously, considering the charged state of the city, getting them out was a chief priority. Any Dover Plainer staying in the walls would be targeted, persecuted, and perhaps even beaten to death. To avoid that, Captain Lizabet and the guards rounded up the last of the remaining Dover Plainers and brought them to one secure building near the capital limits, intending to send them off with a hefty portion of food. These Dover Plainers were the holdouts who refused to leave their homes, but were now forced to accept that tensions were too high to safely continue staying in the capital.
Furthermore, Captain Lizabet had reached out to the first batch of Dover Plainers she sent out. They had formed a sort of community in a small Exter village called Chekalin, to the south, that had been willing to offer them sanctuary. The last batch of Dover Plainers would be going to Chekalin by boat down the river, bringing with them a large supply of food, dirt, hoes, seeds, and bone meal to keep the Dover Plainers adequately fed for the foreseeable future.
We were there not only to help hand the stuff out, but to protect the Dover Plainers in case any Exterians tried to harm them. It was easy to get mad at anyone helping foreigners, and the Exterians were no exception. In actuality, however, we were being neutral, helping to preserve all life, not just Exterian or Dover Plainer.
It really was my kind of work, and my heart felt lighter and lighter with each person I helped.
"You're a natural, Sir Noman." Captain Lizabet commended me with a smile. "Could just be because you're handing out food, but these stubborn holdouts aren't the best fans of us. They're only leaving grudgingly, but their disgruntledness bounces straight off your polite demeanor. Helps that you're smiling a lot."
I laughed. "What can I say? I have the feeling of finally being a force for good, helping people." I handed out food to another Dover Plainer. "When I think about it, my face gets all goofy."
Compared to the bloody work Carys was doing right about now, I definitely preferred this.
Ciro and Floyd working beside me may have felt differently.
Ciro's face was passive, and half-hidden by his facemask as he doled out food to Dover Plainers, but Floyd's face was completely obscured by the Creeper mask concealing his name and Hacker status. I couldn't tell exactly, but I don't think either of them were smiling like me. Soul was probably correct about them being here reluctantly. Still, I appreciated them for the help.
"Excuse me, Captain." One Dover Plainer walked up to ask. "I heard that tensions are rising between Exter and Dover Plains. Has there been any developments in terms of peace negotiations?"
"None so far, I'm afraid, but His Highness has been sending out missives and envoys." Captain Lizabet spoke in a coarse, yet kind voice, seeking to comfort. "I'm sure any day now, Dover Plain will send a response. This is just as a precaution to improve your safety."
"...Okay. Thank you, Captain." The Dover Plainer took her words with a grain of salt before politely leaving.
"Is a response from Dover Plains expected?" I asked Captain Lizabet quietly.
"In a sense." The Captain's mouth thinned. "Our scouts say the Dover Plainers are mobilizing their army. Something has whipped them up into a frenzy - the disappearance of three Lords of the twenty-two Family council. We only have rumors to go off of as we can't get too close to the capital, but days ago, someone kidnapped or killed Lords Prescott, Cohnbosch, and Hampterfuppinshire."
"Oh no..." I gasped breathlessly, remembering some of those names being present at Lord Maplefrost's auction.
"Oh yes." The Captain nodded gravely, still keeping her voice down. "Prescott, Cohnbosch, and Hampterfuppinshire were the ones most supportive of the tariffs on crops shipped here, the embargo, and the call for war. Now they're gone, and the other Families are blaming it on Exter. They already think we slaughtered their livestock and planted mycelium in their farms. We don't want to cause a panic, but thousands of yellow-capped soldiers have already crossed into the Lacquerlands, and are marching towards the capital as we speak."
I made a show of smiling as I handed another Dover Plainer some food, even while internally I was freaking out. I watched as the Dover Plainers were sent away down the river on boat, thinking that the Exterians should be evacuated in a similar fashion. An army was on their way, and this wouldn't be the same as the inexperienced Griefers. These were soldiers and guards, trained in combat, and with solid gear, formations, and strategies.
"How long do we have?" I asked worriedly.
"...Could be a week." The Captain didn't sugarcoat it. "His Highness is desperately trying to make contact with the Family Lords amongst the army to stop or even delay such a conflict. He's devoting his all into the Dover Plainer problem, which means the Stigma at the breadbasket village of Voronezh has unfortunately been placed on the backburner."
"Oh, shoot. That's right." I remembered that to be another of King Sdraw's immediate problems. The Ten Eyes may have been removed, and responsibility for the Cultists and Hackers was being assumed by Carys, but Stigma '1' was close to a village that was a major food producer for Exter. It needed to be handled, as food was essential to both the Exterians and Dover Plainers right now.
"...Do you need any help with Voronezh...?" I turned to the Captain only to find her smiling with lidded eyes.
"Now how did I know you'd volunteer?" She chuckled to herself as I blushed. "I do have a Stigma under my belt, so I know how to handle one if I have to. I could always use the extra help, though." She paused in consideration. "You really do like nothing more than helping people, don't you Sir Noman?"
"Yes, Captain. I... well you've seen what Carys is like. I've never really had an opportunity to help those in need." I admitted. "But working for the good of Exter, I feel like I'm really making a difference. I want to do all I can to prevent unnecessary bloodshed."
She hummed. "A noble aim." She was quiet for a moment. "I have noticed what Carys is like, and I'm happy to provide you an outlet for your selfless, chivalrous nature to shine through." She tapped her fingers on the table. "I want to relieve another burden off His Highness' shoulders, so I'll be riding to Voronezh. Probably on the 20th. You want in? You're in."
I smiled. "Thank you for the opportunity, Captain. I won't let you down."
"Just bear in mind, Voronezh is a long ride. If we set out on the 20th, you probably won't be back until the 24th. You think Carys will be okay sparing you for that long?"
My face wrinkled as I remembered how callously she shooed me away. How she didn't even want me on the mission. "I don't think that'll be a problem."
"Alright, then. It's decided." The Captain nodded, flashing me a kindred smile. "Two days from now, this stylish knight and dame will ride out to make His Highness' burdens just a wee bit lighter."
*SLAM*
The jarring noise of Floyd slamming his palm on the table startled us. Ciro spared the Creeper-masked a raised brow before Floyd pushed himself out of his seat and walked off.
"Think he overheard you." Ciro mentioned casually. "And I think he's not too happy about it."
"...Cover for me for a minute?" I asked the Captain, earning a nod. I chased after Floyd as he stormed out of the building, kicking the door open as he went. I found him resting his arms on a railing as he leaned over it.
"Floyd, what's wrong?"
"What's wrong is I thought we talked about your reckless hero complex thing." He tore his Creeper mask off, not caring if anyone noticed, despite us being alone. "We talked about it, and I thought we were past it. I thought by accompanying you, you'd stop rushing headlong into reckless dangers, knowing you'd be held accountable should anything happen to us. But..." He scoffed incredulously. "But you're still doing it. You're still throwing yourself out there. You-You wanna go tackle a Stigma for four days and leave Carys and the Paragons on their own? Are you crazy? Soul already called you out on this. Your hero complex isn't our priority, Noman!"
"Exter needs our help, Floyd." I countered readily. "Ever since their business with the Hackers-"
"Lizabet said herself that she's handled a Stigma before. She can take care of herself. You need to take care of the real enemy: the Endward Cult." Floyd stood his ground. "Like Carys said, actions have consequences, and one of these days, you'll volunteer for something you can't walk back from. How long before you get in the middle of this brewing war? I can't keep enabling you like this! I'm part of the problem!"
"Then don't! I can do it alone, that way I don't hurt anyone but myself!" I told him. "Nothing's compelling you to help me!"
"Our friendship is!" He blurted out, making the both of us go silent.
It was growing dark, the sun dipping behind the distant obsidian mountains. We stood there for a little bit, neither one of us knowing what to say.
"I get that you harbor a lot of guilt for hurting people, and that you hold a lot of responsibility on your shoulders," Floyd began, "and that Aikido and helping others feels like an easy solution, but you need to learn how to let certain things go. Compromise where you can."
"...I'm done whining." I countered, making Floyd balk. "And I'm way past compromising. Now I act. And even if the whole world is telling me to move, it is my duty to plant myself like a tree, look them in the eye, and say 'No, you move'."
Floyd bit his upper lip as he glanced aside. To my alarm, his Hacker smoke began to seep out and prickle in ebony spines along his arm, just like anger prickling beneath the surface. He exerted his control soon after, extinguishing the black vapor and returning his eyes to normal. When next he spoke, his voice was flat but firm.
"This is the last thing I'm doing for this, and I'm done. Period."
"...Of course." I accepted gracefully, even though it meant another Beginner was flocking to Carys' side. First Soul, then Floyd.
"What is this? What is this?"
The mixture of a growl and an echo above us had Floyd and I deploy our weapons and leap back and away. When we looked up, I felt all the blood drain out of my body.
It was the Hacker leader, Entity 303. It was my first time seeing him, but the name was unmistakable. He was there. He hovered over us, coated in black smoke, and wearing a pale hood and tattered white pants with no shoes. He had blood-red eyes with black sclerae, and the bits of skin I caught poking out from beneath his clothes looked burnt, raw, and black as night. He was also carrying three limp figures by their collars with one hand, and looking unbothered by the weight.
"It would seem my wayward brother is not as companionable to the insects as the Darker Billionth had led me to believe." 303 uttered in a growl/echo. Not mad, just curious.
"What are you doing here? Floyd isn't being controlled or coerced!" I shouted to 303, hoping to convince him and avoid a fight. "He's free to be who is he!"
"Is that why he's wearing a mask? Because he's free to be who he is?" 303 asked lightly. He got me there.
"If this is about taking me to the Obelisk, I'll tell you what I told Thed!" Floyd shouted, already trying to summon his Humility Hack. He and Ciro inside were our best bet at stopping 303, since I didn't have a single artifact on me.
"There'll be time for that later, brother." 303 growled/echoed. "Your power is a unique one. Unheard of amongst the Clan. You've certainly traumatized Null with it. But I'm not here for that. I've come bearing 'gifts', though in the crudest sense of the word."
Without further preamble, 303 tossed the three figures he was holding at us like they were bags of garbage. I caught one, hurting myself to keep the person from harm, while Floyd easily caught both with his Strength Hack.
Then we saw the names of the three figures and gasped.
They were the three missing Lords from Dover Plains, Prescott, Cohnbosch, and Hampterfuppinshire. 303 had kidnapped them. But why deposit them on us?
"I pray we meet under better circumstances, brother, and you still are my brother, no matter what you've done, or what others have made you do. Would you pass that along to Kalmarin, please?" 303 gave his parting remark before taking off, leaving us more confused as to his motives than ever.
Why would he kidnap the Lords only to hand them to us?
"CAPTAIN LIZABET!" I belted out, cradling Lord Cohnbosch's head in my arms. "We got a situation! Something's happened!"
[Soul]
After scouring the cult's Western HQ all day, picking through every layer of that volcano's quartz interior, and finding nothing, we were forced to return to the Brimstone Bastion empty-handed. The one thing we'd done was break the signs holding the Sinarka Volcano's lava back, flooding the pristine Western HQ with lava so that no one would be able to enter or make use of it as a base any time soon. Other than that, it was a complete waste of time.
"I feel like the fat kid at the back of a race." I remarked sourly when we were all back in our shared bedroom. Floyd, Noman, and Ciro had yet to return despite it being dark out.
"Yeah, every time we have a solid lead, we find out someone a step ahead has covered their tracks." Anibal complained, falling back on the bed and idly kicking her legs. She also started flipping and catching Leadstripe's iron dagger. "The cultists of the Western Division are more prepared than I thought if they were ready to abandon their HQ at a moment's notice."
"Should we just resume interviewing the bastion bigwigs until we scrape up a new lead?" Kal asked of Carys. The scythe-wielder didn't respond, her gaze on the floor while her hands absently fiddled with her silver cross necklace. She'd flown on ahead of us once our search had ended, being the first one back, but she'd been unusually quiet throughout. "Carys? You got an answer for me...?"
"Huh? What?" She looked up, not even realizing she'd been addressed. "I didn't hear you. What were we talking about?"
"We were discussing what our next move might be, ma'am." Albert repeated respectfully.
"Right. Right." Carys sighed as she took her hands off her necklace and straightened her back. "Well, first, I want to put a tail on those two 'guards', Collin_Kiril and Ned_Martins. Have their backgrounds checked too. Anything even remotely criminal should be brought to my attention."
She was still convinced they were cultists, then.
"Besides that, I'd say business as usual on investigating the bastion's bigwigs. You all still have yourAAH!"
I jolted in my seat, as did the Paragons at Carys' exclamation. Anibal actually lurched up and fell off the bed and onto the floor. Meanwhile, Carys was on her feet and pointing at the balcony window.
"What is it? Carys, what is it?" Kal questioned sharply, his body coated in smoke as if expecting a fight. He followed Carys' finger to the window but saw nothing.
"There was a pig person out there!" Carys blurted out, her body moving to the window while the rest of us tried to comprehend what she just told us. We flinched as she drove her fist into the window before sticking her head out and looking left, right, up, and down. "It was right here! It was looking in at me! It took off when I shouted at it."
"...What do you mean a pig person?" Reuben asked carefully.
"I mean like a pigman!" She shouted over her shoulder before beckoning Kal to come over and help her look. "Like the Hybrid that was reported at the Eastern Division HQ! It... it looked different from a Zombie Pigman. I saw tusks, white eyes, and flat, droopy ears. Also a distinct lack of rotting, green skin and exposed bones, but it was a Pigman Hybrid for sure!"
"Carys, I don't see anything out here." Kal told her, his eyes scanning every which way along the bastion's walls. "Are you saying something scaled up here?"
"YES! How could none of you have seen it!? It was peering through at me! Are you telling me not one of you caught a glimpse of pink skin!? Are you all blind!?"
I shared a pointed look with Anibal, trying to remind her of our talk prior to the volcano. None of us saw what she saw. Carys was sounding crazy again. The dark-skinned thief looked uncomfortable having to acknowledge such a thing, and said nothing.
"If you can't see it, th-then it must've turned invisible right after I called it out. Conveniently, right as I called it out. Don't you see? It's all part of their plan!" Carys insisted, spitting mad.
"...What plan, ma'am?" Albert asked warily.
"Their plan to make me look crazy - look, they keep making me see or hear things related to pigs because they're trying to mess with me. It's a setup!" She spoke in a flurry. "They're tormenting me, and they always fix it so that none of you see or hear what I see and hear. Gaslighting! That's what it is! They're trying to sow doubt in my leadership, but I know I'm not crazy. You have to know I'm not crazy!"
Reuben and Albert shared a cautious look while Kal pulled his head back through the smashed window and grasped Carys by the shoulders. His face was set and his Hacker powers were extinguished as he looked into her frantic eyes.
"Of course we know you're not crazy, Carys. You're our leader." Kal reassured, his words having an effect on the scythe-wielder. "But I need you to explain from the top. What did you see out this window?"
"It was a Pigman Hybrid. An experiment of the Endward Cult." Carys spoke firmly. "I caught it peeking in at me. It was staring at me specifically. The cult keeps bombarding me with pig-themed horrors, hoping I'll crack-" Suddenly, her breath hitched and she rounded on me of all people. "You! How much did Cobb and Floyd blab to Jade?"
"Excuse me?" I replied indignantly. Bringing up that snake's name was a surefire way to piss me off.
"Did Cobb and Floyd tell Jade the details of Mr. Piggles' death?" She elaborated. "What am I even asking for? I bet they did; I bet they bragged and laughed about it every week!"
"What does that have to do with you seeing pigs on the balcony?"
"Because that's how the Pigman at the volcano knew about the specifics of Mr. Piggles' demise!" Carys yelled, making less sense than ever. What pigman at the volcano? It was empty! "He knew details about it - made mentions of things that only the people who'd been there would know! They've put research into selling this illusion to me! The theatricality of it. That's what makes it so diabolical!"
"Carys, slow down." Anibal tried, struggling to follow everything her leader was spouting. "You never told us about a Pigman at the-"
"Because I had no proof! If I told you, you would've definitely thought I was crazy!" Carys jumped down her throat, making Anibal go quiet.
Of course, I felt more than a little skeptical about her claims. The cultists were all about fighting and killing people; why would they go through the trouble of gaslighting Carys when they could just attack her? I didn't see the point, and it just sounded so convoluted that she'd seen or heard things none of us - not even two present guards - could. Personally, I thought she was cracking since she couldn't get word from Baltic, but I didn't say that. I didn't say any of it while she was so agitated. Half-talking, half-screaming at us.
"I can't prove it, but we can fix that easily enough. We need to search this bastion, top to bottom! Scour the grounds! Tear this place apart!" She ordered Reuben, Albert, and Spaatz to their feet, kicking her bed aside in the process "We find that Pigman Hybrid, we can prove that everything I've been seeing and hearing has been orchestrated by the cult! It's all one big gaslighting ploy! And I want all of you keeping your eyes and ears peeled at all times. I want you to see and hear what I'm being tormented with, you got it!?"
"Raaawk, this girl's nucking - fmph!?" In a rare show of self-preservation, I covered Squawken's beak as it attempted to imitate something I'd said earlier that day. Carys luckily didn't notice, too engrossed in mobilizing her Paragons to search the bastion for a pigman.
"Search in pairs, and I want someone with me at all times." She ordered. "They won't be able to gaslight me as long as I'm not alone."
She wouldn't let this go, so we were all forced to take on our gear and follow her orders, though I noticed I wasn't the only one looking apprehensive about doing so. Kal was only going along with it to help Carys calm down and make her feel safe, which was something completely foreign to any of us. Carys never needed others to make her feel safe; that's what her big scythe was for.
Again, my eyes met Anibal's uneasy ones, but this time my lips silently mouthed out, 'Go buy her a pet!'
Inventory (Floyd): 1 Mob Head {Creeper}, 1 Diamond Pickaxe, 1 Iron Sword, 1 Diamond Helmet [Projectile Protection IV], 1 Diamond Chestplate [Projectile Protection IV] {Weak}, 1 Diamond Leggings [Projectile Protection IV] {Weak}, 1 Diamond Boots [Projectile Protection IV] {Weak}, 1 Shears, 2 Iron Ingots, 24 Coal, 20 Torches, 30 Apples, 64 Baked Potatoes, 46 Baked Potatoes, 34 Cooked Porkchops, 1 Fishing Rod, 1 Furnace, 1 Crafting Table, 1 Minecart, 1 Bed, 1 Boat, 16 Gunpowder, 8 Ender Pearls, 1 Splash Potion of Slowness {4:00}, 1 Splash Potion of Weakness {4:00}, 1 Splash Potion of Weakness {4:00}, 1 Splash Potion of Healing II, 1 Splash Potion of Healing II, 1 Splash Potion of Healing II, 1 Splash Potion of Healing II, 1 Potion of Invisibility {8:00}, 1 Potion of Invisibility {8:00}, 1 Potion of Invisibility {8:00}, 1 Bucket, 1 Map {Minecraftia}, 1 Written Book {Citizenship Information}, 1 Written Book {Citizenship Information: Vera_Menchik}, 1 Paper {Ringwood Entry Pass}, 1 Paper {Zeppil Entry Pass}
[EXP: 48]
Inventory (Soul): 1 Diamond Axe [Sharpness V], 1 Iron Cleaver, 1 Diamond Pickaxe, 60 Iron Ingots, 19 Flint, 1 Flint and Steel, 8 Gold Ingots, 11 Blocks of Diamond, 9 Emeralds, 6 Raw Salmon, 4 Pumpkin Seeds, 30 Apples, 64 Baked Potatoes, 43 Baked Potatoes, 33 Cooked Porkchops, 1 Bucket of Axolotl {Axolittle}, 1 Milk Bucket, 1 Diamond Helmet [Protection IV, Unbreaking III] {Weak}, 1 Iron Chestplate {Weak}, 1 Diamond Leggings [Protection IV, Unbreaking III] {Weak}, 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, 22 White Wool, 61 Cobblestone, 14 Jungle Planks, 1 Spyglass, 1 Map {Minecraftia}, 1 Written Book {Citizenship Information}, 1 Written Book {Citizenship Information: Mikhail_Tal}, 1 Paper {Ringwood Entry Pass}, 1 Paper {Zeppil Entry Pass}, 1 Paper {Exter Entry Pass}, 1 Splash Potion of Slowness {4:00}, 1 Splash Potion of Weakness {4:00}, 1 Potion of Invisibility {8:00}
[EXP: 43]
Cat-Face the Cat
Christopher Squawken the Parrot
Axolittle the Axolotl
Inventory (Noman): 1 Diamond Sword [Sharpness I], 1 Shield {Weak}, 1 Iron Helmet {Weak}, 1 Diamond Chestplate {Weak}, 1 Iron Leggings {Weak}, 1 Iron Boots {Weak}, 1 Diamond Pickaxe, 1 Flint and Steel, 10 Cobwebs, 7 Emeralds, 1 Ender Chest, 28 Apples, 64 Baked Potatoes, 50 Baked Potatoes, 33 Cooked Porkchops, 1 Water Bucket, 5 Buckets, 1 Bed, 1 Crafting Table, 1 Written Book {Citizenship Information}, 1 Written Book {Citizenship Information: Lizabet_Agafonov}, 1 Paper {Zeppil Entry Pass}, 1 Paper {Exter Entry Pass}, 1 Map {Minecraftia}, 1 Paper {MarbleFinder; 1909 Oleg Street}, 1 Written Book {The Art of Peace}, 1 Written Book {Artifact List}, 1 Enchanted Golden Apple, 1 Potion of Invisibility {8:00}, 1 Splash Potion of Healing II, 1 Splash Potion of Healing II
[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 Written Book {Citizenship Information}, 1 Written Book {Citizenship Information: Boris_Spassky}, 1 Paper {Gold Citizenship Pass}, 1 Bow [Power I], 36 Arrows, 6 Ender Pearls, 60 Baked Potatoes, 1 Spyglass, 1 Bed, 1 Crafting Table, 1 Furnace, 40 Torches, 31 Sand, 12 Cobblestone, 21 Oak Planks, 1 Bucket, 1 Lava Bucket, 1 Milk Bucket, 1 Potion of Invisibility {8:00}, 43 Coal, 1 Clock, 1 Compass, 1 Iron Pickaxe [Unbreaking I], 1 Wooden Pickaxe {Old Reliable} [Unbreaking III, Efficiency V], 1 Written Book {Meetup}
[EXP: 43]
Inventory (Anibal): 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 Golden Boots {Stivali Magma}, 1 Spyglass, 1 Crossbow {Buckner} [Multishot I, Unbreaking III], 1 Crossbow {Devers} [Piercing IV, Quick Charge III, Unbreaking III], 64 Arrows, 38 Arrows, 16 Firework Rockets {Flight Duration: 1, Large Ball x 7, White x 7}, 16 Firework Rockets {Flight Duration: 1, Large Ball x 7, White x 7}, 5 Ender Pearls, 26 Cooked Porkchops, 15 Apples, 18 Oak Planks, 1 Crafting Table, 1 Furnace, 1 Bed, 39 Torches, 21 Coal, 1 Map {Paragon Minecraftia}, 1 Bucket, 1 Potion of Invisibility {8:00}, 1 Iron Pickaxe, 3 Ender Chests, 29 Cobblestone, 1 Bow [Flame I], 1 Bow [Power V], 1 Diamond Sword [Sweeping Edge III], 1 Diamond Sword [Fire Aspect II], 1 White Shulker Box {Pocket Box}
White Shulker Box {Pocket Box}: 11 Amethyst Shards, 4 Emeralds, 1 Diamond Sword [Bane of Arthropods V], 1 Diamond Pickaxe [Fortune III, Unbreaking III], 1 Diamond Sword [Smite V], 1 Paper {Gold Citizenship Pass}, 1 Written Book {Citizenship Information}, 1 Written Book {Citizenship Information: Lev Aronin}
[EXP: 3]
AN: Okay, I finally have the complicated in-story scheduling of the West Arc all planned out with precision. It's tough because there are so many things going on, but I think I've got it.
Having accurate names for these newly discovered Mobs is a bit tricky, as they don't drop anything nameworthy when they die. Like Piglins. Or Hoglins. How would you even know to call them that? They don't drop items like 'Hoglin Tusks' or 'Piglin Heads' (which aren't made available until 1.20, and it's only 1.19 right now). At least with Phantoms, they drop Phantom Membranes.
You'll get the next chapter very soon. Probably within a day of this one, since I wrote them both back-to-back. Also, because it's a Lenz chapter, and those are self-contained. In return, leave a lot of reviews. I like reading long reviews, as they motivate me to write better.
FAV. FOLLOW. REVIEW. PM. FORUM. DISCORD. DONUTS.