Minecraft Dungeons

by Matt Forbeck

  It’s all right, the voice said, its tone growing in volume and strength. Don’t be afraid. Come closer.

  Archie glanced behind him. He could be down the slope, across the bridge, and out the door in a matter of seconds—assuming he didn’t fall to his death in his hurry. The glow from the top of the peak seemed far warmer and more welcoming than the one from below.

  I am here for you. I offer you power.

  Archie shook his head to try to knock the voice out of it, but it didn’t do him any good. He tried to plug his ears instead, but that didn’t work either.

  Closer. The voice rang in his brain. Closer.

  Archie found that he didn’t want to argue with it. Not at all. The voice might be odd, but if it had drawn him in here, at least it was into a place that wasn’t cold, windy, and wet.

  He climbed higher, working his way up the slope one bit at a time until he finally reached the summit. As he clambered over the top, he saw the most amazing thing that had ever appeared before his eyes: a glowing orb that hovered over a wide and low pedestal.

  Archie’s eyes grew wide as he gazed upon the orb. It shifted colors while he watched it, moving from bright pinks to shining yellows to fiery oranges.

  Welcome, the voice said to him. I am the Orb of Dominance, and I am here to help you rule the world. It is your destiny.

  Archie didn’t know how he felt about that. The idea that he could rule even his own destiny much less rule the entire world seemed so ridiculous he couldn’t even laugh at it. He could only gawk in utter disbelief.

  Even then, he felt himself being inexorably drawn to the Orb. He felt his feet moving him toward it of their own accord, and his arms reached out to grab for it.

  The Orb pulsed in anticipation as Archie’s hands moved to close around it. Yes. Your time is finally here.

  The Orb seemed so eager that Archie pulled back for a moment. He knew that few things in life came to you without any strings attached, and because of that he inherently distrusted what the Orb seemed to be offering him. A little Illager like him didn’t deserve such power.

  But he was going to take it.

  Yes. You are destined for greatness. Your miseries have come to an end. Your time to rule has come.

  Heroes like Smacker and awful Illagers like Thord would never be able to hurt him again. With the power of the Orb, they would now answer to him!

  Archie reached out and grasped the Orb in his hands. It began to tremble, and he felt unimaginable power course through him.

  Sparkling lights began to swirl around him, encircling him in a glowing vortex. The Orb’s might swelled through him, and he saw that nothing was impossible for him. Not any longer.

  Yes. Now we are one. Now our fates are forever intertwined.

  The mightiness of what Archie had just become overwhelmed him. He threw back his head and laughed. The gigantic cavern in which he stood echoed with his crazed cackles.

  CHAPTER ELEVEN

  The next morning, Archie awakened and wondered if it all had been a wild and ridiculous dream. As he opened his eyes, he saw that he was still clutching the Orb of Dominance.

  Normally such an intense light would have made it hard for him to sleep, but this light seemed to calm him with its power.

  Actually, calm wasn’t the right word for something that emanated such incredible power. If it had been in the hands of someone else, Archie would probably have fallen to his knees and begged for mercy. Because it belonged to him, though, he found it infinitely comforting to have and to hold.

  Good morning. Time to rise. We have a lot of work to do.

  Archie’s stomach rumbled in agreement. He stood and stretched as best he could while he kept the Orb tucked under his arm.

  Daylight streamed into the cavern through the gigantic doors far below. Archie gazed down at it in relief. The undead were no longer a threat, at least for the remainder of the day.

  They will never threaten you again. Not while you have me around.

  Archie couldn’t help but smile at that thought. He’d lived in fear for so long that it felt like the Orb had lifted a massive weight from his shoulders. He stood up straighter and taller than he could ever remember.

  He gazed down and marveled at the Orb, still overwhelmed by everything about it. It looked glorious, and now it claimed to have the power to give him everything he wanted. To protect him. To keep him safe.

  It still seemed like a dream, and he worried that he might awaken from it at any moment and discover that death had surrounded him. Perhaps he had suffered a blow to the head and become delusional.

  This is real. Your worries are over.

  Which was exactly what Archie figured his delusions would tell him. Still, doubting his good fortune would do nothing but make him miserable. He figured he should at least enjoy the comforts they brought him—until they proved to be fiction or reality, either way.

  Let me show you what we can do. First, we must leave this place.

  Apparently Archie’s new best friend couldn’t teleport him about the land. Or fly. Instead, Archie had to carry it down the treacherous slope.

  He did just that, and he found it much easier than he would have guessed. He wasn’t sure if it was the power of the Orb or not, but he felt confident with every step. Normally he’d have been half paralyzed with worry about slipping and tumbling into the apparently bottomless abyss that stretched on either side of him, but instead he moved down the slope like he was walking down a wide and pleasant street.

  He crossed the bridge over to the platform in front of the door. As he did, he spotted a group of statues framing the door, three to each side of it. They resembled the iron golems that had protected Yumi’s village, but instead of being fashioned from metal, they seemed to have been carved out of a living stone that glowed with a crimson light.

  They have been standing watch over you, keeping you safe. Nothing could have harmed you in here.

  “Are they alive?” As Archie peered at them, they separated from the walls they were leaning against and strode toward him. Their joints creaked as they moved, sounding like stones rubbing together. They hauled up short several feet away, like soldiers coming to attention before their general.

  Nothing happened for a moment. Then the creature closest to Archie shuddered, which nearly sent him fleeing back into the darkness. The glow of the Orb comforted him, though, and he leaned closer to the thing instead.

  As he watched, the golem shook the dust of years off itself. Its redstone limbs scraped against its body as it regarded him with eyes that glowed like the coals of a burning fire.

  Archie didn’t say a word to the redstone golem. It knew who he was and what he was to it. It took a step closer to him and then fell to one knee before him, acknowledging him as its master.

  Archie laughed loud and long, right until his voice became hoarse and he started to choke. When he finally wiped the tears from his eyes and could see properly again, he discovered that all the redstone golems had fallen to their knees before him, and he started to laugh all over again.

  They are yours to command.

  Archie suppressed an urge to squeal with delight. The village had only a few iron golems to protect them, and now he had six of these redstone golems under his control. Already he couldn’t imagine who could stand in his way. Even the heroes would tremble before his might.

  Grinning widely, he moved forward and stared out the open doors. The sun was already getting lower in the sky. He’d slept most of the day away.

  You were exhausted. You needed rest. I protected you. I healed you.

  Archie felt a surge of gratitude, and the Orb glowed warmly under his arm. He looked down at it and decided that it deserved better than to be toted around like that. It was the most precious thing he’d ever seen, and it needed to be put on display in a way that everyone around could s
ee it.

  A wise notion, as befits one who is destined to rule. Your subjects will be fortunate to have you watching over them.

  A beam of light arced out from the Orb and exposed a vein of metal running through the floor in front of Archie. Blocks of iron and gold rose up from the ground and hovered there before him. A moment later, they began to spin around and around like a top. The blocks whirled about, becoming taller and narrower, until they melded into a tall, straight pole with a small disk on its top.

  Perfect.

  The pole—which Archie now recognized as a staff—floated over and came to a rest right before him. He reached out and took it with one hand as it landed on the ground. It felt like it had been made for his grasp.

  With his other hand, Archie took the Orb of Dominance and placed it on top of the staff. It stuck as if he had glued it there, but when he looked closer, he saw that it wasn’t actually touching the staff at all. Instead, it hovered over the disk on top of the staff, just as it had atop the pedestal inside the hollow mountain.

  That feels better.

  Archie had to agree. He realized then that he was still starving.

  A moment.

  Just seconds later, a plate full of steaming-hot food appeared on top of a nearby boulder, at just about the height of a table. Another rock appeared next to it at the perfect level for Archie to sit on. He immediately did so and set to the food as if he hadn’t eaten in weeks.

  Every time Archie cleaned his plate, more food appeared on it. He kept eating until he was so stuffed he couldn’t move. When he was finally done, he rolled off his stony chair and curled up on the ground once more.

  A pillow grew out of the ground beneath his head, and a blanket appeared out of the air and settled down over him. As his need to sleep overtook him, he looked up to see the Orb of Dominance hovering above its spectacular staff, standing entirely on its own. The redstone golems had moved to encircle him, guarding him from anything that might disturb his rest. Full and safe, he quickly drifted off.

  What seemed like moments later, the all-too-familiar sounds of groaning husks startled Archie awake. He threw off the blanket and scrambled to his feet, too terrified at the moment to even think of the Orb still shining over him or the redstone golems standing guard around him.

  Do not fear. You are under my protection.

  Archie glanced up at the glowing globe and wondered just how impressive that protection might be. It was one thing to carve a staff or conjure up a meal, but it was another thing entirely to fight off a horde of hungry husks. The redstone golem might be able to fight them off, but would they actually do it? Unsure of the limits of his newfound power, Archie grabbed the staff in both hands and held it before him like a weapon—one that he had no idea how to use.

  He stared into the surrounding darkness, his eyes straining to see what was coming at him. Soon enough, a green-skinned, rotting humanoid came staggering toward him, its one good eye shining in the Orb’s reddening light.

  One of them would normally have been enough to send Archie scrambling back inside the hollow mountain and trying to slam the doors behind him. The groans rolling toward him indicated there were many more.

  Hold here. You are in no danger.

  Archie glanced over his shoulder at the open doorway behind him. It seemed like the safest route for sure. When he looked back to see how close the husks had gotten, he spotted another five or six of the creatures shambling behind the one in the lead. And who knew how many others might still be coming toward them in the darkness?

  The redstone golems hadn’t even bothered to turn toward the threat. They seemed like they’d be about as useful as statues. Maybe he could hide behind them?

  Archie began to drop the staff, turn around, and flee, but he caught himself at the last moment. If he fled now—at the moment when he finally seemed to have come upon real power—he would never know what he could do. If he wanted to have such power, then he had to wield it.

  Now.

  Exactly. You could command the golems to do your work for you, but why bother? Use me. Destroy them all.

  Archie raised the staff high over his head. The Orb of Dominance blazed atop it with the crimson color of the setting sun. It crackled with power as the husks approached.

  As the closest one came within Archie’s reach, he drew back the staff to clock the creature in the face. Instead, the Orb flared up with power.

  Archie watched as the Orb’s glow intensified. Beams lanced out from it, transfixing the nearest husks and igniting them. As the nearest ones incinerated, Archie began walking forward. The Orb’s beams reached out to others, destroying them as well. Soon every husk in the entire area was gone, leaving behind several neat little piles of ash.

  Archie gasped in delight. “Incredible!” he said out loud.

  Are you pleased? The Orb sounded so eager.

  “Definitely!” It seemed to Archie that the Orb could read his thoughts, but he preferred to speak to it out loud. The idea of having something else’s thoughts ringing in his brain was strange enough. He didn’t want to start communicating that way himself. At least not yet.

  Of course, this meant anyone watching him would think he was speaking to himself. Given his location, he didn’t believe the chances of that happening were very high. And with the power he now wielded, he didn’t much care.

  With the Orb of Dominance at his side, no undead mob would ever be able to threaten Archie again. He felt safe for the first time since he’d left Yumi’s home. Maybe for the first time in his life.

  I told you I would protect you. You need not worry again.

  Gratitude surged through Archie. “Thank you.” It seemed terribly inadequate, but he didn’t know what else to say.

  Allow me to show you the rest of your lands.

  Archie shook for a moment. Lands? Like it wasn’t enough that the Orb was there to protect him and make him feel powerful. It also came with lands?

  Despite himself, he was eager to see what the Orb was talking about. “Where are we going?”

  Wave my staff toward the rocks to the south.

  Archie reoriented himself until he saw the rock formation the Orb had mentioned. He raised the staff high and shook it in that direction. As he did, a beam stabbed out from the Orb and grabbed a large block of rock, moving it aside. It was far heavier than Archie could ever have hoped to move on his own, but the Orb handled it like a bag of feathers.

  Over and over again, the Orb moved one block after another, and soon Archie could see there was a path on the other side of the rocks.

  To speed things up, you could order the redstone golems to help.

  “A fine idea!” Archie turned back toward the redstone golems and discovered them right behind him. They had followed him over without him even noticing.

  “Hey, you! I mean, um…My golems!” he said to them as he pointed at the rocks ahead. “Clear my way!”

  The creatures lurched forward as one and set to work. With all six of them at it, the rocks were soon all cleared away, revealing a passageway toward a switchback path that led down the mountain. This, Archie knew instantly, was how the husks had made their way up here. They had squeezed through a narrow tunnel that had been nearly invisible, probably lured by the light of the Orb of Dominance. If they’d thought the light had come from the flickering torch of some poor wanderer who would make easy prey, they’d paid the ultimate price for their mistake.

  That way lies your future. Let’s find it.

  Archie strolled down the cleared path as if he owned the entire mountain. Maybe he actually did.

  As he made his way down the path, the first rays of the dawn broke over the horizon to the east. The storm that had soaked the region the previous night had broken, and the thunderclouds had fled to plague some other lands.

  From the mountain path, Archie had a stunn
ing view of the desert that stretched to the south. If he tried, he could even see past that to the mountains and forests that lay beyond it. Apparently he’d climbed up extremely high in the dark, trying to get away from those spiders. It still surprised him that he’d made it without somehow falling to his death.

  Once he reached the foot of the mountain, the Orb started whispering instructions in his mind. For a moment, Archie considered ignoring them. He could have set off for the south instead and gone back to find the village. He wanted to find Yumi and let her know he was all right.

  Most of all, he wanted to hunt down and take out Salah and Thord and all of the other people who’d made his life so miserable. That included those heroes who’d forced him out of the village. Included Smacker.

  Especially Smacker.

  All in good time. Even heroes such as those are no threat to you. Not individually.

  But they do not work alone. When your foes band together, they can amass an overwhelming force. If we wish to defeat them—to remove them from the land once and for all—we need to find allies too.

  We need to form an army of our own.

  Archie liked the sound of that.

  CHAPTER TWELVE

  The Orb tugged at the top of the staff, leading Archie back toward the southern face of the mountain he’d just come down from. At the Orb’s instruction, Archie began to use the staff and his team of redstone golems to alter the landscape.

  All he had to do was point the staff in the right direction and think about how he wanted things to change, and the Orb and the golems took care of the rest. The golems actually did most of the work, while Archie and the Orb planned out the architecture of his new home.

  It took days of planning and even more time to mine the necessary materials and craft them together into the wondrous new structure Archie’s plans demanded. Still, the design was exhilarating, and the golems worked at their jobs tirelessly, even when exhaustion finally forced Archie to sleep.

  “It needs to be humongous, with high walls and even taller towers. It needs to be something that intimidates people who even dare to look at it.”