Overworld in Flames

by Mark Cheverton

  After the last fireball fell, Gameknight dropped the shield and pulled out his bow. At the same time, Butch pushed him aside and charged at the blazes. The monsters had drawn closer to see what had happened to their latest victims. They did not expect anyone to emerge from behind the wall of flame they had created. Butch attacked the first blaze, while Gameknight fired his enchanted bow at another. Arrows streaked out from the cobblestone watchtower, striking more of the monsters.

  Suddenly, the confident blazes, thinking they would easily wipe this village off the map, were being attacked from all sides. More arrows rushed up from the ground as the villagers dropped their buckets of water and fought back.

  The flaming monsters tried to retreat, but they were too slow. Flaming arrows hit them from above as normal arrows pierced their internal flames from the ground. Those that tried to move closer to the wall were met by Butch’s blade. In minutes, the remaining attackers were destroyed, and the village, though still burning, was safe.

  Gameknight reached down and picked up his shield. It was still smoldering and warm, but it had survived the ordeal. He looked up at Butch, expecting the big NPC to express his thanks to him, but the villager was lost in a haze of violence and revenge. Staring out from the wall at the distant forest, they could both see it was completely engulfed in flames, the bright glow likely visible all the way to the horizon.

  “There’s no way we’ll be able to put out that forest fire,” Gameknight said. “The forest is lost.”

  “We could have stopped them if we had more warriors,” Butch grumbled.

  “Are you kidding? You almost got everyone hurt in the forest!” Gameknight exclaimed. “You were completely surrounded and had no way to fight the blazes. You can’t use swords against them—they just fly away.”

  “I did OK up here on the wall.”

  “What are you talking about? If I hadn’t stopped those fireballs with my shield, you’d be a cooked butcher,” Gameknight said.

  “We just need to hit them hard where they won’t expect it,” Butch said, ignoring what the User-that-is-not-a-user had just said. “A huge attack, that’s what we need. A single, massive attack that will take them all out at once and make the Overworld safe again.”

  “How do you expect to do that?” Gameknight asked. “You don’t know where they will be.”

  Just then, applause and cheering rang out from the villagers below. Butch glanced down at the NPCs, then walked down the stairs that led to the ground, his sword held triumphantly over his head. NPCs rushed forward to pat Butch on the back, congratulating him on how he attacked the blazes with his sword. Gameknight stood there, confused.

  “But he didn’t do anything other than put himself and everyone else in a dangerous situation,” the User-that-is-not-a-user mumbled.

  No one heard him over the cheering. With a sigh, Gameknight put away his bow and shield and came down the stairs to join the celebration. When he reached the ground, he could hear Butch telling everyone about his plan.

  “When we find them, we’ll attack the blazes in force and destroy them,” the big NPC explained.

  Gameknight watched as the villagers all nodded their heads in agreement. But then one lone voice spoke up.

  “But how will you know where to find the blazes?”

  It was Herder. He was surrounded by his wolves, and still had an iron bucket in his hand.

  “That’s right,” Crafter added. “We don’t even know how they are getting into the Overworld.”

  “Well … ahh,” Butch stammered.

  “I know how they’re getting here,” Gameknight said.

  All eyes swiveled to him.

  “They are using a portal of some kind,” he explained. “I saw it in the forest. It seemed like it was made of flames or something, but there was no obsidian. In fact, there was nothing surrounding it.”

  “You mean it was just floating there?” Butch asked, a hint of disbelief in his voice.

  “Yeah, it was just floating there,” Gameknight replied. “Blazes were coming out of it and moving into the forest.”

  “Why didn’t you just destroy it?” Butch asked, his voice changing from disbelief to accusation.

  “Destroy what?” Gameknight said. “There were no blocks to break. Besides, I had just saved all of you from the trap you had just fallen into, and we were running from the forest. You remember that?”

  Butch just grunted.

  Gameknight sighed and turned to face Crafter.

  “We need to make a plan and figure out what to do with these blazes,” Gameknight said. “We can’t keep losing forest after forest.”

  “Yes, eventually it will throw everything out of balance,” Crafter replied. “And Minecraft does not like being out of balance. Strange things can happen when the server is strained too much. I think we should—”

  “We will return to Crafter’s village,” Butch announced. “Any warriors from this village that want to accompany us may do so. We’ll be traveling by horseback so that we can protect more villages and forests on the way. The blazes will not stop us!”

  He held his sword up high into the air, causing the villagers to cheer and raise their own weapons over their heads. Moving to his horse, which stood next to the village well, Butch swung up into the saddle. He raised his sword into the air again, causing more cheers to erupt.

  “You have to hand it to him,” a voice said from behind Gameknight.

  He glanced over his shoulder and found Hunter standing close.

  “People love his confidence and enthusiasm,” she said. “They love a winner.”

  “But he’s careless and reckless,” Gameknight complained. “He’s going to get people hurt, or worse.”

  “Perhaps,” Hunter continued. “But right now, maybe the people need a symbol more than they need common sense.”

  “That symbol might get them all killed,” he replied.

  “Maybe. But at least now we know how the blazes are getting into the Overworld, thanks to you,” she said. “And that’s important. If we can close the other side of that portal, then maybe we don’t need to fight a massive battle to win.”

  “But where is the other side of the blazes’ portal?” Digger asked as he joined the conversation.

  Gameknight999 shivered as a cold wave of fear slithered down his spine. He had a good idea where the portal led, but he did not want to go back there. No matter how big of an army they had … it would be dangerous, and many of them would not make it back alive.

  CHAPTER 11

  REVENGE

  Charybdis glared down at his general while his warriors returned through the fiery portal. Smoke from the forest fire was still streaming in behind them, filling the gathering chamber in the Nether fortress with luscious fumes and wonderful ash. The blaze king drew in a deep, wheezing breath. He could taste the destruction in his lungs … it was delicious.

  “Is that village destroyed?” the blaze king asked.

  The general floated backward until he bumped into the dark wall of the chamber. Nervously, he looked up at his king as he spoke in a raspy voice.

  “It wasn’t our fault,” the general said. “The villagers fought back. They’ve never done that before.”

  Charybdis took in another breath as his internal flame grew bright with rage.

  “They’ve always just cowered and hid when we attacked their villages,” the blaze said defensively. “But for some reason, this time they had courage and leadership, and they fought back. Our blazes didn’t stand a chance against all their arrows.”

  “I’ve told you a hundred times: always go after their crafter first!” the blaze king boomed. “He is their leader. Destroy him and the other villagers will just cower and do nothing while you destroy them.”

  “This blaze here was the only one to escape the village,” the general said.

  Charybdis stared down at a smaller blaze standing next to his general. He could tell that this warrior was weak, having been hit by multiple arrows while he e
scaped. If he didn’t feed on some lava soon, he would likely perish. The blaze king could see fear on his fiery face—fear of his HP diminishing to zero, but also fear of what his king was going to do to him for failing.

  I’ll just let him worry for a while as to which fate would be worse, Charybdis thought with a smile.

  “Tell me what you saw at the village,” the king of the blazes commanded.

  The young creature took in a strained breath and then spoke. “Some NPCs showed up after we started the attack. They were on horseback and rode in from across the plain. A couple of them had enchanted bows; their arrows had devastating effects.” He stopped to draw another rasping breath. “But the real problem was the big NPC in iron armor. He charged right at us.”

  “Did he have one of these enchanted bows?” Charybdis asked.

  “No, he had a sword.”

  “A SWORD!” screamed the blaze king. “How can a sword hurt you? All you have to do is rise up into the air and then bury the villagers with fireballs.”

  The blaze cowered a little more. His internal flame began to flicker and become unstable. He looked hungrily at a pool of lava on the other side of the gathering chamber, then turned his gaze back up at his king.

  “We did that, Sire. We launched fireballs at the villager with the sword, but another came to his aid. He used a large, flat piece of wood and metal to protect him from our attack. Our fireballs had no effect.”

  “What happened next?” the king of the blazes asked.

  “After the villager survived our attack, the other villagers rallied together and began firing on us with their bows. The one in charge gave the villagers courage. Only I was able to get away to bring you this news.”

  While talking, the blaze had slowly started to float toward the lava, hoping that Charybdis would not notice.

  “There seems to be a puzzle here,” the blaze king said, causing the weakened monster to stop in his tracks. “Do you have anything else to report?”

  The blaze shook his head as his internal flame flickered and sputtered.

  “Very well … go feed,” Charybdis said.

  The monster floated to the pool of lava and slowly lowered itself down into the boiling liquid. Instantly, the creature’s internal flame grew bright as its HP became replenished.

  “Is there anything else to report?” the blaze king asked the general.

  “Yes, a small band of NPCs challenged us in the forest,” the monster said. “They were caught in a trap and encircled within a wall of flames.”

  “So you destroyed them?” Charybdis asked with an evil grin.

  The general sighed.

  “No, they escaped. One of their comrades extinguished part of the flames and then fired at us with a bow. It surprised the blazes, and they escaped before we could respond.”

  “You mean they just walked out of your fire circle?” the king of the blazes asked.

  “Well … no … they rode on horses,” the general replied.

  The flames that held Charybdis’ blaze rods together flared bright with frustration. Slowly, he floated up into the air, then moved forward so that he was directly in front of the general.

  “Are these the NPCs that saved the village?” Charybdis wheezed, his anger growing.

  The general nodded his head, then lowered it to the ground.

  The blaze king’s flame grew brighter and brighter until it was white hot. He rose higher into the air so that all the other blazes in the gathering chamber had to strain their blaze rods to look up at him.

  “General, you have disappointed me for the last time.”

  Charybdis flared bright, then launched three super-heated fireballs at the failed monster. The general didn’t even bother to raise his head. The fireballs hit the monster and instantly took his HP down to zero. He disappeared with a puff of smoke as his blaze rods clattered to the ground.

  Slowly, the blaze king’s internal flame cooled, as did his rage.

  “I hate incompetence!” Charybdis shrieked, his voice echoing off the dark Nether brick walls of the chamber. “We will continue to destroy the Overworld, despite my pathetic generals. When we have—”

  “Sire,” a young voice interrupted.

  Charybdis stopped in mid-sentence, shocked that someone had dared to speak while he was addressing the chamber. Swiveling his gaze down to the offending blaze, the king found a young monster moving forward, a terrified expression on his glowing yellow head. This creature was likely so young that it didn’t even have a wheeze to its breathing yet.

  “You interrupted me, child. How dare you! I am Charybdis, the king of the blazes and I—”

  “There is something else you should know about the last attack,” the monster said meekly.

  Charybdis grew bright with agitation.

  “What is it?” he snapped.

  “I disobeyed my orders and went on the raid,” the young blaze said. “I just wanted to help destroy the Overworld like my older brothers. But now, my brothers are gone, destroyed at the village.” He paused for a moment as his internal flame flickered with grief.

  “Continue,” Charybdis ordered.

  The young blaze took in a large, silent breath, then he continued.

  “I went through the portal and threw my own fireballs at the trees,” the little blaze said. “They weren’t very big or hot like the warrior’s fireballs, but I wanted to help. I saw when the NPCs were trapped in the circle of flame. I also saw the one that broke the circle and saved the villagers.”

  “So what?” Charybdis snapped. “So you saw a villager … who cares? This discussion is annoying me.”

  “But Sire, I’d seen that person before, when you were battling him outside this fortress after the Maker was released from that tiny chest.”

  “What are you talking about?” the blaze king asked. “When Herobrine’s XP was released from the ender chest, I was battling the User-that-is-not-a-user.”

  The tiny blaze nodded his head.

  “Are you saying the one that saved the NPCs in the forest was …?”

  The blaze nodded again. “It was him. I saw the letters over his head, but there was no server thread. It was he. It was Gameknight999.”

  Charybdis gasped a wheezy gasp as his flame grew bright with thoughts of revenge.

  “So the User-that-is-not-a-user is the one responsible for saving the villagers in the forest fire,” the blaze king said, his voice crackling with hatred.

  “He must be the one that saved the village as well,” the young blaze said.

  Charybdis nodded his head, then glared down at his subject.

  “I’m sorry for disobeying your orders and not staying in the fortress,” the smoky child said. “But I wanted to help.”

  “Have no fear. You did well, child,” Charybdis said. “You will accompany the warriors on our campaign to destroy the Overworld. And if you see my friend, Gameknight999, you must tell me right away. He and I have a debt to settle, and this time, there will be no one to help him. All the monsters of Minecraft will celebrate when I destroy the User-that-is-not-a-user. And after that monumental victory, Minecraft will truly be ours.”

  The king of the blazes gave off an evil, mechanical laugh as his internal flamed glowed bright with the hatred of his enemy, Gameknight999.

  CHAPTER 12

  CREEPER RESPONSE

  The chamber was massive, fifty to sixty blocks wide, with a ceiling that was thirty—possibly more—blocks tall. Torches adorned the walls, casting circles of illumination that drove back the shadows. At the center of the room was a tall throne, with steps leading up from all four sides. Atop the altar sat Oxus, the king of the creepers.

  The creeper king stared down upon his subjects. They had congregated in the gathering hall to discuss the troubling events occurring across the Overworld. The creatures crowded near the tall throne, their bodies creating a green and black sea of color that covered the stone floor. Some of the monsters spoke to each other, their bodies hissing and glowing brigh
tly as they started speaking, and then dimming after a few words to avoid detonation.

  Oxus started to hiss and grow bright, capturing the attention of his subjects. When they were all peering up at him, he stopped his ignition and glanced down at the creeper before him, who had come to report what was happening on the surface of the Overworld.

  “The forests burn,” the creeper said to his king. “The blazes cause this.” He paused for a moment to allow his ignition process to diminish, then continued. “They also attacked a village.”

  “Hmmm,” Oxus, the creeper king, mused. “Those foolish blazes will enrage the NPCs and bring their wrath down upon them. They are idiots. What else did you learn?”

  “The User-that-is-not-a-user,” he paused, “is fighting against them.” He paused again. “The villagers are organizing.”

  The creeper stopped speaking and stepped back. Oxus suspected the monster had more to say, but he understood the gist of his report. Gameknight999 was back on the server and was likely gathering the NPCs into a huge army. Oxus had watched this User-that-is-not-a-user many times as he tangled with the other monster kings. The outcome was always the same: a massive battle ending in Gameknight999 somehow tricking the monsters and destroying them. They always underestimated him.

  “They never learn,” Oxus said aloud to himself.

  He didn’t really care what the blazes did. They could torch every forest and village in the Overworld for all he cared. The creepers were safe in their hive, deep underground. They had coal to feed on and cool, peaceful tunnels and caves for raising their young. The troubles of the villagers and blazes did not interest the king of the creepers.