The Hardcore War

by Winter Morgan

  “Blow up the hotel!” Violet gasped.

  Hannah cried, “If that happens, everyone in the village will be destroyed and will never respawn!”

  The sky was growing dark, so the gang headed for the hotel. The guests would be surprised to see Daniel and the rainbow griefers joining them. As night set in, a group of zombies spawned in front of them. Daniel struck a zombie with his diamond sword. Adam threw potions on the undead creatures. Violet used her bow and arrow to annihilate a bunch of zombies.

  “Watch out!” Hannah called to an orange griefer as two zombies lunged at him.

  Ben destroyed one of the zombies while the orange griefer attacked the other one. The battle was weakening the gang. They just wanted to make their way back to the hotel. They needed to warn the guests that the hotel might explode at any minute.

  The last of the zombies was finally destroyed, and the group ran to the hotel. The guests were asleep, and the lobby was empty. Noah lit a torch and placed it on the wall outside the hotel.

  Violet noticed a block of wool. “Oh no!” She pointed to the wool.

  A creeper snuck up silently behind Violet, but Noah screamed a warning, and Violet was able to escape the blast from it before destroying it with her diamond sword.

  “There’s wool here!” Violet called to her friends.

  Adam walked over to examine the wool and said, “I bet there is also TNT in the hotel.”

  Daniel inspected the wall around the hotel. He searched around the entire building and shouted, “I see TNT!”

  The group began to collect the TNT bricks. Hannah remarked, “I wonder who Thomas has working with him. He couldn’t do this alone. There is a lot of TNT here, and he also is summoning the Ender Dragon. That’s too much for one person.”

  “Do you know anyone who might be working with Thomas?” Violet asked Daniel.

  He paused to think and replied, “No, I have no idea. I just dealt with him alone.”

  After the TNT was placed safely in everyone’s inventory, Violet took one last walk around the hotel. She passed the front entrance and spotted a piece of wool. “I didn’t see that before, did you?” she asked the others.

  “No,” Ben said as he looked at the wool.

  Hannah saw a hole in the ground near the block of wool. “I didn’t notice that hole, either.”

  “A hole?” Violet called out. “Where?”

  Adam examined the hole. “I think we have to go down and see if Thomas is there.”

  “Oh no, not again!” Violet was still recovering from the events in the tunnel in the ocean, but she knew they had to search for Thomas. She drew a deep breath and descended into the hole.

  7

  HOLES

  The tunnel wasn’t as long as they had imagined. Within minutes, the gang reached the end.

  “There’s no door!” Hannah was shocked.

  “I bet this is a trap!” Ben called out.

  Violet banged her pickaxe against the blocks at the end of the tunnel and broke away the pieces.

  “Why are you digging? Shouldn’t we just go back the way we came?” asked Hannah.

  “Let’s see if there is another tunnel that was blocked up here,” Violet replied. She banged the pickaxe several times, but there was nothing more.

  Noah stood next to Violet. “I think we should head back. This isn’t going to end well. This might be a trap Thomas has set up.”

  “What if he throws bricks of TNT into this tunnel and blows us all to pieces?” Hannah’s voice quavered as she spoke.

  “I don’t think there is any more TNT,” said Daniel.

  Noah took out his sword and held it against Daniel’s chest. “Are you tricking us?”

  “No!” cried Daniel. “I just thought we collected all the TNT. Maybe this was an escape tunnel Thomas was building and he didn’t have a chance to complete it.”

  “Or maybe Hannah was right and he is going to blow us up!” shouted Noah.

  “I don’t know,” Daniel said with a frown. “You could be right.”

  Violet ordered, “We need to get out of here.”

  The group hurried out of the tunnel, pushing past hotel guests who crowded around the entrance. As the gang climbed out of the hole, the sun began to rise.

  Noah spoke in front of the crowd. “We need to come up with a plan. We have to find a way to defeat Thomas.” He looked over at Daniel and asked, “Is there anything else you two were planning?”

  Before Daniel could answer, a three-headed Wither flew past the hotel, and an Ender Dragon followed it.

  “This looks like one of your old tricks!” Noah screamed at Daniel, and he grabbed one of the last snowballs from his inventory.

  “But I’m not behind this. Thomas is just mimicking my type of attacks,” Daniel protested. He grabbed his bow and arrow and shot at the beast. “I promise to join you in battle.”

  The Wither shot skulls at the group while the hotel guests tried to avoid being struck, but the skulls destroyed two guests.

  “No!” One of the guests screamed out in horror.

  Noah threw the last snowball. “This is awful, and we are seriously fighting to the end. Once people get destroyed in this battle, it’s over.”

  The stakes were high, and Violet was fearless as she dashed in front of the Ender Dragon and threw a snowball at the beast. The snowball hit it square in the side, weakening the once-powerful dragon.

  Hannah and Ben ran to Violet’s side and also threw snowballs and shot arrows at the beast. The strikes were diminishing the dragon’s power.

  Hannah said, “We don’t have that much longer before it’s gone. But I don’t think I can fight any more. I have no energy left. My health bar is too low.”

  Adam rushed to Hannah. “Drink this. It will make you stronger.”

  Hannah drank the potion as she carefully dodged a wither skull that rocketed by her arm.

  Daniel’s energy was incredibly low, too, but he stepped in front of the dragon and struck the beast with his sword. The dragon exploded, and a portal to the End appeared by the hotel entrance.

  Daniel headed over to the portal. Noah warned, “You can’t go on that portal. If we travel to the End, it will really be over.”

  The Wither flew close to Daniel. He didn’t have the energy to fight the flying hostile creature. It shot a wither skull at him. He was about to give up and accept the end. He didn’t have any tricks up his sleeve, and he was running low on resources. As the wither skull flew in his direction, Violet shouted, “Move!”

  Daniel jumped back, narrowly avoiding the strike from the skull. Noah and Violet shot the Wither with arrows and the three-headed beast was destroyed. It dropped a Nether star, which Noah picked up and placed in his inventory.

  Violet looked up and said in relief, “The sky is clear.”

  “We still need to find Thomas,” declared Adam.

  Daniel shocked everyone when he announced, “I have a confession. I actually know where Thomas is hiding. But I don’t have any the energy to travel there. I’m afraid this is the end for me.”

  Adam confronted Daniel with an offer. “I will give you this potion only if you lead us to Thomas.”

  Violet added, “I can’t believe you knew where he was all this time and you didn’t tell us. You lied to us!”

  “I’m sorry.” Daniel’s voice was weak. “I wanted to tell you, but I wasn’t sure I could trust you. I thought you might destroy me because of all the things I had done to you guys. I needed to see that we could work together.”

  “Trust us?” Noah questioned with a laugh.

  “I’m sorry,” Daniel repeated.

  Adam handed Daniel the potion of healing, and he drank it quickly. Adam demanded, “Now tell us where Thomas is hiding.”

  “I’ll admit I’m not one hundred percent certain, but I almost positive he’s hiding in a cave in the jungle.”

  “Which jungle?” Violet asked. “There are many jungles in the Overworld. We need to find out where he is soon before o
ne of us gets destroyed and we never respawn.”

  “It’s the jungle right outside your town,” said Daniel.

  “We’d better get going, then,” said Noah.

  “We can head into the Grassy Biome, go past the pastures, and reach the jungle quickly,” suggested Ben.

  Some of the hotel guests wanted to join the group of friends in the search of Thomas. Violet told them, “We’d love your help, but I think it’s best if you stay here. We don’t want to lose any more people.”

  Noah warned the crowd, “Be on the lookout in case Thomas returns. And please come and get us if you see him. We need to work together.”

  The guests agreed to watch for Thomas. The reformed rainbow griefers also promised to help battle Thomas if he appeared anywhere near the hotel.

  So the gang began their trek to the jungle. As Violet hiked, she kept her head down and searched for holes in the ground. She didn’t want to miss any secret tunnels.

  8

  CREEPERS, ENDERMEN, AND ZOMBIES

  The cave should be right over here,” Daniel said as he led the group to a lush section of the jungle. Huge green leaves shaded the path. Daniel sheared the leaves and looked for the cave.

  “I don’t see anything,” Adam said as he stood next to Daniel.

  “It should be here. This is where Thomas told me he was setting up his headquarters.” Daniel hunted nervously for the cave.

  “Do you think he might have tricked you?” asked Noah.

  “But we were supposed to be working together.” Daniel seemed troubled.

  “He might have moved locations,” suggested Violet. She searched for the cave in the hilly stretch of the jungle, but all she could find were cocoa plants and melons.

  “That’s true,” Daniel said as he paced. “Maybe he’s in the Taiga Biome. He loved living in the mountains.”

  Violet picked some melons and offered them to the group. “We need to eat and be on top of our food bar. If not, we will surely be destroyed.”

  The gang stopped and devoured the lush melons; they were tasty. Hannah said, “It feels like forever since we were able to relax and just enjoy ourselves.”

  “I know, but how can we have fun when we have to fight to survive? One wrong move and we can be destroyed,” Noah reminded Hannah.

  “Yes, this isn’t the time for fun and games,” added Violet.

  Hannah smiled at the group. “At least we can enjoy this melon. Despite all this craziness, I am really happy that I’m with you all. It’s great knowing that there are people who like to help each other.”

  Daniel added, “I have spent such a long time trying to destroy you, and now I realize what a mistake I’ve made. I’m really enjoying being with you all.”

  “That means a lot,” Violet said to Daniel. “It’s very hard to change, and you seem to be doing an excellent job.”

  Noah glanced at Violet. He was clearly still suspicious of Daniel, but he knew they needed his help. He hoped Violet was correct in trusting Daniel. Noah said, “I hope you see how important friends are and you don’t ruin it.”

  “I won’t. I promise,” Daniel told the group.

  “It’s easier said than done,” Noah replied. Then he added, “We have to find Thomas. The melon was excellent, but we have a person who is trying to destroy our world and he is loose in the Overworld. We need to find him.”

  The gang left the jungle. As they made their way toward the mountainous Taiga Biome, Hannah called out, “A creeper!”

  A creeper was silently lurking by a big tree. Noah took out his bow and arrow and struck the creeper with one shot.

  Kaboom! The creeper exploded.

  Hannah asked, “Do you think we’ll see more hostile mobs as we get closer to Thomas?”

  “We have to be prepared for anything,” Noah advised.

  “I see Endermen,” Violet’s voice shook. “This must be Thomas’s doing. It’s too light out for Endermen to spawn without help.”

  “He’s summoning mobs,” noted Daniel. “Don’t engage the Endermen. Maybe they’ll just pass by and not bother us.”

  The gang tried to avoid eye contact with the two Endermen carrying blocks, but the Endermen noticed them and began to shriek and teleport toward them.

  “Help!” Hannah cried as an Enderman teleported in front of her.

  “Run toward the water!” shouted Daniel.

  A winding river appeared in the distance. Hannah didn’t know if she would make it, but she knew she had to try or she would be destroyed forever.

  The Enderman was right behind her as she raced as fast as she could toward the water.

  “Jump in!” Violet called out. “You’re going to make it!”

  Hannah jumped into the water. The Enderman followed as a second Enderman also jumped into the water. Hannah swam back to the shore.

  “Creepers and Endermen. This isn’t a good sign,” lamented Ben.

  “We have to find a way to get to Thomas before one of these hostile mobs he’s summoned destroys us.” Hannah sounded very worried.

  Adam offered Hannah some potions to regain her strength. She drank them and thanked him. The group continued on their journey to the Taiga Biome. As the sun began to set, Noah suggested, “Violet, we should build a shelter for the night.”

  The gang agreed. Violet constructed a house roomy enough to fit everyone inside. As they placed the wood planks on the ground, Violet looked over at Daniel and watched him help construct the house. She couldn’t believe that Daniel was actually working with them. There were so many times when Daniel appeared in their makeshift homes and threatened to put them on Hardcore mode. Now he was trying to get them off Hardcore mode.

  With everyone pitching in, the house was constructed very quickly. Violet entered the house and started to craft beds for her friends.

  Once the beds were completed, everyone tucked themselves in.

  “Do you hear something?” asked Ben.

  “It sounds like someone is screaming for help.” Adam listened carefully to the cries in the distance.

  Noah suited up in his armor. “I know it’s dangerous, but we have to rescue whoever is in trouble.”

  Dressed in diamond armor, the gang rushed from the house and began searching for the person who was crying for help.

  “Zombies!” Hannah called out.

  The gang could see zombies lumbering toward them. Two people were fighting them off.

  “Help us!” one of the voices cried.

  Noah shot an arrow at the undead mob attacking the struggling pair. The gang joined Noah and shot arrows at the zombies, destroying them.

  The two strangers called out their thanks, but when Violet and her friends approached the duo, she realized they weren’t strangers at all. They were actually old friends.

  9

  ESCAPE TO MOOSHROOM ISLAND

  Will!” Violet was excited to see her old treasure hunter friend.

  “Trent!” Hannah called out.

  “Come with us,” Noah insisted. “We built a house. It’s too dangerous to be out at night.”

  Will and Trent paused. Will frowned at Daniel and asked, “Why is Daniel here? He’s the enemy!”

  “You might not believe this, but Daniel is helping us. We are involved in a serious battle,” said Noah. “There’s no time to talk. You need to follow us to the house before we get attacked by any more hostile mobs.”

  Will and Trent accompanied them to the new house.

  Will said, “Thanks for letting us spend the night. We are running low on resources and energy.”

  Trent added, “And there is a rumor going around that the world is set on Hardcore mode.”

  “That’s not a rumor,” Noah informed him.

  “Seriously?” questioned Will.

  “Yes, a griefer named Thomas set the world to Hardcore mode,” Daniel told them.

  Will and Trent listened to Daniel talk, as Violet crafted two more beds for her friends.

  “I want to apologize for my behavior
in the past,” Daniel told Will and Trent.

  Trent replied, “I used to work for you. I know that it’s possible to redeem oneself. I did.”

  “Thanks,” said Daniel.

  The gang crawled into their beds and went to sleep. When morning arrived, they hopped out of bed, ready to find Thomas. Will and Trent offered the group some of the cake they had in their inventories. Will said, “This is one of the last bits of food we have, but we want to share it with you because you have been so kind to us.”

  The group thanked them. As they ate the cake, Noah came up with a plan. “I don’t think Mooshroom Island is far from here. We should go there because it’s free of hostile mobs. We can build lots of homes and set up a new town. If we can’t find Thomas, we will need a place to transport the townspeople and the hotel guests. They deserve a place where they will be safe.”

  “Mooshroom Island is very close by. We passed it yesterday,” Will informed them.

  The gang exited the house and trekked toward the water. When they reached the shore, they could make out the tip of Mooshroom Island in the distance. Will asked, “Violet, have you ever built a boat?”

  Violet had never built a boat, but she said, “I think I can figure it out.”

  “We each have to make our own boat,” Trent reminded them. “We can’t travel on the same boat.”

  The group began to construct small boats to travel to Mooshroom Island. Once finished, they climbed aboard their vessels and set sail to Mooshroom Island. Violet could see the large colorful red mushrooms dotting the terrain. She was excited to visit this scenic island.

  The gang docked at Mooshroom Island and explored. A mooshroom was grazing on the mycelium landscape.

  “I want to milk the mooshroom. I’ve never had mooshroom stew,” Violet said as she approached the red-and-white passive mob.

  Violet grabbed a bowl, got the mooshroom stew, and handed the unusual dish to her friends.

  Hannah gulped down the stew and exclaimed, “Tasty!”

  “We should start building homes now,” Noah reminded the group.

  As the gang wandered around the island searching for the perfect spot to build their new community, Ben asked the treasure hunters Will and Trent, “Have you ever met Thomas?”