Turning, Gameknight glanced at the Oracle and saw a big, knowing grin on her face.
“The light-crafters are helping us now,” Gameknight said in a loud voice. “Villagerbrin and Swordbrin just gave us a little assistance.”
The old woman nodded her head, her smile growing bigger.
He turned back to the spider queen and saw a look of doubt on her evil face, then cast her a grin.
“Everyone … ATTACK!” Gameknight shouted, then ran forward.
All of the villagers followed his lead and charged forward, directly at the spider horde. They swung their swords with greater strength as their weapons did more damage to the eight-legged monsters. Spider claws clashed with iron blades as the two opponents met. Screams of pain came from both villagers and spiders as sharp blades and pointed claws found flesh.
Gameknight slashed at the spider before him, blocking one claw with his left blade as he attacked with his right. He landed a devastating hit, causing the monster to flash red, taking damage. He then slashed at it again and again, blocking clawed attacks while quickly countering with another strike. The monster quickly fell before him, only to be replaced by another one.
Next to him, he saw a woodcutter struggling with his opponent. Gameknight slashed at the monster, drawing its attention to him, which allowed the villager to quickly finish it off.
“Fight together, in pairs!” Gameknight shouted.
He lent his blade to the NPC on his other side, hitting the villager’s opponent with all his strength. The monster screeched in pain and tried to move back, but something kept the spider from retreating. Gameknight hit the monster again, finishing it off.
But against the NPCs’ improved strength and better swords, the spiders fought viciously, as if retreat was not possible. Gameknight knew that the spider queen controlled all the monsters with her evil mind and would likely not let any of the fuzzy creatures back down. He had to somehow get to her so he could end this battle. But there was no way for him to reach the village walls; he was completely blocked off by spiders.
Suddenly, the sound of boots on gravel came to his ears. Stepping back, Gameknight saw some of the NPCs that had been working in the crafting chamber running out of the cobblestone watchtower. They stopped a dozen blocks away and pulled out bows. Firing at the monsters, they whittled down the monsters’ HP and slowly opened a section in the spider line. With their bows singing, they fired on more of the hateful creatures, attacking those at the rear while the swordsmen slashed at the front ranks.
“Attack the queen!” Gameknight shouted. “All archers, fire at the queen on the wall!”
As one, the arrows were turned from the dark monsters to where Shaikulud perched on the fortified wall. They fired a wave of arrows that streaked through the air like pointed lightning. The arrows sparkled with a green glow as Arrowbrin, in the crafting chamber underground, added his contribution to the battle.
Shaikulud had no choice but to jump from the wall to escape certain death. In that moment, her psychic hold over the spiders wavered, allowing the monsters to choose their lives over their courage; they retreated. The fuzzy giants turned and ran for the walls of the village, but the archers did not let them get very far. They drove their shafts into the monsters as fast as they could draw arrows and release. Many of the dark creatures fell under the pointed hail, but many also escaped.
As the spiders ran from the village and disappeared into the desert, the villagers took to the walls again and yelled insults at the fading monsters. Gameknight stared out into the evening landscape and watched them get swallowed up by the surrounding night.
“Shaikulud, tell Herobrine that we’re still here!” Gameknight shouted. “Tell him, if he wants to face Smithy, I’ll be here waiting for him! Tell that viral coward that Smithy of the Two-Swords is not afraid!”
The villagers cheered and patted Gameknight999 on the back, many of them saying, “Smithy be crazy.” And for the briefest of moments, he actually did feel like Smithy of the Two-Swords.
Maybe I can lead them to victory, Gameknight thought.
Glancing back to the well, he saw the Oracle standing there, nodding her head, a huge smile stretching across her square face.
CHAPTER 23
SPIES
Gameknight sighed as he listened to the moans and cries that filled the village. Many NPCs were wounded and in dire need of healing, but many had also been killed. Family members mourned those they lost, while friends tried to console the grieving villagers. It was a sad thing to watch, and the User-that-is-not-a-user felt guilty for not having saved more of them.
“It could have been much worse,” a scratchy voice said next to him in consolation.
Gameknight turned to face the Oracle, her wooden cane tapping its metal tip on the sandstone ground.
“Your leadership and courage kept the villagers working together,” she pointed out. “And as you know, that’s the only way to defeat Herobrine’s monsters—by working together.”
“I know,” Gameknight replied. “I’m still sad that so many had to perish in that battle, but I know that I did everything I could do to save everyone. It’s just …”
“Just what?” the old woman asked.
“It’s just that Herobrine had his spiders attack just out of spite, to make us suffer,” he growled. “He knew we would never just turn you over to the spiders. This attack wasn’t some strategic move to gain land or capture critical resources. He just wanted us to feel pain, for no reason other than it would please him.”
“That is the nature of a virus,” the Oracle said in a scratchy voice. “Its only purpose is to spread out as far as it can, then do as much damage as possible. That is what Herobrine wants to do. First, he will try to reach out across this server, then he’ll try to get to the other servers in the pyramid of servers until he has destroyed everything.”
“I’m not gonna allow that,” the User-that-is-not-a-user said with a scowl.
“I know, child,” she replied.
Glancing up to the square moon high overhead, Gameknight could see a thick layer of clouds arriving, the sparkling stars slowly being swallowed up by the boxy veil. The feline cries of the ghasts could be heard as the clouds drew closer. The Oracle heard the sounds and smiled.
“Those are ghasts up there,” Gameknight said. “Why do you smile?”
“They are like floating children,” the Oracle said. “Their only desire is to float in the sky and drag their tentacles through the thick clouds. They are completely harmless and a beautiful feature in Minecraft.”
“In my time, they are horrible monsters that would kill us all if they saw us down here,” Gameknight said. “I don’t know why they are so docile in this time, but I don’t trust them and never will.”
“You have much hatred in your heart,” the Oracle said.
“I have been through a lot and seen a lot of suffering,” Gameknight said. “And Herobrine has been at the center of it all. He must be stopped.”
“Well, that’s why I’m here,” she replied, then cupped her hands over her ears.
Gameknight gave her a confused look, but she only smiled back. Suddenly, thunder growled overhead and a bolt of lightning flashed across the sky, striking the ground far from the desert village.
“You knew that was going to happen,” Gameknight said, his eyes wide.
The Oracle nodded. “It was my doing,” she said. “I make the lightning strike the ground when something in Minecraft must be reset … in this case, it was lava. One of Herobrine’s shadow-crafters has been making lava hotter, and it is putting things out of balance. We can’t have that.”
“So that lightning fixes that?” Gameknight asked.
The old woman nodded, her gray eyes sparkling with satisfaction.
“I wait until the shadow-crafters are not ready, then I make the lightning strike,” the Oracle said. “Lavabrine was not paying attention, so I reset some of his work.”
“Nice,” Gameknight replied with a sm
ile.
Suddenly, Watcher yelled out from the top of the cobblestone watchtower. “Something’s coming!”
Gameknight ran to the steps that led to the top of the fortified wall. He peered out into the desert and could just barely see movement in the darkness.
“Archers, get ready,” Fencer said. “But don’t fire until you see what you’re shooting at.”
Newly strengthened bows, improved by the light-crafters, creaked as arrows and strings were drawn back. Gameknight took out his own bow and aimed at the shapes moving about in the desert. The clouds had completely covered the moon, plunging the landscape into almost complete darkness, with only the torches on the walls casting any illumination onto the sands.
“Who’s out there?” Gameknight shouted. “We have five hundred arrows aimed at you right now. Identify yourself!”
“Five hundred arrows?” Fencer asked at his side.
“Well, I sorta exaggerated a bit,” he said with a smile.
Fencer slapped him on the back and laughed.
“Don’t shoot,” a voice called back.
Suddenly, a torch flared to life, revealing a huge group of NPCs approaching the village. Gameknight was shocked. There must have been sixty or seventy villagers trudging across the sand dunes. They looked exhausted.
“Open the gates,” the User-that-is-not-a-user shouted quickly. “Everyone, put down your bows. They’re friends.”
The archers lowered their weapons and cheered as their fellow NPCs entered the village. Many of the warriors ran down the steps to greet the newcomers, while others stayed on the walls, peering out into the shadowy desert, watching for monsters.
“This brings our numbers up to more than three hundred now,” Fencer said. “You can be sure Herobrine will be surprised when he sees all our warriors.”
“Perhaps, but I’m sure he has monsters posted close by to see what we are doing,” Gameknight said. “We should send out patrols to watch the desert around the village. We should also place some torches out there so we can see the landscape better at night.”
Fencer glanced at a group of warriors that had been listening and gave them a nod. They gathered their weapons and armor, and headed for the gates, torches in hand.
“Groups of warriors will keep patrolling all night long,” Fencer said.
“No one goes alone,” the User-that-is-not-a-user insisted.
Fencer nodded and gave more instructions to some warriors, then turned back to Gameknight999.
“You look nervous,” the NPC said.
“I was just thinking, we really don’t know what Herobrine is doing or how many monsters he really has,” Gameknight replied. “All we saw were the ones that attacked us back at Dragon’s Teeth. We really don’t know what’s going on there.”
“Let’s call all the village elders together and discuss this,” Fencer suggested.
Gameknight nodded, then moved toward the village well. Soon, all of the oldest and wisest villagers approached, worried looks on their faces.
“Smithy has asked for this gathering,” Fencer said after all the necessary NPCs had arrived. “He has some concerns.”
Some of the villagers murmured to each other, speculating what this was about, but when Gameknight stepped forward, they all grew silent and turned their square heads toward him.
“We need more information,” he said. “We have no idea what Herobrine’s doing, or how many monsters he has, which kinds, and what they are training for. Without better intelligence, we’re blind and will likely just stumble into a trap like we did at Dragon’s Teeth.”
“Maybe we can just wait here and force him to come to us,” Baker, Carver’s older brother suggested. “That way we can fight him on our own ground and on our own terms.”
“No, we’ll be trapped here behind our walls,” Carver said.
Many of the elders glared at Carver, as if his comments were inappropriate and unwelcome. The big NPC lowered his gaze to the ground and took a step back, as though he wasn’t important enough to be a part of the discussion.
“No, Carver is right!” Gameknight said. He turned his head toward the stocky NPC and cast him a smile. “Mobility is key in warfare; moving targets are harder to hit. If we stay here, behind our walls, then we’re forced to wait until Herobrine figures out a way to defeat us. He could just choose to wait until we all starve, though it’s unlikely Herobrine would do that. He doesn’t care how many of his monsters die in his conquest to dominate the Overworld. All he wants is for everyone to suffer. We need to stay one step ahead of him, if we’re gonna have any chance of defeating him.”
“But how do we do that?” Farmer asked.
“We send out some spies,” Weaver said.
Everyone turned toward the young voice. Slowly, Weaver stepped out of the shadows, wearing leather armor that had been dyed black.
“This is a meeting for the elders, not kids,” one of the older NPCs chided. “And where did you get that ridiculous armor?”
Weaver ignored the question and continued to speak.
“What will be decided here affects all of us, even the kids that have been fighting right alongside all of you. So we should all have a voice too.”
“He makes a good point,” Fencer said, nodding his head.
“OK, Weaver, so what do you suggest?” Gameknight asked.
“Have Tanner make leather armor for a small group of warriors, but have him dye them all black, like what I’m wearing now. Then they can go out at night and spy on monsters. Send them out in groups of four. When they learn something, send a pair of them back with the information. No one is ever alone, as they’re always in pairs. And by hiding in the shadows, we can learn what the monsters are doing, and how many troops they really have.”
Gameknight glanced around at the collection of NPCs. Many of them were nodding their heads as they considered the idea.
“It’s a good idea,” one of the elders acquiesced, though he still cast Weaver an angry scowl.
“I agree,” said another.
Gameknight looked around the group and found all of them nodding their heads.
“OK, then we will do as Weaver suggests,” the User-that-is-not-a-user said. “We’ll get Tanner working on armor right away.”
“I already took the liberty of getting him started,” Weaver added with a smile.
“You did, huh?” Gameknight replied. “Very well, we’ll send out the fastest runners, in groups of four, to Dragon’s Teeth. When we know what is going on, we’ll formulate a battle plan.”
“Great!” Weaver exclaimed.
“Don’t get too excited, Weaver, because you aren’t going. You’ll be staying here, helping me plan our defense in case Herobrine decides to attack us here.”
“But …”
“We must all do our part, and that is yours,” Gameknight said firmly.
The young boy could tell from the tone of his voice that resistance was futile, so he simply nodded at the blacksmith. With everyone in agreement, the meeting adjourned.
Gameknight walked up to the top of the fortified wall and stared out onto the desert. He could see new trees standing tall around the village with hundreds of cactuses placed all over, making a frontal assault difficult; Treebrin and Cactusbrin had been busy. As they discussed the defenses, Gameknight heard the village gates open, and a dozen shadowy villagers slipped out into the desert. They looked like black shadows as they sprinted across the dunes, and, in seconds, they disappeared into the dark landscape, all of them heading toward Dragon’s Teeth and certain danger.
CHAPTER 24
CREEPER ARMY
A deep, blood-red light filled the eastern horizon as the sun peered over the distant mountains. Herobrine loved that single moment every day, when the skyline turned that specific shade of red. It lasted for only a few seconds, but it was his favorite time of day. The yellow face of the sun rose a little higher, changing the blood red to a bright crimson that quickly faded to orange. Herobrine sighed. The moment w
as gone, and now lousy morning was upon them.
The dark sky to the west, with the last remnants of a star-filled sky, slowly faded to a deep, clear, disgusting blue. The clouds that had blocked the moon and most of the stars through the evening had continued to move westward and were now far away. Herobrine had heard thunder and saw brief flashes of light in the middle of the night. It had happened far to the west, out in the desert, but now all was quiet as the clear blue sky dominated the heavens.
Turning his attention from the awful blue sky, Herobrine watched as monsters from all over the Overworld continued to arrive. Throughout the night, the flow of monsters had been huge, but now it was but a trickle. He had drained the biomes adjacent to the extreme hills where Dragon’s Teeth was located of all their monsters and had sent emissaries to those farther out. The only creatures left to collect were those in the other zombie-towns hidden throughout the Overworld. Soon he would call them all and then they would move against the blacksmith and his puny villagers.
Beneath him, the monsters that hid underground in the massive zombie-town felt confused. Somehow, he could feel their thoughts and emotions with his evil artificial-intelligence virus software. It was as if he were slightly connected to every nearby monster, his viral tendrils intertwined with the fabric of Minecraft.
The monsters in the massive chamber had no idea why they were there, and many were scared. But Herobrine didn’t care. Monsters were all disposable, and if they were unhappy or scared, who cared? All that mattered was their obedience.
Suddenly, the presence of a massive group of monsters appeared in his mind. It felt like a tidal wave of creatures slowly flowing across the landscape. They were approaching from the east, moving quietly through the forest.
Turning, Herobrine spotted them. They appeared like a flowing, mottled green-and-black carpet. The huge army of creepers moved through the forest in complete silence, their tiny little feet moving in a blur. He could see a small number of the creepers with blue sparks running along their skin, like a suit of sapphire lightning. These were clearly charged creepers, and probably were some of the creeper king’s generals.
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