Out of their little Minecraft group, she was the redstone whiz. Ant was the creative builder who could construct amazing structures that boggled the mind. Hamid preferred to work behind the scenes in the game. He ran the server they played on at home and the one they used for their Minecraft club with their teacher, Mr. Rodinaldo.
Ant moaned from where he slumped against the wall. He was definitely asleep and dreaming, but it didn’t sound good.
“Should we wake him?” Hamid said.
Jaina poked her head around the command block.
“Leave him,” she said. “He needs to rest.”
More ghast screeches came from the other side of the cave wall.
“Those ghasts aren’t going anywhere,” Hamid said. “It’s like they know we’re in here, and they’re just waiting for us to stick our heads out that hole.”
Jaina studied the cave mouth she had covered up.
“True,” she said. “We can’t fight them, but maybe we can sneak away.”
“Sneak away? How?”
“There’s a small opening in that far wall.” Jaina poked the command block. The colored lights covering the sides of the block were dull and lifeless. She frowned. “I saw it when I first got in here. Before I saved your butts.”
“You mean before you nearly shot off our butts.”
“Details.” She smiled. “See where it leads. You’re clearly not going to sleep, and you're making me nervous hovering around like that.”
Hamid had to agree. It was a good idea to see where it led. They didn’t want to be surprised by more slimes or zombie pigmen looking for their next meal. He left Jaina to her tinkering and Ant to his troubled sleep.
The tunnel was low, only two blocks high and narrow at only one block wide. It climbed like a set of stairs. Hamid wondered if it was natural, or if it had been carved out by an earlier explorer. Had Whiner come this way? As far as he knew, they were the only people from the real world on the Seed Server. Every other being they had met had been either a non-player character or a monster.
A square of pale red light drifted in from the opening at the far end of the tunnel. Hamid continued to climb, attaching torches to the walls as he went. He stepped through the opening and stood on a narrow ledge. Beside him, a steep cliff face of netherrack climbed sharply upward, disappearing into the ceiling of the Nether. Below him, an endless desert of netherrack spread out as far as he could see. Magma cubes mindlessly slurped across the open ground. A narrow, well-worn path cut across the terrain. Slimes didn’t make paths like that. Who did? And where did it lead?
The fat white shape of a ghast drifted into view in the distance. It floated over the lake of lava they had seen earlier. Hamid ducked behind a chunk of netherrack. If the big blob spotted him, their chance at escape would be blown. The ghast drifted over the flaming lake like a blimp at a ball game. Hamid’s gut tightened, like he’d been hit with a baseball bat. He used to go to games with his dad. They'd sit way up in the outfield with their gloves, hoping to catch a home run and get a free souvenir. They hadn't gone to a game in a long time. His dad would offer, but Hamid would always choose to stay in and stay glued to the computer. Now, as the ghast floated across the waves of lava, Hamid wanted more than anything to unplug from this world and hang out with his family. He pulled himself out of those memories and back down the tunnel.
Jaina buzzed around the command block, muttering to herself, when he got back. The lights on the block flickered and pulsed like a computer hard at work. Jaina's diamond sword stuck to the side of the block. Ant still lay asleep in the corner, oblivious to Jaina’s excitement.
“I did it!” she said when she noticed Hamid had returned. “I turned it on!”
“And this is important because ...”
Jaina rolled her eyes at Hamid. “I thought you would get this right away.”
“Get what, Jaina?” he said. “Whiner could already be giving Herobrine the Seed. We need to get out of here and find him. Do we really have time to noodle around with command blocks?”
“Yes, we do,” Jaina said. “As server admin, you know command blocks can be very powerful.”
“Yes, but only players with Operator status can use them,” Hamid said. “We're not OP in this world, so what good are they to us?”
“We're not OP, but our swords are.” Jaina grinned. “Our blades are crafted from True Diamonds. Those diamonds can do a lot of things.”
“Like drag us into this Minecraft world.”
“Exactly.” Jaina circled the command block. Its lights flashed quietly. Her True Diamond sword stuck against the block like they were meant to be together. “I couldn't open the command block on its own because I am just an ordinary player on this server.”
“But with your sword, you become OP?” Hamid said.
“When I put the sword near the block, it snapped right into place. It was almost as if it had been designed for that exact purpose.”
“No wonder Slashax wanted the swords for himself,” Hamid said.
“That old bonehead is the one who gave me the idea,” Jaina said. “Slashax used this command block to communicate with Herobrine.”
“Don’t remind me.” Hamid shuddered at the memory of the Skeleton King talking with the ultimate force of chaos.
“Herobrine wasn’t in the Overworld where Slashax had his base,” Jaina said.
“Do you think he’s in the Nether? Slashax did have a portal to this world.”
“I don't think he’s here, either.” Jaina turned to the flashing command block and studied it. “Slashax used this block to speak to Herobrine in another world. There must be a way for us to do the same.”
“You're trying to phone Herobrine?”
“Wrong.” A wide grin grew on Jaina’s blocky face. “I'm going to phone home.”
Chapter 3
The voices woke Ant.
Come to us. Bring them and leave. Now.
He cracked open his eye, ready to beg Hamid for a few more minutes of shut-eye.
Hamid lay not far away, sleeping. Jaina was stretched out on her own red and white bed against the far wall.
Ant, come to us. Take what we seek and bring them to us.
Ant sat up at the mention of his name. The rough netherrack dug into his back. A single torch flickered on the wall across from him. He was in a small cave. His body ached. His head felt like it had been used for soccer practice. His left arm burned. A large green welt pulsed there like he had dipped it into a vat of toxic acid. The mark didn’t scare Ant. He knew it was supposed to be there. It tugged at his memory. Something about being chased. Then it was gone. The thread slipped away.
Bring us what we seek.
The voices returned and steered his thinking. Hand over hand, Ant pushed up the wall and got to his feet. Gingerly, he took a step. Then another. He shook his head, trying to loosen the cobwebs that cluttered his mind. A shiver ran through him from head to toe. He had picked up something, for sure. Some bug or maybe the flu. Maybe he should wake Hamid. He would know what to do. Hamid was always the responsible one. He would have some chicken soup or something. He bent down to wake his friend, but his hand froze in the air.
Disturb him not. Take what we seek. Bring it to us.
Ant pulled his hand back. Hamid looked so peaceful sleeping there. It wouldn't be right to wake him.
Bring us ...
If he were careful, Hamid would not be disturbed. Ant bent down beside his friend again.
An inventory appeared in front of him. Each slot filled with items Ant did not place there. Blocks of netherrack, stacks of torches, loaves of bread and lumps of coal. Ant didn’t wonder how he was able see into Hamid’s inventory. He just could. That was all that mattered.
Bring us what we seek.
Ant knew what would appease the voices. All the items in Hamid’s inventory were from Slashax's storeroom. All, that is, but one.
With a thought, Hamid's True Diamond sword vanished from its slot and reappeared in Ant’s
own inventory. Hamid snored on, undisturbed. Transfer complete.
Bring us ...
Ant moved away from his sleeping friend with the grace of a rogue. He stood beside Jaina. Like Hamid, she too slept soundly. All that marching and running from ghasts had taken its toll. That would help Ant in his quest.
The fever burned through him like a wave of molten rock. Ant fought the urge to scratch the pain away.
Bring ...
Ant concentrated on Jaina. Again, without knowing how it was done, her inventory appeared before him. The same collection of blocks and food and supplies. And something else. A block unlike others. It flashed with a rainbow of blinking lights.
What we seek ...
Ant snapped his attention away from the strange block to the blue diamond sword. With another thought, the True Diamond sword transferred from Jaina's inventory into his own.
Bring us ...
Silently, Ant moved away from his friends and slipped into the tunnel on the far side of their cave. He moved like a shadow to the ledge overlooking the endless Nether. A ghast drifted lazily overhead. Magma cubes slurped along the ground below. None of these troubled him. He knew their minds as well as a hunter knows his quarry. He knew the Nether as well as one who was born here. The shallow footprints covering the ledge told him Hamid had stood here only a few hours ago. The shimmering air trailing the floating ghast revealed its flight pattern and showed Ant where the monster was headed. He could easily avoid its notice and its fireballs.
A shiver ran through him. The fever burned him to the core. It also revealed the secrets of every block in this fiery world.
Ant did not know how long he would survive. But as he stared out on the burning landscape before him, he knew he was home. He belonged in the Nether, and he would never leave it.
Bring us what we seek ...
He studied the three True Diamond swords in his inventory. He would bring what they sought. Ant would deliver his promise to the unseen voices in his head. He climbed down off the ledge and stepped out onto the flat plain of the Nether.
In minutes, he was a dot on the horizon, far away from his two friends who lay sleeping, dreaming of an escape that would never come.
Where is Ant going?
What will Hamid and Jaina do without their swords?
And where in the Nether is Principal Whiner?
Download Nether Nightmare for all the answers and more blocktastic action!
Click here to continue the adventure:
liamodonnell.com
Author’s Note
Thank you for reading Descent into Overworld and the preview of Battle of the Blocks 2: Nether Nightmare.
If you enjoyed the story, it would be amazing if you would write a short, honest review on a website like Amazon. Reviews from readers like you are a great way to support authors and help others discover their books.
Thanks again for reading Descent into Overworld. And don’t forget to visit liamodonnell.com to see all the other books I’ve written. I think you’ll like them.
Liam
August 2015
Thank You!
Just as it takes many players to create epic Minecraft builds, this book was only possible with the support of some amazing people.
First, big thanks to all my Minecraft pals on the GamingEdus servers. I’ve learned so much from the teachers and students who play on our worlds and much of that made its way into this book. None of that play would have been possible without the support of Dr. Jason Nolan at the EDGE Lab at Ryerson University. Thank you Jason! As always, thanks to Melanie McBride whose creations and ideas both in-game and in real life continue to inspire and show me the way.
Thank you to Diana Maliszewski and Denise Colby for rocking Minecraft in the classroom with me since 2011 and for sharing Descent into Overworld with their students. Speaking of which, thank you to all the awesome students at the Jean Augustine Girls’ Leadership Academy in Toronto, for their great feedback and showing the boys that girls can be Minecraft masters, too. Thanks also to Jane Mundell and her sharp eyes for catching the typos others missed.
Finally, a huge thank you to my amazing Beta Readers! You took a chance reading this book and helped make it better with your fantastic feedback. Thank you to:
Adam Baird
Melissa Jensen
Geoff Hunt
Julia S.
Charlie Gerancher
Debbie and Declan Alvarez
Phisagrim, Terragrim and Liragrim
(who know who they are!)
Want to be a beta reader and get early access to my books? Sign up at: liamodonnell.com/beta-readers-and-early-reviewers/
Also by Liam O’Donnell
Find all these books and more at:
www.liamodonnell.com
Tank & Fizz
The Case of the Battling Bots
The Case of the Slime Stampede
Battle of the Blocks
Descent into Overworld
Nether Nightmare
Escape from the End
West Meadows Detectives
The Case of the Snack Snatcher
The Case of the Maker Mischief
Graphic Guide Adventures
Power Play
Food Fight
Media Meltdown
Soccer Sabotage
Ramp Rats
Wild Ride
Max Finder Mystery
Max Finder Mystery: Collected Casebook 1
Max Finder Mystery: Collected Casebook 2
Max Finder Mystery: Collected Casebook 3
About Liam
Liam O'Donnell is the award-winning creator of over 35 books for young readers, including the Max Finder Mystery, Graphic Guide Adventures and Tank and Fizz series of graphic novels.
He is also an elementary school teacher in Canada. When he’s not writing or teaching, Liam is usually playing Minecraft, growing tomatoes and wishing he owned a cottage.
He lives in Toronto, but you can visit him anytime at: liamodonnell.com. Join his Reading Change Readers Group and get a free ebook, reluctant reader resources and project updates. You can also follow @liamodonnell on twitter where he tweets about reading, writing, games and other geeky stuff.
Copyright
Battle of the Blocks: Descent into Overworld
Copyright 2014 Liam O’Donnell
Published by Feeding Change Media.
Minecraft ®/TM & © 2009–2013 Mojang/Notch
This book is a work of fiction. The author and Feeding Change Media do not claim ownership of Minecraft, Mojang or any names, places, characters or elements relating to the game. Other names, characters, places and incidents are either products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events, locals or persons, living or dead is entirely coincidental. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording or by any information storage and retrieval system now known or to be invented, without permission in writing from the publisher.
ISBN: 978-0-9919281-6-3 (ebook)
978-09919281-7-0 (paperback)
First published November 2014
Second Edition August 2015
Descent Into Overworld: An Unofficial Minecraft Adventure Page 11