Vo-Lok nodded his massive head, his golden broadsword still in his hand.
“The creepers must be taught to obey,” the zombie king growled.
“In time, Vo-Lok, in time,” Herobrine replied.
“The Maker is wise,” the hulking zombie said. “What commands does Herobrine have for Vo-Lok?”
“For now, send your zombies out to gather more monsters. If any resist, they are to be destroyed on the spot as a lesson for the other monsters. Understood?”
“It will be done,” the zombie grumbled, then turned and walked to a large group of monsters. They instantly cowered in fear as their king approached.
“Things are progressing perfectly,” Herobrine said in a low voice. “Soon, I will have a proper army, with enough monsters to eradicate that village. The blacksmith and that light-haired villager will never be able to stop the wave of destruction soon to be crashing down upon them.”
His eyes glowed bright white with evil thoughts as he watched small groups of zombies move off into the wilderness to find more of their kind. The Maker cackled a malicious laugh as he imagined the look of despair on the blacksmith’s face when they arrived at the village with more than fifty monsters. The villagers’ fear would be precious. The thought filled him with joy.
CHAPTER 7
SEEKING INFORMATION
They moved quietly through the forest, listening for the sounds of anything that might have claws or fangs. The monster army had barreled ahead, trampling the grass, squashing flowers, and killing any animals they came across. The creatures didn’t even take the chicken or beef that remained after the destruction of the animal; they just killed for the sake of killing. The NPCs picked up the food, knowing it would likely be needed. Plus, they all knew using Wilbur for pork chops was not an option; Gameknight999 had made that perfectly clear.
With the sun high in the air, it was easy to follow the monsters’ trail, but Gameknight also knew it meant he and his companions would be easy to see as well.
“We should try to stay behind trees whenever possible,” he suggested.
“Why’s that?” Fencer asked. “I don’t see any monsters out here looking for us.”
“It’s the monsters that we don’t see that concern me,” he replied. “I’ve learned to always be cautious, even when it seems there is no danger nearby.”
“You sound a bit paranoid,” Fencer stated.
“When you’ve seen what I’ve seen, you learn to be careful,” Gameknight said. “For example, when we were—”
Suddenly, a clicking sound filled the air. Smithy and Fencer glanced around, looking for the source of the sound. Gameknight had his sword out, ready for battle, before Smithy and Fencer had even reached for their weapons. The blacksmith gave the User-that-is-not-a-user a wry smile.
“This way,” Gameknight said as he moved off to the right.
“What is he doing?” Fencer asked Smithy, loud enough for Gameknight to hear.
“We can’t have any monsters spotting us and reporting our position,” Gameknight explained. “If it’s a small group of spiders, we should destroy them, quickly.”
“You sound pretty confident, User,” Fencer said.
“I think we should follow him and find these spiders,” Smithy added.
Fencer sighed but didn’t protest further.
Gameknight moved silently through the forest, avoiding fallen sticks and leaves as he wove his way between the oaks. He stayed behind the tree trunks whenever possible, trying to blend into the forest, which wasn’t easy, seeing that his blue shirt and green pants offered little in the way of camouflage.
Finally, he spotted their prey … two giant spiders, heading their way.
“Let me show you something about fighting multiple monsters,” Gameknight said. “Watch, but if I get in trouble, I’d appreciate a little help.”
“You can certainly count on me,” Fencer said sarcastically.
Smithy scowled at his friend, then turned to Gameknight999. “Do not fear, we will be at your side if you need assistance.”
Gameknight nodded, then moved out in the open toward the two black fuzzy monsters. They clicked excitedly, their multiple red eyes focused onto him. Then they charged directly toward him, side by side.
When they drew close enough, Gameknight rolled to the side, putting one spider directly behind the other. He then attacked the one in front, slashing it with his sword. The other spider moved to the side to get around its companion and attack, but Gameknight saw the move and pivoted, keeping the two spiders lined up.
Focusing his attack on the spider before him, he blocked the monster’s attack, deflecting the razor-sharp claw at the end of its leg; he then counterattacked, striking out at the monster’s head. The spider flashed red with damage as his sword took HP from the creature with every touch. The monster at the back kept trying to move around its companion, but each time, Gameknight turned, keeping his advantageous fighting position.
After another flurry of attacks, the first spider expired, leaving behind some string and three glowing balls of XP. The remaining creature, now frustrated, charged directly at Gameknight. Stepping to the side, he allowed the monster to streak by, slashing at it as it sped past. Before the monster could turn, Gameknight leapt up high into the air and landed on the creature’s back. With two more hits, he destroyed the monster, leaving behind more string and XP.
Collecting the drops, he moved back to his companions.
“Did you see what I did?” Gameknight asked.
“Yeah, you fought two spiders,” Fencer said.
“No, it was more than that,” Smithy said. “You used one spider to block out the other. That way you only had to fight one monster at a time.”
“Exactly,” Gameknight replied. “We need to teach that to all the villagers.”
“We will, when we get back,” Smithy replied.
“There are tricks you can do with skeletons as well,” Gameknight said. He paused to walk around a thick oak tree, then continued. “Skeletons always shoot at your location.”
“Of course they do,” Fencer interjected.
“But they don’t know enough to shoot where you will be,” Gameknight added. “When you are approaching a skeleton, don’t run straight at it; the monster will fill you full of arrows. Instead, run a zigzag pattern. The monster will shoot where you are, instead of where you are going to be by the time that the arrow reaches you. They don’t know how to lead a target.”
“I didn’t know that,” Smithy said.
“How did you learn these things?” Fencer asked as he veered around a large birch tree. “You seem to know an awful lot about monsters.”
“Where I’m from, we fought a lot of battles with the monster kings,” Gameknight said.
“Where are you from?” Fencer asked suspiciously. “And what’s this about monster kings? I’ve never heard of that before.”
“Not yet, anyway,” Gameknight replied. He sighed, knowing that what he was about to say sounded crazy, even if he knew it was true.
“You aren’t going to believe it, but I’m pretty sure I’m from the future. I was shot into the past when I logged into Minecraft and …”
He explained about the thunderstorm, the Digitizer, the monster kings, and everything he had been through with his friends. Gameknight could tell from the look on their faces that they didn’t exactly believe him.
“Are you making this up?” Fencer asked.
Gameknight shook his head.
“So let me get this straight: you think you are the User-that-is-what?” Fencer said. “You’re not a villager like me and Smithy? You’re a user?”
“Right.”
“So you’re the first user, is that it? Sounds a little arrogant.”
“No, I didn’t say that,” Gameknight replied. “I said that I am the User-that-is—”
“OK, whatever First-User,” Fencer said with a sarcastic tone. “And really … a massive zombie king, and … ahh … what did you call them
…. Endermen? Tall dark creatures that can teleport? Ridiculous!”
“It is certainly difficult to believe,” Smithy admitted.
“Well, all I can say is that it’s the truth,” Gameknight replied. “I’ve learned a lot of ways to protect a village against monster attacks, and I can help, but you must trust me, or this won’t work.”
“I’m sure that’s exactly what you want … to earn our trust and get inside our village,” Fencer said. “But as soon as we aren’t watching, what will you do?”
“Was anyone watching when I stopped that group of zombies from sneaking up behind you?” Gameknight growled.
“They probably did that on purpose,” Fencer snapped. “We don’t trust strangers, and you’re a stranger, so you better get used to it.”
Gameknight sighed, then stared down at Wilbur, his only friend in this world.
I miss my friends. There is so much anger in Fencer and the ones back in the village, he thought. Only Smithy seems remotely welcoming, but his silence when Fencer is attacking me speaks volumes. They don’t trust me, and I don’t know what I can do to make them accept me. I feel so alone … at least I have Wilbur.
Suddenly, a twig snapped behind them. Gameknight turned, putting away his sword and drawing his bow in one fluid movement. With an arrow already notched, he moved to the trunk of an oak and peered around its rough surface. A pair of bright blue eyes emerged from the shadow of the tree; long, dark brown hair framed a scared face.
“Weaver, what are you doing here?” Fencer snapped. “I told you to go back to the village.”
“Well … ahh … I thought you might need some help,” Weaver stammered.
“You have to go back and leave us alone,” Fencer scolded. “This is no place for a kid. We have important things to do … adult things.”
“Kids can do important things too,” Weaver tried to protest, but it only drew an angry scowl from Fencer.
Suddenly, a moaning sound echoed across the landscape. Gameknight looked around and noticed that they had been steadily walking uphill without really paying attention to where they were going, and the forest had become thicker. They were coming to the top of a hill, and the sound of the monsters was coming from the other side. Gameknight stopped in his tracks and glanced at his companions.
“Monsters are on the other side,” he whispered.
“You think?” Fencer asked.
Gameknight turned and glanced at Smithy. “Weaver needs to stay with us. It’s too dangerous for him to be alone.”
“Agreed.”
“I think we should go to the treetops and spy on them,” Gameknight added.
The blacksmith nodded his head.
“Wilbur, you stay down here and hide,” Gameknight said to his little pink friend.
“Oink,” he replied.
Pulling out blocks of dirt, Smithy built a series of steps up into the leafy canopy. With his axe, he cut into the blocks of leaves, giving him access to the top of the tree. Fencer, Weaver, and Gameknight followed up the steps. When they reached the treetop, they found they could easily move along the green surface, jumping from tree to tree. Moving quietly, the group moved toward the top of the hill, the green carpet of leaves steadily moving upward along with the terrain.
When they reached the peak, each of them crouched low and peeked around green blocks, staring down into a shallow basin ringed with birch trees. At the center of the clearing was a collection of monsters, mostly zombies and skeletons. Gameknight could hear spiders nearby, but they were not gathered out in the open with the others.
Monsters were moving into the clearing from the forest, many of them emerging from between the trees to join the creatures already present. Thankfully there were only about twenty of them that Gameknight could see, although more were appearing every minute.
“Look at all those monsters,” Fencer whispered. “I thought we’d already destroyed most of them.”
“It seems they have gathered more friends,” Smithy replied.
“Look how many there are,” Weaver said, astonished.
“Shhh,” Fencer said.
Just then, a massive zombie, clad in golden armor, stepped into the clearing. He was gigantic compared to the other zombies, and a jagged scar ran along his jaw. His armor clanked as he walked, reminding Gameknight of the Tin Man—he was pretty sure this Tin Man had no heart either. He immediately knew this was a new zombie king … or maybe it was more accurate to call it an old one … the whole time-travel thing was confusing. Whoever the zombie was, Gameknight knew it wasn’t Xa-Tul, for he lacked that monster’s chain mail and hideous red eyes. This creature’s eyes were as black as night, a killing machine that Gameknight could tell would be a dangerous foe.
“Look how big that zombie is,” Fencer said.
“That is a new king of the zombies, just like I told you before,” Gameknight said.
“He’s gigantic!” Fencer whispered.
“And dangerous,” Gameknight added. “We must be very careful. When we face him we will need to—”
Suddenly, a chill slithered down his spine like some kind of icy cold serpent. Gameknight could sense a hateful, evil creature nearby. His heart pounded in his chest as he struggled to breathe. The terrifying sensation was making him panic nearly beyond the ability to think, and the User-that-is-not-a-user knew of only one creature that could have this kind of effect on him.
A new figure moved into the clearing. He wore a black smock, had dark black hair, and had a terrible, evil presence about him. But the most terrifying feature of all were his eyes … they glowed bright white and emanated violence—pure, hateful violence. It was his nemesis, his nightmare, his own personal demon returned through the bizarre spinning of the wheels of time.
“Herobrine,” Gameknight hissed, then shivered as his blood felt like it had turned to ice.
He thought he would never have to see that terrible creature ever again, and now here he was, walking through the collection of monsters as if he owned them …
“That’s the stranger that attacked our village!” Smithy said. “You know him?”
Gameknight nodded his head as the countless battles with the dark shadow-crafter filled his mind. He could remember the faces of the many victims that terrible virus had destroyed. It made him angry, but also made him think of how afraid and insignificant Herobrine had made him feel. Could he face him in battle again? Did he have the courage? Gameknight wasn’t sure, but he knew he couldn’t let down his friends in the future or these villagers here. He had to try. He had to face him, eventually. Fortunately, he had one advantage: he knew how Herobrine reacted and how he fought. Plus, in this time, Herobrine had never met Gameknight999.
But then, his fear surfaced again as the terrible shadow-crafter peered into the trees off to the left, his white eyes glowing with hatred.
I’m not gonna be afraid of you again, Herobrine, Gameknight thought.
And then, as if that monster had heard his thought, Herobrine turned and stared up into their tree. His terrible glowing eyes locked onto Gameknight’s, then he pointed up at the User-that-is-not-a-user and screamed at the top of his voice.
CHAPTER 8
THE CHASE
“Villagers…. GET THEM!” Herobrine screamed.
All of the monsters turned and peered up into the foliage, where they spotted three villagers and a child peering down into their clearing from the treetops.
“Skeletons … open fire!” Vo-Lok yelled as he drew his massive golden sword and started to shuffle after the invaders.
Instantly, the pale creatures notched arrows to bowstrings and fired. But by then, the intruders had already fled. Herobrine could hear their feet crunching on leafy blocks as they ran across the treetops, back into the thick forest.
“After them, quickly!” the dark shadow-crafter said.
The monsters filed out of the basin and ran in the direction of the fleeing villagers. Skeletons continued to fire up into the green canopy whenever they caught a g
limpse of the spies, but the leafy blocks stopped their arrows before they could reach their targets.
Herobrine glanced around at his army. The zombies were shuffling forward, their arms outstretched, but they were moving too slow. Giant spiders scurried along at the edge of the troop, their long dark legs allowing them to move faster than any villager, but the fuzzy creatures still did not obey Herobrine’s commands. He had to do something about that. Only the skeletons had a hope of catching the fleeing villagers.
“Skeletons … forward!” the dark shadow-crafter ordered. “The rest of you, go back to the basin and wait for my return.”
The zombies turned and shuffled back to the clearing, while the skeletons continued to advance. The pale monsters fired up into the trees, hoping that a lucky shot might make it through the leaves and strike one of the villagers, but the task was like finding a needle in a haystack.
“Save your arrows until you have a clear shot, fools,” Herobrine growled. “And move faster—they are getting away,”
The skeletons tried to run, but their loosely connected joints just wouldn’t allow it. All they could do was walk quickly, and that was not fast enough for Herobrine.
“Faster!” he shouted.
Drawing his sword, he swung it at one of the monsters, hoping to motivate the creature. But all he managed to do was damage it. In frustration, he hit the monster again. It flashed red one more time, then disappeared with a pop.
“Stupid skeletons,” Herobrine growled, his eyes glowing dangerously bright. All of the monsters veered away from the shadow-crafter in fear. “I’ll have to do this myself. All of you, go back to the clearing and wait for my return. The intruders will face my blade and be destroyed. They will learn why they should fear the name Herobrine.”
His eyes glowed brighter for just an instant, causing the skeletons to look away, and then he was gone. Herobrine materialized in a different section of the forest, far ahead of the interlopers. He found a large clearing and stood at the far edge, his sword in his hand. Out in the forest, he could hear footsteps, faint at first, but slowly growing louder.
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