by Billy Miner
BANG!
I hit a tree. My head hurt. However, I was still conscious and fighting the dangerous streams of water. I kept my face above the water so I could breathe, but every so often, I would be swept under and was forced to catch my breath again after reaching the surface.
BANG!
A branch hit my head.
This was it.
It was over.
I couldn’t remember much after that. They said I had been out for hours. When I woke up, I saw three Endermites who had carried me out of the water after the branch hit my head. They took care of me and made sure I could recover.
But I had forgotten my origin. I didn’t know where I came from, and when they asked me, I wasn’t able to tell them anything.
That is the sad story of how I lost my name… and my family.
Entry 2: What’s in a Name?
There I was. I was lost. And I knew nothing better to do than to mope around for a few days. My rescuers had already left me, seeing that I was okay. I understood. It was okay; they had others to attend to. The whole forest was a mess after the monsoon. I’m sure I wasn’t the only one who lost a family member or friend. But I doubted anyone else lost their name. I was really upset, because I wasn’t even able to find them for that reason. How could I find the Endermites I was looking for if I didn’t know their names? I didn’t even know my own.
The water level had lowered. The ground was safe to walk upon. I realized that I had been living in a tree for a few days, not just in there, but just on the branches. That was my first time sleeping on branches. Glad I didn’t fall off.
“Hey, buddy. What are you doing up there?” an Endermite from beneath asked me.
“Just waking up from a long night’s rest,” I said.
“You were sleeping up there?” he asked in disbelief.
“Sure, nothing better than a comfy tree branch to keep you from drowning in the currents of a monsoon,” I said.
“Well, it’s okay now. Why don’t you come down?”
He was right. Why not? I jumped from branch to branch until I hit the soil the tree was in. He introduced himself.
“My name is Hogan,” he said. “What’s yours?”
“I don’t know,” I admitted.
“Mm… awkward name. Never heard that one before,” he mumbled. “Okay, Idownow, where are you from?”
“No,” I corrected him. “My name is not Idownow. I said that because I literally don’t know my own name. I have amnesia. I forgot my name and my family’s name. So sorry, but I can’t tell you where I’m from either. I have lived in this forest all my life, but where exactly, I am not sure.”
“That’s horrible!” Hogan said with a great sense of drama. “I would hate to be alone. I come home to my family each day. Let me help you look for them.”
“Well, how am I ever going to find them if I don’t know their names, nor my own?” I asked.
“Let me take care of that. I always find a solution. Trust me,” he said with a smile on his face. “For now, we have to call you something. How about Dopey?”
“I don’t like Dopey,” I said.
“Well, Mopey then,” he suggested.
“I don’t like that one either. Let me think. What’s a cool name? Aha! Skookum!”
“Skookum? Where did you get that idea?”
“I don’t know, but it sounds strong and powerful. Could you call me Skookum until I find my original name?”
“Sure, no problem. Now, let’s find someone who knows what to do about this.”
Entry 3: Allergies
“Mom,” Hogan called after guiding me to his parents’ home. “Where are you?”
We stepped inside. The house was a hole in the ground, nothing more. It was somewhat polished by Hogan’s dad, who had made the edges smooth and had provided an interesting looking entrance.
“I’m in here!” his mom shouted back.
We went into their main living space and said “hi” to Hogan’s siblings. They were very friendly and they listened to my story.
“You know, we have lost some friends in the monsoon too,” Hogan’s mom said. “I hope we’ll see them back sometime. I am just glad we were able to stick together as a family. But what you’re telling me is awful. I think I know just the person who can help you.”
“Can I go with him, mom? Can I?” Hogan asked.
“Just don’t do anything stupid,” his mom said. “You know what we taught you to stay away from danger, don’t you?”
“Yes, mom.”
“Good,” Hogan’s mother continued. “On the other side of this forest, there is a wise old lady Endermite. She knows a lot. Sometimes I think she knows everything. Seek her out, and she’ll tell you if there is a cure for this memory loss of yours. Her name is Endra. She lives in the tree in the shape of a heart. You’ll recognize it when you see it. Take this with you. It’s your lunch. Take care now.”
She handed Hogan a little bag with food. He grabbed it and gave his mother a hug. After that, we went into the direction she told us.
The journey was enjoyable, and by keeping each other company, Hogan and I got to know a lot about each other’s interests and backgrounds. We leapt over roots, crawled under bushes, and jumped in puddles for fun. The splashing of the water caused us to get a little overexcited as we discovered that one of the puddles didn’t consist of much water at all.
It was soul sand!
Oh, if only we had paid more attention. Everybody know that Endermites are allergic to soul sand. What is soul sand? It’s kind of like quick sand, but worse. As Endermites, we only have to touch it before it makes our skin itch. Not only that, but soul sand, like quick sand, sucks Endermites down and makes them drown in the soil.
I got stuck and so did Hogan. Slowly, we were drifting down to our grave.
Now what?
How were we going to get out of this? Neither of us had a clue.
“Grab on to that plant over there,” Hogan suggested.
I tried. I really tried, but with no luck. The plant broke and we were sinking as time went by.
“Whaaa! I don’t want to die!” Hogan cried. “I am too young. I was going to be an Endermite superstar and impress the Endermite girls. I was going to be a sports hero and a benefactor to society.”
“Now, now. Just calm down. Didn’t you tell me you always find a solution?” I said.
He thought for a moment.
“You’re right,” he said. “I am the solution king. I always come up with something.”
“Like the plant,” I said with a skeptic face.
“Yes, the plant. But that didn’t work. It’s okay. Let’s see here... how about that rock over there?”
“You are thinking about holding onto a rock?” I asked cynically.
“Of course. If I just… okay, maybe not. Then the rock will just drop into the soul sand. How about the bird?”
“The bird? What bird?”
I looked behind me. Hogan was right. There was a bird there. It was an ugly, white and black magpie with evil eyes, glancing at the trees in the woods and hoping for something to munch on.
“Are you sure that wicked fowl will help us?” I asked. “It doesn’t look too friendly to me.”
“Of course,” Hogan said. “Don’t worry. I got it all under control. Hey birdie!”
The giant magpie flew to the area next to the puddle of soul sand. It raised its eyebrows as if it had never seen such a scene before: Two Endermites stuck in the soul sand.
“Khooroo! What do you want, little worm?” it asked.
“I am not a worm, I am an Ender… oh never mind. Can you get us out of here?”
“Khooroo! And why would I do that? There’s nothing in it for me,” the magpie said.
“Oh, but there is. Something special, just for you,” Hogan said.
“Clever Hogan,” I thought. “He really knows how to manipulate others into giving him what he wants.”
“So what is it?” the magpie asked.
“How do I know it’s worth it then?” the magpie asked. “Fine. I’ll pull you out, but it better be good.”
With that said, the magpie leaned over and pulled us out one by one. We were all itchy, of course, because of that nasty soul sand. Ughh… hopefully we’ll never have to deal with that substance again, and I was anxious to have that itching feeling be gone.
“Well? What is the surprise? Give me my reward,” the magpie demanded.
“Here it is,” Hogan said, handing him the lunch bag he got from his mother.
The magpie looked disappointed.
“That’s it?” he asked. “That’s not bird food. I hate that stuff. Give me something else.”
“We don’t have anything else,” I said, trying to gain his sympathy.
“Great. I wasted my strength again,” the magpie said. “I guess I should have known I wouldn’t get anything out of this. But then again, I could just eat you two. You look rather scrumptious, little worms.”
He stepped forward and looked straight at us.
“I told you we were not wo…” Hogan started, until I interrupted him.
“Forget that, Hogan. Let’s get out of here!” I said as I slithered into the opposite direction.
Hogan followed me. We both crawled away from the magpie, which was pursuing us and making scary sounds.
“Khooroo! Khooroo! I will have you for breakfast!”
We were ahead of him, but the magpie was gaining on us. Scared and afraid but still crawling, I said, “Jump!” after which we leaped over a mushroom, slid underneath a thistle and disappeared in a bush with flowers.
“Sshhh… it can’t see us here,” I whispered.
We waited as we watched the magpie from a distance, searching for us and continuing to make noises. After five minutes or so, however, we heard another sound.
“Pppsssssshhh!”
What was that? I didn’t have the guts to look yet, because I wanted to make sure the magpie was gone first.
“Khooroo! Khooroo! Get away from me! Khooroo!”
Some white smoke came out of nowhere, blowing the magpie away and scaring it to death. After a few struggles with the smoke and failing to resist the strong wind, the magpie got disoriented and flew away.
“You can come out now,” we heard. “It’s safe. The bird won’t be back.”
Entry 4: The Solution
It was the old Endermite lady who had chased the hungry magpie away. She looked pretty smart indeed, and I assumed she was at least a hundred years old, but that was just a guess.
“You can come out now,” she said again.
We came out and discovered that we were in front of her little house.
“That magpie won’t do you any harm. Come inside and have a cup of tea,” she said, pointing her finger to her home.
Her house looked warm and cozy. It was amazing that she actually had a little home, made out of wood and tiny bricks, with windows and a chimney. Curtains were hanging in front of her windows and there was a little red door we all crawled through. The interior was decorated with red and green items, tables, chairs, and painted walls.
“Nice place you have here,” I said.
“I’m glad you like it,” she answered. “Make yourselves at home.”
She gave us something to eat, Endermite food of course, and inquired about our business.
“What brings you here?”
“I forgot my name. For now, I am called Skookum, but that’s not my real name,” I said honestly.
“And how did that happen?” she asked.
“The monsoon,” I said briefly.
“No more need to explain,” she said. “I understand. You probably got swept away by the current and hit something, and now your brain is damaged, causing amnesia, or fragmented memory loss. Do you remember your family’s names?”
“No, and that’s the problem.”
“I see,” she said. She had to think for a few minutes. Then she went another room. We sat there, looking at each other and wondering what she was doing. After a while, she came back with a piece of paper.
“This is it,” the wise, old Endermite said. “This is what you have to find to get your name back.”
“But you already have it. So we don’t have to find it anymore, right?” Hogan said.
“No, no, silly boy. When I say, ‘this is it,’ I don’t mean that this is it, but that what this drawing depicts is it. Understood?”
“Uhm… kind of,” he said.
“I get it,” I said. “You just made a drawing of the object we’re looking for. Clear as glass. But what does the object do?”
“I’m glad you ask,” she said. “This is a drawing of the diamond of wisdom, which can give you answers to any of your questions. If you possess it, it will tell you what you need to know. I know, it sounds idealistic, but it’s true. It’s a magical diamond.”
“Great! Let’s go get it!” Hogan said as he jumped up.
“Hold your horses, young man,” she said. “This is not an easy task. The diamond can be found in the Nether, a seemingly endless underworld full of vile creatures and filthy monsters. Most of its territory is covered by burning hot lava and other dangerous materials. I would never recommend going there to anyone, but in your case, I might make an exception. I know how it is to lose your family. I lost my husband years ago and have been living alone ever since.”
“Okay, we’ll watch our backs,” I said.
We ate, we thanked Endra for letting us sleep over.
Entry 5: The Nether
The next morning, we took off. We received directions from the wise Endermite so we would know where to go. It only took us several hours before we discovered the entrance.
“Are you sure you want to go down there?” Hogan asked.
“Very certain,” I said. “I need to find out who I am and where my family is.”
“I was just asking because it looks pretty creepy,” Hogan said, shivering a little.
They stood at the edge of a cave. Curvy points like claws were at the top of the entrance, portraying the beginning of a hellish empire full of hazardous areas and dangerous creatures lurking beneath the shadows. It looked like a dreadful realm or dimension no simple Endermite should arrive at.
“C-can we please go back?” Hogan asked.
“You can go back if you’re scared,” I said, “But I am going to head down there and find that diamond.”
“Scared? I’m not scared. I’ll show you that I’m not.”
“Be my guest,” I said, stepping back and letting him go first.
He wasn’t bluffing, although I did sense a little nervousness in his demeanor. But he went first. He got in front of me and crawled down into the Nether.
What we saw there left a print on our minds that would never be erased from their memories. Excruciatingly hot lava was all over the place, as far as the eye could see. There were rivers, pools, and lakes of lava. I believe this was the first time that I saw a lavafall, transporting hundreds of gallons of lava per minute downward to mix in with the already bursting lavapools. Patches gravel, rocks, and pieces of soul sand added some variety of the fiery scenery, providing us the only safe route to our destined location.
“Okay, the way I see it…” I began, “… is that we can hop onto these rocks and patches of gravel. I’d rather avoid the soul sand, if that’s okay with you.”
“Ha! Of course. I wouldn’t want to go through that experience again,” Hogan answered. “I’m all up for it. Let’s go!”
We hopped and hopped from one rock to the next, from patch to patch… any place we could safely stand without getting burned.
“Whoa!” Hogan yelled while a giant flame came up from the lava within inches away from his tail. “These flames just pop out of nowhere!”
“I saw it. It’s incredibly dangerous, but we have to keep going. According to the map, it won’t be much longer.”
Variou
s flames were shooting up from the lava streams. It was almost as if they were trying to hit us, but that was impossible of course. However, it made the jumping and maneuvering more challenging by the minute. As we got closer to our destination, the flames would rise more frequent. There were a few moments I thought I would get burned and barely evaded them.
Then we were stuck.
There was no more rock or patch to hop onto. We looked around, talked about it, but it seemed like we were not able to go on any further.
But then, something else arose from the lava. It wasn’t a flame or a rock.
“What is that?” Hogan asked.
“I don’t know, but it looks like… a mushroom! Let’s use the mushroom to jump to the next rock!”
No sooner said than done we managed to drop on the nearest rock by jumping and bouncing on the mushroom. It was amazing! These things came out of nowhere. Another mushroom appeared, and another, and another. Dozens of mushrooms emerged from the lava, providing an easy way for us to bounce to the nearby patch of gravel with the diamond.
Bam!
“Ouch!”
We landed on the gravel.
“Look!” I said, pointing to the left. “It’s the diamond. It must be. It looks exactly like the drawing from Endra.”
“Wow. It looks so beautiful,” Hogan said. “Let’s get it.”
Entry 6: Nether Enemies
We approached the radiating gem and focused on nothing else. This crystal would give me the answer. It would tell me my name and my family members’ names. I would finally be reunited when coming back to the woods.
We were almost there, but something was wrong. I had a hunch. Danger was in the air. It was like there was a hostile presence, a secret enemy watching us fall into their maliciously designed trap.
We turned around and stared into the eyes of ten black skeletons. They had swords made out of stone and said in an eerie voice, “You shall not take the diamond. It belongs to us.”