Herobrine's War

by Mark Cheverton

  Gameknight could see their plan was shaping up. It had been his initial idea to bring Herobrine and his army—especially the ghasts—down into the Nether, but other villagers had suggested the dispensers and pressure plates. In the end, it was a battle plan that had been formulated by everyone, and many NPCs had contributed ideas that Gameknight would have never considered himself. With everyone working together, it felt like it took some of the responsibility off his shoulders.

  Suddenly, a cat-like cry filled the air.

  “The ghasts are coming!” Fencer shouted. “Everyone finish up and get to position.”

  The villagers moved faster, placing more blocks and digging up more netherrack. They reminded the User-that-is-not-a-user of a colony of angry ants. Peering into the darkness under the overhang, Gameknight saw a group of oddly shaped people standing off to the side: the light-crafters. He ran toward them, where he found the Oracle talking to Wolfbrin, the new light-crafter speaking in a growling voice.

  “Will you be able to help during the battle?” Gameknight asked, interrupting the conversation. “I think we’ll need the assistance.”

  “We will try, child. Villagers are placing blocks of dirt and sand on the ground as we speak,” the Oracle said in a scratchy, aged voice. “But I don’t know how well their powers will work down here in this terrible place.” She moved closer to Gameknight and spoke in a whisper, for his ears only. “You know, if this plan doesn’t work, Herobrine will have you trapped down here.”

  “If this doesn’t work, then it really doesn’t matter where we are,” he replied. “Herobrine will have the Overworld covered with his infected clouds, with an army of ghasts raining fireballs down onto the villages. He’ll be able to wipe out all the NPCs with a single stroke. If this doesn’t work, then villagers may become extinct.”

  The feline yowls grew louder, and now they had with them the sorrowful moans of zombies and the clattering of skeleton bones. Herobrine was getting closer.

  “When this is all over, whether we win or lose, you need to go into hiding,” Gameknight said. “The spider queen will hunt you across all the biomes of the Overworld, and I fear that if she finds you, it will not end well.”

  “Thank you for your concern, child, but I think I’ll be okay.”

  “You must promise me: when this is over, you go hide.”

  “Perhaps, but let us see how the day ends before we make plans for the next hundred years.”

  The Oracle reached out and placed a wrinkled hand on Gameknight’s arm. Instantly there was a calming presence in his mind; it was the music of Minecraft. It allowed him to put aside the fear that had been building up since the battle of Olympus Mons, and it felt good to release that stress.

  “Now go do your sword thing,” the Oracle said. “My light-crafters will be back here, doing what we can.”

  Gameknight gave her a nod, then looked up at the tall Wolfbrin.

  “I have a friend that would love to meet you,” the User-that-is-not-a-user said. “He loves your wolves more than anything else, and cares for them as if they were his own children. But sadly, he won’t be born for about a century.”

  “Grrrreat,” Wolfbrin said. “Perhaps you can give him my grrrratitude. It’ll be a grrrrand adventure today. Maybe I’ll still be around when he is borrrrn.”

  “I hope so,” Gameknight replied, then moved to take his position.

  Walking carefully past the pressure plates, the User-that-is-not-a-user moved out from under the netherrack overhang. Dispensers studded the ceiling as well as the walls; hopefully they would not be seen until it was too late. Gameknight walked out into the open and moved to the shoreline of the great lava ocean. Waves of heat and ash wafted from the huge body of boiling stone, causing tiny square beads of sweat to form on his brow. Turning, he looked up the hill they’d descended. Their portal was up there, somewhere, and likely Herobrine had used it to follow them.

  Suddenly, he felt something rubbing against his leg. Looking down, he found Wilbur standing next to him, his pink face staring up at him.

  “Oink, oink,” Wilbur said in a strong, confident voice.

  “I’m glad you feel so brave,” the User-that-is-not-a-user said. “But I’m terrified.”

  “Oink.”

  “Yeah, I know we don’t have much choice. Are you ready?”

  The tiny animal rubbed against his leg.

  “Okay, here goes,” Gameknight said, then drew in a huge breath and shouted as loud as he could. “HEROBRINE, YOU’RE A COWARD AND SHOULD RUN AWAY WHILE YOU HAVE THE CHANCE.” He took another breath. “I PITY YOU AND YOUR PATHETIC ARMY!”

  An angry scream sliced through the Nether. It was filled with such venomous hatred that it caused tiny square goosebumps to form down Gameknight’s spine.

  “I think I got his attention,” the User-that-is-not-a-user said, gulping.

  “Oink, oink,” Wilbur replied.

  “Come on.”

  Gameknight turned and ran, just as a fireball streaked through the sky and landed in the lava ocean nearby.

  “They’re coming!” Gameknight shouted. “And I don’t think Herobrine is very happy.”

  Some of the villagers laughed while others simply repeated the phrase that more and more of the NPCs were using: “Smithy be crazy.”

  Gameknight drew his diamond sword with his right hand, then grabbed his iron with his left, and waited for Herobrine and his army to crash down upon them.

  CHAPTER 27

  RAIN OF FIRE

  Archers ran out to face up the hill where Herobrine’s army was descending from. They fired arrows indiscriminately at the approaching monsters, just to give the impression they were trying to hold them back. But the truth of the matter was that they wanted the monster army to come much, much closer.

  Gameknight could see fireballs streaking past the opening to their little underground surprise. A rainstorm of fire was raging out on the netherrack plain, but the User-that-is-not-a-user knew the archers would be okay. The NPCs had spotters telling them where the fireballs would hit, and the warriors were safely moving out of the way.

  Gameknight knew there were three things you needed to know about ghasts’ fireballs:

  1. They were terrifying when they were heading straight at you.

  2. If they hit you, they did a lot of damage, especially if there was no water nearby.

  3. They were easy to avoid.

  Gameknight had recently taught the villagers that third truth when they came into the Nether (all of the warriors already knew about the first and second truths). Now the archers were putting their newfound knowledge to the test.

  “Move, it’s coming right at you,” someone yelled.

  “Look out,” cried another.

  Exploding fireballs, cat-like cries, and the shouts of villagers filled the air. Gameknight wanted to run out and help, but he knew he had to stay back. The archers knew what they were doing, and he had to let them do their jobs.

  Suddenly, the NPCs ran down the hill and sprinted under the overhang, and he saw some had scorched iron armor with smoldering edges; apparently, the fireballs weren’t as easy to avoid as Gameknight had assumed. If they had been in the Overworld, they would have wanted to jump into pools of water to quell the heat from the blasted armor, but it was impossible to place water in the Nether; it evaporated instantly.

  “They’re coming,” Fencer said as he patted the sleeve of his smock, which was burning slightly. He’d been one of the archers out there. “No question about it, they know we’re here and they’re really mad.”

  “Great!” Gameknight exclaimed. “Everyone to their positions … Archers, get in your holes … Villagers, get to your levers. We have only one shot at this, so it must work.”

  “What are you gonna do during all this?” Fencer asked.

  “Me?” Gameknight said with a nervous smile. “I’m still the bait.”

  “Everyone get ready,” Carver yelled. “They’re coming.”

  Groups of four
climbed into holes in the ground, each hidden in the shadows of the overhang; one warrior with a sword, and the other three with bow and arrows. Others climbed up the walls and took their places next to levers connected to redstone circuits. But the bulk of the army gathered at the back of the chamber, waiting. Only Gameknight stood out in the open, standing directly on a block of glowstone so that all the monsters would see him.

  Moans and clicks and clattering bones filled the area. The monsters gathered near the edge of the lava ocean, their hateful eyes all focused on Gameknight999. Smashing his diamond sword on the netherrack around him, the User-that-is-not-a-user made a banging sound that resonated through the rusty stone landscape.

  “Where are your cowardly ghasts, Herobrine?” Gameknight shouted. “I want to punish them first for destroying some villages. Then I’ll deal with you.”

  An evil presence materialized at the front of the monster army. He was clad in all black, and had a vile, malicious expression on his face, his two eyes glowing bright with hatred.

  “You want to meet my ghasts?” Herobrine shouted. “Very well.”

  He motioned with one hand, and a group of ghasts floated out of the shadows toward Gameknight999. Balls of fire began to form under the creatures, growing hotter and hotter. Then the evil floating monsters sucked the spheres of flame into their bodies and spit them directly at him.

  Rolling to the side, Gameknight easily avoided the attack, then drew his bow and fired. His arrow struck the lead ghast, making it flash red. But instead of firing another shot, he turned and ran to the shadows.

  “You see, the blacksmith is already retreating,” Herobrine said. “I told you he was a coward.” The virus laughed. “Remember, Smithy is mine.” His eyes grew brighter. “Monsters … ATTACK.”

  A hundred creatures surged forward, including the ghasts, which floated up near the rough-hewn ceiling. The Endermen stayed near the rear, unable to join the first wave of fighters, while zombies moaned and wailed near the front of the assault. Gameknight watched the wave of fangs and claws approach and was petrified with fear. With all the spiders, zombies, skeletons, ghasts, and Endermen, it was likely the single most vicious army every assembled in Minecraft. Gameknight steadied his shaking hands, remembering the one job he had to do, and moved back out into the open again, so the monsters could see him. The spiders clicked louder as cat-like cries came from the ghasts.

  They were getting closer. Gameknight could smell the repulsive, decaying odor that always hovered around zombies like a perpetual cloud of putrid stench. He could hear the spiders that climbed along the ceiling, their claws making a scratching sound as they dug into the netherrack ceiling. The ground began to shake with thunder as the pounding monster feet grew closer.

  An arrow zipped past his head; an overeager skeleton had taken a shot at him, but likely had been bumped by another monster nearby, causing the shot to miss. A roar sounded overhead, followed by a fireball that descended onto the offending skeleton. A section of the cave lit up with flickering yellow light as the flames consumed the skeleton’s XP.

  “The Maker said to save the blacksmith for him!” Malacoda bellowed from far back in the formation. “Destroy the villagers when you find them, but save Smithy for the end. Or ELSE!”

  Gameknight gripped his swords tighter and waited, fear and uncertainty growing within.

  What if this doesn’t work? he thought. What if the traps don’t stop the monsters?

  But everything was happening too quickly for Gameknight to be lost in thought. The first of the spiders stepped forward, reaching a pressure plate camouflaged on top of a block of stone. Lines of redstone powder grew bright as the glowing signals ran to the dispensers, triggering the arrows, which shot out of dark holes in the gray cubes, streaking into the side of the attacking force. Zombies and skeletons screamed out as they flashed red with damage, and the clicking of the spiders grew frantic. Ghasts turned to fire toward the source of the arrows, but their fireballs harmlessly smashed into the wall of stone-lined dispensers.

  Instead of retreating, the monsters decided to surge forward, moving as fast as possible across the pressure plates. More arrows were triggered, sending them flying into the vile creatures, but their onslaught never wavered. With so much hatred stored up in the monsters, and so many of them attacking, nothing short of total defeat would stop these creatures.

  Skeletons and ghasts fired into the darkness, hoping to hit something, but the only thing visible was Gameknight999. As they drew closer, Gameknight glanced into the shadows to his right and nodded his head. The thundering voice of Carver suddenly filled the Nether.

  “ARCHERS, ATTACK!”

  Groups of four suddenly stood from holes in the netherrack. Three archers fired their bows while a fourth villager helped direct their fire. The trio of archers worked together, all firing at the same ghast. With the three arrows striking the beast simultaneously, its HP was immediately consumed. One by one, the square creatures screamed like terrified babies, flashing red, then tilted to the side and disappeared.

  Continuing to fire, the archers shot at the ghasts while the monsters continued their advance across the pressure plates. The first wave eventually broke through and they reached the archers. That was when swordsmen leapt out of the shadows, offering a distraction so that the bowmen could climb out of their holes and retreat.

  With arrows continuing to streak up at them, the ghasts tried to rise higher into the air, but the netherrack ceiling kept them trapped and within range of the villagers’ bows. Their only choice was to retreat, but as the floating giants tried to drift out of the chamber, Malacoda roared with fury.

  “Attack, you fools, don’t retreat!” the king of the ghasts bellowed.

  The floating monsters turned and moved forward, trying to zigzag to make it difficult for the archers to aim.

  With the archers pulled back, the rest of the army emerged from the shadows behind Gameknight999, their weapons and armor gleaming in the light from nearby glowstones.

  “This battle is boring me!” Gameknight shouted. “Are none of you brave enough to come forward, or are all of you just as cowardly as your late zombie king, Vo-Lok?” He took a step forward. “He begged for mercy at my feet. But I laughed at him, just like I’m laughing at you know. Then I destroyed him.”

  The zombies growled in rage. They all knew about the demise of their king at the hands of the village’s blacksmith leader. Surging forward, they pushed the rest of the monster army ahead with them in one giant mass.

  Gameknight smiled, then turned and ran to the line of villagers behind him. As he sprinted, he nodded his head, giving the second signal. NPCs hiding in the ceiling set redstone torches to more dispensers, activating the devices and causing them to shoot out blinking cubes of TNT, courtesy of TNTbrin. The red-and-white-striped cubes fell amongst the monsters, and went unnoticed … at first.

  But then … BOOM!

  The first of the blocks exploded, tearing huge chunks out of the netherrack floor as balls of fire blossomed into life. Then more of the striped cubes detonated, punctuating the growls and moans and clattering of the monsters with thunderous blasts of destruction.

  Monsters ran in all directions, trying to avoid the devastation, but the dispensers were everywhere. Ghasts launched their fireballs up at the ceiling, trying to contain the attacking villagers they believe were hidden overhead. The spheres of flaming death smashed into the dispensers and raised walkways, casting wide circles of light on the surroundings. That was when the monsters saw that the villagers in the ceiling had already fled. The ghasts cried out in frustration, then turned their rage back toward Gameknight999 and the other villagers.

  Fireballs fell down upon the NPCs like a fiery rain. But this time, the villagers stood in pairs, each with their swords held at the ready. With the zombies, skeletons, and spiders busy with the TNT falling on their heads, the defenders were able to concentrate mostly on balls of fire streaking toward them from the ghasts. They batted the fire
balls away with their swords, sending some of them far to the side, and even sending them careening back right to their source. Ghasts cried out in shock and pain as the burning spheres they’d fired moments before ended up crashing back into them, scorching HP into ash.

  The floating monsters fell by the dozens as their own attacks came back to foil them.

  Archers fired in groups of four again, one NPC directing the trio of attackers as well as defending them with their sword. Arrows and fireballs flew back and forth until finally, the ceiling was clear of ghasts; they’d all been destroyed.

  The dispensers in the ceiling had exhausted their supply of TNT, as had the wall of dispensers firing the arrows. What was left of the monster army was pathetic; a mere shadow of itself. But the villagers showed no sign of letting up.

  “Everyone, ATTACK!” Gameknight yelled.

  “Smithy be crazy!” the villagers replied as they charged at the remnant of Herobrine’s army.

  They smashed into the surviving monsters, with Gameknight999 acting as the point of the spear. Spider and zombie claws met iron swords as skeleton and NPC arrows flew back and forth like angry, pointed insects. But the skeleton arrows were grossly outnumbered.

  Gameknight was at the center of it all, his diamond sword leaving behind great swaths of destruction followed up by the iron blade in his other hand. Monster after monster fell before him. Nearby, Baker and Carver led a group of armored villagers, tearing into a large group of spiders. The legendary axe tore through dark fuzzy bodies as the Carver of Monsters charged forward. Creatures flashed red as they were thrown aside like ragdolls. Spiders tried to escape the melee, but archers had now built up towers of stone and dirt, and were firing down upon the monsters, ensuring none could flee.