The Phantom Virus

by Mark Cheverton

  “Come on,” Hunter whispered as she gently laid her hand on his shoulder. “The fun is down this way.”

  She moved like a ghost, dashing from shadow to shadow as she led the way through the descending passage, which twisted and turned as it bore deep into the stone and dirt. Gameknight held a redstone torch to give a small amount of illumination so they could see any traps or tripwires, but found none. Likely, the traps were just near the entrance to the tunnel network; no one had expected them to make it this far.

  Soon, they began to hear the sounds of clattering bones, and knew they were getting close. Putting out the redstone torch, the trio approached slowly through the darkness, peering around rocky outcroppings and stone formations. Ahead was an intersection of two tunnels; one continuing downward while the other sloped upward. At the center of the crossing was a single redstone torch. It cast a pale red glow onto the tunnel walls and stone floor.

  The tunnels looked empty.

  But then something moved just at the edge of the circle of illumination, as a clattering sound reached the three intruders. Gameknight peered through the darkness, his eyes becoming accustomed to the pale light, and features began to emerge from the shadows. Pale skeletons stood in the darkness, their white bones reflecting just enough of the crimson light to be visible.

  “There’s a group of at least thirty skeletons up ahead,” Hunter whispered.

  “I don’t think we can fight that many,” Butch said, “not even if we had that boy’s wolves with us.”

  Hunter stared at the monsters. She moved slowly to the right wall of the tunnel and gazed down the tunnel, then moved to the left and repeated the process. Then she turned and faced her friends, a smile just barely visible through the darkness.

  “I can draw them off, I think,” she said.

  “How?” Gameknight asked.

  She just looked at him and smiled again, then pulled out a block of dirt and placed it on the far right side of the tunnel. She stuck an arrow into the block so that it was easy to grab.

  “I’ll have to do this quick so they won’t see my bow,” Hunter said as she carefully placed more blocks of dirt throughout the passage, leaving only a narrow pass through which to shoot. Once she was satisfied with her work, she stood in her archer stance, but left her bow in her inventory.

  “What are you doing?” Gameknight whispered.

  “Waiting for the right time,” she replied, “Now be quiet and let me do my thing.”

  Slowly, she reached into her inventory, then stood motionless and waited. Gameknight turned and looked at the skeletons. Apparently, the monsters had become bored with standing in the shadows. They all thought there was no way that an enemy could make it this far into the mountain, and they’d grown careless, congregating around the redstone torch and shuffling about aimlessly. The clattering of their bones filled the passage, the echoes making it sound as if there were a few hundred of the monsters standing before them instead of just thirty.

  But then a new sound echoed off something, causing the skeletons to all look to one side. That was what Hunter was waiting for.

  In a practiced, fluid movement, she pulled out her enchanted bow and notched the arrow in a blink of an eye. Drawing the arrow back, she fired it through the tunnel, then put away her bow before anyone saw the iridescent glow. The whole thing happened in a flash. The flaming projectile arched upward, narrowly missing the ceiling as it streaked through the air, then flew above the intersection without being seen and darted into the adjacent upward-sloping passage. The flaming arrow stuck into the ground far into the ascending passage, the magical flame still burning.

  The skeletons just stood there, unmoving and confused. They hadn’t even noticed.

  “It didn’t work,” grumbled Butch quietly.

  “Wait for it. Skeletons aren’t very smart,” Hunter whispered.

  And then it happened; one of the skeletons saw the burning arrow and pointed. The other monsters looked up the passage, then ran to investigate, leaving only one to guard the intersection.

  “Now,” Hunter said as she pulled out a normal bow and notched an arrow.

  Drawing his iron sword, Gameknight adjusted his non-magical iron armor and followed his friend as she leapt forward with the silent grace of a predatory cat. Streaking noiselessly from shadow to shadow, they closed in on the foolish monster that had stayed behind, his bony back still to them. When they were at the edge of the light cast by the redstone torch, Butch reached out and wrapped his strong arms around the monster, placing a hand over his mouth. At the same time, Hunter fired her arrows at the creature, aiming precisely between the butcher’s muscular arms. In seconds, it disappeared without a sound, the monster’s HP consumed. Gameknight moved forward and snatched up the XP and bones, then ran to the passage that angled downward, toward their goal, leaving behind an empty intersection with no trace that they’d ever been there.

  They repeated this process of drawing off the foolish skeletons with a flaming arrow, then streaking by the unprotected intersection. After they had tricked their way through three additional intersections, the trio finally found themselves at the entrance to Herobrine’s chamber.

  Peering into the huge opening, Gameknight could clearly see the details of the chamber now. There was a narrow strip of rock that stretched out into the cavern, the darkness of a fatal drop wrapping around both sides. At the end of the narrow bridge was a huge stone circle that extended from the left side of the massive cave to the right but did not extend to the far wall where the glowing numbers were slowly ticking down. Instead, it only covered the near half of the cavern, with another narrow bridge extending to a second platform of stone that was hidden in shadow. Across that far, stony plane, he could see some kind of blocks in the shadows, but the darkness made them difficult to identify. Clearly, these bridges were designed so that monsters on the stone platforms could defend themselves easily, holding the narrow bridge and keeping intruders from advancing.

  Gameknight smiled.

  Your bridge won’t stop us, Herobrine, Gameknight thought. Apparently, you didn’t think of everything, did you?

  He smiled to himself.

  “You look like an idiot,” Hunter whispered. “What are you smiling about?”

  “Oh, nothing,” the User-that-is-not-a-user replied.

  At the other end of the bridge, a cluster of skeletons were standing about, not paying attention to anything. In the dim light of the redstone torches, Gameknight could see a small hole high up on the wall to the right side, a subtle glow of red light marking its position. Then he noticed a single command block on the platform near the left wall, a lever placed to its side. It must be the spider queen’s command block, he thought. That’s my target.

  “You two ready?” Gameknight asked.

  They both nodded.

  “Then let’s get this thing done.”

  I hope this works, he thought as he pulled out a block of cobblestone and placed it on the sheer wall of the cavern, using it as a ledge, then inched out onto it as Hunter and Butch did the same on the opposite side. They slowly moved along the perimeter of the cavern wall, standing precariously on a single block of stone, while what seemed like an endless drop yawned below them.

  Suppressing his fear, he placed the next block on the side of the wall. The single cube of cobblestone seemed barely wide enough to hold him, and he had to remind himself over and over that he wouldn’t fall. That massive drop beneath him made everything seem small and insignificant. Gameknight felt momentarily paralyzed with fear as he stared down into the shadows.

  I can do this, he thought as he pulled his gaze away from the darkness beneath him. Gameknight took a tentative step forward. Pulling another block of stone from his inventory, he stuck the cube against the cave wall and moved forward yet another step, his eyes focused on his target, the lone command block.

  I really hope this works, Gameknight thought, or I’ll cause the deaths of all these people, including my friends.

&n
bsp; He shuddered at the thought and tried to push it away, but the uncertainty seemed to swell within his mind.

  If only I’d stopped Herobrine sooner, the familiar voice of guilt said within his mind.

  CHAPTER 24

  REALIZATION

  Gameknight999 hugged the smooth cavern wall, trying not to breathe. A skeleton was approaching below. The bony monster moved along the edge of the cobblestone platform, coming closer and closer. Walking up to the edge, the monster looked down into the seemingly endless darkness, then stepped away from the precipice. He hadn’t thought to look up at the wall, where the User-that-is-not-a-user stood flattened against the wall on a single block ledge.

  Gameknight’s foot had slipped moments earlier, and the noise drew the attention of the guard. If the monster saw him, he was in serious trouble.

  Staying perfectly still, the User-that-is-not-a-user tried to slow his heartbeat. The rhythmic pounding of his heart sounded incredibly loud within his chest and he was afraid maybe the skeleton would hear it.

  The monster looked around, then glanced up at the large numbers at the far end of the cavern. The number 13 shone bright in the darkness, which made the skeleton smile. Turning back, the creature shuffled away, satisfied that there was nothing to see.

  Gameknight999 slowly exhaled, then took a calming breath as his heartbeat slowed to a normal pace. He could feel tiny square beads of sweat forming on his forehead and running down his face. They stung as the little cubes made it into his eyes, but he ignored the discomfort and concentrated on the task at hand. Pulling out another cobblestone block, he placed it on the sheer wall and moved forward another step, slowly making his way around the perimeter of the huge cavern. His target, the lone command block, was still a few blocks out of reach, but he was getting closer.

  On the other side of the cavern, he could barely see Hunter and Butch, but every now and then a glint of red light would reflect off someone’s armor, showing him their progress. They were almost to the far section of the cobblestone platform and would soon be moving to Phase II; he had to hurry up with his task.

  Placing the blocks faster, Gameknight moved along the narrow ledge he was building. The ticking numbers on the other side of the gigantic cavern made him want to hurry, but he knew any misstep would mean his death; he had to be careful.

  Placing more cobblestone, he was soon nearly in reach of the command block. For safety’s sake, he stuck two more blocks against the sheer wall and moved closer to the checkered orange cube. It was now within reach.

  Crouching, Gameknight stretched out a hand and set it on the block. Closing his eyes, he imagined he was at his computer, as he had done many times while within the game. Focusing his mind on the mouse he liked to use, he imagined himself moving the cursor over the command block. With every fiber of his being, he tried to right click the command block with his mind. Instantly, a series of letters appeared in his mind, and Gameknight was shocked at what he saw. The command block, when activated, was programmed to make a hundred spiders and fifty cave spiders appear on the platform. If Shaivalak had flipped that lever, the NPCs would have been doomed.

  He tried to erase the command, but for some reason, he couldn’t.

  Well, if I can’t delete the command, then let’s see if I can change it, Gameknight thought.

  Reaching out with his mind, Gameknight focused on his mouse and imagined part of the command highlighted, then replaced some of the item numbers with another that he knew well. But would this new command take effect? Gameknight999 wasn’t sure. All he could do was hope that he’d done it right.

  Just then, the User-that-is-not-user heard a splashing sound on the other side of the chamber. All of the skeletons near the narrow bridge turned toward the sound, curious to see what it was. But none would venture too far into the darkness; bravery was not a skeleton’s strongest characteristic.

  An iridescent purple glow formed on the opposite side of the cavern, revealing Hunter and Butch standing knee deep in water. Drawing an arrow, Hunter fired it straight up into the air. The projectile instantly burst aflame when it left her bow, streaking through the air like a feathery meteor.

  “NPCs!” one of the skeletons yelled. “There are NPCs in the chamber!”

  Hunter spun and fired an arrow at the outspoken skeleton, then followed the shot with two more, silencing the squad leader and leaving his bones scattered on the ground. But it was too late. Two skeletons were already running across the bridge to gather more forces, too far away to silence.

  A loud splash sounded near Hunter. Gameknight watched as villagers jumped out of the opening high up on the cave wall. They plummeted at least thirty blocks until they landed in the water that Butch and Hunter had spread across the stone platform, the liquid cushioning their fall. Once they landed, the NPCs waded out and immediately began building fortifications out of stone and dirt. Leaning out from behind blocks of cobblestone, they fired on the skeletons that were rushing toward them, keeping the small squad of monsters from approaching.

  A noise that sounded like a million sticks clattering together echoed through the chamber. Reaper, the king of the skeletons, ran across the narrow bridge with at least a hundred skeletons following close behind. Gameknight had to get to the other end of the bridge to stop that mob!

  Removing his iron armor, he quickly replaced it with his enchanted diamond armor. There was no sense in staying hidden any longer. Then he drew his diamond sword with his right hand and his shield with his left. Sprinting with all his speed, Gameknight charged at the skeletons, his battle cry echoing through the chamber.

  “FOR MINECRAFT!”

  The echo made it sound as if he had fifty warriors behind him, which caused the bony creatures to pause in fear for just a moment, which was all Gameknight needed. Charging into the small group of skeletons on their side of the bridge, he smashed into one with his shield, then landed three quick hits. The creature disappeared with a pop. He hoped the NPCs would take care of the other skeletons while Gameknight faced the bridge.

  CLANK!

  An arrow bounced off his shield. Turning toward the sound, Gameknight found the skeleton king drawing another arrow, the razor-sharp point aimed directly at his head. The User-that-is-not-a-user brought up his shield just in time to deflect the projectile harmlessly away.

  “You are a fool for coming here, User-that-is-not-a-user,” the skeleton king rasped.

  “We’ll see who the fool really is,” Gameknight replied.

  He moved toward the end of the bridge, but before he could reach it, pain exploded across his back. Spinning quickly, he found two skeletons facing him, their bows empty. They each drew another arrow, but before they could fire, Gameknight charged, his shield held out in front of him. Another arrow stuck him in his back, causing more pain to radiate through his body like fire. Hacking laughter came from the bridge. Gameknight knew it was Reaper.

  I can’t stay here. There are too many skeletons nearby, Gameknight thought.

  “Gameknight, get back here, NOW!” Hunter yelled from the newly-constructed fortification.

  Spinning around, the User-that-is-not-a-user steadily walked backward, careful not to trip and fall, while deadly missiles struck his shield. Hunter and Stitcher stepped to his side and fired at the nearest of the skeletons, driving them back, allowing Gameknight to turn and run. In seconds, they were all safely behind the barricade.

  “What were you thinking?” Hunter asked as she pulled the many arrows out of his shield.

  “Ahh … well … I was …”

  “You weren’t thinking, that was the problem,” she said.

  “The timer, look!” Crafter exclaimed.

  All the NPCs turned and looked up at the glowing display on the far side of the cavern. The number clicked from 11 to 10. The redstone lamp that sat near the spewing lava beat relentlessly, pulsing out the cadence to its inevitable end.

  “We must hurry,” Butch said. “I can see there is another narrow bridge leading to the dar
k section of the cavern. There are blocks all across the floor; those must be the command blocks.”

  “Let’s get over there and break up all the redstone,” Digger said.

  There are too many of them,” Gameknight said. “We’ll never get them all.”

  “But at least we can save some of the villages,” Crafter said.

  “Oh no … it’s too late,” Stitcher said. “Look!”

  Another fifty skeletons emerged from the shadows and crossed the bridge that led to the command blocks. Now all of the skeletons had crossed over onto the cobblestone platform. They were surrounded.

  “This is turning out to be a really great plan,” Hunter said to Gameknight as she fired an arrow at a skeleton.

  Gameknight sighed.

  Then a clicking sound echoed off the cavern walls. Near the lone command block, a dark shape climbed around the edge of the platform from underneath it and moved out into the light. Multiple bright purple eyes shone in the darkness, each filled with hatred and a desire to destroy.

  “You sssshould not have come here, Gameknght999,” Shaivalak said. “You are a fool for tempting my patience.”

  “I will stop at nothing to protect the NPCs of Minecraft,” Gameknight shouted back, trying to sound assertive. But his voice cracked with fear.

  The skeletons laughed.

  “You sound really confident,” Reaper said as he moved across the platform and stood at the spider queen’s side.

  “Thissss isss Herobrine’ssss chamber, and you have no place here,” Shaivalak said. “But at leasssst you will get to watch hisss revenge happen in persssson.”

  “We will stop you, somehow, spider,” Gameknight said. His voice sounded even weaker.

  The spider queen laughed.

  “By defying Herobrine, you caussssed thissss fate for the villagerssss of Minecraft,” the spider queen said. “You and you alone will be ressssponsible for their deathssss.”

  “No,” Gameknight pleaded. “This can’t be happening.”

  His voice weakened as his legs began to shake. He looked around at all the skeletons that surrounded them, and he knew they were completely outnumbered. They had no avenue of escape and no hope of surviving this battle.