The Phantom Virus
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Chapter 11: Bryce
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Chapter 18: Extreme Hills
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NOTE FROM THE AUTHOR
I really appreciate all the support I’ve been receiving from the readers sending me emails through my website, www.markcheverton.com, as well as people tweeting me @MinecraftAuthor, and on my Facebook page for Invasion of the Overworld. I love getting emails telling me how much people enjoy my books, and that kids are actually turning off the computer and reading … ironic, right?
We’ve seen lots of new activity on Gameknight’s public server, as kids from all over the world are joining in to create fantastic shops and cities and fortresses. Quadbamber (LBEGaming on YouTube), the developer of the server, has recently expanded the Gameknight999 server so that there is an epic lobby, fantastic new minigames, the popular survival server, and a new hardcore survival server (watch out for the flying creepers). But I think my favorite is still the creative server. I love watching kids create things out of blocks. Incredible pixel art sprouted up out of the ground one night and full 3D statues of the characters from my books have been built; I like all the versions of Crafter that I’ve seen on the different plots. You can find the IP address to the server on my website, www.markcheverton.com. Log in and look for me and my son, Monkeypants_271 and Gameknight999, and say hello. If you build something on the server and take a snapshot, I’ll be posting all server-related images on www.gameknight999.com as well as posting important server information.
And as always, for those writers out there, keep sending me your stories. I’ve had some really fantastic ones submitted recently. I can see that many of you are writing more and improving your craft; the more you write, the better you get, and my editor, Cory, can attest to that with my own writing. Write, write, write … and don’t stop. Please keep sending me your stories; I love reading them, and I post all of them on my website, www.markcheverton.com.
Keep reading, keep writing, keep creating … and of course, watch out for creepers.
Mark
AVAILABLE NOW FROM MARK CHEVERTON AND SKY PONY PRESS
THE GAMEKNIGHT999 SERIES
The world of Minecraft comes to life in this thrilling adventure!
Gameknight999 loved Minecraft, and above all else, he loved to grief—to intentionally ruin the gaming experience for other users.
But when one of his father’s inventions teleports him into the game, Gameknight is forced to live out a real-life adventure inside a digital world. What will happen if he’s killed? Will he respawn? Die in real life? Stuck in the game, Gameknight discovers Minecraft’s best-kept secret, something not even the game’s programmers realize: the creatures within the game are alive! He will have to stay one step ahead of the sharp claws of zombies and pointed fangs of spiders, but he’ll also have to learn to make friends and work as a team if he has any chance of surviving the Minecraft war his arrival has started.
With deadly endermen, ghasts, and dragons, this action-packed trilogy introduces the heroic Gameknight999 and has proven to be a runaway publishing smash, showing that the Gameknight999 series is the perfect companion for Minecraft fans of all ages.
Invasion of the Overworld (Book One):
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Battle for the Nether (Book Two):
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Confronting the Dragon (Book Three):
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THE MYSTERY OF HEROBRINE SERIES
Gameknight999 must save his friends from an evil virus intent on destroying all of Minecraft!
Gameknight999 was sucked into the world of Minecraft when one of his father’s inventions went haywire. Trapped inside the game, the former griefer learned the error of his ways, transforming into a heroic warrior and defeating powerful endermen, ghasts, and dragons to save the world of Minecraft and his NPC friends who live in it.
Gameknight swore he’d never go inside Minecraft again. But that was before Herobrine, a malicious virus infecting the very fabric of the game, threatened to destroy the entire Overworld and escape into the real world. To outsmart an enemy much more powerful than any he’s ever faced, the User-that-is-not-a-user will need to go back into the game, where real danger lies around every corner. From zombie villages and jungle temples to a secret hidden at the bottom of a deep ocean, the action-packed adventures of Gameknight999 and his friends (and, now, family) continue in this thrilling follow-up series for Minecraft fans of all ages.
Trouble in Zombie-town (Book One):
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The Jungle Temple Oracle (Book Two):
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Last Stand on the Ocean Shore (Book Three):
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HEROBRINE REBORN SERIES
Gameknight999 and his friends and family face Herobrine in the biggest showdown the Overworld has ever seen!
Gameknight999, a former Minecraft griefer, got a big dose of virtual reality when his father’s invention teleported him into the game. Living out a dangerous adventure inside a digital world, he discovered that the Minecraft villagers were alive, and needed his help to defeat the infamous virus, Herobrine, a diabolical enemy determined to escape into the real world
Gameknight thought Herobrine had finally been stopped once and for all. But the virus proves to be even craftier than anyone could image, and his XP begins inhabiting new bodies in an effort to escape. The User-that-is-not-a-user will need the help of not only his Minecraft friends, but his own father, Monkeypants271, as well, if he has any hope of destroying the evil Herobrine once and for all.
Saving Crafter (Book One):
$9.99 paperback • 978-1-5107-0014-7
Destruction of the Overworld (Book Two):
$9.99 paperback • 978-1-5107-0015-4
Gameknight999 vs. Herobrine (Book Three):
$9.99 paperback • 978-1-5107-0010-9
AVAILABLE NOW FROM NANCY OSA AND SKY PONY PRESS
The Battle of Zombie Hill
Battalion Banished
Spawn Point Zero
Deep Ocean Six
Available wherever books are sold!
AVAILABLE NOW FROM WINTER MORGAN AND SKY PONY PRESS
The Quest for the Diamond Sword
The Mystery of the Griefer’s Mark
The Endermen Invasion
Available wherever books are sold!
Treasure Hunters in Trouble
The Skeletons Strike Back
Clash of the Creepers
Available wherever books are sold!
The Secret Treasure
Hidden in the Overworld
The Griefer’s Revenge
Available wherever books are sold!
The Return of the Rainbow Griefers
The Nether Attack
The Hardcore War
Available wherever books are sold!
EXCERPT FROM OVERWORLD IN FLAMES
A BRAND NEW GAMEKNIGHT999 ADVENTURE
Ash clung to everything as the four companions rode through the charred wasteland. The wolves seem to get the worst of it, their fur collecting the ashen remains of the forest like iron to magnets, but they didn’t seem to mind. Many of the cats, however, after being coated with soot, wanted to stop and clean themselves, but Herder kept them moving, encouraging them to follow with a high-pitched whistle.
As they moved through the burned-out forest, Gameknight saw many piles of blaze rods on the ground around them. That was strange. The golden remains of the blazes were far from where the fighting had been. Someone else must have been fighting in the forest…but who?
“Gameknight, look over here,” Stitcher called out.
Steering his horse toward his friend, the User-that-is-not-a-user moved to her side. She had dismounted and was looking at a pile of something on the ground, the soot making the items diffi
cult to identify. Stitcher took in a huge breath, then blew the ash away, the dark cloud billowing into the air. On the ground was a pile of snowballs, the icy spheres glistening in the morning light.
“Snowballs?” Gameknight999 asked, confused.
Stitcher looked up at him, then turned and looked at her older sister.
“Whatever this is, we don’t have time for it,” Hunter said. “Let’s keep moving.”
The younger sister swung back up into the saddle and kicked her horse into a gallop. After an hour, they made it through the dead forest and entered a cold taiga forest. Blazes had not attacked this biome yet, but being so close to Crafter’s village, it was sure to be high on their list.
They shifted from a gallop to a sprint to make up some time. Soon, they came to a frozen icy river. Gameknight used his pickaxe to break through the top layer of ice so that they could get to the liquid below. Each of them took their turn jumping into the frigid waters. While they were washing the horses, Herder placed a block of wood on the ground and lit it with flint and steel. They then moved the animals near the fire to get warm after the chilly bath. The wolves eagerly jumped into the water to free the ash and soot from their fur, but the cats refused. Instead, they rolled around in the snow, cleaning as best as they could, then proceeded to bathe themselves with their pink tongues.
“Five minutes, then we get moving,” Gameknight999 announced.
The others nodded as they rubbed their blocky hands together near the fire to get warm. They were all frozen, and the fire was a welcome relief. After the allotted five minutes, they mounted their horses. Herder leaned down and extinguished the fire, then followed Hunter as they continued to the west.
They rode through the frozen taiga in silence. Wolves howled at them through the trees, but Gameknight told Herder to keep his animals quiet. Stealth was likely their best weapon right now.
Following the spruce forest in the taiga was a desert hills biome. Gameknight always found it strange that a snowy environment could exist right next to the desert. Sheets of snow sat right up against scorching sand, and yet the temperature from the desert never seemed to bleed through into the taiga. It was just one of the strange and wonderful things about Minecraft.
As they moved through the desert, they all kept a keen eye out for monsters. Herder sent his wolves out away from the party, creating a protective ring of fangs and fur, while the cats always stayed close to their master. At one point, everyone turned to look as a bark came from one of the wolves to the right. A desert village was just barely visible through the haze, with a tall watchtower that stood high above the sandy village. They couldn’t tell from this distance if there were villagers in the tower; it was just a hazy spire in the distance. But Gameknight knew there was no time to stop and check on them, for time was their enemy right now.
The trek continued in an uneasy silence for a couple of hours, all of the warriors scanning the terrain for threats. It was odd that they saw no creatures at all.
“I don’t like this,” Hunter said. “There should be a spider or creeper running around out here…but there’s nothing. It doesn’t seem natural.”
“There are creatures out here,” Herder said.
“Yeah, I know, your wolves and cats,” Hunter replied. “That’s not what I mean.”
“I know what you mean, and you’re wrong,” Herder added.
“What are you talking about?” Gameknight asked.
“Creepers,” Herder said.
“Where?!” Hunter snapped as she drew an arrow and notched it to her bow.
“Behind us. There's a group of them,” Herder answered. “They’ve been following us for a while now. One of them is all sparkly and shiny.”
“A charged creeper,” Gameknight hissed.
They all turned in their saddles and looked back.
“You can just barely see them,” Herder said, “but they’re back there. They stay far enough away so they can just barely see us, which means we can barely see them.”
“I don’t see anything,” Hunter said.
“Me neither,” Stitcher added.
Gameknight strained his eyes, holding a hand over his brow to shield them from the sun. And then he saw it … a blue sparkle that looked like a flat sheet of lightning. The image shimmered for just an instant, then disappeared.
“I saw something. It must have been the charged creeper.”
“What do we do?” Hunter asked. “I don’t like having a bunch of monsters following us. Let’s go get ‘em.”
“No, not out here in the open,” Gameknight said. “They’ll have too much time to start their ignition process. We need to trap them somehow. Let’s just wait and be patient.”
Hunter grunted her disapproval but turned back forward and continued to ride, glancing over her shoulder every other minute … watching. The presence of the monsters on their tail added an extra bit of tension to the group. They picked up the pace and shifted between a sprint and a gallop, hoping to add a little more distance between them and their pursuer.
They rode up and down the sand dunes as if they were sailing across ocean swells. Green, prickly cactus dotted the landscape like emerald sea serpents sticking their heads up out of the sandy waves. They added a splash of color to the pale surroundings, giving the harsh desert a sense of life and hope; something that was lacking in that burned-out forest around Crafter’s village.
The User-that-is-not-a-user drove the horses hard through the desert. He wanted to get to the hive and get this business completed as quickly as possible, and the open countryside made traveling easy and fast.
After another hour, the party finally left the desert and entered an extreme hills biome. Steep stone cliffs and impossible outcroppings covered the landscape, most of which were impossible to scale. But up was not their destination; the creepers would be underground, hidden in dark tunnels and passages. In Minecraft, for some reason, the extreme hills biomes always had extensive tunnel systems running through the roots of the mountains. Those tunnels would lead them to the creeper hive and the secret pile of gunpowder that was hidden somewhere under the surface of the Overworld.
Weaving their way between rocky peaks, the party moved slowly through the terrain, the hilly landscape slowing their progress. They could see the blue of the ocean start to creep into view, the gentle waters stretching out until they met the blue sky. But as they rode through the rocky biome, the smell of ash grew stronger, biting the backs of their throats as they breathed. With no fires nearby, Gameknight knew there must be a large source of lava somewhere close. Moving past a large hill of stone and dirt, Gameknight was shocked at what he saw. A massive mountain came into view, with one side lit bright orange. In the dimming light of dusk, they had no trouble seeing the terrain, for a massive flow of lava was coming down one side and spilling into the ocean.
“We have to go into that?” Hunter asked.
“If you have a better idea, I’m listening,” Gameknight said.
“How are we going to find the correct passage that will lead into the creeper hive?” Stitcher asked.
“I don’t know. We’ll just have to search carefully,” the User-that-is-not-a-user said.
“This is a great plan,” Hunter said sarcastically with a scowl.
“LOOK OUT!” Herder yelled suddenly.
Gameknight pulled back on the reins of his horse, just in time to stop himself from falling into a deep hole. Steering around it, Gameknight moved to a safe distance, then stopped to wipe his brow.
"Thanks, Herder,” he said to his friend. “I think you probably saved me and my horse from getting badly hurt.”
The lanky NPC beamed with pride.
“You know, that would be a perfect place for an ambush,” Hunter said.
Gameknight looked at the hole and nodded his head. If they could just get the creepers into the hole, he thought, they could pick them off with their bows.
“How do we get them into the hole?” Stitcher asked.
“Bait?” Hunter suggested, looking at Gameknight with one side of her unibrow raised.
“You want me to go into the hole and wait for the creepers?” the User-that-is-not-a-user asked.
“Well—” Hunter started to reply, but was interrupted.
“My cats could get them into the hole,” Herder said.
“What?” Hunter asked.
“Yep … they could do it,” Herder said confidently. “Gameknight, you stand there on the other side of the hole. The creepers will come toward you, but my cats will force them into the hole.”
“You sure?” Gameknight asked. “I’ll be standing out there in the open like a sitting duck.”
“A sitting what?” Stitcher asked.
“A duck,” Gameknight replied. “You know … quack, quack, quack.”
Hunter looked at him, then back to her sister and laughed. “I think he’s losing it, for sure,” she said.
Gameknight shrugged, then dismounted. He moved to the spot Herder pointed at, then pulled out a torch and placed it in the ground. With the darkening sky, the light from the torch cast a wide circle of illumination, making him easy to see.
“I hope all of you are going to be ready if this plan doesn’t work,” Gameknight said. “I don’t look forward to fighting off two or three creepers at the same time. That’s not my idea of fun.”
“Whatever. Just quit your whining and stand there,” Hunter said. She had moved behind a large mound of dirt and was hiding, ready to spring out in case she was needed. “Now be quiet. I can see them coming.”
Gameknight999 moved next to the torch and stood there, waiting. He was sweating like crazy inside his armor, but yet felt freezing cold at the same time. He’d fought two creepers at the same time before, but he knew you have to time it just right: you had to hit one while you moved away from the other, to keep them from igniting at the wrong time. And if there were more than two … then he might be in trouble.