Quest for Justice (16 page)

This player was wearing full, glowing iron armor—it was enchanted, too. The blocky black ponytail extending to her waist distinguished her as female. She didn't attack Charlie. She didn't even notice him. She pulled something out of her inventory: a handful of redstone dust, and a torch that was glowing electric red. Charlie stared, baffled, as she laid the dust along the ground and then touched the red end of the torch to the dust. Instantly, the dust illuminated and sent off faint red sparks.

“Contact in five!” she bellowed, and she whipped out her
iron sword and sunk into a defensive stance. Kat stopped, having bent over to pick up her iron sword, as she wondered what this meant. Stan looked equally as confused, but the effect on the other three was immediate. The eye patch guy and the samurai whipped out shovels and dug holes into the ground. Charlie realized in horror what was about to happen. He ducked behind one of the obsidian pillars of the portal, screaming, “Get down! She's about to—”

He was cut off when the world exploded.

Stan was knocked back twenty blocks as the sand beneath him exploded in a whirlwind of earth and rock. He was sent flying through the air, and he felt dizzy, becoming aware that he was spinning.

He landed on the ground, dazed, and looked into the dust cloud where the battlefield used to be. He was confused, too paralyzed by fear and injury to do anything but grab and swig one of his healing potions. Instantly, the effect of the potion kicked in. He felt alert and completely healed, and his thoughts immediately turned to the safety of his friends.

Then he saw her. Flying through the air, smoke billowing from her burning leather armor, iron sword miraculously still clasped in her hand, the body of his brave friend, propelled by the amazing force of the explosion, sailed like a graceful kite, disappearing upon plunging into the fiery depths of the lava sea.

Stan's vision went white. He couldn't hear. He couldn't feel the bow in his hand. All of his senses seemed to shut down as he processed the impossible information. His body seemed to be refusing to accept what he knew to be facts. For Kat could not possibly be dead, there was no way that it would be allowed to happen . . .

Stan's thoughts were refusing to connect, so his instincts took over. He grabbed his iron shovel from the ground next to him and ran toward the samurai archer that was now aiming an arrow at Charlie's head. Charlie's face was white, his eyes wide and his jaw slack, as he stared at the spot where Kat had made contact with the molten liquid, oblivious to his own impending doom. Stan drew back his shovel and slammed it against the archer's head before he could fire.

The archer was knocked down to the ground, his head twisting at an odd angle. Stan could not tell if he was dead, but if not, he was definitely unconscious. Becoming aware that he was screaming in fury, Stan whipped around to face the other two. He saw the guy with the buzz cut dashing toward him, diamond sword in attack position, with the girl close behind. Both were seething with rage, their veins popping, ready to avenge their fallen friend. But the rage over Kat's death had elevated Stan's fighting abilities, even with a shovel. Stan's anger rose up in him like a pot boiling over, and he was sure that he could easily take these two armored
gorillas. He was about to shoot a preemptive arrow with his bow when something behind them caught his eye.

There was a disturbance in the surface of the lava sea. A ripple, or rather a bubbling, was appearing right next to the shore. What happened next was so unbelievable that, had Stan not been there, he wouldn't have believed that it had really happened, no matter how many eyewitness accounts he heard.

Out of the lava burst a player, surrounded by a glowing red aura, her iron sword red with the heat it had absorbed from the lava. Kat flew out onto the sand and without hesitation proceeded to thrust her sword into the back of the girl in full iron armor. The sword melted a hole through the back of the chestplate and out the front.

The look on the girl's face changed from outrage to shock as the sword entered her body. Kat, on the other hand, looked like the embodiment of a demon as she used all her superhuman strength to fling the girl over her head, off her sword. The glowing iron body flew through the air and it entered the lava right near the edge of the stone shore.

Stan didn't allow himself time to think about how his friend wasn't burned to death, nor did he allow himself time to be happy. All he knew was that the one remaining fighter with the buzz cut would be upon him soon, and he would be livid that his two companions were down. He ran toward the
obsidian frame, where Charlie stood in shock.

“Light the portal!” he bellowed, and he became aware that Kat was running right behind him, deflecting arrows from the buzz cut player with her sword as she did.

Charlie pulled out the flint and the steel ring and struck them together. Sparks flew out upon collision and then fell into the obsidian base. The sparks flew into the air, beginning to glow purple. When they reached the center of the portal, they grew until the entire inside of the portal was glowing purple. The portal to the Nether was open.

Charlie jumped into the purple glow and disappeared, purple sparks flying through the portal. Stan threw aside all hesitancy he had about entering the new dimension, and he dived through the purple barrier. He suddenly felt like he was buried in the sand above Avery's base once again, being squeezed from all sides. The very unpleasant sensation lasted for about three seconds, and then Stan tumbled out onto a surface that felt like dirt that was crusted over. He refilled his squeezed-empty lungs with warm, dry air.

On the other side of the portal, Geno was dragging the body of Becca out of the lava. He pulled out two illegally brewed potions from his inventory and poured them into her mouth. The flames that were burning her armor and skin immediately subsided, and she gave a weak cough. Relieved, he quickly whipped around and poured a third potion into
the open mouth of Leonidas. There was a faint click, and Leonidas's head spun around and back into place.

Geno looked up and through the portal. On the other side, he could see that all three players were punching the bottom block of the obsidian portal. Realizing what they were about to do, Geno desperately sprinted toward the portal, trying to dive through before it closed. Just as he was about to fly through, there was a crack, and the bottom obsidian block of the black frame ceased to exist. There was a flash of purple light, and the entrance to the Nether disappeared.

Geno skidded to a stop right before his momentum could carry him through the empty obsidian frame and into the lava sea. He cursed in anger, and he looked back at his companions. Leonidas was sitting up and caressing his neck. Geno knew that he would be all right. Becca, on the other hand, was still lying on the ground, her breathing shallow. Geno was worried about her, but he was sure that there would be at least one medic in the legion of the King's army awaiting RAT1's command in the jungle.

It was all for the best, decided Geno, as Leonidas slowly got back to his feet. Geno was confident that under his command, RAT1's battalion of troops would ensure that Stan and his friends, now stranded in the Nether, would not make it back to the Overworld alive.

S
tan's knuckles ached from helping Charlie punch through raw obsidian. He wasn't worried, though. His entire brain was processing two simultaneous emotions. He was breathing hard, amazed and relieved that they had managed to escape those thugs back in the Overworld.

He was also amazed and in shock as he stared at Kat, who was still glowing red from the molten lava. But now, as Stan took a closer look, he could see that the glow wasn't coming from the residual heat of the lava. Kat seemed to have a red aura surrounding her body. She was sitting on the ground next to Charlie, panting, but other than being winded, she looked completely unharmed.

“So tell me, Kat,” panted Stan, talking for the first time since entering the Nether. “How exactly did you manage to survive swimming in lava?”

Kat looked up at him. She lifted up an empty bottle. “Potion of Fire Resistance,” she huffed, tossing the bottle to the side. “And a healing potion to get rid of the damage from the burns.” She tossed a second bottle to the side. It shattered next to the first one on the red-and-black speckled rocks. The sight of these odd blocks prompted Stan to look around the area.

Beyond the eleven remaining black
obsidian blocks of the broken portal, Stan could see the walls of a cave, which they had spawned inside of. The entire cave was made of the black-and-red speckled rocks. Stan guessed that this was a fairly widespread block in the new dimension. The cave was wide open, and he could see that one end was illuminated. The air was arid and very warm. Stan imagined that water was nonexistent here.

Charlie glanced at the broken portal. The obsidian block that they had had to punch out had cracked into three pieces. There was no way to repair the portal with the remaining chunks of the black rock. “We're gonna have to find some new obsidian if we're going to fix the portal,” he said with a sigh, chucking the useless obsidian chunks to the side. “Well, let's not even try to fix it just yet. Whoever that was who just attacked us, I bet that they're with the King,” said Stan. “And I'll bet that it's just a matter of time before they make their way into this dimension and hunt us down. We've got to find these Blaze Rods as quick as we can, and even when we do figure out how to fix the portal, we shouldn't do it until the last possible minute so they can't follow us.”

Kat and Charlie nodded, and Stan suggested that they make their way out of the cave. They picked up their items and left the broken portal behind them. They walked to the mouth of the cave, and three jaws simultaneously dropped at what they saw.

The entire world seemed to be a colossal cave, made almost entirely of the red-and-black speckled rocks. Flooding the bottom of the cave was a sea of lava that made the one they had just left in the Overworld seem miniscule. A few small, dark red islands dotted the face of the lava. Hanging from the ceiling, which ranged greatly in height, were stalactites made of a glowing type of crystal as well as several giant lava falls that flowed viscously from holes in the ceiling and into the molten basin. It was beautiful in a fiery way, but it was also terrifying. All three players were simultaneously imagining the unknown perils of exploring the scorching land.

The players' first view of the Nether was soon obscured, however. After about ten seconds of surveying the landscape, a giant white form rose in front of them. Stan stepped back in awe. The giant creature appeared to be a white, levitating jellyfish. Its body was a cube, and there was a mess of tentacles hanging from underneath it. Its eyes were shut, as was its mouth. Stan was amazed. It was by far the largest mob he had ever seen in Minecraft.

Suddenly, the monster's eyes and mouth opened, and it gave out a scream. It was a high-pitched, baby-like screech, even shriller than that of the Enderman, which seemed odd in contrast to the blazing fireball that came shooting from its mouth.

“Get down!” Kat screamed, dropping to the ground.

Not needing to be told twice, Charlie and Stan followed suit. Stan's eyes followed the path of the fireball until it hit the back wall of the cave, at which point it exploded. This explosion was different than a TNT or Creeper explosion. The blast of a Creeper was stronger than this blast, although it emitted a shockwave of heat that scorched Stan's eyebrows from a distance. The remaining blocks that weren't destroyed were set alight and began to burn brightly.

Another fireball came flying, and the players rolled to the side just in time to avoid impact, while the section of the ground they had been standing on was blown apart. Stan looked at the hole that had been blasted in the ground and saw that they had been standing on a ledge. One wrong step and they would fall down into the lava sea below.

Stan whipped out his bow and arrows and tried to snipe the next fireball out of the air. He missed. The arrow instead hit the flying monster in the forehead. Its eyes flew open, and the monster gave an animal bellow of pain. The mob levitated upward and spit three more fireballs that hit the roof of the cave. The entire top of the cave exploded, leaving the three players exposed to an absolute rain of fireballs from the evil mob.

“We've got to split up!” cried Charlie as he tumbled sideways to dodge another fireball. “It can't shoot at all of us at once!”

“But there's nowhere to split up to!” yelled Kat desperately, and she was right. They were backed up to a cliff, and the ledge had been completely blown apart by fireballs except for the part where the three players were standing. The giant jellyfish opened its mouth, and the fireball that was sure to drop them all into the burning sea below flew out, right on a collision course with the players. Stan held his shovel in front of his face and prepared himself for an explosive death.

Right before the fireball could make contact, a form burst out of the wall behind Stan and flew in front of him. It was a player dressed in a scarlet jumpsuit with olive skin and black hair. He held a diamond sword in his hand, which he hastily swung in front of him in midair, hitting the fireball, and then he landed on the cliff below him. The projectile changed trajectory and headed on a return course to the monster that had shot it. The fireball exploded in the mob's face, and it tumbled backward a few feet, screaming.

“Get behind me!” yelled the player, as the monster recovered and blasted another fireball their way. Stan, Kat, and Charlie obliged and watched, amazed, as the player deflected another fireball, this time missing the monster and sending the fireball deep into the cave. Another player burst through the hole in the wall.

This player was dressed the same as the player with the sword, but he had red hair and pale skin, and he held
a fishing rod in his hand. Stan watched in astonishment as the player threw the rod back and cast it, the bobber flying toward the jellyfish. The hook entered the monster's head, and it cried out in pain again. It tried to fly away, but the redheaded player expertly maneuvered the line, dragging the mob back down. All the while the monster was still shooting fireballs, and the swordsman kept deflecting them.

“Nice cast, Bill!” yelled the swordsman as he parried another fireball to the side.

“Thanks, Ben!” the redhead cried in response as he repeatedly changed the power of the cast to keep the monster from flying out of range. “The Ghast is in optimal position! We're ready, Bob!”

At this, yet another jumpsuit-clad player burst out of the wall, this one pale and blond. He held a glowing bow in his hand, and he fired an arrow at the monster in midair. He landed on the ground and looked back at Stan, Kat, and Charlie.

“If any of you three are archers, now's the time! Aim for the eyes!” said the blond archer, Bob, with a manic grin on his face. Stan was a little unnerved by the grin at first glance, but he then noticed the same expression on the face of the fishing rod player, Bill, and the swordsman, Ben. They weren't just fighting off this mob, which he had heard one of them call a Ghast—they were loving it!

Stan and Kat pulled out their bows and began shooting at the Ghast. The monster's eyes were punctured by the dozens of arrows protruding from them, and its fireballs seemed to be shooting in a more confused pattern. One of the fireballs flew toward Kat, and she whipped out her sword and deflected it, just as Ben had been doing.

“Okay you three, let up!” cried Bill, pulling back hard on the fishing pole.

Bob lowered his bow and got back against the wall, but Kat and Stan looked at Bill, confused.

“But it's still alive!” yelled Stan.

“Yeah, why should we let up?” asked Kat.

“Because Ben loves this part!” bellowed Bill, laughing like a maniac, as he threw his full weight back against the fishing rod. The damaged Ghast lurched back down toward the ledge. It was very close to them now. Stan flinched as he felt the heat of the desperate Ghast spamming out yet another fireball.

Ben, a glint in his eyes, deflected the fireball off into the distance and ran toward the Ghast, which was now almost level with the ledge. He took a flying leap at the Ghast, his sword in his right hand, and he drove his weapon into the forehead of the giant monster. It screamed in anguish as Ben grabbed the Ghast's face with his left hand while repeatedly thrusting his sword into the Ghast's head. The giant mob
stopped launching fireballs and started to fall apart from the repeated sword slices.

Ben pushed off the monster's face with a white item in his hand. His sword spiraled down and landed on the ledge. He landed next to the weapon and pocketed the white item. Ben's companions stood next to him, looking on with satisfaction as the hacked-up corpse of the Ghast fell into the lava sea below. Bob turned around.

“And that, gentlemen and lady, is how we amazing people kill Ghasts.”

And with that, the three fighters bumped their fists together in midair and yelled in unison, “YEAH!”

“Okay, that was officially really impressive,” remarked Kat, still sweating from the battle with the Ghast.

“Well, we've had practice,” said Bob, slinging his bow over his back. “You kids have got to be more careful. Ghast fighting can be a rather unpleasant experience if you're not good at it. It's really easy to get blasted sky-high in this place.”

“You guys seem like you have a lot of experience here,” said Charlie. “How many times have you three been to the Nether?”

“Are you kidding? We live here, man!” Bill laughed. “And that's not an exaggeration either. We've lived here ever since that backstabbing jerk King Kev banished us here.”

“And by the way,” said Ben as Stan opened his mouth in surprise. “We don't care what you think about the King. If you
have a problem with our opinion we'd be more than happy to fight you, too.” Bill and Bob nodded in agreement.

“Oh trust me,” Kat said, smirking, “I'd use a considerably more vile word to describe the King.”

“Yeah,” said Charlie. “I agree with that, and I'm sure Stan does, too. After all, he was the one who tried to kill that terrible King.”

“Wait, what?” Bob did a double take. “You tried to kill the King? Man, you got guts, noob!”

“How could you possibly still be alive?” asked Bill, amazed.

“Did you come to the Nether to hide from the King's forces? 'Cause there's no way that you would still be alive if you were in the Overworld,” commented Ben.

Stan looked up. “No. As a matter of fact, we're trying to overthrow—” but he was cut off when Kat punched him in the arm.

“Shut up, you idiot!” hissed Kat. “Don't give away too much—”

“You're overthrowing the King?” interrupted Bob in a hushed, awed voice.

There was a moment of silence. The look on Kat's and Charlie's faces confirmed that Stan's outburst was indeed true. Kat slapped her head, sure that these three players were about to reveal that they were really secret agents of the King. But then—

“Man, that is wicked awesome!” cried Bill. “It's about time someone stood up to that pile of pig crap.”

“If we weren't banished to this dimension with no way to get out,” said Ben, “we would have done it sooner or later.”

“Wait a minute . . . do you guys have a portal out of here?” asked Bob. This got the others' ears perked up.

“Yeah! It'd be great to finally get out of this awful dimension. We've been here for so long . . .”

“Yeah . . . maybe the Apothecary is still around . . .”

“Wait, you know the Apothecary?” said Stan. “We met him back in the jungle! He's helping us organize a rebellion with the people in the Adorian Village. How do you know him?”

“We used to work with him on the Council of Operators back in Element City,” said Ben. “We were the Chiefs of Exploration before the King associated us with some fake rebellion and threw us into this place.”

“Oh yeah! He mentioned you guys!” said Charlie, remembering their lengthy conversation with the old player. “You guys must be Bill33, Bob33, and Ben33.”

“Testify,” said Bill, raising his fishing rod and then lowering it. “Although nowadays, we go by the title of the Nether Boys.”

“Anyway, do you guys really have a portal out of here?” asked Bob. “We've been marooned in this blistering wasteland
forever. I'd kill just to see a sheep or a cow or a tree again!”

“Well, we do have a portal,” said Kat. “But it's broken right now. We need one obsidian block to fix it. We have the means to fix it—I have a water bucket and Charlie has his diamond pickaxe.” Charlie raised it in confirmation. “But we can't leave here until we get some Blaze Rods. If we're gonna pull this rebellion off, we're going to need access to the King's secret stash of supplies in the End, and we can't get there without the rods.”

“Also,” added Charlie, “we can't fix the portal until we're ready to leave, or else the King's forces will be able to get in to follow us and we'll all be screwed.”