Quest for Justice (35 page)

Stan nodded his head, but felt uneasy. These deaths were roughly what Stan had anticipated. But then why did Charlie still look so distressed? And Stan had the distinct feeling that one face was missing from the crowd. He knew that he ought to know whose it was, but his head was so clouded from the potion.

“Of the targets we set out to destroy, the following are dead: King Kev, Charlemagne, Geno, and Becca. Leonidas is assumed to be dead, and Caesar and Minotaurus are known to have escaped.”

“Of our commanding officers,” continued Charlie, an unnatural pitch in his voice as the palpable tension in the crowd drastically increased, “two are of damaged or terminal fates.”

Stan winced and bowed his head, determined not to let his certain tears be conspicuous.

“Bob, of the Nether Boys, was struck through the knee by Caesar's sword. Although he is still alive, he will never be able to walk properly again. And the other one . . . Sally . . .”

The single name struck Stan like a lightning bolt, a beam of energy originating from the atmosphere of dread that had been growing in the crowd since Charlie had begun to reread his report. Stan knew now which face was missing from the crowd. The single face that mattered most to him in the world, which he had been too forgetful under the potion effects to see immediately.

“What happened?” Stan asked, his voice hollow. Charlie did not answer. He had collapsed on the ground, crying like a child, unable to say the name again. A feeling of dread filled Stan's insides, and he half hoped that it would stay unspoken, for to say it aloud would make it irreversible and permanent. But Jayden stepped forward and choked out the strangled whisper, turning Stan's positive fear tangible.

“Sally was hit by a lucky blow from Minotaurus's axe in his first strike. She's dead, Stan.”

Stan fell to his knees, but he did not feel. He was not aware that he was unable to produce one single tear, and he was oblivious to the fact that half a dozen hands were now reaching for him and embracing him. The only thing that was true now in Stan's mind was that Sally was dead. The one he had cared for most in all his travels through Elementia was now gone forever.

Stan took care to harden his face before standing up. He couldn't shed tears in front of these people who held him as their leader. Those closest to him were surprised to see the lack of emotion that had taken over Stan's face, considering that he now knew his girlfriend to be dead.

“Will you be all right now, Stan?” came the plain voice, and Stan turned his head to see Oob, a bandage around his abdomen, asking him if he, the leader of this offensive, would be okay.

Again, the reason that Sally had died, that the Apothecary and Avery had died, that Adoria and Crazy Steve and so many others had died, came rushing back to Stan.

King Kev was dead, and his government had fallen. Elementia now had a clean slate, and right now, everybody was looking to Stan. Stan pulled out a small pile of dirt blocks he had on him, gestured to those adjacent to him that he needed space, and placed them into a staircase formation. He slowly dragged himself up the stairs until he stood head
and shoulders above the rest of the crowd. Instantly, the crowd was so silent that Stan could hear the bubbling of the lava that had nearly been his grave in the background. Swallowing his suppressed emotions, Stan cleared his throat, and, determined that this moment would change his destiny forever, began to speak.

“My brothers, my sisters, united under the name of Adoria, the martyr for whom we went forth into battle today, you have done it. King Kev is dead. All of his sympathizers are dead, fleeing, or captured. As such, we now have a country called Elementia with no leaders, no structure, and no government. It would be stupid to say that a political system this size can function properly with no government, and therefore a new one must be instated.

“This government must be established under certain principles. The circumstances in which King Kev became corrupted and turned Elementia into the monster that we have all just fought to destroy must never be allowed to exist again. I am very much aware of your mindset, my fellow citizens. I ask you, please, to cheer now if you wish me to succeed King Kev as the new King of Elementia.”

Simultaneously, the crowd, spanning for a decent radius around Stan's podium, erupted into a cacophony of cheers and hollers. This extended not only to the low-level soldiers, who were now eyeing Stan with the sort of reverence fitting
of a god, but to his friends and colleagues. Of all the cheering, it was Charlie, Kat, DZ, Bill, Bob, and Ben that made by far the loudest of the tumultuous resonance, showing their clear love of the idea of King Stan replacing King Kev. Smiling, but knowing what must be done, Stan raised his hands, and within ten seconds the crowd had hushed themselves once more.

“I am honored and humbled by your belief in me, but there is no way that I could ever wear King Kev's crown. There shall not be a King of Elementia, as the monarchy will always cause corruption on an irreversible scale. Instead, here is what I ask of you: Follow and listen to me as I lead the remains of the kingdom of Elementia to reorganize itself into the first Grand Republic of Elementia. The voices of the many shall speak as a voice of one, and fair and equal treatment shall be the order of the day. I fully intend to run myself as president of this new Republic, and should you elect me I promise not to dictate but to guide the people of Elementia into a brighter tomorrow. If you believe the thought of the Grand Republic of Elementia to be a greater idea than that of myself as King, I ask you to now applaud.”

Someone standing beyond the walls of the courtyard might have thought that another TNT trap had detonated, so loud was the sheer blast of frenzied cheers that filled the skies above the courtyard. Three times as loud as the first
applause, the noise hurt his still potion-affected ears—Stan's one, miniscule complaint about the scene.

I promise you, Sally
, thought Stan as he surveyed the panorama, a single tear trickling down his cheek,
I promise you that your death will not have been in vain. Everything I do, everything I direct on this server from this point forth, I do in your name, Sally. And also in your names, Adoria, Steve, Avery, Apothecary. To all of you, and all of my friends, I thank you, for helping me. I could not have gotten here without you.

And Stan lost himself in the spontaneous, pompous festivities now breaking out across the court as the kingdom ceased to exist—the final and greatest casualty of a war on wrong, the last casualty of Stan2012's quest for justice. A new era had dawned for Elementia.

T
he arrow-machine now broken and long gone, Spawnpoint Hill was exactly the same as it had been the first moments that Stan2012 had spent in Minecraft. The sun had just dipped under the forest skyline, and Zombies lumbered in a clueless fashion in the underbrush within the forest, no light from the new moon to distinguish them from players. There was a crashing sound before long, though, and seconds later the giant, hulking form of Minotaurus burst into the clearing, his axe raised, ready to destroy any mobs in the way. To his relief, there were none.

Caesar staggered into the clearing behind him, his leg badly damaged from an ambush by a Spider Jockey in the woods. Had it not been for the sharpshooting abilities of Leonidas, who now followed the Roman-skinned player into the clearing, Caesar might have died at the mob's arrow point.

“So what now?” asked Minotaurus of the other two, after the trio had caught their breath. “Where is there left to go?”

“What about the Southern Tundra Biome? Do you think they'd know us there?” grunted Leonidas.

“No, that won't do,” growled Caesar irritably. “That's become a dumping ground for undesirables
since you've been imprisoned. There is always Ender Desert, though . . .”

“Bad call, man, there's so many nomads in that place it ain't even funny, man, and I guarantee that Stan'll put a high bounty on our heads,” replied Leonidas.

“So . . . where is there left for us to go?” asked Minotaurus again. This question made the three players finally take in the severity of their situation. The other two were about to struggle out an answer when they heard a voice.

“You are welcome with me,” it said.

The voice was calm, collected, and deadly, and so it was slowly that the three players turned to see the figure now standing atop Spawnpoint Hill. The three pairs of eyes simultaneously widened in horror. This figure they were seeing . . . he didn't exist, did he? Minotaurus held his axe in attack position, Caesar drew his swords, and Leonidas loaded his bow and was about to fire when the voice spoke again.

“Stop, Caesar894, and Leonidas300, and Minotaurus.”

The individual, whom they never believed to have existed until now, took them all aback by calling them by name. As they stood shell-shocked, the figure continued.

“I know of your current situation. Your leader, the great and powerful King Kev of Elementia, has fallen at the hands of the lower-level scum he was forced to call his people. All
of his most powerful allies are also dead, all . . . but four. You three, you are the legacy of King Kev, alongside his spy who now feigns joy among the triumphant. And if you four are his legacy, let me call myself the universe's embodiment of his spirit. You know who I am, and what I am capable of.

“I believe that you are in the right, and those who now control Elementia are in the wrong. If you join me, I will command you, and together, we will create a new order in Elementia: an order in which the weak are subordinate, and there is nothing in their power they can do to change that. Whilst King Kev was tied down by his political bonds, I, being who I am, have no such petty restrictions forced upon my back. So I ask you now, Caesar894, and Leonidas300, and Minotaurus: Will you join me, and be the backbone of the effort to return Elementia to its full potential?”

Leonidas and Minotaurus looked at the figure for a moment, and then stared inquisitively at Caesar. He was the most powerful, after all. Whatever he decided, they would, too. And so it was Caesar who was the catalyst for the three players to kneel down and pay respect to this unearthly being who was to return them to power.

“Good, good. However, there is one more order of business. I ask you to pledge yourself to
me, but not by my name that binds me with the universe, not the name that I am well known by, no. I ask you now to pledge yourself to me by a different name. Repeat after me: ‘I pledge myself to you, Lord Tenebris.'”

And as the last rays of sunlight vanished over the horizon line, three players with nothing to lose looked into the face of their new master and repeated the pledge.

Just as they did, a player appeared in the waning light of Spawnpoint Hill. He looked in wonder at the world around him, and then his eyes fixated on the four players standing at the base of the hill. His eyes widened in horror as the player closest to him raised a bow, pulled back an arrow, and let it fly. The new player was dead before he hit the ground.

Just as the kingdom of Elementia had fallen, the New Order had begun.

TO BE CONTINUED. . .

L
eonidas gritted his teeth and shook off his discomfort. Having been raised in the desert, he was foreign to the frigid wind and snow that now racked his body with shivers. He resented that, of the three generals of the Noctem Army, Lord Tenebris had assigned him to oversee the construction of the tundra base. Leonidas turned and looked at the marvelous stone complex rising from the snow-hardened earth. He couldn't help but take a little pride in the fact that the Noctem Alliance's first true base was now in its last phases of construction.

It dawned on Leonidas that it was probably time for another patrol. He pulled out his watch to confirm this. He had to squint to see the golden clockface through the heavy snowfall, but he could still make out the time as midday. It was time to send two of his ten men out to circumnavigate the construction zone, searching for trespassers. Leonidas found these patrols to be pointless. They were in the middle of the most expansive and desolate biome on the server, so the chances that anybody would run into them out here were slim to none. However, on Caesar's last inspection of the base, he had made it very plain to Leonidas that Lord Tenebris felt the perimeter patrols were vital.

Ever since it had been founded on Spawnpoint
Hill, the New Order had gathered almost a hundred and fifty followers, and had since been renamed the Noctem Alliance. Lord Tenebris, however, remained in a foul mood. He refused to let go of his anger that Element City had been so successful since King Kev had fallen. He had expected the city to struggle to support itself under the rule of Stan2012. However, Element City was now thriving to a level not experienced since the Golden Age of King Kev's rule, and Stan had only been president for a few months. Tomorrow was the day of the second election of the Republic of Elementia, and Stan was expected to win in a landslide.

Given Lord Tenebris's foul mood, Leonidas reasoned that his own head would be on the chopping block if Lord Tenebris somehow found out he had missed a patrol. Therefore, Leonidas called out to the two nearest workers, “Corporal! Private! Get over here!”

Immediately, Corporal Emerick and Private Spyro pocketed the stone bricks they were building with and hastily hustled over to Leonidas.

“Yes, sir, General Leonidas,” the two soldiers responded in full salute.

“It's twelve hundred hours now, and it's time for the midday perimeter check. You know what to do,” said Leonidas.

“Sir, yes, sir!” said the players. They spun on their heels, drew their bows and arrows, and marched off until they
disappeared into the heavy snowfall.

Leonidas sighed. With two players gone, work would be slower for the next hour. He turned back toward the construction, about to continue his work, when something caught his eye. There, approaching from the general direction that Emerick and Spyro had just disappeared, a light flickered through the snowfall, getting brighter and brighter. Leonidas briefly wondered if one of his men was coming back, but he quickly realized that this was neither the corporal nor the private. A figure adorned in flowing white robes came into view, a jack-o'-lantern clutched in his hands.

“I need food, Leonidas,” came Caesar's battered voice, breathing heavily from his long trek through the barren plains. Leonidas was taken aback, seeing his comrade and equal in command here when Caesar was supposed to be catering to the personal needs of Lord Tenebris. He pulled two pieces of bread from his inventory and quickly handed them to Caesar.

“What brings you here, Caesar?” asked Leonidas, showing Caesar into the modest dirt shack, lit by torchlight. The structure served as Leonidas's personal quarters during the construction of the new capital. “I thought Lord Tenebris told you to stay with him, and help with whatever he needed.”

“He did, and I am,” replied Caesar. Even through his mouthful of bread, his upper-class Element City accent was prominent. “Lord Tenebris is displeased that he has not
received word of the completion of Nocturia. He wishes to know why you have not completed our new capital yet, and how long it will be before it is completed. He has sent me to ask you this.”

Leonidas sighed. “Don't actually say this to Lord Tenebris, Caesar, but if it weren't for these stupid perimeter patrols, we would have completed the capital a week ago. With only ten guys working on construction, the patrols really slow down the work.”

Caesar gave a slow, emotionless nod.

Leonidas finished his report. “Nevertheless, we've entered the final phases of the construction of Nocturia. We should be done by the end of tomorrow.”

“Now that is what Lord Tenebris will want to hear,” replied Caesar, standing up. “I shall give him the report.”

“Do you really have to leave so soon?” asked Leonidas. Since all the players out here were subordinate to him, Leonidas found himself with nobody to talk to, and he was truthfully becoming a little lonely. “Can't you stay for at least a little while?”

“No, I'm sorry, Leonidas. Lord Tenebris made it very clear that I am supposed to survey the premise hastily and report back to him, no delays. Otherwise, I would be quite content to stay, but you know how Lord Tenebris is when he gets angry.”

In fact, Leonidas had never seen Lord Tenebris angry. The one and only time he had seen Lord Tenebris was on Spawnpoint Hill, the night they had lost to the Grand Adorian Militia in battle. On that day, desperate and with nothing to lose, Leonidas, Caesar, and Minotaurus had pledged themselves to a new leader. Since that day, Lord Tenebris had ordered Leonidas to build the Noctem Alliance's capital city of Nocturia out here in the Southern Tundra Biome. His only contact with the founder of the Noctem Alliance since then had been through messengers.

Leonidas rarely saw his fellow generals. Lord Tenebris had ordered Caesar to act as his own personal advisor and servant, and what he had ordered Minotaurus to do, Leonidas could only guess. Regardless, Leonidas was well aware of what Lord Tenebris was capable of, and he did not imagine he would be very agreeable when angry.

“Then have a good return trip, Caesar,” Leonidas responded, handing his friend three cooked pork chops for the hike back to Lord Tenebris's base. Caesar nodded his thanks, and was about to exit through the wooden door when three players burst into the dirt shack.

The three players were covered in snow, so it took Leonidas a moment to distinguish two of them as Corporal Emerick and Private Spyro. They had their bows raised and were nudging a third figure forward. This player, Leonidas did
not recognize. It appeared to be a girl, dressed in a full snow suit with a red ponytail running down her back. Leonidas stood up.

“Who is this?” he asked his corporal harshly.

“We found this player wandering around, not far from our border, General,” replied the corporal. He seemed quite proud that he had led the effort of capturing a trespasser.

“What's your name?” Leonidas asked.

The girl seemed unable to respond. She whimpered. It was then that Leonidas noticed the arrow protruding from her left shoulder. One of his men had shot her.

“Answer him, you pathetic worm. He asked you a question!” bellowed Caesar, and all in the vicinity jumped from his sudden outburst. “What are you doing here?”

The girl gave an almost inaudible whisper, and Leonidas thought he heard the words “lost” and “community” in her answer.

“So there's a community out here? Where? I thought the colony of the King's banished criminals died out a long time ago,” inquired Leonidas.

Another whimper escaped the girl's mouth, and Leonidas heard the word “survived” in her response.

“So the community still exists? And you are a member of this community?” Caesar asked gruffly.

The girl gave an almost imperceptible nod before she
sank to the floor and dissolved into desperate sobs.

“That's all I needed to know,” responded Caesar with a sly grin. An instant later, there was a flash of diamond. The girl fell backward, a slash across her chest and her items lying in a ring around her. Caesar slid his sword back into its sheath.

Leonidas opened his mouth in horror, but quickly closed it again. It was necessary, he reminded himself, trying to keep his breathing steady. She knew too much, and she was a danger. Still, Leonidas couldn't bring himself to look at her body, and he felt unable to look back toward Caesar until he heard the faint noise indicating that the girl had vanished.

“I'll tell Lord Tenebris not to expect the capital completed for a few more days,” said Caesar, a smile appearing on his face. “But when I receive the next report, I expect that not only will the building be finished, but every member of the old community will be dead.”

Caesar threw back his head and laughed, and before Leonidas could open his mouth to object, he had swept out the door.

Leonidas stood looking at the floor for a moment, then realized that Corporal Emerick and Private Spyro were still looking at him, waiting for a command. He cleared his throat and, trying to keep his voice steady, gave the order.

“Private, you're staying with me and finishing this capital. Corporal”—Leonidas took a deep breath—“take half the men
and find the village. Leave no survivors.”

“Yes, sir,” came Corporal Emerick's response, and he left the room without another word.

There was silence as Leonidas stood in the room lost in thought, Private Spyro standing beside him. After a minute, the private spoke. “Is it really the right thing to do, General? Those players, they're not hurting anybody, so how can it be right?”

Leonidas, ignoring his own strongly conflicted feelings, gave Spyro the response he was supposed to give. “It doesn't matter if it's right or not, Private, it's what has to be done.” Leonidas took a deep breath and fought the urge to vomit. “Come on,” he said, “we have a base to finish.

And with that, General Leonidas and Private Spyro of the Noctem Alliance left the dirt shack.