Mission to the Moon Read online

  Just then, a strange creature approached. It resembled a half of a watermelon, with a dark green outside, and a red central core. The creature had two small, widely spaced, beady eyes. A row of shining white teeth that almost seemed to glow in the sunlight marked the creature’s mouth. Atop the green and red cube sat what looked like a slice of a watermelon with a huge bite taken out of the center, making a large “U” shape on the creature’s head and reminding Gameknight of green horns. But even with all those teeth and curved watermelon horns, for some reason, the creature did not seem threatening at all.

  The creature approached Gameknight, bouncing across the pink grass. He wasn’t sure if it was a hostile mob, or just an aimless creature moving about the surface of Fronos. Though he felt no fear, Gameknight took a few steps back, getting out of the strange creature’s path. His legs felt the reassuring presence of gravity; it felt the same as the gravity on the Overworld.

  Good, we’re used to this gravity, he thought. No floating up into the air.

  He stood perfectly still and waited for the melon to approach, his hand ready to reach into his inventory and draw his weapon. The bouncing fruit turned its eyes up to him for just a moment, then continued to hop past, apparently uninterested.

  With a sigh of relief, Gameknight walked to the edge of the forest, heading for the supply crate that had fallen nearby. The crate sat on a bright green plain of grass. Strange creatures moved about, all of them either unaware of or uncaring about his presence. Moving to the box, he knelt and opened the top. Inside, he saw the tier-eight rocket and landing pad. Gameknight gathered them and put them in his inventory.

  Squawk! Tux said, but for the first time in a long time, her tiny voice did not seem muffled.

  “Tux … your helmet!”

  The penguin was glancing about, her space helmet lying on the fluorescent grass. Gameknight dashed to her side and picked up the glass cube.

  “Quick, put it on, Tux.”

  But the penguin just waddled away, unconcerned. Staring across the grassy plains, he noticed none of the other creatures were wearing space helmets either.

  Maybe the atmosphere hasn’t been destroyed … yet, Gameknight thought.

  Carefully, he lifted his helmet off his head and took a tentative sniff. The air smelled clean and dry and had a faint taste of fresh fruit, especially strawberries. A creature shaped like a large blueberry waddled nearby on two tiny black feet. The stem of the berry formed the creature’s nose while two bright white eyes on either side of the woody stem gazed up at him. The aroma of fresh berries wafted through the air as the creature neared; it smelled fantastic.

  Tux squawked, then stepped up to the berry and rubbed her beak on the creature’s side. The berry smiled, then ran in a wide circle, Tux chasing it playfully. Gameknight glanced around, taking in the fantastic landscape; this was truly the creative center of the Minecraft universe.

  With a smile, he removed his space suit entirely and shoved it into his inventory with the rocket and other assorted items. Pulling out the teleportation ring, he pressed the ruby red gemstone.

  Instantly, a cloud of purple mist formed to his right. A whooshing sound filled his ears, then went away as the lavender cloud evaporated. Standing before him were his friends. They took in the surroundings, each of them shocked at what they were seeing.

  “Gameknight, your helmet,” Hunter exclaimed. “Put it on, quick, before you—”

  “It’s OK, you can take off your suits,” the User-that-is-not-a-user explained. “There’s air here.”

  Herder was the first to take the advice. He drew in a huge breath of air and smiled.

  “That smells much better than my own bad breath and sweat,” the lanky boy admitted with a grin.

  Running from wolf to wolf, he removed each of their oxygen gear and put the equipment in his inventory. By now, everyone had their gear off and was basking in the clean, scented air of Fronos.

  “This world is incredible.” Crafter tucked his space helmet into his inventory. “Look at all the colors. There’s pink grass over there and blue shrubs to the left. And look at those tall trees—what are they?”

  “I think they’re coconut trees.” Gameknight pointed to their tops. “See how the huge green leaves sort of explode out of the top? And the square things with three dots are coconuts. I bet we can use them for baking, somehow.”

  Stitcher instinctively pulled out her bow, but left the arrow in her inventory. “This is beautiful. The creativity here is unbelievable.”

  “Hmmm … that is why Entity303 brought us here,” Forpech said. “All of these fantastic biomes, new creatures, explosive colors … they all strain the fabric of Minecraft.”

  “Yes, yes, Entity303 is here to start the destruction of Minecraft,” Empech added, his crystalline blue eyes taking in the surroundings with wonder.

  “A tear in the Minecraft universe would be a disaster,” Trupech said, his words short and clipped. “He must be stopped.”

  “First, he must be found,” Crafter pointed out.

  “But how do we find him?” Digger asked.

  “I see a village out on the plains,” a voice said from atop a deep-red oak.

  Gameknight glanced upward and found Weaver standing on top of the largest tree. He was pointing to the north.

  “How much time do we have until night?” Hunter asked.

  The sun was a small white square with a delicate, blue halo glowing around its edge. Clumps of translucent blocks floated everywhere across the sky, each colored a very faint pink. Gameknight suspected those clouds were the source of the ever-present strawberry aroma, though he had no idea what their purpose could be. Above them floated huge, fluffy white clouds that drifted forever to the west, as with all worlds in Minecraft, and yet the strawberry clouds stayed fixed overhead, in one place.

  “I don’t know how long a day is on this planet,” Gameknight said. “But I’d say let’s head to that village and see what we can learn.”

  “Great idea,” Hunter said. “At least it doesn’t involve any terrifying battles with huge monster armies, like most of your grand plans.”

  Gameknight stuck his tongue out at her, then started walking. Herder whistled and moved a finger around in a circle over his head. The wolves formed a protective ring around the party, warily eyeing the strange creatures of Fronos.

  As they moved across the bright green plains, Gameknight thought he heard something in the deepest recesses of his mind. At first, he thought it was Crafter humming some strange song, as he’d been known to do, but the young villager was silent. Closing his eyes, Gameknight walked along, not really focused on where he was going as much as just walking in a straight line. He turned his thoughts inward, listening for the faint thing he’d heard.

  There it was again. It sounded as if it were some sort of melody, but the tones were so soft, they were difficult to identify. For some reason, it seemed as if the music was coming to him from very far away. It was a soothing sound, but sad at the same time … too distant to really hear.

  Gameknight opened his eyes and glanced at his friends. He found the newest pech, Trupech, staring at him with a strange smile on his face. His solitary tooth stuck up from the jaw that jutted out, giving his oversized head a comical appearance. But his eyes, those steely-gray eyes, seemed ancient and wise, the skin around them wrinkled with age. It was like gazing into the eyes of an old friend … Gameknight didn’t understand.

  Was the music coming from Trupech? he wondered.

  But just as the User-that-is-not-a-user was about to ask, the music disappeared.

  Was that the Music of Minecraft? Oracle, are you there?

  No response came, just empty silence.

  “Did any of you hear anything?” Gameknight asked.

  His friends looked at him, confused.

  “Are you finally going crazy?” Hunter asked. “I knew this day would eventually come. Gameknight999 has lost it … ouch!”

  Stitcher readied another punch to
her sister’s arm, but suddenly Weaver shouted out from the top of the next grassy knoll.

  “There it is … the village!” the young boy shouted.

  The comrades sprinted to the top of the hill. By now, the pale sun and its blue halo had sunk much closer to the horizon; it would be night soon. But did nighttime mean monster time on Fronos? They would soon find out.

  CHAPTER 26

  NIGHTTIME ON FRONOS

  They ran across the bright green grass, weaving around blue and green and orange and pink slimes, each with a different fruity aroma. Trupech seemed to possess a bit of knowledge about the creatures of Fronos; he explained that these creatures were called jelly slimes, and each was a different flavor: lime, blueberry, grape, orange, and pink bubble gum. Most of the bouncing, flavored cubes watched the party from afar, but a large red one was more curious. The huge gelatinous cube charged toward the party.

  “What is that slime doing?” Hunter asked.

  They stopped and watched it charge, though charging for a slime meant still moving slower than a casual jog for an NPC.

  “It seems to be attacking,” Crafter said. “Why would it do that?”

  “I can take care of it,” Hunter said.

  “No,” Gameknight said. “Let the wolves chase it away. I don’t want to destroy it if it’s not necessary.”

  He glanced at Herder. The young boy nodded, long, dark tangles of hair falling across his face. He pushed the rebellious strands aside, then whistled three times and pointed at the slime. The wolves moved toward the threat and nipped at the corners of the monster, not sinking in their teeth, but making it clear it would not be allowed to come any closer. The monster refused to halt its attack.

  Gameknight drew his swords and moved out to face it, but before he could reach the creature, Herder whistled again, this time a long, piercing tone that hurt their ears. Instantly, the wolves attacked, causing the gelatinous monster to divide into smaller cubes. The wolves fell on the smaller slimes, making them divide and divide again, then destroyed the smallest monsters. Gameknight moved to where the creature had perished. Instead of finding slime balls, like he would have expected in the Overworld, he found globs of cherry jam, as if the monster were actually made out of jelly.

  “This is the strangest place I’ve ever seen,” the User-that-is-not-a-user. He turned away from the piles of jam and continued toward the village.

  “I’m not sure we’re gonna make it to our destination before dark,” Digger said, his voice shaking a little.

  The halo that ringed the sun was dipping below the horizon; it would be night very soon.

  “You’re right,” he replied. “We’d better hurry.”

  They shifted to a sprint, moving quickly across the colorful rolling hills. As they neared the village, Gameknight saw torches being lit within the buildings. For some reason, the windows on all the homes were orange-stained glass instead of just clear … strange.

  Suddenly, the sorrowful moans of zombies drifted across the grasslands. Monsters began moving out of the nearby forest, heading straight for the cluster of wooden homes. Spiders, with strange green eyes instead of their usual red, emerged from holes in the ground and joined their decaying comrades as they converged on the cluster of buildings.

  “We have to protect this village,” Crafter said.

  “Get the zombies first, yes, yes,” Empech suggested. “They can break through the doors.”

  “Hmmm … that is correct,” Forpech added. “The pechs will calm the villagers … hmmm … while the rest of you protect them against the monsters.”

  “Thanks for taking the easy job,” Hunter said, then shouted as her sister punched her in the arm. “Ouch … why’d you do that?”

  Stitcher just scowled at her sister.

  “Yeah … okay, I guess I deserved that.”

  “You always do,” the younger sister added.

  “Hunter, Stitcher, I need you two up on top of the blacksmith’s house,” Gameknight said. “Watch for skeletons and take them out. The rest of you, with me.”

  When they neared the village, the sisters peeled off and headed for the largest of the buildings while the User-that-is-not-a-user and the others charged. The wolves shot out into the now darkening plain, sharp teeth quickly finding decaying zombie legs. As the wolves kept the zombies busy, Gameknight attacked the spiders. With Herder on one side and Weaver on the other, the monsters lasted only seconds.

  A clattering of bones sounded off to the left. Gameknight glanced in that direction only to see a flaming arrow already streaking toward the bony monsters. Instantly, it was aflame; Hunter’s and Stitcher’s enchanted arrows had found their first target.

  More zombies approached. Gameknight charged at them, swinging his enchanted diamond sword with all his might. One creature reached out with sharp claws, but they were blocked by Digger’s big pickaxe. Gameknight readied his counterattack, but Crafter appeared suddenly behind the monster, silencing its moans forever. In another minute, the last of the zombies were destroyed and the remaining skeletons all burned with the sisters’ magical flames. A small group of creepers emerged from the edge of the bordering forest, but chose to stay clear of the conflict.

  “That wasn’t so bad,” Weaver said. “These monsters aren’t really all that strong.”

  “Maybe Herobrine’s shadow-crafters didn’t have an effect all the way out here,” Gameknight replied. “I wonder if …”

  Suddenly a cold sensation spread throughout his body as his vision narrowed, the periphery slightly blurry. A gray, smoky fog drifted across the landscape, making it hard to see.

  “What’s going on?” Digger asked, his deep voice cracking with fear.

  “I don’t know,” Gameknight replied.

  Suddenly, his ability to sense his health seemed to vanish, making the User-that-is-not-a-user’s body feel slightly numb, replacing any feeling he had with a sense of dread.

  “Oh no … is this the wither effect?” Gameknight said. “Everyone look around, watch for a wither. If it fires flaming skulls at you, scatter.”

  Before anyone could reply, an eerie whispering drifted out of the gray smoke. The voices sounded desperate and terrified, like lost souls caught in the terrifying fog.

  “I don’t like this.” Weaver’s voice sounded as if it were far away, even though Gameknight could see him standing nearby.

  “Everyone get to the village.” The User-that-is-not-a-user put away his iron sword. “We need to stay near Hunter and Stitcher’s bows.”

  “Which way is it?” Crafter asked. “I’m lost. I can’t see anything in this dark haze.”

  “Everyone, just come to my voice!” Gameknight banged the hilt of his diamond sword against his chest plate so the others could find him. “Follow the sound.”

  They moved toward him, Gameknight continuing to shout and bang his armor, hoping the sounds could cut through the terrible, whispering mist. As his friends emerged from the fog, each had terrified expressions on their square faces.

  “Come closer,” Gameknight said. “Stay within arm’s reach.”

  Herder and Weaver moved to either side of him, then Digger and Crafter approached. The wolves yelped and whined as if the mysterious fog was somehow hurting them—or perhaps it was just their first taste of fear.

  They backed up as the strange mist became darker, blotting out the stars overhead and encasing them in a gray pall that sapped their courage and turned their blood to ice.

  “What’s going on?” Hunter yelled from overhead.

  Gameknight glanced over his shoulder. They had backed up to the village and could now see Hunter on the roof, an arrow notched, but the User-that-is-not-a-user could barely hear her voice. His heart pounded in his chest as cold beads of sweat tumbled down his face. Taking shallow breaths, as if he were afraid to inhale the nightmarish mist, he peered into the darkness. Slowly, a dark figure emerged from the haze. It was stocky, like Digger, but much bigger, and wore ornate armor that he’d expect to see on so
me ancient ninja or knight from a history book. Long, shadowy robes were draped across the creature’s broad shoulders, the seam in the front flying open, revealing the shadowy armor underneath. The creature was somehow transparent, as if made of smoke.

  “Oh no,” Gameknight moaned.

  “What is it?” Crafter asked.

  “I can’t believe Entity303 would load this mod into Minecraft.” Gameknight shook his head. “It’s incredibly violent, and dangerous for everyone. He’s a madman.”

  Crafter moved closer and lowered his voice. “What is it?”

  “That creature isn’t a wither. It’s something far worse. I’ve only battled one of them once … it didn’t end well.”

  “Gameknight, you’re scaring us,” Crafter said. “What is that thing?”

  “It’s an … Eldritch Guardian.” Gameknight’s voice cracked with fear. “They’re from a mod called Thaumcraft. This is not good.”

  “Why?” Weaver asked. “What do they do?”

  Suddenly, the ethereal knight made a terrible, screeching sound that cut through the mist and smashed into them like an iron fist. As the sound faded, the Eldritch Guardian fired a ball of dark magic straight at Gameknight999.

  CHAPTER 27

  ELDRITCH GUARDIAN

  Gameknight dodged to the left, but he wasn’t fast enough. The black sphere of magic slammed into his shoulder, causing pain to blast down his arm and making him feel suddenly weak. Gray spirals floated around his head as the weakness enchantment slowly spread to the rest of his body.

  The Eldritch Guardian then sprinted forward, closing the distance between himself and Gameknight999. Dropping his iron sword, the User-that-is-not-a-user pulled out his shield and held it firmly in his hand. The armored nightmare drifted closer, riding on puffs of smoke instead of feet, its raspy breathing like some demonic robot panting through a rusted, metallic pipe. The Guardian crashed into Gameknight’s shield, striking it with all its strength, and the wooden rectangle shuddered as it took the force of the blow, cracks slowly spider-webbing outward across the back.

  Gameknight swung his sword as hard as he could, but the diamond blade just clanked against the creature’s armor, doing little damage.