Confronting the Dragon Page 19

  Knowing there would be nothing inside, he moved past the jail cells and continued down the main hallway. Torches dotted the walls occasionally, splashing out a circle of light that pushed back the darkness, but they did not illuminate everything. There were still rooms that lay cloaked in darkness. These Gameknight avoided, just putting a single block of dirt in the doorway to keep anything within from getting out.

  Continuing on through the twisting passages, they soon came upon a library. It was awesome to see; racks and racks of books lining each wall, with tall bookcases through the center of the room as well. Stepping up to the shelves, Gameknight found that he could read the letters on the spine, something that he could never do when he’d just been playing the game for fun. In the past, the books had been written in the strange, cryptic letters of the Standard Galactic Alphabet, the strange characters illegible. But now, these letters seemed to hold some meaning to him.

  Reaching out, he pulled two books off the shelf and blew off the dust from their covers. One was titled The Great Zombie Invasion, while the other just said The Joining. He wanted to sit and read through these, to really learn the history of Minecraft, but he knew that they didn’t have time.

  “Hunter, you ever read any books like these?” Gameknight asked.

  She shook her head, completely uninterested in the vast collection of knowledge that sat on these ancient shelves. Putting the books back, they walked through the library and came out the other side into a long, dusty hallway. Down each side were iron doors, each leading to a different part of the stronghold. As they moved from room to room, Gameknight could feel the Iron Rose vibrating stronger and stronger. It was as if it could feel that the second key was near and it couldn’t wait to be united with its kin. They were close. Drawing his sword, Gameknight moved cautiously forward.

  Eventually, the duo reached the deepest part of the stronghold. It felt like something ancient and evil had been locked up there for a long long time, and this was where the Iron Rose had led them. Casting a furtive glance at Hunter, he moved through a long corridor, past another ornate chest, to the last room. As soon as he stepped through the doorway, Gameknight’s heart sank. He knew instantly what stood before them.

  A pool of lava three blocks wide by three blocks long sat on the floor. The heat from the lava brought back terrible memories of that last great battle with Malacoda and his Nether-creatures. A set of stairs led up to a second level of blocks that were positioned in a ring, two blocks above the lava. These blocks, set in groups of three, had a strange look to them. The center of each block had a dark empty opening, as if waiting for something to be placed inside. With a greenish color to them and a smattering of pale yellow lines across their face, they almost seemed like something from an alien world.

  “What is it?” Hunter asked.

  Gameknight sighed.

  Suddenly, there was a sort of scraping, sliding sound, as if something had just slithered out from some cramped space. A silverfish scurried out from the back of the chamber, the small creature taking a quick-paced meandering path. The prickly spines on its back reflected the light from the lava, making it look as if it were aflame with some kind of magical power. Its long, segmented tail dragged behind the creature as it scurried about the room, making a sliding sound that echoed in the stone room, making him look for more.

  Drawing his sword, Gameknight came down the steps. He knew he had to kill it quickly, for wounded silverfish would call to their brethren, drawing more of the little creatures from their hidden blocks. This could create a swarm of the little monsters, all of them attacking any NPC or user within sight. And surviving a swarm of silverfish was not easy. Gripping the hilt firmly, he readied his charge, but before he could attack, Hunter fired two quick shots into the little creature, making it flash red, then flip over and disappear.

  “Nice shot,” Gameknight said. Shooting a silverfish was extremely difficult.

  Hunter only smiled as she notched another arrow.

  Glancing at the steps that led to the landing above the pool of lava, Gameknight could see where the disgusting little creature had come from: a monster spawner. A small, single block sized metal cage sat at the top of the steps, sparks and ash flying from it as something unrecognizable rotated within its center. Stepping up to it with his pickaxe in his hand, Gameknight shattered the spawner with six blows, the final blow coming just before the next silverfish was to emerge.

  Looking down from the steps, he saw a chest in the corner of the portal chamber. Moving down to it, he opened the ancient wooden box. A cloud of dust formed as the rusty hinges creaked and groaned, making him cough and turn his face away. But when he looked back, Gameknight found twelve strange greenish orbs. They looked like a dozen alien eyes staring up at him.

  Reaching into the dusty box, he collected them all, then turned and went back up the stair and stood before the strange blocks.

  “What are they?” Hunter asked, but Gameknight did not answer, he only sighed.

  He knew exactly what these were, and the realization of what was next filled him with dread.

  Carefully, he placed one of the greenish orbs in each block’s dark opening, the alien eyes changing to a square shape as they settled. When the last orb was placed, a portal activated, filling the room with a strange green light. Looking down, Gameknight could see that this portal did not have the characteristic purplish look like the doorways that led to the Nether. No, this one was different. It was filled with stars, as if it were looking into the deep dark recesses of outer space.

  “Gameknight . . . what is it?”

  Stepping down from the portal, he turned and glanced at Hunter. A look of terrified defeat was painted across his face.

  I can’t do this, he thought.

  He could feel the monster on the other side of that portal and was terrified. It would pursue him, wanting to attack him, torture him, destroy him. It would be after him like all those bullies were at school, the strong attacking the weak.

  Why can’t I be courageous?

  “You OK?” Hunter asked.

  Gameknight sighed and shrugged. He could feel the Iron Rose pulling him toward the portal, and the thought of this filled him with terror.

  “I can’t do this Hunter, I’m not the leader they want me to be . . . I never was.”

  “What do you mean, you led us to victory at Malacoda’s fortress.”

  “That was different. This portal leads to something terrible and it wants to get me.”

  “Oh, Gameknight, you don’t know . . .”

  “I do know. I can feel it, and I’m scared. I’m always scared . . . the monsters here in Minecraft make me think of the bullies from school . . . I can’t seem to let go of my fear.”

  Hunter sighed and looked sympathetically at him.

  “All of these fears you hold on to so tightly, they mask your true self,” Hunter explained. “They keep you from being you . . . the real Gameknight999 . . . the real User-that-is-not-a-user. And until you learn to deal with these fears, you can never be the person you were destined to be.” She put her enchanted bow back into her inventory and placed a blocky hand on his shoulder. “You don’t know how great you can be, how much you can help others, how good of a friend you can be, because all of this fear and uncertainty is making you doubt yourself.”

  Gameknight sighed and lowered his gaze to the ground, then nodded.

  “I wanted to stand up for the other kids being bullied . . . for Herder, but I was always afraid. I think of how terrible it would feel if the bullies stopped teasing Herder and decided to tease me instead, and so even though I knew it was wrong, I didn’t say anything. I would just hide from my fears.”

  “Just like you’re doing here, in Minecraft. You’re hiding the true leader that you could be because of this fear. I see it when the warriors tease Herder. I see you look away, pretend not to notice, because you are afraid.”

  Gameknight nodded, shame filling his soul. He felt bad for all those other kids he c
ould have stood with instead of hiding in the shadows . . . and Herder. His fear had kept him from being a good friend and he knew he had do better.

  “What if I’m not strong enough to carry this battle through to the end?” Gameknight asked. “What if I can’t hold on tight enough when everything is on the brink of destruction? What if at the critical moment, when all eyes are on me and everyone is counting on me to be strong, I chicken out and run away? What if . . .”

  Hunter gave out an exasperated growl.

  “Gameknight!” she shouted, her voice echoing off the walls.

  He turned and looked at his friend. She stood tall before him, her brilliant red hair glowing bright in the light from the portal. He could see the confidence and pride in her posture, her sense that she knew her purpose here in Minecraft and wasn’t afraid of anything.

  Why can’t I be strong like her?

  He knew that Hunter could see the indecision and fear that was still on his blocky face.

  “Gameknight, you know what to do, you always know what to do, you just don’t realize it ahead of time.” She moved a step closer and lowered her voice. “Just do what you do best.”

  “And what’s that?” Gameknight asked. “What can I do that’s better than anyone else?”

  “You can be Gameknight999! You can be the best Gameknight999 there is . . . just be the puzzle solver . . . just be the warrior . . . just be the leader . . . just be the griefer. Just be all those things and do them the best that you can. Fight with everything you have and grief Malacoda’s and Erebus’s army like you’ve never griefed before.” She paused to let the words sink in, then lowered her voice. “Just be.”

  Stepping up to the portal, she peered down into the emptiness of the star-filled void. “Now, are you going to tell me what that thing is?”

  He sighed and tried to sound confident and strong, but he did a poor job of it. “It’s a portal to The End.”

  “The End? What’s that?”

  “It’s something just for users . . . and endermen . . . and a dragon, the most terrifying dragon you could ever imagine. That has to be where the second key to the Source is at, so that’s where we have to go.”

  She stood silent for a moment, considering this information, then said with a shrug, “Well, I’ve never killed a dragon before . . . sounds like fun.”

  Hunter laughed and slapped Gameknight on the back. She then turned and faced the portal, her enchanted bow now in her hand, arrow notched. As they stood there, they could hear Mason and a group of warriors coming through the stronghold, all of them ready to follow the User-that-is-not-a-user into battle once again. But Gameknight did not think about the army, or The End, or the dragon, he just thought about Hunter’s advice, letting her words roll around in his mind.

  Just be . . . maybe I CAN do that!

  CHAPTER 26

  HERDER’S DECISION

  Mason stormed into the portal room with his sword drawn, Crafter at his side, both ready for battle. Gameknight raised a hand to tell them there was no danger as he sheathed his own weapon.

  “We’re OK,” Gameknight said as a handful of warriors moved into the room behind them, their iron armor clanking together as they squeezed through the doorway. Amidst the sea of iron-clad bodies, he could see Herder peeking into the room from the back of the crowd, a look of complete terror on his face, Stitcher standing at his side.

  “There’s no danger,” Gameknight said softly. “Everyone can put away their weapons.”

  Crafter stepped forward and stood at Gameknight’s side. He looked up at the steps that led to the ender portal, the walls bathed in a greenish-yellow light.

  “Where’s the rest of the army?” Gameknight asked Mason.

  “They’re waiting up above at the entrance,” the big NPC said, pointing up to the ceiling with a blocky finger. “They await your command, User-that-is-not-a-user. We came down here to make sure you were not in any danger.”

  Gameknight nodded to Mason and smiled.

  In any danger . . . what a joke . . . you have no idea what terrible danger awaits us!

  “What is this place?” Crafter asked.

  “I think we should talk outside of the portal room,” Woodbrin said. Everyone was shocked to see him. The light-crafter had entered the room so silently, snaking his way effortlessly between armored warriors; it was almost as if he’d just materialized there. “Come, to the meeting hall.”

  “Meeting hall?” Crafter asked.

  Gameknight shrugged.

  The light-crafter turned and pushed his way through the collection of soldiers that filled the doorway, leaving everyone to watch his back. He walked confidently through the passages leading them to the meeting hall, knowing exactly which tunnel to take, his stride confident and strong as if he owned the place.

  They moved out of the portal chamber and followed Woodbrin through the maze of passages back to a large central chamber. They had to move quickly to keep up with the quick-paced steps of the light-crafter. After finally going up a flight of decaying and cracked stone stairs, they reached their destination; the meeting hall. Gameknight instantly recognized the tall pillar at the center of the room. It was adorned with torches placed at the top on all sides. They cast a warm yellow illumination throughout the chamber that pushed back the shadows; light always made Gameknight feel safer in Minecraft.

  Mason and his dozen warriors entered the room with Crafter and Stitcher following behind. They spread out through the chamber, glancing down the connecting passages with weapons drawn, looking for threats. Off to the side, he could see Herder standing in a shadowy corner, a look of fear still painted on his face.

  “What is this place?” Crafter asked. “I don’t remember any NPCs ever building a place such as this?”

  “Strongholds were not built by NPCs,” Woodbrin explained. “These are from an ancient age. These were built before the time of wars and conflicts. Even before The Joining.” He said the words with reverence as if everyone knew what he meant. Some of the NPCs looked at each other, confused, not knowing what the strange light-crafter was talking about. “Back in the ancient days strongholds were a place of learning. NPCs came together to talk about ideas, to debate, to learn.”

  “Then why are there jail cells?” Hunter asked. “Doesn’t sound like a very friendly place to come to for a little light reading.”

  One of the warriors laughed, but was silenced by Woodbrin’s angry glare.

  “Yes, it is true there are jail cells here,” Woodbrin continued. “It started around the time of the Great Shame. People started doing things for themselves. They stopped helping others. Crimes were committed.” His short, choppy sentences echoed through the chamber like machine gun fire. “The criminals were brought to strongholds for judgment. If necessary, they were imprisoned.”

  “Sounds like a nice place,” Hunter added.

  More laughter. More glares from Woodbrin.

  “After the Great Shame and The Joining,” the light-crafter continued, “the cells and the strongholds were no longer needed. As you can see, they fell into disrepair.”

  Gameknight looked around the room and saw cobwebs in the corners, blocks missing here and there. This was a structure that was slowly falling apart and being reclaimed by the landscape of Minecraft, and that’s when he realized what the smell was down here. It was not the aroma of ancient mysteries or hidden secrets. It was the odor of decay; the scent of a forgotten age. Looking up, he found Woodbrin staring at the User-that-is-not-a-user.

  “You’ve been in a stronghold before, yes?”

  “Yes,” Gameknight answered.

  “Then you know what lies beyond the portal chamber.”

  Gameknight nodded his head and sighed.

  “What is it?” Crafter asked. “What lies on the other side of that strange portal?”

  “A dragon!” Hunter shouted.

  The warriors gasped.

  “Gameknight, is this true?” Crafter asked.

  “Yes, it’s call
ed the Ender Dragon, and it only exists in a land called The End. It must be the guardian of the second key to the Source, and I can guess what the second key is.” He paused and waited to make sure everyone was listening, all eyes on him, then continued. “The second key is the Ender Dragon’s egg. Is that right, Woodbrin?”

  The light-crafter nodded his head.

  “We have to go to The End, and battle the Ender Dragon so that we can take its egg,” Gameknight explained. “That is the next challenge we must face in order to get to the Source.”

  “We don’t understand,” Crafter said, his voice cutting through the tense silence. “What is The End? We’ve never heard of this.”

  “It is a place only for users, not NPCs.” Gameknight explained. “I have been there many times in my adventures as a user, and sometimes I survived the Ender Dragon, and other times I did not.” A gasp came from the warriors. “The Ender Dragon is the fiercest creature in Minecraft, and The End is the strangest place you will ever see. This challenge will test our courage and our resolve. But we must overcome this obstacle if we are to get to the Source and protect it from Malacoda and his monstrous horde.”

  Looking about the room, Gameknight999 gazed into the eyes of every individual. He saw looks of excitement, hope, uncertainty, confusion . . . every emotion possible was held within those eyes, but most of all, he saw uncertainty and fear.

  “I will tell you, honestly, I’m terrified to go back to The End. When I’d gone there as a user, I had every enchantment I could get, had the best weapons that I could steal from others, and had every software hack I could download, and still sometimes I failed to defeat that flying monster.” The memories of those countless battles played back through his mind in an instant. Those massive claws reaching out at him, the ferocious toothy mouth snapping at him . . . and those eyes . . . those terrible purple eyes . . . he realized that he was shaking and stopped to take a deep calming breath. “But we have no choice. We must go to The End and face the Ender Dragon, for good or ill. I don’t know how we’ll defeat this beast, but we have to try or all will be lost.”