[Jesse's POV]
Jesse: "Okay! Just a little farther!"
Ellegaard: "Well, That's certainly impressive. Wow."
(Once we reach the temple, it looked like it was renovated from the top to the bottom.)
(As we try to enter it, a creeper suddenly appears behind us, only for it to be obliterated by arrows.)
Jesse: "Woah!"
Lukas: "Who goes there?!"
(We look up to the makeshift balcony above the entrance.)
Lukas: "Jesse? Is that you?"
(Standing on top was the blonde-haired boy with the blue eyes and the ocelot jacket I've come to know.)
Jesse: "Lukas, did you build all of this!?"
Lukas: "Well, yeah. I figured I would try and fortify the place, y'know?"
Jesse: "Nice!"
Lukas: "I'm so glad you're back!"
(Lukas waves at us.)
Jesse: "And we brought Ellegaard!"
Lukas: "Fantastic!"
(Lukas heads inside to come down.)
(Not long afterwards, Lukas opens the door inside.)
Lukas: "Quick, come on! You guys are never going to believe who showed up while you were gone..."
(Standing beside the entrance was another person I used to know.)
Jesse: "Petra!"
Petra: "Hey, guys. How's it going?"
Olivia: "I'm so glad you're okay!"
(Olivia goes to hug her.)
Petra: "Yeah, I'm pretty stoked about it myself."
(After their moment, Petra turns to me.)
Petra: "And it's good to see you too, Jesse."
Jesse: "Nice to see you again."
(After what felt like things were only going horribly bad, it's good to finally see something good happen.)
Jesse: "How did you manage to escape?"
Petra: "Things got pretty dicey back at Gabriel's Bunker. You pulled me out of that Wither Storm's clutches, and I ran and ran and ran. I didn't know how long I was able to avoid it. But then, it suddenly started moving away from the ruins of Gabriel's Temple. I didn't know why, but that's how I managed to get away. I was finally able to get a deep breath. As it went away, the night started turning quiet again. And that's when the usual mobs came back. I was pretty injured, so I had to settle down. The night wasn't a nightmare, but the whole Wither Storm did make me feel worse, both physically and mentally. When it was morning, The Wither Storm was completely gone. The temple was utterly ruined. I didn't know where the temple was, but I realized that wherever you guys went, it must lead directly to the temple. So I took some time to fix it and this is how I ended up here. If you hadn't saved me... Well, I owe you everything, Jesse."
Jesse: "Oh, don't make it such a big deal. What matters is that you're safe."
Olivia: "So... did Gabriel get away too?"
Petra: "I didn't see him. The whole chase was a blur filled with bad memories. The Wither Storm left almost nothing behind. Everything... Everyone... was just...gone..."
(Ellegaard looks in shock.)
Ellegaard: "I wouldn't believe that anything could defeat Gabriel if I hadn't seen it for myself... This is terrible."
(Reuben suddenly comes running towards us from upstairs.)
Jesse: "Reuben!"
(He runs around in excitement.)
(He hasn't been so happy since the building competition.)
(Lukas approaches me once more.)
Lukas: "I was able to nurture Reuben back to normal. I'm sorry if I couldn't do more."
Jesse: "No, that's alright. I'm glad you were able to."
(Lukas comes closer to face.)
(Having someone be this close to me made me turn red.)
(What is he trying to do???)
Lukas: "Your face is slightly bruised."
(Huh? I guess the whole Wither Storm encounter did bruise me a little bit more than I thought.)
Jesse: "It could've been worse. I'll just get something to heal it. It's not a big deal."
(Lukas makes a sad face.)
Lukas: "I was worried that you wouldn't return."
Jesse: "Huh? Y-You were worried... about me...?"
(I'm really not used to people caring for me, especially for a person who I didn't think much about.)
(Even back at the treehouse, I was always the one who had to take care of the others.)
(This really was a different feeling.)
(To have someone be there for me.)
(It really was a new and different feeling for me.)
Lukas: "I remembered something when Petra told her story. When you and Olivia went away, the Wither Storm on the horizon did too. It didn't follow you, did it?"
(The image of destroyed Redstonia pops into my mind.)
Jesse: "Lukas... you might be right... It destroyed Ellegaards City. Just like Endercon."
(Lukas visibly turns sorrowful.)
Lukas: "So... what I feared the most... is true..."
Jesse: "We barely managed to get away too..."
Lukas: "But that means... that it will eventually make its way back to here!"
Olivia: "A-Are you joking!?"
(And just when the reunion was going well, we're hit by news again.)
Ellegaard: "Then if it's currently on its way as we speak, then we have to get moving quickly!"
Lukas: "Right. There's someone else too who came here. They're waiting upstairs."
Jesse: "Oh Axel, man, why didn't he come down here?"
Petra: "He already hugged me to death."
(Olivia chuckles.)
Olivia: "Must've been an amazing sight to see."
Petra: "Yeah, if we ignore how his hugging almost crushed me."
(We laugh lightly. It's a kind of a break after what happened today.)
Lukas: "Right, but I wasn't referring to Axel. He brought someone else too."
Jesse: "Huh? Who might that be?"
Lukas: "It would be easier to just find out yourself."
(We head up to the room where the giant map is.)
Ellegaard: "Boy, Can't remember the last time I was in this place..."
(Chatting at the other end of the room was Axel, and to what seems to be Magnus?)
(Wow, not only did he get him by himself, but faster than us?)
(Wow... Normally, we would take the news as a great one, but Ellegaard looked visibly annoyed.)
Ellegaard: "Would someone care to explain what he is doing here?"
Petra: "Call this a hunch... But do you two not like each other?"
Ellegaard: "You'll understand when you know him. Did you know about this???"
Jesse: "Is... this a problem?"
Ellegaard: "You bet it is. I will NOT work with HIM. Not after... well. Let's not talk about it."
Jesse: "Look, just wait here for a second while I figure out what's going on."
Ellegaard: "Much appreciated."
(I approach Magnus and Axel, who were still absorbed in their conversation.)
(The two finally notice me at that point.)
Magnus: "So, who are you, then? And why did you bring the Queen of the Nerds with you?"
Axel: "That's Jesse, my best friend. Trust me. Jesse's totally cool. I got tired of waiting around, so I decided to go recruit Magnus myself. It was kind of a crazy adventure, but it all worked out in the end. And now, I'm the King of Boom Town!"
Magnus: "King in exile, actually."
Jesse: "Boom Town...?"
Axel: "Yeah! I had to beat him in a crazy tournament and-"
Magnus: "Long story. You had to be there. Short version? Epic battle of explosions and mayhem... Death-defying action shenanigans and pyrotechnics... Badabing, badaBOOM..."
(Very clever...)
Ellegaard: "Well, this is unexpected..."
(Ellegaard had listened in on the conversation.)
(How long was she here?)
Magnus: "I'm not entirely sure what you mean, but I'm definitely sure that I don't like it."
Axel: "Yeah! Show him some respect!"
Ellegaard: "Oh. You're sticking up for Magnus. That's very... sweet..."
Magnus: "Yeah, he's sticking up for me. It's because I'm really awesome and super cool!"
Ellegaard: "I'll never understand your fans."
Jesse: "Oh my god, would you all cut it out!? We've got BIGGER problems to deal with than arguing with each other!"
(Ellegaard and Magnus start walking away in opposite directions.)
Jesse: "Um, people? Hello? Can we please focus on the bigger picture? There's still a hungry Wither Storm in the process of turning the whole world into its dinner!"
(Ellegaard stops.)
Ellegaard: "It was terrifying. It came out of nowhere and just destroyed... everything."
Magnus: "A little too scary for you, Ellie? Couldn't just THINK it away?"
Ellegaard: "You weren't there, Magnus. I'm telling you -- This thing was like nothing I've ever seen!"
Magnus: "Why? Because it's never come inside one of your little workshops?"
Jesse: "Oh my gawd, would you two stop fighting?"
Magnus: "Woah!"
Ellegaard: "Yikes!"
Jesse: "Oh, come on! Don't yell at me! The person who couldn't stop bickering for the last few minutes!"
Lukas: "Jesse's right. We need to find some way to stop that thing."
Magnus: "Well, I don't know if you've had the chance to poke around this old dump yet, but it's pre-tty much stripped bare."
Jesse: "So what are we gonna do? How are we going to stop it?"
Ellegaard: "Well, let's not panic, first of all. That's a good first step. That thing was MASSIVE. It would take more than TNT to get that thing down. If only Soren were here... He might have something we could use..."
Magnus: "Oh, Ellie. Not this again. You know, I hate it when you brag about you and Soren's little brainy club."
Ellegaard: "I'm not bragging! I think I've got a legitimate idea here!"
Olivia: "What are you talking about? What did Soren have?"
Ellegaard: "Soren had a kind of 'Super TNT,' stronger and more explosive than anything else in the world. The 'Formidi-Bomb."
Magnus: "Yeah yeah yeah, I've heard all about the 'F-Bomb' before."
Axel: "F-Bomb?"
Magnus: "Yeah, Soren claimed that dropping the F-Bomb could destroy anything."
Jesse: "Do you know where it is? Can we get some?"
Ellegaard: "Well, there's a little problem there... We don't know where Soren is. But you found us. Can you figure it out?"
Jesse: "Well, the map might."
Ellegaard: "Well, unless he's in the Nether or the End. But it's worth a shot."
(I place the amulet on the pedestal and we activate it once again.)
(This time, the green and red lights were both shining in the middle of the map.)
Magnus: "All right, there's your light, my light..."
(Suddenly, a third, grey light, appears at the top edge of the map.)
Axel: "That's new."
Ellegaard: "There he is. Soren had his fortress deep inside the mountains. After the Order... broke up, that's where he went to keep doing his experiments."
Magnus: "Look, he invited me there a couple of times, but it always seemed a little..."
Ellegaard: "Weird, right? It always seemed a little weird."
Petra: "Sooo... why aren't we going now? Is there some kind of problem?"
(Suddenly, a fourth, blue, light appears north-east of us, slowly heading to Sorens.)
Petra: "Whoa..."
Olivia: "It didn't do that before."
Lukas: "Are you sure it's working correctly?"
Jesse: "Wait..."
(I analyse the amulet.)
(The only light that was not working was the light blue one, which must've been Gabriel's.)
(That means the only other person that could be blue is...)
Jesse: "That's Ivor!"
Ellegaard: "Ivor's going to Soren's! We need to move!"
Petra: "It doesn't look too far... We could probably make it on foot."
(Suddenly, the fifth, light blue light, starts shining.)
Axel: "W-Wait... What???"
Lukas: "Wait... I remember... Gabriel was pulled into the Wither Storm back at his temple. If he didn't escape... that must mean that he's in the Wither Storm... and if that light is appearing... THAT MEANS THE WITHER STORM IS COMING THIS WAY!!!"
(Looking at the horizon... in the very distance... you could see some very small purple lights shining just very slightly.)
Petra: "Oh no... not again... not again! I don't want to see that thing again!"
Axel: "What are we waiting for?! Let's get going!"
(No one was against it.)
(Even if the sun had started slowly setting, anything was better than running into that creature.)
(We head out.)
Jesse: "Alright, let's get moving."
(The area before the mountain where Soren's Fortress is supposed to be, was a vast forest.)
(Normally, this place would be terrifying at night, but it felt much safer with so many people coming with us.)
(Including Reuben, there were 8 of us. Even if we run into monsters, it shouldn't even be a problem.)
Lukas: "Jesse!"
(Lukas calls me out.)
(He hands me a bow and arrows.)
Jesse: "Didn't I say you would be better with the bow?"
Lukas: "I crafted an additional bow while you were gone, so I still have mine. Even if you're not good with it, it can still be useful in some situations."
(Even when I declined, he insisted.)
(And those aren't even a few arrows.)
(How many did you get from that dispenser???)
Jesse: "Umm... thanks... I guess?"
Lukas: "I'm happy to help!"
(Lukas looks at me cheerfully.)
Magnus: "Yo!"
(Magnus suddenly approaches me.)
Magnus: "We haven't really gotten the chance to chat yet."
Jesse: "Oh, hello."
Magnus: "I hear you saved your friend back there from this Wither Storm thing. You're pretty tough, huh?"
Jesse: "I was just doing what I thought was right. I wouldn't compliment myself that much."
Magnus: "Humilty. Nice. I can dig it. Kiinda wish you had my back before... But whatever. You still seem all right. Ish."
(That's relieving... I guess...)
Magnus: "But I have to ask, what's the deal with your buddy Axel?"
(Looking back, we see Axel waving back at us.)
(Magnus sends it back.)
Magnus: "Can't tell if he's awesome... or a little bit of a dork. He's just a little, ah, doofy? Y'know?"
Jesse: "He's one of my best friends. He sticks up for his friends. Even though he can be annoying from time to time, he still makes me laugh. I don't really want to talk too much about other people like that, but... you know what I mean."
Magnus: "Interesting. Very interesting. I guess I won't go much further, but I do want to know why you didn't go with him to get me?"
Jesse: "Don't take this the wrong way. I just thought we needed Ellegaard's help more. We were in a hurry, okay?"
Magnus: "Uh huh, uh huh, I guess that's fair. Sort of."
(Magnus chuckles.)
Magnus: "I'll try not to let it hurt my feelings too much."
Jesse: "Um... okay."
(And like that, the conversation awkwardly draws to a close.)
(Even if it continued, the sounds of the mobs around us would've interrupted it anyway.)
(By this time, the sun was already gone.)
(The horizon had some light left.)
(But the opposite direction of the forest was already dark, and it didn't take long for all sorts of ugly creatures to show their faces.)
Magnus: "See? This is why I said we should've waited til morning! We wouldn't need to worry about any of this crap!"
Ellegaard: "At least we're keeping ahead of the Wither Storm!"
Axel: "Why are you guys scared? We have 8 people! If all of us can take down like 3 mobs, then we can easily overpower 24 at the same time, even if they try to surround us!"
(Axel takes the obvious confident role of the group.)
(Petra follows it.)
Petra: "Just keep moving and don't let anyone get left behind. If they're clearly a threat, don't hesistate to take them down!"
Axel: "Yeah! Like an army! Let's get into formation!"
Olivia: "I don't think we need to be THAT careful."
(Everyone draws their weapon.)
(I know I had a bow from Lukas, but I decided to save them for more critical situations, so I drew my Stone Sword instead.)
Jesse: "Reuben, stay close to me."
(Reuben nods in return.)
(Magnus apparently carries a supply of TNT everywhere he goes.)
(He plants some down behind our trail to make sure none of them can follow us.)
(Lukas has his bow ready to shoot at anyone trying to flank us.)
(Petra is at the front, moving down anyone who wants to block our way.)
(along with Ellegaard and Olivia, keeping track of our direction.)
Ellegaard: "If any of you get lost, use the polar star to guide you north. Last time I visited Soren, the entrance is supposed to be on the cliff wall of the mountain range coming north."
Magnus: "We get it, we get it. No one is gonna get lost THAT easily!"
(There were 3 zombies appearing behind the trees on my side.)
Jesse: "I'll take care of them. Axel, cover my back, will you?"
Axel: "You got it!"
(Even though zombies are really dumb, I guess you could technically call them braindead.)
(they can get terrifying in large groups or when they somehow manage to get diamond armour.)
(But that's not the case!)
(I swiftly knock the zombies back with a swing as soon as they enter my range.)
(Even when all 3 of them approach, it won't stop my attack.)
(How stupid of them to all attack from the same direction.)
(But then again, they're zombies.)
(You shouldn't even expect anything smart from them in the first place.)
(The first one falls down, then the second, and I didn't even wait for the third one; I just ran up to it and finished it early.)
(It looks like the two zombies that fell down weren't dead yet, but I just had to penetrate their heads with my weapon one more time.)
(Reuben suddenly appears and finishes off the last zombie before I get to it by stomping on its head repeatedly.)
Jesse: "Woah! You didn't have to help us!"
(Reuben responds with a 'I wanted to do something too!' face.)
(sigh. I guess there's no helping it when Reuben becomes like that, but it's not like we're in a very serious situation, so
whatever.)
(Well, that was easy. How are the others doing?)
Jesse: "You guys doing okay?"
Axel: "I'm not dying, so yeah, we're fine."
(A creeper explosion suddenly alerts us from the front.)
(Petra had gotten a little bit close to a creeper and was slightly knocked back.)
Olivia: "Petra Are you okay?!"
(Petra quickly gets up into a fighting position again.)
(I couldn't help but notice that she was moving a little bit clumsier in that moment.)
Petra: "It was just a small explosion. No need to be dramatic about it."
(At the back, Lukas had largely killed the skeleton population.)
(I must admit, he's really gotten good with the bow lately.)
(Meanwhile, Axel was wrestling with a spider.)
(Lukas notices it and shoots the spider off, killing it.)
Lukas: "You alright?"
Axel: "Hmph. I guess."
(Axel was still sour about the whole fight, but it's nice to see them getting more along.)
(Lukas really is a caring person, isn't he?)
Olivia: "Man, I miss daytime!"
Ellegaard: "Just last a little bit longer. Wait."
(Ellegaard points to the mountain coming into view.)
Ellegaard: "That's the door!"
(A golden door glittered in the dark on the mountain wall.)
(We break the formation and make a run for it.)
(We climb up the mountain up to the large golden door.)
Magnus: "Here it is..."
(Ellegaard activates the switch on the side, and the door slides open.)
[To be continued...]