We arrived at the obsidian platform, but something was off. There was nothing in front of us or below us. "Guys, look up," Peter said, his voice cutting through the eerie silence.
We did, and what we saw... well, we expected something different, but this? I knew the End would be altered, but even so, seeing it was something else. Above us loomed a massive island, far bigger than anything I had imagined or knew of from the game, surrounded by smaller floating islands connected to the central one by chains—chains made of bedrock, no less. They formed a ring, suspending the main island like a fortress in the sky. From where I stood, I could see pieces of obsidian jutting out from the smaller islands, most likely the pillars with end crystals.
"This isint going to be fun," Peter muttered to himself, taking in the layout. We all exchanged looks, the unspoken understanding that this battle was going to be anything but easy.
Tatsumaki took charge, using her powers to float us towards one of the smaller islands, hiding behind a large obsidian pillar for cover. I peered from behind the pillar and there it was—the Ender Dragon. It lay coiled around the central bedrock structure, its form immense. "Huge" didn't even begin to describe it. The dragon was at least seven to ten times larger than in the game. The land around it was cracked, probably from the fierce battle that had taken place here centuries ago.
"If we break one of those crystals, and it'll probably wake up," I said quietly. "So, here's the plan. Tatsumaki and Peter, you two destroy the crystals. The rest of us—Bruce, Megumi, Rose, Hinata, and me—we'll take on the dragon."
"Are you sure we're ready for this?" Hinata asked, her voice soft but filled with concern.
I glanced at her, giving a reassuring nod. "We don't have a choice. It's now or never."
We climbed the bedrock chains towards the main island, while Tatsumaki and Peter took off toward the end crystals. I summoned a ball of quantum energy, and as it shot into the air, signaling them, the first crystal was destroyed.
That's when the dragon's eye opened—a slitted, glowing gaze that immediately locked onto us.
"Well, there goes the element of surprise," Peter muttered over our comms.
"Get ready!" I shouted.
But what happened next caught all of us off guard. The dragon, instead of attacking, spoke. Its voice was a deep, booming growl, filled with an ancient pride and barely concealed anger.
"You dare come to my domain? Foolish mortals," it snarled. "You think you can defeat me? Here, in the Void?"
"Great," Megumi groaned. "It talks. Just what we needed."
The dragon let out a roar, purple energy forming in its mouth before it hurled a massive ball of destructive power toward us. We barely dodged, scattering in all directions as it exploded against the island, leaving a smoking crater.
Tatsumaki and Peter had already taken out two more crystals. "We're almost done here," Peter called out from the comms. "Just a few more and we'll join you."
The fight had officially begun.
The dragon was far more unpredictable than anything the game had prepared us for. It summoned lightning, fire, and even ice. We dodged left and right, but it was relentless. I decided it was time to end this fast. I gathered energy, summoning a black hole infront of me, and threw it toward the dragon.
Only for it to swallow it.
"Did it just... eat that?" Bruce asked, his voice tinged with disbelief.
I froze for a second, tension creeping into my body. "It ate the black hole," I repeated, not quite believing what I was saying. "This just got a lot more complicated."
I tried to activate Kyōka Suigetsu, hoping to throw the dragon into an illusion, but nothing happned, as he was immune to it. "Damn it," I muttered under my breath. Megumi, seeing my frustration, summoned Mahoraga to try and turn the tide of the battle.
"No, wait—!" I shouted, pulling Megumi away from there.
The dragon's jaws snapped forward, and Mahoraga was gone. The beast devoured it in one bite.
"We're not getting anywhere with this!" I shouted, dodging another wave of purple energy. "None of our attacks are working!"
All the crystals were finally destroyed, and Tatsumaki and Peter joined us. But even with our full force, nothing was effective. Bullets bounced off its scales. Bombs and missiles? Worthless. Even Gae Bolg didn't work.
In sheer frustration, I used the only Netherite sword I had, created more out of a desire for a cool glowing weapon than any real necessity. With a grunt, I hurled it at the dragon like a spear. To my shock, it penetrated the dragon's scales with ease.
I grinned. "Guys, switch to Minecraft weapons! Only those will work!"
I created several Netherite swords, throwing them to the others. As I threw more towards the dragon, the blades struck true, each dealing massive damage. The dragon's once-impenetrable hide was slowly turning red as we chipped away at its health.
But just when I thought we were about to finish the fight, the dragon let out a roar of pure rage. "You think you've won? I'll show you the true power of the End!" it bellowed.
The ground beneath us shook violently. The obsidian pillars started to shatter, and chunks of them flew towards the dragon, forming a massive obsidian shell around its body.
"We need to break through that shell!" Bruce yelled. "We can finish this if we hit it with one final strike!"
"I'll do it," I said, already forming a plan. I started crafting a small nuclear bomb—something with a blast radius no bigger than five blocks. I took out my Herrscher core and gave it to Bruce, giving him a firm nod before launching myself towards the dragon.
I landed on its back just as the bomb detonated, obliterating the obsidian shell—and my body.
Bruce handed Tatsumaki a Sword who threw it at the Dragon dealing the Killing Blow.
For a few agonizing moments, everything was quiet.
I could sense the panic as my team stared at the glowing Herrscher core. "Something should've happened by now," Bruce muttered, his brow furrowed in confusion. "He's taking too long."
Megumi and Peter began pacing back and forth. Tatsumaki hovered above, arms crossed, eyes narrowing. Rose looked like she was on the verge of tears, and Hinata did her best to console her.
Twenty minutes passed. Then thirty.
Finally, the Herrscher core began to glow brighter. My body started to re-form from it, the light gradually fading as I returned to my normal self.
As soon as I fully reappeared, Rose practically tackled me with a hug. "You idiot! What took you so long?"
"What happened in there?" Rose asked, her voice soft, but filled with worry.
I chuckled nervously, rubbing the back of my neck. "Uh… I, uh, went unconscious for a bit. Yeah, that's all."
Not exactly the truth, but they didn't need to know that. For now, we had more important things to focus on.
"Really? That's your excuse?" Peter asked, crossing his arms.
"I didn't exactly plan on getting blown up today," I shot back with a grin, trying to play it off. "Next time, I'll keep it quicker."
Bruce gave me a stern look. "You shouldn't take unnecessary risks like that."
I sighed. "I know, but it worked, didn't it?"
Everyone laughed, albeit a little nervously. The tension in the air dissipated as we gathered together, the realization setting in—we had actually defeated the Ender Dragon.
Now, it was time to see what rewards awaited us.