Gameknight and Fisher’s battle cry resonated through the Nether as they charged through. The thick smoke and intense heat startled the pair, Fisher having the worst effect. The small boy was used to the calm, cool water that he fished in, and never had to endure such powerful temperatures. The boy fell in a coughing fit, every gasp for air worsening it. He knelt beside his Fisher and pulled a bottle out of his inventory, courtesy of Topper and Filler. Images of the loving children flashed into his mind as he pulled of the cork with his teeth. He knew he had to find them, and the rest of the Village, and the King of Blazes knew the answer to where they were. “Here,” Said Gameknight, handing the bottle containing cool water to Fisher. Fisher grasped the bottle and chugged down the precious liquid. “Thanks-” He gurgled in mid-sip. In less than a minute, Fisher finished the refreshing water and handed the bottle to Gameknight. He smiled at the User-that-is-not-a-user, and followed him up the hillside. When they reached the top, Gameknight peered over the Nether. Below the hill lay a massive ocean of lava. Blazes policed the air, destroying any creature that tried enter the area. The flying blaze rods turned on their allies, the ghasts, firing deadly balls of fire at the gasbags. Gameknight strained his eyes to see across the massive lava lake, and what he saw filled him with fear. Nearly a thousand blocks away stood a nether fortress.
Malacoda’s Nether fortress.
The fortress used to be owned by Malacoda, King of the Nether. The enormous Ghast nearly destroyed all of Minecraft. Even though Erebus killed him, the mere thought of him sent shivers down Gameknight’s spine, and the fortress was no exception. Then, he noticed the Blazes. There was at least two hundred patrolling the fortress, killing ghasts and expanding the territory, decimating walls for enslaved pigmen to expand the castle. ‘I can’t fight that many Blazes,’ He thought ‘It would be suicide.’ A coil of fear and uncertainty began to wrap itself around Gameknight. He looked down at Fisher, his eye’s still filled with awe from being with the User-that-is-not-a-user, as he was. But Gameknight just couldn’t do it. He was just Tommy Feynman, not a hero. A Phrase of Wisdom that Crafter had once said flashed through his mind, “Deeds do not make the hero, how he overcomes his fear does”. ‘But this isn’t just swimming,’ said Gameknight, replying to no one ‘This is an entire army of Blazes, and how can I beat Charybdis?’ He stared into Fisher’s hazel eyes, and and he felt a flicker of courage. He couldn’t just give up on his friends. I have to do it, for Fisher, for the Village. Then, the small flicker of courage, began a fire, which grew and and turned into a blazing wildfire in his soul. The incredible fire of bravery rose through him and escaped as a thunderous battle cry.
“CHARYBDIS!” He to no one… to everyone, “YOU HAVE HARMED MY FRIENDS AND I FOR TOO LONG!” Fisher stood beside him, pulling out his fishing rod. They chanted in unison.
“FOR MINECRAFT!”
Several blazes turned the heroes, and began to throw their deadly fire at them. Gameknight quickly pulled out a Fire resistance potion, and smashed it on the ground, covering him and Fisher in the protective fluid. The blazes, realizing that their fire would do no harm, barked orders to the zombie pigmen. The pigmen slowly advanced on their prey, some even crawling out of the lava, happy to have escaped their liquid rock prison. Gameknight turned away from the rotting enemies and examined the landscape. He tried to see if anything could help them, but all he saw was netherrack and… a pool of magma. He quickly formulated a plan. Yes, that will stop them, but how do we… yes of course! He quickly pulled out two pickaxes, handing one to Fisher. They had to work quickly. The pigmen would soon be on them, and their potions weren’t going to last forever. “Fisher, start digging the netherrack. Get to the top, and dig the rest a two block,” Fisher stared at him, confused. Gameknight sighed. “Come with me,” Gameknight quickly built a small staircase up the slope, passing the portal. When he reached the pool of lava, he dug up some of the netherrack. He needed just enough. Building a small wall with his excavated netherrack, Gameknight built a small pedestal in the center. I hope this works…
The pigmen finally reached the staircase and began to scale it. They saw Gameknight, their target, standing on a netherrack pillar behind a an incomplete wall, spitting insults. “You stupid pigs should have never been made,” The pigmen, irritated, began to quicken their pace towards the User-that-is-not-a-user, but instead of going through the entrance on the wall, they turned to flank it. “You pigs are useless,” continued Gameknight. “I can’t believe Charybdis can tolerate your ugliness. Even in the nether, you pigs are the ugliest creature.” The angry pigmen now were nearly inside the netherrack hedge. “You pigs the most utterly useless and ugly creatures ever to roam minecraft!” The pigmen now were enraged. They wanted to get to Gameknight as fast as they could, which was through the small doorway in the wall. They ran as fast as their singed and decaying bodies could handle towards the pedestal . They burst into the netherrack wall, only one thing in mind: Kill the User-that-is-not-a-user. A pigman dressed in a worn coat of gold clawed at the pedestal staring at Gameknight with it’s dark, angry, eyes. “Va-kai will kill this user!” Gameknight looked down at him. “I’m not any ordinary user,” He said, pulling out gravel, placing it on the entrance, sealing the monsters in. “I’m the user-that-is-not-a-user!” He nodded to Fisher, who mined the only piece of netherrack that held back the lava. The magma oozed out as a stream of liquid rock. The lava set fire to the pigmen, but the skin of the monster’s would not give way. The thick stream pushed all the rotting pigs into the back off the wall, unable to move. Gameknight leaped off the wall and ran to his friend, Fisher. Fisher looked at him in awe. “How did you- How did you make them do what you wanted?” Gameknight replied with pride, trying to quote something Mr.Plank had once recited. “When your enemy is… temperamental? Irritate him. Pretend to be weak, so he will become arrogant.” As he smiled at Fisher he noticed that he was no longer emitting swirls of red enchantment. Their potion, their only protection from the blazes’ firey death, was gone. The blazes turned to them and grimaced, forming fireballs between their blaze rods, Their mechanical laughs echoing across the lava lake. “RUN!!!” Screamed Gameknight as hundreds of fireballs rained down on the lava ocean shore. Large parts of the the shore exploded like popcorn; explosions peppered the netherrack hillside. Gameknight and Fisher hurried to the lava lake, barely missing the enemies’ fire. Gameknight held up his sword to deflect the many fireballs that came too close. We can’t do this forever, thought Gameknight I’m getting exhausted, and the my blade is getting warmer and damaged. He looked to Fisher, who was approaching the lava. He stared at the lava, unaware of the blaze focused on him. “Fisher look out-!” It was too late. The blazes through it’s fireball, deciding Fisher’s fate.
BANG!
Fisher was propelled off the shore like a living rocket, zooming past Gameknight, exiting his field of view. “NOOO!!!” He screamed as he dropped his sword and rushed to the shore. He expected to see Fisher on fire , sinking below the surface, but saw different. Fisher was alive, unconscious and laid on a small island of obsidian. “ Fisher!” He cried. “You’re alive!” Fisher looked at him with pride. “I guess my bucket of water just slipped out, But good thing it-” Fisher’s explanation was cut short by a blaze fireball, crashing on his island. Gameknight leaped down on the island, embracing him, quickly. “Don’t ever die again,” He said happily. His mood suddenly changed as he turned to the blazes. “Use your other water buckets to make a bridge to the nether fortress. I’ll cover you.” He raised his sword as Fisher pulled out his water bucket, an excited smile spread across his face. Gameknight turned to the blazes.
“ You want some this?” He taunted. “COME ON! LET’S DANCE!”