Hello.
Yes. I already finished the next chapter. What was it, three days?  So. Stay tuned. Because the next chapter will be soon.

Very. Soon.

Chapter Four

Silver Confessions

Their path took them to a desert, right next to the Mega Taiga. Gameknight was shocked, of course, to feel the chilly pine-filled air suddenly give way to terrible heat of the sandy plains. But what shocked him the most was, somehow, this desert seemed to be cooler than the ones he had been in before. “Where are we?” He asked. “This is Silver Desert,” Harvester said. “The biggest desert in the FarLands.” “Actually,” Fletcher burst out, “If you think about it, the smallest.”
Gameknight was confused. “How can something be the smallest and the largest at the same time?” “It’s kind of confusing,” Smithy said. “But basically, Silver Desert is the longest desert in the Far Lands. But it is really, really small when you talk about how wide it is. So it’s kind of both.”
Fletcher clucked at Bess, who had fallen behind. “Silver Desert used to be a huge river, and that’s why the sand looks different than most. Also,” she added when Gameknight opened his mouth to say something, “Since your probably going to ask about why it’s not so hot we all melt into a puddle,  this is the only desert that’s ever been a river, and was originally a grasslands, so it’s not as hot.”
Harvester cleared her throat. “Legend says,” she said. Smithy and Fletcher groaned. “Here she goes again,” Fletcher says. “Always about the Overworld.” She glared at Gameknight. “The nonexistent Overworld.” GameKnight999 heart sank. “She still doesn’t believe me,” he thought. Harvester plowed into. “Legend says that Silver River was magic, and that it was the only portal from the Far Lands to the Overworld.”
“Well, who made it?” Gameknight asked. “I know the Far Lands has wizards.” Harvesters eyes were shining. “Thats the thing,” she said excitedly. “It wasn’t a Far Lands Wizard that made it. “What?” He asked. “But-“ “It’s Overworld Magic,” she said. “It’s from your world.” “But the river is gone now,” she said sadly. “But,” she said, changing her mood so fast Gameknight had trouble keeping up. “Some say the river isn’t gone but trapped.” “What do you mean, trapped?” Gameknight asked. “How do you trap a river?” Harvester shook her head. “I’m not exactly sure,” she said. “But the most common theory was a wizard, maybe a warlock, didn’t like the bridge. He thought the worlds were better off separate. So he closed it off. He found the very source of the river and blocked it up. But the worlds fell apart without the support of the other, and we don’t know what happened in the Overworld but bad things started happening here. The Withers were trapped, the Warlocks gained power, and monsters stopped burning. The original wizard died in all of it, but another one realized the problem and went back to save the river. The water had broken some of the block, but it had been enchanted to never let water erode it away. He saved the river and even helped it along, but at the same time a massive explosion from the war drove sand in from everywhere and covered the river. The wizard died in the water, but it is said the magic river is still flowing underneath the desert. And that’s why the sand is Silver.”
Gameknight saw for the first time the sand did look like it had a silver tint to it. It was definitely a pale yellow. Fletcher and Smithy shook their head. “For the last time, their just stories.” “Wait!” Gameknight blurted out. “If that is true, then this biome might help me get home, or at least tell me how to!” Fletcher rolled her eyes. “I’m really worried about you,” she said. “There is no Overworld! There’s nowhere to go back to.”
Everyone was quiet after that. Walking along the burning dunes, Gameknight couldn’t help thinking he was riding a camel in a caravan. He thought about people in ancient Egypt, riding for days at a time. “Let’s stop here,” Fletcher said eventually. They set up a small camp. Tomorrow they would keep going, and the same things would happen on repeat for a week until they were far enough ahead of the NPC army. Smithy made a little cave in the sand for them to sleep in. They lit a little fire on a block of wood. Harvester went to bed first, then Fletcher, every muscle tense and ready to spring into action if one of the moaning husks out in the distance decided to wander in to close.
Then it was just Smithy and the User-that-is-not-a-user. Gameknight999 leaned back and stared up at the stars. They gleamed down at him, winking and sparkling like trying to coax him up alongside with them. The constant East-to-west breeze blew the smoke in the air into strange shapes that twisted and coiled like a snake. The dark wisps glowed silver in the moonlight.
“You know…” Smithy said. Gameknight looked at him, startled. “I’m not Fletcher. At least, I wasn’t always.” “What do you mean?” Gameknight asked. Smithy sighed. “Back at the village…” he trailed off. He sighed again, and started again. “Back at the village, I did believe in the Overworld. In fact, I was the one who told Harvester most of the stories she knows. She probably doesn’t remember it, though.”
“But, you didn’t act like you believed me or Harvester,” Gameknight said. Then, in a quieter voice, he asked, “Are you afraid of Fletcher?” Smithy laughed a mirthless laugh. “Yes,” he said. “But not in the way you think. I’m not afraid of her, I’m afraid for her.”
A moment before, the big NPC had been smiling, but it turned into a frown. “When we left the village- when we were kicked out of the village- we all had our ways to cope with it. Harvester was so little, she doesn’t remember it that much. She has a few memories. She’s eleven now, but when it happened she was seven. I started keeping myself busy by learning new skills and looking out for the girls. But Fletcher…”  He looked so sad Gameknight wanted to hug him. “We all believed in the Overworld at the village, I was actually the one who told Harvester a lot of her stories. She probably doesn’t remember it, though.”
“That night when they kicked us out, I made a little cave we hid in until morning. When the sun rose, and it was safe to go out, Fletcher told Harvester to go look around. Then she turned to me and said,” He grimaced. “What?” Gameknight asked. “Smithy, we’re on our own now. It’s time for us to move on. I’m going to stop believing in the Overworld. We can’t keep believing in things that are maybe true. They have to be really true. No more what-ifs. And…” he said. “Well, I care about her, so I said I wouldn’t believe in it anymore either. And after a while, it started to seem true. But I always believe deep down, and then you came, and…”
“You started believing again,” Gameknight said as he started to figure it out. “But you weren’t sure if you should.” Smithy sighed again and nodded. “But… I knew you were different before you ever told us your story.” “Why?” The User-that-is-not-a-user asked. “Because…” Smithy said. He sighed. “Well because this.” And in one fluid motion, he did the same thing Gameknight had done a million times before but had never really thought to much of. With a deep breath, he drew double swords and held them both above his head. Gameknight stared up at the glittering iron blades, absolutely shocked.
This wasn’t what he was expecting. “I- I-“ he stuttered. But all he was able to say was “How?” Smithy shook his head. “I’m just as confused as you,” he said. “The first day we found you, and you blacked out, we were right behind the NPC army. We hid behind a tree, and while Fletcher grabbed you and told Harvester to go straight back to the house. Well, of course Harvester didn’t want to leave, and Fletcher was trying to shield you from her so Harvester couldn’t see.” He laughed. “While they were arguing, I just felt something… change. Shift. Like Minecraft’s code had been stretched out and bent and twisted as something tried to change it. And I grabbed your hand, and there was just this surge. And all the sudden all I could think about was the Overworld, and I was surprised I hadn’t given it much thought in months.
“And then something came over me, and I dropped your hand and grabbed both my swords. At the same time, I saw two other Blacksmiths in the army talking and laughing, and then this weird expression came in both of there faces and they both grabbed two tools and held them up just like I did. I still don’t know what it’s all about, but it has something to do with you.” The blacksmith looked down and saw he was standing, and slowly sank back onto the ground.
Gameknight was speechless. He knew exactly what had happened, but wasn’t sure if he should tell Smithy what had really gone on during the Great Zombie Invasion. No, he thought. No more lies. “Smithy,” he said. He took a deep breath. “What?” Smithy asked. “I didn’t tell you the whole truth,” Gameknight confessed. “About the Great Zombie Invasion. And Smithy of the Two Swords. Smithy…” he faltered. “Smithy died.” The other Smithy stared at him blankly. “Of course he died,” he said. “Everyone dies.”
Gameknight shook his head. “No, I mean died. In the war.” He gulped. “Right before the battle at Two-Sword pass.” “But,” Smithy said. “But then how did he hold the two swords?” He lowered his voice. “Did you lose the war?” His eyes filled with fear. “Is that why your here?” “No,” Gameknight said frantically shaking his head. “No, no, no. Just…” he paused. “Just let me borrow a sword, okay?” Smithy looked confused but handed over the weapon. Gameknight took a deep breath, then while still holding Smithy’s he drew his own iron swords Harvester had given him. Smithy gaped at him, his mouth wide open.
“I’m Smithy of the Two Swords,” Gameknight said. He realized he was standing, but didn’t care. “And I was the one who led the villagers to victory in the Great Zombie Invasion.”

Wow, I finished that one fast. Thanks for reading! Stay tuned for the next chapter!