– PROLOGUE –

=======================================

        It was a peaceful day in Corongo Village. The adult villagers were finishing up their work for the day, and the children that were playing parted ways and returned home to their families.

       “See you tomorrow,” Luke said to his friends. “See ya,” They responded.

       He headed home, in a better mood than he had been in in a long time. And he couldn’t wait to tell his parents why.

       He soon reached his house. He took a moment to smile. In actuality, it was a rather small house. But to him, it was a mansion. At least compared to some of the others.

       His mother was a fletcher, and his father was a weapon smith. Both occupations brought a lot of business, so they were pretty well-off. Luke had watched his father craft a sword once, and after seeing the finished product, there was no question why his business thrived. He had never watched his mother work, but he saw many of her finished products. Seeing these also left no question in his mind why she had so many customers.

       He was suddenly jerked out of his thoughts when somebody shoved him. He fell to the ground, and he immediately knew who had done it. He got up and dusted himself off.

       “What’s the matter? Get your bathrobe dirty?”

       Luke slowly lifted his head to face the threat. It was Brock, the school bully.         

       “It’s not a bathrobe,” Luke replied.

       Brock always made fun of his dark green tunic. His mother had crafted it with her own hands. It was the envy of all the children.

       He didn’t want to anger Brock for fear of getting pounded, so he stopped himself from saying any more. Brock grinned. When Brock grinned, it meant he was getting ready to do something rotten. He bent down and scooped up a ball of mud. Luke knew what was coming, but didn’t know what to do.           

       Brock hurled the mud-ball at him. It landed on his tunic, staining the front with the sticky substance. He was furious. He stormed up to the house, Brock snickering behind him.

       “Get a stain on your favorite shirt? How sad!”

       Luke ignored him.

       He slammed the door behind him as he walked inside. His dad, sitting at the dining table, put the book he was reading down and stared at him. Luke sighed.           

       “Sorry.”

       He picked up his book again, not saying a word. Somehow his dad hadn’t noticed the stain. Or he didn’t ask where it came from. Either way, he was relieved.

       It was a one room house, as almost all of the villages. The main difference was the size. Though his family was wealthy, they still didn’t have the nicest house in town. But it was still better than most. The dining table sat on the right side of the single large room. Three beds sat at the back, one for each family member. Other than that, there wasn’t much else. But in a village, houses were judged better or worse depending on their room size, and they had a reasonable amount of room.

       Luke took his muddy tunic off and tossed it in the laundry basket next to the door. He hoped his mom wouldn’t ask why it was muddy.  Where was she anyway?

       “Where’s mom?”

       His dad closed the book and sat it on the table, then stood. It was then that Luke noticed his father was still wearing his work clothes.

       “She had to do some extra work today. It seems like everybody in the village wants a new bow. The rumors of zombies around here probably scared them.”                                

       There’s zombies around here?”

       Luke had heard stories of entire villages being destroyed by these rotten creatures.

       “Just a few sightings. Don’t worry. Even if they do try to attack, our defenses will stop them.”

       This was true. They were currently constructing a cobblestone wall that surrounded the village, though it wasn’t anywhere near completion. Zombies were a major threat, but he would like to see them try to climb over a wall. He chuckled as he imagined watching a horde of them attempt to climb over one another to get over the barricade.

       He walked over to the table and sat down. His dad, who was known as Theo, headed toward the door.

       “It’s getting dark. I’m going to check on mother. I should be back in fifteen minutes. If not, you know what to do.”

       Luke nodded his head. He had always been taught that if a person wasn’t back when they said they would be, he was to walk to the town sheriff’s house and inform him of the disappearance. Monsters were everywhere, and you could never be too careful.

       As soon as he was out the door, Luke was alone. He suddenly realized that he had forgotten to tell his dad what had gotten him in a such good mood. At least until Brock showed up. He would just have to wait until he and mom returned.

       He decided to see what dad had been reading. It was called 10 Tips on How to Become a Master Swordsmanship. This alarmed him. What if his dad wasn’t telling the whole story? What if the zombies might attack at any moment? He decided not to stress about it too much. Perhaps his father was just interested in the topic. After all, he was a weapon smith.

       Luke decided to have a snack. He got up from his seat and headed over to the refrigerator, which was a glass container with an ice block underneath to regulate generally cold temperatures. The ice had to be replaced regularly, but he didn’t mind the upkeep.

       Several yummy appetizers caught his eye. The last slice of a pumpkin pie. Two cookies leftover from yesterday, probably frozen stiff by now. Lastly, and most tempting of all, was the freshly baked birthday cake for his mother’s birthday tomorrow. But he couldn’t eat it yet… Could he?           

       After he ate a slice, he looked at the clock. It was dark outside now. He quickly put the rest of the cake in the fridge, then wiped the evidence on his mouth off with a napkin.

       It was a good thing he did too, because just then his parents walked through the door.

       As soon as they sat down at the table again, Luke told them what he had been waiting to.

       “The other kids asked if I could go fishing with them tomorrow after school. They also said they had a surprise for me! May I go?”

       Theo picked at the untouched steak on his plate with his fork. Mom, whose name was Amelia, took a massive bite of hers. By the time she finally swallowed it, Luke couldn’t stand the suspense.              

       “That would be up to your father.”

       If it was up to him, it usually meant no. But this time he surprised him.

       “Suppose you can, just as long as you finish the chores when you get home.”

       Luke grinned.

       “I sure will!”

       Since they had eaten dinner late, they went to bed directly afterward. They said “Goodnight” To each-other, then drifted off to sleep.

       Well, his parents did anyway.

       Luke could hardly sleep. His father had always said he was too young to go out with his friends by himself. Now he could hardly wait to tell them he could go.     

       After a while, though, he was fast asleep, dreaming of the next day.

       Little did any of them know that a zombie scout watched the village as they slept, examining the unfinished defenses and pinpointing weak spots. None of the peaceful villagers knew about the destruction that was headed their way, either.

– CHAPTER ONE –

=======================================

        Luke awoke early the next morning. Early for him at least. His parents had already left for work. 

       He forced himself to roll out of bed. He wanted to sleep longer, but he knew that    if he did, he would be late for school. 

       He got dressed, then took his time finding breakfast. He decided to have Wheat Crispy cereal with potato cakes. The crunchy meal sated his hunger, providing him energy for the day. 

       After breakfast, he looked at the clock. He was late! He must’ve eaten longer than he thought.He dashed out the door, grabbing his book-bag on the way out. 

       Since the schoolhouse was only about a block away from his house, he made it there in record time. He stopped to pant at the doors, as he had run the whole way. 

He hoped there wasn’t a replacement teacher today. His regular teacher, Miss Lavalina, had been talking of going on a vacation. If a replacement teacher was behind the doors he stood before, he was in trouble. Big time.

       Though he dreaded knowing for sure, he had to go inside. He opened the door slowly. Sure enough, a new teacher stood behind the desk at the front of the classroom. As he slipped inside, he had some hope that she wouldn’t notice he was late. But no luck. 

       “Ah, Luke! How good of you to show up. Finally.”

       Some of the kids turned in their wooden seats and stared. A few snickered at him.

       Without responding, he walked over to his seat on the far left side of the room and sat. He didn’t know how this new teacher would punish, and the last thing he wanted was to stay after school. 

       “Do you have a reason to be late?”

       “No, ma’am.”

       He expected the worst. After all, replacement teachers were cruel. At least in stories he’d heard. 

       “I could have you stay after school today…”

       Luke was shattered. Now he might never get to go out with the other kids. Waiting for what he thought he knew was coming, he slouched down in his seat.      

       “But everybody loses track of time. Even me.”

       Suddenly he was happier than he had been the entire morning. He breathed a sigh of relief. At least the new schoolmaster was forgiving. 

       Without saying another word of the matter, she turned and wrote something on the chalkboard behind her. When she stepped away, Luke was glad to see that the first subject was arithmetic. Though most dreaded it, he excelled at solving the equations as were written on the board. 

       Today, luck was on his side.

       The one room schoolhouse wasn’t near large enough for children in three different grades. He sometimes grew impatient, as the teacher would take turns with grades, and he was left waiting for his next assignment while the grade below or above him was given theirs. 

       Luke was in third grade. The second graders usually just left the third graders alone. Most of the fourth graders bullied or made fun of all those younger than themselves. Brock is a fourth grader. 

       The rest of the day was mostly uneventful. It was raining during recess, so they had to stay inside. The lunch the teacher had brought made his stomach turn in knots. He couldn’t wait for the last bell to ring.

       Finally, it did. It happened at just the right time, too, as they were preparing for an English pop-quiz. 

       Not waiting for the teacher to give him tons of homework, he dashed out the door, the other kids behind him. 

       Jackson, the kid who had invited him on the fishing trip, stopped him at the road. He was about the same size as Luke, though he was a year older than him. He was known for being an excellent student. Some even said he had never gotten a B on a report card in his life. 

       “You goin’ with us?”

       Luke nodded.

       “I just need to grab my pole from the house. I’ll meet ya at the lake!”

       He then jogged down the dirt road toward home, in an even better mood than he had been in the day before. 

       Soon enough, he was approaching the lake. It was named Lake Tanou, but everybody called it “The lake” Because it was the only lake for miles around. 

       He spotted Jackson and a few other kids sitting on the shore. From what he could tell, there was Brady, the class clown, Jordan, the best athlete in the school, 

and Mark, who was a straight-A student in almost every subject. 

       As he approached them, he seen a brand new fishing pole laying on the ground next to Jackson.           

       How did he afford that? He wondered. 

       Drawing even closer, Luke realized that it wasn’t a regular cane pole like he had. It was the fancy kind, with a metallic reel that looked like it cost a fortune. 

       He wanted to ask who owned it, but he decided against it. 

       He dipped his bobber in the water. The wriggly worm on the hook at the end of his line was sure to attract some bait-fish, at least, but he hoped for the big one.

       Hours passed. It was almost night now, and he hadn’t got a single bite. Neither had any of his friends, either.

       “This is ridiculous!” Jackson exclaimed. “We should have at least gotten one fish by now.”

       Luke nodded in agreement. He then began to wrap his line around and around the end of the cane pole, slowly retrieving his bobber. 

       All of the other kids besides him and Jackson had left a long time ago. Maybe he should’ve as well.

       Jackson stood and stretched. Then, he turned to look at the expensive fishing rod, still laying on the ground.

       “Oh!” He exclaimed.

       Luke put down his pole.

       “What?”

       Jackson picked up the valuable piece of equipment and held it toward Luke, A smile on his face.            

       “This is for me?!” Luke said excitedly.

       Jackson nodded.

       “This is the surprise I promised! I forgot to give it to you earlier.”

       Luke reached out and took his gift.

       “Thank you so much! I can’t thank you enough!”

       He then picked up his cane pole and dashed home to show his parents. 

       But in the midst of such peace and happiness, neither of them could have imagined what was about to happen.

– CHAPTER TWO –

=======================================

        Luke awoke to the sound of scratching. He sat up in bed, scanning the room for the cause of the sound. 

       Seeing nothing unusual, he quietly got out of bed and walked over to the window. Then he halted. He had a thought. What if it was the zombies?

       He shook the possibility. It was probably something else.

Peeking out the window, everything seemed normal. Suddenly, he heard the scratching again. It sounded like it was coming from the door. 

       Looking out the window again, he thought he seen a flash of green.

       Nah, it couldn’t be…

       He stood, watching for a few more minutes. When nothing seemed to show itself, he silently crawled back into bed. 

       Just when he was about to drift back to sleep, something banged at the door. He jumped out of bed this time, not caring if he woke his parents. He dashed to the window again, and his parents groggily awoke.

       “What’s going on?” Dad asked.

       Luke didn’t reply yet. He stared out the window, dreading what he saw. 

       Dozens of zombies roamed through the village, attempting to break in the houses. One stood at their very door, banging on the door with all it had. 

       “ZOMBIES ARE ATTACKING!” Luke screamed.

       His father leaped out from underneath the covers and dashed to the window. He gasped.

       “We weren’t ready yet!”

       He then snapped into action, practically flying toward the chest that sat on the left side of the room, near the door. He rummaged through it quickly, then pulled out an iron sword. 

       “Luke, there is a loose plank in the far right corner. There is a secret room underneath it. Hide in there and don’t come out until I say it’s OK.”

       Luke was surprised that there was a secret room he didn’t know about. 

Everything in him wanted to do just that, hide away where he would be safe. But he couldn’t, and wouldn’t, leave his family in danger.

       “No. I’m fighting with you whether you want me to or not.”

       His father sighed. “Son, I can’t let you do this. It’s-”

       “Dad, I’m not a coward. And I don’t plan to be. Now hand me a sword.”

       After a few seconds, his father reluctantly handed him a stone sword from the chest. 

       Wielding the weapon, Luke felt a surge of confidence. It was the first sword he had ever held. Though it was merely a stone tool, he didn’t care. As long as he was helping his family, he was content.

       The zombie continued furiously attacking the door. Eventually it would break through, but it would take some time. 

       Mom had been preparing behind their backs. She stepped up with an enchanted bow in her hand, a stack of arrows in the other. Luke wondered what enchantments it had, but he didn’t get the chance to ask. 

       The door burst open, and not one, but eight zombies poured through the opening. His dad fought with all he had, but four of the rotten monsters ganged up on him. Luke stood frozen with fear. He couldn’t move. 

       A terrified expression covered his dad’s face. Then the zombies overcame him. That was the last thing Luke seen of Theo, his father. The zombies clawed at the last of him, and it was clear he was gone.

       Luke stood in shock. Was this real? He hoped not. He hoped it was a nightmare and that he would wake up any second. 

       Was his dad really dead? 

       Was this a dream?

       Was there something he could do?

       These questions swirled around in his head. 

       He was still in shock when he seen the zombies disperse from where his father had been, and head toward mom. She was still attacking the four that had challenged her. With all eight upon her, she stood no chance.

       Luke couldn’t let both his parents die. He forced his body into action, swinging his stone sword at the closest threat. It missed, but it got the zombie’s attention. It moved toward him, and he swung his sword again. It hit this time, bringing the monster to its knees.

       This didn’t go unnoticed by the others. They turned and walked menacingly toward him, desiring revenge for the death of their friend. This brought most of the zombies away from his mom, but directed them to himself. 

       He was soon surrounded by zombies. He saw arrows land on some, but they didn’t do much damage. Swinging his sword once more, he managed to bring two to their knees. The others growled in frustration.

       One punched him. Hard. Luke stumbled across the room, landing in the corner. He had been hit so hard he thought he might pass out at any moment. Delirious, he pried the loose floorboard his father had told him of up, revealing a small, dimly lit room below. 

       The zombies were closing in.

       He pushed through the opening, falling into the hidden room. 

       They were almost to the hole.

       Luke used the last of his energy to put the floorboard back in place. He then collapsed on the ground, and everything went black. 

– CHAPTER THREE –

=======================================

        Everything was blurry.

Luke sat up and shook his head, clearing his vision. 

       He looked at his surroundings. He was on a cold, dirt floor with a wooden roof.     

       Then he remembered where he was. He also remembered the chaos that occurred some time ago.

       He stood and walked toward the loose plank in the ceiling. But before removing it, he listened for the groans of zombies.

       There was silence.

       Then he had a thought. What if this had all been a long dream, and he’d been sleep-walking and ended up in this secret room?

       But he shook the foolish idea in an instant. 

       Removing the plank, he was greeted by the morning sun. He was about to climb out when he realized that he should have seen the ceiling, not the sun.

       What is going on here? 

       He climbed out of the underground bunker and stood in amazement at what he saw.

       Where his house had once stood was now ruins. The roof lay collapsed on the ground, just inches away from sealing the hidden room. The majority of it was covered with ashes, evidence of a serious fire. There was only one portion of the wall left, and it was burned to a crisp. 

       Luke fell to his knees in shock. Despair crept into his mind as he realized all he once knew was gone. His village, his friends, and even his parents were never to return.

       “WHY?!” He screamed. “WHY ME?!” 

       He then burst into tears, not relenting for quite some time.

       His sobs eventually ceased when he noticed the sun setting. Rising to his feet, he wiped his tears on his tunic. The same tunic his mother had crafted him, he realized. At least he had something of value that survived the destruction. 

       Suddenly, he was reminded that he needed to find shelter for the night. 

       Well, at least I have that going for me. I already have a shelter.

       He hopped down into the secret room again, bringing the plank with him and sealing the entrance once more. 

       I guess this will have to be my home until I find something better.

       There was a torch on the wall, which he hadn’t noticed before. He smiled at this, even though he’d just had a nervous breakdown. Darkness was one less thing he needed to worry about.

       Though he had been out of it for who knows how long, he was tired. He found a soft area on the dirt floor and closed his eyes. It was different than his nice, cozy bed, but at least he wouldn’t have to worry about monsters breaking in his base. 

       It seemed like forever, but at some point, he finally drifted off to sleep.

       He awoke several times during the night. Zombies constantly groaned, sending chills up his spine. Each time, however, he reminded himself that he was safe as long as he was inside his shelter and that they would never find him. At least he hoped.

       After what seemed like an endless night, he finally heard the zombies’ screams of pain as they burned in the sunlight. Only long after the cries of anguish did he dare to peek outside. 

       He removed the floorboard again and breathed a sigh of relief when he saw the sun high in the sky. Small piles of rotten flesh dotted the landscape of burned houses and charred trees.

       That’ll teach ’em!

       He crawled out of his hidey-hole with renewed confidence. Confidence was soon replaced with grief, however, as he looked at all the burned houses. Countless lives had been lost in the invasion, including his parent’s. Those who weren’t killed by the zombies were burned alive in their homes. It was horrifying to think about.

       He felt like having another nervous breakdown, but he controlled himself. He forced himself to think instead about what he needed to do to survive. 

       He decided to search the village for anything useful that he could put to good use. 

       Walking out of the rubble which had once been his house, he made his way down the old dusty road. He spotted several small farming plots, but most of which were destroyed by fire. There was a couple, however, that had a few lone stalks of unharmed wheat. These he harvested.

       Finally, he came to the schoolhouse. Countless memories had been made in this old place. It was still standing, miraculously, but damaged severely. He considered searching inside, but deemed it too dangerous. He didn’t want the roof to cave in on him.

       Walking a little farther, he came to the fletcher shop. It was in surprisingly good condition, save the burnt sign and busted windows. He then wondered if his mother was inside. 

       Hopeful and also afraid of what he might see, he knocked at the door. 

       “Mom?”

       There was no answer.

       He pulled open the door, stepping inside. Glass covered the floor near the windows, and the front counter was covered with scratches. Other than that, everything seemed normal. It was clear the zombies hadn’t cared too much about this building.

       “Mom? Are you in here?”

       Still no reply.

       Daring to go farther in, he stepped behind the counter and looked into the back room. An anvil sat in the corner, and barrels of who knows what lined the right wall. No one was in here. He was just not wanting to accept his mother’s death.

       A lone tear ran down his face. He quickly wiped it with his sleeve.

       He exited the store, being careful not to step on glass. He then looked toward the sun, which was still high, but slowly descending. 

       Already?!

       Reluctantly, he headed back to his base. He would have to search the rest of the village tomorrow.

– CHAPTER FOUR –

=======================================

       After another sleepless night, he groggily peeked outside. The sun was still rising, so he would have more time to spend today than the last.

       His stomach growled. He realized he hadn’t eaten at all the previous day.

       He grabbed the wheat stalks he’d harvested yesterday from the corner and crawled outside. 

       He had watched his mother craft bread before, and all she needed was three wheat stalks and a crafting table. But where could he find a table?

       Almost all buildings in a village had crafting tables. But most were now burnt to a crisp. 

       He decided to check the blacksmith shop. He would enjoy seeing his father’s “Home away from home,” As he often called it anyway.

       Since his dad’s old shop was just a little farther than the fletcher shop, he made it there fairly quickly. Unfortunately, however, the entrance was blocked by debris. His stomach growled again. He needed food, and soon.

       I’ll just have to find another way.

       He spotted an open window on the side of the building. The only problem was that it was too high for him to reach. In desperation, he ran and leaped, barely grasping the window seal. He used all of his strength to pull himself up, his muscles straining. Finally, he was able to crawl inside. 

       The one-room shop was a mess. Ash covered the floor and walls. The once hanging swords on the right wall were scattered everywhere. Even the front door was cracked in three places. It made him angry. 

       Couldn’t the zombies leave just one building whole?

       Luckily, the crafting table still sat in the left corner. It was damaged, but he didn’t care. His urgency for food was growing. He began to feel faint. 

       Hurry!

       He took the six stalks of wheat he’d gathered and laid them on the table. Suddenly, his hands began to move on their own, flying so fast they were a blur! His hands combined the wheat, then broke it in half. Then something happened, he wasn’t quite sure what, and his hands came to an abrupt halt, holding two perfect loaves of bread! 

       Though this might seem odd to some, he was used to this. He’d crafted many things before, including his cane fishing pole. That reminded him- Did it survive the fire? He decided to search for it. After he ate, of course. 

       After eating the newly-crafted bread, he walked toward the window with renewed energy. But before he crawled through, he noticed the scattered swords on the floor. 

       Of course! Why didn’t I think of it before?

He picked up a golden sword. Its shining blade made it seem magical, giving him hope. 

Wielding it, he took a practice swing. He expected it to be heavy, like the stone sword he’d once used, but instead, it was surprisingly light, probably due to it being made of gold. Now he would be able to defend himself. 

       He climbed out of the window, his new weapon in hand.

       As he crawled outside, he saw it. 

       Rain. 

       If there was one thing he hated, besides zombies, it was rain. Why? Why not? Monsters could spawn in this weather, it made travel more difficult, and it got a person all wet. 

       He groaned. 

       Things were just starting to go well, too.

       Deciding that standing there wasn’t going to make it stop, he stepped out from underneath the awning of the shop and dashed toward home. 

       Finally, he arrived at his base. He quickly took out the loose floorboard and dropped down, sword still in hand. 

       Once the floorboard was back in place, he breathed a sigh of relief. It was always a good feeling to be home.

       He took off his wet tunic and tossed it in the corner. It would dry overnight. He also did the same with his boots, as well as his new sword.

       He then lied down, the cold dirt sending chills up his back. 

       I’ll be glad when I can sleep on a bed again.

       Then he corrected himself.

       If.

       Closing his eyes, he listened to the rain beating against the roof. He was cold without his boots and tunic, but he tried to make the best of it. 

       I never imagined sleeping on dirt.

       A tear ran down his face. 

       Why me?!

       Resisting the urge to cry, he soon drifted off to sleep, leaving his bad day behind him.

– CHAPTER FIVE –

=======================================

       He stood outside, next to the village road, warming himself in the sun. Today’s weather was a stark contrast to yesterday’s, and he was glad of it.

       He decided after a while that he was wasting time. He needed to be doing something productive. Food was a major necessity right now, so he decided to find his cane pole and go fishing. Grilled fish was one of his favorite meals.

       Walking around the back of the house, he saw the cane pole laying on the ground next to the wall where he’d left it. But unfortunately, it was charred completely black. He picked it up, and it crumbled in his hands.

       So much for that.

       Then he noticed the brand new, metallic pole that Jackson had given him lying on the ground a few feet from where his cane pole sat.

       I’d forgotten all about this!

       He picked it up. It was in surprisingly good condition, besides some scratches on the rod. He was in luck.

       Smiling, he ran toward the lake. He could already taste a juicy, flame-grilled salmon. Soon enough, he reached the sandy bank.

       He was just about to cast it when he realized there wasn’t anything on the end of his line.

       No problem.

       He put the pole down and began searching the ground until he found what he was looking for. A stick. Breaking off a tiny piece, he tied it onto the end of his line.

Then, he put his rod down again and lifted a large rock near him. A big, fat worm sat underneath it. He picked it up quickly, not allowing it to escape into the earth. He then pierced into it with the tiny nub of a stick on his line. He made sure it was secure, then cast it into the water. This was something his father had taught him. If the fish swallowed the bait, the twig would get stuck, allowing him to reel it in with a minimal chance of the fish escaping.

       He hoped it would work now.

       Not more than a few minutes later, he felt a tug. His pole bent down, and his line took off like an arrow. He had something big.

       Reeling in as fast as he could, he saw his massive fish leap out of the water. It was the biggest salmon he’d ever seen! He reeled even faster. He couldn’t wait to see it up close. After what seemed like forever, he finally got it on the bank.

       Big was an understatement. It was humongous. He measured it with his pole. The length of the rod he knew was four feet, so he laid it next to the fish, and seeing it was exactly half the pole’s height, he determined the fish’s length was about two feet.

       Wow!

       Its lower body was gray transitioning into white, with pinkish-red spots running below its lateral line. The upper body was entirely green, with black speckles. The mouth of this beautiful fish appeared similar to the beak of a bird. Though he’d caught many of these before, it always amazed him how many different attributes this fish had.

       He pinned it down, preventing it from flopping back in the water. He then took a large rock and struck it in the head, knocking it unconscious.

       The first time he’d watched his father do it, he asked “Why did you do that?!” The answer had surprised him. “It’s better for the fish to get knocked out than to feel extreme pain as we filet it.”

       He cut the line with his teeth, then picked up the lifeless fish and his pole and headed home.

       Today is a good day.

       Once he got back to the old house, he put the fish down, removed the loose floorboard, and dropped down into the secret room. He grabbed the golden sword from the corner and climbed back outside.

       Using the blade, he cut deep into the skin of the fish, behind the pectoral fins. He then made another incision behind the anal fin. After doing so, he turned the blade ninety degrees inside the first cut and cut along the rib cage, connecting the two incisions. Now he took the thick piece of meat and laid it aside. Then he turned the fish over and did the same thing on the other side.

       It was a good thing his father had taught him this, also.

       After removing the second fillet, he took the remaining carcass and tossed it away from his house. A cat would eat it eventually. There were three village cats that he knew of, and all of them preferred to remain out of sight. Most of the time, anyway. They had to eat and drink, of course.

       Now the only thing left to do was to cook the fillets.

       Finding some sticks outside on the ground from nearby oak trees, he took and laid them in a crisscross pattern on the grass outside the house. Then he stood there, thinking of how to start a fire.

       Theo had shown him how to start one with a piece of flint and a steel ingot, but he didn’t have either one. He’d also learned to start one using a stick and a plank, but that would take a long time.But better late than never, he supposed.

       He removed the floorboard that hid his secret room and took it back to his pile of sticks. He then laid it down on the ground. Taking the largest and thickest stick from the pile, he forced its tip against the plank. Then, putting his hands around the top, he moved them back and forth, rapidly twisting the stick.

       After a few minutes of doing this without ceasing, he saw a tiny puff of smoke emerge from the small hole he’d drilled in the plank. It was working faster than expected.

       He kept twisting the stick, even though his arm muscles were tired. He knew that it wouldn’t be long until it would be ready to catch fire.

       A few seconds later, he finally removed the stick and laid it next to him. Then he shoved the plank underneath the pile of sticks and quickly began fanning it with his tunic.

       Before long, smoke began billowing from the plank. Then, a flame shot upward and the sticks caught fire.

       He knew that this small pile of twigs wouldn’t last long, so he threw the larger stick beside him into the fire. He didn’t need it to burn for long, just enough to cook his dinner, so he wasn’t worried about firewood.

       The sun was already setting. The night was quickly approaching, and he didn’t like it. Not at all.

       Relax. As long as I’m near the fire I’ll be safe.

       He breathed deeply, calming himself. Night made him especially nervous after what happened to the village. The thoughts of zombies ambushing him out in the open sent chills up his back.

       Once I eat I’ll feel better.

       He picked up the fillets and laid them close to the fire.

       He hadn’t realized how hungry he was. His stomach growled loudly, urging him to eat. It had been a full day since he’d eaten.

       I’ve got to do something about this food problem.

       But he was too tired to do anything about it now.

       Sitting next to the fire, he thought of the future. He wondered if he would live like this for the rest of his life, working from sunrise to sunset trying to stay alive.

No, he decided he wouldn’t live like this forever. But where could he go?

       He’d think about it in the morning. The fish would be done soon, and all he wanted to do at the moment was eat.

– CHAPTER SIX –

=======================================

        He awoke to the sound of mooing. 

       He crawled outside, and he was instantly greeted by the morning sun. He was thankful for another sunny day.

       The source of the sound, a cow, lazily strolled along the village road. There weren’t many cows, or animals in particular, that were seen around here, as the village was in a savanna biome, and most ruminants didn’t like the taste of the grass here. 

       I wonder what this cow is doing here.

      It was probably just lost.

      Then he remembered the last time he’d eaten steak. It was the night before the zombie invasion. Though his father didn’t care for the taste of it, Luke considered it a specialty meal. Now the opportunity to taste it again was right in front of him.

He dropped back into his room, grabbing his golden sword. Then, imagining himself to be a skilled hunter, slowly crawled outside, carefully watching his prey’s every move.

       The unsuspecting cow stood unaware of what was about to happen. Its back turned, he crept toward it. Just as he reached the village road, the bovine turned its head toward him. He quickly hid the sword behind his back and began whistling, pretending to be on a stroll. The ruminant, suspecting nothing, turned back around and began grazing on the bitter grass. 

      What an odd animal.

       Inching closer, he was now within striking distance. His weapon ready, he lunged at his target. As the sharp blade penetrated the skin, a loud “MOOOO!” Echoed through the landscape. 

       Then it was over. The cow collapsed to the ground, the sword deep in the side of its body. The hunter had won.

       OK, maybe that was a slight exaggeration. But a little imagination never hurt anything!

       Now he had to figure out how to extract the meat. This was one thing his father hadn’t taught him, coincidentally.

       He removed the sword from the body, washing the blood  off of the blade in a small pool of water nearby. 

       Turning back to the cow, he saw blood oozing out of the gaping wound where the sword had been. 

       It was a good thing he wasn’t squeamish.

       For a moment, he felt pity for the animal. After all, what did it do to him? But it had to be done. He needed food desperately, and he couldn’t pass up the opportunity.

       Now he had to get the meat out of the carcass before it began decaying. But how?

       He guessed where the main portion of the meat would be, and using his sword, he cut a straight line down the side, behind the front leg. Then, he made another cut in front of the back leg. Making another long incision near the top of the body, connecting the two previous cuts, he finished with a similar cut at the bottom.

       Now he removed the large square-shaped piece of skin, prying it out with the tip of his blade. Behind it was the biggest slab of meat he’d ever seen! He estimated it to be about twelve inches long, by six inches wide. He was going to have a feast tonight!

       Cutting away the connected veins and organs from the meat, he held his prize. 

       Today was a good day!

       He debated flipping the cow and seeing if there was more meat on the other side. He realized however that it was not wise, as a cow weighed too much for him to easily turn over. He would need the help of three or four other kids or at least another adult to do it.

       Taking the brick of raw meat and his sword, he walked back to the house. He had a meal to prepare.

       He couldn’t wait to bite into some juicy steak. Last night’s fish was scrumptious, but it wasn’t nearly as tasty as some good ol’ beef.

       The previous night’s fire had long gone out, but there were still a few embers. He blew on the ashes a couple of times, eventually causing a fire to start up. He then tossed some more nearby sticks into it, which would fuel it for at least an hour.

       Soon, his steak was sizzling over the fire. It seemed he had never been so happy to hear that sound.

       As he sat there, holding his sword over the flames, which held the meat on the end, he pondered about yesterday’s question.

      Will I live like this forever?

      There was one thing he wasn’t going to do, and it was live in an abandoned village for the rest of his life.

      All he wanted was to live among friends and family, instead of being alone. He hated being separated from all he once knew. 

      Before he had a meltdown, he controlled his emotions. 

       This isn’t the time.

       Then, he had a thought. 

       He had never ventured outside the village. What was out there? Was there another civilization that would accept him? It wasn’t impossible. But if there was, how would he find it? Better yet, where would he search? 

       Another idea came to him. 

       His mother had kept an old map that she had inherited from her grandfather in the fletcher shop. She had shown it to him when he was little, and from what he remembered, it showed the surrounding landscape for miles around. Maybe another village was marked on it.

       He would wait until tomorrow. The sun was setting, and he didn’t want to risk being outside after dark. Zombies were still a threat.

       Deciding his steak was done, he slid it off the end of his sword and took a massive bite. The juicy meat was so tasty he could almost hear his taste buds thanking him. 

       Good ol’ steak!

 – CHAPTER SEVEN –

=======================================

        Groggy and weak, he sat up.

       His stomach ached.

       He attempted to stand, but a sharp pain in his gut caused him to fall back to the ground in agony.

       What’s the matter with me?

       After a few minutes, the pain relented slightly, allowing him to sit up from the dirt floor. He’d never felt so sick in his life.

       Then, his head began to throb. His vision wavered, and he felt as if he was going to pass out. Another pain in his lower stomach caused him to gasp in pain.

       Something’s wrong… Need… Help…

       Then he fainted.

       A few minutes later, he came to. Everything seemed to spin around him. Now, instead of just his stomach, his whole body ached. He closed his eyes.

       Need… Someone…

       He passed out again.

       Some time later, he again woke up. Luckily, his condition hadn’t increased from what he could tell so far. His body ached, and he was still dizzy, but his headache felt a little better.

       He tried to sit up again. This time his stomach didn’t force him down, but he didn’t dare stand again. At least not at the moment.

       He needed someone to help him. But there was no one. He was alone.

       Why am I sick? What happened?

       Whatever had caused it, knowing what it was probably wouldn’t make it go away.

       As he was wondering how to help himself, he heard a sound from above him.

       Thump thump thump.

       He froze. What if it was a zombie? He was practically defenseless. He didn’t dare breathe. Maybe whatever it was would pass by.

       Thump thump thump.

       Or not.

       He listened for a moment, waiting for the groan of a zombie.

       THUMP.

       What was it?!

       Then, he heard the unidentified creature move towards the opening to the secret room.

       Thump-thump.

       His tunic was the only thing covering the entrance.

       Rippppp!

       Whatever it was had ripped the tunic. He ignored the pain in his body and reached for his sword. If he was going to die, he wasn’t going to die a coward.

       Then, it jumped in.

       SWOOSH!

       To his surprise, it was a wolf!

       “Stay back! Don’t come any closer!” He said in the strongest voice he could muster.

       The wolf stood there.

       Did it understand me?

       They stared at each other for what seemed like a long time, neither moving a muscle. Finally, he put his sword down. The wolf didn’t show any aggression, surprisingly. In fact, it seemed almost friendly.

       He just now realized it was carrying something in its mouth.

       Though he was terrified of the beast, he motioned for the wolf to come closer. As it stepped forward, he saw that it was carrying some sort of herb.

       “What do you have there?”

       As if to answer, it dropped the leaf and began pretending to eat it. Then it motioned for him to do what he’d demonstrated.

       This has to be the smartest animal I’ve ever encountered.

       Cautiously he took the herb, inspecting it first. It appeared to be a normal leaf, except the backside of it was a neon red. He’d never seen anything like this.

       He was just about to eat it when he realized this was strange. A wolf, coming out of nowhere, wanting him to eat a leaf. For all he knew, it might be poisonous!

But judging by the intelligence of this animal, perhaps it knew that this particular herb would cure his illness. But then again, how would it know he was sick?

       He decided to eat it. The wolf wouldn’t bring a harmful plant here if it wanted to kill him. It would’ve attacked instead of wasting time getting him to eat it.

       He put the whole thing in his mouth. Instantly, a bitter taste filled his mouth. It almost made him spit it out. But he chewed it up and, reluctantly, swallowed it.

       The aftertaste was sickening. It made his throat feel like he’d just barfed.

       Maybe I shouldn’t have eaten that…

       Then, the wolf dashed toward the exit and leaped outside.

       I’ve been tricked!

       He was furious.

        Ignoring the pain in his body, he stood up. He was going after that beast, and he was going to teach it a lesson. But when he took a step, he was forced to sit again when a sharp pain hit his gut.

       Here I am, crippled like an old man. If I ever get my hands on that animal…

       Then his entire body erupted in pain. He gritted his teeth, resisting the urge to scream. Then, everything went black.

– CHAPTER EIGHT –

=======================================

       Something wet hit his face.

       He awoke with a start, expecting some sort of threat to greet him. Once his eyes were alert, he scanned the small room. To his surprise, he saw the wolf standing next to him. Its tongue was hanging out, panting happily. It must’ve licked him.

       “You dumb animal, you’re gonna pay for that trick!”

       But before he lunged at it out of anger, he restrained himself. It was just then that he noticed his body wasn’t aching. He also realized his headache was gone. 

       “Well, what do you know about that!”

       Before he acted rashly, he decided to try standing up. He slowly stood, half expecting to be cured, but at the same time waiting for the pain. As he stood up straight, he felt nothing. He felt almost as if he’d never been sick. But now was the real test. 

       He took a step. He gritted his teeth and tensed his muscles, readying himself. 

       Nothing.

        Am I cured?!

       It sure seemed like it.

       He turned to look at the wolf, which still sat there, watching him, its tail wagging. It was then he saw that a small, weathered-looking bow sat next to it.

       “Where did you get that?” He asked it. 

       The wolf pretended to attack something. It stood up and began hissing and biting at the air, then sat back down. 

       “Ah, a skeleton. Thanks! This will come in handy.”

       He suddenly realized it felt good to talk to someone, after his period of solitude. Even if it was a wolf

       He picked up the bow, examining it carefully. It seemed old, but it was intact. 

Instantly he felt guilty. The wolf had cured him, brought him this weapon- which it had probably risked its life to get- and most of all, it had dealt with his temper. And here he had been so mean and skeptical of it.

       “I’m sorry. I was being a jerk. Do you forgive me?” 

       It replied by walking up to him and licking his boot.

       “I guess that means yes, doesn’t it?”

       Now he put down the bow and thought about what he needed to do. 

       He remembered that the previous day- At least he thought it was- he’d planned to find his great-grandfather’s map so that he could look for any sign of another civilization. The thought of living among other people again boosted his spirits. Maybe there would be a village, say, only a mile or two from here.

        In my dreams.

       He crawled outside, the sun greeting him with its warmth. 

       At least it hasn’t rained for a while.

       As he started toward the fletcher shop, he heard the wolf following behind him. 

       “You’re going with me, then? Alright.”

       He then thought that calling his friend “The wolf” Wasn’t a suiting name for an animal that had probably saved his life. 

       “What shall I call you?” 

       Though there were many simple names he considered, he decided that a special animal needed a special name. 

       “I’ll think about it.”

       As they headed down the village road, toward his mother’s shop, he pondered on various names for his friend. However, each one he came up with, he deemed either too simple or too fancy.

       Before long, they reached the shop. 

       As they entered the old building, he told the dog to be careful of broken glass. It just wouldn’t do to have an injured paw.

       Now to find the map. 

       He checked behind the front desk. 

       There was only a few burned goods, as well as a few stray arrows that were half charred. These he picked up, testing the strength of each shaft. Surprisingly, three out of the four arrows were in usable condition. He showed them to the dog, who took and carried them in its mouth.

       Then, he walked into the back room. The smell of dust hit him instantly, and he sneezed. 

       He looked in the first barrel on the right wall. There were only a few coils of string. Looking in the next one, he found it full of already-crafted arrowheads.

       Opening the third one, he only saw a few feathers in it.

       After examining all but one, he opened the lid of the last. An old map lay inside it.

       “What do you know! We found it, pal!” He said as he patted his dog on the head.

– CHAPTER NINE –

=======================================

       After a long, arduous night of scattered storms, he awoke groggily and peeked outside. 

       It was raining.

       I suppose the weather is mocking me.

       Looking over to the corner, where his dog was sleeping, he smiled as he watched his furry friend groggily stand, stretching and yawning as if it had barely slept.

       “Wake up, sleepyhead! We have work to do.”

       Though the start of their journey was postponed due to rain, he still needed to begin packing. There wasn’t much he could carry by himself, and all the dog could hold was some arrows in its mouth, so he could only take necessities. Luckily, however, almost everything he owned was essential to their survival, so it wouldn’t be too difficult to choose.

       Of course, he needed his sword. Though he hadn’t encountered any mobs since the raid, there were bound to be threats on the journey. His bow and arrows would come in handy as well. Most important though was the map. Other than these three items, there wasn’t anything else he needed; Except for food, that is.

       Unfortunately, however, most of the possible foods he could pack would spoil rather quickly. Especially fish. There was only one option. He had to try to flip the cow.

       Peeking outside again, he was surprised to see that the rain had stopped. 

       That was quick.

       “C’mon, doggy! Let’s go get some food.”

       As they stepped outside, he was instantly struck by a foul, putrid smell. Pinching his nose, he scanned the surroundings for the cause of the rotten stench. The dog also sneezed, and stepped back in disgust.

       Then, his eyes fell on the dead cow, laying in the road. The decaying animal appeared so sickly it almost made him barf. This was the cause of the smell.

       “I guess I didn’t think of that.”

Crawling back inside the secret room to escape the stench, he thought of what he could pack for food. Now that beef was out of the question, there weren’t many options.

       I suppose fish will have to do.

       Climbing back outside, he grabbed his fishing pole from the ground and hurried toward the lake, pinching his nose as he walked past the cow. He then realized his dog wasn’t following. 

       “C’mon!” 

       It didn’t move.

       “What’s the matter?”

       The dog lied down, pretending he was asleep.

       “Oh, alright. You can stay here and nap. ”

       His dog seemed satisfied with this, so he dashed toward the lake.

       Once he arrived, he quickly found a stick and tied a very small piece of it on the end of his line. Then he found a worm underneath the same rock as last time, slid it on his stick nub, and cast it as far as it would go into the water.

       Time passed. A lot of time. He’d tried everything to get a fish to bite, and his efforts were fruitless. The sun was high now, and if they were to start their journey today, they’d have to leave soon. 

       I guess we’ll have to find food along the way.

       He then reeled in his line and headed home. 

       Upon arriving, he found his doggy friend sleeping in the sun- far away from the dead bovine.

       “Wake up! It’s time to go!”

       It got up and stretched, then happily greeted him with a lick on the hand. 

       After he’d gathered everything they needed, he looked at the map. Then, he looked around at the burned village. A tear ran down his face, which he didn’t care to wipe away. 

       “Goodbye, home. I’ll sure miss you.”

       Then he burst into tears. 

       Pulling himself together, he wiped his face with his sleeve and looked down at the dog, who seemed very confused.

       “I guess it’s time we head out.”

       They walked down the village road, being careful to avoid the cow, and soon came to the fletcher shop. He remembered all the good times he’d had with his mother, many of them in this very building. More tears came as he realized he would never again feel her loving embrace.

       A few minutes later, they passed by the blacksmith shop. Again, memories of his dad overcame him, and soon brought even more tears.

       I miss you, mom and dad.

       Holding back another surge of emotions, they walked out of the village which had once been his home, and into the open savanna.

– CHAPTER TEN –

=======================================

       As they walked through the plains of the savanna, the village growing farther and farther away, Luke looked at his surroundings. 

       The terrain was beautiful. The greenish-brown grass covered the landscape like a blanket, with sparse acacia trees adding a sense of life. Before the raid, he had always thought that what was outside the village was dull and boring. Now, he realized that wasn’t true at all. 

       The sun was already low in the sky. He debated turning back and sleeping in the village again, but decided to press on through the night instead. The longer they traveled, the closer they got to their destination.

       As night approached, he thought to himself about a name for his dog. He just had to come up with something. 

       While he was pondering this, he and his soon-to-be-named friend crested yet another hill. From the top, he saw the most beautiful view he had ever seen. 

The mountains in the distance, covered with mist, and the reddish-pink sunset behind them mesmerized him. He stood there, watching the sunset slowly fade into darkness, in awe of the beauty before his eyes. 

       I have to admit, if none of this would have ever happened, I would probably never have seen this.

       Finally, he looked down at his dog, who was already sleeping soundly. 

       “I know what I’m going to name you.”

       Before he said it, he looked again at the misty mountains, just before the sun completely disappeared, replaced by the moon.

       “Mist.”

       He looked down again, finding his dog still asleep. He smiled and shook Mist awake. 

       “Let’s go. We’ve got to keep moving if we expect to survive the night.”

       This was true. Though the only monster he’d ever seen in person was a zombie, he had heard of many other frightening horrors, such as skeletons, phantoms, and a few other monsters. 

       As he and Mist walked on through the savanna, getting closer to the mountains with each step, he looked around for any sign of danger. Surprisingly, there weren’t any nearby monsters. In fact, there weren’t any monsters that he could see. 

       That’s strange.

       He slowed his pace, listening for anything unusual. At first, there was nothing, but then he heard something.

       Cssh!

       He stopped walking, his ears listening for the sound again. It took a minute, but then he heard it again, this time closer than before.

       Cssssh!

       Looking around, he searched for the source of the noise, but there was nothing.

       CSSSSH!

       He jumped, as now the strange sound seemed to be right in front of him. Mist growled as well.

       Then, something bit his shoulder. He gasped at the sudden pain, then drew his sword and looked around again. He looked up at the sky, then realized what was happening.

       There were three, scary-looking creatures circling him overhead. They each had odd, ruffled gray wings and menacing green eyes, which were fixed directly on him. 

       Phantoms.

       He’d heard stories about these monsters, and how sometimes a person would get surrounded by dozens of them. He was lucky; all he had to fight was three.

       He put away his sword and drew his bow instead, notching one of the three arrows. He aimed at one of the monsters and released the arrow. 

       It missed.

       Notching the second arrow, he again aimed at the flying menaces. Firing the arrow, he was angry to see that he again had missed.

       Note to self; need archery practice.

       He readied the last and final arrow, Drawing the bow back and aiming. Any second now, they were bound to start dive-bombing him, and he wasn’t sure he could take on three at the same time at close range.

       If I can at least kill one, It’ll be easier close-range.

       He released the arrow, everything within him hoping that it would find its target.

       CSHHHHH!

       Upon being struck by his arrow, one of the phantoms plummeted to the ground, unable to move. He had shot one.

       Relief washed over him. If he had missed, it was likely that he would’ve been a goner.

Looking back up, he saw that one of them was diving. It was picking up incredible speed, but luckily, it was moving so fast that it wouldn’t have time to change direction. He stepped back, putting his bow away and drawing his golden sword, and watched as it attempted to slow its speed, but to no avail. It struck the ground hard.

       He quickly moved towards the phantom, taking advantage of its lack of mobility, and stabbed it with the tip of his blade. It disappeared with a puff of smoke.

       CSHHHHHH!

       Another one down. 

       The last one, seeing that its friends had perished, fled. It pumped its wings up and down as fast as possible, and soon flew out of sight.

       Phew.

       Looking down at Mist, he saw him fast asleep.

       “Is that all you do? I was in the middle of a life-threatening battle, and you slept through it!” He joked as he ruffled his fur.

       He scanned the surroundings again, his imagination making every tuft of grass seem like a deadly monster. It had been a close call with the phantoms, and he didn’t want to have any more near-death encounters in one night.

       He had to admit, he was scared. And it took a lot to frighten him.

       He gripped his sword tightly and trekked on, eyes always alert. If they weren’t interrupted by any more monsters, he estimated that they’d reach the base of the mountains by the end of the night. 

       “Were making good time, aren’t we Mist?”

– CHAPTER ELEVEN –

=======================================

        By the end of the night, they were standing at the foot of the mountain range. He was surprised at how quickly they’d come to the end of the savanna. Though he was sad to leave the beautiful biome, he was glad to be making progress. 

       No other monsters had challenged them after the phantoms, surprisingly. Though the phantoms were dangerous, they weren’t the worst of creatures. At least he didn’t encounter any zombies; he was terrified of them now. The raid made them seem much more powerful than they probably were, but they still sent chills up his spine. He could imagine their claws reaching out at him mercilessly, only centimeters away from tearing into his flesh. He shivered. 

       He was also tired. He wanted to lay down and sleep, but he knew he had to keep moving. 

       I’ll find a shelter and rest tonight.

       Sighing, he began climbing the mountain, finding small ledges in the rocks to hold him. Then, after climbing only a few feet, he realized Mist couldn’t follow.

       “How are you gonna get to the top?” He asked, turning around.

       Mist barked at him, then ran away. Luke assumed he was finding a way up.

       After maybe an hour of climbing, he finally reached the top. He was exhausted, and so he collapsed on the rocky peak. As he was catching his breath, to his surprise, he saw Mist standing over him. 

       “How’d you get up here?”

       Mist trotted over to the edge of the mountain and looked down. Luke forced himself to stand up and walk over to see what his dog was looking at.

       To his surprise, he saw a grassy pathway twisting and turning until it ended at the peak. He kicked himself for not checking around the mountain before climbing it.

       As he still gasped for breath, he admired the gorgeous view. He could see for miles around, and he saw the massive ocean that he’d seen on the map below him. He stood in awe at the seemingly endless amount of water. This was his first time seeing an ocean. Then, he reminded himself that he had to cross it.

       He obviously had to make a boat, but he didn’t know how. There was always the option of binding logs together to form a raft, but he doubted a small raft would last long in the sea.

       As he pondered this, he shifted his gaze to an oak tree on the grassy beach below. There was his supply of wood; now he just needed to figure out how to use it.

       He quickly found that scaling down the mountain was much easier than climbing up. He was relieved to relax his aching muscles a little as he found footholds and began climbing down.

       Once at the bottom, he looked at the lone oak tree once more. Suddenly, he had an idea. It would require a lot of work, however. He would have to chop the wood down first, and for that, he needed an axe. But where was he going to get materials to craft one? And better yet, how do you even make one?

       Obviously, an axe was out of the question. There had to be another way…

       He’d figure it out later. Right now, he needed to make a shelter. The sun was slowly sinking on the horizon, and night was fast approaching.

       Looking down at Mist, he saw his faithful friend asleep. 

       “I know you’re tired. Just wait a minute and I’ll have us a shelter. Then you and I both can get some rest.”

       Then, he heard a noise.

       Grrrrrrr.

       It was a sound he knew all too well.

       Zombies.

       He frantically began digging into the dirt on the side of the mountain, panic driving him forward. In a few seconds, he had a small alcove dug into the mountain, just big enough to stand in.

       Deeper… Deeper…

       His fear and frustration caused him to act without thought, digging away the dirt as fast as his hands would move. 

       Left, Right, Left, Right…

       A few more seconds and he had a hole dug big enough to fit himself and Mist, but barely. 

       GRRRRRR.

       The zombie was getting closer. 

       He forced his hands to dig even faster, dirt flying so quickly some flew in his eyes. He didn’t stop though until he was satisfied that his hidey-hole was big enough.

       “MIST! GET IN HERE! NOW!”

       A groggy and reluctant Mist walked into the dirt hole, obviously confused.

       Then, he saw his nightmare. The zombie was almost to the entrance, but Luke was frozen with fear. He remembered those sharp, deadly claws; they were almost the death of him. Then the rotten stench filled his nostrils. It was getting close. Too close.

       Forcing his hands to move, he drew his golden sword. His plans of hiding had failed. Now, he was forced to fight.

       He backed up against the wall as far as he could and held his sword at the ready. He began to sweat, despite the cold night air. The zombie had reached the entrance now and was heading right for him. He had every disadvantage. It was hopeless. He wasn’t a warrior; just a scared young child. 

       The zombie growled in anticipation, the sound reverberating off the dirt walls. 

Just then, Mist darted from his side and leaped at the threat. The zombie was startled by this, and this allowed Mist to knock it to the ground before it started fighting back.

       Luke just stood there, watching it all take place. Mist ferociously attacking the zombie. The zombie trying to fight back, but not doing so very well. 

       Soon, the zombie succumbed to its fate, too weak to struggle. Luke stood in astonishment, his mouth agape. 

       Mist had killed a zombie.

       He stepped back, and he saw a pile of rotten flesh.

       Luke dropped his sword and hugged Mist tightly. “Thank you! A thousand times thank you! You’re the best friend a boy could have.”

       Mist licked him on the cheek. He chuckled, wiping the slobber from his face. 

       “C’mon. Let’s get some rest.”

– CHAPTER THIRTEEN –

=======================================

       Baaa!

      The sound woke Luke. He wasn’t used to hearing animals, since where he’d lived rarely attracted them. They much rather preferred the crisp, green grass of the plains than the brown grass of the savanna.

       Patting the sheep on the head, he smiled. He was glad to have some new company.

       He and Mist had slept outside, taking turns watching for threats. Luckily, no more monsters had engaged them during the night. 

       He was still very tired, but he knew they needed to craft a boat to continue. The quicker the boat was finished, the sooner they could travel the seas; therefore getting closer to the village. Home, Or at least he hoped it would be.

       Staring at the oak tree, he pictured a few ideas of what his boat would look like.

       He first imagined a massive pirate ship, but he knew that wasn’t going to happen. His next projection was a small, quaint boat with oars. This was more likely.

       Sighing, he picked up his sword and examined it. He had to cut the tree down, and the only way he saw to do it was to use his sword in place of an axe. But unfortunately, that would break his sword. Either keep his sword or build a boat. He chose the latter; it was wiser to continue on the journey without a weapon than to not continue with one.

       He held the sword ready and drew back. Then reluctantly, he swung the sword with all his might, striking the tree with such power the blade cracked in half. Luckily, however, the moderately thin tree had nearly been cut all the way through the trunk.

       I didn’t know I had so much strength!

       He soon learned he didn’t. A few seconds later, his arms were so sore that he could barely move them.

       Great. Now I can’t build my boat, my sword is broken, and I can’t move my arms to defend myself.

       “Mist, you’re going to have to protect me tonight.”

       He replied with a bark.

       He examined his work. The tree was chopped, but his sword lay in two pieces on the ground. He was sad to have lost his weapon, but he was glad to have lumber to work with. At least when his arms healed.

       He sat on the ground, wincing at his aching muscles. He wondered how long this would last. Hours? Days? He hoped not. The sooner he started working on the boat the better. 

       He sat there, doing nothing, except waiting for his arms to heal, for the next few hours. It was boring. He longed to be up working on the boat, but knew he couldn’t with his condition. 

       Noon turned into sunset, and sunset turned into night. By now he’d given up hope of recovering any time soon. He reluctantly laid down in the soft grass, closing his eyes. A few moments later, he fell asleep.

– CHAPTER FOURTEEN –

=======================================

        He awoke the next morning, surprisingly not feeling fatigued as usual. He was grateful for the change.

       Moving his arms, he also found that his muscles were no longer sore. This was good. He could start work on the boat today. He got up and stretched, embracing the morning sunshine. Today was going to be a good day. He could feel it.

       Seeing mist was sound asleep, he chuckled and patted her on the head. 

       “Get your beauty rest now. You’ll need it for the ride.”

       He walked toward the tree he’d chopped yesterday, then pushed the trunk, causing it to fall over easily due to the damage he’d done with his sword. He then picked up the lower half of the broken sword from the ground, examining the remaining blade. There wasn’t enough left to be used as a weapon, but it would serve well enough for a small carving tool.

       Using the small blade, he began carving into the trunk. His plan was to carve out the center to form seats, then make some oars to paddle with; like a canoe. It would be simpler and take much less time to build than his original idea.

       An hour or two later, he was satisfied with his carving. There were two seats, one for him and the other for Mist. His work wasn’t perfect, but it would suffice. When they reached the end of the sea they wouldn’t need it anymore, anyway. Now the only thing left to do was to make some oars. 

       There were two things he could do. He could either craft them with a crafting table, which would require a lot of wood, or simply use whatever materials he had nearby to make one without a table. 

       He looked around the beach. The only items nearby were the stump from the dead tree and the rest of his broken sword. He clearly couldn’t use those to make oars. There weren’t any other trees either, so crafting some was impossible.

       What am I going to do?

       Usually, he made stuff without using a crafting bench. The materials required were almost always more than necessary; besides, he enjoyed the challenge of making something with his own creativity. But there weren’t any materials here.

       He decided to figure it out later.

       His stomach growled. It was now he realized he hadn’t eaten for days. 

       I suppose I’ve had too much on my mind.

       He thought about what he could eat. The sheep from yesterday had moved on, and there weren’t any other animals around, so meat wasn’t an option.

       Then he remembered something that his father had told him. Luke had asked him what the ocean looked like, since he’d heard of it but never seen it. “Well, it’s a very big body of water. So large you can’t see the end of it! It’s a beautiful sight, with the underwater kelp forests and the hundreds of fish swimming around in schools.”

       Kelp. That was the solution. 

       He looked down into the water, surprised at how clear the water was. He could see all the way to the ocean floor.

       Then he saw it. A massive kelp forest, emerging from the floor until almost the surface, the long green plant swaying with the movement of the water.

       Mouth watering, he dove into the water without thinking, holding his breath and diving toward the forest. 

       He was amazed at the beauty underneath the water, watching in awe as a school of tropical fish swam alongside him. He then turned his gaze toward an underwater rift, the scar in the ocean floor plunging farther down than he could see. He also saw a coral reef in the distance and was awed by the colorful coral structures. 

       It was amazing.

       Fixating his gaze back on the kelp forest ahead, he swam faster as he neared it.  

       He couldn’t hold his breath much longer, but he wasn’t going to swim back empty-handed.   

       Finally, some strands were within reach. He pulled a kelp strand out by the roots, then let go, knowing it would float. He then quickly swam towards the surface, his lungs burning. 

       Just when he thought he couldn’t hold his breath any longer, he plunged through the surface. Gasping for air, he watched the kelp he’d picked slowly float upward. A few moments later, it reached the surface, and he grabbed it and began swimming back toward the beach. 

       Once he reached the beach, he climbed ashore and dropped the kelp on the grass. He then collapsed to the ground, exhausted.

       Mist, oblivious to what was happening, stretched and yawned as he awoke from his nap. 

       “About time you woke up!” He joked.

       After resting for a while, he got up and tore a piece off the long kelp strand. Washing the dirt off in the water, he bit into it. 

       And spit it back out.

       This is the nastiest thing I’ve ever tasted!

       It had a very strong salty taste, and also a bitter taste that reminded him of the herb Mist had brought him. There was no way he was eating that stuff!

       Gulping down ocean water, he was able to get rid of the taste for the most part. He picked up the kelp and tossed it back into the sea.

       Good riddance!

       Looking towards the sky, he saw the sun was setting. 

       “Don’t look like we’ll be setting sail tonight. Oh, well. Let’s get some sleep. I’m sure you wouldn’t mind that a bit,” He joked, patting Mist on the head.

– CHAPTER FIFTEEN –

=======================================

        Something jolted him awake. 

       He sat up, looking at his surroundings. Judging from how high the moon was, it was almost midnight. There didn’t seem to be any monsters around. What had woken him? 

       Then, he felt a cold, damp hand grasp his shoulder. He shrugged it off and stood quickly, fearful of what he knew was behind him. 

       Turning, he found himself face to face with a very pale, soggy looking zombie, with glowing blue eyes and a trident in its right hand.

       He screamed. 

       This startled the zombie, and Luke quickly took a few steps back, grabbing his carving tool from the ground and waving it threateningly.

       Then, the creature spoke in a very deep, cracking voice.                                       

       “Put that down, silly human, or I’ll drive my trident into that thick skull of yours.”

       Luke didn’t move. Not because he thought he could fight it, but because he was surprised that this zombie could talk. He’d never heard any noise come out of their mouths, save their pitiful groans. 

       The zombie started to raise its trident, but Luke quickly snapped to his senses and reluctantly put his tool on the ground.

       The zombie returned its trident to its side and pulled a short bottle with a radiant blue liquid inside from a pocket in its tattered coat. It then threw the bottle at him, and before he could react, the bottle crashed against him, the blue liquid splattering on his clothes. Though he expected there to be a mess, there were surprisingly no glass shards nor liquid anywhere.

       He worked up the nerve to speak. 

       “W-what are you going to do with me? What was in that bottle? Why aren’t you attacking me?”

       The zombie laughed deeply, the gurgling sound causing Luke’s stomach to turn.

       “You ask many questions, foolish boy. You’ll have many answers soon enough.”

       With that, the monster stepped forward and grabbed his shirt, tossing him into the water as if he was as light as a feather. 

       The cold temperature of the water startled him. He struggled to keep his head above the surface, sputtering for breath.

       Before he knew what was happening, the odd-looking zombie dove in the water with him and dragged him underneath the surface, pulling him towards the ocean floor with surprising ease. 

       Luke was terrified. He was scared of zombies as it was, but now he realized he was about to die at the hands of one. His fate was sealed; there was no hope.

       Holding his breath, he closed his eyes and awaited his death. The zombie would probably skewer him with its trident any moment.

       His lungs burned. It seemed like it was taking forever to reach the ocean floor. 

Finally, he felt sand under his feet. He opened his eyes. He found himself standing on the sandy floor, near the kelp forest he’d been to yesterday. 

       He no longer felt the zombie’s hand yanking him around. He did feel something heavy on his leg. Looking down, he saw the zombie fastening a chain on his ankle. It seemed very old, as almost the entire band was rusted. There was a short stretch of chain links, and at the end was a block of obsidian. There was no way he would be able to swim away with that weight.

       Then, the zombie swam away, leaving him anchored to the seafloor.

       His lungs were about to burst. Desperately, he tried to swim upward; but the obsidian block prevented him.

       Sadly, he accepted doom. There was no escape. 

       He inhaled, expecting water to pour into his lungs and drown him. But instead, he found that he was able to breathe normally underwater! As he caught his breath, it felt like he wasn’t really underwater. It was strange.

       He relaxed a little, taking deep breaths and calming himself slightly. He was still terrified, but at least he wasn’t dead. Not yet, anyway. 

       While he stood there, he realized the bottle the zombie had thrown at him was a potion of water breathing. There were rumors of magical drinks that gave people special effects going around the village, but of course they were just rumors, he’d thought.

       Until now. 

       He was still in shock at what had just happened. It had all been so fast, he hadn’t had a chance to really know what was going on. He replayed the scenes in his mind. It all seemed unreal somehow, as if it had been a dream. Maybe it was.

       He pinched his arm, expecting to wake up back on the grassy beach, safe and sound.

       It didn’t work. He still found himself gazing at the kelp forest, each strand swaying as if on cue. This was real- very real.

       He had to admit it was fascinating to be underwater, watching the fish swim around aimlessly and the occasional sea turtle glide through the water as if they had wings. Though he was captured by zombies, for some unknown reason, at least he was imprisoned in such a beautiful place. It calmed him somehow.

       Suddenly, a school of fish nearby turned and sped away, something having scared them. At first, he thought it was another sea turtle. But soon his theories were proved wrong.

       A large- no- humongous shape came into view. Whatever it was startled another group of tropical fish, this time closer.

       Luke’s eyes strained to see the newcomer. Panic began to rise again, as if he was reliving the encounter with the zombie. But this time he was even more terrified because he had no idea what the threat was or how to handle it. 

       Maybe it’s friendly, and I’m overreacting.

       The creature drew closer. Now he could make out its body. It was round, like a giant ball, but with dozens of spikes dotting its exterior. A large tail also came into view, with a massive fin on the end propelling the unknown creature forward.

       Finally, it was fully visible. It was a very large fish-looking beast, with one big eye on the front. It was huge; probably twice or three times his size. A single pupil darted around, then focused on him. It squinted its eye and protruded its spikes to twice their normal length. 

       This beast wasn’t here to play around. It wanted only one thing- his life.

– CHAPTER SIXTEEN –

=======================================

        Luke stared at the creature, waiting for it to attack him. The giant fish swam backward a little, then a small, almost translucent beam emerged from its eye, headed straight towards him.

       Before he could react, the beam hit his chest, and a burning sensation erupted through his body. He cried out in pain, swimming frantically as best he could with a weight on his leg in an attempt to dodge the beam. He soon found however that the beast’s beam followed him, and it was pointless to try to escape it. 

       Just when he thought he couldn’t take it anymore, the burning suddenly stopped. He realized that the beam had disappeared. The fish seemed fatigued from its onslaught, and he was glad. 

       He breathed in deeply, ignoring the burning pain in his chest. He suddenly felt weak and dropped to his knees. The beam had inflicted him with some sort of spell.

His arms and legs felt like jello. He collapsed to the seafloor, unable to move. He was completely helpless.

       Suddenly, he heard some sort of commotion behind him; where the fish was. He assumed it was getting ready to attack again. He braced himself. 

       A minute passed. Nothing happened. There was still a lot of noise coming from behind, but he couldn’t see what was going on. Whatever it was, it wasn’t attacking him. 

       Yet.

       Then, the noise stopped. Now he could hear voices; how he didn’t know, but he was hearing them anyway.

       “Boss, we really need to eliminate the guardians. They are becoming a threat.”

       A pause.

       “I suppose we should, but we don’t have very many soldiers.”

       Now the voices seemed to be from directly above him, though he still didn’t know who was there.

       “What’s this?”

       “He is our newest prisoner. He was caught camping on our beach.”

       “He’s not moving. Is he dead?”

       Luke wanted to stand up and prove he wasn’t, but his limbs still wouldn’t cooperate. 

       “Might be. Maybe we should skewer him and eat him for dinner.”

       Now Luke was terrified. He tried to move his arms, but they felt as heavy as boulders. 

       “Wait! I’m not dead!” He managed to say.

       The talking stopped momentarily.

       “Get up, prisoner.”

       Luke tried. But his arms and legs still resisted. He began to wonder if he’d ever move again.

       “I can’t. I was struck by a beam from that fishy-creature and I haven’t been able to move since.”

       He felt a bottle crash against his back. Another potion? He suddenly felt rejuvenated, his muscles almost instantly healed. He stood up, amazed that he had recovered in a matter of seconds- no, microseconds. 

       Turning around, he found himself standing before two of the strange zombies; one wielding a trident, similar to the one that had imprisoned him, and the other holding an odd shell.

       “What should we do with him, boss?

       The one carrying the trident, who he recognized as the boss, stood silent

for a moment. 

       “Escort him to my quarters. I’ll question him there.”

       The one with the shell simply nodded, then unfastened the chain on his ankle and grabbed Luke’s shirt, pulling him along. The zombie’s grip sent chills up his spine, but he didn’t resist for fear of his life.

       He followed the zombie across the ocean floor for what seemed like miles. After a bit the zombie had removed its hand, allowing him to enjoy the beauty around him. 

       He soon worked up the nerve to speak.

       “So, what is that shell you’re holding?”

       The zombie grunted. He wondered if it would answer after it said nothing for a while, but it finally spoke.

       “It’s a nautilus shell.”

       “I see.”

       It then dawned on him that it was strange to be talking with his captor. It was probably also awkward for the zombie to be talking to him.

       Sometimes I can be such an idiot.

       They walked in silence for a while, the zombie occasionally warning him of rifts and gorges. He was glad it did, too, because half the time he was captivated by the schools of fish swimming overhead. Once he even saw a dolphin. For a moment, he imagined himself riding the dolphin’s back, seemingly flying through the water. He was soon jolted out of his daydreams when the zombie pushed him forward.

       Looking down, away from the fish and dolphins, he saw a massive underwater temple before him. He stood in awe at the structure, as it was constructed from a teal blue material; something he’d never seen before. He noticed there were two types of it. One, which was used on most of the building, was a light teal-blue with intricate patterns etched into its surface. The second was a dark navy, with dozens of squares carved into it, similar to a grid.

       As stated before, the temple was massive. It was larger than anything he’d ever seen. He glanced up at the top, seeing a well-lit platform with an arched roof. It was lit with blue lights, which was also new to him.

       “Go through the front entrance and make a right. There will be a door. On the other side is the boss’s office. Stay there until he arrives, And don’t try anything funny.”

       Luke nodded. He took a step towards the building, still admiring the structure. It was  then he saw that drowned were guarding it. 

       He just hoped they wouldn’t kill him on sight.

– CHAPTER SEVENTEEN –

=======================================

        As he neared the structure, he found that the drowned didn’t seem to care that he was walking into their building. Maybe they had more prisoners than he thought, and they were used to this. 

       When he reached the entrance, the zombies stepped away from the massive entryway, allowing him to walk inside. He noticed there were roughly a dozen of them, each watching for intruders.

       The interior was just as illustrious as the exterior. More of the blue lanterns in the corners lit the large room. Zombies were also milling about inside, some talking, but most carrying weapons, potions, and nautilus shells into other rooms; probably to be stored away. None of them seemed to mind his presence, surprisingly.

       Suddenly remembering the words of the zombie, he found the door it had spoken of on the right. It was a large, iron door with a tiny window towards the top. Next to it on the wall was a sign that read “Boss’s Office.”

       Pulling the door handle, it opened slightly. Surprised at its weight, he strained every muscle in his body to pull open the door. Finally, it gave way. He walked inside, finding that closing the door behind him was much easier than opening it.

       Strange.

       It was a small room, only big enough for a desk and a chair behind and in front of it. He took a seat, then examined the desk. It was made of the blue stone, like everything else, but there were triangular shapes etched into it instead of squares and random lines. 

       Interesting.

       He also noticed a frame hanging on the wall, with a blue sphere inside. It appeared to be a blue slimeball, though he didn’t understand why such a common item would be dyed and displayed as if it were a rare find.

       Certain that no one was coming, he reached out to the frame, plucking the ball from its perch. It wasn’t squishy as he imagined; instead, it was very hard, like stone.

       He looked closer, seeing that there was a line running across its diameter. This was definitely not a slimeball, but it wasn’t anything he’d ever seen, either.

       Suddenly the door opened. Before he could return the ball to the frame, the boss he recognized from earlier stepped through the door, looking directly at the ball in his hands. 

       “You little thief. I should have known better than to leave you here alone.”

– CHAPTER EIGHTEEN –

=======================================

        Luke quickly put the ball back into the frame, then scrambled to explain.

       “I… I was just, you know, looking at it. I didn’t want to uh, steal it.”

       The boss walked behind the desk and sat in the chair.

       “Hmph. Where’s the proof?”

       Luke tried to quickly come up with something that would convince him.  He thought hard, but couldn’t think of anything. In the boss’s eyes, he was a thief; nothing more. And he had no proof that he wasn’t.

       “All misunderstandings aside, I have some questions for you.”

       Phew. It looked like he was off the hook.

       “Ask them.”

       “Why were you camping on our beach?”

       Luke gave him a strange stare. What did he mean by “Our beach?” 

       “I wasn’t aware it was your beach, whatever you mean.”

       “Answer the question, boy.”

       “Well, long story short, I was just camping there like I have many places, waiting for morning so I can continue on my journey.”

The boss chuckled. “And what kind of journey would a boy like you be embarking on?”

       Luke sighed. He didn’t want to repeat the story of the raid, but it appeared he would have to.

       “Well, I used to live in a village not too far from here, until your people came and raided our land. The entire village was destroyed. I am the only survivor.”

       He paused to let his words sink in, then continued.

       “Me and my dog, Mist, was traveling to another village far away, hoping they will accept us. Until you captured me, that is.”

       There was silence. He wondered for a moment if there would be any more conversation, but then the boss finally spoke.

       “I’m sorry, boy. Real sorry. But I must explain something to you.”

Luke nodded, surprised he hadn’t burst out laughing.

       “You see, it wasn’t my people that attacked your village. Those were zombies; we are drowned.”

       “Drowned?”

       “Yes. We are the zombies of the water, they are the zombies of the land.”

       “Same thing.”

       The boss shook his head.

       “No, it’s not. While the zombies murder and destroy anything they can get their hands on, we only want to live in peace. But when trespassers come along, you might say we get a little upset; most of your kind trash the place and leave. We are just protecting our land from pollution; maintaining the ocean’s beautiful scenery.”

       Luke was astonished. How could zombies just want peace? It was impossible. 

       “You’re lying.”

       “No, I’m not.”

       More silence. 

       “I know it’s hard to fathom, but it’s true.”

       “Then why did you capture me? And why did you say you were going to eat me for dinner?”

       The boss laughed. “We imprison many people that harm the ocean or its beaches. And what we said was a joke!”

       “What about people like me who didn’t want to harm the ocean?”

       The boss leaned back in his chair. “But you did. You stole from one of our kelp forests; as well as making a mess on our beach.”

Luke was now getting angry.

       “What else was I supposed to eat? And where else was I going to sleep?”

       “Okay, okay. I forgive your deeds. One of my men will escort you back to the beach. You’d better have your camp cleaned up by tomorrow morning or we’ll recapture you.”

       Luke got up from the chair without a word. The boss stood as well and opened the door, motioning for him to leave. And that he did. He was upset that he had been reprimanded for camping on the shore.

       The iron door closed behind him, and he was once again in the main room. 

       The drowned, as they were evidently called, still milled about everywhere. He bumped into one as he headed towards the exit, and it gave him a deathly glare. He shuddered and moved on, out the entrance and back into the sea. 

One of the guards walked over to him. 

       “Shall I escort you to the beach?”

       Luke nodded, and the drowned swam away, beckoning him to follow.

       Some time later, they finally reached the familiar kelp forest. Here he signaled to the drowned that he didn’t need its assistance anymore, and it swam away without a word. 

       He swam toward the surface. It had been a full day underwater; he was glad to be headed to shore.

       He burst through the surface, glad to breathe fresh air again. Looking towards the beach, he saw Mist lying down and whimpering. He was obviously worried about him.

       Swimming as fast as he could, he crawled on the grassy shore and, ignoring his soaking wet clothes, ran to Mist and hugged her tightly. He was also greeted with a lick. It felt good to again be with his friend.

       “I know. I missed you too.”

– CHAPTER NINETEEN –

=======================================

        After the long embrace with his friend, he took off his clothes and boots and laid them on the beach to dry. He then examined his boat; it was still in excellent condition. It would be able to sail when he was ready.

       Remembering the current issue, he pondered on what he could use for oars. As before, there weren’t any materials he could use.

       He looked out at the ocean. The vast amount of water slightly intimidated him now, knowing what lurked beneath the waves. 

       It was then he saw something jump out of the water, not more than a few yards from the shore! He saw its head first, then its entire body. There was no doubt; it was a dolphin!

       It was then he had an idea. A crazy one, but it was something.

       What if…

       First, he scrambled into his clothes and made sure the beach was relatively clean; he didn’t want the drowned to be angry at him again.

       He saw a school of fish swim by near the shore, and he dove in the water and grabbed one with his bare hands. How he managed to hold it he didn’t know, but he had done it.

       Now he took the fish on the beach and beat its head with his fist, knocking it out.

       Then he threw it in the water, his fingers crossed.

       A minute or two passed. Nothing happened. Just when he was about to give up, the dolphin leaped out of the water and swallowed the fish! Smiling, he jumped on its back before it hit the water, and held on to its dorsal fin tightly. Again, he was surprised he had pulled it off. 

       As it hit the water, he almost lost his grip, but somehow managed to hold on. It was clear this dolphin didn’t like this at all. It jumped and flailed and he wondered if it would ever stop. Finally, it settled down, realizing he wasn’t going to hurt it.

       “Mr. Dolphin, I don’t know if you can understand me, but I need your help getting me and my dog across the ocean. Will you do that?”

       The dolphin said nothing, of course. It just floated on the surface idly.

Without warning, Mist leaped on his back, His paws holding onto his shoulders. It was as if he knew it was time to go. Then, the dolphin slowly began to swim away, the top part of its body remaining above the water. After a moment, it picked up the pace, going slightly faster than a sailboat. Another minute and they were speeding across the ocean, the beach no longer visible.

       This was it. They were finally crossing the ocean; getting one step closer to their destination. 

– CHAPTER TWENTY –

=======================================

        As they sped across the sea, Luke scanned his surroundings. A few islands were dotting the horizon; though none of them had any trees or even grass for that matter.

       Mist being on his back started to cause it to ache. He didn’t complain, however. It was the coolest thing in the world to be riding a dolphin, and he wasn’t about to let this ruin it.

       After an hour of nothing but the sea, he began to worry. What if the dolphin was leading them farther from the village, instead of closer? He soon pushed the doubts out of his thoughts. Whether near or far, at least he didn’t have to swim across the ocean.

       Soon he became seasick. He turned and upchucked in the water, his stomach almost instantly recovering.

       After getting seasick a few more times, he saw a landmass in the distance.    

       Though just a speck on the horizon, there was no doubt that it was land.

       “Land ho!” He shouted aloud. Mist barked, joining in on the excitement.

       After hours of the open sea, they’d finally found land.

       Suddenly he remembered his grandfather’s map, still inside his pocket. His soaking wet pocket. With dread, he pulled out the soggy piece of paper and opened it. Luckily, the drawings of the plains and desert biomes were still intact. However, the rest was completely faded.

       He examined his surroundings and compared them with what was left of the map. It appeared they were nearing the south-eastern edge of the desert.

Though he was glad to leave the ocean behind, he dreaded the immense heat of the desert. Again, he’d heard stories about it. Those who’d visited it said it was so hot that they needed stockpiles of food and water to survive, as there were no animals able to live there except desert hares.

       Now he’d get the chance to see for himself; though he wished he didn’t have to.

       His back ached. Mist seemed to grow heavier by the minute. He was glad they were approaching shore, or he might have dismounted his ride and swam the rest of the way. 

       Half an hour passed before they drew close enough to the shore to see the large sand dunes seemingly swirling over the landscape; as if they were waves on a sea of sand. It looked slightly intimidating, with the barren landscape stretching out as far as the eye could see.

        Soon the dolphin slowed to a stop in front of the bank. Luke patted its head and told Mist to jump off first, which he did. Then he jumped off, his back so sore that he winced as he did so.

       When he finally reached it, he collapsed on the sand, feeling the heat already pounding him from all sides. Now he knew what the travelers had meant; this heat was unlike anything he’d ever experienced.

       Once his back had recovered, he dove in the water to cool off. He soon realized however, that even the water was warmer here.

       Crawling back ashore, he saw Mist sitting down, panting a little.

       “I know it’s hot. But the sooner we get across this desert, the sooner we’ll 

arrive at the village.”

       Mist whined sympathetically; as if he was reluctantly agreeing.

       Wiping the dripping water from his brows, he began walking across the sand, which sunk with every step. There was no time to waste; he was eager to reach the end of the desert. The heat was already getting on his nerves.

       Mist trudged along quietly, panting here and there. He seemed to be taking the heat surprisingly well, with his thick fur coat. 

       After a few minutes of walking, he was breathing heavily too. Though he was exhausted already, he kept going, the promise of a new home urging him forward.

       The sun was setting, the sky turning from a light blue to a crimson red. He wasn’t happy about monsters spawning soon, but he was glad that the night would reduce the humidity.

       He stopped his pace and sat, watching the sun sink lower and lower on the horizon. He was surprised at how quickly the temperature dropped. Once the sun was completely out of view, it felt like normal weather.

       He hadn’t realized how exhausted he had been. The last time he’d slept was when the drowned had captured him, and that had only been half a night’s rest.

       Laying down on the soft sand, he closed his eyes. It wasn’t long after that he fell into a deep sleep, dreaming of reaching the village he desired so badly.

– CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE –

=======================================

        He awoke in a sweat. 

       Wiping sleep from his eyes, he squinted as he realized it was about noon.

       Looking over at Mist, who was surprisingly not sleeping, he saw him playing with a hare. Its fur was tan, the same color as the sand; It was hard to spot.

       “Well, looks like breakfast has come to us!”

He crept up on the hare as Mist played with it. When he got close enough, he reached out and grabbed its legs quickly, holding on tight as it squirmed and bit at him. 

       He pinned its head to the ground and hit it in the head with his fist, knocking it out as he would do to a fish. Immediately he regretted it, but he knew that he needed food, and this was all he was going to get for a while.

       Only after he’d knocked it out did he realize that he had nothing to skin it with.

Looking around, he hoped for anything sharp enough to use. Of course, there was nothing. 

       Reaching the summit of the largest dune nearby, he saw only desert. Wait- something caught his eye.

       It was a tall, green plant with tiny thorns all over. He’d never seen anything like it; it seemed odd for such a thriving plant to live in the desert.

       Walking towards it, the hare in his hand, he stared at the plant with curiosity. Once he was standing next to it, he reached out and touched one of the thorns with his finger.

       It was one thing he’d never do again.

       After the pain had subsided, he suddenly realized that one of these thorns would be able to skin his hare. Getting one of them off, however, was a task he was not looking forward to.

       Finding the largest one, he carefully grasped the sides of it with his fingers and pulled gently.

It didn’t budge.

       He jerked it. Hard. His efforts paid off, however, and he found himself holding the thorn in one hand, and the limp hare in the other. It would be a tedious task to skin his hare with only a thorn, but it was better than nothing.

       Hours later, after he’d skinned it, he looked at his small, thin piece of meat with disgust. 

       After all he’d gone through to skin it, the reward was only this scrawny strip of meat. He didn’t even know how to skin a rabbit; he just guessed.

       He decided that a little food was better than none. Knowing he had no means of starting a fire, he hesitantly bit a piece of raw meat.

       It was lukewarm. It had no taste whatsoever and was so tough he spent a whole minute chewing it. 

       It was awful. 

Throwing the rest of the meat away in disgust, he examined the rabbit fur he’d skinned. It wasn’t perfect, but it wasn’t terrible. Somewhere in-between. He wondered what he could use it for.

       Then he had an idea. He wiped the blood off in the sand, and then put the skin on his head. It made a nice cap, providing a little relief from the sun’s heat.

       Smiling, he started walking. Calling Mist to follow, he kept up the pace and adjusted his hat slightly. It was time to continue on their journey.

       Looking towards the sky as he walked, he noticed that the sun was a little bit lower than when he’d woke up. He estimated they’d reach the middle of the desert by nightfall. 

       Taking out the map, he studied the desert. There was a large plateau around the center. When he saw this, he’d know they’d reached the middle.

       He glanced at Mist, who was eating the raw meat with delight. He turned his head quickly back to the map, disgusted that he was enjoying such a gruesome meal.

 

 

       About half an hour later, the heat was getting the best of him. He struggled to take steps with his wobbly legs and found himself short of breath. Mist seemed to also be fighting exhaustion.

       Sitting down, he fanned himself with his cap. He looked up at the sun again. It was slowly sinking; he estimated another couple of hours and it would be sunset.

       He forced himself to stand and start walking again, though every step sapped the energy from him. He didn’t want to waste any time.

       A few minutes later, he couldn’t stand it anymore. He collapsed to the ground, gasping for air. He tried to move, but his muscles refused. 

       Looking up, he saw something in the distance. Something blue. Something he needed very much right now.

Water.

Fighting against exhaustion, he stood and broke into a sprint, falling a few times but forcing himself to get up again. Soon he was standing at the edge of an oasis, still having a hard time believing it was real. Diving into the cool water, he felt his body temperature return to normal almost instantly. Then, without hesitating, he gulped down the water, drinking so much he wouldn’t have been surprised if the pool had receded an inch or two.

       He laughed as he continued to splash the water on his face. This was a miracle; one he might not have lived without.

       When he and Mist both had cooled off in the oasis, they crawled back onto the sand to dry off. The sun was now significantly lower since they’d spent so much time here, so it would take a little longer than usual; but he didn’t mind.

       Laying there, he thought about the golden sword he’d lost. It had been his only method of defense, besides Mist. If he had kept it, he probably wouldn’t have been captured by the drowned. He needed a new one. Unfortunately, there were no materials for that anywhere nearby; he promised himself that he would make one as soon as the materials were available.

       As he lay there, he imagined what it would be like in the new village. Would they accept him without hesitation, or reject him? He hadn’t thought of that before. What if they wouldn’t accept him? He soon reminded himself that worrying never solved anything.

       He allowed sleep to come to his eyes as the sunset and the temperature dropped. Exhausted as always, he fell asleep quickly as night approached. As the moon rose, however, something watched him from behind. 

       Something dreadful.

– CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO –

=======================================

        Luke awoke to a searing pain in his arm.

       Standing, he found himself face to face with a giant, black spider. Staggering backward, he groaned at the overwhelming pain in his forearm. Looking down at the wound, he saw a large scratch running from his elbow to his wrist, bleeding profusely.

       He continued to back away from the spider, fear ruling his mind. Its eight long legs moved with practiced efficiency, moving towards him as he stepped back. Eight glowing red eyes stared at him, sending goosebumps up his spine. It clicked its mandibles in glee, anticipating its next meal: him.

       Suddenly, it lunged. He dodged just in time as he felt a claw whoosh by his ear.

       Close one.

       He was scared- no- terrified of this massive beast. He couldn’t run; it was faster than him. There was only one thing to do, and that was fight.

       He shook any fear or discouragement from his mind and instead focused on the current problem. There was no time for emotions.

       I’m so sick of being afraid.

       As he continued to back away, he studied the spider’s every move. The way it moved, and how it constantly clicked its mandibles in anticipation. He then saw it shift its weight to one side. Instinctively, he ducked. A sharp claw whizzed through his hair.

       That was way too close.

       Quickly thinking of an idea, he put it into action. He waited for it to attack again, then dodged and grabbed its leg. This caught the spider off guard, and he yanked it. Hard. It paid off, and the spider’s leg broke! It cried out in mixed emotions of anger and pain.

       With renewed courage, he waited for the spider to attack again and repeated the action. Now itsdominate mandibles were useless.

       Transforming his fear into rage, he punched the spider in the head as hard as he could with his Good arm. It killed it, leaving a spider eye behind. Now Luke ran back to where Mist lay motionless.

       Please let him just be asleep.

       He dashed over to him, scanning his body for any wounds. Luckily, there were none. Mist lifted his weary head and stared at him, confused.

       “Thank goodness you’re alright,” He said while wincing at the excruciating pain in his arm.

       Standing, he scanned their surroundings for any more threats. There was a trio of zombies maybe fifty blocks away, but he saw nothing else. He shuddered as he imagined battling three zombies at once.

       “Let’s go, Mist. Those zombies make me uneasy.”

       After about an hour of traveling, the large plateau became visible. They were still far away, but itstill was good to know they were halfway through the desert.

       So far, they hadn’t encountered any more monsters. Once he thought he saw a zombie and got ready to fight, but upon closer examination realized it was only a cactus.

       As they drew closer to the massive plateau, he saw the stars were slowly dimming, and the moon was lazily sinking on the horizon to make room for the sun. While he was glad that the sun would dispose of any monsters, he was not at all looking forward to its heat.

       Suddenly, it occurred to him that the plateau’s edge would shade them. He now realized this was a race for time, and the loser would suffer the heat. Now breaking into an all-out sprint, he and Mist rushed toward the “finish line.” They were still maybe a mile away, but the sun was just peeking over the edge of the horizon. If he kept the pace up, he could beat it. Barely.

       What he did not expect was to run straight into danger. As he ran past a large sand dune, hestopped abruptly when a green, mottled creature with no arms glided towards him.

       What is this thing?

He took a step back, cautious of this possible threat. It continued to come toward him silently,somehow not making any noise whatsoever. It was then he noticed its face. It was rather odd, with two large eyes and a frown so large it would make anyone feel sad for it. He’d never seen or heard anything like this.

       He and Mist continued to step back, the strange monster still pursuing. It had no means of harming him as far as he could see, but something about this beast told him to be careful.

       When it was only a few blocks away from them, it did the unexpected. It just stopped moving.

       “Well, I guess you want to be friends?” He asked with relief.

It said nothing. It was so silent that it made him nervous. As someone had once told him, “There’s always a great calm before a great storm.” He wasn’t sure if that would apply to this situation, but it seemed like it could.

       Suddenly, it began hissing softly.

       “Was it something I said?”

       It just kept hissing, steadily growing louder. Then, suddenly, it exploded, sending him and Mistflying. Luke hit the ground about twenty feet from the blast. Mist landed a few yards from him. Every bone, muscle, and organ in Luke’s body wreaked with pain. He felt like screaming, but he couldn’t. Even his vocal cords ached. He couldn’t move. He was practically dead. If his injuries didn’t finish him off, the monsters would.

       It was the worst thing he’d ever experienced. Groaning as he turned his head, he saw Mist wasstruggling to stand. After a few minutes, he finally did. Luke was glad that Mist’s injuries weren’t fatal.

       He hobbled over to him, licking his sore cheek. Luke smiled.

       “Go… Get help!” He managed to say, despite the pain.

       Mist limped away, towards the plateau, leaving him alone. He hoped Mist would find someone to help him.

       He was in bad shape, and he knew it. Maybe he would find the village, and bring someone back. It wasn’t far from where he was.

       It was scary, being completely helpless. Especially in the middle of the night. Looking at the position of the moon, he estimated it to be close to dawn.

       Good. At least I’ll be a little safer in the daylight.

       And with that, he passed out.

– CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE –

=======================================

       He awoke in a small room.

       Looking around, he noticed the walls were made of sand. The ceiling was oak wood, and the floor was birch. He was laying on a small cot, with a warm, red blanket across his chest.

       How did I get here? Where is here?

       Across the room, a door stood half-open. He tried to get up to escape wherever he was, but couldn’t due to severe pain all over his body. It was then he remembered the encounter with the monster.

       Just then, someone entered the room. It was an elderly woman, wearing gold earrings and a copper necklace. Her gray hair was frazzled, and she had green eyes. He estimated her to be around eighty years old.

       “I see you have finally woken up,” She said in a scratchy voice.

       He said nothing.

       Sighing, she sat down on a chair next to his bed he hadn’t noticed before.

       “You’re a very lucky kid. I didn’t think you’d live.”

       Finding his voice, he spoke.

       “Who are you? Where am I? What happened?”

       “Easy, boy,” She said, chuckling. “I’ll tell you if you tell me what you were doing out in the desert.”

       Nodding his head, Luke shifted his position, groaning as he struggled to sit up. When he finallymanaged, the old woman continued.

       “My name is Cleoptra. I’ve lived out here in this desert for about thirty years now, since my village was destroyed by zombies. As for where you are, you are on top of the desert plateau, inside my humble abode.”

       Luke remained silent, waiting for her to tell him what happened. When she didn’t, he nodded for her to continue.

       “I was tending to my garden when your dog walked up to me. At first, I thought he was going to attack me,  but then I saw he was limping. Before I could clean the wound he grabbed my arm and pulled me down the plateau, where I found you. You were unconscious. Your wounds were so severe I doubted you’d survive the trip back home, but you made it. And now here you are, alive.”

       “Thank you,” Luke said after a moment of awkward silence.

       The woman left the room and came back with some water. He gladly took it, gulping down every last drop.

       “So how long until I’m fully recovered?”

       “I’d say at least three months before the pain is completely gone.”

       Luke sighed. The last thing he wanted was to spend three months with some old lady. Not that he didn’t like old people; he just wanted to get to the village.

       “Where’s Mist?”

       “In my bedroom. I’m taking care of his wounds. Now that I’ve answered your questions. You answer mine.”

       Luke nodded.

       “Why were you trying to get across the desert?”

       He explained the whole story, starting with the raid and ending with where he was now. Her aged face never showed emotion, as if she’d lived this story herself. He supposed it was pretty close, as both of them had their villages destroyed by zombies.

       When he finished, she put a hand on his aching shoulder. He stifled a groan.

       “Boy, I’m proud of you. Do you know how difficult the journey is from your village to that one? I’m surprised you made it past the mountains.”

       Luke shrugged. “It wasn’t that hard.”

       Grunting, she acted as if she was going to say something, but then stopped.

       “Is something wrong?”

       “Oh, no. Nothing’s wrong. Well, I’d better get back to my chores.”

       She left the room without another word.

       Realizing how tired he was, Luke crawled back underneath the bedsheets, though with some trouble, and closed his eyes. It felt so good to sleep in a bed. For a moment he imagined he was back at home, safe and sound beneath the covers, laughing at what a crazy dream this was. He knew it was just his imagination, but it brought a smile to his face.

       Before he knew it, he was fast asleep, dreaming of home.

– CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR –

=======================================

       The next day he spent most of the morning reading a book Cleoptra had given him. He was restless, but he knew he was going to be stuck in bed for a while. The book was interesting though, so he didn’t complain. It showed every monster there was and how to deal with them. He found the common zombie first, but became intrigued when he found skeletons, witches, and silverfish. He’d be prepared to face these monsters if he encountered them.

       Then he found the massive fish he’d encountered under the sea. It was called a “Guardian.” Obviously, it was deadly and not to be messed with.

       Flipping the next page, he gasped as he saw an image of the creature that had almost killed him.

       It was called a “Creeper,” and was one of the deadliest monsters known to exist. It said many travelers met their end due to this beast.

       Cleoptra walked into the room a minute later with a bottle of water and a plate of carrots and potatoes. He didn’t like the taste of any of it very much, but he didn’t complain; It had been a long time since he’d eaten. He ate it so fast the taste didn’t even bother him. His stomach thanked him by being silent for the first time in days.

       Once it was all gone, he wiped his mouth with his sleeve and burped. It was embarrassing, but it felt good to have a full stomach.

       “Excuse me, and thank you.”

       Cleoptra just smiled, took the empty plate, and left the room.

       The rest of the day was uneventful. Luke lay in bed reading from morning until night, as therewas nothing else to do. His body still hurt, but he longed to get up and do something. Anything. Even chores at this point.

       It was the same for the next three days as well. By the time the third day was over, he’d read every book she owned and had even started to re-read a couple. He began to feel better, and slowly but surely was able to move around easier.

       He awoke the fourth day, wiping sleep from his eyes. He sat up and waited for Cleoptra to bring him breakfast. He’d come to love her cooking. She always brought him his favorite breakfast; scrambled eggs and bacon.

       While he ate, he talked with Cleoptra. They exchanged stories and discussed Luke’s condition.

       Finally, he thought it was time to ask.

       “Could I try to help with the easier chores today?”

       Cleoptra smiled.

       “As long as you feel up to it.”

       After finishing eating, he carefully got out of bed for the first time in days. There was some pain, but it was bearable. A moment later he was standing.

       Cleoptra took his arm and helped him out the door. He walked into a primitive kitchen. It had only a small furnace and a table, and the table wasn’t much bigger than the furnace.

       The roof was open, with some adjoined thin strips of cloth blocking the sun.

       At least he had a roof over his room.

       She led him out the front door, which was made of thin, dry wood. It probably wouldn’t stand if he wasn’t careful opening it.

       The bright sun blinded him as he stepped outside. He shielded his eyes. Once they adjusted, he looked around. There was a small garden to the left of the house, and a clothesline on the right. It wasn’t much, but it served its purpose.

       After helping her with the gardening, he wiped the sweat from his brows and admired his work.

       He was told to plant a row of carrots. His job was- well- less than perfect, but in his eyes, it was a job well done. It felt good to earn his keep.

       That night, he crawled under the covers and closed his eyes. He thought of home. He remembered his parents. He was so captivated by his thoughts that he felt like it was real, and he was back home, among his friends and family. So when something wet hit his cheek, he was startled when he found himself in Cleoptra’s house. He found Mist standing by his bed, wagging his tail happily.

       “There you are, boy! I’ve missed you!”

       He hugged him tightly, allowing a single tear to fall onto Mist’s fur. They had survived. Barely.

       According to the mob book, it was a miracle either of them wasn’t dead or impaired.

       Then Mist jumped on the bed with him, curling into a ball and closing his eyes. Chuckling, Luke closed his eyes as well.

       Soon both of them were fast asleep.

– CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE –

=========================================

             The next few weeks went by without any break in their routine. He would do a few chores, sometimes play fetch with Mist, then sleep and get up and do it again the next day. It was so monotonous that he felt as if he were reliving the same day over and over again.

       As time passed, the pain reduced to a minor ache. He was able to help out more and even started to help cook dinner on the evenings Cleoptra worked in her garden.  

       By the time a full month was over, he had only a slight pain now and then.

       It was a little past a month when something awful but surprising happened. He was cooking dinner when he heard Cleoptra scream. Dropping the egg he was holding on the floor, he dashed outside. To his horror, three zombies were surrounding her. He ran back into the house, grabbed the frying pan, still with an egg in it, and ran outside and swung it with all his might, knocking one zombie unconscious. The other two turned their attention from Cleoptra to him, allowing her to escape into the house. But she didn’t. She grabbed an old, rusty stone sword leaning on the side of the house and charged into the fight. Luke was surprised at how skilled she was at swordsmanship. She fought like a seasoned warrior, landing three blows on both of them before they knew what was happening. Within a few moments, all three were nothing but piles of rotten flesh. Luke stared in awe at her, and she just laughed.

       “What? You think I’m too old to use a sword?”

       He laughed with her as they walked inside.

       “Sorry I ruined dinner.”

       Cleoptra was still laughing.

       “It’s alright, boy. Fetch some carrots and potatoes and I’ll fix us something.”

       Though he didn’t want to have the same meal for the fourth time this week, he reluctantly obeyed.

       What would she do if she didn’t have carrots and potatoes?

       With that, he chuckled and ran outside.

– CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX –

=========================================

       The next week was the same routine. And the week after that. Eventually Luke forgot about reaching the village. He enjoyed Cleoptra’s company; he’d even considered staying with her permanently.

       It was halfway into the second month of his stay when something dreadful happened.

       Luke awoke from a deep sleep, finding Mist sleeping on his legs. Smiling, he patted him on the head and crawled out of bed. It was then he noticed something wrong.

       He didn’t smell anything. Cleoptra always had breakfast ready before he was awake.

       Walking into the kitchen, he saw she wasn’t there.

       “Cleoptra?”

       Silence.

       He crept into her bedroom to find her breathing heavily and sweating profusely. He dashed to her bedside.

       “Are you alright?”

       “I’m bad sick, boy. Fetch a damp rag and cool me down.”

       That he did quickly, though it didn’t seem to help.

       “What do I need to do?”

       “It’s a bad case of poison. I must’ve gotten it from a spoiled potato. With the state I’m in, I probably won’t last another day. The only cure is milk, and we don’t have any. There’s nothing you can do, boy.”

       Luke was shocked.

       “But you have to survive!”

       “It’s hopeless.”

       The rest of the day he brought her damp rags, hot soup, and books for her to read. Her condition worsened, though slowly. He cooked her a bland dinner, and she ate gratefully, thanking him for tending to her. All-day Luke hoped and prayed she would survive, and things began to look hopeful.

       She made it through the night, and the effects of the poison started to wear off. Luke waited until that afternoon to help her to stand. Cleoptra said this would determine if she would be able to walk or be bedridden for the rest of her life. The effects of poison can weaken a person so much they won’t be able to walk again.

       He took her arm and helped her slowly get out of bed. At first, she had trouble, but she was starting to regain strength.

       Cleoptra grunted. Then, finding her strength, she stood up. Luke let go of her

arm, and she stood! Her legs were shaky, but she was standing without assistance.    

       She then turned and hugged Luke, tears streaming down her face.

       “You saved my life, boy. I’ll forever be in your debt.”

       Luke embraced her as he started to cry as well.

       “I’d do anything for you, Cleoptra.”

– CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN –

=======================================

       The third month. It finally came, on a cloudy and gloomy morning. Luke lay in bed, not wanting to face the hard decision that awaited him. Either living with Cleoptra for the rest of his life or reaching the village he’d been trying to get to for what seemed like an eternity. It was on the other side of this desert; it wouldn’t take but a day or two to reach it.

       But then he recalled all the good times he’d had with Cleoptra. It seemed mean to just leave her. They could have many more good times, and both of them could live happily. But in the village, he could make new friends; friends his age. He could get a job when he was a bit older, and perhaps start a family of his own.

       Then he had an idea.

       Leaping out of bed and dashing into the kitchen, he found Cleoptra eating breakfast as usual.

       “I want you to go with me!”

       Cleoptra gave him a blank stare.

       “To the village I mean.”

       “These old bones are in no shape for a journey that far. And besides, I’ve lived here for thirty years. To leave this place would be like leaving my life behind.”

       “What do you mean ‘that far’?”

       Cleoptra sighed.

       “Luke, there’s something you need to know. My village was destroyed by

zombies, remember?”

       Luke nodded.

       “My village was the one you’re trying to reach.”

       “You mean-“

       “Yes; I should’ve told you sooner. That village has been abandoned for thirty years.”

       Luke was dumbfounded. All this time he’d been trying to reach a village that had been abandoned for decades. He was shocked that his entire journey had been for nothing, and also angry at Cleoptra for not telling him sooner.

       “After all I’ve done for you, Cleoptra.”

       “Now wait, boy-“

       He didn’t let her finish. He stormed into his room and slammed the door. Mist was lying on the bed. He shoved him out of the way and threw himself on the bed,

staying there for several minutes, sobbing. Mist seemed to understand, and walked over to the corner and lied down.

       Taking the map out from under his bed, he ripped it into shreds.

       So much for that.

       An hour later, Cleoptra knocked on the door. He told her to come in, however reluctantly.

       “I know how you feel.”

       “Yeah, I bet you do.”

       “Listen. I was trying to tell you something earlier, but you wouldn’t let me. There’s another village only a couple of biomes away, just past mine. I’m not sure if it’s still alive, but it’s worth a try. Now, would you like me to tell you where it is?”

       Luke nodded, and she sat down on the bed next to him.

       “Just past my village is a jungle biome. It’s very large; at least fifty miles across. On the other side is another desert. At the outskirts is a desert village; My son moved there just a few weeks before my village went up in flames.”

       “What is the jungle like?”

       Cleoptra smiled.

       “I don’t know. I’ve never been there myself, but I’ve heard it’s the most beautiful    biome in the world. The trees there are so large that you can see for miles from the top, and they are so dense that you get lost easily. Oh- and cocoa pods grow on their trunks. They only grow in the jungle, and you can craft cookies with them.”

        “Cookies?”

       “Yes. I’ve only tasted one in my life, but I’ll never forget it.”

       She sighed.

       “If only I could taste another one before this old body stops working.”

       Luke wiped the tears from his face and changed the subject.

       “So how long will it take to cross fifty miles?”

       “If you only travel during the day, perhaps slightly more than three weeks; about twenty days. It is the largest biome I know of.”

       Luke thought this over. The biomes he’d crossed had only taken a few days to cross. This was going to be the largest one he would probably ever experience, but it was the only thing holding him back from the village she spoke of. He was determined to reach it, and not even a jungle fifty miles wide was going to stop him.

       “Then I leave tomorrow.”

       Cleoptra smiled and patted him on the leg.

       “I like your spirit, boy. You remind me of my son.”

– CHAPTER TWENTY-EIGHT –

=======================================

       The next morning, he awoke early according to Cleoptra’s advice: “Start early and rest late. You’ll cover more distance that way.”

       Crawling out of bed, he shook Mist awake, then both of them walked into the kitchen. As expected, Cleoptra sat at the table, munching on potatoes and carrots. For the fourth time this week.

       “Cleoptra, you should come with me.”

       “I can’t, boy. I’ve lived here for thirty years. To leave here would be like-“

       “I know, I know. Like leaving your life behind.”

       Cleoptra smiled.

       “Yes.”

       A tear streamed down Luke’s face.

       “I’ll miss you,” He said as he hugged her.

       He let go, then walked toward the door.

       “Now wait a minute! I have something for you before you go.”

       She got up from her chair and walked into her bedroom, Luke and Mist following. She walked over to her chest and pulled out a shiny, metallic sword and strap. Its blade was slightly damaged, but it appeared brand new otherwise.

       “This was the sword I used to defend my village all those years ago. When I realized it was hopeless, I fled. I was a coward, and I never forgave myself for it. I’ve never dared use this sword again, but I’m sure you’ll find it useful.”

       She handed him the sword, and Luke took it eagerly. He’d never wielded an iron sword before. He’d been lucky if his dad let him use a stone sword. Now, wielding this powerful tool, he felt like an adult. He slung attached the strap to his back, and sheathed his sword.

       “Thank you, Cleoptra. I’ll never forget you.”

       “Likewise, boy.”

       They hugged again, tears falling on each other’s shoulders. Finally, they released, and Cleoptra bent down to pet Mist. He licked her face affectionately, and she burst out laughing.

       “Goodbye, Cleoptra.”

       “Goodbye, Luke.”

       He grabbed his new sword and headed for the door, telling Mist to follow.

       As he stepped out the door, he was greeted by rain. It had been a while since he’d felt the cool drops splashing on his skin; it was rare to have rain in the desert. For probably the first time in his life, he enjoyed it.

       Mist walked outside and was startled when she felt rain on her back. She relaxed and soon accustomed to it.

       Sighing, he turned and began his long journey to the new village.

– CHAPTER TWENTY-NINE –

=======================================

       The rain changed the temperature drastically. Normally he would be struggling against the heat, each step growing heavier the longer he walked. Now, he was able to travel quickly and efficiently. He couldn’t wait to reach the plains. There every day would feel cool and crisp; neither too hot nor too cold.

       He saw a desert hare scamper under a dead bush, trying to escape the rain. It reminded him of his rabbit-skin hat, which he’d forgotten to bring with him.

       Oh well.

       At the top of the next sand dune, he was disappointed to see miles of desert. But he couldn’t complain; He knew how long this journey would take before he’d started. He estimated he and Mist would reach the plains biome by tomorrow afternoon.

       As he walked down the slope, the rain stopped. He shook the rain out of his hair and felt the sun’s warmth beat down on him. It felt good, as his clothes were soaked.

       His spirits lifted by the warmth, he broke into a sprint, Mist chasing him behind. He laughed as he tried to catch up.

       “Catch me if you can!”

       The rest of the day went by without excitement. The heat eventually became a nuisance, but they continued despite. Now the sun was setting, and the sky turned from a light blue to orange, then crimson. Behind them the moon rose, casting a faint glow on the darkening landscape. In the distance, Luke heard a sound similar to clattering bones.

      Must be a skeleton.

       He’d read about the bony horrors, and how their skill with a bow was fatal if you didn’t know how to handle them. He drew his iron sword, scanning the desert for the menace. He finally spotted it standing next to a cactus, about fifty blocks away, right where they were headed. He was about to turn and go around it when he saw two giant spiders scale the sand dune to their left. Turning to the right, he saw a zombie standing next to a dead bush maybe thirty blocks away. He’d never seen so many mobs in one spot before.

      I have to fight one of them, but which?

      Before he could make a decision, the skeleton spotted him. It notched an arrow in its weathered bow, aiming the shaft at Luke. Mist growled.

       “Stay back, boy.”

       He obeyed but continued to growl.

       The skeleton released the arrow, sending it soaring towards him. He deflected it with his sword, then charged. Mist followed, teeth bared. When the skeleton released another arrow, Luke hid behind a cactus as the projectile whizzed past his ear. Mist ran towards the attacker, not paying attention to the third arrow. It flew and struck Mist in the shoulder, causing him to yelp out in pain.

       Luke screamed, in rage and fear. What if Mist was dead? What if- He didn’t get to finish the thought. An arrow whizzed by his head. He leaped out from behind the cactus and charged, swinging his sword wildly. He reached the skeleton in a few seconds and slammed his blade into the monster’s skull. It fell to the ground, disappearing with a puff of smoke.

      He moved over to Mist, who lay there motionless.

      Please let him be alright.

Just as he was about to bend down and examine the wound, Mist jumped up and licked him in the face. Startled, Luke fell to the ground laughing as Mist licked his nose.

       “I was worried about you!”

       Pulling the arrow out of Mist’s shoulder, Luke wiped the blood off and sheathed his sword, putting the arrow with it. he inspected the bow and put it in the strap as well.

       Walking onward, they scaled the next sand dune and stopped.

       “Let’s take a break and rest.”

       As he sat, he gazed at the landscape before him. In the distance, he saw a green hill. Since they hadn’t slept for the night, he supposed they’d reach it by daybreak.

       “We’ll reach Cleoptra’s village before you know it, boy.”

– CHAPTER THIRTY –

=======================================

       Just as he estimated, they stepped foot on the plains biome with the rising sun in front of them, boosting his and Mist’s spirits. The night was over; that meant monster time was over. He chuckled as he watched a distant zombie burning in the sunlight.

       The green grass felt good under his feet compared to the bleak sand dunes. It felt so good to be back in a relatively similar biome to which he used to live in. Cows mooed behind the rolling hills, and Luke remembered the last steak dinner he’d had. It had been months. But before he could look for a cow to slaughter, he came to his senses and continued walking.

       As the morning progressed, he became tired. He wanted to find a place to sleep, but he knew that the longer he traveled the quicker he’d reach his destination.

       Eventually, they came to a ravine, which they almost fell into. He took a step back and gasped at how deep it was; it could have easily been a hundred or more blocks deep. At the bottom, large water and lava spills collided, forming obsidian platforms. Scattered along the rough walls were deposits of iron, coal, and copper ores. For a moment he considered mining them, maybe crafting iron armor, but he deemed the trip too dangerous. One slip and he’d fall either into water or lava, and he didn’t want to land in the wrong one.

       As they continued on through the plains, they spotted several caves and a few more ravines before the sun was directly above them. By now Luke was fighting sleep, and losing. He saw a cave nearby and walked towards it, forcing his eyelids to stay open. When he finally reached the entrance, he lied down on the stone floor and closed his eyes. Before he knew it, he was fast asleep.

       Luke awoke inside the cave. He saw Mist sleeping on the ground next to him, undisturbed. He peered outside and realized it was sunset. Darkness slowly enveloped the landscape, allowing monsters to spawn whenever and wherever they pleased. This frightened him.

       Deeper in the cave, he heard footsteps. They echoed throughout the cave, sending chills up Luke’s spine. Mist heard them too, as he awoke and growled softly.

       “Let’s go before we have company.”

       stepping outside, he saw the last sliver of the sun disappear on the horizon. Now the landscape was completely covered in darkness, and he saw three giant spiders scuttling along the ground in the distance. Their glowing red eyes searched for a victim; in this case, him.

       Shuddering, he drew his bow and notched his only arrow. If anything challenged him, he’d be ready.

       Then, he heard a familiar sound.

      Cssh!

      Oh no.

      Looking towards the sky, he scanned for the source of the noise. At first, he didn’t see anything, but then he spotted two green eyes staring back at him. Pulling back the bowstring, he aimed for the eyes. But just as quickly as they had appeared, they were gone.

       Searching for the attacker, he put the bow and arrow in his strap and drew his sword. He knew what the phantom was trying to do, and his bow would be useless at close range.

       Just as he suspected, he saw the green eyes descending towards him. He swung his sword, killing the creature in a single hit. It disappeared, leaving behind a squishy white substance.

      Is that phantom guts?

      Picking it up, he found it was similar to white dye. Its buoyant texture differed it, however. Sniffing it to see if it was edible, he choked at the rotten stench. Grimacing, he shoved it in his pocket. He didn’t know why he decided to keep it, but somehow he sensed it would prove useful at some point.

      He turned and walked into the plains, unaware of the witch watching them from inside the cave.

      “I will get revenge for what you’ve done,” The witch said.

      “Trespass on my domain and you’ll get what’s coming to you.”

– CHAPTER THIRTY-ONE –

=======================================

       After traveling all night without encountering any more monsters, he finally spotted Cleoptra’s village in the distance just as the sun started to rise. The cobblestone frames of burnt wooden houses stood as a marker to the horrible raid that had occurred here. It made him sad to think about all the lives that had been lost here, and how he’d originally dreamed of getting here, to this abandoned village.

       As he and Mist walked towards the old town, he heard something behind him. He turned around, his hand on the hilt of his sword. Scanning the surrounding area, he saw nothing except cows and chickens.

      I know I heard something.

      Shrugging, he turned back around and continued walking.

      Maybe it was just an animal.

      Drawing closer to the village, he began to see the pillars of more homes that were destroyed in the invasion. Like his own village, however, one or two still stood. He sighed contentedly as he wiped the sleep from his eyes. He would have a safe place to rest now. Maybe even a bed.

       Breaking into a sprint, he and Mist dashed toward the village. Both of them were tired from traveling all night. It almost seemed normal now to travel at night and sleep through the day.

       After a few minutes of running, they stopped to take a break. They were only about forty blocks from the village road now.

       Once they caught their breath, Luke walked toward the weathered road that led through the town. It began beside the schoolhouse, though he could only tell what building it had been from the bell laying on the ground in several pieces.

       Walking through the old village felt like traveling through time. As he passed the well in the town square, he was reminded of all the good times he’d had in his village’s square. Sometimes he would bring the money he saved and spend it at the merchants that sold toys or fishing gear. Remembering this memory brought tears to his eyes.

      Why does everything have to end?!

      He sat on the mossy cobblestone remains of the old well, sighing and petting Mist on the head.

       Suddenly, he heard it. The same sound he’d heard on his way to the village.

      Snap!

      A twig broke. Luke drew his sword and stood, scanning the square for the source of the noise.

       “Anyone here?” He shouted.

       After he realized he wasn’t going to get a reply, he carefully peeked around a cobblestone pillar. Suddenly, something crashed against his back. He felt glass shards sting his back, and instantly he knew what it was. A potion.

       He fell to his knees in pain. Gritting his teeth, he struggled to stand. Though painful, he managed.

       Turning, he faced the threat. To his surprise, a person with a dark purple robe and a tall black hat stood before him, a bottle filled with a deep red liquid in her hand. She cackled wryly, sending chills up his spine.

       “You were brave to enter my domain, child. Now let’s see if you’re brave enough to face me!”

– CHAPTER THIRTY-TWO –

=======================================

       Luke immediately knew who it was. A witch. Remembering from the book, unlike most monsters, witches are humans that got struck by lightning and turned evil. They carried potions everywhere they went, including potions of slowness, harming, weakness, and poison. Right now she was using only harming potions; that was good.

      Mist growled at the witch, catching her attention. Luke took the opportunity and lunged, knocking the bottle from her hands, causing it to fall to the ground harmlessly. The witch scowled and stepped back, drawing another potion, this one having a light gray liquid inside. In a fluid motion, she tossed it and the bottle smashed into him, shattering upon impact. Instantly Luke felt weak. He collapsed to the ground, unable to move.

      Weakness.

       Surprisingly, the witch didn’t try to kill him. She instead attacked Mist, who was now also immobilized. She drew a bottle of green liquid and Luke realized what it was. Poison.

       Fighting against the fatigue, he sprang up and grabbed his sword, then dashed toward the witch as fast as the weakness would allow. She threw the potion. Luke lunged and swung his sword with all that he had, which wasn’t very much. The blade deflected the potion, causing it to land on the ground, still intact. He picked it up before the witch could and got ready to throw it at her. Now the weakness potion was wearing off, and he began to feel stronger.

       “You may have won this battle, child, but be assured we will meet again. When we do, things will be much different.”

        With that, she pulled out a potion filled with a sparkling white liquid and gulped it down. Then, she disappeared. Not with a puff of smoke, like she’d died, but just gone. Expecting some sort of surprise attack, he looked around him, sword ready. When no attack came, he finally sheathed his sword.

      I wonder what kind of potion that was… Teleportation?

      Mist had regained his strength now. Luke bent down and petted him, getting some licks in return.

       “C’mon, Mist. Let’s get out of here!”

       Standing, Luke and Mist walked out of the town square. He shuddered at the tall pillars of stone that made this old village seem like a graveyard. It was almost impossible to believe that people used to live here.

       He walked past the old blacksmith shop, one of the few buildings that remained standing. It reminded him of his father. He remembered the day he’d first been able to help his dad work; he was so excited. That day he had helped make a golden sword, similar to the one he used to have. After they’d finished it, somebody came in and bought it only a few moments after he hung it on the rack. The customer had complimented the sharpness of the blade, and he had been happy to admit he’d helped with it.

       Seeing the door was still intact, he walked inside, Mist following. On the ground, swords of all kinds lay strewn about, just like his father’s shop. Gold, iron, diamond… Then he remembered something he’d read in one of Cleoptra’s books.

       “These are the types of swords in order from least to greatest: Wood, gold, stone, iron, and diamond.”

       Picking up a diamond sword from the ground, he awed at the sparkling blue blade. It was lighter than his iron sword and testing the edge, it was also sharper. Its glistening appearance seemed magical as if the blade held some sort of mysterious power. He knew this weapon was much stronger than the iron sword he carried, but it didn’t feel right to abandon it. Cleoptra had given it to him- it had sentimental value. However, taking the diamond blade would be wise, as it would give him the upper hand against the witch, when and if she returned.

       Sighing, he drew the iron sword and held them side by side. Then, reluctantly, he sheathed the diamond sword.

       Cleoptra would understand.

       Dropping the iron sword, he and Mist left the blacksmith shop.

– CHAPTER THIRTY-THREE –

=======================================

      Walking past the last few burnt houses, he and Mist exited the village. In the distance, Luke could see the jungle trees. They were just like he’d imagined; extremely tall with vines draping off the sides of the massive canopies. Bushes and smaller trees densely covered the ground, making travel difficult. Though just barely visible, he also saw brown pods growing off some of the trunks.

      Cocoa pods! I can’t wait to try a cookie when I harvest some.

      Then he thought about how long it would take to reach the end of the jungle. Though he was eager to reach this new biome, he knew how long he was going to be stuck there and dreaded it as well. He then remembered the witch. There was no doubt she would be back, but he didn’t know when.

      I’ll bet she’s following us. I’d like to see her try to track us through the jungle!

      Before them was the remainder of the plains biome. Eager to reach the jungle, he broke into a sprint. Mist ran behind him, trying to catch up.

       “Can’t catch me!”

       Laughing, he dashed across the grass towards the tall trees in the distance. The sun was directly over their heads, and Luke presumed they’d reach the jungle by sunset. He slowed to a walk after Mist caught up with him.

       “Ok, you win!”

       As they walked, he saw a flat, gray plate fixed to the grass. He cautiously stepped towards it, unsure of what it was or why it was there. Drawing his diamond blade, he pressed the plate with the tip of his sword. It made a click, then a hiss. It sounded like a creeper, but he didn’t see anything.

       He turned and ran, suddenly realizing what it was. Sometimes they used it in mines to blow a hole in the stone and reveal ores. Sometimes it was used as a defense, blasting craters in the ground to slow the monster’s pace, or blowing them up directly. No matter how it was used, it was always dangerous. It was TNT.

       Screaming for Mist to get away, they both got far enough away just in time for the TNT to explode. A loud boom echoed across the landscape, and when Luke turned to look back, he saw a massive crater in the ground. Bits of grass and dirt were strewn everywhere.

       That could have killed me.

       Then he wondered how the explosive got there in the first place. It couldn’t have been natural.

       The witch?

       Sheathing his sword, he walked over to Mist, who still seemed shocked at what had just happened.

       “Let’s get to the jungle, Mist. I have a feeling the witch will have a hard time following us there.”

– CHAPTER THIRTY-FOUR –

=======================================

       As they continued walking, Luke was careful to look for traps. Several more littered the landscape, all pressure plates rigged with TNT. The witch obviously had been busy. He was careful not to activate any of them, as they were so close together it could cause a chain reaction of lethal bombs. Eventually, the witch must have run out of supplies, because the traps ended when the sun was starting to slowly descend from its perch above them. They were close enough to the jungle to hear the rushing water of a river flowing. Luke also heard the squawking of some sort of animal. The trees were only fifty blocks away, and the last of the plains biome was transitioning into jungle.

       Tall stalks of some kind of plant towered high above or equal with the treetops. In the canopies, a small rainbow-colored creature with wings, similar to a bat, watched from above. Ahead of them was a raging river, providing the animals with water. Amidst the dense foliage, he saw a herd of cows grazing on the lush grass.

       The jungle was so abundant with life it made Luke feel like an outsider. Sprinting across the last stretch of plains, he reached the jungle and grabbed a vine hanging off one of the trees, swinging himself around and laughing. It was much more lively here than any other biome he’d visited.

       One of the strange flying creatures flew down from its perch and landed on the ground, watching him swing from the vine. Luke swung to the ground and stared at this beautiful yet odd animal. It squawked at him, and Mist replied with a bark.

       “Settle down, Mist. He isn’t going to hurt us.”

       Extending his hand toward it, the creature stared at it, then at him, then to Mist.

       “C’mon, let’s be friends!”

       It spread its wings and flew upward, landing on his shoulder. He laughed and stroked its back.

       “What should I call you? How about… Polly?”

       Polly squawked in agreeance.

       He turned and walked further into the jungle, Polly on his shoulder and Mist following behind. Turning to look one last time at the plains, he could still see the remnants of Cleoptra’s village in the distance. A lone pillar of stone stretched up into the sky, towering over the hills that obscured the rest of the village.

       Soon I’ll be in the village on the other side of this jungle, making friends and going on with normal life. I wish Cleoptra could have come.

       Sighing, he turned and walked into the jungle.

– CHAPTER THIRTY-FIVE –

=======================================

       Spotting a growth of cocoa pods on a small tree, he walked over to it. Plucking the brown plant from the tree, he smashed it in his palm. Cocoa splattered everywhere, the brown substance staining his shirt. It reminded him of when Brock, the school bully, had ruined his tunic. Looking down at it, he smiled at the sight of it. It used to be bright and colorful before the journey, but now the color was faded and stains from dirt and sweat covered the front, as well as the fresh cocoa stain.

       Licking it off his fingers, he grinned at the delightful taste. It was so rich and sweet that he licked every last bit from his hands.

      Cleoptra was right. This is great!

      Finding another cluster, he smashed it and let Mist and Polly have a taste. Mist licked his lips and barked for more, although Polly didn’t seem to enjoy it.

       “What do you like to eat?” He asked her.

       She squawked, then flew down from his shoulder and landed on the ground. She then pecked at some grass.

       “Oh, ok. You like grass?”

       Polly squawked again, taking flight and perching on his shoulder.

       Luke bent down and picked some tall clumps of grass, then held them for her to eat. She ate all that he had in his hand in only a minute. He smiled, then picked some more cocoa for Mist.

      I’ll have to craft a cookie sometime. But right now, just the plain cocoa is good enough for me!

      Then he heard a twig snap. He and Mist whipped around, seeing nothing. Mist growled.

      Is it the witch? If so, how did she follow us?

– CHAPTER THIRTY-SIX –

=======================================

      Then, a cackle echoed through the jungle, silencing all the animals.

      Oh no.

      Drawing his diamond sword, he turned in a 360, scanning for signs of movement. At first, he saw nothing. Then he saw a brief flash of purple move amongst the foliage. Mist bared his teeth and growled. He heard another branch snap only a few feet away from him. Turning toward the sound, he wasn’t quick enough to block the gray bottle flying through the air. It landed on Mist, and he whined and fell to the ground, too weak to move.

       Then, the witch emerged from the foliage and cackled.

       “I see you survived my traps, bothersome child. It’s time for a rematch!”

       She drew a bottle of green liquid, arm ready to throw it. Luke glanced down at the helpless Mist and back up, scowling at the witch. She tossed the potion, but he dodged and swung his sword at her. She quickly drew and tossed a dark gray potion, smashing into him mid-swing. Suddenly his movement became very slow and lethargic, allowing the witch to avoid the attack easily. Just as soon as it had come, it passed, and his movement returned to normal.

       The witch then grinned wryly, and drew a blue potion, gulping it down. She then reached in her robe and drew a small stone sword. Even though it was stone, the sharp edge gleamed in the little sunlight shining through the thick canopy. It was slightly smaller than his own diamond one.

      I can deal with the sword, but what potion did she drink?

      As if to reply, the witch charged at him, surprisingly faster than usual. Swinging her sword, she almost landed a critical blow to his head before he knew what was happening. He had just enough time to alter it with his diamond sword, causing only a glancing blow to his shoulder. She moved with incredible speed, swinging and jabbing in seemingly all directions at once. He blocked most of them, but some landed. He shrieked in pain, dropping his sword. With lightning speed, the witch picked it up, now wielding her stone sword and his diamond sword.

      What am I going to do?! Now I have no weapon!

      He backed up, the witch advancing. A sword in each hand, and increased speed, she seemed unbeatable. He was just about to give up and surrender to his fate, but then he saw Mist get up. From backing up, Mist was behind her. He ran and jumped on her back, knocking the swords from her hands. Luke quickly picked them up, tossing the stone sword into the foliage. The witch scrambled to stand and drew another white potion.

       “This is not over! Next time, the outcome will be different!”

       With that, she gulped the potion down and disappeared, same as last time.

– CHAPTER THIRTY-SEVEN –

=======================================

       The next few days went by uneventfully. Just him and Mist traveling through the jungle, stopping to rest at night and walking all day. His legs were sore, but he kept moving.

       The cocoa pods were a great food source, and there were plenty of them. The mighty river that flowed through the jungle provided water. They had everything they needed, Yet one thing saddened him.

       Polly never returned.

       When the witch scared her off, she never came back. Many other of the flying creatures perched in the canopy, but none of them were her. They’d just started to become friends, too.    

       On the fourth morning in the jungle, Luke awoke groggily and stood, plucking some overhead cocoa pods from the tree he was under and eating them. He then shook Mist awake. They’d been going to bed late and getting up early so they could spend as much time traveling as possible. Today they had to scale a steep hill, and he wasn’t looking forward to it.

       His wounds from the battle with the witch were still healing and made it painful to hike. His legs were also sore from traveling all day the last few days, and it took everything to keep moving. Mist also suffered sore muscles, but both of them knew the longer and farther they traveled, the sooner they’d reach the village.

       Since he’d decided to camp beside the river, he first scooped some water into his hand and drank. He was thankful for a source of water and shade; if this had been the desert he might have collapsed from overheating and exhaustion.

       As he started to climb the hill, he noticed small buttons scattered across the slope. They were gray, and he might have confused them with stones if all of them hadn’t looked exactly alike. Curious but cautious, he pressed one with his finger, stepping back quickly. He heard something move underneath the ground, then suddenly the dirt was shoved aside and a green potion flew out of the ground. It shattered on the dirt, spraying the deadly liquid in a six-foot radius. Luckily he and Mist were well out of range.

       Once he was sure the trap was sprung, he moved to where the button had been, only to find a deep hole with some sort of circuitry below.

       No doubt from our little friend.

       Shaking his head, he began scaling the hill again, careful not to activate any more traps.

       “Don’t step on the buttons, Mist.”

       A few moments later, they were at the top of the hill. Below were dozens of more button traps, blending in with scattered stones. And then, in the distance, he saw a tall pillar of stone rising above the trees. It was covered in vines and moss and seemed like it had been there for centuries.

       Another trap?

       He was going to find out.

– CHAPTER THIRTY-EIGHT –

=======================================

       Descending the hill, they traversed toward the pillar of stone. It was easy to spot even from the ground, its height surprising.

       Is it another abandoned village?

      He ruled it out. If it was a village he would have seen many pillars; there was only one.

       As they neared it, they were careful to avoid the button traps. Luke was surprised that she wasted all these potions. She knew that after one was sprung the others would be useless, so why did she plant so many?

       Shrugging, he and Mist walked around a large jungle tree. On the other side was the source of the pillar; a giant stone structure with vines and moss covering the outside. There was a second floor, with slits every few feet around the exterior. He imagined that many decades ago this building had been used for war. Two tall stone pillars rose from the roof, but only one high enough to see from a distance. In the front was a large entrance with thick vines hanging from top to bottom.

       Luke was awed at this mysterious structure. He looked down at Mist, who by his expression he could tell was also in wonder. He imagined how long ago this had been built- decades? Centuries? Millenniums?

       Curious about what was inside, he drew his diamond sword and walked toward the entrance, slashing the vines away with his blade. When Mist didn’t follow, he turned and saw him sitting on the ground, staring at the dark entrance intently.

       “Oh, alright. You can stay here if you’re scared.”

       Mist replied with a bark, then Luke turned and walked into the darkness.

– CHAPTER THIRTY-NINE –

=======================================

       Inside the dark building, he took each step carefully. He wouldn’t be surprised if the floor caved in, as old as this building was. Through the darkness, he saw two sets of stairs going up to the top floor and one set of stairs leading downward. Assuming nothing would be on the top floor, he chose the depths.

       The old stairs groaned with every step. In some places the stairs were missing entirely; he was careful not to fall through.

       At the bottom, the vines and moss were so thick he had to use his diamond blade to avoid getting ensnared. Once he got through the overgrowth, he saw that on the left was a passage turning the corner to something unknown. To his right was a dead end, with three levers positioned on the wall.

      I don’t have a good feeling about the levers.

      He decided to see what the other way had to offer. Walking through the tunnel, he came to the turn and stopped. Peeking around the corner, he saw a long passage with a chest at the end.

       Careful for traps, he walked toward the chest. It was hard to see anything in the dark, as well as all the vines.

       Suddenly, he tripped on something. He fell, catching himself with his hands. He heard a soft click, then an arrow flew out of some sort of machine and whizzed over his head. After waiting a moment to make sure nothing else would happen, he stood.

       He proceeded more carefully than ever, stepping cautiously over patches of suspicious moss that could be hiding pressure plates or buttons.

       Reaching out with one finger, he lifted the lid of the chest just an inch, then let it slam. Assured that it didn’t trigger anything, he lifted the lid all the way up, revealing a strange, shiny golden apple and a cobweb. He took the apple, curious of its shiny appearance. He shoved it in his pocket, then turned to leave.

       On his way out, he came to the wall with levers again. Something about them seemed dangerous, yet prosperous. Perhaps there was a treasure; or there could be a lava pool sizzling below him, waiting for a victim.

       Curious, he flipped the first lever. It clicked, and he ducked, expecting an arrow to fly at him or something. But, to his surprise, nothing happened.

       Flipping the last lever, he left the middle one up. He didn’t know why he chose to do that, but he was glad he did.

       A grinding sound echoed through the building, and to his astonishment, the stone wall pulled back to reveal a chest! He dashed to it, throwing the lid up. Inside was a dusty leather cap, three emeralds, and an iron pickaxe. He blew the dust off of the cap and put it on, smiling at how comfortable it felt. He then stuffed the emeralds in his pocket and pulled out the pickaxe. Its shining metallic head was heavy, but he stuck it in his sword sheath.

       Maybe It’ll come in handy sometime.

       He turned to leave, happy about his finds. He felt his pockets, which were bulging with items. A strange golden apple, three emeralds, and the sticky substance from the phantom he’d killed in the plains. He still felt the need to keep it for some reason, but he had no idea what he could use it for.

       I’ll figure it out eventually.

– CHAPTER FORTY –

=======================================

       Nothing happened for an entire week after visiting the old ruins. He and Mist traveled day and night, rarely sleeping. They were both beyond exhaustion at this point, and they needed rest. Luke pressed forward, however, intent on reaching the village as soon as possible. Once they reached their destination, they could rest as long as they wanted.

       On the twelfth night of being in the jungle, Luke was sleeping soundly when something woke him. He jumped up, drawing his sword. Mist awoke too and growled.

       Looking around, he tried to identify what had woken him. Nothing seemed to be out of place, other than the distant growls of zombies and the occasional screech of a phantom, unable to reach its prey through the canopy. It was then he realized he hadn’t encountered any monsters for a long time.

       Just then, a tall green body emerged from the foliage. Luke instantly recognized it as a zombie. Its midnight black eyes and razor-sharp claws brought back memories of the raid on his village; it still haunted him. The creature growled deeply in anticipation, sending chills up his spine. Then, another monster stepped out from behind a tree. He saw the purple robe and pointy black hat and realized it was the witch. She cackled, startling the zombie.

       “We meet again, child. THIS time you will meet your end!”

       She drew two potions, one red and one light blue. She tossed them at the zombie, and they shattered on impact, covering the creature with the liquid. The zombie looked confused and scared at first, but then groaned in excitement as it realized what it had been given.

       “I had planned to battle you myself, but I decided to first have this zombie bring you within an inch of your life. Then I will destroy you myself!”

       She then threw a potion of weakness at Mist, and again he was immobilized. Luke scowled, drawing his iron pickaxe as well. Now he wielded his diamond sword in his right hand, and his iron pick in his left. It had come in handy, just as he had guessed.

       “This is the last time you bother me, witch. This is where your miserable life ends!”

       She cackled maliciously, then the zombie charged, claws swinging.

– CHAPTER FORTY-ONE –

=======================================

       Zombie claws whizzed over his head as he ducked. He stabbed the zombie with his sword once before it recovered. It howled in frustration, then attacked again. It moved with incredible speed and strength, proving to be a terrible opponent; one Luke could barely keep up with.

       He blocked the attack with his pickaxe, though the tool made a sickening crack as a piece of the handle flew off. The witch cackled.

       Going on the offensive, Luke swung both his sword and pickaxe, hoping to land two deadly blows to his opponent’s head. The zombie ducked, but not in time. The sword and pickaxe landed a glancing blow to its forehead.

       The zombie quickly recovered and again charged, claws swinging wildly. Just as it was about to barrel him over, Luke stepped out of the way. The zombie was moving so fast it didn’t have time to stop. It dashed past him and slammed into a tree, growling in anger. He took the opportunity and swung his sword, slicing deep into the monster’s shoulder.

       “Is that all you got?” Luke taunted.

       Howling in frustration, the zombie lunged at him with surprising speed. Luke barely had time to roll to the side, though a claw scratched his forearm in the process. It burned with pain, but it wasn’t severe. He gasped louder than it hurt, making the zombie think he was fatally injured. It groaned in anticipation, then swung its mighty fist at him. He surprised the zombie by knocking it away with his pickaxe, then slashing with his sword. He landed a critical blow to the creature’s stomach, causing it to shriek in pain.

       It couldn’t take much more damage. It struggled to stand, gripping his stomach with one hand and using the other to guard himself. By now the witch’s potions were wearing off, and suddenly the zombie became much more lethargic and grew weaker. Luke took the opportunity and charged, batting the free hand with his sword and slamming his pick on the beast’s head. It uttered one last scream and perished, leaving behind a small pile of rotten flesh.

       The witch scowled.

       “I’m done playing with you, boy! The next time we meet will be your last!”

       The witch drew the white potion again, gulping it down and disappearing. Luke sighed and examined his wounds. Other than the deep scar on his arm, he was fine.

       “I have a feeling the next time I meet the witch I’ll need more than a sword and pickaxe to stop her,” He muttered under his breath.

– CHAPTER FORTY-TWO –

=======================================

       Four days later, Luke remembered what Cleoptra had told him. It had been exactly twenty days since he’d entered the jungle, and he wondered when he would reach the plains. He knew it would be soon, but he couldn’t wait.

       The thought of this journey finally being over seemed sad, yet he was joyful that he would finally reach the village he’d been trying to get to for months. No more monster fights, and no more sleeping on the ground, though he had gotten so used to it it didn’t bother him. The rest of his days would be peaceful; and that both relieved and scared him. He actually enjoyed traveling. He liked seeing biomes he’d never visited before, though sometimes, like today, he was exhausted.

       The memories will be with me forever.

       As he walked, he saw nothing but trees ahead. He’d tried to keep going the same direction the whole time, but he could’ve gone the wrong way. If that was the case he might be stuck in the jungle for years trying to find the plains.

       I sure hope I’m going in the right direction.

       And then, he came into a clearing. There weren’t many clearings in the jungle, so it was surprising to find one. Then, beyond a cluster of trees ahead, he saw the plains.

       Shouting for joy, he and Mist dashed through the foliage, excited to be this close to the village. Once they were through the last of the jungle, they saw the most wonderful sight they’d ever seen.

       Below them was the village, not more than half a mile away. From this distance, Luke couldn’t see much, but when he saw people- his own kind- moving in and out of the buildings, the streets bustling with human traffic, he pumped his fist in the air.

       “We made it, Mist! We really made it!”

       Mist barked excitedly, jumping up on him and licking his dirty, sweaty face.

       The village below was in a valley, and they were on top of a cliff. All he and Mist had to do was scale down the cliff and run a short distance, and they would arrive.

       Just as Luke was about to climb down, however, he heard a familiar sound. Cackling. Turning, he saw what he knew was there; the witch.

       “Going somewhere, child? I think we have some business to attend to!”

       Then, she quickly drank a swiftness potion and charged, punching him in the shoulder. Hard. Luke toppled backward, teetering on the edge of the cliff.

       Looking down, he realized that if he fell it meant death.

       The witch cackled, then kicked his legs out from under him. Luke screamed as he fell.

       “Goodbye! Have a nice trip!” The witch said as she waved mockingly.

– CHAPTER FORTY-THREE –

=======================================

       In a panic, Luke tried to grab a ledge to save himself, but he was moving too fast. Looking below, he saw the ground getting closer and closer. Desperate, he pulled out his pickaxe and dug it into the cliff wall, attempting to slow his fall. But to his horror, the iron head snapped, plummeting to the ground below.

       Then, he remembered something. He grabbed the sticky goo from the phantom out of his pocket, sticking it to the wall. He still fell, but he was slowly decreasing speed. He dragged the sticky substance down the wall with him, and he was surprised it was so adhesive.

       Eventually, he slowed to a stop, just a small jump away from the ground. Miraculously the goo had saved him!

       He let go of it, falling to the ground harmlessly. Looking back up at the cliff’s edge, he saw Mist and the witch battling. The witch kept throwing potions at him, but he kept dodging them and then snapping at her. Then, he realized the duel was slowly moving towards the edge.

       The witch threw a weakness potion at Mist, but he dodged. She was now dangerously close to the edge, and even from this distance, Luke could see her frightened expression. And then, Mist lunged, knocking her off the cliff.

       Her screams echoed through the plains as she fell, making Luke laugh. With nothing to save herself, she slammed into the ground, right in front of him. She disappeared with a puff of smoke on contact, leaving behind two cracked potion bottles.

       All those potions were meant to hurt other people, and she didn’t have one that could save herself.

       Holding his arms out, he signaled for Mist to jump. He leaped off the cliff, plummeting toward Luke. He held his arms ready, knowing his dog would be heavy. When he fell into his arms, he almost fell over; but somehow managed to remain standing. He set Mist on the ground and turned to look at the village.

       “C’mon Mist! Let’s reach the village before dark!”

– CHAPTER FORTY-FOUR –

=======================================

       They dashed across the plains, intent on reaching the village. All that stood between them was a long sprint, and by now they’d gotten used to sprinting.

       The sun was slowly descending, painting the sky’s blue canvas pink and red. They hoped to reach the village before nightfall.

       Sprinting even harder, Luke saw the laborers of the town finishing their duties and heading home. So far, no one had spotted him and Mist. They were only about seventy-five blocks away now, and getting closer. This felt unreal to Luke, that he was so close to ending his journey. Yet here he was, closing in on what he’d been waiting for.

       Finally, one of the farmers saw them. His face had a confused expression, but then realized what he needed to do and dashed to the bell hanging on the village well. He rang it violently, and all the townsfolk poured out of their houses one by one, crowding together to see what was happening. All of them were confused.

       Luke and Mist dashed into the crowd, stopping their sprint and catching their breath. A blacksmith, covered in soot and ashes, stepped forward.

       “Son, where do you come from?”

       Luke caught his breath, then replied.

       “It’s a long story. But I have traveled far to reach this village, in hopes you will accept Mist and me into your village.”

       The blacksmith bent down and patted Mist on the head, then stood.

       “You are more than welcome here, boy. You and your dog.”

       And with that, Luke and Mist, the two new members of the village, began their new life; one of peace and happiness. A life with no more monster battles, sleepless nights, or starvation. But Luke never forgot his journey, and he never forgot the friends he made along the way.

       Sometimes the journey is more important than the destination because that is where you learn the most.

 

 

THE END