Chapter 12 – Imprisonment

    Void glanced worriedly over the defenses. They had reached Dragons Teeth, and now they had walled themselves in. This either meant they were safe-
    Or they were trapped.
Never before had she felt so scared. Without Rakier, she felt-
Her heart sunk every time she thought about it. She was alone.
   Again.
       She teleported to one of the other peaks, frantically searching the horizon. They were going to be here soon, she was sure of it. Then, she heard what she had been dreading- someone banging the flat of a sword on a chest plate. She teleported down to the wall, where many other monsters were gathering. The NPCs had arrived.
      Gameknight stepped out of the crowd, the others shrinking away. They were still nervous after his outburst earlier. In all their time with him, they had never seen their friend act that way. He came forward, the end of a rope in his hand. Void’s blood went cold when she saw what was at the end of it.
   Rakier.  (Yeah- you probably saw that one coming.)
“Give them back!” Both of them yelled at the same time. They both glared at each other. “Fine,” They both snapped. Void jumped off the wall and grabbed the prisoners, then teleported 20 blocks away from the enemy (the NPCs). She dropped the ropes. Crafter and Monet instantly bolted back to their friends and family, and their binds were quickly cut. Monet walked towards her brother, and he reached to embrace her, but she stepped away. She pointed to Rakier. She said something along the lines of ‘This isn’t how we do things.’ Gameknight looked at her coldly. ‘It is now,’ he said.
     Void stepped closer, trembling. “Now give him back.” She said, trying up to cover up the fact that her voice was cracking. Gameknight have her an eerie smile. “Not until you get rid of these arrows,” he replied.
     Void had forgotten all about that, actually. She snapped her fingers and Gameknight smiled as they finally disappeared. “Now!” She snapped. He glared at her. “Call off the army,” he said. Rakier squirmed. “Don’t!” He yelled. Gameknight pressed his sword against the skeletons neck. Rakier opened his mouth to shout something, but the user slashed at him and he screamed. The look in his eyes changed from bravery to fear.
     “Okay, okay!” She yelled. She sadly signaled to the monsters, who walked down off the walls. They spilled out behind her, and villagers surrounded them. “Now,” she ordered, her eyes blazing red and black. Gameknight gave her a toothy smile. Void felt a burst of terror she hadn’t ever expected. That look wasn’t from him.
      “No,” he said.
And he let the blade fall.
In that instant, Void saw it all again. The crazed, insane look on his face, the fear but accepting she saw on the victims, and the faces of the creatures surrounding them. Some looked pleased, most looked horrified. What was happening right then was a reflection of what had happened all that time ago. And he seemed to be enjoying it as much as he had the first time. She couldn’t do it. She couldn’t go through it again. The pain, the suffering.
      And she teleported.
She appeared right in front of the sword, and it crashed into her. She collapsed, the whole world going into a daze. She could make out the blurry form of Monet113 running up and dragging her brother back. Void was crying, but smiling at the same time. “I did it, Rakier,” she said softly. “I didn’t let him take you this time.”

      Crafter and Monet talked softly, scared someone would hear them. “What do you think is going to happen now?” Monet asked, scared. Crafter shook his head. “I don’t know,” he admitted. They both glanced over their shoulders at the same time. They were standing next to one of the mountains that made up Dragon’s Teeth. Void and Rakier were both tied to a tree, it’s trunk standing flimsy against the mountain side. Rakier was asleep, his breathing weak. Void was sitting with her legs crossed, mumbling to herself. She looked awful.
         “Why’s Gameknight acting this way?” Crafter asked. “He’s never, ever, done like that in all the time I’ve known him. When he attacked Rakier… it was like he wanted to do it.” “Didn’t you see his face?” Monet asked miserably. “He did. He was excited to kill him. I’ve never seen my brother like that.”
         Crafter sighed. “It’s just a stage,” he said. “Right. Just a stage.” Monet agreed. They looked at each other. A sinking feeling entered their stomach as they realized neither of them believed a word of what they had just said. Monet swallowed deeply. “Just a phase.” She said slowly.
      They both turned their head at the same time, startled, as they heard something mumbled behind them. “Infection,” Void mumbled. “What is it?” Monet asked, kneeling down beside her. “Infection,” Void said. Her eyes were weirdly glazed. “What do you mean, infection?” Crafter asked anxiously. Void stared at something across the clearing. “Infection,” she said one more time. They followed her gaze, hearts pounding. Gameknight was standing there, pacing. He was next to an ancient lava flow, cascading down the mountain. The two friends looked at each other. “I’m going to go talk to him,” Crafter said.
       Gameknight paced back in forth. The warm heat off the lava filled the air. He took a deep, sulfur filled breath. He gazed happily at the corner where the monsters were huddled together. They were under constant surveillance, but they didn’t appear to have any want to escape. They looked terrified. They were shaking, whispering to each other and huddling all together in a tight, shivering ball. It made him smile.
      “Gameknight!” He heard behind him. He scowled. Really? He thought bitterly. You can’t leave me is long? But he turned, a fake smile plastered on his face. “Yes?” He asked. It was Crafter. “Are you feeling okay?” The villager asked anxiously. “I mean, you’ve been acting- weird.” Inwardly, Gameknight was fuming. Of course I’m fine! He said to himself. You don’t see me dying over here, do you?
     But he still gave him a painfully fake grin. “Of course!” He said through gritted teeth. Crafter looked like he was going to follow up, but changed his mind. Instead, he looked over to the single scraggly tree. “What are we going to do with Void and Rakier?” He asked. Gameknight shrugged. “Kill them, of course.” He said simply. Crafter stared at his friend, openmouthed. “But- but-“
      “Why shouldn’t we?” The User snapped. “And the monsters need to go, too.” Crafter finally seemed to get his words back. “But with Herobrine…” he trailed off as he saw Gameknight’s cold glare. “Right. Herobrine was three times smarter, three times smarter, and three times stronger. And that’s his daughter. Do you really think we should let her rise to her full potential?” Crafter shifted uncomfortably. “But… if we kill all the monsters, won’t everything get thrown off balance again?”
        Gameknight scoffed. “So?” He harrumphed. “I don’t care about balance. I care about power.” “But we CAN’T.” Crafter said firmly, finding his voice again. Gameknight was quiet, staring horribly at his thought friend. Finally he said, “You do not get to call the shots, villager.”
    He walked away, leaving Crafter standing shocked behind him.