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He'd been walking for hours, traipsing through the endless fields of snow, his only companion the quiet chatter of his teammates through the comms. It was dull, to say the least, the monotony of the journey only broken by the occasional whoops of joy that echoed from the device and the bright dings that accompanied them. It seemed never ending, the vast white plains stretching out past the horizon.
A lone spruce tree stood in the middle of the current field, the ground beneath it free of snow. He flopped down beneath it, breathing heavily as he rubbed his chilled hands together. Shelby's laughter comes through the call, and despite the cold he smiled. It was just his luck to end up in an endless snow plains, while the others gathered the materials needed for the competition. He just had to hope that it'd end soon, but for now he would rest, staring up at the star-lit sky and hoping tomorrow would be more fruitful.
He woke to the weak sun coming over the horizon, and the sound of dings coming through the communicator. Seems the others were able to make some progress while he slept. He pushed himself off the ground, preparing himself for another day of walking. It seemed hopeless, no end to the journey, but he went anyway, wishing for something to happen.
The thick snow slid beneath his feet as he pushed himself up the hill, wanting higher ground to see what awaited him on the journey. An expanse of ocean unfolds before his eyes, a welcome change from the icy plains. Sitting on the snow covered shore was a small igloo, light fading from the long abandoned torch inside.
Once inside, he pushes aside the aged carpet to reveal a heavy oak trap door leading to a deep shaft with a ladder. Down the rickety ladder was a basement, lit by the soft glow of a brewing stand and occupied by a snarling zombie villager. Ignoring it for the chest in the corner, he is greeted by a golden apple, lustrous even in the gloom of the room. Storing it quickly in his inventory, he assessed the rest of the chest's contents. Nothing much except some wheat and coal, which he grabbed just in case.
Snatching the brewing stand from its place he began the climb up, ready to set out into the ocean nearby. His face flushed from the cold air as he prepared himself for the boat journey ahead.
The water swished around his oars as he paddled out, watching over the edge for the coral reef below. It was calm, the water dimly lit by the bright colours beneath him. There was no talk through the comms, all of them focused on the tasks at hand.
He hadn’t been rowing for all that long when a dull thunk hit his boat. A startled cry escaped him, turning quickly to find out what it was. A trident was embedded in the wood, a rotted blue hand rising from the waves to grasp it. A Drowned.
Taking a deep breath, he plunged into the lukewarm water, his crude stone sword a comforting weight in his hand. The sharp prongs of the trident drove at him, and he ducked to the side, blinking rapidly as the salt water stung his eyes. Gripping the sword harder, he pushed off the boat towards the creature, sinking the blade into its pale flesh. The force sent the creature back, its grip on the trident loosening just enough for Scott to take it, a silent whoop of joy bubbling from his mouth before he choked, water slipping in through his mouth.
Rather than fight it he let himself be dragged down, waking to the bright sunshine and the energetic voices of his teammates as he lifted the trident above his head in triumph, depositing it to elated cheers as the next item flashes up on the board.
Obsidian.
Jack takes a deep breath through the comms.
3 days left. They can do this.
~~~
They came 12th. After all that work, they came 12th. The purple city faded into view as the chatter of the other teams grew. Callum came up to him, lamenting about the drop rates and RNG, and despite the weariness settling in his bones Scott puffed out his chest to boast about the Trident he obtained.
As the other teams complained he laughed, basking in the attention. Once the crowd dispersed only a few of them were left, and he relaxed, moving backwards into Punz’s arms as the exhaustion from the event hit him. Punz’s laugh echoed in his ears as he tried to not give in to sleep. He couldn’t sleep now, there’d be time for that after the next event was announced. One more. One more event, they might not be able to win but they would give it their best shot.
The quiet conversation around him was interrupted by a tolling bell, and the screens changing suddenly. A timer. Not even instructions, or details.
23:59:57
Wither Trial