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I watched as Grian fell and fell before slamming down on the ground below. I watched as a pained sound escaped his lips before all the life drained out of his eyes. I stood there and took a deep breath. I won, I actually won. I laugh giddily and pump my fist in the air. I jump down from the tree and land safely on the ground. I have to see if my stupid trap would have ever worked. I rush to it and try to trigger it, but it doesn't work. I sigh in disappointment. Way to ruin my good mood.
Angry, I throw one of my ender pearls and teleport away. Enjoying the pain, I throw another. I have to end this somehow anyway, this is good enough. Eventually, the cold hands of death wrap around me as I fade into the void.
I gasp for air and look at my surroundings. I was not safely back at Hermitcraft 10 like I was supposed to be. Instead, it looked like I was in… the End? No, but it was just void? When I look down I see nothing but the dark void that was *The Void*.
A flash of blinding light surrounds me as a tall cloaked figure appears before me. They have large wings that blend in with the Void and a mask that covers everything but its sinister smile. A cold wave of fear washes over me.
"Ah, so you are our newest winner. I am One."
Shaking, I stand up. "Wh-where am I?"
One laughs. "That doesn't matter, mortal. What matters is this."
One moves quicker than lightning and is on top of me, pinning me to the invisible floor. "It's been so long since I've had a player to torture. Xelqua always whisks you away before Two or I could get to you — but this time," it leans down to whisper in my ear, its breath surprisingly cold, "he was still too busy respawning to save you."
Fear wraps itself around my heart. I'm going to die here. I’m never going to see Lizzie again, or any of my friends. All because I murdered one of them in those stupid death games. I try to push up, to get the monster off me, but it just shoves my head hard into the invisible ground.
"No, no, mortal. You're ours now," the thing laughs as I start to shake. "Now let's see what we can do here."
It puts a cold finger on my temple and then pulls it away. A long line of what must be my code sticks to its finger. The thing lets my code fly in front of its face. It hums in concentration as it sifts through it.
All of a sudden, it grabs a piece and squeezes it. My whole body feels like it's on fire. I scream as tears run down my face. One laughs crazily and squeezes harder. Pain. It’s just pain. I close my eyes hard as everything starts to go numb.
I knew all the Watchers (except Grian) were bad, but this loser is by far the worst.
Suddenly, the weight on my chest disappears. I gasp and squeeze my eyes even tighter.
"Joel! Joel! Oh void."
Hey! I know that voice.
"Lizzie, move, let me fix this."
Hey! I know that one too.
I crack my eyes open to see my wonderful wife and my new admin standing over me.
"Joel," Xisuma kneels next to me. "I'm going to undo the damage to your code, then I'll get you the Hels out of here."
I just whimper in response, which causes Lizzie to begin sobbing.
Xisuma touches my temple exactly like the Watcher did, and like the Watcher, my code sticks to his fingertip. Also like the Watcher, he examines it. When he sees the part One grabbed, he winces in sympathy.
Unlike the Watcher, he touches it gently. He rubs his finger over the mangled code and I immediately feel better. I close my eyes and let the pain be wiped away.
"Joel, can you stand?" X asks.
I nod and try to get up, only to immediately fall back down.
"Joel!" Lizzie yelps.
"Sorry."
"Don't apologize," X commands. "I'll help you."
X helps me stand and starts leading me to a gaping hole in the void.
How can there be a hole in the void?
Before I linger on it too long, I remember this isn’t even the weirdest thing I’ve seen. Lizzie’s animal villagers from back on Empires season 2 definitely take that prize.
"The- the Watcher," I gasp.
Lizzie laughs. "Grian's taking care of that."
"What?"
X pauses and turns us around to see Grian in a full-on magic battle with the Watcher.
I laugh as X continues pulling me toward the tear in the void.
From behind us there's a loud thud and Grian flies over our heads.
"Hurry guys, he won't be down for long!"
"Working on it!" X yells up at him.
"Uh oh!" Grian yelps, before he extends his arms and a giant purple glowing force field bursts into life behind us. One crashes into it.
"You won’t be able to escape us forever, Xelqua!"
"Maybe not, but I will never stop trying."
With that, the force field explodes, pushing One back and us forward into the rift.
The four of us crash down onto the grass back on Hermitcraft. Lizzie jumps on me and pulls me into a hug.
"Never do that again, you idiot!"
I laugh and pull her closer. "I'm not planning on it."
She laughs too, tears in her eyes.
"Joel!" Grian comes into view. "I'm so, so, so sorry! I tried to get to you in time, I really did!"
"G, it’s okay. You still saved me, didn’t you?"
He sighs. "I guess I did. I'm glad you're okay."
Lizzie pulls away from me. "Come on, let’s get you to your base," she helps me to my feet, "I think Wild Life ended a bit too wild."
I laugh. "Yep! Definitely too wild for me."
~
Back in the void, One grumbles, looking down at Hermitcraft from a distance.
“ I will get you or your friends, Xelqua. No matter how many death games it takes to do so.”