Withering World 1 [MCSM Fanfiction]

INFLAMMATION: Chapter 14

Lukas

It was undoubtedly a fright, Petra's threats, but maybe it was also her way of showing affection - I'm not sure if it was directed to me or Jesse. Probably both.

She punches in the code for the fortress gates and they slip open, exposing the forbidding scene the Set One warriors fight in every day. Troubled skies coat the planet with gloomy shades of violet and gray. The air isn't cold but callous and stiff. Heavy burdens hide within the barren landscape. Most trees are bare, stripped of their dressing. Those that retain surviving leaves are wilting and shriveling.

"Gosh, how awful," Jesse says, hyperventilating through her helmet.

"Yup. Welcome to Wither World." The girl in the blue armor advances, turning a one-eighty, and spreads out her arms to introduce it to us.

Shortly after, we cross the warriors' limit, ejecting ourselves from QZ's surveillance. Now it's just us three, disconnected from the safe grounds like a plane taking off to leave everyone else behind at the airport.

We trample the hopeless ferns and encounter our first obstacles, Jesse and Petra strategically encircling me as we defend each other. Rich crunching noises, the sound of bones shattering, constantly drill into our ears, driven by their swords and my arrows. But a skeleton breaks through the girls' ring and charges towards me, making me exchange my weapon, a bow for an iron blade.

I struggle, the sword not being my dominant arm. The wither skeleton towers over me as we parry. But I'm overcome, so when I underestimate the mob's skill in a standoff, its brandished blade comes over and disarms me, my weapon flying out of my wrist.

"Guys, a little help," I gulp, words shuddering like a creeper beside an ocelot.

There's no response.

A stone trips me backward and I scramble meekly, hauling myself away on my hands and legs. In the distance, I pick up a piercing battle scream belonging to Petra and see her being fired forward by Jesse, targeting a crowd of wither skeletons like a rapidly gyrating arrow. It sends a light bulb to my brain.

The skeleton closes in, raising its sword so the point aligns dead in the middle of my heart. Only then do I feel the adrenaline course through my vessels, springing out of its path and ripping an arrow out of my leathery quiver. When the monster strikes again, I swerve to the left and spear it through its ribcage while bringing my leg up to kick the sword out of its hands. Even with armor, great trepidation inflames my mind as I slowly, mercilessly turn the arrow. The skeleton drops, poofing into a piece of coal, a bone, and dust.

I steady myself, breaths and heartbeats accelerating to the rhythm of the pace of my sprint. After scooping up my abandoned sword, three horrendous slender creatures jump out of a nearby wither rose.

"Lukas, run!"

Jesse and Petra get a head-start. Even they know I'm screwed if I choose to fight. I roll out of the way, picking myself up into a thrilling dash.

They seem to come from all directions now. And though my body continuously beseeches for rest, my arms pump, and my legs work. I cannot risk a pause in the race. Getting infected is not an option.

----

"Over there!" Jesse exclaims.

Like a rainbow parrot in a flock of chickens, the tree she points to is well-aged and animate, bursting with life. Its telltale height and dense leaves make it a perfect hideaway for the three of us.

"You sure?" Petra asks.

A scorching sensation fills my lungs and I dance on flames, some of the consequences of our never-ending run. The others may have the endurance to keep going. I just want out of this. "Hey, you don't see any other enormous trees that actually have leaves on them out here do you? Let's get this over with."