Foxjin and Colder

Gravel Fear

Foxjin places a torch on the wall inside the mineshaft, some gravel falls from the ceiling. She stares at it... gravel... That triggers so many memories, ones she doesn't want to remember.
She realizes Colder had also stopped, staring at her curiously waiting for her to keep walking. She starts to walk again placing more torches then stops as more gravel falls, she steps back letting him go ahead. Standing paused there staring at the gravel, that's how she’d met him. That’s how she joined the Resistance.
Just a little bit of gravel...

She gasps as the zombies surround her, she runs away frantically, of course getting in a situation like this at the worst time. She’s alone, she has been for a while, but now she needs help, there's too many zombies. She digs down desperately underground then gasps as gravel engulfs her trapping her. Suddenly everything she can see is rock and dust she can't breathe, can't see where she is. She struggles more hearing the zombies approaching closer.
"I'm gonna die” she gasps for air getting gravel in her mouth, “help!” She calls, knowing there won't be a response, she's alone out here in the woods, suffocating.
"It's over” she whispers as the zombie groans get nearer. Then she hears the sound of blades and zombies dying, suddenly strong arms clasp around her and pull her out of the gravel. 

“Man... You ok?”

She looks up and sees a guy around her age. He has one white eye and one black eye... She’s never seen anything like it, she coughs spitting out the gravel feeling dizzy as she sucks in air desperately.
She feels the guy’s arms still holding her, he brushes gravel from her hair.

“Can you breathe?” he asks.

She pauses, staring at him not registering that he's talking to her. For once she is speechless. Then she reacts, pulling away from him and sitting there in the grass, she scans for her bow.

“Relax, you're all good,” the guy says, he's wearing a black shirt with a white X across the middle with some black trousers. His weapons are two pale curved blades, she's never seen weapons like that... unique, he's skinny built, almost completely white layered hair.

“Do you talk?” He asks staring at her, “I'm DNAx, weird name I know” he continues, he's quite friendly.

She registers that he's talking to her finally.

“Foxjin,” she replies.

“That's your name?” He asks her.

 She nods wary of him, he's the first person she's talked to in a long time, he could be dangerous, and with weapons like that... She also doesn't know if he's alone. She rubs gravel off her sleeve.

“Here let me help,” the guy gets up then he's grabbing her pulling her to her feet, she can't help but flinch at the touch.
“There...” He says then pauses, “Hold up...” He stares at her for a moment,

“Are you even a guy?”

Foxjin stands still, not sure how to respond, she eyes her bow from where she is, it’s laying on the grass a few feet away...

“No” she finally replies, “and?”

His mouth opens in surprise then his whole demeanor shifts. 

"Woah, I mean... sorry, I didn't realize.”

Foxjin picks up her bow going to walk away now, she doesn't know him and doesn't really want to.
The guy stares, 

"Where did you get that?” he asks.

“I made it” Foxjin tells him.

He continues to stare,

“I think that is a pretty special bow.” He compliments her.

Foxjin doesn't respond; she just stares at him narrowing her eyes. 

“I've never seen anything like it, you should join us.” DNAx continues. 

“Why should I join you?” Foxjin asks. 

"Because we need someone like you,” he answers, “I'm part of the Resistance, we are the hope for the players, against the villagers, plus you'd be safe there, maybe we could be friends?”

"Hmm" she murmurs uncertainly, definitely not wanting to be friends with him or anyone else.

“Oh, come on I saved you and it looks like you are by yourself,” He observes raising his eyebrows.
She thinks about it, the guy, DNAx starts to walk, she decides to follow, wanting to see what this group is...
“Oh, you're coming?” He smiles very warmly at her. She doesn't reply to him, as they walk, he keeps talking, telling her about where they are going.

“We are a powerful group, our leader X_Grave_X is an expert at killing the Villager Scouts and Knights. We go on raids and loot houses and villages, but you have to be very serious around there, once a guy named Skymint said Grave looked “Fabulous” and got knocked out.”
Foxjin listens thinking this sounds like a place where you have to prove your worth to fit in. 

“Ok...” she says. 

Foxjin’s memory fades and she blinks,

Worst decision I ever made... That fight, that was when he betrayed me, they all had glowing eyes, the Resistance fell, the members were possessed... they attacked... it came from Herobrine.

The last thing she remembered was falling towards the sand, where she blacked out, she can only assume she got into a river somehow and was swept away to where she woke up on land.
She’s been in this spot ever since...

“Foxjin?” A hand waves in her face causing her to snap out of the past. Colder is standing there staring at her. She stares back at him,

“How long was I standing there?” she asks.

“Like 20 seconds,” he replies.

“Right...” she murmurs pushing away the memories again.

“Come on,” Colder says starting to walk ahead of her. Foxjin follows, still thinking about DNAx she places another torch on the wall, she doesn't see the gravel falling on her. 

                              -----

Colder hears Foxjin’s muffled scream as the gravel engulfs her,

“Foxjin!?” He yells then tries to dig her out, she coughs as she pulls herself out of the gravel sitting there looking shocked.

“Oh whew” Colder says with relief, without thinking how she might feel he reaches out and brushes some gravel out of her hair. He feels her flinch at his touch, and he pulls his hand away. 

“Oops sorry,” he says,

She stares at him almost blankly then gets up brushing the gravel off herself.

“Let's just... keep going” she murmurs stalking ahead. Colder follows behind her wondering what happened, she seems distracted, almost like remembering something...
He follows behind eyeing her bow on her back, he wants to know how she got it, if not from the Resistance.

“Where'd you get your bow?” he asks, “if not from the Resistance?”
She looks over at him, he sees hostility in her eyes... he hadn't expected it from that question.

“Don't act like him” she replies finally.

Who? He wonders staring at her wanting to know how he compared.

“Were you in the Resistance?” He asks.

She doesn't even turn around. 

“Yeah... I was, before the battle... where everyone got possessed, I'm not sure what's left now.”

Colder stares feeling a little stunned, the forest base was so secure... how could they have possibly been attacked there... by Herobrine...?
He remembers Grave telling them the story of what happened after he went in the woods and got in a fight with a Herobrine vessel, his friend Burrito died in the battle and respawned later... is there more of them now?

“We moved” she says as if reading his thoughts, “to the desert, we had a big place... probably after you left.”

Colder nods and they keep walking through the mineshaft, it's obvious she doesn't want to talk about it.