The Survivors [Volume 1]

Fresh Starts and Heavy Hitters

          Rainer shot upright, both feet planted on the soft cushioning of the bed he had been asleep in just moments ok. Held in both shaking hands were two swords, both made of a glimmering blue gem, which he now knew to be diamonds. His held his breath, as his eyes franticly scanned the room, looking for glowing white eyes in every darkest shadows. He let out a drawn-out sigh, closing his eyes and slowly falling onto his knees, bouncing slight on the soft surface, arms now limp, with the two diamond swords pointed away from him. After a moment he slowly opened his eyes, looking to the small digital clock that was on his nightstand. The time read 5:30. 

          It had been two weeks today sense he had gotten to this world with Dan, Felix, James, and Landon. Two weeks sense he had taken Notch and Jeb's offer to be leader of The Survivors. They had been training, although nothing too hard. Basic combat, acrobatics, on your feet thinking; the main things you would need in a fight, starting off at least. Hayden was their main combat teacher, seeing as he was apparently the city's guard captain. He was kind, and quite patient with the five of them, with Rainer himself having the least combat experience. They had quickly realized that he seemed to excel in dual wielding, which is why, thanks to Notch, he had been provided with the two diamond weapons. They had all been provided diamond gear, each of them getting a full suit of armor, tool set, and weapons; Felix getting Diamond daggers, Dan getting some sort of larger bow known as a long bow, James getting a battle axe, and getting a long sword. Rainer himself also had a few members of the city's main library members aiding in his education of the world, such as how it worked, what was in it, and what Crafters like himself could do. Things were going well, in truth. He was healthy, finally had food to eat, and possibly best of all, he had people to talk to, and to just "hang out" with, as the other's called it. He hadn't met anyone outside of the Capital Citadel, which was fine to him. Notch and Jeb said that the time for that would be coming soon. If there was just one thing he would change about his life now, it would be the nightmares.

          Every night, he had the same dreams. There were slight variations to them, of course. Sometimes he was back in that arctic village. Sometimes he was in the main hall of Notch's throne room. And sometimes, he was here, in this room within the citadel that he now called his home. But they all had one thing in common: the man with glowing white eyes. Notch and Jeb had told him and the others not to worry about it, that it was just some cruel man in search of power. For some reason, that didn't make him feel any better or lesson his unspoken fears. 

          Rainer sighed, his swords vanishing from his hands as he rubbed his flat face. He got off his knees and got out of bed, seeing no reason in trying to go back to sleep. His mind was wide awake, and they all normally got up in just over an hour, anyways. He stepped over to the dresser, sliding open drawers and pulling out what he needed. He did same with the closet, and changed out of the softer sleep wear and into what was now his main clothing. He went over to the mirror, and looked at his reflection, being able to see his whole body in the two-block tall reflective surface. Shortly after agreeing to the offer, Notch and Jeb had asked him to write a list of what he would want clothing wise, seeing as he had none. It was then they found out he didn't exactly know how to write, seeing as he had never been taught. To his relief, the two rulers, and his new friends (he still didn't know if that's what they were) had held no judgement, and Felix had written down what I said for me. The others had also been given modified clothing that was similar to their previous ones, but made of different materials, and with the team logo. 

          Rainer himself wore sleek, black pants and a plane white t-shirt. Overtop of the white T, he had on a blue sweatshirt, the shade of a flowing river, with a few darker blue accents around its edges, as well as at the cuffs. It could be zipped up if needed, but he mostly kept it fully unzipped, as it was now. It had a hood as well, which hung limp behind his neck. Due to some liquids known as potions, most of his ice scars were now gone, and his hair was now a jet black, fully free of frost. His skin was smoother as well; overall, he looked a lot better than he had two weeks prior, in his opinion. He turned, picking a note book off from a table, and went to the door. As he turned the nob and began to leave, he stopped and looked back over his shoulder at the mirror, seeing his back's reflection. The survivor logo was on the back of the blue sweatshirt, being a mix of dark blue, silver, and brown. It was a crafting grid set at a 45-degree angle, with what looked like four swords pointing out from its corners. At all of the sword's points were the letters N, E, S, W, the whole thing forming a compass. Something about the image rang a bell, although why he had no clue. He turned his focus back in front of him and closed the door behind him.