Solitary [MCSM Fanfiction]

Chapter 8: WELCOMING HOME

Time wasn't a thing for the creatures that lurked in the forest. Mercy was never taught to the predators in the woods, either.

The birds went silent with every echoing cry she unleashed. The rocks rattled at every blow she took on the logs. It seemed the entirety of nature was under Petra's demand. Friends were antiquated - it was just her and the forest, a call and an answer.

She didn't know what to do with all the wood she'd collected, apart from scraping off some of the splintered texture from the edges with her dagger. There was never a case where she'd scrounged for resources she hadn't needed in the moment. It was all just a play to make the clock tick faster.

Business. Petra straightened her spine. The richest people in Endercon didn't even mine. No, their wealth came from trading and gambling. She bit her lip in deep thought - if she could just get her hands on those items that were on demand, everything about her would change. Sword Girl, the town's most thundering rumor, would transform into Endercon's best handyman. She didn't need anyone to downplay Jesse at all.

'A one-man team,' she thought, slowing her pace as the canopy of the trees thickened. Living by herself, hunting by herself: the idea didn't sound so bad.

Her mind became a manual, suggestions of where to live and how to survive cultivating in her brain until a dark patch in the rocks on her right caused her to stop.

It was a gap in the hill.

Since the rim of the opening was loose, Petra decided to clear it, digging out the stone fragments with her hands.

A cave was revealed, mysterious and capacious. But even with all the hostile mobs pouring out from the inside, this could be the world she could conquer; not just the cave, but the grass, the hill, and this part of the woods. No one would find her or hear even her loudest screams.

The girl raised a torch in her left hand, her sword in her right and began to make and battle it out in her fortress, her hideout.

Her newly claimed home.

----

If it was one thing Petra hated the most, it would've been poor punctuality. Therefore, she was relieved she got back in time for the results of the competition to be announced.

All the builds were left untouched, many completed and some others that weren't so fortunate, unfinished. There was a broad variation of color, height, and length in each one, though it was clear that the Ocelots's color palette stood out the most.

The four of them stood slightly elevated from the base with sparkling eyes. Petra didn't know what reference they used for their build, but it was alarmingly accurate to whatever it imitated. Not a single block was misplaced.

In the booth where Jesse and his team worked, there was a simple yet graceful birch fountain that spurted out a delightful amount of water from the top. It ticked off the functional part of the criteria and could even pass as a new ornament for the town square.

Both builds would have been hard to judge for first place until Lukas steadily climbed to the top of the Ocelot volcano and flipped a hidden lever. Out of the mouth shot multitudes of explosions that worked like an excessive smoke machine. Indeed, the build was grand and an obvious standout.

"Dude, that thing is awesome!" One of the spectators applauded from afar.

Petra's heart sank as she saw Jesse and his friends sigh in defeat. They looked at each other, hopes crushed in their eyes. Despite the hurt in their expressions, they still kept up their good sportsmanship and clapped with the smallest hint of admiration.