Chasing Chaos

Chapter 3

AN: Hey, this is Ry! All of my author's notes will be underlined, kinda like how all of Naomi's are in italics.

Welcome to the third chapter of Chasing Chaos, and I hope you enjoy it! ;)

SE- Ry's POV

I shook my head slowly as I read Naomi's response.

You know I wouldn't invade you without a good reason, right? I'm not going to touch your countries in my expansion of the Republic. You're friends of mine, I wouldn't do that.

You can trust me.

I sighed. Naomi, Dark, and I had been such good friends before the expansion of the Republic. I knew Dark demanded that she stop as well, and I was starting to get concerned with how close the expansion was getting to Emeraldia and Deolark, Dark's country.

Both countries were still recovering from Radish Land, the nation that had been nuking each of the other countries. Sadly, the countries like Minetopia and Pride Country weren't recovering-in fact, they had been expanded into by the Republic of Shadow Walkers. Not to mention that those two countries were right on Emeraldia's north and east borders...

The expansion had been slow at first, and then it had increased at an alarming rate. Some part of me knew Naomi was ambitious, alarmingly so, and she probably wouldn't stop until she had each country in the Republic.

I wasn't so sure I could trust Naomi anymore.

Regretfully, I turned my back on my computer after sending two more messages. Hopefully she wouldn't take them as hostile demands. I couldn't bear to read the messages that I didn't believe, though the last sentence rang in my head like she'd said the words aloud.

You can trust me.

But can I really? I asked her silently.

A low meow sounded from the doorway, and I glanced at it. A cat was there, as was my closest friend in the country-a young teenager who had approached me during the war named Sapphire.

"Hey, Sapphire!" I greeted.

Sapphire smiled in response. "Hey, Ry. Any luck with Naomi?"

I sighed. "Sadly, no. I'm scared of what she could do next, and I'm afraid we need to prepare for war in case she attacks."

Sapphire frowned slightly. "It's early to prepare for something like that, Ry."

I shrugged helplessly. "You're right, I know. But if she does what I think she will next, if this turns into war..."

Sapphire walked in and put a hand on my shoulder comfortingly. "Ry, I know you're stressed out about this, especially since we're trying to come back from the brink. Just remember, what starts as a misunderstanding turns to anger sometimes, anger to war. I hate to say it, but that's the truth of it. Maybe this is all a misunderstanding."

I sighed again. "She attacked our bordering countries and expanded there. There's hardly a misunderstanding there-she intends to move, and we're next. So is Deolark..."

"True," Sapphire reluctantly admitted. "But she promised not to do that to you."

I looked at the ground. That was something my old friend and co-leader Andrew would've said. He'd sadly died of his injuries after the war was over, a day later, in fact. I also lost Anahee and Sapphire's mother, and countless others. No one knew where Sapphire's father had gone. He'd probably been one of the citizens of Radish Land killed in the attack that had destroyed it once and for all.

"Promises don't always keep," I pointed out. "Right now, while we're recovering, would be the best time for her to try attacking."

Sapphire sighed. "Ry... you need a break. Go take a breath outside, and I'll take over for now."

In a way, I guessed Sapphire had become my co-leader as well despite her young age. She was rather wise as well. It probably came from growing up alone, as I had so many years ago.

"Fine. Call me if there's any trouble," I said reluctantly.

Standing, I started walking to the door. As I exited, I saw Sapphire looking out of the window at the beautiful view outside. I'd rebuild the capital into the side of Mount Minecraft... and hopefully Naomi didn't know, since the last time we'd been together Emeraldia's capital had still been Goldtropilis.

I went outside and breathed the fresh, sharp air. It was the middle of fall, and I could tell it would be a nice winter already. I sat on the bench just outside and looked up toward the hill where the wild animals roamed.

Nothing was there. There was an eerie silence out of the capital, despite the hustle and bustle in the new city below the mountain.

"Ry!"

I stood and looked over at Jana. Jana had also become a close friend and supporter. In fact, she was the one who had helped me through the devastating results of war.

"Hey, Jana," I said quietly.

Her green eyes stared back at me in a friendly way. "How is it, being the leader so far?"

"Stressful," I admitted, deciding at the last second to be brutally honest. "I don't know if I can trust Naomi. I'm thinking about preparing for war, though we under no circumstance are making the first move. I'm worried I'm doing something wrong. I-"

"Ry," Jana chided. "Calm down. I honestly can't say I understand how stressful it is, but try not to focus on the negatives. Look around. Think about how lucky we are to even be alive. And we couldn't have done it without Deolark and Naomi's ragtag group."

"They're not a ragtag group," I muttered.

"True, but do you see what I'm saying? We should just be happy we're alive."

I reluctantly agreed. "Okay. But if she makes another move on either of our countries..."

"Fair enough. Want to go get some coffee?"

I smirked at her. "Come on, really? Coffee? Of course!"

Together, we walked toward the shop. As we went, I couldn't help thinking.

I wish we could turn back time... and go back to the good old days. Where have they gone?

Can I ever trust my old friend again?

A/N: This is gonna be fun, with each country writing their own POV.

I better tell Glitch and Leo to stop procrastinating... *sigh*

Glitch: I wasn't procrastinating too much on this work. It's just because it's not my turn to write yet lmao

To be honest, I was procrastinating until tonight. (Tonight being September 30, since I'm not sure when the chapter is actually going up) I came on because the others procrastinated too much and Glitch caught me at a perfect time *cough cough*

Hopefully we'll see the others next chapter.

What will happen next? Will Dark and Ry persist in their messages? Will Ry trust her old friend ever again? Is Ry's fear true, or is it just too much worry from the stress? Will I actually go back on Kik later to tell the others to write their POV? Find out next time, on Chasing Chaos!

See you later!