Don't Mine At Night

Save File 11 - Going Out In A Blaze Of Glory

     She ran for what felt like an eternity. Winding herself through the maze of stone in a hurry. In her mind she pleaded for help and hope. She wasn't about to go down like this. She couldn't. She wouldn't. Luck was on her side as Peri eventually came into view. "Peri! Run!" Onyx all but screamed as she came up the stony stairway and bolted forwards.

"What?"

"RUN!" She didn't slow her pace as she approached. While she managed to catch Peri by the arm, she also managed to trip herself, and together they fell into a tangled mess. "UP! NOW!"

"Onyx!" Peri snapped in the sharpest voice she could. She grabbed her friend by the overshirt and yanked her back down then shoved her as hard as she could against the floor. Everything fell silent for a brief moment as Onyx hit the floor. The sound of her gemstone colliding with the stone in the ground was sickening. The fury burning in Peri's heart brought her back to reality. "What has gotten into you!?"

"Monsters!" Onyx pointed towards the direction she'd come from.

Peri sat up and peered into the dark. She waited for a long, silent, moment before turning to Onyx with the most un-amused face she'd probably ever had. "Monsters? Really!?"

"I swear! There were monsters! A b-big black m-monster! W-with glowing eyes! I-it could teleport!"

Her gaze came to rest on Onyx. "There's no monster."

"There was a monster!"

Peri got back up, grabbed her pickaxe, and went back to mining some cobblestone. "Sure Onyx. There was a monster."

"Why won't you believe me!?" Onyx cried desperately. She rubbed her gemstone, making sure it hadn't cracked, and looked helplessly at the green gem.

"Because there's nothing down here except us and some resources. End of story. Ok?" A terrible noise echoed through the cave putting an end to that conversation. "Onyx..?"

"Don't look at me. There aren't monsters down here."

"Seriously!?"

"Two can play at that game!" Feeling no cracks in her gem she stood up and looked around. It sounded like the black creature she'd run into earlier. In an instant it appeared in the dark. It's purple eyes glowing in the dark.

"What is-"

"Run!" Onyx grabbed Peri's arm. The gem yelped in surprise. This caught the monster's attention which prompted it to disappear again.

"It's gone!" Peri yelled, though for what reason, Onyx couldn't guess.

"Now do you believe me!?"

"Yes!"

In the chaos of running for their lives, the monster teleporting in and out of view, they made a wrong turn and wound up deeper in the cave. With barely any decent weapons and only a few torches left they were truly in trouble. The room opened up and the monster disappeared. Peri clutched Onyx's hand with a death-grip.

"I'm sorry I didn't believe you," Peri trembled a little, sticking extremely close to Onyx's side.

Onyx gave the gem a sad and understanding look. She'd wanted so badly in her heart to prove to Peri that this world was dangerous. Now that they were facing the danger though? She wanted nothing but safety for the gem. Peri didn't ask for this. This was all an adventure to her. Death and fear should never have been a part of the equation. "I'm sorry I yelled at you."

"We're both still learning, after all these years, we're not perfect Nyx." Peri hugged Onyx tightly.

For a brief moment, everything felt at peace. They may have been lost but at least they weren't in any immediate danger and they had each other. "We'll make it out of this mess. I promise you."

As Peri opened her mouth to respond the sound of monsters filled the cavern. "Nyx?"

Onyx let Peri go, keeping one arm around her, and held her sword with the other. "Get ready to run."

The purple glowing flecks returned and this time in more mass. Glowing purple eyes appeared and locked onto the two gems. Some screeched loudly, some disappeared and appeared closer, a few simply walked closer.

"RUN!" Onyx shoved Peri back and once again brought up the rear. It was going to be a miracle if they could make it out now. Dying still didn't seem like a good option, Onyx at least didn't want to test how that worked.

They rounded the corner and were met with skeletons. Rushing past, the skeletons shot arrows at them. A few zombies staggered out from a side cutaway in the cave. There was no escape now. This was it. This was how they died. There was no conceivable means of escape. Even if they did manage to get killed and respawn, the monsters would find their base before they could grab new weapons to fight. There was no escaping the certain horrible death that lie ahead.

Onyx hung back for a brief moment to try and fight them. A few hits to a slow moving zombie and her sword shattered. She was struck in the arm by an arrow before she could return to running. Clutching her arm she turned and ran after Peri. The black monsters disappeared in and out of sight, seemingly still mad about something, and chasing the gems.

A tiny spec of light appeared ahead. Peri waited long enough to be close to Onyx and grabbed her hand, pulling her with all her might. "The entrance!" She gasped as she gestured towards the light.

They ran with all their might. The monsters were relentless. The hiss of the creepers joined the chaos. Finally the entrance was in sight. Daylight, it's safety, was not too far ahead. Onyx looked at Peri as they ran. There was so much fear in the gem's eyes. "Peri!"

"What?"

"I want to tell you something!"

They rounded another corner where there were two more spiders. Peri threw her pickaxe at one spider. "What?"

Seeing the tunnel up, Onyx grabbed Peri's arm and pulled her forwards. "Run!!"

"Run?"

"No, that's not what I wanted to tell you but for the love of clod, RUN!" Daylight drew nearer. The monsters behind them never gave up. The black monsters screeched and teleported in and out of sight.

"What did you want to tell me?"

"Peri... I.... I..." The sickening hiss of the creepers cut her off. Finally she blurted everything out. "Peri I love y-"