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JOURNAL ENTRY: FEAR OF FIRE

Day 1: Solitude

I am stuck in a cell and I have no way to escape. I have searched through my inventory, but I don’t have a pickaxe or a shovel. I am tired and I don’t have any food left. I don’t know how much longer I will survive here. After one attack, I worry that more blazes will spawn in this small room and I will be trapped with the fiery mobs. This wasn’t how I imagined my life as an explorer. For the first time in my life, I dream of being saved by someone. I’m usually the resourceful one. I am the one who rescues other people. What have they done to me?

I’m also worried about Oliver. I wonder where he’s being kept prisoner. I want to save him, but I can’t even save myself.

I had a visitor today. There is a small hole in the wall and someone threw a carrot through it. It’s enough food to keep me alive, but not enough to build up my energy and food bar.

I’ve been trying to figure out who is keeping me prisoner. When they dropped off the carrot ration, I shouted, “Who are you?”

A voice replied, “Who I am doesn’t matter. Just eat your food. You will have a visitor soon enough, and they will explain everything.”

“Who? Tell me more!” I pleaded.

Silence. There was no response. The visitor’s deep voice had sounded sinister. My mind began to wander and I conjured up various images of the potential visitor. Was it Charles? Or Thao? Had they resurrected their blue army?

As my mind raced, a blaze spawned in the center of the room.

I jumped up. I was so scared. I hate fire. I was also a little shocked—I hadn’t thought the cell was big enough for the horrific yellow creatures to spawn. But the cell must have been larger than nine by nine. I had nothing to help me, no snowballs in my inventory. It shot a fireball at me. And with no place to hide, I was hit. Hard.

I respawned in the bed, still a captive. Luckily the blaze was gone, but I was so very tired. My energy was at an all-time low.

A stranger entered the room.

“Who are you?” I asked. He wore a red shirt and jeans. He didn’t look too scary.

He didn’t reply. He was very weak and had a depleted health bar. He looked over at me and asked, “Can you craft a bed? I’m afraid I might have to respawn and I’d rather respawn here than in the last prison.”

I looked through my inventory and luckily I had enough resources to craft a bed for him. As I worked on it, I asked him, “Why are you here?”

“I was treasure hunting in a Nether fortress when a group of people trapped me. They held their swords to me and told me I had to follow them. I didn’t want to get destroyed, so I followed them down a hole. They led me to a tiny cell, where they kept me prisoner for a long time, all by myself. I have no idea why they moved me. But this morning, they brought me here. I’m glad for the company.”

I finished the bed and the man thanked me. “What’s your name?” I asked.

“I’m Sean.”

“I’m William.”

Sean paused. “You’re not William the world-famous explorer . . . are you?”

“I am, actually.”

“Oh no. If you’re trapped here, that means the people who captured us are extremely powerful. If someone like you can’t escape, I’ll never make it out of here! You know all the tricks of the Overworld.”

I didn’t know how to reply. I was both flattered and offended. “I think we will find our way out of here together,” I said finally.

“Really? Do you?”

“I hope so. But it’s not going to be easy.”

“As long as we get out of here,” said Sean.

We could hear someone shouting, a muffled voice through the walls. “Do you know if other people are being held prisoner down here?” I asked Sean.

“I’m sure we’re not the only ones.”

I thought about Oliver. I wondered if he was kept prisoner in one of these cells. I also wondered how many other people were trapped in this prison. If we could get them all to escape, maybe we’d have a better chance of fighting our unknown enemy. The voice grew louder.

Sean walked over to the wall. “I can hear them calling for help!”

“I wish we could help them.” I stood beside Sean.

“Me too.”

The voices stopped. I wondered if their owners had been destroyed. There was an eerie silence.

“What happened?” Sean put his ear against the wall, hoping to hear something. Anything.

“I don’t know. But we will find out,” I said.

“Is that a promise?” Sean smiled.

“Yes, it is.”

A voice broke through the silence. “Help!”

This time, the voice sounded familiar.