The Battle at No- Man’s Land Biome Book 1: Rise of the Champions Page 2

  Day 2

  It was past midnight by the time my older brother awoke.

  Mother smiled in relief and Father came over to him.

  “Curse you and your sparring, Gareth. It was either you or your brother, but one of you was going to get hurt eventually. You guys took it too far. Once you’re okay, I want you to relax for a while!”

  Gareth still looked dizzy but he managed a smile. I got closer and grabbed his hand.

  “I’m sorry, big brother.”

  “No, Steve. It was about time you put up a fight,” Gareth replied.“And what a fight! Nice move at the end. There’s still hope for you yet. Wow. My first defeat and it was you.”

  I smiled sadly at him. I had never wanted to hurt him, yet I had. Even so, he was still cheerful and loving. “So when can I leave this place?” He asked. We were at the local hospital.

  “That’s the thing, big bro. They need to keep you here for a while. Head injuries are pretty dangerous.” I felt even worse when he looked away angrily. He didn’t like wasting time lying around. To him, it meant less physical and sword training. “Sorry again. It’s for the best.”

  We let the doctor come back in and take a look at him and returned home. We would be notified if anything new happened, but Gareth was fine on his own for the night.

  Dad chuckled as we arrived home.

  “I’m sorry darling, but I still can’t believe Steve beat Gareth in a fight.”

  “Don’t be cruel, our son was hurt…Though it is kind of funny! Ha, ha!” She joined in on the teasing and I just rolled my eyes and went to my room. They were so mean. I had never beaten him, sure. But that didn’t mean the day would never arrive.

  I went to bed so I could enjoy a few hours of sleep before morning arrived. As I closed my eyes, I thought of the fight.

  Maybe they’re right. It was kind of strange after all. Thankfully I still have a lot of time to learn before I actually have to fight for real.

  Dawn arrived and I felt too tired to get out of bed, but there was a lot of noise around the house. Suddenly, I felt nervous. Our village was one of the largest in the area but it was usually quiet. The last time I had heard so much noise it had been because of a large Zombie attack. Luckily, we had fought them off that time.

  “Son, come quickly!” Dad said as he poked his head inside my room.

  A large crowd was passing through our village with chests and blocks in their hands. Everyone got out of their homes to watch the newcomers as they went to the main plaza of our settlement and began to build something. The aging Mayor stood around looking cheery and proud.

  “What’s going on?” I asked. One thing was for sure, we weren’t being attacked by Zombies. Maybe this would end up being something worse?

  “There’s an announcement set to take place. Something big is happening. Your mom is at the hospital taking care of Gareth, but she told me that the Mayor had spoken of an ‘event’ in the No-Man’s-Land Biome.”

  What?! Who would dare go to an event in such a place? Weird.

  We stood there watching as the strangers came and went, placing blocks on top of each other and setting a Redstone circuit down leading away from the village. The anticipation grew until eventually, it seemed like the structure was ready.

  The Mayor cleared his throat.

  “Ladies and gentlemen of Blueberry Town, I am glad that you are all well. As you may know, we have special visitors in our cozy village, a collection of interesting men and women sent by the King and Queen themselves! They come here to announce something huge, something that will make even the oldest of you — such as me — as excited as a child on his birthday! Tell them,” he said, looking at one of the strangely dressed men behind him.

  The dark-haired man took a few steps forward and bowed. He wore an outfit that looked like a sort of elegant — perhaps even futuristic — military uniform. It was blue-gray and certain parts of it looked armored. Still, it didn’t look like it protected him a lot. Or did it?

  “Thank you all for coming out here to listen to our announcement,” he said, and then turned more serious, “Times have changed in the Minecraft World. The war is passed, and we enjoy one of the most prosperous times of our history. Alliances have been forged and now we look forward into the future.” He bent forward and made a dramatic face. “The leaders of each race have met, from humans to villagers to mobs themselves. To seal the alliance, there is to be a great event. The greatest, in fact.”

  He made a sign and the great black rectangle switched on. A screen, I realized.

  Huge letters that read “The Great Minecraft Tournament” flashed on it and music began to play.

  The man spoke again: “Four champions from each race will be chosen to participate. The King specifically told us to choose one of the champions from Blueberry, so be proud of yourselves!” The crowd around me began to whisper and chat excitedly. “The draw will be held tonight. Be prepared, one of you will have the honor of representing humanity in the Tournament, and if you end up winning, well…let’s just say that even the King and Queen will envy your new fame, riches, and power!”

  The crowd screamed and I saw young men and women jumping up and down, celebrating as if they had already been chosen. The strange visitors began to file out of the plaza, leaving the screen turned on with its flashing letters.

  Dad looked at me and gave me the thumbs up. I smiled back, but I didn’t feel cheery like he did.

  For some reason, I have a terribly bad feeling about this…