Apocolypse: The Destruction Of Therras

[Twisted Voodoo]

Art by Jamie_19 (thanks so much)

Chapter 1

"I'm gettin'-" Nostrum grunted as he pulled the wrench towards him, trying to move the pipe,"To old for this shit!&quot" The pipe suddenly gave way, knocking Nostrum to the ground, spilling the jammed contents all over the ground. "Dammit," Nostrum sighed, pushing the cobble and dirt off of him, "I cannot get a break."

"What's the matter old man, getting too tough for ya?" Nostrum looked up to find another man, just as sweaty and dirty as he was offering his hand. He had bright blue eyes, and despite everything, he always smiled, and always tried to lighten the mood for everyone.

"Yeah, well, I don't think you remember how many times I pulled you from a Quarry hole Keith." Keith merely shrugged, grabbing Nostrum's hand and pulled him off the ground, the remaining dirt falling to the ground beneath him.

"The boss told me you needed help?" Keith asked, looking at the dislodged piping.

"Yeah, well," Nostrum said, looking at the mess, "I reckon the quarry got lodged up and it just couldn't keep up. You may have to replace some circuits, er..." Nostrum wandered over to the machine block, and pulled away the side panel of the quarry. "Yep!" Nostrum said with a slight smile, "Damn thing burnt out on her, we need some more circuits, and it looks like some of the wiring was burnt out as well. Grab me some cable, and some circuits from the work shop." Keith nodded and walked away, leaving Nostrum with the mess. Nostrum looked up at the mass amounts of quarries, all of them drilling, all of them uniform, ripping up the ground, and delivering the content to the silos, to the farms and to the forges. It was a wonder to see, all of the materials soaring across the sky, or along the ground. Nostrum didn't like working on those pipes though, most of them sat above the quarries themselves and its been more than one time where nostrum watched a fellow engineer fall to his death. Nostrum shook the thought out of his head and began work on the next pipe.

"Here ya go." Keith said, setting down the tool box next to the quarry block."Here, let me help out with that, you can work on the quarry itself, OLD MAN." Nostrum shook his head, leaving the wrench where it was and walked to the quarry block and dragged the tools next to him.

"Tell ya what, I hate these things, and if one breaks down, it sets all of them behind if ya don't fix em fast enough," Nostrum said, pulling the bad circuits out of place. "And I'll be damned if I get docked more pay because of a machine. Hell, I still see miners with a pickaxe do more than what a quarry can do in aq day. Just, well, a quarry has the element of sheer size, and being able to transport, while a miner is limited to his pick and a tunnel Bore. I remember a few years back, a brave miner by the man of smi took on a Quarry machine. He died, trying to beat it. He dug so far down though, with nothing but a pick and shovel." Nostrum grew quiet and shook his head. Ketih looked up from the pipes and cocked an eyebrow at Nostrum.

"What in Notch's name are you talking about?" Nostrum gave a small chuckle and said,

"Ah, hell, I don't even know any more." Nostrum grew quiet again, staring blankly at the repaired panel.

"Nost?" Keith asked, noticing the sound of Nostrum's voice. Nostrum shook his head and gave a slight smile to Keith.

"Sorry! Mid day daze!" Nostrum said with a big smile as he slammed the panel shut, "Now grab a shovel, and help me dig this cable up, k?" Keith nodded, walking around to Nostrum and began digging the dirt from the quarry, exposing several cables, all which ere charred and burnt.

"Who the hell used un-insulated cable?" Keith scoffed, looking at the burnt wiring. "Dumb-ass." Keith used shears to clip away the cable, before replacing it with the larger insulated cable

"Alright!" Nostrum cried, "Let's see if she works!" Keith nodded and flipped the switch. The familiar hum of the quarry sparked to life as the diamond tipped drill began to move, spinning and knocking away the dirt as it swayed from one side of the hole to the other.

"good job!" Nostrum said, patting Keith on the back,"Glad to have ya as my partner."

"You too old man."; Keith said, "But we've got a break down of a Rotary Macerator near the forge we need to deal with." Nostrum shook his head and rolled his eyes.

"Of course we do. Alright, Lead the way." Nostrum told him, waving his hand forward;"After you!"

Nostrum Domus was his name. He was a great engineer in his youth, and founded the Nostrum Engineering company when he was younger, creating great machines that would have made him rich, had it not been for Amarta, a rival company that threatened to kill him and his family if he did not comply to their terms...give them everything. Nostrum didn't want any harm to his family, so he gave up all that he had worked for for their safety.

Unfortunately, a few years later, a sickness struck Therras that took not only his wife, but his two daughters, Emma and Katie from him, and left him with nothing. A few years after that, he found himself working for the same company that shut him down...Amarta Industries. He never told anyone what had happened.

Nostrum was well into the later half of his life. He sported suspenders and jeans, and always wore a dark blue T-shirt underneath the suspenders. He sported a large, scraggly beard which poofed out passed his chin and dropped to his chest. His hair was very similar, peppered and unkempt kept up by a pair of welding goggles usually.

Nostrum was tall, and incredibly strong for his age and he always seemed to want to help others, but he always seemed to struggle himself. Nostrum was an odd sort, the epidimy of mixed emotions and fears. No one knew much about him, other than himself.

"Well, you've been quiet," Keith said suddenly, "you okay old man?"; Nostrum snapped out of his trance, not even sure where he was going. He looked around and saw they were in the market district of Therras.

"I thought we were going to fix a Macerator?" Nostrum Questioned, looking around confused.

"Yeah, but its our lunch, and I'm friggen hungry. I'm buyin'" Nostrum nodded as Keith ordered some burgers and two glasses of tea, and handed the cashier a few Industrial credits. They sat down near the shde and watched as a few other engineers grabbed their lunch as well. "How long have you been working here?"

"Oh....hell..." Nostrum pondered, "It's been thirty? or Forty? years now?"

"Damn! You should be a C.O, or at least a supervisor by now, why you working in the field? I've seen you pull off some amazing stuff with a hammer and cord, and yet you're here? I see people promoted every day, and yet you're here? What the hell is wrong with that picture?" Keith said, biting into the burger, looking down the street.

"Choice, I guess." Nostrum said quietly, staring at nothing in particular.

"BULLSHIT. I call it." Keith said, looking back at Nostrum. "That can't be the reason, What gives?"

"I..." Nostrum sighed, running his hand through his beard. "Its hard to explain, K? Leave it at that." Keith looked into Nostrum's eyes. He truly did not understand the man.

"Alright at least tell me th- what the fuck?" Keith dropped the burger and stood up, looking at the sky. There was a large group of people, standing in formation, in the sky.

"Oh shit...shit, shit, shit, shit..."; Keith whispered. "Mages." Nostrum looked up and saw the group of mages and stood up so fast the chair clattered on the pavement.

"Surrender the city now, or we will exterminate the populace. This is your one, and ONLY warning." The voice boomed through the sky, louder than any of the machines!

"WHAT?" Keith spat, backing up a few steps, "Exterminate? What the fuck is he talking about Nost?" Nostrum shook his head, still staring at the sky. Out of no where the wail of sirens began sound throughout the city as more and more people began to pour outside, all of them drawn to the sky. Nostrum pushed past a few people and grabbed keith by the arm.

"We gotta go, we GOTTA GO NOW!" Nostrum screamed, his voice crackling with fear. Keith nodded and the two of them began to press through the crowd, running to escape to somewhere, and fast!

"Therras!" A voice sounded in the loud speakers of the city as Nostrum and Keith ran wildly through the panicked streets, "Stay in your homes, this will all be over soon. Send out the S.R.P!" Keith looked at Nostrum who replied, "This is bad, this is really, REALLY bad." Nostrum pulled Keith to the side, and into the alleys the two went, trying to go where the crowd was thinnest. In the distance they could hear the sounds of marching feet and the vibrations underneath them as the Therran Army began to march to the intruders!

"Notch, give me strength." Keith whimpered, looking at the sky.

"This ain't no time for Religion! Get your ass moving! RUN!" Nostrum continued to push forward, crossing streets and alleys. "Think, where can we go?" Nostrum shouted towards Keith, who could not peel his eyes from the sky, "KEITH, WHERE?"

"I, uh, uh," Keith stammered," Uh, Forge! We'l go to the forge!"As they ran, a massive black shadow blackened the alley they were in! "oh my Notch..." The Engineers looked up to see a mass of iron and wood soaring across the sky.

"That is an airship." Nostrum spat. "WE HAVE TO GO, NOW!"

"A WHAT?" Keith cried, looking at the flying monstrosity.

"Don't worry about that now, Just hope its ours! RUN!"

"This is the path you have chosen." The voice exploded across the city, Monotone and without care,"Live with your consequences." Suddenly the sound of a million horns sounded across the city, shaking the earth beneath them!

"Notch is my guardian. He watches me with saintly eyes. he cries upon my faults and lifts me from the ground, from bedrock to sky limit, grant me strength, though I walk to my death, grant me honor, and let my tower rise in-"

"SHUT UP!" Nostrum screamed, dragging Keith into an open street. Smoke and the smell of metal were becoming clearer. They were nearing the forge. "Come on buddy, don't lose me now!" They were now in a clear veiw of the sky. It wasn't one, but many air ships, all sailing through the sky towards the mages.

"I didn't even know, I thought they were fake! When they sent people away, like children? Remember the surge a few years ago, and people were exiled from Therras, because of magic? ITS FUCKING TRUE-"

"Notch-dammit, forget it! GO!" Nostrum commanded, pulling Keith as he ran. Suddenly the sounds of screaming and explosions and roars were heard near by.

"WHAT WAS THAT?"

"IGNORE IT!" Nostrum and Keith tore down the street, desperately trying to make it to the forge, when the roar could be heard right behind them, stopping both men in their tracks. Nostrum turned around to see it.

"No...." Nostrum stammered, looking at the beast. It stood on four legs, muscular and taught, claws that looked like flint tapped the ground beneath them. The green scales hissed with each movement, and its body, looked like an over sized wolf....but the face.... the hollow, black eyes and the agonizing look of pain in its face. it was a creeper...unlike anything they had ever seen before. It bowed down, hissing wildly, the sounds of fuses coming from its gaping maw as it stared the two down. They were not running away from it."Keith..." Nostrum stammered, "Stand behind me, okay? I ain't got nothing else to live for, I'm too old, and I'm done, I'm going to distract it, and I need you to run, okay?"

"Are you fucking crazy? NO!"; Keith shouted, pulling on Nostrum's shoulder. "No way! We fight it!"

"Its a creeper! It either kills one of us, or both of us!" Keith began to shake violently. It was the truth.

"I..."

"I'm not giving you a choice!" Nostrum turned and grabbed Keith, throwing him in a nearby building and began to run."COME ON!" The creeper wolf leaped up, landing on the side of a wall before jumping down towards Nostrum! Nostrum leaped to the side, hearing the fuse like sound coming from its throat as is landed behind him, only a few feet away!

"CHAAARGE!"Nostrum looked up to see the town guard, donned in iron armor and swords running towards the creeper wolf!

"NO!" Nostrum screamed,"GET AWAY!" the guards ignored Nostrum, and met their fate. The creeper wolf leaped towards the first guard, slashing him with the flint claws, and like a fuel, the guard's face burst into flames right in front of him! The wolf then leaped into the crowd, targeting one of the guards, standing face to face with him, the all to familiar "hiss" before-

Nostrum took several running steps before leaping into a nearby shop ducking beneath some tables before the windows exploded, sending several shards of glass flying through the room, taking out the wall, sending blocks of stone and brick flying through the shop!tables launched into the air, lifting nostrum off the ground and over counter, several tools landing around him. The explosion sucked the air from nostrum, and as he in desperation tried to get up, he looked up to find that hollow, blank star of a creeper wolf, staring at him over the counter...

[Munaus]

Amazing job!

Ive also been trying to get to writing, but been too self criticizing to ever get any work done.

Your work is good and im already shouting "Dont let Nostrum die!!"

One point of critique though..

My name is Twisted Voodoo

Dont do that, forum rules...

Other than that, please continue with chapter 2

[Twisted Voodoo]

Thnks for the Input! I appreciate it and I will make sure to be more careful as to follow the site's rules. For now though, I shall continue with Chapter 2 immediately!

[Twisted Voodoo]

Chapter II

Its eyes. Notch.....DAMN those eyes. One could truly tell when a body had no soul, when its eyes were like that. No light. NO sparkle. No chance for redemption. Nothing but to seek Death of itself, and the deaths of others. Damnation. Nostrum stared at the creature, the agony-striven face of the creeper wolf as it continued to hiss, peering and creeping over the counter towards him!

"No," Nostrum said, Trying to pull his aging body together, ";No! Not like this!" Nostrum looked to this side and grabbed a chunk of concrete at had jutted out after the explosion, and with all of his might puled his body up, all the while the creeper wolf had yet to attack! "Come on ye old bastard, FOCUS!" With his other hand he grabbed the chunk of stone and pulled himself up and on to his knees. He kept the creeper wolf in view. The creeper was officially an Enderman now. The creeper wolf pulled itself on the bar fully, testing Nostrum's mettle as he scratched the marble counter top with his claw, setting fire to the counter as it made its way closer to Nostrum.

"No, no, no, no, no..." Nostrum muttered quietly as he looked around. he could hardly see for all the dust, but he knew there was a hole he could leap out of. he knew there was. "Mkay Mr. Creeper? Ima going to walk away, I';m not here to harm you, I don't want anything from ya. Just let me walk out of here, and you can have this damn place, I shit you not, my word's as solid as gold." The Creeper wolf continued to stare at the old man, giving out a small, sparatic hiss as it's reply. It was now or never. Nostrum had to act.

Nostrum quickly looked down to find a wooden plank on the floor and quickly swept it on top of his foot.

"Shit," Nostrum's brain cried, "SHIT!" Nostrum kicked the wooden plank up, grabbing it just in time for the creeper wolf to leap! He slammed the wooden plank again'ts the creeper's skull cracking it as it sailed across the room, giving Nostrum the break he needed! Nostrum Dashed across the room, falling over debris, blocks of cobble and brick, and finally fell out of the window, cutting his left arm on a shard of glass as he fell out! He hurried to his feet and quickly turned around, and looked as the creeper wolf leaped out of the window a few feet away. "Ain't no way..." Nostrum sighed, dumbstruck at what he saw! The creeper's skull had been busted open, but instead of blood, or sulfur, bright, white flames were exploding from the creeper's skull! "OH MY NOTCH." Nostrum tore across the street, desperately running to the nearest building!

"NOST!" Nostrum nearly fell again, looking down the street a way to see Keith holding an Iron door open. "RUN!"

"No, IMA STAND HERE!" Nostrum screamed as he pushed his way towards the building. Behind him he could feel the heat, and as he ran he watched his shadow grow longer and longer as the creeper wolf closed the distance-

"HURRY!" Keith cried, "PLEASE!" Nostrum pushed the last few steps, it wasn't far!

"OH NO."; He could hear Keith spit as he bounced up and down, trying to over come his own fear! With a last, spiteful lunge, Nostrum forced his failing knees to pounce as he flew through the door and into a row of dispensers, ramming them with his shoulder-

"AH, SHI-"

"BRACE YOURSELF!"

Suddenly with a "Kat-tit." The creeper literally split in two, the bright white flames exploding from its body, shattering the nearby windows and knocking Keith into the wall as well! But then, everything was silent...but in the distance, you could hear the explosions, and the screams.

"Ah-" Nostrum spat, tired, and hurt, "My shoulder, Notch-GAH." Nostrum rolled over, his face black and covered in soot, as he looked at the flickering Luminous panels on the ceiling."Heh," Nostrum said after a moment of silence, "The Electricity still works." Keith turned and looked at Nostrum, dumbstruck and unsure of what to say.

"I..."; Keith said, "I guess it is!" Out of no where, both men began to laugh hysterically, looking at the ceiling, watching the flickering lights, unable to contain their laughter! For several minutes this went on, until Keith finally contained himself and walked to Nostrum's side. "You're a tough old bastard." Keith told him, looking at his wounds

"You have to be in this business." Nostrum replied immediately.

"What do you mean?"

"Just an' old sayin' boy," Nostrum sighed, looking at his bleeding arm, "Just an' old sayin'." Nostrum forced a smile and looked at his arm. "Where are we?" He asked Keith, unable to look up passed the dispensers.

"Its one of the feeding kitchens, for those who didn't have a plot, or just couldn't find a job."

"HA HA!"Nostrum laughed, slapping his knee with his good arm,"I'd never thought in a thousand years a soup kitchen would save my ass! Look around and see if ya can't find me some cloth, or paper, something to stop this bleeding. We have to try to make it to the forge, this isn't safe. Come on boy, get movin'." Keith shook his head and stood up, and walked around the counter to the other side. Nostrum rested his head back on the dispenser, smelling old jerky and pork. He chuckled again, shaking his head. He had no reason to laugh. He just did.

"Here, this should work good!" Keith said, leaping over the dispensers, landing beside Nostrum. "Here, let me see your arm." Keith grabbed the bad arm, and wrapped it in a very thin sheet of red wool, wrapping it around his arm, and tieing it as tight as he could. "Can you walk?"

"I should be able to-" Nostrum groaned, trying to stand on his own, "Shit." He said after a moment.

"Give me your hand please." Keith gave his hand, and with both men pulling, Nostrum managed to stand on his feet again."You're a Notch-Damned mess," Keith smiled, "Look at you, Suspender's all jacked up-"

"Yeah well, screw you too." Nostrum snapped as he walked towards the door. "Help me pull this open." Keith pulled open the Iron door, staring at the charcoal outline of a wolf, pouncing on the door. The engineers stepped outside, to the chaos around them. There were several body part strewn around the street. One of the Guard's face had been burnt...he died on his knees. Billows of smoke could be seen in the distance and in the sky, waves of red, blue and green lights shot across the skies as the sounds of cannons, and rifles fired back in the distance."I can't believe this..." Nostrum said quietly, listening to the sounds of chaos around him. Not so much as a bird dared to sing now. Chunks of the road were missing, and random animals scoured the streets. Paper fluttered lazily in the wind, and all of this, only in a few moments....There was no way....

"Nost?" Nostrum snapped back to the hand of Keith on his shoulder. "You alright?"

"Its a lot to take in...Almost too much..." Nostrum said quietly. "I..."

"Its alright man." Keith squeezed Nostrum's shoulder. "Let's go, while its quiet." Nostrum nodded and without another word, the two men began to walk down the street, heading to the metal works district of the city.

Despite the chaos around them, the journey was relatively quiet. There were plenty of bodies, but the culprates seemed to have already moved on. As they walked, only more blood and chaos unfolded around them. The story told itself. No one had a chance.

"It's a blitzkrieg." Keith said suddenly s he walked.

"Hm?" Nostrum asked, half listening himself.

"Its where, like an army will show up, completely unannounced and destroy everything in site, read about it once. Like a shock and awe sort of thing."

"Maybe this won't last long." Nostrum said quietly, "Maybe they'll give up and the air ships will win." Keith didn't respond. He had no words to say.

After a while the two men left behind the shop district and found themselves in a large plain. It was already marked with the glowing landmarks, with a sign reading "Fit for displacement" in front of the landmarks. They continued to walk until they reached the next district. The smell of burning metal and the grinds of macerators sounded in the distance.

"Come on!" The two men picked up their pace as they headed to the next district...

[Twisted Voodoo]

Chapter III

"Nost, Hurry, shut that door!" Keith snapped as the two barreled into the forge house! Nostrum waited for Keith to pass before Slamming the Heavy Iron Door shut, slamming down the Iron door guard, sealing it in place. Keith saw Nostrum looking at it, and said,

"Back when the land was relatively small, there were a bunch of those types of doors, kept zombies from bustin' down our doors and eating our kids at night. Made for one helluva bedtime story." Keith let out a huge sigh before almost collapsing on a nearby workbench. It was very intricately designed. Most workbenches you saw were simple blocks of wood, painted or carved to hold tools. This one was built into a metal table, and situated along the wall so tools could hang on the wall and workers had plenty of room to craft, and place.

"We need to find something to protect ourselves. This is the best place we can prepare. If there are other people, there's no way in hell that I'm leaving that many people behind while mages do notch knows what to them." Nostrum looked outside, looking at the burning city in the distance for a moment before walking to the large lava pit, gabbing chunks of iron and other materials.

"So, you want us to look for people, and fight mages with what, sticks?" Keith spat, looking hopeless, and very tired.

"We are engineers, boy. Remember that." Nostrum said, his eyes looking almost cold as he carried a large amount of Iron to the furnace wall. "And yes, we will fight. I'll be damned if I watch people die if we can help it." Keith shook his head and made a weird choking noise with his mouth.

"you're stupid! You're too old for this, you'll die!"; Before Keith could say another word, he found a red hot Iron ingot only a few inches from his face!

"Don't you dare tell me what I can, and cannot do boy." Nostrum sneered before turning back to the furnace, watching the ashes break away from the rusted ingots.

"Just, wait," Keith pleaded, "Please." He took a few steps forward and met Nostrum as he worked. "You're pissed, angry, sad, I get it, I do, but there is no reason for you to be doing this! None!"

"I don't need a reason," Nostrum said quietly, turning back towards his work. Nostrum pounded the iron and began to forge it, with a speed unlike most of the blacksmiths in Therras! Nostrum pounded on the metal, and formed a breastplate. It was very crude, black and burned and sheared around the shoulder, but it worked enough for him. Nostrum threw the breastplate into the fire and continued to work on some leg pads. They were no were as furnished, or as "pretty" as traditional iron leggings, but they served their purpose. After he threw those into the water he created plates for his hands, and to cover his boots, all the while cooking a large glob of metal in the furnace. As he let the plates cool he grabbed several straps of leather form a nearby chest, some string and some slime in a jar, as well as some sticky resin from some rubber trees. "Bring me some planks, and bring me those gears over there." Nostrum Ordered Keith.

"For what?" Keith spat, just as stressed as Nost.

"Just do it!" Keith finally nodded and brought the materials to Nostrum. Nostrum worked quickly, tieing the leather to the chest plate and to the other plates, then began working on a shaft. He used a nearby ruby saw to cut down the planks into small columns, a tad thicker than sticks normally used for tools. He quickly wrapped the shaft in leather and string and used the slime/resin combo on the crafting table to quickly set and harden the leather. He walked back to the furnace, grabbing a glob of molten Iron and set the shaft on top of the gear, then poured the molten iron on it, followed by water to instantly weld the gear to the shaft. Nostrum then flipped the shaft over and repeated, putting both gears on as Keith watched silently. Nostrum then walked back to the furnace, and grabbed the Iron mold and sat it on the table, and with a swift thrust, slammed the gear-headed shaft into the mold, and left it there. Nostrum walked to the window and took a quick look outside and saw nothing, then hurried back to the crafting table. "Hold this." Nostrum commanded Keith, pointing towards the shaft.

"PULL!" Nostrum shouted, using a pick to pull apart the mold from the shaft as Keith threw his weight backwards and after a moment, the mold popped apart! "Cog-head..." Nostrum said quietly, looking at the Massive Iron Hammer laying on the table.

"What?" Keith asked, shaking his head in confusion.

"That's what I'm naming her, Cog-head." Nostrum grabbed the Iron Monstrosity from the table, wrapping leather around the head, making a sheath for the hammer before throwing the strap and all on his back. "Now here is the deal Keith," Nostrum said, his eyes piercing Keith's own, "I'm going to the housing District of Therras. My home is there and I know there are people there that need help, You are a great co-worker, and one of the best friends....the only friend I have ever known, and for that, I could never thank you enough...but your a coward boy, a total coward-"

"I am not a coward!" Keith shouted. Nostrum Ignored him.

"Now, I'm leaving, I'm going to help these people. You'll be safe here, and like you said, the military should be arriving for supplies before long, they can protect you-"

"Bull shit, I'm coming with you!"

"You wouldn't last-"

"Watch me." Keith spat. Nostrum stood there for a moment, his hand guards in his hands. After a moment of silence Nostrum said,

"Okay, fine." Grab some of those ingots, craft a sword and hurry up. If you're coming with me, then you had best prepare no-"

"Oh my Notch, help me! Pleeease!" Nostrum and Keith both leaped across the room and looked out the window and found a small child, no more than 9 or ten, running through the street!

"Oh shit!" Nostrum shouted, dashing towards the door, raising the bar and flying outside! "To me son, Hurry!" The boy looked up at Nostrum and nodded, carrying his blocky little legs as fast as they would go, towards the man with the hammer! Suddenly hundreds of black orbs slammed into the ground, ripping away all of the blocks around it!

"Oh my..." Nostrum said, watching all of the blocks simply disappearing right behind the boy! "Grab my hand!" The boy jumped as Nostrum grabbed him with on hand and threw him behind him, just as someone landed on the ground a few feet in front of him.

The figure wore black armor and a hood and carried what looked like a large red jewel in his hand. he had black hair and green eyes and smiled widely as he looked Nostrum up and down as if he was sizing him up! The figure took a few steps forward Nostrum as Nostrum held the hammer in front of him and snapped,

"Take one more step and I knock that stupid grin off your Notch-damned face!" The mage began to laugh, looking at this old man!

"Really?" The mage spat, "This old man, with his giant hammer of retribution, is going to knock the smirk off my face? HA! Leave it here, I only want the boy." The mage opened his hand and gave a slight bow as the boy hid behind Nostrum, not daring to look. "Come along child, and you won't see the death of yet another person trying to protect you... I think she was your sister, wasn't she?" The boy began to cry violently as he gripped Nostrum pulling him back!

"P-p-p-please s-s-s-sir, No more, I don't want to see more p-p-p-please!" Nostrum laid his free hand behind him on the boy's head and said in a reassuring voice,

"Don't worry son, I ain't gonna let anything happen to ya, alright?"The boy was too scared to listen. "Now back off, go away and nothing here has to happen. If you don't go away, I will not back down, and you will not walk away alive. I have no quarrel with you. Don't make this any worse." The mage began to laugh even more violently, cackling as his head was thrown backwards!

"Oh believe me," The mage laughed, "I want this to become worse!" The mage's hands began to light up as flames began to trickle up his arms!"So tell me, Old man," The mage spat as the fire began to trickle up his arms, "Have you made peace with Notch? Because you should." And with those words, the Mage charged, a blurring inferno towards Nostrum!

[Twisted Voodoo]

I guess I should let this thread die, I don't think anyone is taking any interest. Oh well ;p

[Sbrain]

Don't let it die :'( This stuff makes great reading You have a really creative mind and a talent for writing :)

[MephistosChan]

Keep going, you're doing well. And just FYI in the UK suspenders are what keep a woman's stockings up. Braces hold up trousers. Two countries separated by a common language, etc.

[Twisted Voodoo]

Don't let it die :'( This stuff makes great reading You have a really creative mind and a talent for writing

Thanks, I really do appreciate it. I don't have any other way of showing my thanks than perhaps giving the Technic team something they can hold high up and say

"This is how we know our fans care!"

Then again, I guess the downloads do the same job...

I just want to show my thanks, by doing the only thing I know how to do.

so yeah, thanks Technic team, ya rock!

[Twisted Voodoo]

Keep going, you're doing well. And just FYI in the UK suspenders are what keep a woman's stockings up. Braces hold up trousers. Two countries separated by a common language, etc.

thanks for the advice! I cannot believe your actually reading "This wall O' text" I have here!

you have no idea how much this means to me, it means so much to see this.

[Munaus]

I guess I should let this thread die, I don't think anyone is taking any interest. Oh well ;p

Are you still working on this?

Im eagerly and (im)patiently waiting for chapter 4

[Twisted Voodoo]

I kinda lost interest, lack of support and all, but I see that its actually wanted....I shall bring you a chapter soon. It's nice to see people interested

[Munaus]

I kinda lost interest, lack of support and all,

GOSH your so needy

All I want is to read the next chapter, learning more of why the city is attacked, who keith is, who that child is and who keith really is...

But you dont see me complaining about "are u makeing necxt chapter yet!?! Gosh make nexst capther11!!"

But serious now, your story is great. I dont know why only 240 people have viewed it. I shall fix this by spamming Kakermix with useless PM's, forcing him to sticky your thread, if I get banned i hope you will give a banned user his last wish to finish what you have started.

[Cheap Shot]

I'm in favor of minecraft fan fiction on here. Even if it's bad it makes for hilarious dramatic readings. If it's good then bonus I guess. Keep it up.

[Twisted Voodoo]

Chapter IV

"NO!" Nostrum screamed, grabbing the mage by the shoulders, setting Nostrum's hands on fire as he pulled the mage down, spiraling him towards the ground! The mage slammed into the ground, rolling several times before pushing himself back up again. The mage cracked his neck and sighed, watching as Nostrum frantically put out flames around his arms.

"You....stupid twat...you could have made this easy on yourself. It could have been simple, it could have been quick, but you're too fucking stupid to leave well enough alone. I think," The mage spat, throwing his sleeves back, "I'm going to literally melt your face, and watch it dribble to the floor." The mage disappeared, re-appearing behind Nostrum, two balls of flames exploding from the mage's hands, slamming into Nostrum's back before he could turn!

The old man hit the floor, gravel smearing his face and beard.

"Get the boy, and hide!" Nostrum screamed towards the building, before rolling over, just in time to see the mage charging another spell! "Oh hell no!" Nostrum screamed, Pulling the hammer up from the ground and with one fell swoop slammed the massive Iron head into the side of the mage!

"FuuuAAAH!" The mage screamed, he too slamming the pavement, grabbing his side and heaving. Nostrum forced himself to stand and took a firm grip on the hammer. Nostrum's eyes were cold, void....

"I warned you..." Nostrum said, slowly making his way to the mage, "I told you, to back off, and you pushed things." Nostrum raised the hammer like a golf club, and without warning swung down and under, shattering the mage's stomach, rolling him over! The mage heaved, blood spurting from the side of his mouth, but Nostrum wasn't finished. Nostrum threw his boot on the mage's throat, holding him in place and raised the iron hammer, holding it underneath the chin of the mage. "Why," Nostrum spat, His Green eyes piercing that of the mage's, "WHY are you here?"

"Ah, fuck you!" The mage laughed, the sound dry and rattled from his throat, "You will never understand our cause."

"You're cause? Your CAUSE?!?!" Nostrum said angrily, pressing the hammer further against the mage, "This is you're cause? To tear down a society, murder its denizens and leave us to rot? Send in fucking......fucking....THAT," Nostrum said, looking towards the creeper wolf's destruction, "To destroy men, children. WHY. TELL ME!" Nostrum twisted the heel of his boot against the mage who spat,

"And you won't ever fucking know if you choke me to death get your notch-damned foot off me you fool!" The mage pulled one of his hands from his stomach, desperately trying to lift the massive man's foot from his throat. Nostrum gritted his teeth, watching the mage slowly turn purple before finally kicking him to the side, watching him cough and hack a few feet away from him.

"There are body parts on the road, there are dying children, burning buildings, and shattered lives, all in the vicinity of Therras." Nostrum said, seething from the situation.

"Don't....have a heart-attack-" The mage coughed, his back towards Nostrum.

"Why...are you doing this?" The Mage simple rolled over and smiled, blood dripping from his mouth, and his nose,

"Why not?" Nostrum lost it.

"WHY NOT!??!" Nostrum screamed, stomping towards the mage, simply throwing the hammer to the side, "I'll tell you why not you son of a bitch!" Nostrum slammed his boot into the mag'es side and screamed, "You do not pointlessly kill anyone! YOU DO NOT!" Nostrum said, flipping one of the plates from the back of his hand to his palm-"Kill children, Murder women, start STUPID-" Nostrum said, slaming the metal plate against the mage's jaw- "Battles on some right that you think YOU have!"

"Weak-" The Mage spat-

"WEAK!?!?" Nostrum shouted, slamming his plate against the mage's face again, and then again, watching his skin bust and blood beginning to pour down the side of his head, "Weak is what you. Have done. Today." Nostrum fell on one knee, the other knee pressing against the chest of the mage, "Weak is chasing down little children on the streets to prove some point that is nothing. WEAK-" Nostrum spat, slamming the armor plate once more on the head- "Weak....yeah...I am. I am very, very weak. I'm so weak, that watching a man get blown to shit on the street by a fucking hybrid monster makes me sick. I'm so weak, that watching a mother, holding her burnt and dead daughter outside of a building made me cry. I'm so weak tat I grow angry when I see a mage hunting down a child who can do nothing to defend himself. Yeah," Nostrum said, raising up, finally letting the bloody and battered mage go, "I'm very weak. I'm nothing like your kind at all." Silence echoed in the street. Far away screams could still be heard, and smoke could be seen. High in the sky, shadowy air ships blotted out the sun, and electricity filled the air.

"You....are weak." The mage said suddenly, rolling over, activating the gem! Nostrum leaped to the side, watching the black orbs rip through the ground, tearing out blocks of concrete and dirt, simply making them dissapear! The mage managed to sit up again, activating the gem once more, wiping out a section of wall! Nostrum dashed out the way, watching the blocks fall, slamming into the ground with a large thud, more smoke and debris filling the air. As the dust continued to grow, Nostrum watched as the Mage managed to weakly stand on his feet, the Gem still tightly squeezed in his hands.

"Why?" the mage asked bitterly, his head doing a sort of roll, quivering from the pain, "Are we doing this?"

The mage stepped towards Nostrum.

"We are doing this to stop the one thing that is destroying this earth. You are. All of you. Everyday you peel away and drill away, prying apart the earth, killing it. We aim to stop you before the damage is permanent, and we lose everything."

"Don't give me that line of shit," Nostrum said, throwing his hand forward, "There is more, and "Killing the earth" is not your reason. "I've been outside of the city, I've seen how you all get your supplies, we've dug into you're supposed mines, I've seen for myself the damage you have caused with your catalyst," Nostrum spat, pointing towards the gem, "And its a helluva lot worse than what we do here, so a stupid disagreement on ecology is NOT the reason for murdering innocent people!"

"And Yorra was just a bad dream? All of those people died on accident? Oh right. You don't remember those people. Rather you want to forget and pretend it never happened. Just a bad thought. No one can even go near that death trap before becoming poisoned from the air, dying simply from the fallout!"

"WE LEARNED FROM OUR MISTAKES!" Nostrum screamed angrily, bitterly remembering the incident, "YOU DID NOT!" Nostrum clenched his fist and snapped. "WHY?"

The mage only smiled.

"WHY!?!" Nostrum shouted again, tearing up from anger and sadness.

"Because when the unjust roam free in a world of sin, there must be someone to maintain order and balance. We are balance, we are order. You take, and you take, and you take, and you never give. We practice the one rule that should have never been forgotten. Equivalent exchange. We are the balance to your hunger. You will be cleansed." Nostrum didn't give the mage a second chance. Without warning, Nostrum trampled across the road, and with his bare fist pummeled him across the temple! The mage hit the floor again as Nostrum picked up his hammer and stepped on the mage.

"We may be wrong, I may be wrong, we all have shit to pay for, but you still are wrong. I will find out the truth, and you will pay from trying to murder a child. You will not walk free." Nostrum raised the hammer high above his head, and took a deep breath, looking at the mage. "Last words?"

"Yeah,"The mage said with a tired, worn out smile, "The pay was good too." Nostrum swung the hammer down.

No mercy

No forgiveness

No retribution.

Even as the hammer connected with the mages skull, indenting andf spilling outward Nostrum watched as the life left the mage....with a smile...

"yeah...the pay was good too..." Echoed in Nostrum's head as he pushed open the door to the forge, watching Keith finish the sword, making sure the boy sat in a corner, beside the Macerator and induction furnace.

"Grab yer shit and let's go," Nostrum spat, grabbing a few more crafting supplies, checking the chest and cabinets for a few other things, "We're leaving the boy with the military, then we're heading tot he residential districts. There is no way in hell Ima sit here and watch people die pointlessly if there is something I can do about it." Nostrum looked up to Keith and said quietly. "Now I understand if you want to stay behind-" Nostrum saw the look of anger, and tremendous heartache in his eyes- "Boy?" Nostrum asked, looking up at Keith, "You alright?"Kieth said nothing, instead turned a computer screen towards Nostrum.

"Keith, this is your sis, okay? I'm going to have to go, I have to go, I'm sorry, I cannot-" An explosion sounded along with the woman screaming. "I, I, I need to get away from here, I'm going to the barracks, and maybe I'll be safe there, I'll take the back way, okay? Don't worry about me, but you'll find me there, I hope you get this and I hope I see you soon, okay? So please, hurry and find-"

There is suddenly the sound of claws, and hissing.

"Keith, I love you, and i always will, okay? Keith? I love-"

"I'm ready." Keith said coldly, grabbing the sword before walking out of the door without another word.

"Please don't leave me alone mister..." Nostrum looked down, and watched as the kid grabbed Nostrum's finger tightly, his terrified eyes looking up at Nostrum, "Please take me with you."

"You ain't got nothing to worry about son," Nostrum said, sweeping the boy off his feet with one hand, "You're safe with me. Let's get outta here, and find you something to eat, okay?" The boy nodded as the two walked out of the forge, the iron door snapping shut behind them...

[Twisted Voodoo]

Chapter five should be up soon guys! Thanks for the support and actually reading this. It means more than you think

[MephistosChan]

Thanks

[Twisted Voodoo]

Chapter V

"There have been lot's of times in my life where I thought I really fucked up, and then, in the end, it was just what I needed, as well as many others. Heh, I reckon its one of those little things in life, you just...ye just gotta remember, for the better good." Katie was sitting in her father's lap, watching his beard sway from side to side as he talked.

"I love you daddy." Nostrum smiled, gently carressing her head and pulling it to his chest.

"I love you too dear." Katie looked up at her father, with her bright green eyes. They were just like their father's.

"Daddy?" Katie asked, her eyes innocent and ever curious.

"Yeah baby doll?"

"You think I'll grow up big and strong like you?" Nostrum looked at his daughter and smiled.

"Well, I hope not!" Nostrum said with a chuckle, ";You might have a beard like mine, and if you learn how to swing a hammer like me, you'd never find a husband, you might scare em off!" Katie laughed and snuggled up closer to his chest.

"Wanna know how much I love you?" Katie whispered, staring at the fireplace.

"How much do you love me?"

"I love you so much, that if the world exploded, It couldn't because I love you so much that the love would cover the explosion!" Katie said, soon followed by a yawn.

"You know how much I love you?" Nostrum said quietly, now staring into the fire as well.

"How much do you love me?" Katie asked, desperately trying to mimic Nostrum's tone.

"I love you so much, that if a million creepers broke into our house, They wouldn't be able to explode for my love for you would sniff them out before they could blow up!"

"I love you daddy..."

"I love you too sweetheart."

"Daddy?" The different voice broke Nostrum from his trance. He looked to his left to see the little boy clinging to his suspenders, fighting away a bad, bad dream. Nostrum shook his head and sighed a deep, lamented sigh.

"Did the kid say something?" Keith asked, trying to break the silence and get his mind off things.

"Th' boy's out of it. I can only imagine what he's been through." Nostrum said quietly, listening to the sound of his feet crunching underneath the gravel path. As they walked, the sounds of gunfire and magic echoed across the skies. The sounds of screaming died down, and with night falling, the sky was a deep red from the blazes in the city. Nostrum shook his head, thinking how the masive walls that were supposed to protect Therras proved nothing, and how quickly the city was overwhelmed. Blocks of concrete, and stone, and cobble littered the streets, and even though they were still a ways from the inner city, the damage was impressive.

At least they haven't come across anything...

Not yet, at least.

"I have to find her." Keith said suddenly, the iron sword still gripped tightly in his hand, "I have to find her, she can't be..." Keith grew silent. "She...she..."

"That ain't no way of thinkin' boy," Nostrum told him, looking at his back, "You can't assume the worse. Anything could have happened. You know as well as I do how easily redstone is broken, redstone wiring isn't much different. It could have been the chaos that broke the connection, I listened to that message, it didn't sound like she was hurt. You have to remember that boy, she could have left, and made it to the barracks. Therras is a big ass city, and with plenty of routes. 'cides, I think she can handle herself. She works around them forestry types, I'm sure she's picked up a trick or two." Nostrum took a few extra steps and caught up with Keith, and with his free hand placed it firmly on Keith's shoulder. "I know this is hard for you son, but ye gotta be strong, alright? I need ya too, this old bag of bones ain't gonna make it by himself, I've seen that much already." Nostrum squeezed his shoulder and patted his back. ";Don't worry boy, we carry each other, and before long it will be over. They are not monsters, they are humans. Humans die and they don't come back. Mage or not. I need you to be positive for me, and the boy for now."

"I'm just..." Keith said, holding back tears of his own, "I'm just so fucking scared man..." Nostrum watched a tear leave Keith's eyes, streaking the dirt on his face. "I don't want to get home, and find everthing is true. I don't ant to find my sister on the notch-damned floor because of some fucking mage, I, I, I..." Keith stopped walking completely.

"Come on Keith..." Nostrum said gently, "We have to keep moving. It's getting dark." After a moment Keith finally nodded his head and said, "Alright...alright...you're right. Let's go."

The group walked for a good while longer, walking along the paths finally reaching the outskirts of the city some time later. It was the farming district, known to be kept away from the pollution and machinery for the sake of a cleaner, fuller crop. Many farmers and foresters preferred it that way, and for that reason they were given their own district outside of the city limits. As they neared the district, the two men could see a group of men, standing on top of some scaffolding all armed with bows and crossbows.

"DO NOT MOVE."Nostrum could hear one of the men shouting from within the darkness. He couldn't make out any faces, the shadows of the torches hid their faces int he darkness of the night.

"We're not them!" Nostrum shouted, "I have a child, he needs safe keeping-"

"I don't give a shit who you are or what you're carryin' I said stop!" Nostrum could hear several bows drawing back

"Whoa whoa whoa!" Nostrum shouted, covering the boy's head with his hand, peering into the darkness, "We're not here to attack you, I think it would be pretty stupid to do so!" Nostrum shook his head. "This is friggin insane..." He thought to himself, looking towards the dimly lit town, "If I was going to attack you I wouldn't come in with a CHILD, and attack you head first. Please, we just need shelter!" The little boy stirred in his arms.

"Look, we're tired, and we have been running from...from that!" Keith shouted, pointing behind him, "All Notch-damned day, so if you can give us a fucking break, we can explain ourselves, but I think I woudl rather do so in the light, and not were a skeleton or a zombie could eat us! give me a break, please! Let us in!" There was a silence in the blockade.

"Show us your weapons!" One of the men shouted, throwing a torch out towards the three, giving them a dim light.

"I have my hammer, and He's got a sword. My name's Nostrum, I'm a worker in the engineering district of Therras, so is he. I don't know who the boy is, but I do know he's been through hell and back and for you to turn us away-" Nostrum stopped mid sentence and said,"Hell leave us out here but DO NOT deny the boy! Take him in if you can't take us!" Again, there was a silence in the crowd before finally another voice, a female shouted, "Let them in, They have a kid with them."

"Alright," The man said, his tone fiercer than before, "Come in, but I swear to Notch you do ANYTHING stupid I will kill you-"

"Kill us where we stand, we get it." Keith said, tired and not caring, as he walked towards the blockade. "We are too tired to give a shit right now."

[Twisted Voodoo]

Chapter VI

"FUCKING GRAB EM'!" Before Nostrum and the others even had time to react, Nostrum found the boy ripped from his arms before being kicked down on top of a solid wood surface, with a heavy boot on his back. He felt the hammer being ripped from his sheathe, and listened as the iron hammer hit the dirt ground with a thunk.

"Let go of me...Now." Nostrum commanded, his cheek pressed firmly on what he now recognized as a sticky piston. The slime gripped his cheeks and his beard, and with every struggle the slime mercilessly ripped his hair form his face!

"SIR!" The boy screamed, as he was dragged away from Nostrum, "HELP ME, PLEASE!" Nostrum shouted back as loud as he could, "Don't worry son, you're safe here, okay? They just don't trust us, you're fine boy!" The boy continued to struggle as he disappeared from Nostrum's site. "I will get him back..." Nostrum thought to himself as he struggled against the slime, and the boot. "Now this ain't no way to treat an old man." Nostrum said between clenched teeth, unable to see anyone behind him."I know you think we are the enemy here, but if that was the case, I believe I would have set fire to this place by now, yah?"

"Wrong answer." A female voice said quietly before the sound of a blade releasing from it's sheath echoed through the night. "The mages have attacked our city, and have deceived us all. I have seen them come in the form of children, I have seen full grown men fall to their knees, the strongest of soldiers, all of them felled by the mages. I have seen people that look just like us, assume the form of the mage, and wreak havoc across Therras. How do I know you're not the same?"

"Again!" Nostrum shouted, "I'm not trying to blow you up! I have a hammer, not a wand, and I'm a Notch-damned engineer, not a mage!" Nostrum squirmed under the piston, ripping his beard more, only to find himself further in the goop.

"Dammit lady, listen to us! We're running too!" Keith shouted from the other side of the road, "We were looking for shelter, not a fucking, I, I...THIS!" Keith shouted into the darkness. "If I had known this, there would be no way....now way I would have come here, you people are all fucked up in the head, WHY-"

"Silence!" The woman shouted once more, her heels spinning in the gravel as her voice turned towards Keith's way. Nostrum wished he had a better view...or at least some kind of tool. "We have seen Mage's enter our city, dressed as common folks of all kind, only to reveal their true purposes. We kill them all. Evermore will not be breached."

"Evermore will not be breached?" Nostrum heard Keith spit, "What kind of shit is this?" Nostrum heard Keith struggle against a piston as he shouted, "MY SISTER IS SOMEWHERE OUT THERE, IN THE CITY, AND I'M STUCK HERE WITH A PSYCHO-BITCH WHO IS TOO FUCKING STUPID TO TELL THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN A FRIENDLY AND A MAGE?!? BULLSHIT, LET ME GO! LET. ME. GO."

"Boy," Nostrum shouted, his concern growing, "Watch yer mouth, these people don't look like the people at work."

"I DON'T GIVE A SHIT AGOOOOOW!" Keith suddenly cried, the sound of a hard kick to the side ending Keith's tirade. Nostrum tried to look, but only found him self facing a stack of log blocks. "Dammit," Nostrum thought to himself, "I will not die like this."

"It is simple." The woman said suddenly, the sound of her voice, turning back towards Nostrum, "We have developed an on site test to see if you are truly a mage or not." The woman's footsteps neared Nostrum, then the sound of scraping metal sounded as the woman picked up cog-head. "This looks like rushed work." The woman told Nostrum, "I thought a mage puts more work into his craft...or is that just another insult to human-kind?"

"DOES IT LOOK LIKE WE'RE A FUCKING MAGE- OH-NOTCH...GAH!" Keith tried to scream, only to be burdened with another blow to his side. Nostrum listened to the woman's feet turn around as she said quietly, "I already have suspicion to believe you are a mage, and if you do not quiet yourself, you will not like what we have in store for you."

"I...don't give..a..shit." Keith coughed, his voice barely an audible whisper.

"As I was saying," The woman said, turning back toward's Nostrum's hearing, "We have developed a small test to see if you two are mages or not. The sound of a Lever pulled as pistons shot up from the ground, lifting Nostrum from his knees onto his stomach. He was now stuck on two sticky pistons! "Above you is a spike piston. Once its triggered, a delay switch is triggered, and will slowly descend for five seconds, before crushing you. If you are a mage, the magic inside of you will keep you from dieing. From there you will be executed with obsidian blocks. If you are not a mage, you will not have to suffer the fate of Therras, and a memorial will be built in your honor after this is over-"

"WHAT!?!?" Keith shouted, suddenly finding his voice again, "You can't do that!"

"We can, and we will."The woman snapped, her eyes cold.

"The boy," Nostrum said quietly towards the woman, "Will he be okay?"

"That is to be determined." The woman said, her voice near Nostrum, "If you are not a mage, he will be set free, and Evermore will become his home. If you are found to be a mage, he will be purged by fire." The words hit his mind like a ton of bricks, and to his heart like bomb. "I..." Nostrum said quietly, all the while thinking of means of escape, "Please..."

"I am sorry sir," The woman told him, "But this is something we just cannot risk. I am sorry but this must be done. Pull the switch." A few more pairs of feet shifted in the gravel as Nostrum began to fight desperately to free himself, tearing at his skin and his beard, the slime grabbing hold like an unnatural glue, fusing his face with the wood. "THINK THIS THROUGH!" Nostrum shouted suddenly, "We are more use to you alive than dead! We are both engineers, and can defend this settlement far better than any of the farmers here! What have you got? Huh? Three, four soldiers, a stockade made from SCAFFOLDING?" Nostrum shouted, trying to pull his face free, "We can build far better defenses, and you have everything to do it with! Please, we can help you, there ain't no need to kill us over some suspicion! If I was going to hurt you, I would have already done it you...STUPID...AGH!" Nostrum continued to fight, desperately trying to escape the piston, failing miserably..."If my hands were free..."

"Activating purge in Five, four-"

"DON'T DO THIS!" Keith shouted.

"Three-"

"Think this through!" Nostrum pleaded.

"Two-"

"COME ON YOU STUPID SHITS LISTEN TO REASON!" Keith cried angrily

"One." The pistons began to squeal to life, the thunking sound of the pistons grinding along the gears, shadows of spike reeling into Nostrum's vision.

"Get up you old bastard, MOVE!" Nostrum screamed to himself, ripping the hair from his face as he continued to pull away from the piston.

Suddenly,

The Pistons stopped. Silence filled the air for a moment, leaving Nostrum and Keith breathing heavily, the spikes a mere inches away from Nostrum's cheek and nose. After a few moments the silence broke away to several people all screaming at once:

"MAGES!" The pistons pulled up as Nostrum was quickly surrounded by at least six men with crossbows and diamond swords.

"No..." Nostrum said in disbelief, "No, no, no! This is rigged! I'm not a bloody mage, GET OFF ME!" The men began pouring som foul smelling liquid around his face as they pulled him up from the sticky pistons, kicking him to the floor and quickly tieing his hands and feet together!

"CRUSH THE MAGES!" People chanted in the background, forming a mob mentality around them!

"I'm not a mage moron!" Nostrum spat towards one of the men, getting a glance at the piston device. Oddly, it didn't' look rigged... Nostrum looked up to find the woman looking at him. She had red hair and baby-blue eyes. She wore guilded iron armor, with intricate designs along the shoulder pads, and the breastplate itself.

"I..." The woman said quietly, looking towards the old man, "I...I honestly believed that you were not one of them. I do not know what to believe now. It is why measures like this must be taken. I am sorry." She looked towards the men and said. "These two have been proclaimed Mages. They are to die by stoning with obsidian..." The woman dropped her head, genuinely sorrowful of the situation...

Stoning by Obsidian.... The term goes back as far as mages themselves go. The material is incredibly hard, only able to be broken by the sharpest of diamond picks, and then only by the most talented of miners. The substance is well known to be the strongest substance on earth, and is able to pin a true blood mage, soaking the mana from him, and killing him from the mana drain. The sheer weight alone can kill a man, but the properties of Obsidian allow for...grisly shows of execution towards criminals, and mages. It has been used in the past by men fighting the mages...

"We ain't gonna go out like this Keith," Nostrum said, looking at his friend, "I'll get us out, okay! Have faith in me buddy, Ima get us out!" Keith wouldn't look at Nostrum. He had already given up hope... "Come on buddy, listen to me, we'll make it out of this! Please buddy, I need ya!"

"MAGES!" Suddenly the night sky exploded in a blaze of red and blue as the scaffolding failed, the blocks of wood and sticks littering the gravel road! People began to run around, dodging the rays of blue and red as buildings began to explode all around them!

"GET READY MEN! EVERMORE WILL NOT FALL!" THe woman shouted, pulling a diamond sword from her sheath, then a diamond dagger from her waist.

"What do we do with them ma'am?" One of the soldiers asked her.

"Can you fight?"She asked, turning towards Nostrum.

"You were going to kill us and now you want us to fight for you? FUCK YO-" Keith tried to shout, but was cut off by Nostrum.

"Yes! We can fight, let us go and we'll help you!"

"Let them go." The woman commanded, kicking Cog-head towards Nostrum, "You run, and I'll kill you both myself." The guards let go of the two men, and handed Keith back his sword.

"Don't prove us wrong." One of the guards told Nostrum before charging into the night sky.

"Let's get out of here!" Keith shouted, grabbing Nostrum's arm and began to pull violently!

"No!" Nostrum snapped, pulling away, and grabbing Cog-head, "The boy is here and we have to make it safe for him!" Keith cursed himself and shook his head and said,

"Fuck it!" He tossed the sword into the air and caught it with his free hand, "I'm game!"

Both men charged into the darkness, unknowing what they would face.

[Twisted Voodoo]

hope you are liking the story so far! Thank you so much for reading and keeping tabs on it! It keeps me going!

[MephistosChan]

Nice work again, you've put brd instead of beard id para 2.

And in tmes of stress people become much more judgemental, so the woman would not have freed them when under attack, she would have been more likely to kill them. However, if the equipment had been struck and accidentally freed them and then they fought for the village they would have a better chance of acceptance.

Carry on.

[Twisted Voodoo]

Perhaps, but the way I see it is this. One or two thing would happen. Under your suggestion, yeh, they would most likely die instantly, example: You brought these mages here, this is your fault, you will die for this *execute*

However,

Allessia *spoiler* Is slightly different than what you would first think she is, and you will learn more about her in the coming chapters. Her willingness to let them go, and to trust them, despite the situation, is mainly because of the people she is trying to protect there. It is only her, and six other soldiers in the farming community. If you look at forestry mod (Before dick wad decided to say NO! I DUN WANNA!) the devices and machines used (at least as far as I could tell) did not help you in combat so much, unlike Build-craft, and Industrial craft where there is armors and weapons to help you out. Anyways, this community is rather poorly defended, the only thing they have is the city limits and lack of electricity.

I'm getting off topic here...

Anyways, Allessia is trying to protect an entire settlement against several mages and who knows what, and she was already doubting the fact that they were mages.

Allessia: "I..." The woman said quietly, looking towards the old man, "I...I honestly believed that you were not one of them. I do not know what to believe now. It is why measures like this must be taken. I am sorry." She looked towards the men and said. "These two have been proclaimed Mages. They are to die by stoning with obsidian..." The woman dropped her head, genuinely sorrowful of the situation...

Her reasoning for this will be explained later, but yes

I agree

Under those circumstances, I do not believe I would have the constitution to say, okay, here you are, fight for us, your free. My first action would be "Kill the mages they brought them here. I'll use them as an example for the other mages!" I would kill them right then and there, before doing anything else.

And sorry for them thar spalling errors, they happen from time to time, but the fact you're pointing them out helps out a lot, I'll make sure to fix that after I post this.

[MephistosChan]

Cheers for the answer but stop writing to me and carry on writing the story.

[Twisted Voodoo]

fixing the qoutes now, this may take a bit though, as I can only do a bit at a time. (or want to rather)

[Twisted Voodoo]

Three chapters are fixed, even with some grammar errors fixed! I have three more to go before I start the next chapter, but I have a few errands to run before I get back, and it will likely be tonight before I finish editing, but you all may also get a new chapter! Hope for the best!

See you all soon!