I do not own Minecraft or any of the characters.

Going On The Offensive

John sighed, leaning his head against the wall as he watched the others. Micah was sharpening his iron sword, making sure it would last as long as possible during the coming battle. Beside him, Melody was doing the same for her own sword, stealing glances at Micah every few seconds. Beside John, Dawn was inspecting her new diamond pickaxes. They could break through obsidian, but would take time to do so, even enchanted as they were. The plan was simple. Herobrine would tempt the Angel of Death into opening another portal for them, they would fight whatever forces he let through, then they would go through. Without a doubt, they would be met by a massive army, then would head toward the Angel of Death's castle. Herobrine would go on ahead to fight the Angel of Death, and when they arrived, they had a list of who Herobrine promised them they would meet. Firstly, the Obsidian Golem, the Witherlord's personal pet. Dawn's new pickaxes were made specifically for him. Next, would be the Skeleton King and Witherlord themselves. John, Carter, and Micah were supposed to deal with them. After them would be the Angel of Death's three scythe-wielding right hands: the High Priest, Death, and something called Entity 303. Death was a skeleton wearing a purple robe, and 303 was a monster wearing a white robe with the hood up and all that could be seen under it was his glowing red eyes. Herobrine said that the Angel of Death created 303 to serve him, making him highly dangerous.

Of course, along with all of these, there were also the scattered wannabe badasses like something called Magma who was essentially living lava and molten rock and who was a general in the Angel of Death's army. And of course, there was Breach, who would be gunning for John and Herobrine specifically, meaning that they would have to deal with him themselves. This was, of course, all in addition to the Angel of Death's actual army, consisting of skeletons, wither skeletons, withers, Endermen, zombies, and mutated versions of all of them.

"Worried?" Dawn asked.

"Terrified," John said. "I don't know how we're going to win."

"We have Herobrine, and you," Dawn said.

"Herobrine failed before," John said. "And I'm not that great."

"You're the best of us," Dawn said. "You can handle anything they throw at you. And I'll be right there by your side for all of it."

John smiled slightly before sighing and staring at the floor. "Can we win?"

"We have to," Dawn said.

John nodded as the door opened and Herobrine walked, in, staring at Dawn for a moment before walking over to stop in front of John.

"There's something else that's going to effect the battle," Herobrine said.

"Oh what now, a dragon?" John grumbled.

Herobrine stared at him and John's eyes widened.

"You're shitting me," John said. "A dragon? Really?"

"Not just that," Herobrine said. "The Zombie King and Ender King have both come out of hiding."

"Who?" John asked.

"The Zombie King leads the zombie horde according to the Angel of Death's will," Herobrine explained. "You'll know him when you see him. The Ender King is even easier to spot. He rides his pet dragon into battle, wields a glowing purple sword, and is an Enderman the size of a human with glowing purple armor and crown."

"Joy," John sighed. "Who's supposed to handle them?"

"Whoever can," Herobrine said.

"Jesus, how many head monsters is that?" Micah asked.

"Too many," John said. "I sure hope your sword is sharp enough Micah."

"It's not," Micah said. "I'm going to go and get it, and Melody's, enchanted."

"Good luck," John said.

Micah left the room and John turned toward Herobrine who looked to Dawn again before looking back.

"When we released you, you said there was a curse," John said. "What was it?"

"He who facilitates my release will also share the same fate as me," Herobrine recited. "It means, that whatever wounds I suffer, you will suffer too. I'll be careful fighting the Angel of Death, but I can't promise I won't be wounded."

"And what if I'm wounded?" John asked.

"It's a one-way street," Herobrine said. "You being wounded won't affect me. But me being wounded will wound you."

"Oh that's fair," John snorted, rolling his eyes. "If we pull this off, if we win this war, and you turn on us, how do I stop you if your death means the same for me?"

Herobrine stared at him then opened his mouth just as the ground shook. Herobrine turned to the window and sighed, shoulders sinking a fraction of an inch. "It's beginning."

John nodded, drawing his iron sword and walking out of the room. Once in the hallway, he broke into a jog, heading down to the street then out of the city. As he stepped outside, he slowed to a stop, seeing the massive Nether Portal ripped open before them and the army of pigmen and skeletons marching through, the skeletons being both variety. Carter's army began to flood out of the city as Dawn and Herobrine stepped up beside John, Carter, Micah, and Melody joining them after another moment.

"Shall we begin?" John asked.

"Charge!" Carter shouted, the entirety of both armies breaking out into a sprint at the same time.

John readied himself. He knew what came next. Violence. Fear. Chaos. Sure enough, about a minute later he lost focus one the world. All around him he could hear the clashing of metal, the shouts of the wounded. He could feel his sword meet with bone, or flesh, or steel. He could see the smoke from whatever monster he had killed at that moment. And yet, it all seemed oddly detached. Like it wasn't real. Like it was a dream. Finally, he snapped back to reality as he felt something collide with his chest, throwing him backward. He landed hard, the air being knocked out of him, but at least he wasn't wounded. He looked to the thing that had hit him and narrowed his eyes. Standing before him was a pigman about the size of Damian wearing an iron helmet and chest plate and with a massive spiked ball and chain in his right hand.

John double-checked that he wasn't wounded, then stood, readying himself. "Alright freak. Your turn."

He sprinted forward, rolling as the ball swung over him, wiping out a line of skeletons, then stood, flipping over the pig and slashing at it. He turned sideways and leaned back, narrowly avoiding the slash before slamming its fist into John's gut, throwing him higher into the air. John flipped, dropping on a pair of pigmen and stabbing them then sprinting forward, flipping over the spiked ball, slashing its chain. When he landed, he rolled under the pigman's meaty arm and slashed its side. It roared in pain, staggering backward before drawing a massive golden scimitar. John stepped forward, sidestepping the blade before splitting pigman up the front. It staggered backward before collapsing, exploding into smoke. John looked around, seeing skeletons and pigmen retreating toward the portal. He slashed any that came within range until finally Herobrine arrived.

"Time to go," Herobrine said.

John nodded and the two of them sprinted through, Dawn and the others just behind them and the rest of the army behind them. on the other side of the portal, the pigmen and skeletons had formed back up and shoved against them instantly, only for Herobrine to zip around, clearing a space for their army to leave the portal. As they did, John looked around, seeing a massive castle with a bright light shining at the top. He also got his first look at the Angel of Death. It was a Wither Skeleton roughly a head taller than Damian was with a pair of massive black wings behind himself and a pair of massive iron swords in his hands. Herobrine saw him too and took off instantly. The moment he did, the Angel of Death's army charged, Carter's army doing the same. John charged as well, sticking with Dawn this time. John tried to take solace in the fact that they were slaughtering the army without too much trouble. Because soon, they'd be fighting things that would probably kill them. Time and again.

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