This was written during Christmas actually. And with high fever (39°C or 102°F). But inspiration struck so I locked in.
But it went through two beta readers. So yippee!
Implied Entity 303's presence
“Hey! I’m going out to get some more resources, ‘kay? You stay put!” I called back towards their room. My friend’s been sick for two days, mainly high fever. Instant health potions have helped in lowering it when needed. We had visited a nearby village three days ago, right before that wicked storm hit. I assume that’s when they caught something and fell ill.
But now that the storm has passed, I need to get more materials. Turns out, we didn’t have as much coal as we needed, and our iron and gold supplies are running low as well. We especially need gold since a trip to the Nether is in order.
I just hope they get better by that time.
‘Thank Notch, I’m finally back..’ I let out a drained exhale. Mining had been tiresome, but uneventful fortunately. Seems like the mobs aren’t exactly keen on coming out after such a storm either. To be fair, I can't recall the last time the weather was this intense. I should- we should go check on the villagers. Some of the spruce trees there were in a pretty bad shape, I wouldn’t be surprised if a few had fallen.
I shoulder our front door open, dumping my backpack full of raw ores to the floor. My inventory is relatively empty–thanks to the backpack–just my tools and some extra blocks.
My gaze drifts towards their bedroom door. ‘Still closed.’ Probably asleep, I was gone for a few hours after all. Yet I made it back before nightfall. That’s a plus! Although, I am not looking forward to sorting through all the gathered materials. That’s what they usually do, aside from building.
Our base of operation is humble–a simple one story cabin with a basement. The basement holds our enchantment area, along with the main storage. Once we get our hands on some blazerods, my friend will build a brewing corner somewhere there. They build nicely. Better than I certainly can. The outside isn’t worse off either. Our cabin is surrounded by a plethora of flowers, courtesy of the flower forest we chose to inhabit. Through the colorful patches of flowers a single dirt and gravel path leads towards where our barn is. The animals are loud, hence the barn's location being a seeing distance from the house, instead of next to us. We’ve also got a crop field, obviously, sitting next to the barn.
I shake my head, no need to dwell on my surroundings. I’m home. Safe. I need to put the materials away. With sluggish steps, I make my way down to the basement.
The sorting took another half an hour. By the time I finished, I could feel hunger creeping up. Got to deal with that. And also bring my friend some food. They need to eat if they want to get better. I hate feeling tired. But someone needs to mine and collect materials, and currently they aren't fit to work.
‘Why is getting up the stairs harder??’ I basically dragged myself up the stairs, closing the door behind me. I’m about to turn around the corner, when I suddenly hear a noise coming from there. My body grows rigid immediately. A reaction that comes so instinctively by now. With a soundless inhale, I peek around the corner and—
Find my friend there. They appear to be digging through a barrel, where we keep some of our food. My brows furrow. “What are you doing up? Is the fever down?” I ask, stepping into the kitchen.
Their body tenses, yet quickly relaxes again. But.. not entirely. Some odd stiffness remains. Yet, they are sick, so it’s probably because of that.
“Oh. Hi. You’re back.” My friend says, turning to face me. ‘Did their eyes glint red a miniscule second when they turned? Nah, my eyes must be playing tricks, I’m just tired from the mining trip.’
“Yeah, been here for thirty minutes. Why are you up and about?” I ask again, tilting my head to the side. They glance sideways, a flicker of contemplation crossing their face. They mutter something under their breath, yet immediately smile when I step closer.
“I am feeling peachy.” Is the only response I get. They feel off. Then again, they always do when ill. Illnesses affect them quite heavily–luckily, they don't get sick often.
I nod slightly. “Right. But why don’t you go back to bed, hm? I was planning on making dinner anyway. Cause you’re sick. And all that,” My hand gestured towards their closed bedroom door. “I know your appetite isn’t the greatest right now, but what would you like for dinner?” I question, pushing past them and heading into our food storage.
It stares at the player near them. What a foolish one this one is. Or simply too trusting. Turning their back so easily, rummaging through a barrel. It blinks–once, twice. All to make that red tint disappear again from their eyes. Right dinner. Normal human food.
“Mushroom stew. It is warm. It will do good for my health, at least the warmth will.” They answer. They see the other player nod. ‘The first one had been sick, hm?’ Well then. That explains that poorly taste..
Its eyes narrowed. It saw the way the player seemed to pause all of a sudden. Miniscule hesitation. Nothing obvious. Like they didn’t want it to realize. Fine, it can play along for now. Not that it’s hungry just yet anyway. Those villagers had been rather filling. Even with their old bones and flesh. Why is their luck with flesh so unfortunate this time around? First, some old villagers, now a sickly player..
“I will go back to my room now. Have fun cooking.” They break the silence that had stretched between them. They turn back, walking to their bedroom door, closing it after themself.
That is not my friend. That's not my friend who spoke to me just now.. My hands tremble, empty and begging for anything to hold on to. I had stopped searching through the food supplies. My friend doesn't like mushrooms. So who is that? Why did it look like my friend? Why did it sound like them?
