River and Wood, A Minecraft Tale

Chapter Fourteen, Through the Night

Morning came rather quickly. They woke up to another cold, cloudy day. At least the snow had stopped, but that didn't mean their journey would be easy. After walking out of the Inn they both made their way to the stables were a grey stallion with white speckles awaited them. Once mounted, they were off. "Good luck, River!" "Get home soon!" "We know you can do it!" Different villagers called out to them as they made their way towards the end of the cobblestone road. She tipped her hat to every one of them while Wood sat behind her trying to be just as polite. Most of them had warmed up to him, but he spotted Ajax a little farther in the back of the crowd with a face that stood between regret and anger. Wood still acknowledged him with a nod, but he doubted the blacksmith cared. By the time they were out of sight, everyone had gone back to their own business. It felt heavy to be leaving Pisces Village almost as much as Cadia Village. Wood still couldn't believe how kind villagers could be towards him despite his obvious difference. For River, it didn't mean much, but for him it was a whole other world.

"If we follow the compass east, we'll pass through a taiga biome." River said to him as the village soon faded into the distance behind them. The horse, which was named Raziel, moved easily through the snow beneath her hooves once they saw nothing but snowy hills ahead of them. "Good. It should be warmer there." Wood replied. With that, they were on their way.

The wind thrashed against their faces as Raziel picked up the pace once the snow began to melt. As they galloped through the frozen wasteland, the comforts of home were well behind them. Even River herself had never journeyed that far into the wild. Although it made both of them feel small, it was a beautiful experience despite the reasons behind it. Every now and again, rabbits would pop out of the snow to greet them. Little things like that made them smile. It took two hours to make it out of the snow and into the shadows of spruce trees. To get there, they had to cross a wooden bridge that went over a small frozen river. A polar bear and its cub rested on the banks, greeting them with soft dark eyes. Once they made it into the trees, they removed their heavy woolen clothes because of the newfound warmth. Now River wore nothing but a tank top and trousers underneath her diamond armor. She finally let her hair down to give her head a break. Wood did the same, removing the heavier layers of his clothing before settling with a thinner tunic. She wondered why he kept his cloak. When she asked him, "Why the cloak?" he replied with a similar question, "Why did you keep your hat?" They laughed gently before continuing through the forest. The trees towered over their heads and above them until they reached the sky. The sounds of foxes and wolves echoed through the land while the moist air gave them peace. River and Wood talked every now and again, still following the compass. They spoke about home, about what they'd do after the adventure was done, and about those that would miss them.

"Stone used to tease me when we were younger. He bragged all the time about how brave he was and that he'd make an amazing chief. But then one day, we were cornered by four undead zombies. The first thing that this brave hero did was run for a tree. I ran up with him and we were stuck there for hours at the edge of camp until a scouting party came and saved us!" Wood laughed. River laughed too, "How old were you when that happened?" She asked through their laughter. "I was twelve, Stone was fourteen at the time... what's even funnier is that it was a baby zombie that kept scaring him." They cracked up again before continuing onto another subject. River realized that she never asked him his age, "How old are you anyway?"

"I'm twenty eight, you?" He asked. She blushed deeply, "Uhhh..."

"What? Uh oh... Is it that much of an age gap?" He smirked. "No! It's just... I never knew my birthday. I-I don't know how old I am." She answered sheepishly. Wood's smile faded, "Really? In my tribe, birthdays are very important... they determine when a man is man enough to pick up a weapon and when a person can go out on their own to explore. I just... I wish I had the freedom you had." He admitted. River frowned for a moment, but tried to make him smile again. "What did you guys do anyway? To celebrate birthdays I mean..." She asked. Wood grinned, "We'd usually have a feast with the best meat we could find. There would also be a single gift depending on what age the person was turning. On their fourteenth birthday, they'd be gifted with a crossbow to signify their journey into manhood." He explained, recalling fond memories of both Stone and Coal. He remembered when he received his first crossbow as well, how special it felt. "Wow... usually the villagers throw a party with sweets like cake or cookies. The person usually receives several gifts no matter what age they are." She stated. "And to think we used to only be one race..." Wood said quietly. A few conversations later, they realized that the sun was getting lower and lower into the sky. Therefore, they made camp beside a large tree. River secured Raziel to the trunk, feeding her an extra apple as Wood began to make sleeping arrangements in the trees. Since the trunk of the spruce tree was so large, the center of it was big enough for the two to sleep on. It would be perfect for protection against the undead. They ate a small meal of bread, pork, and water.