Herobrine's Legacy (The Wielder Chronicles Book Three)

Chapter 9 || A Black Cloud

"Xavier doesn't suck, then?"

Xav rolled his eyes. "Shut up, Dare."

Zoe interrupted any future comebacks with her declaration. "You know how the amount of Endermen attacks have been rising recently? Well, they discovered a link."

Even before Emerald and Jonathan's deaths, Endermen had been launching assaults all across Minecraftia, with many fatalities involved. No one had really known why, though; however, apparently all the attacks were quite similar in nature, as if by the same Enderman. They'd continued afterwards as well. I'd known that Jonathan's parents had died after their son's death, but not what of. We hadn't been told by Iris, who was the only one who knew. The news came in two days ago. We all quietly suspected the Endermen.

Eve sat forward suddenly. "What was it?"

Zoe sat down on the ground and all our gazes followed her. She'd seized our attention.

"All the murders occurred to people of the same two families," she stated, voice hushed. "Parker and McKinnon. Even the ones hugely at a distance. Cousins of cousins of cousins."

McKinnon. The group went silent.

"And now," Zoe continued, tone even heavier, "there aren't any Parkers left, and the only McKinnon still alive is Ice."

What? No. No way. I'd never doubted Zoe before, because she'd never been wrong with her gossip. Ever. But now I wasn't so sure. Iris had aunts and uncles and cousins, how could they all be dead?

Scott spoke up first. "Does Ice know?"

I shot him a glare. "Of course she would know. She's their family." Why didn't she tell me? I could've helped her. Poor Iris, now she's alone. All alone except her friends and us Dares, but who are we to know how she's feeling? Who am I to apologise for the murder of her family - every last member?

"What're you guys whispering about? You look like elementary school girls talking about that boy they're all crushing on," said a voice from behind us, and it was such a break from the somber atmosphere the news had created that we all jumped a little.

I looked up and smiled. I had to keep a brave face for her sake. "Hey, Rainbow. How was class?"

She sighed and sat down around our huddle, in between Eve and Zoe. We all tried our best to appear as though we hadn't been gossiping about her. I had a feeling I was the worst at it. "Sucked, as usual," she said, pulling out her lunch. "Mr Uriah was an ass today. Set Helix up for three after school detentions."

"He's always an ass," Xav commented as he leaned over to pinch a cookie from her open inventory. She slapped his hand away.

Rainbow nodded in agreement. "Good point."

She's in a good mood today, I reflected, astounded. Maybe Zoe's gossip was crap after all. That would be a first.

We were all eating happily, all under the shade of the tree's bushy leaves, sharing food and words. Zoe Green's pale cheeks were flushed their usual pink, and freckles dotted her face like dark stars. Her hair was messy and red-brown, pulled up into a low bun that threatened to burst at any moment. Her hair was really thick. She was best known as always being quick to speak, especially when she didn't need to; although, in the public, she was pretty shy.

Scott Sparx had blonde hair with red dyed through it in a chaotic web, and his eyes were a stony, very dark brown. He was from somewhere extremely south, and he'd grown up with snow all around in some white-frosted biome of ice. I'd visited one like that once, but if you ask me, any green, sunny forest could beat it. He was rough around the edges, and very loud with opinions, but he was still fun to be around and a loyal friend.