Ｆａｌｌｉｎｇ [MCSM: Season One, Ep. 1-4]

1. This Life

Walking through the forest with your hands shoved into the pockets of your jacket, you listened absentmindedly to your three companions as they talked about the approaching competition with growing enthusiasm. Not that such a thing was new to you—it was all they had been discussing for the past two weeks. They certainly seemed ready to conquer the challenge with confidence, and you considered that a good thing. It was about time they stopped thinking of themselves as 'losers'.

It helped that they also had a newfound motivation, ever since Axel dropped the bomb that whoever won this battle of creativity would receive the chance to meet Gabriel the Warrior. He was a big deal pretty much everywhere, so it was no wonder why they got so thrilled by the very idea of it.

"The point of the competition isn't just to build something," Jesse spoke, and you glanced over at him curiously. "You have to do something to get noticed by the judges!"

"Okay then. How do we do this?" Olivia asked, stopping the stroll and turning to face Jesse, prompting the rest of you to stand idle, as well.

"We don't just build something functional, we build something fun," the brunet continued, and you preoccupied yourself by bending over and giving Reuben a few affectionate strokes on the head, to which you earned a pleased oink. "After we finish the fireworks machine like we planned, then we build something cool on top of it."

"You might be onto something."

"If you want to get a reaction out of the judges, you build something scary. So I say we build a creeper," Axel said, never failing to be the first to lay his opinions onto the table. He had a valid point, though.

"Wouldn't an enderman be better?" Olivia said, tone dubious as she sent Axel a skeptical look. "I'm more scared of endermen than creepers."

"They both have their moments. Both pretty scary." You nodded in agreement with his words. You had only encountered one enderman before, but you absolutely wouldn't want to do it, again. It helped that it would only attack if provoked in some way, however, while creepers were known for their silent strides as they snuck up on unsuspecting folk. Nobody would know there was even one there until they were being blown to smithereens.

You shook the unsettling notion from your mind and focused on the small group, allowing your next words to float from your mouth. "What about spiders?" They looked your way, silently urging you to clarify. "I mean, they're fat and creepy...plus they can climb walls so you have a harder time escaping them. Endermen can teleport, but how often do you even see one? It's easy to avoid it when you do. And they're not naturally hostile. The only reason one would end up targeting you is cause you looked at it. They're not like other mobs that try to kill you right when you're in their line of vision."

"So what you're saying is, that you're taking Axel's side," Olivia grumbled, and you shook your head in the negative.

"No. The creeper isn't a bad idea, it's just kinda, I don't know...overused?" Axel's eyebrow shot up at that statement, and you held out your hands to defend your train of thought. "No offense! But when someone thinks of a scary monster, what's the first thing they usually picture? Yeah, the most obvious one. Nobody wants to run across a creeper, but that's common knowledge. People would swarm to your build if you thought outside the box because not everyone considers a spider of all things to be the worst monster. But in many aspects, it is."

"Spiders aren't even aggressive during the day," Axel pointed out, tone a little argumentative. "They just get that way at night."

"Exactly. That's something else that makes them seem threatening. One moment, they mind their own business, and the next, they're coming after you. You see them everywhere—caves, on land. They can squeeze through small holes that creepers can't. They can get you, even if you think you're safe and sound in your home. And sure, they're easier to kill than some, but it's the idea that you're never really protected against them. Isn't that terrifying to you?"