Aw Man

The three players find themselves trapped in a complex mineshaft system. Judging by how deep they fell, climbing back up would be too time-consuming, not to mention dangerous. They did consider block-stacking all the way back up like what Ricardo had done against the evoker's zombies but lacked the blocks to actually pull it off.

The environment felt humid and restricting. The mineshaft's walls were coated in sticky substances. The three couldn't make out what it was but it looked unsettling to touch or even examine. Besides the bats, there didn't appear to be any other mobs living here. The ambient sounds were very uninviting. Small stones clacking and slight creaks echoing across the entire shaft.

Carl noticed that Ricardo was trembling uncontrollably. Ricardo was a brave person who would charge headfirst into doing risky things so to Carl this was something new. He wondered if it had anything to do with Ricardo's hunger so he asked Ricardo about it.

To Carl's surprise, the reason behind the expression was due to claustrophobia, the fear of crowded areas, or tight spaces. However, Ricardo's claustrophobia only counted enclosed spaces, crowds don't seem to bug him at all.

Ryan asked the two to stay put while he scouts the area for any hostility. Before leaving, he gave the two a torch each and made one for himself.

Carl and Ricardo peered at their surroundings. The dark tunnels stretched even further when Ryan had left them. Their senses had kicked into hyper mode allowing a new ambient sound to blend in with the mix.

*drip drip

These sounded like drops of water coming from a waterfall. Carl wanted to go check if there was indeed one so that he may fetch some water for his group. Unfortunately, with a Ricardo clung to his right arm, Carl may not leave to explore. Taking Ricardo with him would lead to disastrous situations if they were to encounter any enemies along the way.

*hiss hiss

A new sound joined the mixture. Carl and Ricardo start to develop goosebumps and every strand of hair on their body stood straight up. They began frantically observing the tunnels to see if anything wanted to snack on two juicy players.

*HISS tap HISS tap

The noise grew and gentle taps were added to the rhythm. Carl slowly stood up and quietly dragged Ricardo towards the tunnel where Ryan had left. They shifted their position carefully to avoid drawing whatever is lurking around closer to them.

The weight of a grown man on Carl's right arm grew as Ricardo trembled even more at the hisses. All of a sudden, the place went silent. The ringing caused by silence drowned out any clicks and clacks in the vicinity. Tension started to build-up between the two.

Ricardo's shaking transferred to Carl for he thought they were no longer being pursued. As for Carl, he turned shaky because he thought their pursuer had found them.

Out of the blue, a notification box appeared with a text. It even made a faint ding.

{Quest Received : Rescue Dan [Creeper Series]}

In addition to this notification, a loud footstep echoed from behind the two causing them to instantly turn around and rapidly punch whatever had decided to creep them. The creature that had shown itself felt the flurry of four fists being rammed into its face and stomach. It was caught off guard due to the sudden change in the two's behavior, therefore it couldn't react in time to retaliate.

The punching session continued for a good minute or two. Ricardo, seeing that the creature was still squirming, pulled out a part of the cave's wooden braces and start to wind up a slam on the downed creature.

"STOP! I'M!" *coughs "DAN! YOU MEATHEADS!" it spoke. *THUNK "OUCH! YOU FOCKS!"

Ricardo was still traumatized by the experience while Carl simply assumed it was another race that dwelled underground. Not wanting to make any more enemies, he bowed down and started apologizing in hopes that the creature won't rip their faces off.

Although, Carl felt that forgiveness wasn't something negotiable considering the mob's point of view. From the creature's perspective, two strangers had invaded its home then they proceeded to bash the owner.

As it stood up and entered the light of Carl's torch, a tall, slim, green body was revealed. Its torso was long and had four small hoof-like appendages stuck below. They appear to be its legs because all the hoves moved in pairs when the creature tried to walk forward. Its head was also greenish in texture resembling a trimmed bush with two square eyes and a large Y-shaped mouth.

This creature was a creeper mob. Their innate trait is tied to their emotions. If creepers are placed under extreme stress whether sadness or anger, they go boom after hissing. They also have a tendency to seek out targets with the highest body temperature when in an explosive state. One can speculate that the target's body heat is used as a fuse detonator for creepers.

The creeper glared intensely into Ricardo's horrified eyes. "Next time you better watch who you pick a fight with. Else you gonna end up dead in the water. And I guarantee it won't be 'fun'."

"Now you are probably wondering why" *gets interrupted by repeated sticks smacks to the head "STOP!" *BIG THUNK "HITTING!" *BIGGER THUNK "ME! I..... come..... in.... peace...." *teeny tiny thunk

Carl looked at the unconscious mob with a panicked expression and random thoughts began to circulate around his mind. 'What am I gonna do? The quest hasn't ended so he's still alive maybe. But what if he kills us if he wakes up?'

He then turned to a Ricardo who had just recently realized that the creature was friendly. The same thoughts were running through his mind too.

"Aight. We follow the laws of the unseen. Poke Choke and Croak. We must usher this impure being to the afterlife so that we may not feel any sins crawling down our backs. Oh, great father please guide him to a new life. Also, give him a decent face please." Ricardo spoke calmly as if his phobia had suddenly dispersed.

The loud thunks had echoed around until a nervous Ryan came rushing back to the two. He tried to assess what had happened while he was missing and was shocked to find a creeper lying on the ground. He shoved both Carl and Ricardo from the mob and started to drag it towards a tunnel that led to a tall ravine splitting the mineshaft into multiple segments.

Carl already knew what Ryan had in mind and ran over to him. He grabbed Ryan's hand and told him 'Dan, the creeper' had given them a quest. Even if the rewards were still a mystery, it was still an upgrade for them because they needed all the handicaps they can get.

Carl even logically added restraining Dan before they begin questioning him. Ryan unwillingly accepted the conditions but was still doubtful for he knew the creature's ability and thought he had to show the two what they were getting themselves into.