Descent Into Overworld: An Unofficial Minecraft Adventure by Liam O'Donnell Page B

and returning the Seed Generator in time for dinner. Hamid had other terrible thoughts; images of disaster deep underground that he didn’t dare say aloud. How would they defeat Slashax? If the skeleton was working for Herobrine, then all the forces of the underground would be pitted against them. Hamid shuddered to think what they would face down there. But down was the only way to go. He gritted his teeth and forced a confident smile.
    “Let’s do this,” he said, wishing he could be anywhere but here.
     
    * * *
     
    Many hours later, Hamid’s whole body ached. Walking in diamond armor was not easy. He felt like he was squeezed into a shirt made out of soup cans and wearing a pair of toasters on his feet. They clattered and jangled with every step deeper underground. And there were many steps.
    They followed a tunnel left by the thieves deep into the darkness and stopped when the smoothly cut stone passage opened into a wide cavern. The whole way, Bano didn’t take his eyes off the strange device in his hands.
    “Slashax must have started digging his way to the Seed Generator from here,” he said.
    “That makes sense,” Ant said. He looked back the way they came. “The tunnel runs in a straight line with even steps cut out along the way.”
    “From here, the walking will be more difficult.” Bano turned to face one direction and then another. Each time, he stopped to study the device in his hands. “The seed sensor is picking up faint signals coming from farther down.”
    “Seed sensor?” Ant said. “Is that some kind of compass?”
    “In a way,” Bano said. “The Seed Generator is constantly generating new seeds for Minecraft worlds. Each seed leaves trace elements in the air. This device can sense those elements.”
    “And it’ll lead us to the sensor?” Ant said.
    “Hopefully,” Bano said. “It was crafted after the theft, so it’s never been tested.”
    “So it could also be leading us around in random directions?” Ant’s words grew sharp. The weight of his tin suit seemed to have worn away his enthusiasm for this dungeon delve.
    Bano moved farther down the corridor without answering. The two friends watched the villager plod through the darkness, following the seed sensor’s signal.
    “It’s all we have right now, Ant,” Hamid said. “Let’s follow the seed sensor and see where it leads us.”
    Ant pushed his diamond helmet to the back of his head and smirked.
    “Whatever you say, boss.” He turned and followed Bano down the corridor.
    “I’m not the boss,” Hamid said.
    “Then stop acting like one,” Ant called over his shoulder.
    Hamid stood alone in the shadow-filled tunnel. Suddenly his diamond armor wasn’t the only thing weighing down on him.
    Carefully, they climbed down to the cavern floor. They found an opening wide enough for the three of them to pass through easily.
    Hamid brought his torch close to the ground. Footprints crisscrossed the dust here. Damp trails left by passing slimes coated the floor. It was impossible to tell if it was just random monsters wandering around or Slashax and his skeletons.
    “This looks like a busy place,” he said.
    “Then we best keep moving, unless we want a visit from the beasts who dwell here,” Bano said.
    The tunnel continued on straight and stayed wide as they went. At regular intervals, it dropped down like a neatly carved staircase. Ant studied the tunnel with the eye of a master builder.
    “This tunnel seems like it was built specifically to carry large items back and forth,” he said. “It’s wide enough for the three of us to move easily. The steps don’t drop off like a natural cliff.”
    “Indeed,” Bano said. “But the people in my village did not build it. We have no reason to come this way.”
    “Not even to mine for stuff?” Hamid said.
    “We have quarries elsewhere that meet all our needs.” Bano continued down the tunnel. His eyes never left the seed sensor in his hands.
    “So, Slashax built this