And here we go again! As usual, here are the links to Part One and Part Eight. Enjoy!
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  Fantasy sat underneath the birch tree, trying not to think. Herowryn had left to get Starz a couple days ago, and she had heard nothing since then. Had something happened? Was she safe? Had she rescued Starz?
  Fantasy sighed, trying once again to just sit there and listen. She could here the sounds of Herowryn’s camp in the background. What would happen to the villagers if she didn’t return? Would they-
  No, Fantasy thought. Don’t think. Thinking is only making you worry.
  But shouldn’t Herowryn have reached out by now? She had said she would contact Fantasy as soon as-
  Quit it.
  What if Herowryn had failed? Wh-
  Stop.
  Fantasy could feel herself… breaking. The stress of the situation, the lack of close friends, and orders not to let everyone know she was near the camp were slowly tearing her down, making her jumpy and… weak, in a way.
  Maybe I should let myself worry, she thought. Maybe I’ll calm down afterwards.
  It was a small line of hope that would probably fail her. But she tried anyway.

  Joseph was quite possibly the strangest villager ever. For whatever reason, his hands were able to swing freely by his side, and he had always been far too interested in Users for his own good.
  Far, far too interested.
  But then he had found Herowryn. She had saved him from events he yearned to forget. Had taken him in when all he brought was trouble. And now he was her second in command.
  Joseph was the only one aware of the young User who sat on a nearby hill in the entire camp. She wasn’t aware he knew of her presence. She hadn’t ever even seen him before. Joseph himself hadn’t seen her, only images Herowryn had painted through her words.
  And because of this, Joseph had to be the one to break the news to the poor young girl.
  He checked the tent on top of the hill where she had been staying first. It was a small, simple wool structure, with a bed and a chest with supplies inside. Just like all the other ones in the camp. But the User wasn’t there.
  She’s got to be nearby, Joseph thought, walking around the tent. Part of him hoped he wouldn’t find her, then he wouldn’t have to tell her what had happened. What the girl would have to do now. But that would mean something had happened to her. Better to find her now.
  A flash of yellow glimmered from between the trees. A closer look revealed the young User sitting with her back to him, knees pulled close, side against a tree truck.
  “Um…” Joseph said, trying to think of a way to greet her without startling her. “Fantasy?”
  She jumped, spinning around. She seemed stiff. Panicked. “Huh?” She clearly knew no one was supposed to know she was here.
  Joseph ignored the legends and traditions, resisting the urge to bow to this in-game user. She didn’t know what the villagers thought of her. Didn’t know they viewed her as a powerful being, almost as strong as the Heroes themselves. It should probably remain that way.
  “Don’t worry,” he said. “Herowryn told me I would find you here.”
  Fantasy perked up. “You mean she’s back? Is Starz with her?”
  Poor girl. “Actually… I’m supposed to tell you… Herowryn got into a fight with Herobrine. And lost.”

  “You mean she’s dead?” Fantasy felt… something, she wasn’t sure what, crashing around her. Her world, perhaps? No. The world was too small to fit the mountains of destruction that now seemed to be everywhere. Herowryn had promised to help them. Save them. Without her, she was lost.
  “I don’t think so,” the villager said, his arms swing by his side. That’s weird. “But she contacted me a bit ago and told me what happened.”
  “What did she say?”
  “Are you sure you want to know?”
  No, Fantasy thought. But the word that slipped out was “Yes.”
  The villager nodded, as if that was the answer he had been expecting. “I wrote her words down as best I could.” A book appeared in his hand, and he handed it to Fantasy. “Here. I feel like you should read them yourself.”
  She took the book silently, opening to the first page. The handwriting inside was rushed, but neat and easy to read. Probably due to the fact that it, like everything else, was pixelated.
  I’m not sure where I am, it said. Everything is dark. I believed He trapped me in bedrock, but I’m not sure. It’s a miracle that I can even communicate.
  Listen, you need to prepare yourself. I don’t know what’s going to happen. I could be killed at any moment, someone could come after Fantasy, Starz could be trapped somewhere more awful, enduring harsh interrogations from Herobrine.
  Don’t come for me. If I’m not back in one week, I’m dead. Protect Fantasy. Get her home. Only when she is back in her own world should you try to rescue Starz. I don’t care what the village prophecies say, they’re too young to deal with so much pressure.
  Tell Fantasy I’m sorry. That I tried, but I just couldn’t make it. He was too fast and too strong. I couldn’t stop him.
  I hear something. Please, don’t forget. Don’t come after me. Ple-
  “Why does it end there?” Fantasy cried, asking the most important question of the dozens being tossed around her mind.
  “Herowryn screamed after that,” the villager answered. “I’m not sure why. Then I lost her.”
Fantasy sat in silence for a moment.“Why is Herobrine so much stronger than her?”
  “He trains with offensive powers so much more than she does. The fact that he won does not surprise me.”
  “Why?”
  “Why what, Mistress?”
  Mistress? Fantasy thought, confused. We’ll get back to that later. “Just… why? Why did this have to happen? Why can’t we go after her?”
  “She had to lose eventually,” the villager said, shaking his head sadly. “And we can’t go after her, no matter how much we all want to. First of all, I must respect her wishes. Second, Herobrine wouldn’t hesitate to kill us all if we went to save her.”
  Fantasy could hear someone shouting in the background, getting closer. “Joseph!” the voice was saying. The villager sighed, turning back. “I must leave now,” he said. “I need to inform the others of Herowryn’s defeat and prepare to lead the villagers. They can’t know about you yet. I’ll return as soon as I can.”
  “Ok,” Fantasy whispered, a plan forming in her head. It would be the most stupid thing she had ever done. But sometimes friendship made you do stupid things.
  She was going to go save Starz herself. And after that, she was going to free Herowryn.
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  And we have another cliffhanger ending! Sorry, I just can't help it. Once again, I want to say thanks for taking the time to read this. Remember that I always appreciate feedback, good or bad. Please feel free to correct me if I'm doing something wrong. I should have the next part out in a couple weeks unless something pops up, so until then, leave a diamond if you enjoyed and I'll see you next time!
          -ellacool10