Lin the Piglin Book 2, page 1
Lin the Piglin
Book 2: The Undead Undone
Casper Craft
PUBLISHED BY:
Casper Craft
Copyright © 2021
Table of contents
Book 2: The undead undone
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Chapter Ten
Chapter Eleven
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Chapter One
Everyone was screaming, and nothing was all right. Steve screeched from above as he saw that Lin had been turned into a zombie piglin. Undead flooded either into his wrath or his blade; it was hard to tell where one ended and the other began. The golem bellowed, hurling undead out of the geode, his white eyes blazing like the sun. From the right, undead poured up the staircase to their doom.
So far, Mc Boned Face hadn’t been recognized amongst the other undead in all the chaos, Mc Boned Face's bones shook from the battle raging all around him. It was only a matter of time until someone noticed him. He would be obliterated by any one of the three sides. Desperately, he searched for any escape.
Looking up, he could see a small hole only two blocks high. The tunnel clearly led into the geode where the golem raged, but it was big enough for Mc Boned Face to hide.
It was either salvation, or a grave. There was not a better option.
“Any port in a storm.” Mc Boned Face whispered.
Scrambling down the stairs, Mc Boned Face leapt up. The tips of his bony fingers grasped the edge of the hole and he pulled himself up. The golem saw him, but who was he going to tell? The tunnel had one exit only a few blocks away.
It dropped into the geode itself, so not really an escape. Just a gap that could quickly become his grave if Steve noticed him in it. Mc Boned Face tried not to think about it as the battle raged on below.
At one point, Mc Boned Face could hear the golem throwing undead into Steve's path of destruction. The two of them were working together against the hoard of undead. After several minutes, the fighting grew silent as the grave. Mc Boned Face leaned over to peer into the geode.
The golem was staring directly at him, white eyes burning with fury. With the sound of two anvils rubbing together, it spoke.
"Skeletons belong in the garden."
Without turning to look at the golem or what the golem was looking at, Steve spoke.
"Shut up, you stack of blocks. Lin? Is that you?"
The zombie piglin formerly known as Lin looked at Steve blankly. Steve stepped forward slowly as if he could not believe what he was seeing. The purple crystal blocks of the geode chimed gently with his every step. Steve looked into Zombie Lin's hand and saw a firestarter still clutched in it.
"Lin, it's me, Steve? Oh please, Lin, tell me you didn't throw your life away to bring me back?"
Lin stepped away from Steve as if he wasn’t even there. Lin the zombie piglin had no memories. She had no personality anymore. The sharp tongue, big heart and clever mind were gone now. The darkness had consumed what it could not corrupt.
Mc Boned Face lay down on the blocks, letting the heart he did not have anymore break. They had been so close. If only everything had happened a minute sooner, Lin wouldn't be cursed like this. From below, Steve made small sounds like a man whose only friend in the world had been snatched away like a block in an enderman’s arms. Mc Boned Face refused to look down again. Some part of him was screaming to take his bow, and even now in this very moment, fire an arrow into Steve.
He wanted to try and corrupt Steve the way his brothers had corrupted Lin. Mc Boned Face drowned the urge in shame and self-loathing. He bit down on his fingers to keep him from taking up his bow. From below, Steve spoke again.
"Hello again, darkness, my old friend. I know you can hear me. I will stop you, do you understand me?"
Steve used the word friend as a dirty word meant only for the lowest of scum found on the bottom of one’s boot. Steve kept speaking to no one Mc Boned Face could see.
"You took my family and friends away every chance you had. You corrupted the land every chance you had, but not me. I will never be corrupted, I will never give in. I have turned the Redstone into the philosopher’s stone and sacrificed my very mortality to fight you. No matter how many times you knock me down, I will rise again. One day I will find you, the builders will come back, and the land will heal. I will find your face; I will punch it."
Mc Boned Face held perfectly still. The darkness was not a thinking thing. It was a sickness brought on by spores from a fungus. Or was it? Sure, the undead talked about it like something else, but that was just pretend, right? Mc Boned Face's thoughts were interrupted as Steve kept speaking.
"Lin, you poor brave thing. I will build something for you to honor your sacrifice. I want you to know I built your family a home. Not just a house, but a castle where the endermen cannot reach them anymore. A fortress where they can even fight off the wither skeletons. I will turn this geode into a monument for you. One day when the builders return, they will know the story of Lin the piglin. They will know you stood up against the darkness and gave it all for the good of the world. Rest now, little piglin with a big heart. Rest here surrounded by the purple crystals that sing with your every step."
Mc Boned Face flinched at that. If Steve began building, he would find him. That would break his promise as quickly as Steve broke his bones.
If Mc Boned Face could breathe, he would have sighed in relief as Steve dashed from the geode. Steve never looked back as he went to gather supplies to build the monument to Lin. Mc Boned Face had to leave now. Jumping down to the staircase, he screamed as a cold iron hand wrapped around his spine, and lifted him to look directly into the burning white eyes of the golem.
Instead of grinding his bones to grow wheat for bread, the golem's voice came out clear as a bell ringing and echoing in Mc Boned Face’s skull.
"Little golem valued your freedom, but I do not value your un-life. Be gone from here with your shame. If you return, I will put you where you belong. In the ground to grow the wheat.”
Mc Boned Face nodded once very slowly as the golem set him down with more force than needed. The moment the golem’s iron hand let go, Mc Boned Face ran for everything he was worth. With the sun still out and Steve running around somewhere above, Mc Boned Face decided to go down. The mine Lin had dug had managed to connect to a natural opening. Water dripped from stalagmites in the roof of the cave. Mc Boned Face was careful as he moved forward. A bat clung to the ceiling watching him as he moved through the cave.
The natural formation of caves gave way to a massive underground canyon. Water and lava falls wept from the higher edges down to the floor. Both sides of the canyon were lined with long straight hallways that had been carefully dugout in a grid. This must be Steve’s diamond mine and that meant Steve could come rushing down any hallway at any time. That thought froze Mc Boned Face in his tracks, as he stared at the labyrinth of hallways in fear. As if on cue, Steve's voice echoed out in a long scream down the halls.
"What happened to my house?"
Apparently, Steve had another level of anger and he had reached that new high. Mc Boned Face stared at the ceiling blocks calmly. Well, this day was officially the worst. Here he was, finally free, and now he missed the simplicity of living in the box Steve had built. Nearby, a zombie groaned politely to get his attention.
Mc Boned Face turned his creaky neck joints to the noise and saw a zombie in leather armor, holding out one of his carrots shyly. They both stared at each other as Steve's voice echoed through the caves in an angry rant. Most of what Steve said could not be repeated in polite company, but it was clear he thought the undead had trashed his house and he was going to do some extra awful things to the ones he caught. When Steve's angry rant finally stopped, Mc Boned Face spoke with surprising calm to the zombie.
"So, what can I do for you, buddy?"
The zombie trembled as he looked down the halls. He was clearly expecting Steve to come rushing down towards them at any moment, with his sword blazing as he exacted his revenge on the undead.
"I wanted to thank you for the carrot. More than that, I want to trade you for something." The zombie said.
"I am kind of low on carrots and time right now, buddy. I am also in a hurry to save my bones. So, if we could move this along, that would be great."
"Oh! Of course, I um, well you see, I wanted to trade you my helmet for a name. I cannot remember my original name. I do not want to be called brother or zombie anymore, but I can't think of one for myself and I figured you needed a helmet to escape in the daylight. So, you give me a name, and I will give you my helmet. I want something cool like your name."
"Let me get this straight. I call you a name, and you will give me a helmet to protect me from the daylight. What good is a name going to do you when Steve finds you down here? It isn't like Steve is gonna care what you're called when he swings his sword at you."
"Oh, that's not a problem. There is a waterfall nearby that leads to the sea. I have always wanted to become a drowned zombie, so after you give me a name, I will just swim out to the sea where Steve can never find me."
Mc Boned Face felt his head throb. It wasn't the zombie's fault he didn't think things through. He only had half a brain after
"Let's walk and talk. Tell me about yourself while we head to the sea. Is that okay with you buddy?" Mc Boned Face said.
"Well, I have been undead for like, forever. I think I used to build things, although the memories are fuzzier than a cat's back."
"Okay, so you are my buddy of building things. Let’s turn that into an acronym and call you Bob."
"Bob, the zombie builder?"
"Yes, I think that's a great name for you, so you remember where you came from every time someone calls your name."
Bob the zombie grinned from ear to … well, from one ear to where the other ear should be. He was missing one, so it was a crooked smile at best.
"That is perfect, thank you, Mc Boned Face!"
The two of them walked through the blocks, Bob guiding the way as he repeated his new name as if trying to burn it into his memory. Mc Boned Face gave him a minute to process the new name.
"Hey buddy, so how about that helmet?"
"What helmet?" Bob replied.
Mc Boned Face was very calm as he responded through gritted teeth.
"You promised me if I gave you a name, you would give me your helmet."
"Did I? Why would you give me a name? I have a name, it's Bob."
This was why Mc Boned Face avoided dealing with zombies. The act of learning his name meant that he had forgotten the last few minutes of his life. There was not time to fight him for it, so he tried reasoning with Bob.
"Hey, buddy pal, my best friend Bob, do you remember when I gave you that carrot?"
"Of course, I remember that. I'm not an idiot, Mc Boned Face."
"That was a good favor from a good friend, right?"
"Yes, it was. Every time I look at it, I remember things from my past, and I feel better about my un-life, but why are we standing here when Steve is trying to catch us?"
"Well, wait what did you say about Steve?"
Bob pointed behind Mc Boned Face. Slowly looking over his shoulder, Mc Boned Face saw Steve bearing down at them at full speed. Sword held out in front of him, thoughts of violence were sparkling in his eyes.
"Oh."
"Should we run?"
"Yes Bob, running is a genius idea."
“You think I am a genius?”
“Sure Bob, now let’s see if you could be a runner, maybe even a track star.”
Together, the two of them sprinted away side by side, little puffs of dust trailing behind them with every step away from Steve.
Bob took the lead and wheezed out. “Follow me, I know how to get into the ocean. Steve can't hold his breath forever, but we can."
Mc Boned Face didn't answer that, as he resisted the urge to kick Bob for holding them up and allowing Steve to find them.
Steve used precious breath to shout."Mc Boned Face, I know that's you! I don't know how you escaped my box, but when I catch you I will lock you up so tight that nothing will ever find you again. I will fill the box with dogs to use you like a chew toy forever!"
Bob’s eyes grew wide with shock and he spoke with wonder in his voice.
"Oh wow, you know Steve on a first name basis. Are you two friends?"
"Yes Bob, I am such good friends with Steve he is gonna build me a house full of puppies."
"Oh, that's really nice I wish I had a friend like that."
"Give me that helmet and I will be your friend like that, Bob."
"Really? I would totally trade you my helmet for your friendship."
This time Mc Boned Face just shrieked as loud as he could. It wasn’t like he could get winded anyhow. Then up ahead, he saw salvation in two points. First, he could see flowing water. It was not a small stream either. This was a massive waterfall that had to come from the sea. If Mc Boned Face had to guess, gravel had fallen in mass to open such a huge hole. Second, there was a slime bouncing their way. A great, big, beautiful bouncing slime. It had already noticed Steve and was happily hopping towards him.
Mc Boned Face had never been so happy to see one of the giant boogers. It leapt up as the two of them ran past it. Landing with a blurp, it bounced up again towards Steve. He went to battle with the Slime. Steve's sword kept pushing it back and the Slime slammed its body against him in return. Steve swung again, and the slime spilt into two smaller slimes. The more Steve swung, the smaller the slimes became that jumped forth to battle.
It only bought the two undead a few seconds, but that was enough for them to reach the water. The water’s current pushed them backwards, but with Steve at their back they had plenty of motivation. The going was hard but not as hard as the edge of Steve's sword, after all. With that as a reminder, the two of them pushed forward into the waterfall. Mc Boned Face heard Steve one last time as he swam up the water into the ocean.
"You will pay for this, I swear it, Mc Boned Face! Run while you can but I will find you."
Chapter Two
Mc Boned Face took a deep metaphorical breath as he reached the sea. With Bob next to him, they made their way across the seafloor into the kelp forest. Finally safe hidden in the kelp, they stopped running. Mc Boned Face turned to Bob as air bubbles escaped him. The transformation was happening. When the last bubble drifted up, Bob turned from a sickly green to a dark bluish hue. Even Bob's eyes changed color as he drifted across the sandy blocks.
Mc Boned Face calmly watched his new friend make the transition into the form of his dreams and wondered if his friend would be happier now. There was no going back after all. He looked down at his own boney hands, and realized there was no going back to what you once were for him either.
Be sad later; get that helmet now, he reminded himself
Trying to stay casual, he asked Bob."Hey buddy, how about that helmet?"
Bob's voice had changed a bit, but it seemed that he remembered the conversation they had while running at least.
"You promise to be my friend, right?" Bob asked.
Mc Boned Face thought of Lin and wondered if she still counted as his friend. He nodded in response to Bob's question, not feeling like speaking at the moment. Bob plucked the helmet from his head, offering it to Mc Boned Face with a smile. A friend was the most dangerous thing Mc Boned Face had ever made. He had been hurt by falling from heights. He had been hurt when wolves tried to nibble his bones, but he had never felt pain like when he saw Lin turned into a zombie.
Bob smiled at him with the usual crooked grin, as Mc Boned Face searched his soul for what to say. Bob spoke first.
"No need to say thanks buddy, friends do things like this because they care for you, not to hear your say thanks."
That was it. That was the wheat that broke the llama’s back. Mc Boned Face took the helmet gently, as the place where his heart was supposed to be broke. This small leather helmet was his only hope to save Lin. This insignificant gift from Bob was the thing he needed most. He was grateful for it and ashamed he had tricked this zombie into giving it. So, he gave Bob the only thing he had left to give.
"Thank you, Bob, you don't know what this means to me."
"I know it means we are friends. I have never had a friend before."
"Yes Bob, we are friends. I have only ever had one friend before, but I'm glad to call you a friend as well."
"So, what are you going to do now?"
"Well, I am going to save my other friend. They need my help and I am going to make sure they get it."
Bob nodded, as if his recent change had granted him some kind of freedom or insight into the world at large.
"Okay Mc Boned Face, I will see you later. I want to go find some dolphins. I have always wanted to watch them play up close."
“How does it feel to be a drowned?”
Bob drifted a bit up, easy as a fish that glided through the waters.
“It feels right, like this was the body I was born to have rather than the body I was cursed into. It’s about choice ya know. I didn’t get to choose to be a zombie but I could choose to be a drowned. You told me all about having the freedom to make choices, and this one is mine.”
