Battle for Time Read online

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  Copyright © 2019 by Hollan Publishing, Inc.

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  Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data is available on file.

  Cover design by Brian Peterson

  Cover art by Megan Miller

  Print ISBN: 978-1-5107-4119-5

  E-book ISBN: 978-1-5107-4132-4

  Printed in the United States of America

  TABLE OF CONTENTS

  Chapter 1: Rooftop Farm

  Chapter 2: Visitors

  Chapter 3: It’s a Celebration

  Chapter 4: Cold Arrival

  Chapter 5: In the Basement

  Chapter 6: Attack of the Strays

  Chapter 7: The Hunger

  Chapter 8: Displaced

  Chapter 9: Farm or Famine

  Chapter 10: Skins

  Chapter 11: Reunion

  Chapter 12: Nether Meant to Hurt You

  Chapter 13: Followers

  Chapter 14: Mob Invasion

  Chapter 15: Missing History

  Chapter 16: New Criminals

  Chapter 17: Passage through Time

  Chapter 18: Grand Reopening

  1

  ROOFTOP FARM

  "Are you ready? Can I see the farm?” Poppy called out from the stairwell leading to the roof of the new skyscraper she had just built. Poppy had also designed a large glass viewing area on the roof where visitors could see all of Meadow Mews and even parts of Verdant Valley. She was happy to have completed the building and was excited for the grand opening celebrations later that week. People from across the Overworld were coming to the grand opening. When Poppy thought about this, she had butterflies in her stomach. She had never created a structure that was this big, and the idea that so many people would be celebrating a work she created made Poppy excited, but also anxious.

  Poppy felt the highlight of the building was the enormous rooftop farm, where folks who worked and stayed in the skyscraper could pick fresh fruit. She hadn’t designed it. In fact, she hadn’t even seen it. Her friends Brett and Joe told her she couldn’t see the rooftop farm until they were finished, and today was the day she would finally see the farm.

  Poppy had been waiting in the stairwell for what felt like an eternity, and she wanted to see the farm. Brett and Joe had been working on it nonstop, and she had heard snippets of conversations they’d had about the farm, but she never even got a peek at the plans. Poppy called out again, “Is it ready?”

  “You need patience,” her friend Nancy said as she walked toward the stairway. Although Nancy was a treasure hunter, she also knew a bit about farming and helped Brett and Joe with the final touches. She adjusted her wool hat as she spoke. “We want everything to be perfect for you. We know how much this means to you.”

  “I know,” Poppy said with a sigh. “It just feels like I’ve been waiting forever. I can’t wait to see the farm.”

  She heard Brett’s voice in the distance, “Almost ready. Just hold on a few more minutes.”

  Nancy tried to distract Poppy with small talk, but Poppy wasn’t interested.

  “I hear there will be hundreds of people arriving tomorrow,” said Nancy. “I actually saw a few arriving today. They came by boat. At first I thought they were pirates.”

  “Pirates!” Poppy shrieked.

  “No, I thought they were pirates because they were all dressed in blue and they had their swords out, but when I approached them they told me they were here for the grand opening and they put their swords back in their inventories. They explained that their ship had been attacked at sea and they were still nervous.” Nancy said this all in one breath and exhaled.

  “Should we be worried? Perhaps the people who attacked their ship will dock at Meadow Mews?” Poppy questioned. She was worried that there would be an incident that might destroy the grand opening festivities because several times when they were constructing the building, they had found bricks of TNT. The town had put together a makeshift police force led by their friend Helen. Nancy was also a member of this police force.

  “I don’t think we should be worried. I spoke with these visitors at great length, and they were attacked in the middle of the sea, far from Meadow Mews. They were so excited to see the building. One of them was a builder, and he wanted to meet with you,” said Nancy.

  Poppy’s heart beat fast. She wasn’t a fan of discussing her work. She liked to build, but she wasn’t the type to go over every detail about her projects. Poppy preferred for visitors to enjoy what she built rather than questioning its construction.

  Brett jogged over and announced, “We’re ready!”

  Poppy raced past the glass viewing area and toward the farm. She exclaimed, “Oh my! This is beyond incredible.” She saw the lush leafy trees filled with ripe apples and the rows of potatoes and wheat. “This can feed our entire village.”

  “It was designed to feed everyone in this building,” remarked Brett. “This is a large building. In fact, there are more rooms in this building than homes in our community.”

  Poppy never realized how massive the skyscraper was until Brett mentioned this perspective. She began to question if she had made the right decision. Was creating a building that was essentially larger than their small town a bad idea? She hoped this wouldn’t change the atmosphere of Meadow Mews. She loved the fact that she knew everyone in town, but she also was happy that Meadow Mews was growing. The skyscraper was a sign that Meadow Mews was advancing. She knew that it had a long history and the founder, Grant, would have been happy to know that this structure was attracting people from around the Overworld. Meadow Mews was now a destination point on the map. Any idea that she had made a bad decision vanished as she walked through the rows of wheat growing atop the building.

  “You guys did the best job. I can’t believe how well everything is growing,” Poppy marveled as she picked an apple from a tree and took a bite.

  “We are closer to the sun,” Brett said as he pointed at the hot sun that beat down on the roof.

  “True,” Poppy said and then remarked, “I should have built a covering so people could be in the shade while they ate the fruit and vegetables from the farm.”

  Poppy was always adding to buildings and structures she had designed. She believed her work was never done and there were always improvements to be made.

  “We are so glad you like the farm.” Joe smiled. “You did such a great job with this building that we wanted to create a farm that would be worthy of being on this well-designed rooftop.”

  Poppy blushed. “Please,” she said with a nervous chuckle, “the only reason people will even want to come here is for this vibrant farm
.”

  They heard voices in the distance, and Poppy turned around. She spotted four people dressed in blue. Nancy said, “Those are the visitors from the boat. I have no idea how they got up here. Nobody is supposed to be up here until the celebration.” Nancy hurried over to the visitors.

  One of the people dressed in blue rushed right over to Poppy. “Are you the one who designed this marvelous structure?”

  Poppy didn’t have time to answer. One of the other people from the group that was dressed in blue called out, “She is.”

  Before Poppy could even let out a scream, the four strangers surrounded her, and pointing their swords at her unarmored chest, they said, “You’re coming with us.”

  2

  VISITORS

  Brett, Joe, and Nancy sprinted toward Poppy’s captors, but the blue army of invaders sprinkled a potion of invisibility on Poppy and themselves.

  “Where are they?” screamed Brett.

  “I can’t see them!” hollered Joe.

  Nancy charged toward the stairs, grabbing at the air, hoping she could get hold of someone, but there was nobody there. The gang was beginning to lose hope when they heard someone scream.

  “Leave me alone!” the voice demanded.

  Brett pointed. “Look, there’s a sword!”

  Poppy had struck one of the attackers, but since they were invisible, only the swords were visible. Brett wanted to chuckle as he watched the swords clashing, because seeing swords floating in space was an odd sight. Yet Brett remembered that his best friend was holding one of these swords and was fighting a battle against four people. He had no reason to chuckle. He had to save Poppy.

  “Poppy!” Brett screamed.

  Poppy and the four invaders were battling beside a row of wheat, and one captor’s sword fell atop the wheat. Brett lunged and grabbed the sword.

  “Give it back,” the voice demanded.

  “Poppy,” Brett said, “please stand next to me. I want to know which one you are.”

  Brett could feel somebody grab his arm. “I’m right here.”

  As Brett began to strike the person he believed was in front of him, the potion wore off. He slammed his sword into one of Poppy’s captors, and they were destroyed. Nancy and Joe raced over with their diamond swords and attacked the remaining three people dressed in blue. When there was only one blue villain remaining, Poppy instructed her friends, “Stop! Let him live. I have questions to ask him.”

  The remaining captor shook. He had one heart left, and he was nervous. “What do you want to know?”

  Tears filled Poppy’s eyes, and she asked, “Why?”

  “It was orders,” he replied.

  “From who?” asked Brett.

  “Our leader.”

  “Who is that?” asked Brett.

  “Where are you from?” asked Poppy.

  “We are from the —” but before the captor could answer, he was struck with an arrow and destroyed.

  Poppy turned around and shrieked, “Skeletons!”

  The sun was setting, and a skeleton army had spawned on the roof of the skyscraper. The gang put on their armor and readied themselves for an attack on the skeletons. Arrows flew through the sky, and the gang leaped toward the bony beasts and destroyed the skeletons.

  Rattling bones were heard as they annihilated the final skeletons. When the last skeleton was obliterated, Poppy grabbed an apple from a tree and took a bite. She had a low health bar, and she needed nourishment.

  “Guys,” she said to her friends, “I am really worried about the grand opening. This was supposed to be a time of celebration, but now I’m too nervous to enjoy it. What if these people come back and want to capture me again?”

  “We will protect you,” said Brett.

  Joe and Nancy agreed they wouldn’t leave Poppy’s side until they figured out who was behind the attack and were able to stop them.

  Nancy looked at the sky. “It’s getting very dark. The sun is basically set, and if we don’t get to shelter soon, we will be attacked by more hostile mobs.”

  Poppy suggested they stay at the hotel in the skyscraper. “I’m afraid to go home,” she confessed. “I worry that they will be waiting for me.”

  Brett agreed, and they walked into the hotel and found a room for four people. They climbed into the beds and pulled their wool blankets over them. Poppy didn’t feel as if she could sleep. Her mind was racing. She kept going over what weapons she had in her inventory in case the blue-clad strangers returned in the middle of the night. She kept her eye on the door as she got up from the bed and began to pace in the small hotel room.

  “Poppy,” Brett whispered, “are you okay?”

  “No.” She got back into bed. “I’m really scared.”

  “It will be okay,” Brett said. “You get some sleep, and I will keep an eye on the door. If they break in, I will attack them. You need to be rested. Tomorrow is your big day.”

  “Thank you,” Poppy said as she closed her eyes.

  When Poppy awoke, she heard Brett talking to Helen. “Helen?” Poppy sat up in bed. “What are you doing here?”

  “I came to wake you guys up,” Helen explained. “There are lots of visitors checking into the hotel, and we need this room for them. Also there is press here. They want to interview you about the new skyscraper.”

  “Is the grand opening celebration still happening?” asked Poppy.

  “Yes,” said Helen. “Why would we cancel it?”

  Brett explained that Poppy had been attacked by people on the rooftop, and Helen let out a gasp. “That’s awful. I will make sure we have more security.”

  Poppy took a sip of milk and then asked, “Do I really have to talk to reporters about my skyscraper?”

  “Yes,” said Helen, “it would be nice. They traveled here to see you.”

  Brett walked over to Poppy. “I just want you to know that I will be beside you all day. I am going to make sure nothing happens to you.”

  “Thank you,” she said with a smile.

  “Are you ready?” asked Helen.

  Poppy, Brett, Nancy, and Joe followed Helen outside of the room. They were shocked to see the halls filled with people. Visitors from across the Overworld had arrived and were ready to celebrate the grand opening of the hotel. The only person who didn’t feel like celebrating was Poppy.

  As they made their way outside of the hotel, Poppy spotted familiar faces in the crowd.

  “Look!” she called out to Brett, Joe, and Nancy. “It’s the guys in blue!”

  3

  IT’S A CELEBRATION

  Brett bolted toward the people dressed in blue. “You must leave Meadow Mews now,” he demanded.

  They appeared confused and didn’t respond.

  “You have to go,” Brett said.

  “Why?” asked one of the people in blue.

  “Yesterday you tried to capture the person who built this skyscraper,” Brett explained, “and we can’t have you here at the celebration.”

  “We never did that,” said one of the people dressed in blue.

  Brett called for help, and Joe and Nancy hurried over. Nancy demanded the invaders leave the celebration. Crowds formed around them as the people in blue raised their voices and took out their swords.

  “What do you want from Poppy?” Brett asked them.

  They didn’t respond. One of them swung his sword at Brett, and it landed in Brett’s shoulder. He cried out in pain as he lost a heart. Nancy leaped at Brett’s attacker. As Nancy ripped through his chest, a loud noise was heard.

  “What was that?” Joe asked nervously.

  They turned around and let out a collective gasp when they saw a gaping hole in the front of the skyscraper’s first floor.

  The people in blue escaped amid the smoke as the crowds fled from the burning skyscraper.

  “We have to find them,” Nancy called out.

  “No, I want to see if Poppy is okay,” said Brett.

  Smoke rose from the building. Joe said, “I be
t there’s TNT all around the skyscraper. We have to go search.”

  Brett, Joe, and Nancy raced through the smoky air searching for Poppy, but they couldn’t see her. As they approached the building, a second explosion shook the ground. Brett looked up and cried out, “Oh no!”

  The second floor of the skyscraper was destroyed. Nancy said, “Poppy worked so hard on this building. Who would do something like this?”

  Brett spotted Poppy in the distance, and he hurried toward her. “Poppy!”

  Poppy was standing with Helen by the podium that was set up in front of the building. Poppy was to deliver a speech at the grand opening ceremony. Instead of addressing the crowd about the building, she stood by the podium staring at the skyscraper in disbelief.

  Brett ran to Poppy. She looked at him and asked, “How did this happen?”

  “You can fix this,” he told her. “I know it. You are the best builder in the Overworld. There is obviously someone out there who wants to destroy your building, but we aren’t going to let them. We will stop them, and you will rebuild.”

  “I hope you’re right,” said Poppy.

  “I know I am. I believe in you, and I believe in this building,” said Brett, but as those words fell from his lips, another explosion was heard.

  The gang stared at the building, but they didn’t see any damage. Nancy asked, “What happened? I don’t see anything.”

  “Over there,” Brett said as he noticed a large crater in the ground. A large group of people clustered around the crater and stared at the hole in the ground.

  Brett rushed toward the crowd, made his way to the front, and looked down at the hole. It looked like a never-ending tunnel. Joe stood beside him and asked, “Do you feel the cold air emanating from the tunnel?”

  Brett could feel goose bumps on his arms. “Yes,” he replied.

  Joe ordered everyone to stand back. He had felt this cold before, and he knew that this was probably a portal. He didn’t want these innocent bystanders to fall into another time period. He also had no idea how he could explain this to them.

  “You have to stand back,” Joe said. “We don’t want you falling into this massive hole in the ground.”