Minecraft: The Night

A/N: This story is based on a similar story by Wandergirl108, who has given me permission to write a story similar to hers. Further details about this story will be provided at the end of this oneshot. P.S.: In case you didn't read the synopsis, Herobrine is good in this series. For more information, read Wandergirl108's series.

Herobrine loved the beach.

Ever since the Eighth Cataclysm, the oceans had been so much more beautiful, especially at sunset. In addition, it was now possible to see rivers flowing across Minecraftia, bringing water to barren deserts and frozen tundra. At first he had been afraid of leaving the Night Creatures alone; the humans were few, but they were smart, and many had now figured out how to make diamond swords (though it would probably be many years before they mastered the power to refine obsidian, and many years more before they would be able to create bedrock swords such as Herobrine carried). It was different now, however; the Ninth Cataclysm had now made the Night Creatures stronger, and the Spider Jockeys could easily watch the other species.

The night everything changed, Herobrine was walking on the beach, gazing at the stars and the moon and all of his brother's creation. He was just considering returning to his palace when he suddenly heard a voice.

Are you Notch?

It was a voice unlike any Herobrine had ever heard in his life. It was seemed to be like a whisper, but it carried as well as a shout. In fact, it seemed to be less a physical voice than a sensation within Herobrine's head, like a thought.

"Hello?" asked Herobrine, beginning to turn around.

Do not turn around, said a second voice, in a tone that sounded urgent. We just wish to know: are you Notch?

"No," said Herobrine, puzzled. "I am Herobrine. I am the brother of Notch, and I was sent by the Creator to bring peace to Minecraftia and look after the Night Creatures."

There were murmurs from behind him. Eventually the first voice said, Do you carry a pumpkin with you?

"Yes," said Herobrine, rather taken aback. "I carry all blocks and items with me. Why?"

Place the pumpkin on your head, said the voice. Only when you have done this may you turn around.

Herobrine, puzzled, placed the pumpkin onto his head. He then slowly turned around, his vision slightly obscured by the gourd, and looked at the speakers.

Behind him were four creatures. They were each tall, a good three blocks high. They had long arms and legs, and a couple of them carried blocks around. Their eyes were light purple, and strange particles like those of a portal leading to the Nether emanated from them.

"Who are you?" asked Herobrine curiously. "I haven't seen any like you before. Why must I wear this pumpkin on my head when we talk?"

All in due time, said the first creature.

We are the Endermen, said the second creature.

"Endermen?" asked Herobrine, examining the word in his head. "Where do you come from?"

We come from beyond here, said the third creature in a sorrowful voice.

We were drawn here by men, said a fourth.

"Please explain," said Herobrine, looking around for a place to sit down.

Allow me, said the first creature politely. He put down the block of sand he had been carrying, and Herobrine took a seat. The creatures then began to tell their story. It was an odd experience: when one of the creatures cut off, a second immediately took up the role, and then the third, and so on.

We were born in darkness. Light and sun are unknown to us; we thrive only in shadow. The darkness was once our home. It was a place called the End.

"The End?" asked Herobrine. "Where is that? Is it part of the Far Lands?" Herobrine had heard of the Far Lands; it was said that strange things happened there. It wouldn't be much of a stretch to visualize these creatures there.

We spoke incorrectly. The End is not a place. Humans would call it a "dimension", like the Nether we have heard whisperings of. Our realm is not one of fire and death, like the Nether; rather, we are a realm of darkness and silence. It is the only way we have ever known, and it is strange not to be there anymore.

Once there were others who inhabited the world, back before it was the End. They built great cities which spanned the great floating islands that drift over the Void, the Void which lies between dimensions. They might even have come into contact with your world, Minecraftia. In those days, it was bright in our world, with a sun like yours and days full of happiness.

But their age was not to last. One day, immense black dragons came down from the sky. They flew through cities, destroying everything in their path. The people who lived in the cities never stood a chance; they had never been forced to deal with Night Creatures, as the humans have.

The great civilization soon vanished; the cities started to decay, and eventually fell into the Void and were lost for good. Now only their massive obsidian towers stand tall, an eternal monument to a once-powerful nation. They say that when the dragons came, the sun of the world set and never rose again. The dragons had brought the end to the world's cities, and so they became known as Enderdragons. Over a long time, the world became the End.

It was many years before our race arose. We know not where we came from; our race's history is a basic, worried one. We have spent our entire existence fleeing the dragons that roam the skies, hoping that we do not become prey for the beasts.

Untold centuries passed in the same way. The dragons seemed to fear the obsidian towers, so we congregated near them. Perhaps that is why we lived long enough to see what happened next.

We only learned the first half of the story later. A race of ancient beings from the Overworld had already reached the Nether and the heaven-world, the Aether, and wished to see what else was "out there". Deep inside one of their lost strongholds, they created what they called an "Air Portal", because it was floated in the air. Using ancient spells, they opened the doorway...a doorway to the End.

They should never have come. The Enderdragons saw the travelers as an exotic prey, one they had never seen yet. They attacked them, and the travelers began to flee back to their portal. We saw them, and knew that whatever life lay on the other side of that gateway, it had to be better that the life we lived. And so several Endermen passed the gateway, entering the Overworld.

But our ancestors did not count on how different their new world would be. The Overworlders, astonished by the creatures, could not look away. But you see, in the culture of the Endermen, only another Enderman can safely look at an Enderman directly. When the Overworlders looked at us in that chamber, a primal instinct awoke in us, born from at least a millennium of fear of the Enderdragons, the eater of all creatures.

We slayed all the Overworlders inside the Stronghold, so that they might never look upon us again. With all of the Overworlders dead, we began to explore the Stronghold. It was then that we found the treasures: ancient crystals that held the power to teleport, taking the user with them. These crystals, we decided, would be our new symbol. We claimed the crystals, and we named them Ender Pearls.

It was then that we discovered the tragedy: the Ender Portal had been deactivated. We do not know how this first occurred, but we have an idea. We believe an Enderdragon destroyed the other end of the gateway. The force that held the gate open was forced back on itself, causing the second portal to shut down as well. We were trapped in the world we had come to.

Confused, we traveled to the surface, searching for the true nature of our new home. The light was blinding, and it was only under the cover of night that we could escape the Stronghold that was now our prison. The night reminded us of the sky in the End, although it was still bright.

Worse than the sun, though, was the water. There was no water in the End; it had long since dried up or frozen in the White Stone. When we encountered it we were hopeful; for it faintly resembled the black substance which filled the portal that had brought us here. But when we submerged in it, we were not transported; and the touch of water was too unbearable for us, and we fled from it.

And so our small band has wandered for centuries; we watched as new races and civilizations rose and fell around us, but we never participated. We wandered, desperate for our home, from Stronghold to Stronghold, hoping to find a new portal that could bring us back to the End, our home, a place we truly belong.

We have never found the way home. We found dozens of Strongholds, and more than a few Ender Portals, but the gates were always inactive. We knew from the little we saw in the first Stronghold that it was not a simple task to start an Ender Portal; it is not like making a Nether Portal. We were never told the secret to activate the gateway; and the Overworlders who knew the secrets are long dead. And so we wander the land, hoping that one day we will find a new home.

Until then, we will search.

The Endermen finished their story. Herobrine thought for a long time about what he had heard. "So," he said, "it's bad for people to look directly at you, because you think it means they're going to attack. But can people just glance at you from the corner of their eye?"

There was a short pause, and then the Enderman who had first addressed Herobrine answered.

We had never thought of this, he said. Our eyes see in only one direction, and cannot swivel as others' can. But to answer your question...we see no problem with this.

Herobrine sighed in relief. "Good," he said. "You see, I was hoping you would sign the Treaty of Races. It makes sure the Night Creatures and the Day Animals do not clash with each other, and provides a set of laws for the creatures of the Nether. Do you think we could work something out? I think the other Night Creatures will take precautions."

You are kind, brother of Notch. We will indeed join to your treaty. However, we must ask something in exchange.

"What is it?" asked Herobrine.

We have been wandering for so long. We wish to be at peace, to be at home. If we are to sign your treaty, you must swear by Notch to look for a way to send us home.

Herobrine looked worried. "I will try," he said. "I will try to the best of my ability to find a way to reopen a portal to the End and return you to your home."

The Endermen seemed to relax slightly. Good, said the first one. For the first time in many years, we have a reason to hope.

"However," said Herobrine cautiously, "I do not know if I will be successful. I can only promise to try, which I do promise. I can't promise I will succeed where your race has been unable to for centuries."

Trying is all we ask. But we are sure you can succeed. And we believe we know where you should start. In the first Stronghold, the one where we emerged, are the only ones in Minecraftia who may know how to reactivate the portal. Go to the portal room. They have been waiting for someone to visit them for a very long time.

"Who?" asked Herobrine, but the Endermen were now retreating into the darkness. Herobrine turned to see the sun was rising; they had talked through the night.

The first Enderman turned. We must go. We escape the new day.

"Wait!" exclaimed Herobrine. "But I don't know how to get to the Stronghold you mean, or even where it is!"

This will guide you, said one of the Endermen. He put a round object on the ground. It was blue-green and seemed to have a cat-like dark pupil in the center. It seemed like an odd eye of some kind.

This is an Eye of Ender, said the Enderman. This will guide you to the Portal Room. Friends are waiting there.

All four Endermen turned towards Herobrine. As if in a single voice, they spoke once more.

Farewell, brother of Notch. We all believe in you. We can hope once more.

And with that, the Endermen vanished. Herobrine was alone on the beach.

A/N: So what do you think? Did you like it? I currently have written the next part of this series, and am currently planning further additions. The next oneshot will be Minecraft: The Stronghold, and will feature the Silverfish rather than the Endermen. Eventually, every 1.8/1.9 mob (yes, even the Mooshroom) will have its own oneshot, beginning as you just saw with the Endermen, and ending back in the End Dimension with the Enderdragon. The series will also include an over-arching storyline- Herobrine attempting to return the Endermen to their home- and it's a good idea to read each story in order. Check my profile for more exact details.