Men of the Day

Characters
To be added onto as the story progresses and new characters are introduced

Protagonists
Cannonwalker - A brown-bearded man with ragged clothes. He was one of the citizens of Etrdor, and fled into the wilderness on his own after its collapse.

Ned Edgewalker - A white-bearded man with ragged, colorful clothes. He was one of the citizens of Etrdor, and fled to open plains after its collapse. He is mentally unstable and shows an uncanny fondness for potatoes.

David - A man made entirely of dirt, wearing a teal shirt and maroon pants, he originally was born in a colony of dirt people like himself. However, he eventually left and migrated to Etrdor, residing there for a lengthy period of time before its demise.

Rocket - A black-hatted man with a red trench coat, brown vest, black undershirt and khaki pants. After Etrdor's demise, he joined up with a desert village and promised to protect them should he be allowed to stay. He carries two iron swords with him at any time, as he is very proficient in hand-to-hand combat, and is decent with a bow.

Indeterminate
Baron - ???

Antagonists
Kokushi - A brutal horseman group sporting vibrant and colorful masks. They were responsible for the destruction of Etrdor. They have very well-organized formations and strategies, allowing them to dodge arrows quite often and swiftly take down entire towns in a matter of minutes.

Lithium - One of the horsemen of the Kokushi. Unlike his brethren, he sports a very plain white bone mask with red streaks. He is presumed to have some knowledge of alchemy.

Prologue
There was once a time when a crew of people from all different backgrounds were all living peacefully in a society together known as Etrdor, which was run by a patriarch known as Gabe. Different communities existed within Etrdor, all of which cooperated to make an ideal society. However, an outside group known as the Kokushi invaded, seemingly without a purpose or a pattern. They killed as many people as they could, burnt down as many buildings as they could, and salvaged any supplies they could.

After the Kokushi had done what they came to do, the few survivors emerged. They all decided that, instead of trying to rebuild, they would go their separate ways. This story begins approximately a year after these events.

Chapter I
The sound of heavy, running feet and deep breathing filled the corridors of a usually-quiet abandoned mineshaft. A bearded man with ragged clothes was the source of this noise, attempting to run from impending doom. The groans of zombies and rattling of skeletons soon followed his tracks. The man running suddenly slowed and, in a panic, began striking flint and steel.

"Son of a bitch, light already."

The groans and rattles started coming closer and closer to the person until a small light appeared in their hand, getting bigger and bigger by the second

"Aha!"

The zombies and skeletons, afraid of this light, scurried in the opposite direction.

"Another close call."

The person mined his way out of the abandoned mineshaft. After making sure he was safe, he knelt down on the ground and spread out his finds. Lots of gold, iron, and a few diamonds. He had much more success than usual, as he was usually chased out of abandoned mineshafts by zombies before he could get much. The man gathered up his findings in a bag and continued on his way.

The twilight was settling in, which meant mobs would begin to come out of the darkness and go on the hunt for food. The man had set up a temporary house near where the mineshaft was and surrounded it with torches, so the enemies would be warded off. The man approached the house and entered. The house was only big enough to fit a bed, a chest and a crafting table, while still allowing the man to have a small amount of empty space to walk in. Outside the house was a sign that read "Cannonwalker residence; do not disturb." Outside of the shack was a small fenced-in carrot farm.

Cannonwalker went inside the house and sat on his bed, picking up a notebook when he sat down. He retrieved his quill and opened to a fresh page, where he proceeded to write:

"March 24th, 2015: I explored the abandoned mineshaft today. I was able to make off with quite a few goods before being chased off by zombies and skeletons. Fortunately, I was able to save myself and ward them off at the last second with flint and steel. I'll begin construction on new weapons and armor at dawn."

Cannonwalker then put down his book and quill and rested his head on his pillow, slowly drifting into the illusory dream world. He still occasionally suffered from post-traumatic stress disorder-induced dreams due to the trauma he experienced in the invasion of Etrdor. This was one such night. The details of Etrdor's collapse appeared as a dream before Cannonwalker in vivid detail. The face of each invader as they slaughtered his comrades, all shown to Cannonwalker with precise detail. However, the sounds of the invasion started to fade away and the sound of clomping boots started to override. Suddenly somebody grabbed Cannonwalker by the shoulder, instantly awakening him.

"Hello." the person said. "It's been a while, Cannon."

Chapter II
Cannonwalker sat up and rubbed his eyes. He looked to his right at the man in the dark. The first thing he noticed was the man had various oval-shaped items dangling from his body. Cannonwalker couldn't quite identify them in the dark but he realized they made thumping noises as the man moved, leading him to believe the clomping he had heard actually came from these objects. Cannonwalker could also vaguely make out some kind of substance smeared on the stranger's face.

"Who are you?" Cannonwalker asked.

The stranger lit a torch, illuminating the entire room. The objects dangling from all over his body were revealed to be potatoes, and the substance smeared on his face mashed potatoes. Cannonwalker only knew one man mentally unstable enough to do something like this to himself.

"Ned?" Cannonwalker asked.

Ned Edgewalker was a man with a beard and ragged clothes much like Cannonwalker. However, Ned's beard was white and his clothes were bright red, much in contrast to Cannonwalker's blue vest, brown pants and white shirt. Ned was also, as Cannonwalker and everybody else who knew him was very aware of, an unstable individual. He had a very odd connection to potatoes and lashed out against anybody who didn't show the same fervent admiration for them. Ned was a citizen of Etrdor before its collapse as well, which is how he and Cannonwalker first became acquainted.

"A lot of spiders had to die to make this happen." Ned said, gesturing towards the potatoes hanging from his body.

"Why are you covered in potatoes?"

"It helps me blend in with nature. Everything I come across tries to eat me, but that's a small price to pay for blending in."

Cannonwalker got out of his bed, weary from a lack of sleep.

"What are you doing here?" Cannonwalker asked.

"I noticed a small house here and figured I could loot some supplies. Also, in unrelated news, your carrot farm is gone now." Ned replied. "Come, come with me."

Cannonwalker grabbed his journal and the precious metals he found in the abandoned mineshaft earlier in the day and left the house with Ned. Ned and Cannonwalker began to traverse through the forest. Ned carried a torch to keep enemy mobs away.

"So Ned..." Cannonwalker began.

"So Cannon..." Ned replied.

"What did you do after our society went down the shitter?" Cannonwalker asked.

"I moved to the countryside and dedicated my life to potatoes." Ned said. Ned plucked a potato from his shirt and gave it to Cannonwalker.

"Thanks, I guess." Cannonwalker said awkwardly.

As Ned and Cannonwalker exited the forested area, they came across a large field. The duo traveled until the sky began to brighten. However, since it was still mostly dark, it was difficult to see. Eventually, Cannonwalker and Ned encountered a humanoid figure in the distance. He was in front of a house picking from a farm.

"HALT, POTATO THIEF!" Ned said. Ned then plucked a potato from his shirt and threw it from a distance, hitting the humanoid figure.

"Ow! Ned, you dipshit!" The figure shouted from a distance.

"Oops." Ned said, "Let's go."

Ned and Cannonwalker approached the figure. The figure, who was identified as a man made entirely of dirt wearing a teal shirt and maroon pants, rubbed his head and stood up from his knelt position.

"Sorry about that, David." Ned said.

"You're damn right you're sorry. We've been living together for almost a year and you keep thinking I'm a potato thief every time you see me from a distance." David replied angrily.

David, although being made entirely of dirt, was able to take a lot more blows from a potato than one would expect. This is what living with Ned Edgewalker for a year would do to a man, even one made of dirt.

"It's been a while, David." Cannon said.

"It has been. It's nice seeing you after all of this time." David replied. Cannon then turned towards Ned.

"Why did you bring me here, again?" Cannon asked.

"I don't really know. I guess I just wanted you to come live with us for a bit." Ned said. "And since your home is hours from here, there's no sense in travelling all the way back, so you're stuck with us."

"I suppose I am." Cannon replied.

Cannon, Ned and David stared awkwardly at each other for an unknown period of time.

"So... do either of you know where the others went after Etrdor went to shit?" Cannonwalker asked.

"Uh, I think Rocket said something about wanting to start his own society." David replied.

"And Baron said something about going to quench his thirst for blood in other parts of the world." Ned added on.

"So, maybe if we get them together we can finally rebuild our society." Cannon said.

"But why? Life's been pleasant as is." David replied.

"David, time alone in the woods has made me realize that while life may be pleasant alone, life is better with others around to enjoy it with you." Cannon said. "Besides, aren't you wondering how our former friends are doing?"

"I see your point." David said.

"So, how about we head out tomorrow, or maybe later today? I just need a bit of a rest from the travel." Ned said.

"I'm tired too. We'll head out later." Cannon added.

Ned and Cannonwalker wearily dragged their feet into the house and laid down on their respective beds. Ned chose to sleep with his potatoes on and his face covered in mashed potatoes, still.

"Ned," Cannon began.

"What?" Ned asked, turning over to face him.

"Why don't you clean your face and remove your potatoes? You must be uncomfortable."

"I could remove them but that would make things too easy, Cannon."

Cannonwalker, deciding Ned's decisions made more sense if you didn't think about them, silently went back to sleep without another thought crossing his mind.

Chapter III
A few hours after the fact, Ned and Cannonwalker awoke from their slumber. They rubbed their eyes and went outside, only to see David sitting on the ground staring out into the distance. Ned and Cannonwalker approached him. David noticed this and stood up to face them.

"Good not morning, David." Ned said.

David looked up at the sky for a moment. He noticed that the sun had passed its highest in the sky not very long ago and was beginning to descend to the horizon, although there was still quite some time before it would get there.

"Well, you're not wrong." David replied.

"How about we begin our travel?" Cannonwalker suggested.

"Yeah, it'll be night before we know it." David said.

David, Cannonwalker and Ned went into the house and began to pack supplies. David got all of the food, seeds and agricultural supplies, Cannonwalker got the bulk of the weapons and the gold, iron and diamonds he had mined the other day, and Ned got the potatoes; more potatoes than one man could ever need. After collecting the supplies, the group set out on their journey.

The group travelled until sundown, only stopping when Ned was mauled by wild animals trying to eat his potatoes. They built a temporary shelter for the night, just having entered into the desert, and continued their trip the next morning. This went on for about three days, until one late evening they saw a small fort in the distance. This fort was surrounded by a moat, which was apparently only accessible through the drawbridge, which happened to be shut.

"We might have finally found somebody." Cannonwalker said.

However, when the trio attempted to approach the fort, an arrow was shot at them. It missed the side of Cannonwalker's face by about a hair and skimmed past, lodging itself in the ground behind him.

"Halt." A stern voice said. "Don't come any closer, or I'll actually try to hit you this time."

Although the voice was a bit louder than they remembered it usually being, the trio recognized this voice to belong to one of their friends from Etrdor.

"Rocket?" David asked.

The man, not used to being called this, gave a quizical look before retreating back into the fort. Moments later, the drawbridge opened and the man came out from it. He wore a black hat atop his head, accompanied by a red trench coat, a brown button-up vest, a black undershirt, and khaki pants held up by a golden belt. He had two sheaths, one on either side of his belt, that held iron swords. The man walked over to the trio.

"Hey, it is Rocket." Ned said.

"Yea, it's been a while." Rocket said.

The four, before continuing conversation, glanced back at the fort Rocket had emerged from. The walls were made of sandstone, and the drawbridge of wood. The moat around it all wasn't very wide at all, maybe four blocks.

"So... what's this all about?" Cannonwalker asked.

"Well, after Etrdor collapsed I wandered aimlessly in the desert for a while. That's when I discovered this peaceful village of... villagers. They offered me various goods I didn't need in exchange for emeralds, which I didn't have. I then asked if I could live with them, and they said if I could offer them protection from the night-time horrors I could. Then, I constructed this fort around their town and have trained a few of the townspeople to take shifts guarding overnight." Rocket replied.

"I see." Cannonwalker said.

"Come on, I'll show you guys around." Rocket said.

Rocket motioned for the trio to come into the fortified town. The town itself was not very different from a regular town, except for the sandstone fort surrounding it. Villagers would every so often badger the newcoming trio to trade them emeralds for things like arrows and paper. The trio constantly attempted to explain this to the villagers, but it made no difference. As the dusk started to fade away, the villager scurried into their homes. The torches surrounding the inside and outside of the fort began to illuminate, warding off any potential mob enemies.

"Well, it's about that time of day." Rocket began, "night patrol."

Rocket motioned for the trio to follow him to the top edges of the fort. The group overlooked the outer perimeters of the fort. Zombies, skeletons, spiders and endermen all wandered aimlessly around the outside of the fort. However, in the far distance a row of torches could be made out.

"Huh, what's that?" Haras asked.

With each passing moments, the torches came closer and closer. Eventually, the carriers of the torches could be deciphered as horse riders. As they came closer and closer, it was made apparent that they all bore masks on their faces. Most were colorful and vibrant, with extravagant patterns and designs.

"HALT! DON'T COME ANY CLOSER!" Rocket shouted. "I'LL SHOOT!"

Rocket then pulled out a bow and arrow and shot at the horse riders. However, they were able to dodge with a zig-zag maneuver. When the horse riders got close to the fort, they began shooting arrows at it. However, these arrows had small glass bottles full of gunpowder, lit at the tip. When each arrow impacted the wall of the fort, it exploded.

"Oh shit!" Cannonwalker exclaimed.

Rocket continued shooting arrows, and called upon David, Cannonwalker and the few trained villagers to aid him. Ned, however, had a more unorthodox idea. Ned decided it would be a good idea to throw a potato at one of the horsemen. Ned tossed a potato, much to the surprise of Rocket and the villagers. However, the potato succeeded in knocking one of the horsemen off of his horse and breaking his mask. The horseman, grabbing the broken remains of his mask, ran away almost as if he were embarrassed.

"That's it, we have to break their masks!" Rocket realized.

Rocket ordered his villagers, David and Cannonwalker to begin pelting the horsemen with objects instead of arrows. By this time, the east wall of the fort had collapsed almost in its entirety. However, a minute or so of pelting horsemen's masks off caused many of them to retreat, some even leaving their horses behind. After a few minutes, the defenders on top of the east wall began to feel a rumble.

"JUMP BACK IN!" Rocket shouted. The group jumped off the east wall back into the town as it collapsed. When the smoke cleared, only one horseman remained. Unlike the other horsemen, who had vibrant and colorful masks, his was very plain; a white mask made of skeleton bone, with red streaks going diagonally from top left to bottom right. He also wore a torn red shirt and torn green pants, along with brown boots. The trained villagers, along with Cannonwalker and David, all aimed bow and arrows at him. Rocket unsheathed his two iron swords and prepared for a sword fight should it have been necessary. Ned was prepared to throw another potato as well.

The man got off of his horse and stood in a very calm and collective manner, as if he was among his colleagues. He brushed some dust off of his shoulder and cleared his throat.

"It appears I've been caught." The man said.

"You're damn right you've been caught." Rocket replied.

"Well, perhaps we could negotiate the terms of my surrender on peaceful grounds." The man added.

Suddenly, the man pulled a small glass bottle full of gray liquid out of his pocket and tossed it to the ground. The area filled up with smoke and, as nobody could see, this man thought it was the perfect opportunity for him to finish his job. He got back on his horse and began racing around the town, pelting it with glass bottles full of the explosive substance from earlier. Then, as the smoke began to settle, the man began to speak.

"Survival of the fittest, I suppose." He said.

The men, all coughing and gagging from the smoke, were barely able to make coherent sentences, let alone actually try and shoot at him.

"Who are you?" Cannonwalker asked, coughing.

"I am Lithium, and my people the Kokushi. Don't cross us again, or you'll be doing more than just coughing and gagging." Lithium said.

Lithium then rode off into the night and, while the villagers still attempted to shoot arrows at him, it was already too late; Lithium and the Kokushi had gotten away.