Warnings: Mentions of death

     ~Lachlan's P.O.V.~

Slowly, very slowly, my consciousness is returned to me from an endless void of sleep. A tender, lacerated throat, a dull throbbing in the back of my skull, an achy back, parched tongue, and the lingering taste of irony blood. Then gradually follows my other senses. Damp, humid air fills my lungs with every ragged breath as somewhere in the distance the quiet drip of water echoes. I crack open my sleep crusted eyes and my vision is filled with bland walls of stone, interrupted only by the soft touch of daylight, and a dozing bat. Mustering what little strength I have left, I brace my arms under me and painstakingly begin to push myself into a sitting position.

"Oh, you're awake."

Setting down whatever it is he was carrying, Vikk rushes over from the entrance of the cave, kneeling down beside me and helping me sit up. He produces a flask of water from his inventory and I drink greedily, gripping the container like a life line as refreshing cool water washes over my tongue. The last thing I remember is being restrained by a cocoon of webs, helpless as a hairy spider spun a collar tighter and tighter around my neck, quickly stealing my consciousness from me. As memories of our struggles in the snowy plains begin to return to me, dread accompanies them. Glancing around, I notice the unconscious but stirring figures of Mitch, Jerome, and Rob. Preston, however, is nowhere to be seen. Maybe he's just... out collecting resources.

"What... happened?" I croak, combing my fingers instinctually through my disheveled hair.
Vikk purses his lips together, adverting his eyes as rises to his feet. "I think it's best if we wait till the other wake up first. I'll fill everyone in then."

I pause for a moment, uncertain if I should voice the burning question on my mind. Somewhere deep inside I know the answer already, and yet the answer still scares me. As Vikk turns to walk back outside, I stretch a hand out and grab his forearm.

"Wait."

He turns, still not meeting my gaze.

"Is Preston...?"

My eyes finally lock with Vikk's, one a soft mocha brown, the other black with a ruby red iris, and both filled with sadness and regret. The look tells me everything, and I hang my head in despair. I know the situation was largely unavoidable... and yet I can't help but blame myself for Preston's death. I was the first one to stupidly advance in a rush to save him, and if I had've just been patient, had I not provoked the small army of mobs, maybe just maybe this could've ended differently. Now at the very least we're delayed, if not doomed.

As if he can read my thoughts, Vikk produces Preston's gem, thankfully unscathed and glinting majestically in the daylight. It's a comfort to know he'll respawn, but who knows how long it'll take for that to happen? Vikk tucks the white gem carefully away, and then helps me to my feet. He hands me several bottles of water and some fresh bread.

"Here, take these and give them to everyone once they wake up. I'll be back soon, I'm just going to go out and see if I can sense any more witches in the area. I think we could all use a little more healing."

And with that Vikk morphs into a chocolate brown horse, snorts a goodbye, and gallops out of the cave. I watch him go until he's well out of sight, and then turn back to watch over my friends. Backing up against the cool smooth walls of the cave, I slide to the floor, sighing heavily. My only company is the little snoozing bat overhead, dozing peacefully. I gaze at it longingly, wishing that right here and now I could just turn into it and forget about the stress of this whole saving the world thing. Burying my hands in my pockets, I lean my head against the rock and replay my idiotic actions over and over again in my head, waiting gloomily for my friends to wake up.

~~~

     Watching Jerome, Mitch, and Rob wake up was like listening to a skipping music disc. A disturbance in their slumber followed by a fluttering of the eyelids and a groan. After that comes a period where they're completely dazed, coupled soon with a classic what or where statement. Finish it all off with a brief summary, a little food and water, repeat another two times, and you've got an additional three depressed guys sitting silently as they come to terms with the situation while we wait for Vikk to come back.

       A heavy solemn blanket hangs in the air, and without the warm glow of Preston's skin the world seems even more dull and barren. Instinctually I search the floor for Silver who, even just her presence, had become an odd source of comfort. Then I remember she's gone, too. I sigh heavily, wrapping my stretchy arms tightly around myself in a lonely embrace. Just then Vikk returns, his luscious mane trailing in the air as the clip clop of his morphed hooves echo throughout the cavern. A few seconds later and he's trotting into the cave, a single witch astride his back, numerous health and regeneration potions cradled in her arms. As the four of us gather around the witch slides off Vikk's back, immediately going around to distribute potions and fix up any last injuries we may have.

       "I've got bad news." Vikk announces, horrible crunching and popping sounds filling the silence as his body squishes and twists back into his normal half-zombie state.
       "Because that's exactly what we need more of right now..." Rob grumbles under his breath, looking a little agitated.

       His statement seems to go largely unnoticed by everyone but myself and Jerome. I cast a worried look at him, trying to catch his eye, but the mage seems rather invested in staring at a pebble. Likewise, I watch as Jerome's gaze flickers over to Rob, but he seems too glum to care much.

       "Long story short, Chimney-one of our main allies as you know-entered my dream last night to deliver some urgent news. It's seems we've ticked off Herobrine and he's doubling his efforts. Robs stronghold is on lockdown and the people inside don't have any way to get resources. Chimneys place is being stormed as we speak, and he told me that even Seto is getting overwhelmed with how many mobs are attacking. Soon they're all going to have to lockdown our safe havens, and resources are currently limited with how many people we're housing. Essentially, we need to get this fourth key and take down Herobrine, pronto."
       Mitch pipes up in response, finally addressing the elephant in the room. "But... I don't think we can do it without Preston. Just look at how our last shot at this went without a full team. We barely got out alive."
        "We were underwater, though." Jerome points out, his soldier training showing as he quickly composes himself, assuming a more tactical and professional persona. "We will be fighting in a much more open area, we don't have to worry about suffocating, and as long as we don't look at the enderman I'm assuming we will only be facing a single opponent."
        "But, Jerome. Every single battle we've been through seems to be getting harder and harder, and looking at past records, it's highly likely the endermen will be under the control of Void. Not to mention Void is an ender dragon hybrid, and will likely be much more powerful than Riptide was." Mitch lists off, his wings fluttering restlessly, "Also, Void can fly and, being intelligent, will be able to safely attack us out of range of a lot of our own. And though we don't risk drowning, we risk falling into oblivion. A true death. I know things are rough but I think we have to wait until-"
        "No."

         Mitch blinks in surprise, cut off by a rather harsh objection from a relatively docile Rob. We all look to him, his face a stressful mix of frustration, regret, sadness, and stubbornness. He exhales sharply, crossing his arms tightly across his chest.

       "Preston died so we could protect these keys, move on, and defeat Herobrine." Rob states, producing the three keys. "We have no idea how long it's going to take him to respawn, and I don't want to sit around here letting his sacrifice be in vain when our situation is dire and we can't risk sitting around. No one could have seen this coming, so we all need to stop blaming ourselves and move on to finish what we're meant to do. People are depending on us. I know it's a big risk going into the End without Preston, but the fact of the matter is he's coming back, and if he comes back to find hundreds of people are sufffering on his behalf..."

      Rob trails off, his eyes drifting over to where Preston's gem now lays still on a slab of stone, placed there by Vikk for the meantime in case anything had happened while he was out.

       "Don't you guys see? This is exactly what Herobrine wants! He knows this will slow us down. He knows we're running out of time. So it's our responsibility to work together to overcome this."

      He strides over to the gem, picks it up as if it were a newborn baby, and places it gently into Jerome's paws. Jerome stares at him in confusion, but Rob continues before he can say a word.

      "Jerome, I want you to guard him with your life until he respawns. You're the strongest one here and I know you'll take good care of him." Rob says. He then turns to the rest of us, jaw set and chin held high. "As soon as we're all rested up I will conjure an End portal and we will finish this. For Preston. For the world."

~~~
Question of the chapter:

How long do you think it will take for Preston to respawn?