Rushed ending to another book? Check.

Constant checking of notifications? Check.

Infinite motivation to write? Check

Oh look, I've got New Book Syndrome!

Let's see how long it takes to run out...

Oblivious to everything going on, Doc bridged through the nether, aware of the ghasts flying around him. Shield in one hand, blocks in the other... dangerous, but he was fine. And besides, nothing would happen if he...

A sudden blast. Doc yelped in terror as he was blown clear of the bridge, fumbling for fireworks, some way to get out the way... fire resistance potions? 

He couldn't find anything, staring at the lava as he landed in it.

DocM77 tried to swim in lava to escape ghast

'We need to do something.' 

There's was a communal murmur in reply to Xisuma's comment. Within a day, four people had been killed. Doc was the only one who'd spawned, but still had the horrible burns he would've got in the lava. He too had been taken to The Crastle. And as the next day dawned, Xisuma had called a group meeting. 

'All mob deaths no longer respawn. So far Ren, Scar, Pearl and Doc have been affected. I don't know how it happened, or how to stop it. All I know is that hostile mobs are very dangerous, and have to be avoided at all cost. Sleep through the nights, don't take risks... I'll keep you updated on the situation. Any questions?'

No one instantly asked, until Gem raised a hand.

'What could've caused this?'

'I don't know. I've never seen anything like this before... It seems like some kind of glitch, or malfunction with the respawn mechanics. Grian survived being... shot out of the sky by Scar, so it's only mob deaths. I don't want to test it, in case anyone else ends up hurt...' A sigh. 'I'm going to start working on it the moment this is over.'

'What if they don't respawn... ever?' Bdubs came in with the harder question almost everyone was thinking of. 

'I don't know. It seems unlikely. It's probably just a glitch. There's no permanent death in this world. I've checked. Respawn should still be working as normal.' Even as he spoke, Xisuma noticed his consolations growing steadily more repetitive as his worry grew... but he couldn't let the other hermits see it or they'd start panicking further. 

'Will they be alright when they respawn? Have you looked into that at all?' Asked Grian.

'I don't know. If I knew I would've told you. Is that all the questions?'

'Are we in danger? Is it some external threat?' Impulse's question instantly caused a slight panic, with Gem's reply of 'Xornoth?' And Grian's 'The Watchers?!' ending up bascially simultanious. Xisuma silenced them with a raise of his hand. 

'The server's protected from external problems. Especially against Watchers. I don't think there's any foul play involved at all, but we can't be sure. As I said, I've never seen anything like this before.'

'What will you do if it is? How will you stop it?' 

'Grian, I'm convinced it's not the Watchers. Don't worry.' He didn't reply. 'If anyone else is worried, I'm here if you want to talk. But if no one else has anything to say...' No one did, and the group dispersed off in their own directions. And as Cub flew back up to the Crastle where Scar was, Grian followed.

'Hey... can I...?'

'Oh... sure.' Cub let Grian join him sitting next to where Scar was lying. Neither spoke, just looking over at the bed. Scar wasn't moving, not even breathing, just... dead. A couple of times Grian tried to speak, but couldn't find the right words. Cub didn't even try to. But eventually he could.

'Cub?'

'Hmm?' 

'Are you... alright?'

It was a stupid question, but Cub still sighed and replied.

'Not really. But not just because of Scar. I... tested if vexes attacked me too.'

'Cub, why?!'

'Because I wanted to know if they'd abandoned us! And they have.'

'Who?' 

Cub sighed. 'There's a leader of the vexlings who... i don't know, controls our powers? We started ignoring them after season 6 and... I guess they've just decided to abandon us. At the worst possible time.' It was a struggle for him not to start crying, but he managed, looking over at Scar. 'And now Scar's probably dead and... they've abandoned us...'

Not sure what else to do, Grian put an arm around Cub's shoulder. He didn't resist it, staring at the ground. 

'Scar will be alright.'

'How do you know?' 

'Because he's Scar. And Scar's... whatever happens, Scar's always alright.' 

'Are you sure?' Cub's face filled with uncertainty.

'I know what it's like to... be abandoned by people you trust. The Watchers... I thought they were alright. But then they trapped me in a one block world and... it turned out they were really bad. Wait, do you think the vexlings are behind this? It's very... convenient... that you've stopped being immune now. And... it's... I don't know.'

'I don't want to... I don't want to believe that they're bad. But...'

The door slammed open. Cub and Grian turned to see Bdubs, panting.

'Ren's awake.' 

'What?' Grian looked over at Scar as though he'd wake up too.

'He's awake... you need to see.' 

Grian was out the door immediately, followed very closely by Cub. Across the hallway, into Ren's bedroom. The king was there, blinking his way awake but still lying down. 

'Ren?' Frowning, Bdubs returned to where he'd been sitting. 'Are you alright?'

'What... dude... what happened?' Ren groaned back, attempting to sit up. 'I... I was killed by a golem and now...'

'You didn't respawn for a whole day.'

'What?!' 

'Yeah. Wait what's happened to you?' Bdubs frowned. Ren frowned back. 

'What's happened to me? I'm... oh my goodness...'

'You... you've got metal arms.'

'What?!' Grian's confused yell cut through Ren's as he finally gained the energy to sit up. 'How- why?!'

Sure enough, Ren's arms were now silvery-white iron. But they weren't the only change. His eyes were bright red, and vines tangled around his arms. It took seconds for Grian to connect the dots. 

'He's turned into an iron golem.'