I opened my eyes a crack and winced as bright light filled my vision. "Derp?" "I'm here Ssundee." I dared to open my eyes a bit wider and relaxed as his familiar crooked face came into view. "How do you feel?" "Like s***." "Yeah, I had a feeling you wouldn't feel too good after that." I looked round, trying to find Seto. "What?" I felt a gentle hand on my shoulder. "That blade was enchanted. They thought you would be Derp in battle, so they enchanted it especially to kill him." I tensed. "But they didn't realise that we'd already brought Derp out of me." Seto shook his head. "They know now." Then he turned to Derp; who's distorted eyes were filled with worry and anxiety. I didn't realise how much he cared for me. "Derp." He looked over at Seto. "Yes?" "You'll have to be more careful in battle. If even one of you gets fatally injured, we're all doomed. Only you two can defeat Herobrine." I suddenly felt the weight of our responsibility settle on my shoulders. Derp nodded solemnly. Then he turned to me. "They wanted to kill me Ssundee, and they wanted to kill you. They still do." I realised his crooked eyes were filled with fear, as well as determination. "They won't be killing anyone as far as I'm concerned. Not on my watch." He smiled slightly. "We're in this together." And on that note, Seto left. Derp and I were silent for a minute. Then Derp said, "We'll be ok...won't we?" I sighed. "This is a war Derp. We can't guarantee that we'll be 'ok.'" He nodded. "But I'll protect you Ssundee. Like I said in battle, 'No one hurts my Ssundee.'" I smiled despite the circumstances. "I'll protect you too Derp. Like Seto said. 'We're all in this together...'"

*********

It had been a few weeks since the squids had attacked, and we were all a little uneasy to say the least. Surprisingly, the only really calm one was Derp. He assured me that they would attack eventually; we should make the most of the time we have left before they did. One day, Sky and I got into an argument. It started by him pulling me aside and saying that he was suspicious of Derp. How come he was the only one that seemed to know what was going on? Was he a spy? That made me angry. Derp wasn't a spy. And I would know, he was part of me. "What's your problem?!" Sky scowled. "I don't have a problem, I just-" "Just think that he's a traitor, huh?" "Yeah well, if you want the truth, after you morphed, I made it my point not to trust Derp." I gasped. "What?! He saved our lives in the squid prison! And he's saved me more than once in battle!" He shook his head. "Yeah well-" I lost it. "If it weren't for him you wouldn't even be here!" He snarled. "Yeah well, not my problem!" "Not your problem?! I think its kinda your problem if your dead!" It got worse and worse until we drew our swords. Suddenly Derp materialised in front of us. "Stop." Sky clenched his teeth, but said nothing more. I silently thanked Derp for intervening when he did. Afterwards he didn't seem himself, sad perhaps. I asked him what was wrong, but he wouldn't meet my eyes. Finally, one day, it happened. We'd been waiting in suspension for so long now, waiting for the squids to attack, that now it had finally happened, we were actually relieved. Well, kind of. I remember hearing Derp shouting for help and I skidded round the corner and saw him fighting off a group of malicious squids. "Die! Worthless DERP!" Anger filled my entire being, turning my blood cold and my veins to ice. I roared in anger like I'd see Derp do so many times, then drew my sword and charged them. I killed them all, then turned to Derp. "Thanks Ssundee." He seemed sad. "What?" "Am I really worthless?" I shook my head. "No, I don't know what I'd do without you Derp." He smiled gratefully.

We both whipped round as I heard as Sky's trademark scream and the sound of swearing and cussing coming from the direction of SkyBase's entrance. We ran towards the sounds of battle and leapt into the fray. Squids were coming at me from every direction, slapping me with tentacles and taunting me about Derp. I whipped round, stabbing my blade into their slimy bodies. Like a demented dancer I pirouetted and stabbed, wrenching my sword out of them and diving through the army's ranks to help my friends. Wading through legions of mutant squids, running through packs of squid wolves, squids disintegrating at the cold metal touch of my blade. Then it happened. We were losing. Slowly but surely the squids were driving us backwards. Somehow I located Derp in the fray and stuck by him. As long as I was by his side I knew I was safe. Suddenly, a figure wearing red sunglasses and wielding an enchanted diamond sword appeared, jumping off of a tree and flying through the air. The squid leader looked up just in time to see the man land on his head and drive his sword through his skull. The remaining squids scattered as their leader disintegrated into white dust. Derp and I watched, gobsmacked as the members of SA crowded round the stranger, congratulating him. I glanced at Derp, his crooked eyes were open wide as he took in the scene before him. It was quite dramatic. White dust billowed up around us from the deceased squids as their brethren scattered and fled for the lake. Then, in the centre was all the members of SA gathering round a stranger in a red, billowing cloak with a creeper face emblazoned on it. He looked up and I saw him properly for the first time. He wore a black jacket and trousers, with grey shoes and belt. His blue eyes stared at me coldly behind his red rimmed sunglasses. Then I realised why he looked similar; he'd been riding on the back of Seto's enderdragon the first time I'd seen the gang. I shuddered, remembering my moment of hopelessness where I had nearly given up in the cave. Derp must've read my mind cus he lay a reassuring hand on my shoulder. "So, WHO are you?" His voice was deep and his blue eyes piercing as he gazed at me searchingly. Derp came forward. "My name is Derp Ssundee, but you can call me Derp. And this is Ssundee." The man openly flinched when Derp spoke and I felt the familiar feeling of anger bubbling up inside of me. I grit my teeth and strode forward. "What is your problem? Huh?" He narrowed his eyes. "Watch your mouth." I clenched my sword. "Or what?" He turned to Sky. They were whispering, but I could still hear them. "Where'd you pick THIS guy up?" "He's a good soldier Cap." "Yeah well. Who's the weirdo standing next to him?" "That's Derp. He fights well." "I don't like the look of them." I lost it. "IF YOU HAVE A PROBLEM WITH US, WHY DON'T YOU SAY IT TO OUR FACES?!" Derp looked over at me nervously. "Uh, Ssundee? I think you should calm down a bit-" "There's no need for that!" I glared at the stranger, though he couldn't see me doing it through my sunglasses. "What's YOUR problem?" To my surprise he grinned back at me. "Well, this ones got attitude. And a strong sense of moral. That's good in a soldier. Very well, keep him." Then he looked at Derp. "What're your skills then...Derp?" I laughed as Derp grinned, scaring the living crap out of the man. "Well, I've got the extraordinary skills of A: Scaring the hell out of you, B: Calming Ssundee down, and C: Beating up anyone who has a problem with my Ssundee." I laughed again as the stranger gulped, looking terrified. Then he swallowed his pride and walked forward, offering a hand. "Pleased to meet you...Derp. And Ssundee." Derp smiled again as I took the hand and shook it. "Thanks." He smiled. "Welcome. And the names Sparklez. Captain Sparklez."