I was stuck in an extremely difficult situation, and I didn't know how to handle it.

I didn't want to listen to Alyssa's plan, because I already knew what it was. I knew that she wanted to be the hero and attack Dianite herself, sacrificing herself for the land. She wanted us to take the offense, and she believed that she could lead us into battle because of the fighting skills Mianite had taught her. But, as a child often is, she was too caught up in the idea of being Mianite's savior to think logically.

You see, no matter how many years of training she had, she was still inexperienced. I had seen first hand what Dianite was capable of, and it's nothing something that my little girl can handle. The rest of us can't, either. If we attacked the god in the nether, where he was most powerful, there's no way we could possibly win. We'd all be wiped out, and never return. The end.

If we waited for Dianite to come first, on the other hand, he would be weakened enough for us to fight him. If Ianite was too weak, then we could destroy him in the overworld alone, where Mianite is most powerful. And even if one of the gods did die, we would already have weakened Dianite to the point where he wouldn't be able to take control of the land. It worked out fine.

And why didn't I explain this to Alyssa? Simple, I didn't want her getting involved at all. This was not a responsibility that needed to be on a ten-year-old's shoulders. And even if I was fine with her carrying the weight along with us, she would just suggest another plan that involved putting herself in grave danger. I knew that my little girl had already lost all of her family and friends. I was all she had left. How would she be able to live with herself if I was to die? How would I be able to live with myself if she was to die? Better to keep a small child out of the deadly situation. Wars aren't games, and death isn't to be taken lightly.

Unfortunately, my child was extremely stubborn, and refused to believe that I knew what was best for her.

"You're killing the land!" she screamed at me one night. "You're killing the gods! Your plan is going to cause the overworld to fall into chaos! The grass is going to turn to netherrack, and it'll permanently be night! You'll literally turn the place into a living hell!"

"Alyssa, calm down." I tried to make her settle down and go to her bed, where she was safe from harm. "I promise you, Jeriah, Spark, and I have it all worked out. Nobody and nothing will die. You and I will be okay."

Tears leaked from her light brown eyes. "No, you don't! And you won't even listen to me! You're a terrible parent, Mot! Terrible!" She let out a sob and ran out of the room. I was about to go back to my meal when I saw that she was running out of the house.

"Alyssa!" I yelled, panicked, as I ran after her. "Come back here! Don't you dare leave the house!" My threats were to no avail. She jumped on Daisy and rode away as fast as she could. I shook my head and silently cursed as I leapt on my own horse and took off after her.

We rode for a few minutes, in which I desperately tried to catch up to her. Eventually, she ended up at the Mianite temple, which glowed against the black sky. She tethered Daisy to a fence post nearby, and dashed across the quartz path. There were no more posts, so I followed her on my horse. I caught up to her quickly, but she had already reached her god at that point.

"Mianite!" she cried, leaping into his arms. "He won't listen to me! None of them will! I just want to help!" Her words were choked up.

The god sighed. "Alyssa, sweetie. Your father only wants what's best for you. That isn't an excuse to run away from him this late. You should be in bed by now. This war really isn't your concern."

She pushed away from him, looking utterly betrayed. "You aren't going to hear me out either?" After seeing the look on his face, she turned and ran. "That's it!" she shrieked as she scrambled away. "I've had enough of all of you!"

I started to run after her, but Mianite stopped me. "I'll find her and calm her down. You look like you're in need of a break, though. Why don't you head home and get a good night's sleep?"

I took a deep breath. "You're right, I guess. See you tomorrow, then. And... good luck with Alyssa." I let out a short laugh.

"What do you think we should do first?" I asked Spark and Jeriah the next day. The three of us were sitting at the top of Spark's tree, where there was no chance that Alyssa could find us. I wanted her to be as removed from the war as possible.

"Is there a way to protect the land?" Jeriah asked. "The nether portal that Dianite would probably enter from is in the priest's house. There's a lot of important stuff there. Should we surround it in obsidian?"

Spark sighed. "I don't think obsidian would stop him. But I do agree with you that it needs protection."

We sat in silence for a moment. "What should we do about Alyssa?" I finally asked. "We can't keep her out of this forever."

Spark looked troubled. "I've had quite a bit of experience with children, and I think what she really needs is to be comforted that we have thought things through and that nobody is going to die and the land isn't going to become a second nether. That's what she really cares about, isn't it? She's similar to Martha in that way."

I ran my fingers through my hair, a sign that I was terribly stressed. "I just don't know. She's only going to ask for more information, isn't she? And then get upset when I don't give it to her. It doesn't end." I leaned back and stared at the vast ceiling. "Can't anyone see that we have enough problems on our hands?"

Jeriah let out a humorless laugh. "No, Mot. No they can't. Everyone is too caught up in their own problems, and they always have been. This is a cruel world, full of selfish people. The worst part is? It never changes."