mindcracklove | Prompt Swap: The Journal

Yo, so I finally finished it. It's a different style for me, so I'm sorry it sucks =(
Someone takes a journal along with them on a long Quartz mining expedition (imagine someone from the mid-1950's or so on a gold mining trip or something) and they record all the events that happen on the trip (could entail a violent ending, a success, people might die in lava because nether, it's all up to you)
Also idk if I tagged/edited right I'm sorry

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You find a journal, partially singed, in the middle of a field. Picking it up, you begin reading it.

Ugh. Most of the quartz in this world has been mined- in order to get even a modest amount you have to set out for days.

Boring. You skip forward.

Damn the need for quartz. It’s in high demand, and its rarity makes it even more profitable. It’s a pain to get though.

You yawn and skip forward a few pages.

Dear Journal;
There’s this one tribe of zombie pigmen that seem to be following me. Maybe it’s just be overreacting, but I keep seeing the same few wandering around. One of them has an enchanted sign in his hand, wielding it like most would have use a sword. And unlike most pigmen, he knows how to build. I’ve seen his bridges and houses- they’re pretty good for being made out of Nether stuff. I see him right now actually; he’s wandering about three chunks away, on a ledge above a lava pool. He’s staring at me.

Pigmen? You mean like the great builder Zisteau? Your interest is peaked. You quickly scan the next few pages until an entree catches your eye.

A pigman said he was interested in Mindcrack culture… and we both had an amazing idea. What if the pigmen mine for the Mindcrackers, trading quartz for stuff they need, like iron? Apparently the only sword-making material in the Nether is gold. I saw some of the pigmen’s craftsmanship, and I’ve never seen such well-build swords! Too bad their material sucks ass. Which is why this would be amazing for the pigmen. They’d get material, make amazing swords, sell them back, and get even better materials, like cobble, so the damn Ghasts can stop being such annoyances. I mean, they blow everything the pigmen build up, pretty much. Besides cobble. Cobble is so plentiful, but Mindcrackers can sell it for a lot to these dudes, or just trade for quartz. It’s brilliant!

Wait… you remember hearing about this in history class. You want to read more, but the page is completely burned away. You skip past the badly mangled pages.

I’m on my way back now. For a few stacks of cobble that I had for building blocks, I filled my bags. Zisteau said he would join me in a bit, and I want to talk to him more. He says he would love to visit Mindcrack, and I’d love to bring him.

So it IS Zisteau! You want to read more but damnit, the pages are almost completely gone here.

We’ve talked for hours, afterwards always settling into a comfortable silence. It makes me feel at home in the Nether, the way we can talk.
Pigmen have a strange beauty to them. Something about them just seems… I don’t know. Most people might think me insane for finding them even remotely attractive. But damn, they have really good personality… and they don’t look half bad, at least not to me.

Damn, shippers would go crazy. You lean forward, only to feel a slight pull. You drop the journal, but there's no escaping the pull as it yanks you forward, into the journal.
Your seem to be in spectator mode, or something like that- you're hovering above Vechs at some type of campsite in the Nether.

Vechs puts down his pen, stretching his arms above his head. He sighs as he sees the pigman resting in front of him.
Standing up, he wanders to the edge of the cliff the duo choose to sleep on, above a Nether Fortress. Listening for Ghasts, he takes a quick look at the wide expanse of lava that stretches to each side.
Suddenly, you hear the tell-tale noise of a blaze. As you watch, a few blazes spawn in the Nether Fortress, just out of site of Vechs. Zisteau wakes up, just in time to see the sight of a blaze rising up behind Vechs, who has turned toward the awakened pigmen.
“Vechs! Watch out!”
By the time he realizes what’s happening, Vechs is engulfed by a fireball, screaming as the flames begin to burn his skin. He throws himself to the ground, rolling around in a desperate attempt to extinguish himself. The scent of burnt flesh floats up to you, making you gag - especially when you notice its similarity to charred barbecue.
Zisteau runs towards the fallen Mindcracker, picking him up, immune to the flames as he sprints across the last chunk to the portal. Ghasts fire at him, but he skillfully dodges them, seemingly unburdened by the person in his arms. You drift close behind as the two sprint into the portal, teleporting themselves into Mindcrackia, to the bewilderment of some villagers standing around the portal. Z calls out for a doctor as he extinguishes Vechs in the nearby fountain, and Jsano rushes out of his medical tent. Pushing Zisteau away, Jsano takes note of his patient’s vitals, laying him on the ground. Pulling out a potion, he elevates Vechs’ head, just enough so that Vechs drinks the entire thing.
Everyone stares, eyes glued to the pigman, the doctor, and the burned man.
Slowly, the burned flesh heals, and Vechs blinks his eyes open.
“Wha… What the hell?” He mumbles, looking up at the faces of the concerned crowd, which emits a collective sigh of relief.
And just like that, you are back to the present. The book lies open in front of you, pages waving slowly in the wind.
You gently pick up the book. You decide to take it to a friend of yours. His name’s Chad, and he seems to know a lot about the Mindcrackers. You set off, whistling a tune as the sun sets behind you.
Today was a strange day….