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"Holy ****, what am I doing?" Caden pressed his hands to the sides of his head, staring down at his keyboard with wide eyes. "Notch is gonna kill me."
"He won't." Steve tried to reassure him, watching the marker for his POV from inside where his form was stored. "He'll owe you, won't he?"
"Ugh, but I stole his stuff in the first place." Caden pressed the heels of his hands into his eyelids, nervousness pricking at his skull. "Why am I doing this?" Steve didn't respond, so their conversation stopped on that note.
Not removing his hands from his face, Caden ran the message he had sent to Notch through his head one more time.
"Notch,
You know me, we've met before. You weren't too pleased with my actions. I took something that belonged to you, and you were rightfully angry.
I did it again. I wish I could take it back now, but that's no longer an option. If you're willing, I want you to help me fix it.
sk20111"
Short, and to the point. Hopefully Steve was right in that Notch would go easy on him, but he knew that some punishment was coming. He just wished Notch would respond already so that he wouldn't lose his nerve and delete the message.
A soft bwoop played in his headphones, and he looked up to see a "new message!" notification just as it disappeared from his screen.
[Body:
Caden Petrov, isn't it? I do remember you.
I don't know what prompted this message, or how exactly you're involved in this situation, but if you can help me then I am willing to accept it.
Notch]
"Hoollllyyyyy…" The hacker blew out a breath, spinning around in his chair. "Notch replied. He doesn't… seem too mad."
"That's good!" Steve's voice was hopeful, and Caden pressed his forearm over his eyes. If anything, it made him even more worried. Notch was furious last time - one of the dead giveaways that his claim that Herobrine wasn't even real was a lie. And then he'd already gotten him back. And now Steve was part of the equation too.
Oh boy.
"For some reason," Notch began, his voice barely over a growl. "I assumed you'd learned your lesson after last time. Evidently I was wrong."
"Can we save this conversation for later?" The teen's voice sounded tense even through the tinny filter of his microphone. "I know you're pissed, ****, I would be too. And you can chew me out after we get your- Herobrine back."
"We had better succeed." Markus' tone didn't change, his dark eyes narrowed despite there being no way Caden could see him. "Otherwise, it is on your head."
"Okay, noted." The boy brushed him off. "Tell me what you know."
"An associate of mine found a video of where he's being held." Notch forwarded the message, and Caden fell silent as a soft chime travelled through his headset. "Said associate has yet to locate whoever posted it - assuming, even, that the person who posted it is the same one who-" His voice caught, and he scowled. "Bought him."
"Right." The teen's voice was soft. A moment later, a "No," followed it.
"What?"
"Not you. Steve wanted to see the vi-"
"He's there?" Notch interrupted. He had been informed not long beforehand that Stephanus had been caught up in the middle of this, and was apparently "safe" on Caden's computer. It hardly filled him with confidence. But… he was speaking with him?
"Yeah. His world is open right now."
"May I speak to him?"
"Uh, sure." A brief pause. "Let me- one second." A thump from the end, then a couple moments of shuffling. Then, the ambient noise from the microphone cut out, replaced by silence.
"Hello?" A soft voice spoke.
"Stephanus?" The word came out in a rush of relief, and Notch pressed a hand to his chest. "Are you alright?"
"I'm- fine. Notch?" A note of awe rang out in the young man's voice, and Notch couldn't help but think back to the last time he had spoken with him. A long, long time ago.
"It's me."
"Can you- see me?"
"I can't. I can ask your captor to show me."
"Caden's alright." To his surprise, the miner laughed, a breathless sound. "He's- I don't know what he's told you."
"Enough."
"Notch, that doesn't answer my question. I mean-" Steve cut off abruptly, and Markus noted his name being said in a manner similar to an expletive. "He's not a bad kid." He continued hurriedly. "Just messed up, I think."
"If you say so."
"Are you- you're going to get Herobrine back?"
"I'm going to try." Notch's voice lowered, but he smiled. So he had taken his advice. "It's good to hear your voice again."
"You have no idea how good it is to hear yours."
