"I will be in this room, speaking with Notch." Herobrine stated, gesturing to a set of massive doors. "You may feel free to explore the castle as much as you wish, my only rule is that you do not cross through the portals, which will be active since Notch and I need to access the internet. Do you understand?" Steve gave him an absent nod, and Herobrine disappeared into the chamber. The younger only gazed around the hall in amazement. He had never been in the Nether before.
Herobrine had given him a bare-bones tour of his castle, a sprawling fortress situated in the deepest depths of the Nether. Zombie Pigmen roamed freely, along with fiery creatures known as 'blazes' and huge, charred skeletons. Fortunately, they were under strict orders to leave him be, letting him wander in peace. Apples, currently an older puppy, stayed at his heels as the miner strolled down the magnificent halls. He had brought her more for moral support than actual defense, as Herobrine promised he'd be safe, but he felt a little better with her at his side.
The Nether was enormous, filled with fire and lava and other hellish dangers, but Herobrine's castle appeared to be a safe place. While it was designed to strike fear into the hearts of mortals (which, as Steve could confirm, it succeeded in), it was quite a spectacle as well. Blocks of gold and diamonds adorned the walls and ceilings, lit by huge lamps of glowing stone. Steve could barely take his eyes off the huge windows as he walked, which showed off the lavafalls as they cascaded off of cliffs into the glittering oceans. Though he had shuddered at the concept of such a horrible dimension for many years, to see it himself… it was almost beautiful.
He was so entranced by the view that he nearly bumped into one of the zombie pigs, and backpedaled hastily. The creature stared at him with glassy eyes as Apples let out a low growl, then it stumbled away. While their appearance was nearly as terrifying as the zombies on the surface, Herobrine assured him that they would not attack unless provoked. Steve wasn't sure if they'd take a collision as a threat, but he didn't intend to try anytime soon.
"It's okay, girl." He murmured as Apples paced nervously at his side. "How about we find somewhere to hang out for a while?" Reaching down, he scooped his puppy up, hoisting the wiggling bundle of fur onto his shoulder. Notch, he'd missed her. She whined in his ear, and he chuckled, patting her head. "I know, I know…"
It took a good few minutes of wandering for Steve to come across a grand library. He ran across a few piglins on the way, pacing pig-men adorned in gold armor. Steve had checked that his golden helmet was secure at least three times, as Herobrine had informed him that was the only thing keeping the creatures from attacking him on sight. Luckily, it was, and he passed through without incident. The library, though, was fortunately completely empty. He let Apples follow at his heels, sniffing curiously at the musty shelves as they walked.
Steve's eyes fell on a little reading nook, nestled into a grand window that looked out into the lava-lit caverns. A cozy place to spend the next few hours, he hoped. The miner plucked a book from the nearest shelf, glanced at the cover - "Oddities of The End" - and settled onto the window seat to read it.
The next few hours were spent in a warm, comfortable drone as he made his way through the factual account of an adventurer's exploits in the fabled void dimension. Apples took a nap on the seat beside him, forepaws sprawled over his lap in all their fluffy glory as he pored over the text. As he neared the end of the book, he stretched his arms above his head and gazed out at the massive library. This would certainly keep him entertained for a long time.
As he lowered his eyes to the book once more, though, a rattle of bones echoed out from between the bookshelves.
Steve's head jerked up, heart thudding instinctively at the sound. He pressed a hand over his heart, letting out a breath. The mobs were told to leave him alone, surely he should have no trouble with them. Still, the noise activated his fight-or-flight instincts in any context. Taking a deep breath, he lowered his eyes to the book again, patting Apples' head to calm himself.
Something moved in the corner of his vision, and he looked up to find one of the charred skeletons passing by. It barely spared him a glance, but Apples let out a low growl, eyes narrowed into slits in his lap. He murmured comforts, patting her head, and waited for the skeleton to walk out of sight.
The moment it walked behind a bookshelf, though, Apples shot out of his lap and peeled around the corner in pursuit.
"Apples!" He shouted, abandoning his book and scrambling up to follow her. He could hear the skeleton fleeing, and spotted a flash of white fur as he dashed around the shelf to follow. His heart thudded as he sprinted after her, trying to navigate the maze of shelves, terrified that she'd be attacked if she actually landed a hit on it. He wasn't familiar with the behavior of the skeletons, 'Wither' skeletons he believed Brine called them, but even if the skeletons continued to flee like the overworld ones the Nether was ripe with dangers such as lava and blazes. "Apples!"
The skeleton fled from the library and down a hall, Apples' claws skidding on the floor as it followed. Steve managed to keep his dog in sight up until the skeleton rounded another corner into a room, Apples in hot pursuit. When he got up to the entranceway, however, he was forced to skid to a halt.
Inside the room was about eight or nine active Nether Portals, each labeled with a sign beside them and rimmed with dark stone. On the floor was a large rectangle of glowing blocks, illuminating the room with a futuristic glow. Captivated by the designs, Steve only barely looked up from the ground in time to see Apples disappear through one of the glowing portals.
"Apples! Oh Notch." Steve rushed up to the portal, then skidded to a halt. Brine had specifically warned him not to enter the portals, he would kill him if he directly disobeyed. Maybe he could wait for him to be finished? No, no, Apples could be long gone by then.
Steve glanced nervously at the sign that adorned the portal's rim. Gameknight999's Server, it read. One of Hero's connected servers. Was it one he had determined as being safe?
Steve gave a determined shake of his head. Danger of players and Herobrine's wrath or not, Apples could be in danger. He cast a final glance at the room around him, praying he wouldn't be gone long, and then he plunged into the portal.