NovaOrAvon: I did base the chapter name off that very saying, but I have no concrete plans of using the other half for a chapter—at least, not yet. It's not really fit for this chapter anyway.
The reason why this story updated so early from your point of view is because of the time zones. I live in the Netherlands; I'm not sure what country you live in, but if it happens to be located on North America, then there's a time difference of about six to ten hours.

Chapter twelve: Herobrine

Jack found Minerva just outside the mine entrance. She had her back turned to him, holding her sword with the point on the ground.

Upon seeing her, Jack hesitated, thinking about what to say—only for Minerva to speak first.

"Don't mention her again."

Jack almost rolled his eyes. Of course she had heard him approach. Athena's ears were amazingly sharp; unsurprisingly, Minerva seemed to share that trait.

She glanced back at him, dropping her commanding tone. "How's the leg?" she softly asked.

"Fine."

She sighed. "Look… You were right. If I knew where Athena was, I would go to her without hesitation. I know you're in a tough position too, and I shouldn't have said…what I said."

Jack went to stand next to her. "Neither should I," he admitted. "I was out of line, too."

"I guess," Minerva said. "But I knew that our situations were different, yet I pretended like I knew what you were going through. That was…"

"Judging from how humans look at mobs," Jack said, "I'm assuming your life wasn't exactly one of nonstop sunshine, either. And I've only really dealt with that kind of thing for a few weeks."

She paused. "Either way," she said, "I won't try stop you from leaving. Since Athena's been giving you fighting lessons though, I think it's safe to say that she trusts you. I guess I didn't want one of the few people she could trust to leave." She fully turned to him. "There's just one thing I need to ask of you."

"What's that?"

"When you meet Herobrine, and he is going to take you back to your world…could you please at least ask him for an easy way back and forth? If he can arrange something like that, maybe you can visit from time to time after all."

Jack considered that. Going back and forth between the Overworld and his world without letting his parents or siblings know about it was going to be difficult, and both worlds would contrast one another in terms of danger and culture… But that didn't make it a bad idea. Herobrine just had to make sure no one else from the Overworld could travel to Earth, or the other way around.

That'd probably be easy. Jack doubted Herobrine was going to put a portal smack in the middle of his bedroom.

"I'll ask him," he said. "Just don't hold your breath. I don't think he's going to agree."

She gave a small smile. "Thank you."

A brief silence fell. Jack glanced to the mine entrance. "So…what now?" he asked. "Should we meet with Herobrine? I don't want to sound impatient again, but I don't know how much time we have left."

She silently glanced at him. "You have the advantage against a sword," she finally said.

"What?"

"If you know how to use a quarterstaff properly," Minerva said, "you'll have the advantage. Most sword fighters need to get close first, depending on how big their weapon is; with a staff, you can use momentum to weaken their defenses and create an opening.

"Be careful though; if you're too slow or you use too much momentum, your enemy can eventually use that against you—especially if they deflect your attack, or parry with an attack of their own. Make sure you keep them at a distance, estimate the reach they might have with their weapon, and never assume they'll be easy to defeat."

Jack nodded. "I'll keep that in mind."

"Sorry I couldn't give more advice there. Quarterstaffs aren't my specialty."

"That's fine. All help is welcome."

Another brief silence fell. Then Minerva turned to the mine entrance. "Let's go."

Jack followed her inside. She led him through the hallway straight ahead, the only hallway he hadn't been at yet.

"Those Trials Áhýdan set down in the prison?" Minerva said. "I've heard that the first one's called the 'Trial of the Body'."

He rolled his eyes. "He should've hired someone to think of better names."

She flashed a smile. "Well, the current names are all I can give you. Maybe they'll help you pass them, somehow."

"Okay," Jack said. "So, this 'Trial of the Body'… Any theories as to what it means? Is it some kind of strength test?" He snorted. "Do I have to lift weights?"

"Regardless of what it is, it's not the only one. There're also the Trials of Determination, Reality and the Elements."

"I thought you said there were five."

"There are five, but no one knows what the last one's called. Guess Áhýdan's done a pretty good job at hiding that one from Herobrine."

"Great. It's probably something like 'Trial of Doom'." He said the name with a mockingly exaggerated tone.

Minerva glanced at him. "So, if I get this correctly, Herobrine needs you to take Áhýdan down, somehow?"

"That's what he implied in that dream."

"Oh…"

Brief silence. "You think I'm going to have to pass these Trials," Jack said. It wasn't a question. "Somehow, that'll allow me to beat Áhýdan."

Minerva nodded, not looking at him. "Those Trials aren't meant for Herobrine—they pose no direct threat to him. Don't ask me why, but I think he needs help from a physical being like you or me in order to beat Áhýdan…and I think Áhýdan anticipated that."

"Why can't Herobrine just kill Áhýdan on his own?"

"I don't think he's powerful enough. Even with his daughter Hera, he can't win. Not without help, that is. It's actually happened a lot in the past that a creature like Herobrine needs a mortal for one reason or another."

His daughter's name is Hera? As in, a female equivalent to Herobrine? Man, the spirits of this world lack creativity. "But again, why me? I'm just a random guy. A human from a world where swords and whatnot are barely even used anymore. It's like you said—mobs are a better option."

"That might have something to do with Áhýdan bringing you here. But that doesn't matter; I talked to the others during lunch, and we've come to an agreement."

Jack looked at her questioningly.

"We're going to help you," Minerva said. "There's no way we're going to let you risk your life alone."

Jack fell silent. "Are you sure about that?" he eventually asked. "I mean…these Trials could be…really bad. And Herobrine might not agree."

"Well," Minerva said, "there's one more thing we know about the Trials: They aren't complete death traps. A normal human could—theoretically—survive them. Should be easy when he's got a group of superhumans watching his back. And I can't see any reason why Herobrine would disagree."

Jack nodded, but he was still skeptic. He dismissed that. Minerva would know about these kinds of things, right? She'd lived in this world for long enough. "I appreciate it," Jack said.

"Running around dangerous obstacles and traps in a supernatural prison?" Minerva smirked. "How could we say no to that?"

The hallway had a dead end.

Jack stopped. "Herobrine's going to meet us in a dead end," he flatly said.

"No," Minerva sighed. "The pathway's collapsed again."

"The pathway's collapsed. In Herobrine's house."

She shook her head. "He prefers not to intervene too much in the Nether unless he has to. If he was a little more active, he might've introduced you to us when you came here, rather than letting us fight things out. Sometimes I think he intentionally blocks this particular hallway up."

"Sounds like he's kind of dumb," Jack said, frowning. The mobs had said Herobrine's way of thinking was complex, but removing this barricade had to be easy for him, right?

"I-I might be able to help here," someone behind them said. They turned to meet Charlotte, the mob with white hair that had accompanied Honetsu to the mine. Jack noticed she was floating above the ground a little.

Suspecting what was going to happen, Jack backed up until he stood behind Charlotte. Minerva followed suit. Then Charlotte lifted her hand, her palm aimed outward and at the barrier ahead.

A fiery orange light, originating from Charlotte's hand, briefly illuminated the room. Then an explosion sounded through the hallway. The shockwave caught Jack off-guard, and he almost fell.

He looked to see that the barricade was replaced by small pieces of netherrack, scattered over the floor. Charlotte didn't seem to be affected by the explosion. Might've had something to do with her being suspended in mid-air.

"That works," Jack said.

Charlotte glanced at him timidly. A hint of pride crossed her features.

"You don't look surprised at her power," Minerva said. "Did the creators who made those artificial copies tell you more about that, too?"

Her tone didn't sound hostile, but Jack gave her an unamused look nonetheless. She was talking about Herobrine's letter. "The less said about that," Jack grunted, "the better."

He turned to look ahead. Before him was a perfectly circular room with almost nothing in it. The ceiling was so high that it disappeared behind a thick reddish fog, yet at the same time the room was lit just about well enough to make everything in it clearly visible. Even the grey ground gave an ominous vibe.

In the middle of the room stood some kind of altar—a golden disc carrying a piece of netherrack, surrounded by four weak red torches whose dim light was the only source of illumination in the room.

Jack shivered a little as he went inside.

"Stay here," Minerva said. "I'm going to get the others."

"Blazette went to take a flight outside," Charlotte said. "I'll go get her."

They left. Jack kept staring at the altar. The hairs in the back of his neck stood up, and something prickled behind his eyes. Something about this was…really unnerving.

He kneeled down and touched the ground with his hand. It was harder than netherrack. It had an odd grey and black color.

Might be bedrock, a part of him thought. Might not be bedrock. The letter said this wasn't Minecraft, so…

This was a mistake. Coming here was a mistake.

It really wasn't; I'm going to help Herobrine, then I'm going back home. Sounds perfect.

Sounds more like I'm making a deal with a demon. A demon that's hiding something from me. This isn't going to end well.

Sure it is. Áhýdan will no longer pose a threat after this, and I'll be back on Earth.

But mobs will still be hunted.

A pause. I can't do anything about that. I'm just one man.

Maybe I could've done something. Eventually.

Look—

No, I won't look! Minerva was right. I left the mobs in the Realm to be hunted by humans. They've been so good to me, and this is how I thank them? Cupa, Mystia, Athena—

But I was right, too. They'll understand. If they didn't want me to go, Mystia wouldn't be trying to find me a way home.

Andr…

Something made him freeze when that name popped up in his head. No. Even if there was something between me and her, I doubt it could turn into…well, an actual thing. She's a mob from the Overworld, I'm human from Earth… We're friends now, yes, but—

"Hello?"

Still on one knee, Jack looked back. Honetsu approached from the hallway, looking at him with wary but curious eyes. Jack quickly stood up, relaxing his hands—which he'd unconsciously clenched into fists—without breaking eye contact.

"Hi," Jack said, half-growling. He realized he was sweating a little.

She carefully took a step closer. "Are you okay…?"

"Fine." He glanced at the altar behind him. "What is that thing?"

She looked at it thoughtfully. "I'm not really sure what it is or how it works. All anyone here knows is that it lets us talk to him and his daughter. Occasionally."

"Why doesn't he just come here by himself?"

"He can be a traditionalist sometimes."

"Is that also why he didn't just contact me directly in the Overworld?"

She shook her head. "No. He can do whatever he likes in the Nether, but…" She trailed off.

"But what?"

"I'm not sure…" she said. "In other worlds, his power is limited for some reason. He can only use it to its fullest extent in his own domain—that being the Nether."

"And that doesn't freak you out?" Jack asked. "What if he someday decides to become like Áhýdan, huh? Doesn't that mean you're pretty much dead?"

She grimaced. "Yeah. He could wipe out the entire Nether with a single thought if he wanted. But so far that hasn't happened, and I doubt that's going to change soon. He's been the Nether's guardian for centuries."

"So you're not scared, then?"

She glanced at him, giving a sad smile. "I am scared. How could I not? But I don't have anywhere else to go. Like Iris and Minerva, I don't know where Gelli is." She paused. "But you do."

Jack said nothing.

"Where are they?" Honetsu softly asked. "Please… We need to know. If we ever want to see them again…"

Jack hesitated. Despite everything, he was still apprehensive about telling the Nether mobs where their Overworld counterparts were. He wished he could say he wasn't entirely sure why, but he didn't have that luxury. He knew exactly why.

He still didn't trust them enough.

"Alright," Minerva called out as she entered the room, accompanied by Charlotte, Iris and Blazette. Jack sighed, breaking eye contact with Honetsu and turning to Minerva.

"What's happening now?" Jack asked, ignoring Honetsu's downcast look.

"Now," Blazette said as she stepped forward, "someone's got to light that altar thing on fire."

"You must be really glad," Jack said, "to finally get the chance to burn something today."

"Say another smart thing, and you're going to get burned today too."

"What's going to happen when Blazette lights that thing," Minerva said to Jack, "might be kind of…scary."

Jack raised an eyebrow. "Scary…? Is it as scary as Blazette's retort from just now?"

"Remember what I said about being smart!" Blazette warned.

"Basically," Minerva said, "she's going to summon Herobrine with that thing. The…transition…might be overwhelming."

"… Okay, then," Jack hesitantly said. "Well…go ahead, I guess."

Blazette walked up to the object, stepped on the golden disc and put her hand on the netherrack. A moment later, it was on fire.

The moment the fire flared up, Jack felt a strange sensation go through him. He looked back to the room's entrance—only to see that it was replaced with a solid wall. He blinked.

Iris saw him look. "That's normal," she said, calm as ever. "We knocked on his door; all he needs to do now is welcome us to his house, and he can't have us run away before that."

Blazette smirked. "You scared, Jack? Yeah, you humans always act so big and bad until something interesting actually happens."

"Is it as interesting as lighting shit on fire?" Jack asked, trying to hide his nervousness.

Blazette's smirk turned into a glare. "I swear—you make fun of me one more time, even a little bit, and I will turn you into a steak."

"Sorry. Some people joke when they're nervous. I'm trying to see if it helps."

The fire on the altar suddenly grew. Its color turned from orange to bright blue, and the flames grew unnaturally violent, hurling large blue sparks in all directions. Jack could feel the fire's heat increase. It became brighter and brighter.

Jack covered his eyes and his face, but it was futile as the light intensified. The heat and the light overwhelmed him, blinded him. He grunted, falling to one knee, facing away from the flame. It felt as if his skin was being scorched.

When he was sure he was going to pass out, the fire suddenly retreated. The intense light and heat became significantly less in mere seconds. Even the pain faded away.

Sweating, Jack looked over his shoulder.

In the fire stood a figure.

Jack rose, backing away from the person, who was looking at him with bright, white eyes. The man was enormous; about seven feet tall, with a broad chest and muscles that were visible from behind a light blue shirt.

The man's— No, the creature's presence was…indescribable. One look at those blank eyes sent a shiver down Jack's spine, and it was obvious that this wasn't just some guy with weird powers. No, this thing was…incomprehensible.

Jack then noticed that the mobs were absent. So were the walls; the grey floor stretched out into infinity, completely flat, with a thick red fog in the distance.

"You are here," Herobrine spoke. Even his voice was otherworldly.

Jack remained silent. More sweat tickled his head.

"The mobs are safe," Herobrine continued emotionlessly. "I only wanted to speak with you in private. You have many questions. Ask."

Jack swallowed. Alrighty then… Straight to the point, huh? If Herobrine wanted him to ask, he was going to ask. But where should he begin?

"Where am I?" he finally asked. His voice was low. Raspy. "What's the connection this world has with mine?"

"There is no connection," Herobrine responded. "Only a bleed-through."

"A…what?"

"You have read my message. There is no connection; this world stands separate from its copy. This…videogame…is a result of a bleed-through."

"What's a bleed-through?"

"Have you ever wondered why the Overworld's inhabitants speak your language?"

Jack had noticed that when he'd just come into the Overworld. Raulyn—who greeted him there—spoke perfect English. He hadn't given it as much thought as he should've.

"Sometimes, elements from one world bleed through to others in the shape of ideas. Many of the Overworld's elements bled through to your world. The creators of your 'game' unknowingly caught these elements, allowing them to shape the world of this artificial copy you have experienced."

Jack exhaled. "So, Minecraft and…the mod…are based on this world?" He paused. "These 'bleed-throughs'… How do they happen?"

"They are not unusual occurrences. Languages are frequently transferred from one world to another. The borders between worlds tend to be permeable at times."

Jack exhaled. That was quite a bit to take in. At least Herobrine was brief and direct in his explanations—something Jack could appreciate.

"Keep asking. There is little time."

Right. "Why am I here? Did you give me those nightmares?"

"Yes. I apologize if they were…disturbing."

"Never mind that. You implied you needed me to fight Áhýdan."

"I do need you, yes. My former brother is threatening these worlds to spite me. I cannot let him attack it, but I will need a mortal human to help me; battling Áhýdan on my own brings risks. I need someone who is not bound to the Rule, and who can weaken Áhýdan whilst I face him directly."

Jack frowned. "Slow down. The 'Rule'…?"

"A law that has been set up by…beings like me. It dictates that we cannot directly intervene outside our domain."

"Is that why you gave me those nightmares?" Jack asked. "Because you couldn't come to me directly?"

Herobrine nodded. "I cannot appear too often in the Overworld, especially after what I have done to you. By violating the Rule once, it has become more strict for me—if only for a time. But it was not enough to stop me from giving you those dreams and bringing you to the Nether."

"Hold up," Jack said. "What do you mean, 'after what you've done to me'? When did you break this Rule?"

Herobrine remained silent.

"You told me to ask," Jack said with a growl, his frustration outweighing his fear. Herobrine didn't seem to want to hurt him anyway. "Now I'm asking. What else do you want?"

Herobrine sighed, looking down. His eyes displayed…shame? "I violated the Rule," he said, "when I took you from your home to the Overworld."

Silence.

"Uh… Wh-what?" Jack asked. He let out a chuckle. "What? No, that can't be right. It was Áhýdan who did that, wasn't it?"

"Even if the Rule did not exist, Áhýdan could not touch you. He is imprisoned."

"No, no, n…" Jack felt himself get dizzy. He turned back and took a few steps. "Wh…what…why, you…y…!" With wide, feral eyes, he glared at Herobrine.

Even though he finally knew it made sense. It was simple: Herobrine needed him to fight Áhýdan, so he brought him here. And why would Áhýdan waste effort taking a human from another world when he was already busy enough making his grand escape, anyway?

"You were brought to the Overworld by me," Herobrine softly said. "My fellows did not like this; I had violated the Rule. But they did not stop me. Only if I had gone even farther would they have intervened."

"They…didn't care…" Jack unsteadily blurted out. "What…what is this to them… What's this to you?! A game?"

"A means to an end."

"Why…"

"No one in the Overworld would trust me. The few exceptions to that hate mobs or humans, or they do not have access to a Nether portal. Or they have some other limitation that makes them unsuited. You, Jack, are someone with a fresh view on everything in these worlds. A mob sympathizer who can also support humans is exactly what I need."

"WHY! YOU—!"

"And you have done well so far. Following your rebellion against the Hunters in Ironhand, the village's inhabitants have silently begun to wonder if their view on mobs is too dogmatic. This is a secondary reason why I need a mortal man. If the Overworld people come to know that you—the one who defied the Hunters—assisted in eliminating this threat to their world, you will become a symbol. They will be inspired by you, and take your way of thinking more seriously. This may indirectly create a peace between humans and mobs."

Jack was seething. "I am NOT a symbol. I'm not some…some 'hero' who 'saves the world' and 'creates peace'. The humans of the Overworld hate me. And I never asked to be taken here in the first place!"

"I know, and I am sorry."

"Take me back to Earth. Now."

Herobrine's expression hardened. "I cannot do that."

"You can and you will!"

"You are here for a cause that is greater than you."

"And what makes you think I'm just going to cooperate, huh?"

"I do not need your cooperation. Even after taking you to the Overworld, I continued violating the Rule, albeit to a lesser extent."

"I don't c—!"

"Do you truly believe you abandoned your friends in the Fallen Realm because you believed I would or would not take you to your home? Or because you felt obligated to fight Áhýdan?" He paused, letting that sink in. "Aside from those dreams I gave you, I influenced your mind continually, slowly convincing you to come to the Nether. You have felt it, have you not? Those conflicts you have been having with yourself?

"It was me who told you to go to the Nether, and it was you who disagreed. When you came through that portal, your mind became even more aggressive in that battle. But now that you are here, you are under my complete control. You could not walk away even if the portal was directly next to you."

"That…was you…?" So it was true; something had been influencing his mind, even before he came to the Nether. But it hadn't been Áhýdan.

Then he remembered something. His dream.

And the four-sentenced message at the end, the one that was always different. The one that warned him of Herobrine.

HE IS LYING TO YOU.

I AM NOT THE ENEMY.

HE IS.

HEROBRINE MADE ME INTO WHAT I AM TODAY.

"So…" Jack said, shaking in anger. "First you have Áhýdan turn against you, and now you want me to clean up your mess?"

Herobrine tilted his head, frowning.

"I know it was you! You're the reason Áhýdan's threatening the Overworld in the first place, aren't you?"

For the first time during that conversation, Herobrine looked stunned. "How… How do you know…!?"

"Those dreams you gave me? I always got a message at the end. Little different every time, but it always blamed you for this whole situation."

A silence fell. Herobrine just looked at Jack, dumbfounded, while Jack defiantly glared back.

"So…" Herobrine said. "He has already made it that far in his journey to the Overworld. To be able to create dreams like I do…" He paused, looking ashamed again. "It is my fault, yes."

Jack felt a wide sadistic grin grow on his face. He felt like he was losing his mind. "Ha! I knew it. You're just too lazy to clean up your own mess, so you're having a mere mortal do it for you. Probably murder said mortal in the process, while you're at it."

"Áhýdan had an affinity for violence since the moment he came into existence. This was no fault of his; to his species—which are different from mine—instincts of violence are as normal as a mortal's instincts for survival. But Áhýdan learned to suppress that.

"Even so, I became worried. Afraid of his suppressed dark side. So I prepared a prison. At a certain point in time—the Overworld's equivalent to your world's 303 BC—I wrongfully suspected that his instincts had taken him over, and so I attempted to imprison him. I failed. Enraged, Áhýdan turned against me…only to be imprisoned over a century later."

"So you were the one Minerva mentioned," Jack said. "The guy who pissed Áhýdan off. You're the one he has a problem with, and now the Overworld is going to have to pay for it, so you need a human from Earth to fix it for you." He let out a cynical laugh. "Great job."

Herobrine gave him a death glare.

"What?" Jack said. He wasn't scared anymore. "Can't a man point out some sweet irony in his final moments?"

"Remember, Jack, you are in my domain. I can hurt you."

"Go ahead, then."

Herobrine's narrowed eyes stayed on Jack for a while longer, before the spirit averted his gaze, his expression softening and turning into regret.

"That's what I thought," Jack finally said. "So, seeing how I'm your puppet now, I guess there isn't much else worth doing."

"You did not ask about them."

"What?"

"Your parents. You never asked me how they have fared since your departure."

Jack shrugged. "Does it matter?" he asked in a low, tired voice. His sadistic grin was gone. He felt empty. "I'm not going to be seeing them anymore. Minerva said those Trials were death traps, so…"

"But—"

"SHUT UP. My life was never any of your business to begin with. I don't need you of all people to tell me about it."

Herobrine finally fell silent.