Hero's Bane

Chapter 8:You Must Fight

Edited 4/7/2022

The footsteps grew louder and louder with each passing second and Steve could not steady his heart from trying to beat it's way out of his chest, he couldn't even focus straight with the mental image of the monster approaching him. He coiled his arms tighter over his head and prepared for the worst with gritted teeth, there was no telling of what would come next except a death blow or slow torture.

Herobrine leisurely walked over to the fear-induced miner and just stared down at the unarmed man, Steve just sat there and waited and this cowardly act made the ex-hero so furious. From brave to coward in a spilt second, absolutely pathetic. He reached down and plucked the man's iron sword off of the ground, he then reared a leg back and then slammed it against the side of Steve's quaking form and sent the human flying.

Steve's eyes shot open wide with shock when a powerful force rammed against his ribcage and sent him careening off of the floor and into a wall, so it begins. He yelped aloud, he then gaped wordlessly from the pain of the impact. It was as though time had slowed down, the collision badly wracked his chest and it felt as though every joint in his body had exploded all at once. Steve even thought he felt a few ribs crack from the strike. His entire body had strongly clashed with the wall and he fell limp to the ground. He slowly rolled on to his side and coughed violently to get air to rush back into his lungs, he wasn't even focused on the living nightmare now approaching him for a second time.

A powerful grip hauled him off of the ground by his neck and it squeezed tightly before forcing him up to a wall, the miner felt his back smack into the rough and sharp deepslate. Steve was afraid but decided to pry an eye open to see the infamous tormentor for himself, eyes of white seared into his. There he was- the legendary Herobrine, the monster of monsters and the root of all fear. No doubt his vile double that was now beaming at him with those intimidating eyes and with a nasty grin to match. In the blink of an eye his own sword was hovering inches from his neck, the blade's tip lightly rested on his skin ready to pierce through flesh.

"You're real?" Steve choked, noticing that his question made the immortal frown. The look-alike was no ghost that was for sure, he could feel Herobrine's fingers coiling even tighter on his throat. "You're-"

Herobrine only responded by slamming him against the wall a few times and bringing the sword's edge right beneath Steve's jaw line, gently tapping it against his esophagus as a reminder of his position.

Steve's body was in a full blown panic mode now and he found himself reaching his hands up to the constricting force, grasping on and attempting to remove the mighty grip only to fail miserably. He also noticed how foolishly daring he had become once he started trashing about in the Herobrine's hold, kicking away at the monster's chest and digging blunt nails into his arm. His will to survive had returned like the flip of a switch. No matter how much he screamed in his mind to stop before the Hero could retaliate with a blade crossing his neck he just couldn't stop this natural impulse that made his body act on it's own, his fight or flight instincts prompted him to move.

The clawing and kicking did little to remove Herobrine's attention from the man's horrified face, the struggle actually made it more entertaining. The human was driven to survive on instincts alone, something the hero hadn't seen up close in a very long time.

Steve felt something dangling at his side with each kick and he finally tore his gaze from those mesmerizing blocks of white to see his old lucky charm that had been passed down to him, it was his stone sword and it was a sheathed weapon that he could use to defend himself with. He didn't plan out how to go about on attacking the demon, nothing but the idea of swinging it at his captor in hopes of causing damage. He quickly reached a hand down then brought the blade up and outwards, slashing it right across Herobrine's torso. Steve fell to the ground but was just as quickly brought right back up in the same rough position except with a more strangulating force. Herobrine had dropped the miner to escape the blade, which meant that Steve had missed the demon completely and had just gotten himself into a world of hurt double-time.

His double glared fiercely, giving an expression that could be best worded as 'Foolish move mortal!' if the monster could speak. He flung the iron blade away and then ripped the stone sword out of the miner's grasp before throwing it as well, Steve knew that right then and there that he was going to suffer greatly before death.

Hero suddenly lifted his captive up and over his own head, hurling the man over to the other side of the small cave enclosure.

"Ahhhhhhhh!" Steve screamed as his face met the hard surface of the dark stone. He lifted his head up and coughed again from the fall. Steadily crawling backwards, he backed against a wall to put as much distance as possible between him and Herobrine. Both of the blades and even his torch were well out of reach, his hopes of surviving were fading and even his body was starting to give in. Trying to shield himself did absolutely nothing to stop the demon from dishing out damage and he didn't even have a weapon on him anymore, so escape was his best bet if he could just manage to get his legs to move and make a run back through the cave.

He used to the wall at his side to pull himself up and stable himself enough to stand, he took this opportunity to step towards the cave but his knees immediately gave in and he crashed. His legs had shook horribly due to pain and this caused the miner to stumble and fall back onto the ground as he made another failed attempt. Steve stared hard at the cold stone under him, escape was no longer an option he could take and so he slammed a fist at the floor, mad at his weak and aching body.

A sudden image of his family came into his mind, like a picture he once had back when he was living at the family home. His mother and father were warmly smiling while his younger sister frowned from her older brother's goofy smirk. And Steve- he was centered between all of them with a large grin and arms loosely draped over his sibling's shoulders. The image began to burn and singe away when a low chuckle came from across the opposite side of him.

He knew right then that he was going to die this time and he wouldn't get another chance to fight, but he didn't have to go out like this. Not like a coward. He couldn't put shame upon his family's name and he felt sick on giving up before. He blinked and then stared up in horror while lightly gaping. Herobrine was walking towards him again and Steve knew that he wasn't done tormenting him. The miner forced himself to stand again despite the strong ache, a hand suddenly clutched his arm, Herobrine was now at his side. Steve tried to pull himself free but the hold was too strong to jerk out of.

Herobrine yanked at the human's limb and swung him around and around in midair before letting go and having the mortal take another smack into solid deepslate.

Steve cried out again as his head and spine painfully collided with the rough textured wall, he felt a warm liquid escape his mouth, leaving copper tasting trails to line his tongue. He fell to the ground with a loud thud and again tried to pull himself up, that was until a heavy weight landed on his back and pinned him down. He could hear that menacing chuckle above and instead of feeling scared for the idea of death he started to feel angry, mad that he was being toyed with and was going to suffer much more before dying. He hated himself for being too weak to stop it.

Like a haunting apparition, that family photo emerged in his mind again but this time his father and brother were missing… along with himself.

"Nooooo!" He screamed, knowing that he was going to be leaving his mother and sister for good. He detested the thought and refused to grasp the concept but there wasn't much he could do except fight back and go out like his lost parent and sibling. There wasn't much left to loose anyways and knowing this doomed fate that would send him to meet his maker meant that he wasn't going to go so easily, not while he could still move. Filling a sudden surge of energy; Steve pushed upwards with all his might and managed to lift a few inches off of the ground until a boot pressed him back down. He willed up enough strength to do it again and this time Herobrine allowed him to move onto all fours.

A weaker kick sent him rolling a few feet onto a small pile of gravel. He clutched his side as he rocked back and forth a bit, but he wasn't going out just yet so he picked himself off of the ground and he wiped away at some blood that slid down the corner of his mouth with the back of his hand. He didn't feel too afraid anymore, almost as if his fear cleared out enough to face the monster again. Death was something that he knew was coming so he didn't have to run away or waste time escaping, especially since the demon was too quick for him anyways.

"I know what you are Herobrine." He struggled to keep an upright position with a feeling of dizziness still rocking his vision, the miner staggered to his side a few steps and finally bumped into a wall and leaned at it to stable himself. Steve had decided that words were all he had to fight with since that's all he could use. Verbal warfare wasn't his best weapon but that didn't matter anymore.

Herobrine snorted, another wicked smirk crossed his lips.

"You're-… A monster! And I know what you did. You.-" He growled and narrowed his eyes thinly. "'You' know what you did." He spat as more blood filled his mouth, his voice more quiet now.

Herobrine's grin faded and his eyes narrowed from those words, he was obviously annoyed by them.

"You think hunting down and killing innocent people is a game? You think that tormenting those who have never done a thing to you is justifiable? And what about killing innocent children? Did that out of boredom huh? The son of the ruler here that you slew so long ago. I bet you enjoyed that didn't you?" He hissed to cover his groan of pain.

Herobrine's sudden cold glare made more chills crawl up the miner's spine and seeing the demon's fists ball up and shake really unnerved the human about how much he was infuriating the other, but Steve chose to stand his ground despite the return of his own trembling. He was still scared, but he couldn't let that get the best of him, not without finishing his piece before the end of it all.

"I know you killed that innocent little child, the first murder in that land!" He daringly pointed up at an angle in which he thought was the direction of the valley before lowering it to hold his sore stomach. "He was just a harmless boy that I bet he never did anything to bother you and you decided to end him just to cause a ruckus amongst the people, for- for fun-!"

It wasn't a second more before Herobrine snapped. Steve found himself slammed up to the wall and with a very tight squeeze on his throat again, but this time Herobrine's incredibly bright gaze remained on the floor and his grip was even more stronger. Steve had noticed that Herobrine's other fist was still clinched tightly and trembling. He could also hear muffled growls from the monster, which means Steve had said something that Herobrine didn't like or more along the lines of hated.

"Tha-t li-ttle boy." Steve choked.

Herobrine's head instantly snapped upright and he visibly seethed and gritted his teeth, but remained wordless. He shook the miner and then squeezed more, his eyes pierced the darkness around them as the torch's glow died down. The small chamber grew cold, so cold that Steve could see his very breath, or what he could exhale with the hand locked around his juggular.

'Well, this is it.' Steve closed his eyes as he struggled to take in even the slightest once of oxygen, he felt his body grow weary and lungs shrivel up. 'I'm sorry dad, sorry brother. I'm sorry I couldn't help mom and sis out a little more. I'm sorry Warren, Luna, and even the entire village. I had made a promise that I couldn't keep. Please, forgive me?' He mentally plead as his mind slowly blackened, the family photograph hung in his thoughts until it too- faded into darkness.

…

…

…

"Hhehehehehehe. Haa-ah!"

Loud childish laughter had filled his ears and the darkness that bounded him, the giggles definitely belong to a young kid. Confused, he partially opened his eyes back to the darkness of the cave chamber where he laid. At least the enclosure wasn't as near as dark as his mind had been, there was even a soft familiar glow that belonged to a torch.

"Hiya!"

"Ah!" Steve nearly jumped out of his skin from the sudden figure now before him. A young kid with short pale blonde hair and light blue eyes suddenly peered over top of the collapsed man while smiling happily and waving a hand.

This abrupt act made the miner's eyes widen and he quickly sat up with shock, the child moved back a little but didn't run. Steve first realized that he was alive, or so he hoped. The word 'How' was just unfathomable after being strangled to what 'should have been' his death. A small ache formed near the center of his neck and he rubbed at the soreness only to make it hurt even more, he was indeed alive. Wincing from the pain, he spun his head back as the child giggled again.

"Wakey wakey!" The boy shouted, giving the biggest smile he could muster while pulling at the man's arm. "You can't sleep while on duty Oreh!"

"Oreh?" Steve raised a brow, even more confused. "What duty? How did you get here? … Who are you?" He lightly stared in amazement and confusion, noticing the kid was wearing a navy blue ornamental cloak with a strange golden insignia sewn into the fabric.

"Can't you remember?" The child tilted his head with a befuddled expression before smiling again. "Silly Oreh, it's Conner- dum dum!" He pounded his tiny fist on the miner's head.

"Conner?" Steve rubbed the back of his head and glanced around, then in his current situation of being trapped in a cave finally sunk in and panic spread across his face. The morbid thought of Herobrine being nearby made his heart race. Steve shot up onto his feet with relatively no trouble at all, which was weird even though they still ached some but not like they did earlier. He looked all around him to make sure the place was safe before running over to his swords, he latched his sheath that carried this lucky blade onto his belt and kept the Iron one firm in hand.

The kid ran over to him. "Calm down, you look like your about to run away. You never run away. You never get scared either." He whined in disappointment.

Steve just couldn't make sense of any of this situation, he didn't even know where the kid came from or how he even got down here alive and so many other questions continued to litter his brain. He clutched the sides of his head and felt his teeth gnash together when he tried to focus on one inquiry after another. None of it made sense and he was about to scream until a small tug came from the end of his shirt.

"Oreh, you're scaring me." He said with a small frown, worry in his big blue eyes.

Steve stared down at the boy then kneeled down to him and carefully placed a hand over his head. "I'm sorry if I scared you. Look, I'm just confused alright? You don't have to worry okay?"

"Okay." Conner looked away, a frown still on his face.

"Look at me." Steve placed the iron blade next to his side then moved his hands to the younger one's shoulders. "I'm really confused right now and I need your help in answering a few questions. Can you do that for me?" He spoke more softly. "I really need your help." He plead.

Conner looked back at the miner and lightly nodded. "Okay, I'll help you Oreh."

"Thank you. And my name is Steve, not Ore… Orehey… or however you say it."

"But you are Oreh, my friend."

"Okay?" Steve bit his lip, convincing the kid to call him by his actual name might be a challenge so he decided to give up on that question. "Well can you tell me how you got down here?"

"I came down here."

Steve blinked in disbelief. "All by yourself?"

"No, you came with me. My daddy says I can go anywhere I want as long as you are with me." Conner smiled confidently as he rocked back and forth on his heels with his hands behind his back.

"But it's dangerous!" Steve stated with a serious look. "A place like this is not safe for any child, there's lava, mobs, and so many places where you can fall if you're not careful."

Conner stopped his swaying and gave a brave face with both hands coiled and raised in the air. "Not for you! You are the roughest, toughest, strongest person ever!" He happily replied, he then poking the man's chest. "You can stop any of those mean-ies!"

"Are you talking about monsters?"

"Of course Oreh, you aren't afraid of any of them badies. When they come, you beat em up or scare them away!"

Now Steve was even more confused than he had ever been, what the kid said still didn't make sense. "But- but… no I didn't, I came here alone."

"But you came with m-"

The boy quickly silenced as the space around him was filled with an eerie clattering sound, like the sound that would be made if two bones were struck together.

Steve's heart began to race again and Conner looked up at him with a worried expression again. "We need to get out of here okay? Do you … uh remember how you got down here?"

"Yes, but why leave? You can take em'. You must fight and show em who's boss! … Like you always do."

Steve began to visibly fret as the sounds grew louder. "Please, just show me the way you came down here through and I'll make sure to protect you, okay?"

The child nodded and tugged at the miner's hand. "This way!" The boy pointed out to the cave behind them and released his hold to run into the darkness.

"Hold on wait! I can't see without a torch!" Steve quickly grabbed his chest pack and quickly swung it over his shoulders along with the bag, he then reached for his blades and torch and fully stood up, he then began to sprint after the boy. "Conner wait up!"