Hero's Bane

by BlackDragon41

Steve discovers the land of his dreams, now he's plagued by a mirroring figure with the cursed name Herobrine, a white-eyed man with unimaginable power and a deep hatred for humanity. After coming face to face with this force of evil, he will uncover the dark history of Herobrine and strive to earn the madman's trust. All while also trying to survive and escape his wrath. CH92 up!

81. To Keep Fighting

Hero's Bane

Chapter 81: To Keep Fighting

A/N: Hello faithful readers and newcomers, hope all of you had a great Christmas, honika, quanza, or happy day, ect. I personally had a great Christmas in being surrounded by family and is blessed for it. I wanted to update this story on that day sort of as a present but was ultimately caught up in family festivities and the Minecraft update on th xbox. The horses are awesome and so is the redstone block along with the hopper and horse armor. Still haven't got an update yet to craft specific things or get name tags easily but will be hoping on the next update.

Anyway, I'm still planning on updating this story a third time in a row before I go back to Give Up The Fight, so expect chapter 82 soon... I hope. Vacation is over but I will try to squeeze some typing in. As for now, really and enjoy but be prepared for a big battle and possibly feels for the faint of heart.

…

Herobrine immediately opened his eyes when the white faded, he blinked from the strange vision he had and took notice that he was now on his knees with a strong headache in the fortress temple. He shook his pounding head with a sneer in trying to alleviate the pain, it didn't help. With a snort; the White-Eyed man removed his hands from the sides of his head and grabbed for his sword a few inches away from him. Once he raised it up he took notice of the crimson that coated the tip, a single drop slid down the blade length as he held it up. There were also small drops of red on the floor before him, they were very fresh considering the smell was heavy.

The sounds of shifting feet and light pained huffs had him shooting a glance out of the corner of his eye to see the miner holding his side with one hand and his iron sword in the other while slowly hobbling towards the well.

"No!" Herobrine shouted and quickly caught the miner's attention.

Steve took a quick look back but kept moving towards the water; he grimaced when he accidentally touched the new wound in his side, Herobrine had jabbed him with his diamond in their fight before freezing up and then falling to his knees strangely. Thankfully the wound wasn't deep, it still bled a little and stung though; especially when he touched it. Regardless of his new troubling injury; he still needed to make it to the well and stop the old hero and soon.

"Oh no you don't." Herobrine moved back onto his feet and charged at the miner with his sword out at his side ready to strike the mortal.

Steve spun around and brought up the iron blade to deflect the diamond that nearly reached the spot between his shoulder and neck, a loud clank filled their ears. "Why can't… you just give … m-me the chance?" He asked with his teeth gnashing from the heavy pressure he was holding back once again, it was now even harder with the fresh injury in his side.

"I will risk nothing. That god was here only a little while ago, he could just as easily return to answer you and put me down. I cannot stress it enough that you speaking to him will be my downfall. I will not allow you to gamble my freedom for a wasteful plea that may not even be answered. Why can't you just see that he has abandoned all of you? I know no reason for his return but I doubt he's back to check up on his pathetic people that he left so long ago." Herobrine countered through clenched teeth.

"Errrrr… Neither of us know. But still, neither of us can reach Ender either; that beast is the enemy here and I must do whatever I can to stop it! We have to stop it!" Steve pushed back and forced the powerful man back a step but kept holding the sword that was relentlessly pushing against his. "But if I have to fight through you to reach Notch, I will because that beast must be stopped before many more suffer a devastating fate. I will stop at nothing until I reach him; even if I must die to get Notch's attention, he just has to come back and do something. I refuse to believe that he has abandoned us, maybe letting fate fall where it may without interference is how he wanted everything to go. Maybe he still cares for us, for this world."

"You are a fool!" Herobrine moved forward with his sword to push the human back but Steve quickly retreated and allowed him to stumble forwards in falling for the trap that he first made to the miner. Sharp iron ran across his wielding arm and left a trail of blood across his bicep. He growled aloud and backed away a few steps to see the stinging cut that was made on him, bright light soon filled the gash and skin started to slowly form over.

The miner quickly lost his angry expression and showed a look of pity. "I'm sorry Herobrine."

"Don't apologize!" The hero snapped back and repositioned his sword in a fighting stance once again. "Your cuts with that blade are nothing to me, you cannot best me again mortal."

"Perhaps not, but maybe Notch has other plans?" The miner said with what sounded like confidence.

Herobrine felt something in him snap, the miner was so sure of himself that it annoyed him to the point that he couldn't stand it; especially since the mortal was on Notch's side and no longer his. In a fit of rage he gathered the strength and strode forward with his sword raised, Steve had backed away with his own weapon ready to counter his. That wasn't going to happen. Herobrine suddenly picked up his pace and vanished right before he reached the miner.

Steve blinked in surprise and looked around in panic; he didn't think Herobrine could still have that much power to teleport away with his strength steadily decreasing. The sound of a soft footstep from behind had him turning around to catch the sneak attack; only to find that Herobrine wasn't behind him. He shot a glance to his side before looking directly behind him. His eyes widened by the shadow of a man overshadowing his own with a massive one, that could only mean that Herobrine was higher up. Realizing this, Steve's blue eyes quickly shot to the well and then up to the top of one of the quartz columns. There he was; Herobrine was standing on the top; ready to jump down at him.

There was little time to react, by the time the miner caught sight of him he had lunged off of the white pillar and swung his arm out and brought his forearm to swiftly meet the miner's unguarded throat and send him to the ground by the force. The identical counterpart crashed to the floor headfirst with a pained yelp before having a small coughing fit to get air back into his aching throat. Herobrine only gazed down at him with an enraged look; it would be so easy to just drive his sword through the man's chest right now and yet it was difficult to like it had been before with the opportunity he was presented in the woods. The wound at the man's side was bleeding like it did for the man in brown in his vision just moments ago, only that it wasn't as severe nor as deep. The injury was in the same place and on the right side as it was for the being in his vision. Still, he couldn't help but think back on it when he observed the wound more closely with the miner at his feet. He didn't remember creating the wound but it was obviously him who had done it, no matter; hesitation would be his downfall if he continued to be so lenient. But still; how could he continue to be so merciful when so much was at stake?

Steve inhaled deeply a few times and finally looked up from the floor to see Herobrine shaking slightly; fighting the well's pressure and perhaps even restraining himself from killing him immediately, though that would be strange considering the old hero wanted him dead now. It would only be a matter of time before he convinces himself to make the killing strike; Steve wasn't going to wait for it to happen, it was fight or die and let his effort go to waste. There wasn't going to be any giving up though, not now.

The miner slowly rolled onto his side and continued to cough and hold his sore neck, it was more of an act than a pained display though he was still very sore; he needed to get the upper hand or just off of the ground and to do that he would have to make a unexpected move to avoid staying exposed too long and risk his death there. Noticing that Herobrine had yet to move Steve stopped coughing and shot a glance up him before quickly moving up into a crouch with his left leg out, he rammed his leg into Herobrine's ankles with as much force as he could muster and toppled the guy over.

Herobrine fell flat on the ground in shock by the miner's sudden attack, grounding his teeth he pushed himself back up quickly to see the miner scurrying up onto his heels and now backing towards the quartz structure with his sword raised and ready to defend himself. He did not expect to be tricked.

Steve began to back away slowly with caution, he was still several blocks away from the well and no longer grounded but he might have jus made the White-Eyed man more infuriated with him by that stunt.

"You will pay for that. I can be hesitant no more." Herobrine grumbled darkly and stepped back only to vanish completely in seconds.

Steve shot looks all around him again in trying to locate the immortal, of course he failed to find him. That was until he felt chills crawling down his spin, the temperature at his back had dropped a couple degrees and that was the telltale sign that Herobrine was right behind-

He didn't even get to turn around before a stinging sensation formed across his back, a cold blade bit at his flesh and glided along the skin just beneath his shoulders from one side to the other in a swift motion. The miner spun on his heels to face his attacker and brought his sword up to block the blade that cut him. It was no surprise that Herobrine was trying to force the sharp diamond on him, fortunately; he held it back.

"So I take it that you are going to try and actually kill me this time?" He said with his teeth clenching, Herobrine was still strong and making the struggle to hold the other blade back.

The old hero only deepened his sneer and applied more pressure, he was done with talking to this traitor.

It wasn't shocking that he didn't get a reply, he expected that much. "I can't believe it, I can't believe that you forget everything and remain a coward."

Those words were too much to ignore, he couldn't remain silent on that statement. "I am no coward!" He barked. "I have already given you the reason why you must die, I shouldn't have to repeat myself. There will be no surrendering to Notch!" In that instant he grabbed the sharp end of his sword and applied more force than the miner could take; only at the price of cutting his hand a little, he pushed the miner back and used his free hand to clamp around Steve's wielding wrist when he stumbled backwards. "Never." He held it tightly and prevented the iron sword from moving, the miner immediately tried to jerk away from the hold but was struggling from the powerful bind. "Now drop it and avoid a more painful death."

"No." The man growled and continuously jerked to get himself free, the hold on his wrist tightened up the more he pulled to the point that it was becoming painful. "Let go!" He shouted and grunted when he moved his empty hand up and tried to peel away at the fingers clamped down around the base of his hand. He was failing.

Herobrine added more pressure to the point that he felt the bone, with the constricting stress on the miner's wrist; he'd eventually lose feeling to his fingers.

Steve could feel his bones being slowly crushed and it was agonizing, he cried aloud and jerked away again in failure like an animal chained.

"All of your attempts will fail foolish mortal, surrender now or face an agonizing death."

"I- I can't! … I won't give up no matt-ter what. Till… the very- e-end I will keep fighting!" He grimaced.

Herobrine blinked from the familiar words then narrowed his eyes again. "Then I will end this the only way I know how. I will let you suffer."

Steve's own eyes widened when he saw Herobrine make a tighter grip on his blade; the man moved his sword up an in a piercing position right in front of his chest. He couldn't let it end that way so he balled his free hand into a fist and daringly brought it forward to land a punch to the side of Herobrine's face. He felt the tip of the sword spear his shirt by moving into it to make the strike but a cut would be worth it if only to defend himself and get free. Unfortunately, Herobrine didn't let go nor even move other than his face being forced to one side by the mortal's fist, he quickly shot a nasty look at the miner and took the blunt end of the sword and pelted him on the head with it. Steve cried out from the strike and cupped his temple where the bottom of the blade struck him.

The diamond was repositioned in the dead center of his upper chest cavity.

Feeling the sharp point resting against him again had his mind in a frenzy, he couldn't die here; the survival instinct kicked in and he immediately looked for an opening; a way out. His eyes landed on the immortal's unhealed wound, he balled up his hand again and rammed his fist right at the red soaked spot.

The powerful being wailed out and let the miner go only to back away a few steps with his hand now clutching the stinging injury, the wound was far too tender. It wasn't even healing yet the sensitivity to the slightest touch was already tough to take but a flat out blunt force hitting it intensified the pain to intolerable levels and that is what had him cringing and hissing. He never expected the strike even though he had been exposed with it the entire time. It throbbed when he applied pressure; in trying to alleviate the pain he made it worse and snarled loudly. The hero fell onto one knee and held his bloody hand over the injury without touching it again. He was tempted too but it would only cause more pain if he did, he wasn't used to this kind of pain for he hadn't felt it for centuries other than when he fell in battle to the miner for the first time. He looked down at the wound when he felt the warmth of his life fluid return to the surface of his skin and soak the fabric of his stained shirt, he was losing a lot of energy through blood loss; his precious healing blood was failing him. Now he almost regretted in letting the mortal attempt to kill him earlier because now Notch was getting the upper hand in this fight despite not actually being there to fight him himself.

The white gaze moved from the wound when he saw the tip of the miner's boot land before him, he looked up to see the man with his iron sword pointed right at him, but the mortal didn't thrust it forward or slide it across his chest.

It was the perfect opportunity; Herobrine was down on one knee and still shuddering gently from the pressure; the wound was what mostly had him incapacitated at the moment, it was the perfect chance to cut the old hero down and get to the shrine. He really didn't want to kill Herobrine though; he wasn't even sure if it was possible, but what he did know was that he wasn't going to be the killer in this battle. "I won't do it, but I will plea for you." Was all he said as he pulled the sword back to his side and walked away from the being and to the shrine.

"Stop." Herobrine kept his eyes only on the floor at his feet; watching the red pool starting to expand. He huffed outward with a quiet hiss following.

Steve ignored the command and made it back over to the well, he peered back into the water and then looked up towards the skylight. "Notch, I come here to speak, please; I need your help. If you are listening then please respond."

"Stop." Came Herobrine's command once again, it went on deaf ears. "Do you understand what you are doing? Don't you see that your god has nothing but resentment for me? I am constantly fighting the force he exerts, he will not help me but bring retribution."

"Notch, I know that you have not fully abandoned us. I've had a great deal of strife just trying to reach this place and I even took some pretty bad injuries just to call out to you, please respond. We need your help, a great beast beyond this world is destroying us; your people. We must reach it or we'll all die. I only want what's best for all of the innocent out there, I beg you to not turn away from us."

"Stop!" Herobrine said more loudly into the miner's mind, now with more agitation present in his tone.

"And Herobrine, he's here with me. He doesn't trust you and he's actually trying to stop me from speaking out but I beg on his behalf." Steve swallowed the hint of fear for Herobrine's wellbeing, he was afraid to have the man punished again but he couldn't leave the being out of his plea. The White-Eyed warrior was the only one strong enough to face any monster for mortals like him couldn't compare to such strength and ability. He closed his eyes for a brief moment and sighed. "Forgive him for he is blinded by hate that humans have created, that is one reason why he has brought death to us. And for what you did to him… I just do not understand your reason in incarcerating in a hostile world with his voice and mobility stripped from him." He shook his head slightly. "I just can't find a good reason for it but I cannot judge your reason for it is not my place, still."

"I said stop!" The immortal finally forced himself back onto his own two feet, although he struggled to stay standing with pain shooting throughout the area of his injury. "Silence!"

"I ask of you to absolve him of further punishment, he's become a tool of the beast's and kills mostly because he has no choice; he no longer seeks destruction of humanity even though they have done wrong to him. He is not an enemy." He spoke more loudly and waited quietly for a minute to receive a reply or even a sign that he had been heard, there was no response; just complete silence except of Herobrine's more labored breaths. "Are you there? How come you're not answering me?" He finished with a disappointed tone.

"Speak no more mortal." Herobrine said darkly while collecting the strength from his powerful sword. His vision was starting to become foggy and fuzzy, and it wasn't from blood loss. He had to stop Steve now or the god would surely bring down his wrath, especially now that he told the quiet creator that he was helping the End beast. There would be no pardon for one who is helping in destroying the creator's valued creations.

"Please Notch!?" He plead more loudly.

The Water. A voice called out within the miner's mind.

"A voice?" The miner blinked in surprise and looked around the towering room for the source of the voice but could find no one but an angry hero looking at him from behind. The man's eyes were steadily growing brighter, it was a bad sign. "Herobrine?" He called out the name with caution and fully turned around, he didn't like the growing intensity of the guy's eyes.

The water. Lead him to the spring.

"The water?" Steve gripped the side of his aching head and kept his fixed gaze on his duplicate several blocks away; Herobrine was struggling to remain standing, the pressure from Notch's shrine was taking it's toll on him; even with his near loss of self-control. This was a risky time to knock the ex-hero down and… … throw him into the water? A vision he could not quite comprehend forced it's way through his thoughts, like a voice was leading him to action. This wasn't Herobrine's voice though, it was a much different and normal sounding one. One that seemed very familiar, like he had heard it before and recently.

He must go. Must sink to the depths. … Trust me.

He blinked in surprise and silently questioned himself of such an act that could be beneficial him and be disastrous to Herobrine. That was all Steve could think of after those words of a human male voice called, all he could see over and over in his head was the White-Eyed man being thrown into the water and sinking into the infinite black but nothing at all afterwards. Again and again he could see himself dragging Herobrine over to the well before hoisting him up and pushing him into the massive pool to sink, this questioned his morality. He was positive that Herobrine couldn't die by drowning because the powerful; being said it himself; that people of the fortress tried to once in his trials and couldn't kill him that way. The only problem with forcing Herobrine into the well was the fact that he'd be thrown into the water of Notch's shrine, water that could possibly kill and hurt him or infinitely drown him in an imprisonment of some sort. There was no telling what that water could do to him and this put the miner in panic and doubt, he didn't want to actually do harm to the hero or get him permanently trapped.

Herobrine lifted his head and sneered darkly, just barely remaining in control of himself. "So, you want to throw me into the water? Forfeit my freedom and even my very existence to that damned creator? Throw me into his punishing hands to suffer what he has in store for someone like me?" Herobrine noticed that the miner was even more alarmed by his words with the sound of a silent gasp, he was now staring at the floor like he was trying to make a decision. "You cannot hide your thoughts from me mortal, I don't know what gives you the idea but I do have a pretty good guess. HE's giving you these… these ideas isn't he?!" Herobrine forced himself to stand up completely despite his body lightly rocking, he quickly fell onto his knee when he attempted to move a step back. He might have been facing a wounded man with strength no where compared to his; but with the shrine pulling him down a lot more than it was before as if the god was really there, the human had better odds and could likely pull off a victory. Steve had Notch on his side afterall, the god likely gave him strength while sapping his.

He used his diamond blade as a tool for balance to keep his body from fully hitting the floor, it was becoming very difficult to continuously fight the power that drained him of all the inhuman strength he had; it was even worse that white fog was obstructing his vision. It would only be a matter of time before the human could overpower him with the power of the creator at his disposal. This thought alone made his eye twitch in infuriation and the fluctuation of power had him moving back onto his feet, the sword was his last source of energy and the only thing keeping him from that pool. "I will not surrender! You hear me Notch!" Herobrine couldn't say the words aloud to the shrine; only to Steve who cringed by the loud outburst that intensified his headache. Herobrine immediately roared aloud and took a more steadfast position and stood with a better foothold.

"I will not fall!"

"Herobrine please?!" Steve spoke up with a pleading tone, hoping that Herobrine's threat or further actions would not bring about punishment from Notch. "I don't know why he wants you in the water but you have to."

"And why is that?" The being asked darkly. "To seal me away forever?!"

Steve looked away in uncertainty. "I don't know. … He wants me to trust him. This voice is Notch's… I just know it! He wants me to trust HIM."

"You have forgotten what trust was miner; this god of yours has nothing to give you in return for this 'trust', he's using you and will abandon you at the end of this. You saw what he did to me and what atrocities he allowed to befall me and Lionel in the past. He did nothing to stop me from claiming the lives of many innocents for generations after generations; including that of your brother and your father, nothing to prevent Ender from using them up until they were nothing. HE wants to gain only in what he wants, you are but a mere tool for him to use. Entertainment."

"You're wrong!" Steve coiled his fists and barked aloud. "I am not a tool like you, Notch has his reasons; and as his devote follower- I will do what I am asked of." Steve lowered his head and his narrowed eyes lightened. "Even if it's against in what I believe in, … he's the only one who can break this cycle and put an end to Ender and destruction to innocents." He said more softly despite how torn he felt between his connection to Herobrine and his connection to the creator.

"He doesn't need your help in stopping Ender, if he wanted to then he would have a long time ago himself, he would have even stopped me. This sudden appearance is all out of the need for amusement, he's gotten so bored that he wants to play around with foolish mortals like yourself. Because if he really is the creator then he wouldn't need mortal help now would he? Ask him yourself if you are so sure of his 'pure' intentions."

Steve swayed his head back in forth in disbelief. That voice he heard sounded very sincere, there was no way that the god was playing with him would he? He just couldn't muster up the courage to actually turn back around and ask the voice this, it would be disrespectful and show doubt in him. If that voice really was Notch's and asked to be trusted then he had to, Herobrine was trying to make him turn away from the creator; the only one who could stop everything with his power. The only question that really bugged him was why Notch hadn't stopped the torment a long time ago if he truly loved his creations. This notion gnawed at reason.

Please, put your trust in me. He must go to the water Steve, I will help.

The miner snapped out of his conflicted self created mind-war and blinked from the return of the voice of Notch. The creator must be hearing them, he even used his name and again asked for trust. The reasons why the god hadn't done anything about Ender or Herobrine over the years was not comprehendible; to do nothing about the deaths was not understood. Perhaps there was a reason beyond his knowledge, or just a reason that he hadn't thought up of just yet, maybe there was a reason for it all? He didn't have to understand it but he did need to trust this voice, especially if it belonged to his creator and creator of his world. Defiance would mean disowning in a way and he definitely didn't want to be disowned by his creator or otherwise he would be abandoned.

"I hear you Notch, if that is really you then help me with this and prove it. Give me victory but show mercy, this much I beg of you." He held onto his iron blade more securely

Herobrine ground his teeth and scowled deeply, it was hard to see the miner in the white haze slowly taking over but he heard what was said. "What did he tell you?" Herobrine snarled.

"He asked for my trust again, he knows who I am." Steve said blankly but held determination in his eyes. "I know what I must do."

"You damn foolish mortal. There will be no convincing you will there?…" He asked heatedly. "Then there will be no mercy whatsoever, you will die!" He then roared aloud and his eyes reached that madman brightness that indicated the mindless killer the miner once met. "Erif Fo Gnir!" Fire erupted from out of nowhere by the shout in the miner's head, long blazing hot flames circled the area around them and burned magically without a source to stay alight.

Steve looked around him in panic, he never thought that things would have escalated this far. He didn't know that Herobrine could still pull out this kind of power, he mentally hoped that Notch would help protect him. Thankfully, the flames were several blocks away from him and none of them were close to the well; he could still feel the heat coming from them though., the fire could be hot enough to singe him in seconds. He made a mental note not to go near the fire, besides, the flames looked more like a small wall to keep him from escaping though he had no intention to.

There was no time to prepare when he noticed that Herobrine was no longer in his place, that was until the man suddenly appeared before him and landed a strong punch to the side of his face; sending him flying backwards from the sheer force. Herobrine then vanished and Steve was suddenly kicked in the back and stumbling forwards from the strike, from there he stumbled blindly in pain with his hands covering his pained cheek until a hand grabbed him by the arm and slung him around until he was released and sent smacking into one of the shrine's pillars. The miner cried out from the damage done to his spine and crashed on the floor with his breath knocked out of him yet again.

The miner slowly lifted his head to see those bright piercing stars in Herobrine's head glaring right at him from a few blocks away, the man held his sword firmly but remained still awkwardly. "Damn it Brine." Steve cursed as he pushed himself off of the floor and onto his hands and knees, adrenaline was the only thing keeping the real pain back; he could still feel the arrowheads in his flesh move from the strikes he took. He could also feel a light sting from the cut Herobrine made across his back; it stung just a little more after colliding with the quartz column, he could only imagine what he's going to feel like when the battle is over. He rose a hand up and watched it shake, his heart was still rapidly pounding and he still felt like he had the strength to move. He just wasn't sure when he'd run out of adrenaline, hopefully he'd have Herobrine in the well by then.

Steve grabbed a hold of the quartz barrier and used it to help himself stand up, he was feeing lightheaded from the punch and the collision, how was the creator going to help him he thought silently to himself. He was already feeling fatigued from the time him and Herobrine had been fighting with their swords; all the way up to this point of being significantly slower to avoid attacks. "Notch, help." He asked quietly and reached down to grab his iron sword, he then looked back to the old hero to see the powerful man now shaking more.

"You can't stop me Herobrine, this is for the innocent's sake. Notch will understand… or I will try and find a way to make him understand the reasons for your actions. Just stand down. I don't want to keep fighting."

The immortal twitched his head and nearly fell onto one knee; the being scowled and fought the force trying to drag him down, he narrowed his eyes and stood back up and howled with his sword producing the white aura.

Steve looked on with horror, that white mist around the blade meant only one thing; Herobrine was going to try and take his soul. Steve gnashed his teeth and took a step back with his sword ready; things couldn't have gotten worse, if he got fatally struck with the diamond blade then it would be the end of him. "Would you really go that far? Am I not your friend anymore?" Steve asked with a distraught expression. Herobrine however; ignored him and kept the same feral look like a wolf on the hunt for a defenseless sheep, he had a look of hunger on his face. "No." He whispered and shook his head while taking steps back to put distance between them. He coiled his fist and narrowed his eyes, he was not alone in this fight and he had to remember that. He stopped moving once he bumped into the quartz, he momentarily glanced back to see the pristine water only an arm's length away. "The water?"

The miner looked back to notice that Herobrine had vanished once again. Steve held his breath in alarm, not quite expecting what direction the ex-hero would come from. All it would take is a fatal strike and it'd all be over.

Prepare to block. Above.

"Huh?" Steve looked up and instantly rose of the iron and held it with both hands when he saw a flash of cyan flying at him. He held steadfast and prepared for the worst, he wasn't prepared however; for the outcome of blocking such a powerful strike. The diamond blade came flying down at him and as soon as it reached the iron it broke right through and made the blade shatter from the impact, the enchanted sword then found it's way right into the spot on the right side of the miner; between the neck and shoulder. Steve barely moved from his place; he only flinched when the sword shattered his iron into several long pieces and sunk into his flesh, it went deep until it struck bone.

He didn't feel the cut at first; the blade was so sharp that his flesh remained intact except for where the sword passed through, only after the embedding of the diamond did he feel a molten sensation building up from the sudden split of muscles. The blade had cut through his collarbone, it only went a few inches deeper than that; just deep enough to render his arm immobile from the heavy splitting pain and the severing of a major tendon. The adrenaline flow must have somehow increased, Steve felt the tremendous growing ache but it wasn't as near as bad because he was still feeling the effects of adrenaline canceling out most of the ache for the time being. His arm however was mostly numbed; he could at least still feel his fingers twitch, yet the flow of warmth down his chest was not a pleasant thought. It was going to hurt real bad when the adrenaline wears off, if he lived long enough of course. He let the broken blade's hilt slip out of his fingers and forced his injured arm up to weakly clamp onto the blade, he moved he free arm up to take a more stronger hold of the sharp end of the sword and hold firmly to prevent it from slicing all the way through.

He gazed at Herobrine with more calmer eyes when the man holding the sword lost his enraged expression to replace it with shock, his eyes were no longer a blinding white and nor was the sword aura. There was no cause for alarm now, he knew hesitance and regret in those blank eyes when he saw them.

"Y-you must be getting softer… Brine." Steve started with a shaky pained tone and a small smile. "You didn't last- so long in that cr-crazed state, I thought you… you said that you were g-going to kill me-? Got-gotta try harder than… than that."

Herobrine didn't know what he had just done, it was obvious that he had injured the miner to a potentially fatal point but he hesitated and did not directly kill the man like he was supposed to. He couldn't do it, as soon as he succeeded in breaking the man's defenses he stopped. Why he couldn't do it was a question beyond him, the mortal was a traitor and was determined to cause his downfall. Herobrine's eyes widened when the miner tightened his hold on the sharp sword. "What are you doing?"

"What I am trusted with doing." He replied with his faint smile, it but all disappeared when the hero tried to pull his sword out of the miner's grasp only to fail as the man's hand found their way to the hero's wrist and clenched on. "Forgive me for this Hero-brine." He suddenly sneered and held tightly. Then in one forceful motion he swung Herobrine to the side so that the surprised being smacked into the cracked quartz column to paralyze the him for a few good seconds.

In a slight daze Herobrine stumbled about until he was jerked forward away from the decorative pillar, then he felt himself being yanked away from one side with the miner still holding his wrist and carelessly moving him around with the sword still buried in his collarbone.

Steve had the White-Eyed man right before the well, it was now or never; taking even a little time to prepare would give the powerful man a chance at a quick recovery. So Steve yanked the duplicate back towards the short well barrier and used as much strength as he could to force the old hero over the barrier and into the water with one big heave with his uninjured arm. The man went in with a loud splash following his unexpected plunge, several bubbles rose to the surface but after that; none.

The miner cringed from the movement he just made, moving with the sword still resting inside him only made the pain grow despite the adrenaline. He grunted when he reached for the blade, he snorted aloud and then yanked it out and threw it to the floor before it could corrupt his mind with it's wielding effect. He wailed aloud when he did and stumbled right into the quartz to keep him stabled on his own two feet; it was like that throw was all the power he had left in him used in one go. Now he felt depleted of energy and the wounds started to hurt, crimson flowed from the deep gash that was made and stained his dirty shirt even more.

Despite the growing tenderness and loss of energy; he forced himself to look into the pool to see Herobrine. His eyes widened when he couldn't see a thing; all he saw was deep blue that faded into black fast. Panic filled him when he searched to find nothing in the infinite black. "What have I done … Notch?"

…

Herobrine passed through water and slowly sank downwards with trails of crimson being left behind in the wake of his unhealed wound, the water was but a thin layer oddly; he then sunk into a heavy black substance. It was strange, feeling as though he was sinking in thick fluid but without the suffocating effect as water; he felt nearly weightless as he descended at an agonizingly slow rate to a seemingly dark bottomless pit. The pressure that he felt upon in entering the tower of the shrine was now much more stronger and this energy was crushing his own like a human miner in a cave-in with tons of heavy stone coming down on them, he was now just too exhausted and weary to fight back anymore. He had lost and Notch had won, there was no telling what would become of him now. He also wondered how long the miner would live after taking such a grave wound, he still felt regret for causing it though he had to prevent the inevitable. Now he had been bested by the Steve; the same human again and by his own weakness that is hesitation. The miner would surely die within a matter of hours, guilt was greatly present with this thought.

Only the light above from the skylight of the fortress could be seen, that light continued to shrink as he plummeted further into the depths; possibly the last light he'd ever see. His eyes threatened to close, he fought back a strange and yet familiar feeling that he used on the miner a few times; a kind of power that would force sleep. But the odd part of this feeling was the fact that it was him succumbing to it, a deep sleep that could go on endlessly should the creator allow it. Maybe even a sleep of death, the kind he used on a few mortals himself. He was practically giving into it by not resisting, he was allowing himself to be punished.

Realizing this, Herobrine made a last ditch effort to fight the pressure around him by swinging his fists out and force it away with what power he had left; he also attempted to kick his way free and make for the surface of the well. It had all been for nothing unfortunately, the more he moved in the thick air the more weaker he became. He could only flail about for a few seconds more before his limbs grew weary, all he did was waste away the remaining strength he had.

-I cannot fail, I will not… fall to… you.- Herobrine struggled keeping his eyes open, they began to fail him and closed momentarily before opening back up in a rush. It was becoming too hard to fight, the dark void was taking control and sapping him of strength; including his resolve. His limbs soon became numb and he ceased his flailing completely, there was no chance for escape anymore; he had but no choice to yield. Herobrine closed his heavy eyelids and took deep breaths, the need for sleep could be denied no more; his body was tired of fighting and he had no energy left. -Damn- … you N-Notch. So this… this is how… … it ends?- Herobrine took a shallow gulp of air and finally gave up. -I- I concede.- He finished before falling into a deep slumber.

…

"It's been a long time… brother." A voice from the depths of the void surrounded the sleeping form; the man no longer descended deeper down but remained alone while gently hovering in the infinite black.

"You've been here before Herobrine, I am sure that you may have had the feeling that it was familiar in some way. Well that is because you have been here in the void, a few of times as a matter of fact. Each time was of my doing and I am sorry for taking such measures as to deplete your energy and force you into rest, each time that I had to detain you I had to bring you here for everyone's sake; even your own.

It's practically all my fault that you were sent here each time things became critical, you may not have remembered yet; but I have never forgotten my terrible mistakes and my reasons for sealing you in here. In trying to fix you; I destroyed you, ruined your mind by shattering it in my hasty attempts. Now you struggle for self-control and endure painful migraines that old memories bring when trying to resurface, memories that had to be pushed away and buried for your own safety. Still, I ruined you. I'm some kind of brother aren't I?" The male voice asked with a sarcastic tone with hinted guilt.

"I just- just wanted so much to make you forget our horrible encounters, to cast out those points in time that stole you away from our nearly inseparable bond. I created that strong bond and severed it, not once and not twice; but three times. Three times I tried to fix everything but ultimately couldn't, you were just too complex and had an ability like no other; not even the kind that I nor my friends have. You just always kept remembering. Jeb and everybody else warned me of the big mistake I was making in trying to keep you and I didn't listen to them, I only made everything worse each time. They wanted you gone or sealed away forever for the destruction you caused; but not me. I just couldn't give up on you then and I still hesitate even now when only I have the power to remove you permanently.

You truly hated me for what I did and for what I created, it was all just a lie; even to myself. That was perhaps my biggest mistake wasn't it? All I did was cause us both pain, made your hate for me so strong that you'd do anything to try to make me feel even more anguish. I deserved that Herobrine, I caused you to suffer so much from a lie and it drove you mad when I refused to satisfy your unbelievable demands in the presence of truth.

… …

Hmm? Looks like your friend hasn't given up on you either, your worst enemy and yet; only living friend. He really is a good a guy, it's hard to believe that you have hesitated to kill him again and when you felt threatened the most. You took his life once… a very long time ago in retaliation to me and the jealousy you had of him for being the greatest creation while you were more of his- shadow. Now the one who once feared you most is no longer afraid of you, your fearful influence barely gets to him anymore. He's trying to do anything he can to save your life despite the people you killed closest to him, I couldn't have hoped for anything better of him. He was destined afterall to determine your fate, either to end it or spare it, he was given this right after you killed him. I was honestly surprised with his choice, when he was put back into the cycle he lost a lot of his purity in being born and raised in the corruptible pool that is humanity today. At least his conscious has remained intact in his return, it's nearly the same that he had when he was the first living creation.

I needed him back then to test my new world and prove that my creations were ready to thrive and survive, ready to live a harsh life in preparation for a better one here in my domain so long as they remain my loyal; to help fill the emptiness that is my infinite world. I need him once more though. One final time, he won't be returning from it unfortunately. But I hope that you will at least remember his actions when you finally remember your distant past; to not think of him as someone you were based off of; but as an honorable friend. Perhaps even brother?

I know that you used to hate your reason for being and for the fact that you were meant for inconvenience, but… even for what you are; for whatever purpose you serve now, your position in my eyes has not once ever changed. Not even after years of torment and destruction to my people. No matter what you have done; you are still and will always be my brother."

The voice made a soft but sad chuckle.

"Heh, it's kind of sad really. You never were- but have been my brother for a very long time now, what a contradiction huh? Not of the same blood but had once believed we were despite it; to a degree that we were under the false illusion that it was so. Delusional even. That was my fault, and a pleasant mistake until it went sour. It was my second greatest error, yet I do not regret it. Those fond times were worth it, your happiness; well worth it till the bitter end. You knew no such joy until we walked together as brothers, it's a shame it couldn't have lasted. Our ties now are severed, I do miss those days when they weren't Herobrine. And though our old ties lie in shreds; my tethered ends still long for you wellbeing and security, you are still my brother in my eyes. Therefore; I will always want your protection and contentment; like I once had in those days of old and still wish for.

However; if you stay on the path of destruction then I'll have but no choice but to put you to rest for the final time, just like you've once wanted. Please don't force my hand brother for I don't want to do that to you, I fear that in destroying you; I will destroy a part of myself. Life will continue on regardless of what I have to do in the future, just don't become a regretful memory. I beg of you.

You will hear and remember these words, perhaps not all of it yet; but in due time. Just like you always have with anything I've ever told you and had made you forget. It's my sincerest apology should I never see you again or should I destroy you for the sake of my creations of this world, this may be the only opportunity to do so if you refuse the miner's need for help. Know that I am deeply sorry… for everything." The voice let out a long and deep sigh. "It'd truly be a shame to have fix everything my way and have do it alone. I know my options and they are inflexible for one in my position; even I would come out suffering from losses. It would be a great burden of the heart to destroy the things that I've created and the one being that I didn't.

Before I go Herobrine I will do what I can to help you and Steve, only you have the potential to face the dragon and withstand it's devastating powers. Steve will not survive a direct attack of it's mighty and deadly force of corrosion, but you will. All you need is a little boost and a way to the End, that I know I can supply. This support should at least to try and make up for the wrongs I've made though I know that all that all I have done cannot be fully forgiven. Why even your drive to kill me must be strong, it's sad that you still don't remember the real reason why you started hating me to begin with. … … With that aside for now… at least accept this power and use it effectively. But for the time being; sleep, rest well. Prepare yourself for a long and daunting battle; whether it be Ender later or ultimately… me shortly. … It's your choice and yours alone.

Goodbye… brother."

…

A bright bluish white light began to glow from the deepest depths of the void, it intensified with each passing second and shrouded Herobrine in intense radiance. He still remained still and quiet as the light consumed him.

Steve remained on his knees before the well, he had thrown Herobrine in as the voice that he forced himself to believe was Notch's; leading him to. Well he did it and now he was struggling with the notion that he might just have got the White-Eyed man either killed or trapped away forever, Herobrine did disappear out of sight once he had sunken far enough into the deep abyss. It had been several long minutes and much pleading to the shrine for Herobrine's wellbeing in defending the powerful man's actions to Notch's people and he had yet to be given a response. The voice had not spoken to him since, this made him wonder if he had made the right decision. So far it was looking as though he had just betrayed the old hero, someone who was undeserving of such punishments such as death and captivity in a desolate world; he had been wrongfully punished once and now was likely being punished again. Plus, Herobrine was a mental wreck; this had to also count for some reprieve.

"Please Notch, this just can't be it. He doesn't deserve this. Is this what you've wanted all along from me? To betray him?" The miner growled quietly to himself while keeping his eyes locked onto the floor before him; his eyes remained on the diamond ore at his knees. The uncut precious ores however; did little to remove the anxiety building up, he might of just made a catastrophic mistake. "Herobrine should be the least of your worries right now, Ender is- … There are souls are at stake!" He grimaced and sealed his eyes shut for a brief moment, trying to keep calm and remember who he was talking to. The pain didn't help his situation either.

Grabbing a hold of his shoulder; he held tightly in attempts to dull out the growing tenderness and hissed from his mistake of slightly touching the surface of the wound.

The pain was only one thing to worry about, there were more pressing matters to focus on and it was difficult to but he needed to keep his mind off of his sickening injury. He was going to have to heal before he could find and fight the beast anyways and he apparently was going to have to do it alone.

He definitely didn't want to fight the beast by himself; let alone find some method on his own to reach the lord of the End. Herobrine was the only one whom Steve could see having any kind of power as to finding a way into the end realm other than Notch. How else was he to put a stop to the destruction of innocent souls? Notch could help, he hadn't forgot about his talk with the traveler and the voice he heard minutes ago; the two may have strangely sounded the same but only one voice had been reassuring and it wasn't Notch's. The only problem he had with the Minecraftian creator now was not hearing his voice anymore. The god hadn't said anything for a while now and Steve was starting to have his doubts in seeing Herobrine again. He wondered if the real vile monster could find a new method of collecting human essences and using them up. This sickened him. "Have I not plead enough? Just please… answer me Notch, I can't do this alone." Steve let his head hang low, his frustration must have disappointed the creator and now he was being denied of answers and maybe even help.

His blue eyes began to shut in defeat; he couldn't get answers nor even a sign, it was time to just give up and manage things alone. But before his eyes had shut all the way; a light bluish glow painted the floor in pale shades, even the diamonds reflected the soft glow. Seeing the strange luminosity, Steve lifted his head in surprise and his eyes widened when they landed on the surface of the water in the well. He immediately rose to feet when the ground began a soft tremble; as if some force was a work and was causing the ground to shift by the very presence of power. The miner quickly stabled himself when the fortress shook a little more strongly, the rumble wasn't enough to knock him off of his heels but it was good enough to make his bones rattle by the quake.

As soon as the shifting began it had ended. The light of the pool brightened tenfold and Steve bravely moved towards it in wonder and in hope, his eyes stung from staring into the light for so long and so he narrowed them. The light was very intense and growing brighter so he shielded his face with his forearm and proceeded to the well until he bumped into the rim. He made a slow attempt to peek into the pool until a huge beam of bluish-white shot out of it like a beacon, the bright beam shot right up into the center of the tower and out of the skylight and into the clouds. He stumbled back with a yelp and fell to the floor from shock, once he hit the cold floor he leaned back up with grimace for stretching his wound just to feel tiny droplets of water pattering against his face to distract him from the throbbing. Using one arm to keep himself propped up and then leaned forward into a sitting position; he then used his less-injured one to wipe the misting water out of his eyes, he blinked once he removed the back of his hand from his face.

The beacon of light faded out shortly after piercing the sky; dimming out and letting the shadow of the ceiling darken up the place just a little. The light was no longer coming from the well, the water was now back to it's near-pristine blue or so the miner could tell from his position. Herobrine's blood had tainted the water's beautiful blue and made it a darker tint with red streams here and there.

Steve grunted when he pushed himself up from the floor, he then stood up and waited for anything else so miraculous happen. But nothing happened, or so it didn't at first. The water looked undisturbed and as calm as he first found it, again Steve made a move towards the well; still unclear as to what had even happened. He stopped midway as something broke the surface of the pool and lightly floated, an unmoving body was now faintly bobbing in the center of the well face down. The miner gaped for a short second before running back to the rim of the quartz structure, he stared for a moment in disbelief. His eyes did not deceive him, in the center of the watering hole was a man that was face down in the water but those unmistakable clothes were obviously like his own and belonged to his double.

"Herobrine?" Steve immediately called but he received no response to the still form. It was hard to believe but the White-Eyed man was right there. Alive? He did not know. The miner panicked a bit, he needed to reach Herobrine and pull the man out of the water; he needed to know if his friend was even still alive. Blue eyes immediately darted back to the water, the well looked as deep and as frightfully ominous as it did when he first peered through the surface. It was still deep looking, he didn't know if he should even touch the stuff but he had to or else he wouldn't be able to get the old hero out of it.

With cautious curiosity; Steve gently tapped the surface of the water with an expression of repulse in the case that it would harm him in some way but to his surprise it did nothing. It felt just like water, cool and wet obviously. He tapped it once more then pressed his hand into for further assurance; again nothing happened to him. Now feeling confident that he'd be okay; Steve carefully climbed up onto the bright quartz and dove in with haste, he immediately shot up towards the surface with a surprising gasp. It was the most strangest feeling he ever felt, so alien and yet known. The water's surface was only about the full length of his arm, below it however; was something like water but completely dry and thick. It wasn't as cold as the water he thought he dived into but it had the same volume and was clearly a different substance. In that stuff it was warm and he could breathe, he found that out by gasping in the stuff when he found out that it wasn't what he thought it was. He was expecting for something to fill his lungs once he passed through the film of fluid but nothing happened but gently floating through an empty space of nothing but an atmosphere of black.

Even now the lower half of his body was in a fluid-like substance but it wasn't water. Shaking off the bizarre discovery; Steve then stroked his left arm through the water and kicked his legs to get him moving. He slowly swam for Herobrine's body and he felt his wound stinging badly as he moved and the twinge grew in intensity with every stroke; even the other cuts and gashes he had started to burn with a great intensity. It was tremendously hard to ignore the pain now; it was doubled despite the cool feeling of water that usually made cuts feel slightly soothed.

The miner sloshed around in the water while trying to stay afloat, every open cut hurt and burned. Moving his injured arm in his flailing made it hurt more than all of the other gashes hurt all combined. He winced when his right injured arm bumped into something solid. Steve forced his eyes open and looked at what he had hit, Herobrine was right there; within reach and in need of saving. Now with more resolve; Steve moved closer despite the painful movements and grabbed a hold of him quickly, he held onto the being's shirt and tugged him along as he used his good arm to swim back to the quartz rim he had leapt off of. Once he made it to the edge, he grabbed a hold of the rim and hauled himself up out of the well before reaching back and grabbing a hold of the powerful man's arm, he lugged the unconscious form out of the water and carefully dragged him across the floor until they were several blocks away from the pool. A large streak of water and darkened crimson coated the ground and painted it a deeper color than the partially moist spaces around it.

With a deep breath Steve finally came to a stop and panted from his strenuous efforts, he had gotten the man away from the water and was now moving down onto his knees to survey his duplicate. His severe wound can come later. A deep sigh of relief escaped his lips when he saw the man's chest subtly move up in down; indicating breath, life. "Thank you Notch." Steve said with a bow of his head and a contented smile on his face.

…

A/N: And this is where I give the readers the right to slap me. I can only imagine what is swimming in your heads after reading this. Reviewing could be a way to show me your thoughts. I apologize for such a faulty battle. Like ten or so chapters ago I had the most greatest battle scene between the two and it left me. I actually got to the point from a recent writer's block to just shorten the Fight but I knew I couldn't cut corners, it would be unfair to my readers, hopefully this is satisfactory enough. Happy New Years if I don't post again by then.