Hero's Bane

Chapter 86: Will Feel Again

(title subject to change, place holder)

A/N: I apologize to everyone who reads this. I started this story almost a decade ago and had let it collect dust for years over a few reasons(oddly enough I never stopped playing Minecraft), probably making a lot of people wonder if it was discontinued or dead. Making people sad or frustrated. I read nearly 1000 reviews back in late March through early April, you wanted this story continued and so shall it be! Thank Turbo Tax and this guy- GabeItch01010

More information of my hiatus and return on my profile. I am still in the process of editing and will continue editing on 5/10/2022 continuing with Chapter 63. I edit 1-3 chapters every night and had got too excited to post this chapter instead of waiting to finish edits. Sorry about that.

Thank you for everyone who has stuck to this story and had enjoyed over the years, I hope I can finish it off with a bang like it deserves and give you guys a great read. Ngl, it was probably the best to wait until now to continue the story as the original planned ending arch would have been pretty boring and bland in comparison to what I have in mind now. Also Hero's Might is canceled as I will not have the time to write it like when I started HB, but more information of that on my Profile.

Enjoy!

Steve lightly shuddered with the biting chill of the cold darkness nipping at the parts of his exposed upper torso, his eyes were wide open and he looked around frantically; his gaze darting to his left and then his right while taking slow steps backwards. He of course, saw nothing but the dark interior of the empty room in which he stood; only the darker forms of a few stone columns in the large open space were actually visible as for nothing else was. Steve did not like this at all, he was even wondering if stumbling around in the dark was going to do him any good. What kind of training was this even for? He wondered.

That feeling of being watched had him on edge; Herobrine's influential presence had him at an unease state, he wasn't afraid of the white-eyed man as he once was; especially since the guy was once so powerful in the aspect of fear as far as he had learned from Notch. Steve wondered how Herobrine even lost most of such a powerful feature when he was created with a kind of terror that no one would dare approach him, he still had it to a certain degree obviously; as the atmosphere around him was turning colder by the minute and was heavily loaded with superior authority of the negative sort.

Like an invisible aura; this energy in the air had a rather controlling effect that made him feel very vulnerable, like prey and at the mercy of a ravenous predator eyeing him and deciding his fate; almost as if he was in the presence of a being far- far greater than him. It was sort of true considering Herobrine was pretty much like Notch in a sense and had power that no mortal possessed, but still; this same authoritative being was his friend now and he knew that Herobrine wouldn't actually hurt him enough to kill him.

At least this Herobrine he knew in this day and age wasn't as frightening, although with his tempers and loss of control episodes; he was one to be weary of at all times. Well it was something to consider anyway, it was unfortunate that this hero was so warped by betrayal and loss that he became so cruel and ruthless. Even worse, it was how he was intended to be upon creation; merciless, chaotic, contemptible, violent, and truly vile.

Herobrine didn't get a choice in the matter, he didn't choose his reason to be. He had been made inherently evil with the goal to kill and destroy, never knowing what is was like to be kind, merciful, trusting, friendly, or reasonable until he had been taught such things.

He could return to his old ways unless something was done about the beast, Steve was determined to see the ancient being truly free with his own will.

Herobrine stood upside-down on the ceiling and gazed down at the mortal twin of his far below; stumbling about in the dark while looking around with fright and anxiousness, obviously not trying hard enough to withstand the pressure of power and locate the source. It annoyed him how Steve was relying so much on only one sense to find him, only the sense of sight wasn't going to do him any good in the cover of near pitch black.

Herobrine huffed silently and crossed his arms in disappointment. They have wasted precious time for nearly an hour now; his patience was beginning to wear thin, the mortal still has yet to grasp the reason for the lesson and Herobrine himself was going to have wake him up and make him realize the repeated mistake before his impatience pushes him towards dangerous aggression.

The human kicked a pebble by accident and the sudden sounds had him in a panic-like state, eyes completely wide and teeth gritted.

Really, could a 'mining' mortal not have his wits about him in a dark place with no sight? This human needed to always be on edge against such powerful entities, especially for the black beast he'd face soon. Ender lived in a dark and cold desolate realm; skies as dark as the deepest caverns found in the world, so cold and devoid of any real life.

He remembered well of what the lord of the End had said about his own prison; is near the polar opposite of the Nether, as the world of fire was extremely hot and lava oceans lit up every surface it could reach. The End as Ender had put it; was no better but with less suffering of the physical kind, the quietness though was a torture of a different type. It was no wonder why the powerful creature wanted revenge like him, he was driven to it by madness in being trapped in a world of perpetual and deafening silence; every hour and every single minute… utter soundlessness in the bitter cold realm.

The sounds of the Nether were never ending with the crackling of fire, even the sounds of the mobs became so irritable; they both suffered and both craved their own forms of justice. But now he was torn, he was free of his torment and began to slowly reconnect to his humanity through the miner; to the kind he despised so much. Notch and his creation of the mortal kind deserved to suffer forever, but now he couldn't find that impulse to kill that used to invigorate his being. It was now but a stale taste in his mouth, especially when it was the miner's blood spilling.

Every human, every victim he had in his grasp nowadays… all he could see in their terror filled eyes was that miner; that look of pure dread and fear was present but with not without a look of reproach and dolorousness that both Steve and Lionel had. He hated this new weakness, but was glad of it in a strange way; it stayed his hand from killing the miner that had done nothing but try to help and sacrifice for him time and time again. Pity… such a sentiment to truly despise; was now well known to him, it was one of a few things that kept his only living friend alive.

Steve felt a chill run up his spine and quickly spun around as if I was instinct; only he didn't see anything there. "Herobrine?" He nervously called out.

The white-eyed man on the ceiling sighed softly and flashed away from his spot and reappeared right behind the miner, he only lightly shook his head at the disappointment that the mortal was already, the limited time of training had only just begun. He swiftly leapt away and landed softly a few feet away when the miner had turned his head far enough to see him, he of course was not spotted as he kept the bright glow of his eyes so dim that no light shone in them. Herobrine continued to let his power fluctuate from his body instead of containing it, hoping to give the human a better chance at detecting his location; it was surprising that he had the energy to do so after it had been recently drained. No matter where the energy came from, he wasn't going to complain.

Flaunting his influence was something he once did to his victims during his hunt, he learned to contain his power though for surprise attacks; but ultimately for the humans who once joined him. It was never easy, but he learned to stay composed through Lionel when socializing with the mortals of the past. Hiding his power now though was pointless other than for game, but he did it for the miner's sake; except for this specific case. The man was too focused on sight that he can't even pinpoint the direction in which power flowed, the miner should be able to seeing as many victims of his past had the innate sense of detecting him; Steve had noticed his presence before and knew that he was right behind him in their first encounter.

Herobrine was toying with the guy for being so fatuous, that was when he saw this mortal like he would with any other; this human knew he was there but now there was no 'focus' of the survival kind. Steve was once on his toes and focusing really well in order to make the right moves to live just a couple weeks ago, now he was getting too comfortable. Perhaps the man needed a little reminder of his life in very real peril? Herobrine had just the idea; but he'd wait and get to work on that after the human gets the whole idea of the exercise.

Steve nearly lost his footing in his search and made a pained yelp from stretching his healing wounds in his close fall, he stopped and wrapped his arm over the deep gash of his collar bone and winced from the stinging sensation; the tenderness there was by far the greatest still. Healing with Herobrine's powerful blood still made the aches agonizing, especially in that spot; he just couldn't heal fast enough. Time of battle preparation was flying away and likely Herobrine's patience too, he wasn't ready to face the beast and he feared that he might not be ready when the time comes. He still didn't know how he was even going to get to the dragon's realm yet, nor if he'd be strong enough with wounds healing this slowly.

Steve let out a soft sigh.

It makes sense to heal slow, he did after all; survive a very fatal stroke and was still breathing. Make that twice he survived such graven wounds with the blood of a powerful super being keeping him stable and cells working fast enough to prevent his body from giving in to the damages. He was fortunate enough to still be alive, he was so close to death but got the quick exposure to the life-saving fluid; and unintentionally at that. The hero was his killer and savior. What a contradicting thing he thought with mild amusement.

Getting annoyed by the miner's lack of effort; Herobrine made a short silent stride towards the man. They weren't getting anywhere at this rate, the miner was not focused at all. Oh, but he will now.

Steve suddenly froze up when another cold chill came at his back and he remained still as the hairs on the back of his neck stood on end as if someone was standing right behind him, it was almost instant but he heard the steps coming at him.

"If I were Ender, you would be dead already." Herobrine whispered into the man's thoughts and instantly vanished into a cloud of dust as he teleported away.

"Herobrine?" Steve made a swift spin on his heels and cringed from accidentally swinging his injured arm a bit, he strained his eyes to find the white ones but saw nothing.

"I thought you would have known by now. It's a bitter disappointment that you have yet to find me. It's been over an hour at this point, when will you learn the point of this lesson?"

Steve heard the voice in his head with light footsteps come at his side, but again spotted nothing when he turned to see what was causing the steps. The voice only resounded in low tones as if he was being tricked or toyed with, the footsteps circled him slowly while he only looked for the light that would come from the powerful man's eyes. He still could not see the obvious sign of him, it was as if Herobrine either had dimmed the light of his eyes or even had them shut for all he knew. Regardless, Steve was getting tired of staggering around in the dark trying to find the guy; he could be resting up or exploring the castle more, or even training another way than wasting time doing nothing but moving about like he was blindfolded.

"What is the point of this lesson? You're avoiding me and I have to find-sense you? How can I even do that?"

"You cannot rely on just one of your senses Steve, it could prove to be-" Herobrine let more of his energy flow and chill the room temperature low enough to see the mortal's breath as he circumnavigated him. "Fatal." He finally finished by making a light shove on Steve's back and send him stumbling a few steps forward before disappearing again to avoid being found.

Steve made a pained 'oof' as he staggered forward a bit before swinging his head back quick to find his target, again he found nothing but blackness.

"What good will eyesight do you here miner? It will only hinder you and shatter your attentiveness to your surroundings; your enemies. You must have mined plenty of times in your life already and have not one of those times did you run out of torchlight? How did you ever survive on your own?"

Steve immediately halted in his search and blinked in realization. "I-I have. A few times to be exact." He replied lowly to himself with a small frown while remembering back to the few occasions where he had lost his torch or it burned out and was forced to find his way out another way. When it came to mobs he had but no choice but to focus on the sounds they made to find them before they found him, those were truly dire situations he was forced to face. He couldn't believe he didn't think of this sooner. With a new approach to the exercise; Steve closed his eyes and stood perfectly still, he let out another quiet breath then remained motionless with his focus shifting from sight to sound. He let his mind wonder away from any distractions and pain to focus on the subtle shifting coming from around him; he heard a lightly small but noticeable thud at his right. A gentle step nearby had him turning to the side a bit and swinging his better arm out to get the nearby target.

The powerful being leapt away from the arm that neared him, it seemed as though the man was starting to finally get a hold of the lesson. About time. But not even getting the real idea was going to conclude the lesson, it wasn't over until he was satisfied with the miner's ability; the mortal was going to have to do better and wasn't leaving the room until he did.

"You've finally got the right idea, however; it's not over until I say so. Only when you reach me will I conclude this sort of training, otherwise you'll never be ready to fight the beast." Herobrine huffed silently when he saw the miner open his eyes. "Keep your eyes sealed. Losing your focus now will make it harder to get me, especially now that you know what to do."

Steve closed his eyes again with an expression of exasperation, he lightly ground his teeth. "But wait a minute, that can't be fair! You can easily dodge me!"

"Fair? Heh heh heh." Herobrine laughed. "Do you think Endermen or Ender himself will be fair? Ha!" Herobrine amused with a bit of a hysterical chuckle, what the human said was utterly ridiculous and naïve. He began a slow and silent pace around the miner. "Do you honestly think that the many mobs in his domain will let you walk right up to them and hack them to pieces? Or Ender himself?"

Steve lost his frustration and frowned deeply. Herobrine did have a point the had to admit.

"I think not. The beast's world is where Endermen come from, there'll be many and many strong ones at that. Should I have to remind you of this and their abilities? If you let even one Endermen get a hold of you then you'll either be brutally beat to death in a matter of minutes or ripped to pieces and left to feed the beast of every ounce of energy you possess; utterly useless and dead you will be. You will not survive if you get caught, especially if you are blinded and cannot find your enemies.

Besides, the End; the home of the beast as far as I know it is a dark place. Ender had told me of his cold, obscure, and soundless world. It is very likely that anything dark in color will virtually have cover at a good enough distance, and because Endermen have glowing eyes that you cannot even look into along with their flesh color; you'll be in a tight bind with sight limitations. Just stumbling around will not be good enough, you must slay the End mobs and face the beast himself relying more than on one of your basic senses alone. This lesson is very crucial mortal, remember that."

Steve's posture lightened up. If what Herobrine said was true about the End world, then he would be pretty much blind with Endermen occupying the monster's domain. He can't just look directly at the Endermen and expect to fight them the same way he does with all of the other mobs; especially since they were powerful than most other monsters, he'd have to keep his eyes focused entirely on his feet. If he found himself in a circumstance to where he'd have to look around and accidentally provoke an Endermen then he'd still have to keep his eyes averted to prevent provoking more of the mobs; all while having to fight with the one he startled. His hearing would be his only useful sense, he didn't even want to imagine being caught by one and being picked apart or battered to pulp, or worse; fuel the one he's trying to stop. Steve shivered at the thought of himself being surrounded by Endermen and one big monster that would probably devour his soul.

Herobrine stopped his pacing and folded his arms. "Well, are you ready to try again? I know you're injured but you have 'one' good enough arm, all you have to do is catch me. Do that and we'll conclude this exercise for today. Remember to focus, not just with your ears but with entities like myself and the beast you'll need to have your sixth sense guiding you as well."

Steve sighed heavily and nodded. "Okay, but no more teleporting away. Got it? I know you have a few times already."

"Yes, but that was the first two hour of you stumbling about. You weren't even relying on your hearing but sight instead nearly the entire time, it was fair game to me. Endermen can teleport, but if you insist then I'll just change things up and not teleport; and what I have in mind is perfect." He smirked.

"Change it up? But how?" Steve asked with a brow raising in curiosity. "How can you possibly change a game of blinded 'hide and go seek'?"

"Hmmmhmmhmmmnn." Herobrine chuckled lowly. "You'll see." He grinned widely and his eyes glowed brightly for a brief moment, he stood directly behind the miner and held out his arms; a new kind of energy flooded the room. Several shrouded forms appeared out of gathering particles of dust; all varying in size and forms and took full shape just slightly floating in the air, Herobrine let his arms fall and the floating shapes fell to the ground whilst landing on their feet and regaining color and full shape.

Steve instantly froze up from the sudden sounds of spider screeches, creeper hisses, zombie moans and growls, and the clacking of skeleton bones; he wasn't alone with Herobrine in the room anymore, but with actual dangerous mobs.

The powerful man mused from the miner's sudden reaction of very real 'natural' fear, although it was unnecessary with the human being injured. He wasn't going to let the mobs harm the guy, but it was still entertaining to watch him go stiff as a wooden plank. "It would be far too easy trying to find me alone, so now you'll have to tighten your concentration on my presence whilst trying to ignore the sounds and movements of our guests in here. And just let me warn you now; I can keep them in line with influence alone, but if you so as much as touch or even bump into them then you may just provoke an immediate attack."

"What?! Herobrine, this is not what I had in mind!" Steve's eyes flung wide open and he saw several tiny red eyes right at his feet and they were attached to a darker form. "I thought you said we were training, but not with mobs!"

The old hero shrugged, he kept the smile on his face. "It appears that I can't get you to focus enough by doing this alone, now you really have no choice but to try your very best. I'll try to not let them harm you, but no promises."

"Really Brine?" Steve suddenly stiffened up and held his breath as the shape of a creeper passed by. 'This is insane!' He finished with a loud thought to not startle any of the monsters.

"Close your eyes Steve, it'll help you focus more."

'I seriously doubt that.' The miner thought but listened anyway and squeezed his eyes shut.

"Now." Herobrine began. "Do not focus on sight, touch, sounds, nor smells."

'You added stinking zombies, how can I not focus on their awful stench?' Steve's nose scrunched a bit from the odor of a moving corpse nearby.

The hero frowned and narrowed his eyes. "Let your main senses not be the focus, even if you can't completely ignore them. Instead feel for my power, my presence, let your sixth sense take over so that you can go beyond it. The sixth sense is known as proprioception, even blind you can still move around and even do something as simple as touching your nose without the need of sight. You don't need your other senses to know movement, location, and action. We're only going one single step beyond that however; and that is sensory through the unnatural, the discernment and detection of wavelengths of energy within the air. Not many will ever get to go this far with their senses as they are never exposed to powerful beings, but you have already used this sense before. Remember my game miner?"

Steve carefully nodded. 'Yeah, how could I forget? You were hunting me.'

"Well luckily for you, I will not be teleporting around this time nor hunting you. Now shut off your other senses and just focus on my power, know which direction I am in and come find me through feeling my energy. If there are Endermen closely guarding Ender then you might have to entirely rely on this 'seventh' sense if you will."

'Seventh sense? Is that even real?' The miner tensed up when he felt something graze the backside of his injured arm.

"Whether it is or not; you must be able to sense, identify, and locate energy flow. Lionel learnt without even having to be trained, he taught himself after all those years just so that he could find me if he wanted since he was somewhat opposed to always asking for my help. If he can do it then so can you. Now find me, you get one and only one shot at this; so you better not mess up." Herobrine said with a hint of annoyance. "First, find my location, I will not move from where I currently stand. Then come and get me, one touch and then you pass."

'Now hold up one second.' The miner thought with a frown and narrowed brows. 'Even if I find you, how am I going to get through the mobs without bumping into one and possibly setting them off to attack? I can't sense energy from them, they aren't exactly like you, you know? And only one chance at this? That's not fair!' Steve's brows furrowed when he heard Herobrine chuckling darkly in the back of his mind. 'Why are you laughing?'

"I suppose I forgot to mention, you might just have to rely on your other senses; with the exception of sight if you wish to reach me. But for the time being, I just want to know that you can locate me through my influx of power; a first step to this sort of training. And yes, you get 'only one' chance since I am unable to move. Now enough talk Steve, find me and then switch your focus to get to me without provoking the mobs. Prove to me that you can do this."

'You make this sound easy, but it's not. I feel like you're all around the room, how am I even going to start to 'detect' you? ... A helpful hint would be nice. At least tell me how to use this fabled sense, I don't know how to. Is it even possible for a human being to be able to do this in just a matter of hours? ... Herobrine? You do hear me right? ... Don't leave me in silence! I need help!' Steve plead but the old hero said nothing more to him and remained that way for a long while, the miner then knew that he wasn't going to get out of this room of deadly creatures until he found the white-eyed man.

With a low sigh the miner stood in place and squeezed his eyes shut as he tried to mentally drown out the noises the mobs were making, as well as the dusty, repugnant, and moldy smells hanging in the air. It was difficult. Zombies are always loud with their unhurried heavy steps and groans of hunger. Skeletons can't even move without rattling their bones some. Creepers though silent on their feet still make hissing sounds, as do spiders that screech.

He could still feel mobs passing by with the sounds of their steps and occasional brush-ups, the zombies stank so bad that it was almost making him nauseous. 'Come on Steve, focus. If the old sentinel can than I can too.' He told himself and felt his facial features tighten in concentration, he could definitely feel Herobrine's presence; but it was so strong he couldn't exactly pinpoint where the man was. Lionel of course, had years of being around Herobrine to notice what it's like being next to such power; Steve has only had a few weeks at best.

White eyes stayed on the human standing in the center of the room, Herobrine's arms folded and he swayed his head in doubt. Perhaps he had chosen the wrong type of training to start with; though there wasn't much he could do with Steve in his current injured condition. This was probably the lightest and safest kind he could teach, granted adding powerful creatures made it much more dangerous than it needed to be; but he was hoping the more dire situation would get the miner to try harder. Endermen would make fighting Ender far more dangerous than all the mobs in the room combined, Steve needed to know where the beast was at all times; even the times he would have to look at the ground or keep his eyes shut for long periods of time.

-If adding danger and more threats aren't going to encourage the miner to try harder than what will?- Herobrine thought. -What does he really want?-

...

"I've already lost them, I don't want to lose another."

...

"I will do anything to protect my friends and family; even you."

...

"I no longer care so much for myself anymore Herobrine. I used to be so afraid of you, so afraid to die. But I found out something that I fear more than anything else in this world. Even death."

"And what is that?"

"Losing those closest to me."

...

-A friend. A brother.- Herobrine frowned pensively, his tense posture lightened and his arms dropped to his sides. What could Steve possibly want more than just to help him? What is the man wanting to achieve once he succeeds, if he could even win that is? Would he return and just abruptly depart and go back to the remains of his shattered family? Would he stay for a while and be some company? Herobrine didn't even know what he himself would do if the miner somehow won, he wouldn't have to go out and collect souls anymore; but neither would he have a purpose in this world. Would he himself just stay locked away in the fortress, or in the Nether? It would take some time to repair his Nether fortress, but what after that? He's not part of some group like the sentinels once were; he has nowhere to belong but to the castle he claimed so long ago.

The old hero ruminated on the possibilities but he really had no reason to do anything, hunting humans gave him a sense of purpose; but without it he had nothing to do but stalk the empty halls of his ancient home. Living like a lone shadow, roaming around aimlessly, sitting upon his throne of isolation and watch time fly as the sun rises and falls with the moon chasing right behind. Would he go mad like Ender? Not through forced isolation, but through his own affairs now that didn't involve intelligent beings like humans?

Herobrine blinked and watched as the miner began to turn his head in multiple directions, still not quite unlocking a deep seeded instinct, despite being around him all this time. The immortal left more of his energy into the air, yet still remaining quiet. He almost wanted to ask the miner what he planned to do after he 'won', though he doubted the mortal would. However; out of curiosity's sake...

-No.-

Herobrine shook his head and adverted his gaze to the floor while balling up his hands. He was giving the miner too much credit, if Ender can destroy his own arms so easily then the miner would be nothing but dust in no time at all; that's if the Endermen don't tear him apart first.

"Ahhhaaa!"

White eyes snap back to the man to find Steve taking a step back with a shocked expression, he had appeared to have brushed up against a mob but none of the creatures have become hostile yet, probably because of his powerful influence still keeping the creatures somewhat obedient. The man then went back to concentrating, soon turning his head in nearly his direction; the human was getting close to detecting him surprisingly.

Or he was just facing the right way by chance.

So determined and persistent, the miner hasn't given up this endeavor. He seems resolved to actually do this even if he was failing, so much was he like Lionel; especially when it came to a challenge such as this. He's so fixated on setting him free of the debt, so willingly devoting the rest of his time recovering and training; essentially the rest of his life for such a goal to save him and humanity. So inane and yet so bold, noble and courageous. A friend and brother Steve truly was, a mirroring reflection of the silver sentinel; only he had time to prepare for his last moments. Lionel wasn't so fortunate, his hands got severely burnt, then he was caught by surprise at one of his weakest moments. Herobrine would have given anything, even give up the stronghold itself, just to go back in time and spend a few more hours with his brother before he tragically dies on a blade.

This sudden realization made him wonder why he wasn't taking the opportunity to give the miner a few last good moments, something the mortal clearly deserved of him after all that he put the man through. Yes he needed training and a lot of it, but right now he wasn't in the quite right shape for it; not that it wouldn't hurt to allow the human to enjoy some time off here and there.

Come to think of it, he could probably even use some time of companionship as an incentive to encourage the miner to try harder in this task. It could prove to move the distressed mortal.

The miner did want to be his friend, and if Herobrine remembered correctly; they really haven't had time to be friends or of the normal kind at least. He used to do all sorts of things with Lionel when they formed a bond, from sharing guard shifts to sword fights, drinking at the tavern to archery competitions, simple walk and talk to card games in the barracks on rainy days, horseback riding to something as humanly tedious as fishing; something the sentinel really enjoyed on nice days. There had been many times, many memories with his brother and yet he has hardly done anything with his new brother; the miner named Steve.

Steve was no longer looking in his direction now, Herobrine quietly exhaled; at least the guy was still trying. "If you find me, then I'll reward your efforts." He finally spoke. "Every time you complete your training goals, I will make your time remaining here truly worth it."

'Rewards?' Steve questioned back, confused.

"Yes. Would you be interested in participating in causal activities with me? Like how Lionel and I did back in the days?" He offered awkwardly, not sure how to properly ask of these types of things. It's been far too long, not that he was the social type to begin with. "I'm not too sure what you would enjoy doing other than mining, but surely there is something you would like to do that I can join."

'Huh?' Steve gaped.

"I also have something of value of mine that I could give to you and it could aid you against Ender. I can also return your pet pig here if you wish. I could give you practically anything you desire. ... that I see fit of course." The miner was speechless and Herobrine didn't know if that was a good or bad sign, so why not offer what the man would probably want more than stopping the beast itself or freeing him. "How much would you like to see your friends and family, one last time?" He added.

Steve frowned and tightened his fists, his brows arched downward, and he lowered his head with teeth gritting.

Did he say something wrong? Was the miner mad at him for offering such things? Did the human think that he was trying to change his mind? It was not the old hero's intention if that were the case, he would not stop him. Herobrine was about to ask Steve for missing out on such opportunities before he noticed the human's expression, the miner might have been silent in his mind but that was because he now appeared to be sharply focused; more so than ever before. The incentives seemed to spur the man to put much more effort forth. -Good.- Herobrine found himself now smirking. The miner would get an actual friend and have times to enjoy, while also improving himself before the great battle, it was like taking out two skeletons with one arrow.

Steve had droplets of sweat beading down his face as he stayed glued to his spot and felt the energy, all of those things the old hero mentioned as a reward had truly pushed him to completing the task at hand. Even if he could have just one of those things then it would have been worth it. The only problem however; trying to locate the source of the energy, he didn't even think it was possible, though it has to be since he could almost always sense the being's presence and the feeling of fear and dread that came with it. But he couldn't move on a whim in just any direction, he only get's one chance at this, he wanted the reward.

... ...

Nearly three or so hours in and still no results. Herobrine sighed quietly in disappointment and impatience, but had to at least hand it to the human for trying for so long without even so much as requesting a small break. What was so impressive was the miner hadn't even so much as moved one step or looked away from his current position the entire time, he only stood in place with eyes closed and head directed to the floor before him, one arm bound around his stomach and the other hanging by his side with a hand still coiled into a fist. If it wasn't for the normal steady heart rate of the miner then Herobrine would have thought that the man fell asleep on his feet. If this type of training wasn't so pertinent then he would have have already called the challenge off, try it again another time. Even now he was still tempted to stop this massive waste of time and do something else, there were still a few things the miner could do though he was injured.

-Perhaps he is not ready for this, he has not been around me long enough. Ender is sure to give off more energy than me anyway.-

Herobrine lifted his arms, ready to teleport the mobs away and conclude the session, but then he immediately stops and blinks as the miner finally lifts his head; eyes still closed and expression now soft.

'Alright Steve, let's go over this one more time before we give it a shot. It's taken a while, but I think I finally have it now.' The miner thought to himself. 'I picture Herobrine's energy is like that of fog, it's everywhere and as dense as can be.' The miner's mind was like a black canvas that was soon colored in white mists all around, Steve himself stood in the middle of the fog. Like the times the hero portrayed himself as Lionel, Herobrine came from the fog. 'The room temperature is pretty cold, his presence when releasing energy tends to do this; especially when he's not in a good mood or hunting people.'

The miner felt a slight bump against his side but remained still. 'The mobs are still moving around but I'm not concerned with them, they won't hurt me if I do this right.' He encouraged himself. 'Now, if Herobrine is in this choking fog, his body has to be nearby. I need to make sure I know the true direction of the source, like a cyan specter hiding in the white just waiting to be found.'

He let out a soft breath of air and could feel the whips of his warm breath ascending. Steve then slowly held his empty arm out, mentally hoping no mobs would take this sudden motion as a reason to attack. With no mob interferences from this point, the miner continued. 'I only can use one arm, but by extending my arm I extend the surface area of which I can detect. I must use my mind and body at the same time to locate him, I've already noticed the hairs on the back of my neck mostly sticking up, especially to my right. I also can almost feel something touching my shoulder, and the parts of my exposed bandaged arm also have this feeling; it's so slight that it's almost not even noticeable. This is why I need to use my free arm to confirm.'

Herobrine's eyes widened as the miner slowly but surely began turning towards him, arm stretched out; hand wide open.

'My fingertips, they're more sensitive than most places on my body.' The miner concentrated on feeling the energy with his hand and slowed his turning once something shifted in the air before him, with his mind's eye he could almost see the cyan blur just before him in the mists of white. 'It's barely there, but it feels stronger than before, he then turned more to his right to confirm the changes and turned back to his old position. 'He's definitely there. Or so I hope.' He swallowed. 'It's taken so long but I truly believe he's right where my hand is, the pulses of power are so faint, but this is the only direction that has any changes to it. Now, just to steadily approach and be weary of mobs.'

He couldn't believe it, the miner was actually heading in his direction; steadily and cautiously making his way over. -Perhaps I was wrong.- Herobrine thought, now grinning. -You're almost there Steve.- He watched as the human took slow steps, arm still stretched out.

'Please get out of my way mobs, I want this more than anything right now!' Steve finally started to focus on the sounds before him, but what he mostly heard was from his side and from behind. He smiled as he moved faster forward, the cyan specter was right there in fog before him. He couldn't wait to get his reward, he's never poured so much focus into one single thing before until now.

The miner's outstretched hand finally lands on a sturdy surface, a soft fabric underneath his fingertips. "I got you Herobrine!" He shouted in relieved elation, but that smile fell almost immediately as his joy; his eyes opened to the darkness, Herobrine wasn't as cold as a corpse.

"Muuhhaaaaaaahhhh."

"No!" Steve frowned and backed away as the form he touched now reached back at him and then wrapped it's cold moist hands around his arm and his injured shoulder; leading it's disgusting mouth towards the smell of blood from his wound. "Let go!" He shouted and failed to pull away, he could feel the creature about to topple him to the floor and pin him but the mob released it's grasp as it was jerked away from the miner. Steve fell onto his bottom and panted to catch his breath, the zombie was so close to biting into him.

"You were very close Steve, it's a shame this vile creature just happened to stumble right into your path as you were about to reach me." Herobrine said with discontent and anger as he took the mob and punched it so hard in the jaw that it snapped the mob's neck and it went limp in his grasp, he then threw the corpse to the ground and raised his arms up; making all of the candles and torches of the room come alight and chase the darkness away. The powerful being then moved his arms and hands down, making all the mobs warp away in one sweeping motion; now there were no sounds but the nervous panting of the miner still sitting on the ground with his head hanging low.

"I failed." The man said quietly as he ran a hand through his hair, his mood now of despondency.

"Still, it was impressive that you were finally able to sense my power; it took some time but you found the source. You found me. I almost gave up on you."

Steve sighed and shook his head. "Yeah, but I got too hasty and impatient. I ran straight into trouble instead of being more cautious. All that time concentrating and planning, all wasted. ... I was so close!" Steve shouted as he pounded a fist into his knee and kept his fingers coiled in dissatisfaction, he had finally detected energy, had everything figured out and planned out up until the last second. There goes the reward.

"Don't be so harsh on yourself, you did what you could and more than what I was expecting of you." Herobrine reached a hand out to the miner, Steve only looked up at him with a nonplussed look. "Do you want help getting up or not? If you want to stand on your own then fine, otherwise-." The hero offered, again extending his hand out.

"Sorry Brine." Steve began and placed his palm into Herobrine's and the man helped him back up onto his feet. "Thanks for helping me up, I guess I'm still not used to you uh... helping me like this." He smiled nervously and rubbed the back of his neck. "I appreciate it though, especially since I'm down to one arm for the time being."

"Come."

"Huh?" Steve blinked as Herobrine began walking towards the exit of the chamber. "Where are we going?"

"You might have failed the objective yes, but you did come very close. Besides, it's been a while since you last ate; standing in this room for hours trying to locate me without so much as a request for a break. As a reward for your effort and endurance, I have something prepared for you. As part of the reward I shall join you and you may ask things of me if you wish."

The miner excitedly caught up to the old hero and walked beside him. "Wait now!" Steve started, still smiling widely in shock. "You're really going to sit down and eat with me?" He inquired with raised brows, almost in incredulousness. "Where has this generous and benevolent Herobrine come from all of the sudden?" He gestured with his one arm, his face a mix of euphoria and amazement.

The hero's white gaze moved away from the miner, Herobrine didn't know how he wanted to respond but he couldn't just say nothing. The miner didn't deserve silence, despite how strange it felt to be so kind though they were enemies to the death just a day prior. With a soft exhale he finally looked back over to Steve. "I have called you my brother, have I not?"

The miner stopped in place and gaped for a long moment before his wide smile returned. "Y-you have? When?!" He abruptly asked, almost with a desperate tone. Herobrine wasn't sure if he's ever seen the miner this happy, he turned away. "Well you did mention something like it once, you were comparing me to Lionel and trying to talk me out of confronting Ender. I honestly didn't think you meant it though, but you actually do?"

No, he hadn't officially titled the man that at the time, but now it looks he has come open as to how he perceives this specific mortal. There was no need of hiding such a concept anymore, there never really has been. "I have, for a while now." Herobrine said quietly, avoiding the miner's gaze; his dual voice tones quiet and somehow abashed. "Just not out loud until now."

"Wow, thanks Herobrine. You're like a brother to me too, a really good friend that's just disconnected and forgotten their humanity. Just like how I can't replace Lionel, you can't exactly replace Anthony; but I certainly wouldn't mind having another brother." Blue eyes move away from the old hero, Steve couldn't find it in him to stop smiling softly but he could tell Herobrine was still warming up to the concept of expressing himself more openly and humanly again. It's been so long, all of this friendly commotion must be making the immortal feel a little out of place. Awkward even. There was so much he wanted to say with this revelation; but Steve decided to give Herobrine some room to mentally and emotional adjust.

...

Steve and Herobrine quietly return to the dining hall, much to the miner's surprise as he walks in; he see the main middle table has so much food lining it. The conglomerate of delectable looking dishes and the mixed aroma of it all had his stomach rolling and mouth watering, all of the dishes were sparkling clean and a silky smooth navy blue tablecloth with golden designs embroidered in the fabric to present it all. There were fully roasted chickens, baked potatoes, roasted golden carrots, baked apple pies, rabbit soup, steaks, pork chops, lamb chops, pumpkin pies, cakes, cookies, and loads of bread. It's a shame there wasn't anyone else there to help them eat it as there was no way they could both clear the table, but at least Steve knew he wasn't going to be hungry for a while after this.

Both of the men walked towards the table, Herobrine took the royal tall chair at the end of the special table while Steve pulled out the chair at the opposite end. The old hero frowned. "Why sit all the way over there? Come and join me up here." He motioned to the seat next to him. "We may be the only ones at the table but there's no need to sit so far apart, I'm not going to scold you for sitting so close."

"Heh heh, right." Steve laughed nervously and walked all the way towards Herobrine's side and pulled out a chair and sat next to him; right in the same spot that he had eaten earlier. It felt kind of odd and yet pleasant to see Herobrine at a table of food, he certainly fit the royal chair with his upright and perfect posture. Almost with a regal look. The miner waited a moment before filling his plate, to see if Herobrine was going to go first, but the man just sat in his seat with his arms resting on the armrests. Probably waiting on him.

Steve then wasted no time in filling his plate with various meats and vegetables, a goblet of water, as well as a loaf of bread; along with a side of rabbit soup next to the plate. Once he had his plate full he quickly dug in with his fork and began to eat like he had been starving. Of course he couldn't eat so fast with only one arm currently available to use, but he did try.

"Eat as much as you like, you'll need to recollect your strength."

"Thanks!" Steve said as he continued to stuff his face, but then he noticed that the old hero just sat there; not even lifting a fork. This puzzled the guy; he finished chewing on a piece of his steak and looked over at the white-eyed man with a furrowed brow and faint grin. "Hey, you going to eat?" He gestured with his fork "There's no way I can eat all of this by myself." He asked as he glanced over the table of food, nervously chuckling at the awkward silence of the large spacious room.

Herobrine retained his indifferent frown and swayed his head back and forth. "I don't eat Steve, for I do not have to. In fact, I haven't eaten a thing since Lionel's marriage banquet many centuries ago. Besides, I do not need sustenance like you mortals do."

The miner frowned and wiped the juices and grease from the corner of his mouth with the back of his hand. "That long? But don't you like eating? It couldn't hurt to try it again right?" He asked.

"That banquet was the last good time that I ever got to spend with him before he left with his wife, they were only gone for a week but so much had happened while he was away, then at the end was when I did the unthinkable and killed Conner."

"Oh, I'm sorry to hear that Brine." Steve said apologetically while moving his gaze down to his plate, noticing the reason why Herobrine didn't eat anymore; it brought up the start of a terrible event and the last he ever saw of his best friend smile in a nice and genuine moment. A final celebration. "By association, meals like this only serve to remind you of such a time." The miner started quietly. "I get that." He nodded. Steve then returned his gaze to the white-eyed man. "However; that's something of the past Herobrine, you don't have to see it as a sad memory anymore. Sure the banquet was probably the last good time you had back then, especially with Lionel. But now you can make another good memory; enjoying all this food with me." He briefly grinned before the smile fell flat, Herobrine didn't seem to pleased with his response and just sat there with a frown.

"What? And have another reminder of losing another brother?" He shook his head and raised an arm up to partially shrug. "Tch, pointless." He finished and set his hand back on the armrest.

Steve's frown deepened. "You... really don't have any faith in me at all do you?" He asked with a softened stare and mouth slightly agape, but he received no reply. The man lightly growled to himself and moved his gaze back to his plate before sticking his fork into a cooked carrot and biting off a huge chunk. Once he finished chewing he spoke back up, eyes now narrowed. "Alright Herobrine. Then get used to preparing tables like this; because when I get back we're going to have another feast together and you'll be glad and eat then." He finished with a stubborn 'hmph' as he continued to eat more of the orange vegetable in silence.'

Herobrine raised a brow at the miner but the man continued to eat without looking his way, appearing to be done with conversation and seeming rather annoyed and upset with him. That was not supposed to be part of the reward, the remainder of the miner's time was supposed to be fulfilled with good memorable events that was supposed to be enjoyable. Not whatever 'this' was. Herobrine supposed that he was to blame, he can't rewind time or truly relive past occurrences; nor did he have any confidence in the human's victory over the End lord. Still, it was unfair to treat Steve this way; just because he didn't want to move on from the past.

But the past was in the past as the man stated, it couldn't hurt to take at least one step forward for a good reason.

The being huffed softly as he ran a hand over his goatee and closed his eyes for a long moment.

Steve continued to eat, angry eyes glued to his food and chewing rather loudly.

Herobrine hesitantly reached an arm out and took a fork into his hand, he then used his other empty palm to summon various portions of food to his plate as well as a goblet of water. It had been a very long time since he had eaten anything, he was surprised he still remembered how to even hold the eating utensils. He took his fork and now a knife and cut into a steak of beef and cut out a small piece, slowly he brought the chunk to his mouth and finally took a bite.

It was then when Steve noticed movements from the corner of his eye, curious; he then lifted his head and slightly turned his gaze towards the ancient being and his eyes widened with a brow furrowing. Herobrine was seen eating from a full plate and cutting into a slice of cooked beef for another bite, but what stunned the miner even more was seeing the single trail of a tear gliding down the side of his right cheek. 'Herobrine can shed tears?' He thought. Well of course he could, Steve just wasn't expecting that at all or so soon, the man has been a cold and callous killer for a long time after all. For some reason this made the miner lightly smile to himself, it's been quite a while since the old hero had been so- so human.

The moment seemed quite personal to the guy, so Steve chose to say nothing and continued to eat from his plate and keep his gaze to himself. His eyes though soon move up to the second floor inner balcony that surrounded the dining hall, the place was huge and magnificent and had a lot of chandeliers, smooth stone arches and pillars, dark blue carpets underneath all the tables, pots for plants, ornate dishware and paintings hanging on the walls, and tapestries with the castle's golden insignias all over them. He wondered when he'd ever find the time to tour the entire stronghold, there's got to be some more impressive rooms and chambers.

Steve's wondering eyes soon move more towards the exit of the large chamber and something out of the ordinary caught his attention immediately, as it was a bright glowing dot of mauve color that stood out from the darkness above on the balcony; a single eye observing them. Steve squinted his eyes and tilted his head to the side a bit. It was a tallish figure, an Endermen he suddenly realized, thankfully this one only had one eye and was sort of friendly. "Stealth?" He asked, lowering his fork and chewing on the rest of his carrot.

"He's been here the entire time miner."

"Huh?" Steve finally glanced back over at Herobrine, his tear seemed to have already dried, and now he was staring back at the mob with slanted brows and a light scowl.