Chapter 31
Fury of a Dark God
Reginald flinched as a creeper blew up within a very close distance to him. He turned his head away, dirt and gunpowder raining down upon him. He thought the battle at Ground Town had been madness.
This was hell.
The town was significantly more prepared in the terms of war then his own village had been. There were walls, archery towers and dozens of golems. But from what Reggie understood was that this time of year the spawns were usually in hibernation, the people gathered here to celebrate in peace. It was meant to be a happy time, they weren't expecting something such as this.
But now there were thousands crammed into a small village and in a confused panic.
"Behind you!" Bach barked.
Reggie rolled, dodging a cackling witch armed with vials of deadly substance. A golem got hold of her before the deranged female could attack again; sending her body crumpling to the ground with sickening crunch. Reggie almost vomited at the sight of bloody mess.
"Don't look at it," Bach said gruffly, "We are not always blessed with them vanishing. "
Reggie looked around and saw this to be true. There were many, many loots piles, but there were quite a few remains as well. A woman nearby, Mia if he remembered correctly, stabbed her blade into the stomach of an enderman. The creature screeched and fell back, purple-black blood staining her dress.
"There are so many!" Reggie gasped, swinging his blade and stabbing it into the skull of a creeper that came up behind Bach.
The blacksmith brought his hammer down, smashing a spider, the venom splattering against his legs. "We keep fighting. We cannot stop! Until Steve and Alex return with your friends we keep fighting." He looked desperately towards the direction of his home, "I have to keep fighting,"
He paused, and asked softly, "How far along is she?"
"She is due next month."
Reggie planted himself next to the larger man, "I promise in the best of my power then to see you both to that day."
Bach nodded solemnly, grateful.
A sound tore through the panic of the town, almost like a bomb going off in the night. Reggie looked to the volcano as Incendia shook, smoke pouring so heavily from the mouth that it blocked out the moon.
"Notch's beard," Bach gasped.
Reggie's heart stopped, staring as the mountain shot sparks into the night and all along the black hills of the behemoth, hidden by the trees; spawns screamed and screeched in rage.
The kids!
"Petra stop! He's breathing!"
The ginger immediately pulled away, looking at Jesse with wide tear stained eyes.
The male let out a shaky breath, "I'm sorry," he mumbled.
The emotional overload made Lukas cave in, he started crying again, "It's okay Jesse, we're here, you're gonna be okay," he soothingly repeated over and over. "You're going to be okay,"
"I'm...sorry.'
"Don't be, just hang in there. Just keep breathing for us, you're gonna make it." Lukas brushed shaggy dirty hair out of Jesse's face, "We're gonna get you home."
The other male's skin was clammy and pale, and each breath he took was a rasping struggle that Lukas feared would be his last. Sweat ran down his face, and his lips mumbled incoherent words.
"Just hang in there Jesse,"
Aiden pulled away, back from his patchwork, "I'm not an expert but this is going to hold until we get him somewhere safer." He wiped his forearm on his sweaty forehead, cringing has it smeared blood on the side of his face. He swapped to wiping it off on his already blood stained jeans, "It's not going to last though, we have to get him out of this hell hole and we have to hurry."
"Where are we going to go?" Lukas asked, "Even if the ladder was still here, we couldn't have gotten Jesse across the bridge."
Aiden put away Jesse's destroyed armor, looking around distressed, "I don't-"
Suddenly Petra was up on her feet, "Steve!"
A bloody hand appeared over the chasm ledge, shakily grabbing hold. Aiden left Lukas with Jesse and scrambled over to aid Petra in pulling the Immortal up.
Steve buckled onto the gravel, breathing hard and bleeding profusely from his wounds. His deity state was sputtering out, already his eyes were back to normal and his skin was revealing heavy damage to his physical form. The man heaved, blood oozing out of his mouth.
"Why aren't you healing," Petra asked distressed and she struggled to keep him upright.
"What do you mean healing?" Aiden asked.
"Alex and Steve can heal from their wounds, we've seen it before."
"And it isn't working?" Aiden asked.
"He should be, it should work," Lukas said worried.
Steve let out a weak cough, splatters of blood flying past his split lips. The motion almost sent him toppling forward onto his hands, Aiden and Petra his only upright support, "I- I won't heal."
"Why?!" Petra asked alarmed.
"I can't-hhhngh!" Steve rasped, "Long ago...I placed -" he hissed, "I placed enchantment runes here - erg - T-to kill Herobrine, to - to-"
"To kill an Immortal?"
The adult shakily nodded, "Yes."
"Tell us where the runes are, we'll get rid of them so you can heal-"
"They are d-deep in the mountain Petra, and- hhh- after all these- these ages, even I can't remember-" Steve moaned, "Herobrine is too strong now, even without the enchantments - Alex and I- we can't-" he couched up more blood, and tried to stop it with his hand.
"Steve!"
Steve looked around, then he pointed a wobbly and bloody finger towards a tunnel. It was still intact despite the colossal damage to the city, "If you - hnnngh- follow that passage, it will t-take you to the base of the mountain. You - you can head straight for the village-"
"We are not leaving you here!" Petra argued.
"Alex and I...can buy you time. T-take Jesse- take him and get as far as you can."
"Steve-"
Steve gently grabbed her shoulder, "Petra, I-I'm sorry. But there is no way, we're leaving this mountain alive. We have enough in - in us both to buy you time. Please..." He stood wobbling slightly, "Go please."
"You can't do this!"
"I can't let him take...take him a second time..."Steve mumbled.
Before anyone could protest further, Steve was off, slipping back into his weakening deity state. He once more joined his wife in fighting off their greatest foe.
"We can't leave them!" Lukas demanded.
"We have no choice!" Aiden walked over and pulled Jesse carefully up, "He's running out of time. They're trying to protect us and give us a chance. We have to go or everything is going to be in vain."
"We can't let them die!" Petra argued.
"I don't want to be the bad guy here!" Aiden grunted as he and Lukas adjusted Jesse's weight between them. "But Steve asked, and I for one am not going to be the reason his son gets killed."
Son?!
Lukas was stunned, "What did you say?!"
"Alex and Steve are his parents. It's the only reason he was able to- Wait," Aiden's expression changed. "Did neither of you know?!"
"No! When would have known that!"
"When I got Herobrine monologueing he told me everything. I don't think he expected me to live. He told me about Jesse and Alex and Steve. I assumed that is why he was after Jesse. Steve is his enemy and he's trying to hurt him through Jesse."
Lukas looked towards the struggling couple, letting out a frustrated hiss. This new development was a hard and heavy blow. He hated this feeling useless, "We can't leave them regardless of who they are!"
"Are you kidding," Aiden snapped, "I don't want to leave them either but have you seen the battle going on! Herobrine will smash us like bugs. Now we have to-"
"C-can't..."
Jesse.
Petra leaned in, "Jesse? What did you just say?"
The brunet moaned slightly, "He...can't."
Lukas looked at him worried, "Who can't? Herobrine?"
"We...had...he can't."
Petra shook her head, "He's delirious. Let's go, it's getting worse. We have to get him out of here."
"Wait! I know what he's talking about!" Aiden's eyes lit up, "Jesse made a deal with Herobrine!"
Her expression twisted into horror. "He did what?!" Petra asked, startled.
"Not in the way that you think. Herobrine wanted the Witherstorm power-"
"Wait what-"
"I really don't have time to explain that bit, but long story short it's the reason he's stronger." Then Aiden added quickly, "That's why Herobrine kidnapped me. He must not have been able to get to you two. He offered me for Jesse's power. Jesse agreed to it, but he only swore to do it as long as Herobrine wouldn't hurt any of us."
"Doesn't mean he won't." Petra countered, "What's going to stop him?"
"I honestly don't think he can. I think is has something to do with swearing on Notch. When he had me hostage he said he couldn't kill me till after midnight," Aiden cringed, "He dealt a lot of pain, but he didn't kill me."
Lukas shifted, his heart racing and his gears turning.
What if...
"In that case-"
There was a sickening crack, and the trio looked sharply just in time to see Herobrine break Alex's leg. She snapped out of her god mode in an instant. The Dark Immortal hurled her to the opposite side of the room, where the female collapsed to the ground with an anguished cry. Unable to get up she struggled in agony on the floor.
Steve cursed and lunged at his brother, but Herobrine stabbed his sword into the ground and grabbed Steve by the throat and hurled him. "Game is over Steven!" he cackled.
"Steve!" Alex cried.
"No!" Petra cursed.
Steve landed not far away from the trio, his head cracking against the stone wall. The impact stunned him out of his deity state, and the First fell to the ground below, creating a tiny crater on impact. He crawled out just as Herobrine approached the edge of it. He casually kicked Steve in the jaw. The injured male's head snapped sideways and he slumped down with a groan.
"Now you know." Herobrine said as he kneeled down before him. He took hold of his brother's hair, wrenching his head up, "Now you know exactly what it was like all those ages ago. You chose everything, now you will lose everything! I have taken your son; I have will take your wife! Herobrine snarled, "And when it is all said and I done, I'm going to leave you here. I could care less what happens to you after this." He slammed Steve's head back into the ground.
Herobrine got up, and began walking away, drawing his sword up from the floor, "You've lost brother. You've lost everything. Now you know what that feels like," he said as he walked towards a struggling Alex.
Steve reached out with a weak and bloodied hand, but his strength soon gave way and it fell limply to the ground.
Lukas's blood boiled, and he frowned deeply, "Petra! Swap places with me!"
"What?!"
"Just do it!"
She joined Aiden in holding up Jesse as Lukas slipped out, "Wait! What are you doing?!"
He already had his bow out, drawing an arrow from the quiver. He checked the case, he still had a few arrows left, he hadn't lost too many when the bridge collapse. "I have a plan. We can help Steve and Alex, and get Jesse out of here."
"Lukas wait-" Aiden started.
"We can save all three of them."
"Lukas! You can't."
"Steve and Alex have deity modes, I bet Herobrine does too. I can probably get it out of him if I get him mad enough, especially if he can't hurt any of us."
"Are you crazy?"
"We are getting this group out alive. Now get Jesse out of here!"
He didn't wait for a reply as he turned away from his friends and advanced on Herobrine. He pulled the drawstring back. In the smoggy volcanic air, the diamond arrowhead glinted brightly. Its enchantments made magical swirls along the sharp and valuable stone.
"What enchantment did you put on them?"
"Oh...They hurt evil things..."
Herobrine.
Herobrine was an evil thing. He thought about back at the Gate, how his skin bubbled when hit with Alex's arrows. He thought about the enderman, how it too reacted the same way during its attack on Jesse.
Herobrine!
These would hurt him.
He looked at Steve, the Immortal laying weakly on the floor, unable to get up, hardly able to move, but he was trying. He tried to get to his wife who was quickly coming to face death. Herobrine moving in to make the final blow.
Lukas gritted his teeth.
"Someone once taught me the best way to relax is to think about good and pleasant things, things that sooth you. Always think positive, even in battle or hard times."
Focus on what makes you happy, He reminds himself.
Think about your friends, Axel and Olivia, Maya, Gill, Aiden, Petra, Ivor, Jesse. Think about them
Steve and Alex, how much they helped you, the gifts and time that were given.
Dancing at the festival, think of how much fun it was.
Lukas adjusted the arrow.
Think about the food fight you had in the kitchen with Jesse and Alex. Think about how long it took Alex to get the cookie dough out of her hair, and yours...
Remember that time Aiden made you soup?
How everyone laughed at your 'elopement'? Think about...
Lukas swallowed.
Think about ...Think about home Lukas.
Everyone is going to go home!
"This is for Steve." he growled.
The arrow flew, hitting the walking Herobrine in the shoulder blade. Immediately the skin began to bubble. He snarled more out of surprise than pain, the demigod wasn't expecting any more attacks. He turned around; looking at Lukas, "Are you serious?" he almost seemed surprised.
"You aren't going to win this Herobrine."
"And you'd be the one to stop me?"
"I will if I have to!" Lukas said angrily. "You've hurt my friends, you've hurt Jesse And- and his family. You've tricked Petra, and you've threatened me. I'm not going to stand here and let you get away with this!"
The man scoffed, "Sure," and he turned away, yanking the arrow out. He kneeled down in front of the wounded woman, lifting his sword up.
"This one is for Alex,"
This arrow hit its mark before Herobrine could stab down to finish Alex, the weapon embedded itself into his ribs.
Herobrine snarled, and the entire mountain shook.
"L-Lukas! What are you doing?!" Alex cried.
The skin bubbled and sizzled on impact once more. He glanced over his shoulder, "You're cute kid," he scoffed before turning his head back. He played indifference, but Lukas saw the skin of Herobrine's arms crack slightly.
It was working.
Lukas was closer now, "This is from Petra, and Aiden!" he snapped.
Herobrine cause the arrow before it could make its mark on him. He snapped the arrow shaft in his hands, but he didn't turn around, "You dare?"
"I don't have a reason to be afraid of you!" Lukas snapped, he needed to push harder, "You're pathetic!"
Incendia rumbled.
He kept walking closer to the Lost One, "You couldn't beat Steve a eon ago, and after years and years of time that you could have used to become stronger, you still can't beat him! You can't even beat Alex! You strike fear into the hearts of men! Hah! You had to take power from one, from a mere mortal! You had to take a power from Jesse, that came from a monster you probably couldn't even defeat! You had to take it from Jesse who beat it for you! You couldn't even face him off in combat directly! You had to make a deal! You the mighty Herobrine, needed a boost- an edge -to take out your own brother, who hasn't even been out fighting something worthy of his skills in Notch knows how long! He's rusty and you still needed help?"
More cracks appeared.
"What kind of plague against humanity does that?! You are nothing Herobrine, your name doesn't even hold an frightening appeal to me. You are pathetic excuse for a creation of Notch. You had to take power from a mortal, and even now you have to use an safety measure to make sure Steve and Alex lose! How lame is that!" Lukas mocked. "You're talking me down, because I think you're afraid of me! You can't even take me I bet!"
Those white soulless eyes flared in fury, and he looked away. " Last...chance." he warned his voice slow and snarly.
"Good! I'd hate to repeat myself more than once." Lukas spat back. He stopped walking, merely three feet away from the insane maniac. He pulled the string of his bow back, "This one is fore Jesse! You disgusting excuse for a God! "
His plan worked.
Herobrine's temper flew just as the arrow released. With a roar of rage, the man didn't even look back behind him as he swung his sword out. The arrow was cut in half, but part of it still embedded itself into his armpit, damaging the skin there as well.
Lukas saw it coming , he saw the blade move and was only able to take a step back before it reached him.
Herobrine's blade grazed along Lukas's throat, curving up and ending off on his right cheekbone. The step back had saved his life, any closer and he would have been dead on the floor. The wound wasn't deep enough to be lethal, but Lukas stumbled back in pain, struggling not to scream. He gripped his throat as blood welled through the narrow cut, fire coursing through his body. All of Herobrine's rage was reflected into the attack and Lukas could feel the poison of it.
There was a loud boom, almost like the sound of a distant bomb exploding and it sent Lukas's ear ringing. Everyone in the room froze; even the mountain went briefly silent.
Herobrine's eyes went wide, and he slowly turned his head, shifting his gaze towards Lukas.
"Look what you did-"
Lukas took a step back, still clutching his wound.
Herobrine's skin rapidly cracked, revealing a black void with nothing beyond, it didn't deteriorate completely, but the effect was still terrifying. There was nothing but darkness, no starlight, save for a deep red glow that escaped on occasion.
The plan had worked; Lukas had found and unleashed the fury of the dark god.
"Hxd'en adrwnm nenahcqrwp."
"Oh Notch!" Alex was struggling to get up, panic in her eyes, "Lukas!"
Herobrine turned fully, fists balled in fury, "Hxd'en cjtnw rc jfjh."
"Lukas!"
Lukas looked at Alex, alarmed by her expression. She was terrified. "LUKAS RUN!" she screamed.
Lukas turned and bolted as Herobrine roared in rage. The entire volcano shaking to match his fury
"YOU WILL SUFFER!"
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