So, this chapter turned dark. Sorry.

WARNING: angst

Herobrine swayed where he sprung to his feet. A staggered step forward brought him to the wall. He supported himself against it, feeling his heart struggling in an uneven rhythm, his breaths turned to shallow gasps as waves of sharp pain faded. Lowering his head, Herobrine waited for it to reduce to a more bearable level, while anxiety and anger coursed through him.

They took Steve.

What was he thinking, staying here? What madness led him to assume that this would end well?

A scowl appeared on Herobrine's face.

Did he already not learn his lesson? That absent-minded professor and his quest to find the truth of his frightening legend? A painful respawn, that's what Herobrine got for his effort. That blind matron who invited him in after she found him hiding in her barn and mistook him for an unemployed young worker? The only reason those Players didn't burn her house down with her in it was because Herobrine had burnt it down himself, laughing madly as he did so. That's finally when they believed that he used her only as an ignorant tool for his evil means. She probably hated him now, but she and her children were safe. The Players only added them to their growing list of Herobrine's 'victims'.

He had no idea if Notch would even believe him now if he told him that it wasn't his fault. What if he didn't?

If he didn't take the blame and played his usual role, they might have slaughtered her on the spot. He could do nothing else! They held swords to her neck, their voices getting louder as they demanded to know where she hid him. So he led them away. And another painful respawn had been his reward.

He certainly made a spectacular event of that, playing his role to the last – the perfect villain not affected by pain. Half of those Players had died, despite him being on the edge of his strength. He had not been weak! And he made sure to carry out his revenge, against their guild, after he recovered.

Your servers will burn!

He fulfilled his promise, which he sneered at them before his death, just like a villain should.

He wouldn't last even two seconds against these Players. Those weapons? If his shoulder was any example, he might not respawn at all if he faced off with them. And pride had nothing to do with it. He simply didn't have the strength.

He… couldn't help Steve. The only thing he could do now was flee and hope that they didn't damage that mortal too badly. Although at his settings… Herobrine grimaced with guilt. Wearily leaning his forehead against the wall, he reached out his shaking hand to rub his aching eyes.

At least that foolish Miner was still alive. The last thing Herobrine saw before he lost his link, had been those two Players, dragging Steve's unconscious body into the caves. That hit on the back of his head had been delivered with intent to stun, not kill. That much Herobrine could tell from the force of the act.

An Enderman appeared nearby and promptly bonked his head on a low-lying roof beam of Steve's cabin when he tried to step closer. Staggering back a little, he collided with four more, who appeared behind him. Ignoring Herobrine, who snapped up his head to look at them, the beings began to make grumbling noises at each other. His lips twisted with displeasure.

"You are late!" Herobrine growled. Scowling, he glared at the beings, who ceased bickering and turned to look at him with guilty looks.

His control was slipping again. Gritting his teeth, Herobrine sent them his next command.

The Endermen hesitated, their lilac eyes doubtful. One even made a soft, questioning noise. Herobrine's eyebrows crept up.

"Obey me! This is not a request!" He snarled. The Endermen exchanged glances. With obvious reluctance in their movements, they grasped on to Herobrine, with one inadvertently grabbing his injured shoulder. Herobrine couldn't help a gasp at another bolt of white-hot pain that shot through him, then grinded his teeth, desperately fighting to hold on to his awareness as black began to creep into his vision. Still, his knees gave, and he hung in their arms like a helpless rag, just as their entire group vanished from Steve's cabin.

A mass of purple particles swirled about the room, settling on the table with several healing potions, some empty and some half drunk, and upon the crumpled blanket, which revealed a towel spread over the pillow and mattress, slightly stained with blood.

…

A pounding headache in the back of his head was the first thing Steve became aware of when he woke up. Next came the ache in his arms, which were pulled back and tied together, rope pulling painfully tight against his wrists. With a groan, he shifted and found that the same had been done to his ankles, though his rough trousers offered at least some protection.

He was laying on his side on the rocky ground.

They… hit him?

A hand roughly grabbed his hair and yanked his face up, a torch light shoved so closely to his face that Steve could see the brightness even through shut eyelids. Instinctively, he tried to shy away from the heat dangerously close to his skin.

"Awake?... Good!" A familiar voice sneered, dripping venom. With sinking heart, Steve recognized the younger adventurer. "Now you can answer a few of our questions for us, Steve."

The derisive way in which the young man spat out his name immediately sounded an alarm in Steve's mind. Did they think… That he was Herobrine?!

"You lied to us! You told us that you didn't know that monster! But you do!" Marko accused. Steve's breath released. This wasn't so bad. At least, they did not think he was Herobrine. He tried to say something, but found his tongue glued within his parched mouth. His neck and throat hurt as well, a loop of the rope thrown across and pinching his skin.

"We know that he came to see you! Last night! He was in your house! All that blood? He was there all along and you lead us on this blip goose-chase?" Seething notes appeared in young hero's voice. Steve's heart fell, instantly filling with guilt. Their anger was well deserved. He did deceive them.

"Talk!" A hand yanked his head back more, making the headache in the back of his head pound even worse. Steve grimaced in pain.

"And you better not lie, or you'll regret it, traitor!"

Steve's heart sunk a bit. They did not think that he was Herobrine but believed him to be the white-eyed man's minion, instead. That was probably it.

"I… I'll talk… I'll tell you…" He finally managed to stammer, breath catching a bit. His heart pounded in rising panic.

Steve saw the young Player's lips twist with disdain before he released Steve's hair, allowing him to collapse. For a moment, Steve merely lay on the ground, his cheek against the cold stone, and tried to catch his breath while he hectically thought what to say.

He struggled to turn, so he could face them both, and found both adventurers glaring at him. A scowl twisted the younger man's face. The older man's face could rival Herobrine's for its lack of expression. His gray eyes held on Steve with icy coldness, which sent an unwilling shiver across Steve's body. It's like Steve was a thing, not a living person. He could almost remember Herobrine's snarled words, thrown at him one time in accusation.

"Players do not even see me as a living being. To them I'm just a thing! And a broken one at that! None of the people living here are real to them! Killing one of us is no different than… throwing a rock!"

He didn't believe him, then. Uneasy, Steve shifted his gaze back to the younger adventurer.

"Y-you… d-didn't have to… hit me so hard… I w-would have t-told you…" Steve tried to smile with helpless reproach. "I h-hope… You d-don't think… that I am Him… Right?... I k-know that I look like h-him… B-but I'm not… I'm h-human…"

Marko rolled his eyes.

"We know that, stupid. Do not count us for idiots! If you were Herobrine, we wouldn't be talking. You would simply be dead." Steve's heart fell at the scorn filled words. "Tell us why you said nothing! Why did you hide him and lead us away? Was it because he threatened you? Scared you? What?" The young adventurer's voice calmed down a bit, sounding almost hopeful as he stared at Steve with a big frown creasing his eyebrows.

"I… I don't know… w-what you are saying… I d-didn't…"

Before Steve could finish his claim, a vicious kick stole the breath from his lungs. He curled as familiar agony exploded across his stomach, briefly dazing his thoughts. He struggled to suck in a breath and couldn't, the pain flaring like a bright sun in the pit of his stomach.

"You're lying! He was in your house! We found his blood! And healing potions!" The younger adventurer's tone seethed.

Herobrine… They didn't find him, then. He managed to get away. Relief swept across Steve's heart, reflecting on his face before he could control it. Noticing their harsh eyes watching him, Steve shrunk smaller.

"N-no… That was my blood… I… messed up… Was careless… The mobs attacked me on the way home…" His voice trembling, Steve tried to offer the story that he already had prepared just in case. Their hardening expressions and twisted lips told him that his words were not convincing.

"You're lying!" Marko jerked forward as if he was going to kick him again. Steve squeezed his eyes tight, curling as tight as he could to protect his aching stomach. The painful kick didn't come, though. Instead, it was the elder's voice, calm.

"Why are you trying to protect that monster? Did he scare you? Don't be scared of him. He is already dead. He just doesn't know it, yet. Just tell us everything that you know and we'll let you go." The elder adventurer reassured. Steve nervously dared to peek and found the man watching him with an expression that seemed almost patient. The uneasy feeling lessened. Steve badly wanted to believe him.

"We have a way to check!" The younger man's exclaim made Steve flinch again, his blue eyes nervously flicking toward him. "We know that he was there. He was in your house last night and probably even before! It was his blood in your room. We can even tell that he was there awhile! Probably when we first came to ask you for your help to track him down!"

Marko's voice rose, accusing tones gaining hints of hurt. "You should have told us right then. We would have handled it!"

"I was s-scared…" Steve admitted. "M-mm s-sorry."

The anger in the faces of the adventurers dwindled a bit. The elder frowned at him. "Why? He was already hurt. He couldn't have got to you before us."

"Yeah! We would have stopped him!" Marko nodded.

"H-his servants… They were t-there." Steve came up with an excuse.

"We could have handled a few mobs." The younger man scoffed, his hand squeezing the handle of the enchanted sword in his hand. Using it as a support, he shifted position. The older hero nodded. An axe materialized in his hand, which he also carefully placed below him, as he turned and stared at Steve.

Intimidated, Steve blinked at them.

"I didn't know it, then… You… You didn't kill him… What if he came back?... He is powerful… He also warned me… that if I t-told anyone about him… he would k-kill me…"

Steve admitted. The vision of Herobrine's disdainful face looked down at him once more as he cowered against the wall of his own cabin. He could almost feel the aching bruises left by the being's steely fingers. He could well remember his own terror then. He had all but convinced himself that it had been just a nightmare. But the Monster from the mansion came to pay him a visit – the first of many. He never dared to tell anyone about that. Not a single word. Until today.

"I t-told no one…" Steve's lips trembled, his face paling at the memory that he did his best to forget.

"Ah, so you do know him!" The elder adventurer confirmed with satisfaction, his eyes on Steve growing slightly milder. Not trusting himself to speak, Steve numbly nodded.

"When did this happen?"

"About… nine months?" Steve guessed, looking at them for reassurance. "W-when I told you… That those children s-saw him?... They asked me… To go and check… And I… I went…"

"And this time, you found the real monster." This time, the faces of the adventurers looked even more satisfied. Steve nodded, switching a lost gaze between them.

"And what did he do? He hurt you? Threaten you? Try to kill you?" The younger man prodded. Not waiting for Steve's response, he turned to the other man. "This might help us a lot. If we can get them proof that he's once again terrorizing the locals, then even Notch will have to…"

Marko's voice fell quiet at the elder's gesture. His eyes still held on Steve, he gave him a small, encouraging nod to proceed.

"Go on. Don't be afraid. Tell us. What else did he do?"

Steve's blue eyes helplessly switched between the two men, noting the anticipation on their faces. They were waiting for him to tell them how bad Herobrine was. He could tell them. He could blame everything on him – the horrible monster. He wouldn't even be lying…

Steve frowned a little.

"H-he did… Nearly kill me… That first day when I came… He thought… that I was a hero, who came to challenge him… But he learned that I didn't… He h-healed me, instead… And then he let me go… "

Visible disappointment reflected on their faces and they exchanged disappointed looks. One of them made an irritated gesture, as if flatting away a fly. Steve blinked.

"I didn't tell you, not b-because… I was s-scared… Even though I was scared, too… You almost killed him… He didn't deserve that… I know that… He seems evil, but… he isn't… He is not the monster, that everyone thinks he is… I got to know him and… he isn't…" Steve's tone, while timid and trembling, grew stronger and more hopeful.

"You've got to be blipping kidding me." The younger adventurer muttered, giving Steve a disbelieving look. Suddenly the young man jumped up to his feet, making Steve flinch.

"What?... What the blip is this?!... Not a monster?... What the blip is this, Adler?... Is he glitched or something?..."

"Noup, I'm seeing nothing. He's clean." The elder shook his head, narrowing his eyes in the air as if looking at something past Steve. The younger then spun around and glared daggers at Steve, scowling.

"Then he's a flipping traitor! A blippety blip! Blip this! Blip!"

Steve cautiously leaned back as far as he was able and blinked in confusion at the agitated young man. He sounded so normal yesterday, regaling Steve with tales of adventure and inviting him to join them. But now, he sounded like a madman, with his words strangely distorting to utter nonsense.

"Adler! We got to make him talk! If he knows anything, we need it! Forget the rep! Who cares about the rep?! So what if we lose these accounts? If we get that blip, we'll be so rich that we can buy us our own server or two! A blipping paradise! Blip! He knows him for sure! He does!" The younger man urgently stared at the older, his entire body nervously shifting. After a moment, the older nodded.

"Hold on a sec. Let me set up blocks. That way it will be all good and no one needs to know…"

"Blip!" The younger grinned, nearly jumping again as a grin broke out on his face. Not liking the look of it at all, Steve shied back from them even more, wincing at the ropes pulling against his hands. The constant ache was starting to dull, but that was not a good thing, since he could no longer feel his fingers at all. The ropes were too tight, cutting off blood from his hands. How long did it take for bloodless flesh to die? If he lost his hands, then a simple potion wouldn't repair it! He couldn't afford the really good ones. With Herobrine gone, he…

"Done. Go ahead." The elder of the two heroes gave his permission. Instantly, the younger man lunged to Steve, the grin on his face revealing his bright teeth. Anticipation burnt in his eyes with a strange mad gleam. Fear returned, making Steve's breath catch as he stared at the formerly friendly face and realized that he was now seeing this being's true face, no longer hidden under false mask. This was the Player?

"They are the true monsters! They wear false faces and do good deeds. But its not real! To them, everyone who lives here in our world is just a toy! A thing!"

At this moment, Steve could almost believe Herobrine's strange words. The way this young man looked at him now was scary. It was like Steve was not alive. Helpless, Steve looked up at this being with wide eyes.

"All right, Steve. Let's try this again." A knife appeared in Marko's hand and pressed against the skin of Steve's cheek. Steve's heart jumped, picking up in speed, fluttering like a trapped bird in his chest. His mouth opened. "Tell us where he is."

"I… I don't know!" Steve gasped, feeling the trembling grow in his tired limbs. He tried to lean away, but the knife followed, pressing harder. He felt it cut a bit into his skin, leaving behind a small cut, which instantly bloomed red. Feeling a hot drop slide down his cheek, Steve looked up and saw the smile on the hunter's face grow wider. By the gleam in his eyes, Steve could tell that this was not the full extent of the threat that he was going to face.

He didn't know where Herobrine went! He couldn't tell them even if he wanted to!

"P-please! I would t-tell you!... If I knew!" His resolve crumbling as shame washed across his heart for giving in to their threats so easily, Steve cast a pleading gaze from one hunter to the other and back. Ignoring him, the older adventurer sat down on one of the treasure chests that appeared beneath him. His face calm, he looked up at the twisted cave ceiling with a bored look.

"Do it faster, Mark. We don't have much time. If he really knows nothing, just end him. Cannot leave him behind. Use debugger rot. It'll break up any trace left in code."

"All right then." The younger man agreed. The knife vanished. The edge of a heavy axe appeared instead and leaned against Steve's shoulder. His blue eyes warily held on the glimmering, deadly edge.

They… wouldn't…

Would they? Glancing up at the merciless depths of their eyes, Steve found his answer. His eyes began to blur with tears. They were going to kill him? Just for lying to them?

"W-why?..." He swallowed a painful lump that appeared in his throat. "I… didn't d-do… anything to you…"

"You should not have helped that monster, Steve." Young man shrugged. "You should have given him to us, instead of lying. You wasted our time! If you tell us where he is, we will let you go."

He was lying. Steve could tell it by looking into those dead eyes. The emotion he saw there was no different than if they were looking at a rock that stood in their path. He was just an object in their way. And they were going to destroy him no matter what he told them.

"You are the real m-monsters… N-not him." Steve concluded, trying hard to keep his voice from shaking and failing miserably. "I'm g-glad… that he got away from you…He w-won't come back… You c-can just go ahead… And do it."

"We are the monsters? Are you blipping kidding me? A bot tells me that we are evil, Adler." The young man cast the other human a look and burst in laughter. The callous sound sent chills. When the young man looked at Steve again, the anger had replaced the indifference there. Marko scowled, the threat coming from him making Steve shy away.

"Well, that's too bad." The hunter said with a mocking tone. "You sound like you think he is your friend or something… Wait… Oh blip! That's what this is! Can you believe this, Adler? This pathetic bot thinks that he's made friends with that monster. Ha!" The Player laughed while Steve's heart sunk even lower.

"You useless, blipping bot! You think he cares about bots like you? You are just a blipping toy. He used you and abandoned you. Now you'll be paying the price. And you will pay it for sure, for wasting our time!" The Player leaned closer to yell his last words at Steve and Steve closed his eyes, hiding his face into the ground. He didn't look up even when he felt the cold steel edge of the axe heavily press against his shoulder.

"He w-was my friend!... H-he might not think so, but I… I was his friend…" Steve swallowed, his eyes miserably falling to the ground as the last of his confidence left him.

The player smirked a bit, calming down in his mirth.

"That's funny there. But all right. I guess we are only wasting our time." His tone carried disappointment.

"Hey Steve? You are a Miner, right?" The young hunter's voice regained its amused tone. Steve didn't answer, unwillingly tensing. "Let me ask you this… Do you need both arms to Mine? Or can you do it with just one?"

The deadly edge of the axe dug deeper into Steve's flesh, bruising it. He bit his lips.

"Hey, Adler, what do you think? He looks so much like him, maybe we could make it a matching set? For each of them just one arm? They will be flipping twins, hahaha!"

"Stop goofing around, Mark. Just end him and lets go. He has nothing for us."

Tears continued to run from Steve's blurry eyes as he stubbornly kept his face to the ground. He couldn't help the trembling as fear seized his entire body at what was coming. Despite their apparent hurry and how sharp their weapons were, getting chopped to bits was not going to be swift enough.

"Well, blip…" The younger spat at the ground next to Steve with disappointment. Steve flinched. He felt the deadly blade swing up. Squeezing his eyes tight, he waited.

And waited.

The awaited strike did not come.

Instead, the hunters gasped. A sound came as if of their clothing rustling as they suddenly moved and then froze. Silence descended in the air, tense with waiting. He could hear their breaths, huffed loudly through their noses.

What?...

A dark, familiar chuckle echoed softly across the room so it was difficult to pin-point the direction. His eyes flying wide, Steve threw up his head and searched.

A slight movement revealed a figure standing in the far corner of the cave, nearly completely shrouded in darkness.

"Well, well, well. Isn't this fun… Why did you stop? Go on ahead and kill that fool. I'll just stand here and… watch." Herobrine's velvety voice carried amusement. Steve blinked at that in confusion.

The dark figure lifted his face and white eyes opened, their ghostly light revealing a careless smirk.

Herobrine made an idle gesture. A screen appeared in midair, lighting his figure with menacing blue light. Satisfied, the being casually folded his arms across his chest, appearing to entirely ignore the two Players, who stood tense and with their strange weapons drawn, ready to attack.

Arms. Steve's eyes held on Herobrine's unmarred figure and its easy, almost casual pose. Herobrine appeared to utterly dismiss the threat emanating from the two Players, who glared hostile daggers at him.

"Cannot wait to see what your Admin will do when I send them this… " Ignoring the Players, Herobrine's eyes held on the images displayed on the screen he just brought up. Unwillingly tearing his dazed eyes from Herobrine's undamaged figure, Steve looked there as well. So did the players.

Their own reflections foolishly gaped back at them. Above their heads showed glowing rectangles, which held words. The two adventurers froze, their eyes turning to that screen. Steve blinked at it without comprehension.

Alder Rosvano. Human. Age 36 years 8 months. Adventurer. Level 25.

Marko Weald. Human. Age 19 years 2 months. Adventurer. Level 13.

Steve of Garstone. Human. Age 9 years 3 months. Miner. Level 63.

Herobrine finally looked up, a nasty sneer stretching his lips. He appeared idly amused by the stunned reactions of the two adventurers, whose eyes would not leave the screen.

"Hmm… What penalty is it nowadays?... For disrupting another player's gaming process?... A three-month ban?... But I've set his Mode to Hard Core. Mmmm. My, I do believe its murder. That's sixty years to life. At Hard Core mode and 30% settings? How many respawns will it take before your brains turn to mush? Five, maybe six? Ha, you'll never wake up. That would be just fine. I can always use more mindless puppets…"

The being that Steve recognized, yet didn't recognize, made a dark chuckle that sent new chill across Steve's form. This being… was not the man he thought he came to know.

On the very bottom of magical projection, a red line continued to blink.

Recording in Progress…