Stephen lifted his gaze from the stone-tiled floor at the sound of approaching footsteps, and his eyes widened when he spied a familiar blond head.
"Cafos!" He exclaimed. Cafos didn't answer- couldn't, Stephen realized a moment later, as a strip of cloth was tied around his head and forced between his teeth. He was being forced down the stairs by a taller valkyrie, stumbling over every other step until he was shoved down beside Stephen. Kneeling down beside him, the valkyrie untied his wrists in order to lock them in the nearest set of cuffs. No sooner were his hands free, though, than Cafos took the opportunity to send a fist flying into his captor's face, and the valkyrie shouted in pain as Cafos' bruised knuckles smashed into his cheek.
"You-!" The valkyrie seized Cafos by the forehead and slammed his skull back against the wall, making Stephen wince as his friend let out a choked cry. Cafos remained still after that, blinking dazedly as a pair of shackles were fitted around his wrists and locked in place. Only once he was firmly bound did the valkyrie stand and leave them, allowing Cafos to lift shaky hands to untie the gag.
"You okay?" Stephen whispered. Cafos tossed the gag aside, wetting his dry lips.
"Fine." He rasped. On Stephen's other side, Alexis was quiet.
Stephen had expected the prison beneath Notch's castle to be considerably larger than this - but, then again, there probably weren't too many criminals in the Aether who were worthy of being locked up. The dungeon consisted of a single, large room with several rows of shackles along the far wall, locked up in which were Stephen, his father, Alexis, Notch, and now Cafos. Herobrine was still unconscious - not unreasonable, Stephen didn't want to imagine the kind of damage that Notch's hammer could do to someone. He wasn't even sure what he would say if Herobrine was awake. What did you say to your murderous father whom you hadn't seen since you were an infant?
Stephen cleared his throat quietly. "What happened t' you?"
"Got caught." Cafos said quietly. "Too many of 'em. Heard them talking about what Lucius had planned, but I couldn't do anything. What happened to you? A-and why haven't you teleported out?" Stephen emitted a heavy sigh.
"The cuffs are enchanted." He rattled the chains that bound his wrists to the wall. "So, I can't. We found Herobrine fighting Notch. He got knocked out - Herobrine did - and we spoke to Notch, but… Lucius attacked him." Stephen shrugged helplessly. "And now we're down here."
"Oh." Cafos' gaze flitted to Alexis, then back. "Are you hurt?"
"No." Stephen glanced over to Alexis as well, who was scrunched up against the wall with her knees pressed against her chest. "Lucius… said he'd send her back to her father."
"I'd rather die here with you." Alexis hissed.
"Don't say that," Cafos rebuked her.
"I am deeply regretful that the three of you were caught up in this plot against me." Notch's voice floated over, and Stephen turned to find him watching them quietly. "It seems that Lucius does not care what collateral damage he's caused in his quest to dethrone me." Cafos turned as well, and his blue eyes went wide as he seemed to realize who he was imprisoned with.
"I-I," He stammered out. "I-if not for Stephen, I'm sure that I would have been beside him."
"You were deceived." Notch's dark eyes were kind as he regarded him. "We all were." His gaze fell to Herobrine, still unmoving where he was chained on his left. "Most of all your father, Stephen." For a moment, none of them spoke.
"I wasn't." Alexis pointed out. Stephen couldn't help a hesitant grin, reaching out and straining the limits of his chains to give her a pat on the arm.
"You did," He agreed. "You always told me he was up to something."
"Up to something, indeed." Notch murmured. "What exactly he wants with my power, I don't know."
"Me either." Cafos' gaze drifted back over to the stairs. "But, considering what he's done to get it… it won't be anything good."
Lucius stepped out on the castle balcony, Notch's hammer resting at his side as he gazed out over the sprawling, floating land masses that stretched off into the distance. He leaned on the railing with a sigh, a smirk stretching across his face as he surveyed Notch's domain, and his fingers tightened on the handle of the massive war-hammer. So much power rested in the palm of his hand… if he had a mind to do so, he could make every one of those islands fall.
Of course, he wasn't so foolish as to make such a rash, destructive move on the first day of his reign. Perhaps one day, if the valkyries became too much of an issue. For now, his intent was to keep up the ruse for as long as possible that Notch was still in control here, which would give him sufficient time to become familiar with management of the Aether. When that failed, he could begin taking out the loyalists.
He let out a small, disbelieving laugh, leaning further onto the railing as he gazed out at the horizon. He had schemed for years, decades, even - it wasn't that he'd thought his plan would fail. But to actually hold Notch's hammer in his hands, to stand unobstructed in his chambers… it was incredible. Breathtaking, even.
A small trill had him lifting his head, and he turned to find a small, blue spirit hovering by the entryway.
"Ugh." Lucius glared at the creature, standing upright. "Begone with you." Obediently, the sprite flitted away. Lucius was well aware of what it was - the spirits of deceased valkyries were reborn into such beings. From then on, all they could do was fetch and carry, so he hardly considered them a threat.
Lucius turned back to the view, settling against the railing again as he lifted the hammer to study it. His first order as king had been, of course, to imprison his creator in his own dungeons. But what to do next?
"Stephen." The quiet, gravelly voice captured Stephen's attention from where he had been picking at a loose thread in his tunic, and he turned and looked past Cafos to find narrowed, blank eyes studying him. "So it is you." Herobrine whispered. "I… all this time, I…"
"Father." Stephen whispered, sitting upright. Slowly, Herobrine pushed himself up on one forearm, the other hand going to his head to find where Notch had struck him. Stephen's heart hammered in his chest as he waited. He had so many questions, but now, face to face with his father, any words he could think to say seemed to be trapped in his throat, and all he could do was wait while his father pushed himself up to sit against the wall.
Herobrine took a moment to take in his surroundings - including Notch, and the other prisoners - before returning his gaze to his son. "You're alive." He said simply. Stephen nodded, his throat tight. "How? I…" Herobrine reached up to drag a hand down his face. "What happened? How did I end up here, with…"
"One of my valkyries betrayed me." Notch said quietly. "He caught me off guard and took my hammer. The same valkyrie, I believe, as the one responsible for the loss of your wife and son." Herobrine's gaze flashed back over to Stephen, searching for confirmation, and Stephen gave a quiet nod.
"It's a long story," he admitted. "But… yes." His father was quiet for a little while, processing this.
"Tell me everything." He finally said. "Please." So Stephen did.
He told him of his upbringing, of being raised by Lucius under the guise of being a rescued infant. Told him of meeting Alexis, just weeks ago now, and how quickly she had changed his perspective. He told him of their escape, of Cafos hunting them, and how he and his father had nearly crossed paths in the forest that night. Of what Cafos had told them after they saved him, that Lucius had lied about his origins and taken him under the guise of an order from Notch. He skimmed over the past couple of weeks, meeting Alexis's father and the Lady of Melbourne, traveling with the nomads, then finally making it to the Aether.
Herobrine listened quietly as he spoke, never interrupting, occasionally nodding to show that he was listening. His glowing eyes widened in shock when Stephen told him of how close they had come to meeting in the forest where he had attacked Cafos, but he said nothing until Stephen's tale reached the present.
"I am a fool." He said softly when Stephen finally finished. "I awoke beside Avalon's body… but I did not have the heart to search for yours. I assumed you were dead, but…"
"Awoke?" For the first time, Cafos spoke up, a bit timid in the presence of the man who had nearly killed him. "I-I- did you come back to life? Lucius told me- told us that you were found dead."
"I was gravely wounded, but not killed." Herobrine eyed him with moderate suspicion. "I fell into a healing sleep for years… seven or eight, I think."
"S-Stevie does that too." Alexis piped up. "A couple times he's been hurt, and he's slept for a long time and not responded when I try to wake him up." Stephen turned to look at her, realizing as he did that she was right. From that alone, he felt a bit more connected to his father.
"So you woke up, and decided to get revenge on Notch." Stephen turned back to his father, who winced a bit.
"Yes. Until now, I…" he cast a glance at Notch, who had been watching quietly. "…have not even considered that he could be not the one at fault."
"I understand why." Notch allowed. "Until now, even I would never suspect that my valkyries were operating against my orders."
"And I was told very clearly that you had given the order." Herobrine turned his narrowed gaze on him. "That I was a liability. Why are you still here? Are you truly so weak that you can be held prisoner in your own dungeons?"
"The majority of my power is stored in my hammer," Notch told him, with only a trace of irritation in his voice. "With it taken from me, yes, I am fairly weak. And in case you were unaware, there is a crossbow bolt buried in my heart."
"These chains make it impossible for me to teleport." Stephen cut in. "So I doubt you can either. I haven't tried to throw lightning, but I'm guessing that won't work either."
"Throw lightning?" Herobrine's gaze snapped back to his. "You can…?" He trailed off, and Stephen nodded.
"I don't know which of your abilities I inherited… for most of my life, I didn't know I got them from anywhere. Lucius told me I was just born like that. I-"
"No, you didn't get that from me." Herobrine interrupted quietly. "That was from your mother." The rest of Stephen's words died on his lips.
"Oh." For a moment, all was quiet.
"So what are we going to do?" Alexis finally asked.
"I don't know." Stephen murmured. "My father and I are powerless, Notch and Cafos are hurt, and you're…" he shrugged a bit. "…well, you're most likely the only one that's ever going to make it out of this dungeon."
"Lucius needs me alive if he wants to keep my power." Notch said. "Perhaps, eventually, I will recover enough to break these chains, but until then…"
"And by then, Cafos and I will be dead." Stephen cast a glance at the valkyrie, who returned it with just as much trepidation.
"As much as I loathe my father, maybe I can convince him to help." Alexis muttered. "Unless he's already pledged allegiance to Lucius for bringing me back."
"It's a long shot," Stephen agreed. "But it might be the only thing we have. I don't think-" his voice unexpectedly caught, and he swallowed. "I don't think Lucius has any care for me anymore."
"If he ever did," Cafos mumbled. Stephen couldn't argue, but the thought still made a stab of grief go through his chest.
"Though I do not condone your actions in your grief, I am sorry, Herobrine." Notch spoke again, drawing their attention back to where he was slumped against the wall. "I wish I had looked into the matter personally as soon as I heard the news. Perhaps none of this would have happened."
"Avalon would still be dead." Herobrine said bitterly. "But…" his gaze softened as he turned back to Stephen. "Perhaps I would not have gone so many years thinking my son was as well." Stephen met his gaze quietly, wondering for a fleeting moment what it would have been like to grow up with his father.
A clink came from the direction of the stairs, and Stephen's heartbeat quickened as he turned to look. Someone was coming. Maybe to take Alexis back to her father… or here to execute him and Cafos. He had only just been reunited with his father, was their time together over already?
Instead of a person, however, a tiny, glowing being appeared floating down the stairs, visibly impaired by the weight of the ring of keys in its hands.
Notch gasped. "Micah."