Hero's Bane

Chapter 82: To Never Back Down

Herobrine's eyes opened slowly, his entire body felt heavy and weak; his head pounded painfully like zombies striking a wooden door with brute force. His right shoulder felt a little tender he noticed when coming to but not as near as sore as it was before surprisingly. He blinked a few times and tilted his head to the side once he saw light filtering from the skylight of the stone-carved ceiling, his gaze first landed on the white quartz before moving to the miner sitting on the floor with his upper torso leaning against the side of the well in a lifeless manner. He was dead?

The White-Eyed man blinked again and instantly tried to sit up, instead he only fell back to the floor from his weakened state with a low grunt. He still felt drained but the pressure that used to weigh him down was gone, the atmosphere didn't feel thick and it wasn't trying to force him back to sleep. He looked down at his chest when a bit of a light glow came from the corner of his eyes; it was then that he noticed that the glow was his skin returning and repairing the damage within the wound, even his shirt was repairing itself as if it a blade had never pierced it. He was finally healing, although it was a bit too soon considering that it had been struck during the fight and had opened much more than it first was. The injury even had him debilitated for a good while there and 'now' it was healing? Strange. But then again, there's no telling how long he had been out of it.

The white gaze moved back to the miner, he lifted his head up a little to see Steve's shirt drenched in deep red; right where he had landed a killing blow to the miner in his clouded rage, even the floor around him had crimson smeared all over it. His diamond sword of wrath lay a few feet away from the man but it was also covered in drying red liquid, the miner had removed it and possibly killed himself quicker by doing so and allowing his wounds to drain life-fluid profusely. Herobrine closed his eyes tightly and clenched his teeth together, he had got the miner killed; his only friend killed over something that wasn't worth it. He tried to get the foolish mortal to stop but the miner was dead-set on getting him into the water no matter what, and he had succeeded by taking a lethal blow to get the hero out of his white uncontrollable haze. Now the smell of blood filled the room and his nostrils; a smell that used to be pleasant but now made his stomach churn with distaste, Steve had fallen for nothing with absolutely nothing to gain.

He trusted Notch and death is what he got in return.

The man growled and balled his hands into fists. So this was Notch's plan? To have him kill his only friend so that he would suffer with the guilt? Just like when he watched Lionel die, he didn't watch the miner die but the human looked dead from his position and it seemed like it was so considering the blood loss; his senses had been dulled down by his weariness so there was no telling from his perspective but it seemed to be true. He wouldn't be so thrilled to get up and find out, he almost didn't even want to waste his time to see the truth. He simply didn't want the truth. This is the punishment Notch had given him, the miner was a fool to follow such a deceitful divinity. He was dead now. Killed out of foolishnesses and rage, Lionel's one descendant that was so much like him, gone; gone just like the sentinel.

"Y-you must be getting softer... Brine." Steve's voice echoed in his head, he could still see that pained smile. "You didn't last- so long in that cr-crazed state, I thought you... you said that you were g- going to kill me? Got-gotta try harder than... than that."

...

"I'm s-sorry I couldn't keep-" He could almost see Lionel in that same pained face. "Ke-keep-p it. ..."

...

"Forgive me for this Herobrine." Steve's voice sounded, that hurt smile on the man's face was the last he saw of the miner before the plunge.

...

"I'm... sorry. Forgive ...me-... Herobrine." Those sapphire eyes of the sentinel's closed for the final time.