Minecraft Story Mode: Darkness Rising

Chapter 17

Jesse came conscious amidst a haze of pain.  Words floated at the edge of her hearing, what sounded like two people arguing.

"He isn't in the castle anymore, at least."

"That's because there isn't a castle anymore."

"You know a place where we can stay until this all blows over?"

"Yeah, I've got a place."

Jesse felt a vague sense of movement, of being picked up by somebody or something, and then the darkness took her again.

When she surfaced again the silence pressed in on her.  The fear inside her was almost palpable before she registered the sound of whispers somewhere nearby.

"Do they know about this hiding place?"

"I don't know.  They aren't exactly people I associate with."

"At least that's something."

"Hello?" Jesse's voice croaked horribly, as if it hadn't been used in days. Her eyes slowly opened.

She was in some sort of cave, stretched out on a ratty blanket. A frail fire sputtered nearby. Only two other people were in the cave. One was Lukas, or some form of him, and the other was Anide.

"We're here," the Lukas promised, moving closer. She instinctively flinched away from him and he paused, hurt painting his features.

"She's just fragile," Anide promised him. He moved so that he was kneeling beside Jesse. "How does your back feel?"

"Like I fell on a rock and then got stung by a swarm of bees."

"Well, you're alive, and that's all that matters."

"Who are you?" Jesse asked the Lukas.

"Lukas," came the assured response. "The real one."

Jesse turned her eyes to Anide, who nodded. "I checked after you got, um, stabbed."

The memories of what had happened came rushing back in a torrent and Jesse curled up in pain. Immediately Anide and Lukas surrounded her, asking what was wrong and trying to help.

"The memories . . . they hurt," Jesse groaned.

"Then don't think about it," Anide told her. "You don't have to remember any of that now."

"When I catch Herobrine . . ." Lukas growled.

"He used you, just like he used all of us," Anide said. "We're just lucky Jesse survived."

With Herobrine's name came a new stab of pain. It always seemed to circle back to him. Him, the one who had started all this mess. Him, the reason Jesse and Lukas were trapped wherever they were now. And him, the one Jesse loved. Somehow.

For a moment she fought against the memories, trying to pluck out those final crucial moments right before or after the kiss, but the pain was too much. She drew back and let the flood subside. She'd have to wait and see. Maybe that had been Herobrine. Maybe it hadn't.

But it probably had been.

Jesse's eyes flickered to Lukas's feet, trying to detect any trace of darkness or ash. There was nothing. So the Lukas in the tower who kissed her, the one with black footprints . . .

The thought brought another wave of nausea and pain. Jesse shut her eyes. She could vaguely hear Anide and Lukas speaking above her.

"We can't mention anything about the castle," Anide warned. "Clearly whatever Herobrine did to her causes a lot of pain when it's triggered."

"So I can't explain-?"

"No. We have to wait until she's recovered."

The fit of pain faded and Jesse allowed her eyes to open again. Lukas and Anide were watching her.

"Where are we?" she asked.

"A cave in the middle of the EastLands," Anide answered. "They're far enough from other reflections that we'll probably be safe, but close enough to the castle ruins that we can see if anybody comes through the portal."

"Why are we hiding from other reflections?"

"Well, we're hiding from four in particular. They seem to have a bone to pick with you and Lukas."

"Who are they reflections of?" This question was directed at Lukas, but he hesitated before answering.

"It's not really important," he finally said. "They're names here are Oriv, Paret, Xeal, and Vialoi. Sort of 'bounty-hunters-for-hire.'"

"Why do they want to kill us so badly?"

"I think they just want to finish what Herobrine started."

"Why would anyone side with him? Don't they realize that he'll just kill them?"

"You'd think so." Jesse glanced at Anide. It sounded like he was the one who had spoken, but he was frowning and looking around for the source of the voice as well. In unison, all three of them turned to watch the cave entrance as a lone silhouette approached the firelight.

"Then again, I fell for the same trap, so maybe we're all just stupid," the voice continued as a grinning face came into focus.

"Aiden," Lukas growled, reaching for his sword.

"Lukas," came the response. Aiden's hazel eyes swung around the room before landing on Jesse. His diamond sword glittered in the firelight. "Hello, Jesse. Looks like you're in bad shape."