Water Escape

A light breeze blew against our faces. Two tiny boats rushed across the Sea, carried by the strong undercurrents. Steve seemed to know well where we were going. His grim, determined look spoke clearly that we were doing the right thing. I, on the other hand, struggled to accept that we had to leave so abruptly, abandoning everything we've worked for behind us. I had just started getting used to living on the island, almost thinking of it as home. I didn't want to bother Steve with my questions, though, reasoning that when he was ready, he would explain.

For a long time, we both remained quiet. Then, finally, Steve spoke.

"... The first time I saw him was when I just moved to the mainland. One night I ended up far from home. I decided to wait it out on top of a tree. So I picked a tall, strong tree, climbed it, and dozed off in the branches. Something woke me up right before dawn, when the sun just began to rise. I looked below and saw... Him... He walked surrounded by the crowd of the living dead. They didn't touch him. Instead, they followed him... Like... Like guards... I hid in the branches, trying not to move, hoping that they would not notice me. And they didn't notice me, passing nearly out of sight, when He stopped and turned. He looked straight at me. I'll never forget it. Those two white empty spots instead of eyes... He just walked away. But I couldn't even move. I think I stayed up in that tree until late noon, when the sun was high and bright in the sky. And only then did I manage to finally get down and hurried to reach home. Since then, my life changed..."

Steve's words carried some relief for getting this event off his chest. It was obvious that it had dwelt in his mind for a while now, bothering him.

"Everywhere I went, I started to notice strange things. Things that shouldn't BE. In the sea, pyramids made of sand. In the mines, perfect narrow tunnels, which I did not build and which were not there the night before. I could walk into the forest and discover trees, stripped bare of leaves. And every day, these signs appeared closer and closer to my house. And then one morning I opened the door and saw the entire place around my house covered with bits of rotten flesh. Do you understand? While I slept, hundreds of zombies crowded around my house and peered into my windows, watching me sleep with their dead eyes! And in the morning... they all just burned alive, instead of leaving..."

Steve frowned deeply, drawing in a shaky breath. His eyes remained distant, lost in his memories.

"I knew then that the next night in that place would be my last. I took everything and... left. I just started walking, without any clear idea in mind on where I should go. That first evening I stopped for the night in one of the empty villages I passed. The house that I picked probably belonged to a librarian or a scientist. There were so many bookshelves. On one of them I found a book of myths and legends. That's how I learned exactly who it was that I saw that one morning."

Steve fell silent for a moment, and then continued.

"His name is Herobrine. He is the Creator's stillborn brother. One of them, who created our world. Unable to find a place among the gods, he ended up forever doomed to wander in the darkness. He feeds off fear and terror in human minds. Anyone who sees him is doomed, especially if it happens early at dawn. Sooner or later, Herobrine will come for them. At first, he will simply linger close to his victim's dwelling. But eventually he will enter. And believe me, no locked doors will keep him out. He will come when you are asleep, in the darkest hour of the night. And he will stand near the head of your bed and look, waiting for the poor soul to wake up. And when that person wakes, Herobrine's evil smile will be the last thing they will ever see...

After I found out about this, I couldn't sleep for days. For some reason I had this thought that if I didn't sleep, Herobrine wouldn't be able to come after me. I kept walking, until I could walk no longer, and fell asleep in a cave. I woke up still alive. And that's how I learned that the Curse could be delayed. I just had to keep moving far enough, so my pursuer would lose track of me. In the end, I ended up on the island and decided to settle there... I thought I could outwit Herobrine, but he still ended up coming after me. Although, how DID he get there? Did he... walk across the bottom of the sea?" Steve's words trailed off into a murmur meant for himself and then he fell silent entirely.

Nervously, I considered everything I just heard.

"Steve, I... I saw him last morning. Exactly as you described... Am I... Cursed, too? Steve!"

My friend raised his head and met my desperate gaze with a gloomy look. "Now do you understand? That's why we cannot go back. We will have to keep moving. Water will delay him for a good long while, but someday he will once again find us. And its best if we remain ready for him to show up."

"... Listen, Steve. I just thought of something... If monsters do him no harm, that means that he is also a monster. Do you think we could... defeat him? With same weapons we used against the other monsters?" I asked hopefully. Steve gave me a skeptical look.

"According to the legends, he is kin to the Creator himself. Do you really think we could face him?"

I hesitated for only a moment. Of course, it would probably be difficult to fight a being, who can terrify you by look alone. "Doesn't matter." I said firmly. "First, we must conquer our fear. Then, we will defeat even him."

"... That's a good mindset, Davis." Steve grinned a crooked smile, though he still appeared skeptical. "And there is the mainland up ahead."

We aimed toward the coast, and soon my boat smashed into the shore, scraping its bottom across the sand. The fragile cork tree crumbled at the impact. It did not matter, though. We no longer needed our flimsy transport. I jumped ashore, helped Steve to get out of his boat, and then we curiously looked around.

A vast desert stretched before us without an end in sight.

"Something to eat would be nice just about now." Steve muttered and reached to search among his hastily gathered things. I nodded with full agreement. We had been sailing all day and, while hunger remained at bay while we were still riding the waves out in the sea, now our stomachs rumbled, insisting that it was time to eat.

Steve looked through his belongings a while longer, before turning toward me with some embarrassment.

"I think that I might have forgotten to bring any food, Davis. We had to leave in such a hurry. Did you bring anything?"

I immediately started looking and with rising worry realized that I also forgot to bring food. There was no bread. I looked at Steve. He must have understood everything from my expression, because he turned and cast a frowning look at the unknown, vast land waiting for us.

"Not good... We cannot even pick apples from trees here – there is nothing but sand for many blocks ahead. And sun will be setting soon... We won't be able to fight THEM well on an empty stomach... We'll have to cross this desert. Hopefully it's not far."

Without further words, we gathered our things and began walking, determined to first finish two important tasks. We had to find food and shelter.