Aaaand back with Fallen Honor!

Personally, I think this chapter is kiiiinda poorly done...I may come back and make some edits, but for right now, enjoy my suffering

Vote and comment on what you like most, please!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

RECAP

          The immortal seethed as he stalked towards the man's prone form. It was good he had not gone over the cliff, it would have been a real nuisance to have to catch him.

          The human just had to know something. He had to, there was some reason the being had not been able to kill him, and the demon was going to get it, even if it was whispered with the human's last dying breaths.

END RECAP 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

          Steve's breath hitched as he heard the immortal's heavy boots stomp towards him. What had he said wrong? How had he angered the being? A weight smashed into his lower back, and Steve let out a strangled yelp, coughing and crying out again when the demon ground in his heel, making it harder to breathe. Steve stiffened when the icy sharpness of the pickax suddenly rested on his temple.

          "You're going to tell me what I want to know, mortal, even if you must scream it out as I slowly hack off your limbs to get it. Have. You. Spoken. With. The. Creator." The immortal punctuated his sentences with a harsh stamp, causing Steve to give out jerky wails at every crushing blow.

          Steve coughed, struggling to breathe in spite of the heavy weight, "N-no, please, I haven't...I-I've seen h-him f-from...far off, a-as we marched b-before the Capital...be-before we went...to battle."

          The demon growled lowly, causing Steve to flinch, "I-if you...could j-just tell m-me what you...you-re trying to figure out...I may b-be able to help more..."

          A large hand gripped the back of his neck and yanked him to his feet, not letting go. Steve inhaled sharply, "Gah!" as his bruised ribs and stomach stretched. He closed his eyes, expecting to be thrown over the cliff. A sudden, sickening sensation flowed over him, his stomach churned, and his body felt as if he was laying on ice and on fire at the same time. Two cyan flashes followed in quick succession.

          The hand released him, and he crumbled to the ground silently on his right side, too sick to stand. He blinked his blue eyes open, and a low, red light hit them, causing them to sting. The soldier hissed, closing them again, waiting for his eyes to adjust after being away from light for so long.

          Heavy footsteps led away from him, and Steve forced his eyes open, though one was quickly swelling shut, blinking hard, forcing his pupils to adjust faster. His blurry vision cleared, and he gaped in awe at his surroundings.

          He was lying in a massive cavern, illuminated by a few redstone torches, known for their energy, not their light. The ceiling was so high, it disappeared into the darkness, though a few stalactites were lit up as they hung down like massive teeth. The floor was jagged and uneven, stalagmites jutting up like massive pillars. Not three blocks in front of him was a raised platform, with naturally formed steps leading up to what looked like a throne of sorts. The throne was made of a raised, smooth seat surrounded by the same spikes that had trapped him to the cave wall during his first few hours of being a prisoner.

          Steve blinked, then blinked again, utterly confused as to how he had gotten there. Perhaps he'd been...teleported? He'd heard of the being's incredible capabilities in stories before but had never thought a human could survive it! Notch had the same ability; Steve had witnessed it when he suddenly appeared from the wall of his palace in the Capital to directly in front of a division of performing soldiers. Nearly every sword had been dropped, including his. It had been an amazing, and yet such a casual display of Notch's immense power, and it had startled the soldiers badly, much to the anger of their sergeant.

          The immortal was walking up to the throne, turning and sitting down on it, leaning back leisurely. He glared down at his unmoving, baffled prisoner, "Yes, I teleported you here, mortal." he grumbled, the disgust in his deep voice obvious, as though he was reading Steve's thoughts, "Now quit gawking and listen up."

          Steve nodded, tried to sit up, winced, and lay back down again.

          The immortal huffed, "You humans are really quite pathetic. I wonder why Notch still tries to protect you from me." Ignoring Steve's frown, he continued, "At the river, before I brought you here, I was about to thrust you through. I was eager to hear your dying screams, see the life drain from your eyes..." The demon smirked as Steve shuddered, "But, something...halted me." He scowled, "I felt a deep wrenching in my chest, as if my very being was screaming at me to spare your worthless life."

          At this confession, confusion spread over Steve's face, "W-why? I'm...not special in the slightest..."

          "Precisely. You are less than nothing to me, and I can't imagine you were useful at all in the 'great and all-powerful Lord Notch's army." The demon crossed his arms, "You are neither one blessed with powers, nor are you a wielder of magic, and yet, there is an aura about you that makes you especially hard to kill..." The being grinned, "But it is not impossible to kill you."

          The mortal shivered, and the immortal scoffed, "For reasons that, if explained, would be useless to your feeble mind, I need to find out why." The being glared down at the human, who shrank from his gaze, "Now, you will tell me everything about you, every detail and unusual occurrence in your short lifetime...or I will finish what I so longed to do earlier."

          Steve grimaced and tried not to shiver at the ominous threat, "Th-that...may take a while..."

          The immortal chuckled, "Then you best start talking before I...encourage you..." At this, he called his pickax out of thin air, a cyan flash signifying its arrival, casually running a finger along the sharp, gleaming tip.

          Steve's jaw fell open. He was just like Notch...the being's power, so nonchalantly displayed...made him feel so weak and insignificant. How was it that the immortal was unable to kill him? He wondered briefly if giving away his 'backstory' would betray Notch in any way...he most definitely did not want to aid his creator's enemy.

          A sharp clang made him flinch, and he saw the demon looking at him expectantly, the pick's head on the floor, and his earlier threat rang in Steve's head. The threat of eternal pain. 

          He sighed and bowed his head to the stones, "Notch forgive me..." He whispered. The information would be pulled out of him anyway, no matter how much he tried to resist. He was a coward, weak, and afraid of pain, and he hated it, hated himself for his weakness.

          "Well? Are you going to talk, or will I have to begin hacking off fingers?" The being's voice echoed darkly, accompanied by a shhriiing as the pick was lifted from the ground.

          Steve shook his head, "N-no...just...weighing my options. It's hard to...give information of any kind to your master's enemy."

          A dark laugh rang from the immortal, sending chills down Steve's spine, "Indeed...it must be. But seeing that I don't give a bloody chunk of Netherrack about how you feel, I suggest you get talking. Don't worry...I'll start with your left hand, as humans often seem fond of their right."

          "Okay! Okay...I'll talk..." Steve sighed, cursing himself mentally for his betrayal.

          "Good. Now lie still."

          The ground suddenly began rumbling and shuddering, a sound Steve recognized well. He gasped and tried to scramble away, but a spike of rock shot up, along with others, surrounding him and forcing him upright. Soon, he was on his knees, facing the 'throne', supported by crisscrossing rocks that were, surprisingly, not pointed at his chest, but diagonal, holding him up. They still hurt his cracked ribs, nevertheless. The spikes under his stomach, however, were hovering just under his flesh, waiting for the command that would drive them through his unprotected stomach. Steve's upper arms were held back and up, at an uncomfortable angle. One gesture could force his arms higher, tearing them from their sockets.

          Steve was shaking, despite his best efforts not to. The demon saw this and grinned, "You are right to still fear me, human. Perhaps you are not quite the idiot I thought you were." The immortal sat back a bit on his throne, "Now, begin. Leave nothing out, even what you deem unnecessary, only I will judge its worth."

          Steve swallowed, still dehydrated, but nodded anyway, "V-very well..." He took a deep breath, trying to calm his racing heart. One wrong word could easily be his last, "As you al-already know, I know not my p-parents. I was found deep in a jungle region, in a large...t-temple...I believe. At least, it is what the soldiers who f-found me told me." Steve bit his lip, "I have...no memory before that point. The soldiers took pity on me, and brought me to the nearest village, though I heard them w-whispering things, such as 'he looks so alike, how?' and, 'perhaps he is linked?'. I knew not w-what they were talking about, my mind far too hazy to process anything more than simple commands and words..." Steve coughed slightly, grimacing at the pain in his chest.

          "What garb did the soldiers wear."

          Steve jumped, the demon's voice sounded...cold, angry, "Uh, I remember only a little...but they wore iron armor with touches of gold, white tabards and capes bearing the emblem of Lord Notch...it was the first time I remember ever seeing that symbol...there were...three soldiers I think." Steve glanced up, seeing if he had answered right.

          The demon's glowing eyes were narrow, but he motioned for the young soldier to go on. Steve wetted his lip, "They left me at Haerdawn with a kind, older man...Jack Forest. He was a miner, and he took care of me, teaching me his trade." Steve managed a tiny smile, "We had the best of times, and though I was far too weak to consider taking on the trade of a professional miner, I would help out Jack, and together we made enough to get by. He...was like the father I never knew..." Steve's voice grew distant, longing, but he changed it at the impatient shuffle coming from the being, "I think I was living there for...only a few months until war broke out." His voice grew bitter, and he looked pointedly at the immortal, "We were told by a wandering merchant that Lord Notch's brother had vanished. Some say he'd been captured, and his blood used to release a demon from the Nether itself...a demon that killed him and its summoners...then went on to destroy many villages, including Haerdawn..." The young soldier's voice grew distant as his head sank, "...and everything I had grown to love."

          Dark laughter erupted from the throne, startling Steve badly. He glanced up, heartbeat quickening. The immortal was chuckling, but the emotion didn't reach his eyes, and sounded forced, "Ah, so this is what the humans have twisted the story to become...how naïve and utterly predictable." He leaned back, shaking his head, gesturing for the young soldier to go on.

          Steve frowned slightly, confused, but soon visions of fire and screaming people filled his mind, "I...fled during the attack...made it into the woods...when the fires died down, I went back...to search for sur-survivors." He choked up, remembering the blackened skeletons, the half-melted flesh...the blood. Swallowing, he forced himself to continue, "The...the Valkyries visited our town that day. There were only two of them...and they seemed shocked as only about ten people emerged from the rubble. They had come to recruit soldiers to aid Lord Notch against the demon but...the monster...was wiping out town after town, robbing them of human fighters."

          The immortal shifted on the throne, and Steve daringly looked up, praying he hadn't pushed his luck. The being was smirking slightly, so Steve hurried to continue, "I...as you've said before..." He scowled, "Was all but useless. They stuck me with the most expendable, and the easiest to train. Footsoldiers. It's where I met my only friends," His voice caught, rage filling him, making him forget his perilous position. All he saw was that demon's merciless gaze as Ezan was cut down, heard his crazed laughter as Rand's spirit fled his body, "And you murdered them right in front of me."

          Cold, razor-sharp diamond was suddenly stroking the tendon directly behind his left ear. He gasped, and froze as the demon's voice reached him, "I do believe you are forgetting your place...mortal. I hold the power here...it is foolish of you to even assume you can speak to me in such an angered manner."

          Steve grimaced as the diamond dug in, "Agh! F-forgive me...I'll...I'll finish-!" The diamond was removed, slowly, and the being teleported back to his throne. Steve winced at the sting of the wound, the tickle of hot blood running from his neck causing him to shudder. He swallowed, "I was successfully recruited along with a few others, and made the journey, protected by the Valkyries, to the Capital to train. There I saw Lord Notch from a distance...maybe once or twice. We w-were sent on missions to improve our formations and gain experience regularly and defended a few villages from robber bands, Pillagers, and the like. My first real battle was...this one." Steve grimaced, adjusting his position, adding softly, "I wish I'd never joined..."

          Heavy footsteps came towards him and Steve glanced up, seeing the demon descend the stairs, swinging his pick. Steve swallowed, trying to quell his rising fear.

          The immortal seemed to sense his fright, and grinned, "Ah, humans...so easily scared...so feeble-minded..." He halted in front of the man, looming over him, then knelt, grabbing his chin with a grip of iron. The mortal tried to pull away, to no avail. The demon looked deep into his eyes, growling whenever Steve tried to close them. Steve was forced to look into the brightness for what seemed like hours, until the immortal spoke, "I sense you are telling the truth, mortal. You should be grateful I believe you...if only this once." He released Steve's chin and stood, waving away the rocks. The spikes vanished into the earth with a rumble, robbing the young soldier of his support. He fell to the cool floor with an oof, sight still blurry from gazing into the bright white of the being's eyes.

          The ground continued trembling, however, and the young man saw more dark spikes thrust up through the floor, menacing and sharp, encircling him, angling towards him, cutting off any escape. He was left with barely two by two blocks of space. The sharp stones pointed at him like accusatory claws of wicked demons. It was a cage.

          If he tried to climb out, he'd be impaled on the projectiles. Steve knew better than to resist, and merely lay there until the rumbling and shuddering had stopped, his ribs in too much pain to do much else.

          The demon saw how his prisoner stayed put. Good, the mortal was learning his place, "As you must know by now, you are not to even touch these spines that make up your temporary prison, lest they grow larger and impale you where you lay." He grinned at the human's slight gasp, then waved his hand, creating a loaf of bread and a bottle of water, tossing them carelessly into the circle of spikes, "Eat, and rest while you still can. I have much to think about."

           The being disappeared with a flash of cyan, leaving Steve to weakly reach out for the water, which had landed near his head. He grasped it and shakily sat up, hunched from his cracked ribs, popping the cork with his teeth and guzzling the refreshing, cool water. The bread was tough but nourishing, and when he finished, he finally felt like he could sleep. Steve lay down, careful to avoid the dark spines, cushioning his head on a bruised arm.

           He sent a last prayer to Notch for strength, hoping he hadn't given anything vital away, wondering just how much time he had left in this world. He hoped he didn't have to die in this desolate place, he missed grass and trees...the wind...the sun.

           Sleep overtook him within minutes.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Welp!

I hope you liked it!

To Walk or All That From A Snowball next? (I'm thinking To Walk lol)

Vote and comment!!