Hello! Y'all are spoiled! Two different chapters and one is 4080 words?!

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RECAP

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          Steve gently moved under his friend's left arm, laying it over his shoulder and supporting Ezan, matching his gait with the other man's. Ezan gave him a shaky grin, "G-good to see you a-again..."

          Steve smiled, "And you, friend."

           Together, they slowly made their way through the steadily rising ravine. Neither man talked, saving their strength and both looking about for any sign of danger.

          Or, more precisely, of him.

END RECAP

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A few hours later...

          "Ezan, you need to rest. If you push yourself too hard and fall unconscious, I won't be able to move you." Steve let out a small chuckle, "You know me, I'm not strong." The two young men had been walking for at least three hours, stopping to kneel and drink from rapidly drying puddles when their thirst grew too great. The sun was setting, and Ezan was getting heavier as his weakened body succumbed to the bleeding and pain.

            Ezan growled and finally nodded, "V-very...well...we'll rest...h-here..."

          Steve nodded and scanned for a rock that provided a bit of shelter. He spotted a chunk of stone that had fallen against a steep cliff face and began to shuffle towards it, holding Ezan up by this waist and arm. They made it and Ezan slumped gratefully against the stone, Steve settling down beside him. Neither spoke for some time, both too exhausted and emotionally drained to bother conversing.

          After a good while, Steve broke the silence with a quiet voice, "How'd you make it out?"

          Ezan winced and sat up a bit straighter, "I...I really...d-don't know." He shuddered, "He nearly had me...I w-was on the gr-ground...he'd cut open my stomach and...w-was just st-standing over me...grinning like a maniac." Ezan took a shaky breath, "I w-was terrified...but I glared...at him...spat b-blood at his feet... Th-then he ju-just...vanished..."

          Steve's mouth dropped open, "You...you spat blood at him?? And he let you live?"

          Ezan allowed a pained smile to show through, "Heh...I don't kn-know why...but yes...he did appa-apparently..." His smile faded, "He had j-just finished...ki-killing...another soldier...in fr-front o-of me..."

          Steve flinched, "Oh, I'm so sorry Ezan—"

          Ezan growled, "D-don't be. It w-was him and h-him alone...w-who did this...don't bl-blame your...yourself." He used his weakened right elbow to lightly dig into Steve's side, "Now...enough a-about me. How'd you ma-make it...?"

          Steve smiled and shook his head, "I...I just...ran, I guess. I ran for so long, not caring where, just trying to get away." He turned to see Ezan's head begin to droop, "Heh, enough stories, rest for now. You'll need it."

          Ezan's nod was barely perceptible in the growing darkness. Steve settled against the unforgiving rock and began to scan his surroundings, keeping watch as his only friend slept.

          It was going to be a long night.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~The next morning~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

          The barest hint of sunlight peered over the tips of the black rocks, burning away the deep mists and bringing warmth to the desolate place. No birds greeted the day, this was a place void of life, filled with fear and uncertainty. The mists had hardly dissolved before one of the two figures huddled under an overhang stirred. Steve hadn't rested all night but knew there would be no recovering from the lack of rest. Speed and stealth would determine whether they lived or died. Turning to his companion, the blue-clad figure began to gently shake the bandaged form.

          "Ezan..."

          Ezan stirred, mumbling, "fi' mor' mins..."

          Steve poked his friend's cheek, "Ezan, I'm sorry, but you've got to get up. We've go to go...we don't know how long it'll take him to track us down."

          Ezan blinked, tried to stretch, winced, and settled for a yawn, "y'r right...gotta move..."

          Steve rolled his eyes, "And I'm supposed to be the one who's terrible at getting up in the morning." He shoved himself wearily to his feet, burned out by the long night, but they couldn't afford to rest any longer, "C'mon, Ezan...gimme your hand."

          Groggily, Ezan reached up and felt Steve sway as the uninjured man pulled him up. Ezan woke up more, "You didn't sleep, did you."

          It was more a statement than a question. Ezan frowned at Steve, who smiled tiredly, the rising sun illuminating the dark circles under his eyes and the unchecked shadow of stubble along his jaw and upper lip, "Don't worry about me, you needed it more."

          Ezan sighed, "At least...let me take the next watch..."

          Steve grunted at he helped bear the wounded man's weight, "You can count on it."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~A few hours of walking later~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

          Steve was utterly lost.

          He suppressed the urge to cry out in anger or break down in sorrow...or both. He merely suggested a break to a weary Ezan, and the man gratefully accepted. He'd not complained or asked for a break once since that morning. They settled against the side of the ravine, which was narrowing, hidden by a slight bit of shade. Steve noted the walls were becoming noticeably shorter as they had progressed, going steadily uphill.

          Now, the sun had moved westward, lighting up the dark rocks with heat and burning away any leftover rainwater. Inside the ravine, and sheltered from most of the wind, the two men had felt the worst of the sun's rays, their eyes constantly squinted and the heat waves rising from the stones, serving to give them both a headache. They were both very thirsty, though neither voiced it.

          Steve finally broke the silence as he heaved a sigh," Ezan, I'm...I'm sorry...I'm lost."

          Ezan opened one eye and gave a humorless, pained chuckle, "Heh...I'd be surprised if...you weren't."

          Steve dragged a calloused hand down his sweaty face, shutting his eyes, "I can't...I don't want to be lost...especially not with you... This will only add to the time you have to walk."

          Ezan snorted, "So? Steve, I don't blame you... How a-about you scout...out a bit... Leave me here."

          Steve stubbornly shook his head, reaching down to flick away a stone digging into his knee, "That's out of the question. You're too exposed here, and if even a silverfish came out of these rocks, you'd be outmuscled."

          Ezan raised an eyebrow, leaning back against the massive shard they sheltered against, "I'm choosing...not to b-be offended...at that."

          Steve sighed again, "Rest up. We need to keep moving."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~Hours later~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

          Steve panted, sweat coating his brow as he licked dry lips. Beside him, Ezan was barely coherent, he'd struggled with every step, and yet never complained. They stood at the edge of a sheer cliff.

          Steve was definitely lost. They had made it to the top of the ravine, where it turned into a massive cliff, a three hundred block drop, with a river thundering below. The other side was another cliff, only slightly taller than the side they stood on, and nearly thirty blocks away.

           Steve sighed, "Ezan, I'm sorry, I—"

           Ezan jerked, then hissed, "Steve, quiet."

          "No, really, I—Mmmff!"

          Ezan slapped his injured arm's hand over Steve's mouth, his eyes boring into the jumble of sharp rocks behind them. Steve recognized his friend's warning tone as Ezan lowered his hand, and immediately went silent, using his own eyes to help Ezan, "What exactly are we looking for." Steve murmured softly.

          Ezan whispered, "I...I think I saw..."

          Suddenly, lightning struck the rocks. Steve shouted and threw Ezan to the ground, going down on his hands and knees over his friend's body, protecting him from the shockwave and raining shards of black rock. Some hit his exposed back, causing Steve to hiss and flinch, feeling blood seep from the cuts, but none were fatal. Steve's heart pounded as the last pieces slammed into the stones next to him.

          There had not been a cloud in the sky to make that lightning strike.

          Steve, horrified, looked about for any danger, then pulled a coughing Ezan up. Ezan winced and tried to glare at Steve, "You...sh-shouldn't have done that...I c-can take...it..."

          Steve scowled, then sighted a pathway leading away from the cliff's edge, though it went towards where the lightning had struck. Deciding to take the risk, Steve turned to Ezan, opening his mouth to tell his plan—

          When Ezan suddenly shoved him in the side and sent him over the edge of the drop.

          Too terrified to cry out, a whispered scream was all that escaped him as he plummeted towards the raging river below. Time seemed to slow, as Steve raised his eyes to Ezan, still standing on the edge, looking down at him with pain in his eyes.

          And then a curved, blue spike seemed to grow from the middle of Ezan's chest. Red stained his torso as the spike was jerked out of him. Then, he, too, was pushed over the cliff.

          Revealing a wickedly smiling man behind him, a bloodstained pick in hand.

          The demon.

          The pent-up scream that had never been released now forced itself from the very core of Steve's chest. It tore from his throat in a wild, long cry of fear, hatred, and utter anguish and grief for his lost friend, "EZAAAAAN!!! NOOOOO!!"

          The being frowned as he heard Steve's shriek, looking down at the falling mortal. The agonized scream lasted until the man hit the river and was lost from sight. The being turned his back to the river, mentally picturing the curve in the river that would catch any survivors. A maniacal grin split his face, revealing four sharp canines along his upper and lower teeth. Focusing on his destination, he warped away to the river's bend, concealing himself among the sharp stones jutting out of the ground to the left of the rapids.

          He would wait with the patience of a stalking predator.

          Neither man would escape alive.

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Boy that's getting old to say. Hope you liked it! I'm eager to see what you guys think.

Over n' Out,

~ScarOfHerobrine