The Lost Stone Of Consequences

Chapter 15: This wish...

Third-person POV (Lukas)

Lukas continued standing still, gazing at everyone, Herobrine standing next to his two daughters while the dragon quietly curled about them, Steve glowering at Lukas, while Jesse and Petra looking worriedly at each other.

Nobody knew what Lukas would do, and, in all honesty, neither did he. He had to make a choice, to either erase Steve's memory of his obsession with Alex or to make him vanish from the world. He carefully weighed the options in his head, looking at the possible consequences. He didn't know what would happen if he erased Steve's memory, but he had an idea of what would happen if he made him vanish.

To simple put it, it would be like the group never met. He and Jessica wouldn't be standing where they are, with Petra and Jesse. Jesse and Jessica would probably be taken care of in this place, with their sister and father laughing at their antics. The flowers gently rustling in the breeze as they ran away from their sister in a game of tag. The mother bringing food out for a picnic.

He didn't want to think about what would have happened to everyone if the Witherstorm happened at the end of that consequence. Maybe they wouldn't be able to unite the Old Order and defeat the Witherstorm.

With a deep breath, Lukas made his choice.

Wish for Steve to vanish from existence

Wish for Steve to only remember Alexandria as his old friend

As he waited for the stone to react, he contemplated what the consequence would possibly be to the option he chose.

He didn't have long to wait.

Petra's POV

I stared at Lukas, waiting. I really hoped that nothing would happen. Jesse kept sneaking glances at me and looking away when I looked at him, a red tint to his cheeks.

What was going on with him?

I glanced over at Jessica with her father and sister. Well... she and Jesse's father and sister. As I kept glancing between the four of them, Jesse carefully slipped his hand into mine, gently gripping it.

"Jesse?" I asked, feeling my face heat up. Oh, great. Now I'm turning into a tomato... but I didn't understand. What was happening?

He turned to me. "Petra... I-"

Before he could finish, an orb of blinding light lit up from Lukas's direction. I watched as Herobrine shouted, and Annabelinda, the dragon, swept her tail around us, pulling us toward the others as her wings became a tent roof over us.

Jessica cried out as her father held her tightly back as Annabelinda wrapped her arms around us in a makeshift, scaly wall.

"Dad!? What's happening?!"

"I don't know." murmured Herobrine, "but I don't want any of you caught in it."

Lily said, "What about Anna?!"

"Annabelinda is a full-fledged dragon, daughter. She can take the stone's magic and keep standing." Herobrine soothed, hugging his daughters to him. Then he motioned for Jesse to come over to him. When Jesse, slowly walking over, Herobrine pulled him into the group hug.

"My son..." mumbled Herobrine, tenderly his children to him, "My children... my beloved kids..."

After several minutes of waiting, Annabelinda raised her wings and head, gracefully unraveling herself from her protective cocoon around us. As we squinted at the marble walls, we noticed Steve laying still on the floor, his chest rising up and down.

"At least he isn't dead," Herobrine stated, sounding relieved, his eyes soft and tired.

"Why do you sound happy? He could have killed us all!" Jesse said, staring at his father in confusion.

With a melancholy smile, Jesse's dad said, "I would never hurt one of your mother's friends. I wouldn't even hurt any of your friends."

"LUKAS!" cried Jessica, picking up her skirts and racing around the raised quartz pedestal. This yell made us race after her, worried about our buddy.

When we reached the opposite side of the elevated platform, Lily swooped and picked up the gem that laid on the ground, gingerly putting it back on the pedestal as we continued going. We found Jessica kneeling and setting Lukas's head on her lap under the mural of a green-haired boy with a gem we didn't know, and masks all around him.

We all quickly gathered around, looking anxiously down at our ally. His chest, like Steve, gently rose and fell in a simple motion. It almost looked like he was asleep.

"Papa..." Jessica whispered, looking up at everyone. "Lukas is normally a light sleeper... He should have woken up when I lifted his head..."

Herobrine's POV

I stared down at my younger daughter as she worriedly brushed the hair from his forehead. I had an idea about what he wished, but I needed Steve to wake up to test it.

"Lily, take them to the guest room and put Lukas in the bed, then come back here."

"Got it, Dad," Lily said, carefully picking Lukas up and carrying him away, with Jessica quickly scuttling after the two.

As Jesse, Petra, and I waited for Steve to wake up, we chatted about things, about the murals, the lies that Steve told them... About Alexandria.

"If your mother heard me calling her Alexandria, I would be sleeping outside for weeks." I chuckled. Jesse grinned at me, as he leaned on his mother's mural. The girl, Petra, quietly sat on the ground, studying the other murals.

"Oi..." came a soft grumble, "Why does my head feel like a sack of potatoes?"

"Good morning, Steve." I stated, cheerily, "How are you doing?"

Sitting up, Steve replied, "I'm fine. What happened?"

Jesse responded, "Just a bit of a fight between you and some people."

With a laugh, Steve answered, "I guess I was still upset about Alex's death." He chuckled again. "I'm happy that she was married to you, Hero."

I blinked into the distance, thinking. Looked like my theory was correct about what Lukas wished for, but what was the consequence? Alex had told me that the stone, if not used for a long period of time, would strike with a consequence.

Looked like all we had to do now... was wait.