Behind the Legends

No More Trust, No More Freedom

          He had been so close! So close to freedom that he had been able to see it! And now here he was, being dragged back to the area's lab. Quite literally dragged, mind you. His boss had sent shards of obsidian into both of his legs, making running away, let along walking away now impossible, hence he was now being drug through the Nether Portal, almost to his dreaded destination. His boss had told him and the other's about DeadBone, and how he had gotten away, and how big of a disappointment he was. The only part Entity 404 had listened fully to though was the gotten away part. He had made it to the Nether and run into Naulis, one of the Dimensional Leaders. Seeing as Herobrine's powers were mostly locked away, he didn't have the power to fight against one of them, so he had had to let DeadBone get away. Entity 404 had tried the same. He had gotten so close to the Over Core! And yet, here he was now.

          After a short few minutes of being dragged, and flown, through the Nether, he was brought into the lab. He was taken straight into the main room, where there was a clear view of the arena set in the glowing blue lava, bubbling with their master's powers. Also in the room were the five other hunters, although one was standing away from the group. The one standing alone was Null, a being made up of nothing but dark matter that had been dragged out from the Void. His body was pretty much just pitch-black mist, with two glowing white eyes. He was standing in a very attentive stance, his misty arms crossed behind his back. 404 wouldn't be surprised if he had been standing in that exact pose sense Herobrine had left to come get him back. Out of all of them, Null seemed to be the only one that didn't seem to have any wants, or any sort of will of his own.

         That left the other four Hunters, who were standing in a line on the other side of the room from Null. Two of them looked pretty similar, those two being EnderBrine and Netherbrine. The two both had one half that resembled brine, while their other halves had the looks of their respected dimension. Along with Null, these two had been created dully by Herobrine, having not been people he had just brought into his group. From what 404 knew, he had used a combination of his own energy, along with the tiniest of fragments from both the End and Nether Cores. None of them were quite sure on how he had gotten those, but none of them had ever asked. Next to those two was, other than himself, the only hunter Herobrine hadn't actually made, Dread Lord. He was a necromancer who had been brought onboard the team using a promise of being accepted as he was.

          And the last one, in a snowy white cloak, was Entity 303. Named in "honor" of himself, he had been created using some of 404's energy, and more of Brine's energy than any other Hunter had received, which explained why he was the Strongest of the Hunters. He even had glitched powers, having a deep rotted connection with the building blocks of the universe. Brine suddenly dropped him onto the ground, laying on the hard stone brick floor. He sat up, holding himself up with his arms, wincing.

          "It seems that yet another one of you have tried to opt out of our little group." Brine started, looking around at the other five Hunters. "Despite the power boost he was given, and despite the big, important purpose he was destined for, he chose to run away from it all; run away from us." 404 looked at the Hunters, scaling their reactions. Null looked disgusted, which was no surprise. EnderBrine and NetherBrine looked surprised, yet oddly not upset. And then there were 303 and Dread Lord, showing no reaction at all. It was no surprise... they had wished him luck right before he had made his escape attempt. 
          
          "As three of you may remember, this is not the first time someone has tried something like this." He continued, drawing 404's attention. He was clearly mentioning DeadBone, which only himself, Null, and Dread Lord would have been around to see him go. He had never been brought up around the new Hunters, under Brine's orders. Probably because he didn't want them to know a Hunter had actually gotten away. To the others, they probably assumed he had been killed. "And while I'm sure the rest of you are far more committed and loyal then 404 here... I shall do us all a favor, just in case." 

          404 was lifted off the ground, being gripped by his neck, and then held up in the air. His hands grasped onto Brine's hand, but there was nothing that could be done. Brine had made sure none of his Hunters could beat him. All of them together... then maybe... but with Null being unable to think for anyone other than Brine, there was no hope. His mind started to turn fuzzy, as if his train of thought was being pulled in a new direction. New ideas began to appear in his head, such as ways to aid in Brine's plans, how to find the Creators, how to be the best Hunter he could be. With horror and sadness, he realized what was happening. His gaze shifted two the four Hunters who stood together; the only four who would still have wills of their own. He couldn't call out or make any motions without alerting Brine of them being not fully on board. They had no choice now, knowing that he could do to them what he was doing to him. He gasped for breath, as he was dropped, his hands gripping his head tightly, his body shaking violently.

          "Don't be like who 404 used to be, my dear Hunters. Together we will make a difference in this world." 404's moving stopped as fast as it had started, him keeling down on one knee to Brine. He was still in pain from the obsidian shards, but that didn't matter. All that mattered was Brine and his goal. He would do anything to make them come to fruition... even if it cost him his own life.