The labyrinth of monsters (a Hermitcraft and third life AU fanfic)

Chapter 8 - Scott

I'm not alone in the graveyard for once. 

As I arrive for my normal flower-laying ritual, I see Grian's also standing around, staring at the three graves. Martyn, Skizz, and, of course, Jimmy. He smiles at me, and I smile back, aware that I'm still clutching a bouquet of yellow flowers. 

'Hey.' 

'Hey, Grian.' I reply, kneeling next to Jimmy's grave and laying down the flowers. There are tears in my eyes, but I don't wipe them away. Grian's still just standing behind, so I turn back to him.

'Here for anything in particular?'

'Impulse told me about Skizz yesterday.' He replies simply. 'I wanted to... pay respects...'

'Sure. There's a field full of flowers just over there.' I point further into the forest. 'That's where I always get these dandelions. Jimmy always loved them...' It's hard not to break down in front of Grian, so I turn back to the grave, hoping he can't see. To my surprise, he walks up to me. 

'It's ok... Well, it's not but... it will be. It's not like he's gone forever. You'll die too.'

I can't help but laugh at the failed attempt at cheering me up. But laughing better than crying, so I smile back at him.

'I guess so.' Grian looks across to the other graves, particularly Martyn's. I follow his eyes, knowing I'll have to explain. 

'He was killed a while ago. Patrolling with Etho. He was one of then runners, like... Jimmy.' I pause at the name, but breathe deeply before continuing. 'They ran into that dog person and he was killed.'

'And Etho?'

'Unhurt, without a single arrow fired.' A hint of anger sneaks into my voice. 'I know because I was already suspicious of him.'

'Why?'

'Several other patrols where the others have come back hurt, and he's completely fine.' 

'And you're sure Martyn died?' 

The question makes me pause for a moment, and even though I know it's not a possibility, my heart leaps at the idea that my friend might still be alive. 'Yeah. I was also out patrolling nearby. I heard him screaming. Me and Jimmy couldn't get there in time. When we arrived, dog-boy was gone and so was Martyn, leaving a lot of blood on the ground.'

'I'm sorry... stupid question, but I'm guessing you were close?'

'Very. Not as close as to Jimmy, but... quite close.' The graveyard falls silent again, as Grian considers my words. Finally, he speak again. 

'Impy blames Etho for Skizz's death too. I don't know what to think though. Etho seems really nice, and I haven't seen him do anything wrong...'

'It's only me and Impulse who know he's bad.' I reply. 'No one else is convinced, and if I mention it within earshot of Doc, he'll murder me.' 

'Yeah... well, I'll see you around.'

'Stuff to do?' 

'Not much. But some.' 

'Ok. Bye, Grian.' I let him walk off, before sitting next to Jimmy's grave again.

I'm still thinking about what Grian said later that day. That Martyn might be alive. I'm sure it's not true... but was it? 

I'm still sitting in the map room, with Impulse poring over all the information on the Convex. It's obvious he wants to kill them, and the one day that Tango managed to convince Doc to let him off as as good as any to plan.Jevin's also there, and Joe, who's chatting with Cleo. The map in front of me is still annoyingly incomplete, with only a disappointingly small area around our base filled in. Beyond that, there's nothing except vague guesses of the area each person in the maze lives in based only on where the attacks happened. 

It's amazing how close the red skulls for Skizz and Jimmy are. 

I groan loudly, slamming my head on the desk. Impulse looks over. 

'None of this is helping!' I cry. 'We've barely got anywhere, and I don't know what this is doing!'

'Hopefully there's a way out of this place.' Cleo replies. 'If we find it, we can get out of here.'

'And if there's not?'

'There has to be! Every maze has a solution!' 

'We could send Etho out there to find it. He's certainly clever and good enough at not getting hurt to escape.' Impulse suggests. I nod at the idea. 

'We're not sending Etho in there to die!'

'Why can't we?' I challenge. 'Like Impulse said, he's good at surviving. But maybe he won't be able to let others do any of the hard work if he's alone.'

'True... it'll be a shame if he dies.' Impulse sighs, making it clear it's obviously not a shame. 

'Guys! Focus!' Jevin snaps. 'I'm trying to get stuff done here!'

'Then go elsewhere.' I snap at him. Jevin glares at me, before standing up slowly and walking straight out. 'Maybe we'll stop getting slime everywhere without you...' 

'You didn't have to say that...' Joe mutters after Jevin slams the door. 'He's done nothing wrong.' 

'Maybe I don't care.' I shoot back, getting to my feet and storming out after the slime. 

It's an annoyingly sunny day outside, and Etho's lazing about as per-normal. Against my better judgement, I go up to him and ask: 'What happened to Martyn?'

Surprised, the ninja looks over at me. 'Martyn?'

'Yeah, the one you watched die.' 

'He was killed by dog-guy.' Etho shrugs off the question. I refuse to let it go.

'Did you see him die though? Because there wasn't a body when I arrived.'

'It got dragged off. He was very badly injured. There's no way he survived.'

'And you didn't follow?'

'I didn't want to be his next target!'

'Coward.' I spit, before walking off again, already sick of the conversation. I'm aware of Etho watching me as I grab a sword from the training area and enter the maze. 

All the map-work means I know my way around very well, so it's easy to find the place I'm looking for. The spot where Martyn died. There's still a layer of blood on the wall and floor, a trailing leading away into the darkness. I pull out my sword, refusing to take a single step further. 

'Hey! Dog guy!' I dare to shout. 'Where are you? What did you do with my friend?'

No response. With a sigh, I try again. 

'Dog-man! Come out! This is Scott Major!' I use my name. My full name. A growl rises from the darkness ahead. 'What happened to him? What happened to Martyn Littlewood?' 

Finally, the shape of the wolf-man appears ahead, prowling towards me. His class gleam in the faint light. 

'What happened to him? I know you tried to kill him...' 

It's the last thing I say as he pounces, and everything turns black. 

Death, death, death, death, death, death, death, death...