What they don't know

Part 24

The metal of the wolf was cold against his back, a hard line against the hazy mist clouding his surroundings. 

The creature hummed from behind him and Lance took its reassurance as he scanned the mist. It showed no signs of abating and, given the properties of the maze, Lance doubted it was as simple as passing weather. The mist itself may have its own purpose.

With that being said, Lance was somewhat reluctant to enter it. 

Mist was used practically to obscure things - just what dangers lay hidden behind those pearly clouds?

If he was thinking with only his and Matt's safety in mind, then it would be best for him to stay in and around the wolf. 

But how did he know that they were the only ones out there?

He may not have seen Adam or Lotor crash, but how could he be certain that they hadn't crashed with them? How could he guarantee that they weren't injured or in need of his help? Matt still hadn't awoken from his injuries from the crash, it was possible that, if the others had crashed as well, their injuries could be even more severe. Matt simply needed some time to recover, what if the others needed immediate help?

Lance glanced back to the wolf, where Matt was still unconscious inside. The temptation to hide away inside and care for his lover(?) where it was warm and safe was fleeting but certainly strong.

But it couldn't be helped. 

Although his team often babied him, preferring to treat him like a younger sibling or child, he was, technically, their superior. He was responsible for their training and safety, if there was a chance that they needed his protection and help, he couldn't simply sit back and wait for someone else to do it. 

It was not only his responsibility but, as their friend, it was also the will of his heart. 

He patted the wolf once more before pulling away and shrugging his coat closer around him. He had been able to forgo his helmet for the time being after the wolf failed to predict anything hazardous in the atmosphere, letting the cold air sting his cheeks and throat as he stepped into the mist. 

"I'll be back soon, keep that barrier up." 

The wolf hummed in response, its barrier pulsing pleasantly as Lance stepped into the fog. 

He had taken barely more than a few steps before his skin was tingling and his steps rapidly hastened. The crashing sound he had heard ahead of him resounded through the maze, the sound of metal grating against stone ringing in his ears faintly. 

Lance knew the sound of crashing a ship almost as well as he knew the burn of a blaster. 

Should he have brought a repair kit? 

He found his heart sinking as he glanced back in the wolf's direction, only to find the mist had swallowed the world behind him already. 

It hadn't looked that thick before he walked in?

Lance took a few steps back, uneasily attempting to retrace his steps. 

He had been walking quickly before, with longer strides, but, even at a slower pace, it should not have taken him so long to return.

It was as he examined the quintessence floating through his surroundings that he grimly accepted his fate.

It seemed the fog had not only swallowed him but it had swept him up and spat him out elsewhere.

Strange. 

He hadn't even noticed the slightest shift in the quintessence sewing together the mist around him.