Stonebrook High School

Chapter 45

Heyoooooo!

Not surprised that the last time I updated this story was June 30th. It's currently September 7th. School has started up again for me and I'm getting used to my classes bc they're all very work-oriented. I've also been dealing with some things; to be open about it, I'm now visiting a counselor :) I also have some friends who are struggling with stuff so I've been trying to help them, too. It's not easy but hopefully, it will be worth it.

I wasn't sure when I wanted to return to this story but recently, I got a lot of notifications of people voting on it. I really like when everyone shows their appreciation whether by voting or commenting on things since it makes me happy and more motivated to write chapters. My English teacher this year has also given us a book to follow along called "On Writing Well," and I've only read the first few chapters but it has been very helpful. The tips are short and sweet and get right to the point and I can't wait to apply them to SBHS :D

If you like this story, leave a star and comment! More love = More chapters!

~*Ω*~

"What- why is there a bunch of towers between us and the entrance?"

"Listen here - I forgot your name, what is it again? Ah, Olivia. Well, listen here, Olivia, if Soren was crazy enough to live like a hermit in the mountains, why would he not have a bunch of towers in between the entrance and the 'entrance' entrance?"

Olivia frowned at Magnus and crossed her arms. "I guess you have some kind of a point."

"Besides, it's not hard to jump at all! Look!" The Griefer jumped across a small gap with a grunt and turned to smile at the others. "You guys are just scaredy-cats."

Everyone looked at each other, subtly rolling their eyes before most jumped across. Gabriel and Lukas watched as the others hopped across from tower to tower.

The blonde gave a cursory smirk to the Warrior as he readied himself to cross when Gabriel began to cough almost violently. Lukas, concerned, stopped to turn around, noticing the older man was grimacing while holding his tense arm. "Gabriel, are...  are you okay? Do you need help?"

"Again, I'm fine," the mentioned grunted, "just a bit tired. It has been a while since I've had to do anything like this."

Albeit skeptical, the Ocelot nodded and whispered an "okay" before leaping.

Jesse watched the two hop off from behind a wall and slumped on the floor. He ran a hand through his hair and wiped his face, convincing himself he wasn't making a mistake.

~*Ω*~

"... Wow."

A breath of awe unwittingly left Lukas's lips as he studied the arches of the ceiling, the fan carvings, the four large statues in the center of the cavern. "This architecture... it's amazing. So detailed and grandiose!"

"You're having the time of your life here, aren't you?" Olivia joked, smiling widely.

"I can't help it. This place is just spectacular."

Suddenly, Magnus and Ellegaard began to shout, their voices echoing off the intricate designs engraved in the walls. "We're not doing that!" "Who says? You?"

Axel leaned down to Olivia's height and whispered, "What's up with them?"

She shrugged and turned to Gabriel in front of them for answers. "They're arguing again," he sighed. "They don't seem to agree on most things nowadays."

Oilvia put her hands on her hips and frowned. "And I thought they were doing so well."

"Fine! I'll just go find this Super TNT myself!" Ellegaard yelled with a final burst of anger to Magnus, swerving around to walk away through one of the statues.

"Oh no, you do not get to be the one who walks away!" Magnus, in his normal haughty fashion, spun to the opposite direction, strutting off. "See? I'm walking away now!"

Lukas simply sighed and brought his hand up to his face.

"There's nothing much we can do about them. They can take care of themselves." Gabriel looked over his shoulder to the teenagers and raised his eyebrows. "We should look for Soren ourselves. Choose which way you'd like to go."

Axel and Olivia glanced at each other before shrugging, walking over to the closer red statue. Lukas and Gabriel followed, silent as they carefully collected their thoughts.

The dark hallway lit by the faintest of torches was not what the four needed during their period of reflection; if anything, the Witherstorm was better than the weight of the false calm on their shoulders. Not only would they refuse to talk, the air refused as well, creating a suffocating atmosphere where none of them could breathe in any fresh surface drafts, forcing a quiet to remain conscious.

Then, much to Lukas's surprise, Gabriel slowly leaned closer and breathed, "I need to tell you something."

"Oh- okay, sir."

The Warrior grabbed the teen's shoulder, pulling him aside as the two sophomores kept walking, unaware. "I've been trying to hide this for the duration of our journey, but it is apparent that I must tell someone." He held out his arm, confusing the blonde who saw nothing wrong with it, until the arm rotated over.

"Oh my gosh," gasped Lukas. "Your arm, it's- it's almost... infected."

Gabriel's eyes flicked up. "Do you know what this is called?" There was a shaking of the other's head, followed with a "No, sir." "It's called Wither sickness. You must know where I got it from."

Lukas's eyes went wide and his breath staggered erratically. "When you stayed behind at the temple?"

"Yes, I was almost sucked up right after you two left, it—"

"No, I can't avoid it. I can't say it wasn't my fault. If I had gotten to the apartments faster, your arm, it- it wouldn't be like this. Things wouldn't be like this."

"Lukas, listen to me." The man grabbed the boy's shoulder and clenched it tight, pulling Lukas's attention back. "For now, put it in the past. We have a bigger job to do. Blaming yourself for something that already happened won't do any good. Now, can you listen to what I'm saying?"

"I-" The Ocelot stammered and blinked multiple times, flustered, but was able to calm down for a bit. "Yeah. Yeah, I can."

"Okay. Well, the sickness will eventually spread through my body. I've been feeling it for a while... the strength leaving my muscles. I've been starting to have trouble just walking."

"Shouldn't we- shouldn't we tell the others? So you can get help?"

"No. This would only cause more chaos among us. I can't have another load on the group when we have a larger target to pierce." Gabriel looked back to see where Axel and Olivia were before returning to Lukas. "It's better we leave this between us."

"But what if something happens? To us or you? Then you would be in trouble and we wouldn't be able to help you!"

The Warrior shook his head vehemently, whisper-shouting, "No! We can't tell them. Especially not Ellegaard and Magnus. Trust me."

Lukas, a bit peeved and distraught that Gabriel would push himself like this, reluctantly caved in. He sighed and held his arms, nodding slowly, "Okay. Okay. I won't say anything. But don't push yourself too much. I don't want to leave you behind like Jesse."

"That won't happen, my friend. I promise."

With a final flickering of his troubled eyes, Lukas continued walking on.