In Beezelbub's Lair

Chapter 3: Entering the Devil’s Home

         We have been running for about fifteen minutes. The alarm that lets everyone know the killing can commence had long ago gone off.

I am impressed with how well everyone is doing. None of the kids look to be above the age of twelve, yet they all manage to keep up with Rosh and me. We have both been keeping ourselves in the best shape we can for about sixteen years. Most of these kids look like they sleep all night and then nap all day- that they can match our pace either boded ill for us or well for them. Either way, it gave me hope that this suicide mission might actually work.

I think part of the reason they are able to keep up is that they actually believed my speech. Here no one wants to be alone, and that is what I have promised them if they are to tire and fall behind; I have promised them the nightmare of being abandoned.

We have not run into anyone as of yet, but we will soon enough. The maze is too crowded for us not to, and since no one knows the path to the towers (where the key weapons are hid) we all wander in discordant paths. With over thirty thousand people in the Maze, the odds are not good for a group so big. 

I looked over at Rosh and caught his attention. He nodded his head and I raised my hand.

“Everybody halt!” I shouted. They all stopped and looked at me with a mixture of confusion and relief.  

“Listen up! It is important that you understand why I stopped you. We are getting close to the point in the maze where the towers are more likely to be found- because of this, the traps become less obvious and more dangerous. You also have a much better chance of running into other players looking for the towers.”

“How did you know that this is the place where you want to start being cautious?” one person asked skeptically.

“Boy, I’ve been doing this for seven years. How do you think I knew?” I parried.

When I didn’t get an answer, I continued, “Look, both Rosh and me have been competing in this Maze for most of our lives. We know as much about this place as we do ourselves- its dangers, its tricks and, most importantly, how to find the weapons that are key to survival. This is where we separate ourselves from just any team to a true alliance. If we work together now I guarantee that we can all survive. But we have to trust each other. This is a double effort. Rosh and me have faith in all of you; we wouldn’t be here if we didn’t.” I saw Rosh start to grin at this, and I had to force myself to keep a straight face, recalling my reluctance to join. I could not let them see that I still felt like I was committing suicide- now was the time to help their morale, not crush it.

I continued on, “We have faith in you, so I’m asking you to have faith in us. If you do, I promise you, you will all see your families again.” I looked out at them, making sure I kept my face serious, “Each and every one of you.” they all nodded and looked back at me solemnly. I took this as a good sign.

“Now that we understand this, there are a few things you should know. This maze is meant to kill you, and is designed so that it can do that easily. We haven’t seen many as of yet, but as we get deeper we will begin to see countless traps, and they’ll only get deadlier as we go. We’ll also begin to run into more people. To make sure we can hear others coming our way and that they don’t hear us, we are going to be as quiet as possible. We are a big group, so we’re not asking for perfection. Obviously we’re going to make noise. However, you will try your best, or you will no longer be welcome with us. This means no talking, and no bouncing around like a person on jaja, got it?” I saw a couple laugh and smiled reassuringly in return. At least they all had good senses of humor.

“So, here’s the deal. You keep quiet and help Rosh and me with the traps and we will do our part, which includes teaching you the ins and outs of the maze and keeping you alive. This is a team effort; where one person lacks, we all lack. Do you understand? Good.”

Rosh interjected. “One last thing. Hidden in the walls are some low-level weapons. They’re nothing spectacular, but they are helpful. You can tell where they are because the stone they are hidden behind will bare an almost imperceptible mark on it that looks like a rising sun. Eisem and me will be keeping our eyes open for them, but our main goal is to find the towers so we’ll be moving fast and might miss something. If you see it, you are to get our attention. We’ll handle it from there. Now, let’s keep moving. We’re losing time.” with that we started to creep forward.

We had just reached the end of a path when Rosh stopped and made a circular motion around his ear- I hear something. He held up his hand to the kids to get them to stop, then motioned for them to keep quiet. Creeping up to the bend, Rosh peered around the corner. He drew back immediately and held up three fingers. I nodded to show my understanding. Three people around the bend, I thought to myself as I nocked my arrow. I signaled to the kids to stay put, knowing we could take the people with no issue on our own. Pulling back on the bowstring and holding my bow up to show I was ready, we jumped out from behind the corner. In a second I saw all of them; it wasn’t exactly difficult, they were all gathered around one spot on the wall. One of them was beginning to take out his knife to prick his finger. Immediately I realized he had found a hidden weapon and was trying to get to it. I couldn’t let that happen. Raising my arms, I took aim at the farthest one. I released my string, sending my arrow flying. At the same time as I released my arrow Rosh rushed towards the nearest man, brandishing his knife. He leapt at the guy, tackling him to the floor and pinning him before he even had a chance to blink. 

Author's Note

For the same reason as before, this one is also a little dry (it's the rough draft). But I'm always looking for ways to improve, so if you have any thoughts, ideas, or criticisms, hit me with them by all means :) I'm also looking to make perfect.