It didn't take long for the server to gather and for everyone to know what had happened. But, instead of discussing immediately, the Hermits were left in shock and tears. xB was still sobbing in Hypno's, and now also Keralis's, embrace; Cub was sat to one side with Scar, both silently crying; Ren, Mumbo and Stress were crying, with Grian perched, pale, on the tree branch above. Skizz, Gem, Pearl were trying to calm Impulse's panic attack. Wels sat alone, hiding deeper in the forest where only False had found him, but had let him remain alone. Bdubs was between Tango, Doc and Etho, asking questions repeatedly. Joe and Cleo stood like bodyguards with Xisuma.

'So... so someone bloody MURDERED another hermit?' Joel was first to speak, sticking as close to Etho as he could without looking like he was scared.

'We don't know how he drowned,' Xisuma replied. 'I don't want to start blaming people... all we know is that Cleo found him here this morning.'

'And if he drowned, why aren't we looking at the bloody FISH? xB?'

'Because we don't know if it's murder, and even if it was, it could easily be from the shore.' Cleo, immediately assisting Xisuma

'Or with water-breathing,' agreed Joe.

'It's not xB, I was with him and Keralis all last night,' Beef said from the side.

'How would he even cause permadeath?' Doc muttered from next to Jevin's body. 'It doesn't make sense... how would he be killed?'

'Magic?' Grian suggested. 'Watchers?'

'It's not Watchers.'

'Vex?' offered False, unable to help her attention turning to Cub and Scar. 'Vexlings can cause permadeath.'

'Well me and Gem saw Scar asleep when we were filling his entire storage system with cod...' Grian replied. Cub glanced over. 'So it wasn't him.'

'We weren't possessed last night,' Cub said, and Scar nodded in agreement.

'Don't you forget everything when you wake up?'

'We still know when we're possessed. And it can't happen if we're asleep.'

'Well... it doesn't happen because the Vex can't do anything then,' Cub nodded at Scar's correction. 'I believe.'

'You... believe? As in, you're not sure?' Beef was first to spot.

'We still don't know if it was murder,' Xisuma insisted. 'Seriously, we need to calm down, think about this properly, and find out how this happened.'

'Are the rest of us safe?' Tango immediately ruined the chance of calm by saying. 'Because if not I'm leaving the server and never coming back. Ever.'

'I'm joining ya luv. I'm not staying here.'

'Xisuma, are we safe?' repeated Gem.

'Surely there's an innocent solution to all this. Some bit of code that I can fix got messed up...'

'Messed up code sounds like Watchers...' Pearl grimaced.

'It's not Watchers!'

'I'm messaging Martyn. He'll be able to tell...'

'Martyn?! But- what- dude- we're not putting Martyn in danger!'

'Is anyone else thinking this is like the Life Series?' Bdubs interrupted Ren with, 'Etho? Tango?'

'...no one should leave this world, dudes, or join it...' 

'What?! I'm not staying here with an evil geezer or scary code!'

'Or... or... redstone. Redstone causes lag, right? Mumbo? Do you have any big farms?'

'I don't know!' Mumbo sobbed back. 'I don't know anything! We're all going to die!'

'Doc?'

'What? Why are we blaming me now?! I didn't kill Jevin!'

'Yeah, but did your farms do it?'

'Of course not! Why would I kill another hermit? Why are you blaming my farms?'

'I've told Martyn, he's asking other Listeners...'

'Jimmy's immediately asking if I'm ok. I'm telling him I'm not,' Joel said over the top of everything,

' Wait... no... no did someone mess with my farms? My redstone?' Doc quickly jumped to 'Grian? Scar? Is the Ore-Snatcher behind this?! Joe? Cub? Wait, wait Cub has his weird vex magic, and...'

'Hang on, we've already ruled me out! And Scar!'

'No, you ruled yourself out!' Bdubs rebuked. 'Who's to say you're not lying about the fricking Vex?'

'They're not lying, Bdubs. Vexlings don't get possessed while they're asleep,' Tango insisted.

'We should really stop blaming people!' Joe shouted. 'Because when you think about it, when you blame, you b-lame...'

'Joe's diverting the blame!' Doc pointed one accusing finger at Joe. 'Joe did it! Joe killed him!'

'Of course I didn't!'

'Then why are you so desperate to change the subject?!'

'Because we don't even know if it was murder, Doc!'

'What else would it be?!'

'A glitch in the world? A glitch in Jevin's code?' Joel replied. 'The only bloody answers are bad, Joe!'

'...but how do you know what happens when you're asleep?' In the background of Joe and Doc's argument, Bdubs was still questioning Tango and now False about how Vex magic worked. 'And you don't remember being possessed as well...' Tango let out a sigh of frustration

'The Vex don't do that. That's not how they work.'

'How do you know?!'

'We should think about this calmly, Doc, instead of getting aggressive and blaming everyone who says anything!' Joe insisted at the same time.

'Why else would you be diverting the blame?'

'Are you even listening to me?!'

'Impulse, buddy. Impulse?' Beyond all the arguing, Skizz was trying to comfort Impulse, who was hyperventilating. 'It's ok. It'll all be ok. Xisuma will handle this.'

'What- what if I die? What if one of you dies? I can't- I can't lose...'

'It'll be alright.' Gem hugged him. 'I'm sure.'

'Listen, Bdubs, the Vex can't do anything when you're asleep. They can't wake you up. They just give you dreams of them.'

'What about sleepwalking?'

'...and for your information, Doc, I didn't even steal your stupid diamond ore, I just wanted this whole thing to stop because you clearly can't handle one little-'

'EVERYONE SHUT UP XISUMA HAS INFORMATION!'

Silence. Cleo disappeared to recover from her yell as Xisuma started to speak.

'I've checked the server's code over and over again, and there's no sign of any glitches to the world, or Jevin's code, or respawn. The only cause of death we have left is murder. I will be starting interrogations immediately and going alphabetically through every single hermit to ask them questions. This meeting is ended. Bdubs, come with me. Cub, you're next after him. You should come too. Everyone else, I want you to go back to your base and stay there until all the interrogations are complete. You are now dismissed.'