IF YOU HAVE JUST READ CHAPTER 9, PLEASE FIND CHAPTER 10 NEXT. THIS STORY REFUSES TO ACCEPT ME FIXING CHAPTER ORDER. PLEASE. FIND CHAPTER 10 AND READ IT FIRST

THE START OF THIS CHAPTER IS A HUGE SPOILER FOR CHAPTER 10

Grian screams.

A broken, wrathful howl fills the air as he sinks to the ground next to Mumbo's body. Blood covers the floor. I don't move, fighting the tears as I hug Jellie. This is all a dream, right? None of this happened. I'll wake up and no mysterious letters would've arrived, no friends were dead, no royal guards had broken into our home and killed Mumbo instead of me.

The TV crackles on. Ren's face appears, eyes narrowed, from the throne room.

'Greetings, Hermit City. Earlier today I received direct reports from a close friend of Hotguy's location. Guards have been sent out to find him and I regret to inform you all that some have died already from his act...'

With a sudden scream, Grian punches the TV. Glass covers the floor. I step back.

'Grian?' Is all I say as he slowly stands, looking around until his eyes catch on a half-broken chunk of wood under the overturned sofa. He tears it of.

'Don't.' He smashes the TV again. 'You. F**KING. DARE. TELL. ME. THIS. IS. SCAR'S. FAULT!' Pieces cover the floor. Grian stands there in the middle of it all, panting, covered in blood, with the chunk of wood in his hand. I don't move.

'G...Grian?'

'We're finding Impulse.'

'What?'

He storms past me. I run after. 'Grian what...'

'Get your stuff. We're leaving now.'

I obey.

My room is as messy as everywhere else. Relief fills me as I find my box of things dented, but unopened. Clothes cover the floor. I grab a bag and stuff as much in as I can. Jellie sits on my bed, meowing. Then, it's back out the room, lugging the bag of clothes with me, where I collide with Grian.

'I've got Jellie's stuff, managed to save some of the cake...'

'Don't bother with that.'

'Don't be ridiculous. Come on.'

'You're...'

'Covered in blood? I know.'

We leave the house. Grian doesn't try to aright the door, instead leaving a neatly enveloped letter on it.

'Something for Ren,' He glares at it for a second, takes a deep breath, and enters the elevator. Jellie and I follow.

Furious silence chokes the lift as we descent. I can tell Grian's fighting tears and step closer, unsure how to reassure him.

'Do you know where Impulse is?'

'Yes.'

A pause,

'Are there... any other options?'

'We need to escape, and then kill Ren. The resistance provides both.'

'What if they hate me?'

'Jellie.'

I accept his answer, waiting for the lift to reach the bottom when it suddenly jars to a halt. Grian swears.

'Stand back.'

And then he kicks the elevator door.

In any other situation, Grian wouldn't have done any damage to the lift. But all his rage creates a decent dent in the metal. I join in. It doesn't take long to bust a hole in the rusted metal. We appear to be halfway to a floor, and to either good or bad luck, there's someone there.

'Hello?' A very confused face appears through the hole.

Grian, covered in blood and holding all his worldly possessions, crouches down to the hole he's just created in side of a lift, and simply asks.

'Hey, do you have a hammer?'

I don't know if it's fear, genuine willingness, or Jellie's allure that gets the stranger (Zedaph) to help us out. We go with a mix of all three, thanking him as we continue on down the stairs.

'He seemed nice.' Is all I note. Grian doesn't speak until we get outside.

'Stick with me.' He orders. I do, staying as close as I can while we avoid the guards still everywhere. Jellie's just behind, wary enough to stay quiet as well as we make random turns, sometimes backtracking, searching, but to our surprise, they find us before we find them.

'What do you think of King Ren?' A figure appears. It's clear Grian recognises them, or the code, since he replies with.

'Long live the king.'

A nod. We follow them along, and I quickly note their blond-brown hair and cowboy hat. I don't recognise them. Grian explains for me.

'Timmy.'

'It's Jimmy.'

'It's Timmy.'

We reach what looks like a normal building. Timmy-Jimmy knocks. It opens.

'Password?'

'There's no password. These 2 are with me.'

My unease grows as we enter. It appears just as normal inside, until we reach a trapdoor and a ladder down, down below the city.

'You first.'

Grian doesn't hesitate, climbing down, an expression of determination set in his face. I join him, and then Timmy-Jimmy, right into the resistance base. I can't fight my unease and the worry that here will be no safer than anywhere else...

We reach the bottom. Another guard lets us in. My eyes widen.

It's huge, with people everywhere, boxes of supplies. There are weapons and armed fighters, but at the same time children and animals run around. Another cat - cream, with darker stripes, comes and greets us.

'Big Man Norman.' Timmy-Jimmy explains, picking him up, right as another person dressed in red and black with gold hair runs over.

'Jimmy!' The two hug. 'Who are they- wait is that...'

'I believe so.' The attention turns to me. I bite my lip.

'He's my friend. He's safe.' Grian snaps. 'Ren made him do it.'

'Grian?!'

'Hey, Tango.'

'But- you left...'

'I need to speak to Impulse.'

Silence.

'You can't just come in here and speak to him.' Tango's expression turns cold. 'You ran away after everything, and expect Impulse will just let you come back again, like nothing happened? Especially with HIM?'

'We have nowhere else to go. I thought the resistance was open for people hunted by Ren. And Scar's my best friend.'

But we don't have to explain ourselves any more as another person walks over. I instantly recognise them - Red hair, metal deer legs and antlers, green eyes...

'Impulse wants to speak to you.' Gem explains simply. 'Both of you.'

'Good.'

Not speaking another word of even checking that we're following, she leads us further in to where another door sits, guarded on either side. I can't fight my apprehension as it opens and Impulse appears.

Brown hair, scarred face, instantly recognisable. His brown eyes are narrowed and he's dressed in his classic black t-shirt, marked with a yellow 'i' on front and the resistance symbol on the back. A gun is slung over his shoulder, and a knife in his pocket. The door closes behind us.

'So Zed wasn't lying.' He begins. 'He really did see you two together.'

'We're friends.' Grian explains. 'Scar's my best friend. We come seeking asylum, and want to help you.'

'Both of you?' He glares at me. I shuffle closer to Grian. 'Do you know who he is and what he did?'

'Yes. Scar's Hotguy. Ren's looking for him. He sent guards to our home to find him and bring him to the Crastle for execution. He killed my friend Mumbo.' I put a hand on Grian's shoulder as his voice breaks.

'Well you should've let them kill Scar too,'

'He's my friend. He's not on Ren's side.'

'Grian, it's alright.'

'We're both staying.' His voice raises close to a yell.

'Do you even know what he did?!' Impulse questions back even louder.

'Does it matter?'

'Yes.' Me and Impulse say simultaneously. Grian looks between us.

'Why?'

I take a deep breath.

'Because I killed Pearl.'