Hope you liked the other chapter! Now, we move onto, Chapter 3. I apologize for the short chapters
Aris approached the walls. The walls were beginning to close each other when he heard Harriet yelling inaudibly, muffled by the thunderous closure of the walls, and he heard footsteps approaching his way, a hand on his shoulder, which he jerked free defensively
"Only Skaters are allowed out there," someone said warningly behind him.
"Why?" he inquired. He stared out into the cracks of the Maze. "What's so--" His sentence came to a halt, when a bob with wings, sharp, prickly claws at its side materialized and couldn't resist but gape. The machinery clicked and moaned, approaching them, then vanished into the distance, and he was too astonished, as the vicious creature drew closer and let out a vicious, low-level growl, before leaping into the distance.
"Oh," was all he could get out.
"Oh?" Sonya laughed. "That's all you can say. The Skaters explore every inch of the Maze. Years has passed, we've attempted to discover an exit. But no, there is none." She shook her head in disappointment. "We thought of giving up, of quitting, but..." She glanced at Aris. "Whoever thrust us into this hell, wants us to flee."
"Why would you say that?"
"Because, think about it. Why do they keep us alive, by delivering supplies? Could've have allowed us to die off in the Spring, withdraw supplies and such. But they haven't," Sonya explained. "They've shipped everything we need, or requested. So, there has to be a purpurse. And that transforming Maze just proves it, dosen't it?" She gestered the entrance. "I mean, why are we here?"
"How long have you been spending your sticky lives here?"
"Sticky?" Sonya lifted a brow. "Creating new vocabulary, huh? Well, uh, three years, maybe?" She averted her gaze to him. "Three damn years, that is correct. And before you say anything, don't judge me for not attempting to spend a night out there."
"Did you?" Aris inquired. Had Sonya and the Icers spent a night out there? Sit in the Maze, in dread, waiting for an entrance to open up, so they could flee from the Maze? He wondered if it was him, would he? Would he dare, armed with several weapons, be out there, watching, inspecting, see if an opening revealed to presumably safe haven? He instananously banished that thought.
"Us?" Sonya stared at him as if he sprouted three heads. "Are you out of your mind or what? Course we had some Skaters do that, and let's say, we discovered their lifeless bodies the very next day. Never dared to do that again. But, in broad sunlight, we do what we can. Map out everything we remember from our journey."
"Maps?"
"Yep, maps. We keep them in what we call, the Map Igloo. Only the chief of the Maps are allowed in there, and just to say this aloud, I'm the chief of the Maps. I ensure that everything is in place," Sonya told him. "We map out each day, inspect it, see if anything's transformed." She stared out at the Maze again, nibbling on her nails.
"I want to be a Skater." It was like an entire sentence from a person that differentiated from the Aris now. Sonya sneered slightly now, her eyes narrowed into slits. "Please, if you gave me a chance, I'll ensure we flee from here. I can assist in analyzing the Maze, and maybe inspect those shifting walls." Aris locked eyes with Sonya. "Please?"
Sonya only chuckled lightly. "A bit early for deaths, huh? Never seen the 'Death Wall', have you? It's where we carve out the dead's names. Don't think we'd be thrilled to add your name." She guided him over to the scraggly wall, engraved on it, were names, delicately carved into the scraggly walls. "Those has all been attempted. Either vanished or died. Some dead we discovered, others no."
Aris squeezed his eyes shut. He didn't want to die; he just arrived here. "Is the Skater just you?"
"Rachel is one, too."
Rachel. The name lighted his yearning. "Well, if Rachel is a Skater, I'll have to be one, too. I need to. Please."
Sonya eyed him closely. "Okay," she said. She turned her head away. "Why don't you fetch some breakfast, I'll inform you reguarding the Maze, and I'll ask Harriet about it. There's no guarantee in approval though; don't keep your optimism too high." With that, she took off bolting towards the clumps of cabin.
***
Aris finally wandered around. Someone had thrust a bucket of brushes and bathroom items at him and ordered him to clean up the restroom and the kitchen, and also to cook. He scrubbed the counter top, as a girl approached him. "Can't spend your entire day wandering aimlessly. We have work to do here, you just have to participate. You're assigned to the kitchen. Maybe you can be a Skater soon enough."
"How would you know about that?" Aris inquired, pushing the damp rag across the sink.
"Trust me, rumored news travel."
Aris frowned slightly and pressed the rags against the granite. After scrubbing off everything clean, and sweeping the floor, he was allowed a break. Rachel arrived to collect him and they sat down on the bench together. "You did a great job today," she told him. "I've questioned Harriet, she says she'll consider it, but you have been assigned to cleaning for now, so....." She shrugged. "Clean up for now."
Aris finally reached the toilet, squeezed a droplet of the ammonia into the toilet and swirled it around. Gross, he thought. He finally collected his supplies and set off towards the kitchen, where girls were chopping cucumber for supper. Afterwards, he thrust garments into the crack of the cleaning machine.
Just let me be a damn Skater.
He didn't enjoy cleaning out everything, though. When he returned to the kitchen for supper, he loaded a plateful of chicken, rice, and various vegetables before settling down in a chair. A part of him told him he had be a Skater. To explore the entire Maze, to inspect the walls, to see if there was an opening.
He finally cleared the sink and swiped his hands across his shirt. He wanted to skip the time where everyone was gathering and summoning people for some sort of conference. He groaned internally, but strode over anyway and sat around together.
ns 15.158.61.20da2
