What's the catch?

"Ahhhhhhhh!!!" The air around them resonated with an ear-splitting scream that suddenly ended in a gurgling death rattle.

Participants within a twenty-meter range or less reflexively flinched at the sound that was heard. It sounded like something dreadful had happened, but nobody understood what had actually happened until a split second later, when blood began to leak through the ice walls, a severed siren's head rolled to the ground below, and it rested on Reed's boot.

'Oh hell no!' Instinctively, Reed stepped back in horror; the sight made him shudder, and he turned his head away from the horrific scene.

Ding!

The timer indicated that the task had been ongoing for an hour.

He moved cautiously, doing his best to avoid falling into any kind of trap that he had managed to stay out of since the beginning.

He senses a bizarre, menacing look fixed on him and stands still.

'Your paranoia is merely working overtime,' he tried to console his spiraling thoughts.

"Could we eliminate him? Please!"

'Eh?'

"It is only fitting that he is crushed like a snowflake because he heard and saw some of what he shouldn't have."

BA-DUM!

BA-DUM!

When Reed heard what sounded like females arguing about his life, his eyes widened.

'Just act as if you didn't see anything, don't look up, and carry on with your–'

"Wasn't he the one who had made the outrageous claims?"

Reed recognized the person they were conversing with right away. He raised his head unconsciously to a stunning pair of twins staring ominously at him from the ice walls with their heads tilted, twisted grins, and glowing red eyes.

"N... Not a siren?" After being startled by their appearance, he forced his head downward.

On the opposite side of the wall, Tristan sternly stated, "get off the walls; we don't have the time to waste on needless distractions."

Strong winds were blown across the snow by Lyla, covering the head of the siren and obscuring the blood tracks from its rolling head.

Lyla and Lily rolled their eyes and scoffed, then stepped back from the edge to stand next to each other once more. They gave Reed several seconds of their attention before turning around without saying a word or casting Reed's way another glance.

'What are these two strangely beautiful ladies doing here?'

"Reed!" He jumped in shock when he heard a voice call from behind him. "Are you alright? You are aware that we only have a little over ten hours."

Reed turns to face Hegan, who is standing nearby and appears to be worried about him. He had a look of fatigue and panic painted across his features, his face was soaked in sweat despite the cold, and his hair was unkempt and disheveled. Even though his left arm was bleeding and his clothing was filthy and ripped, he still managed to smile. He appeared to have had significantly more difficulty during the task thus far than everyone else.

"I should be asking you that," Reed said, staring at Hegan in disbelief. "You had a hard it rough."

Hegan rubbed his forehead as though trying to ease some pain within it before responding with an awkward chuckle.

"Well I guess things could've gone worse, right?" The corners of his mouth curled upward into a small grin before turning serious once again. "But now, we need to focus on getting out of here alive."

"That's right," Reed affirmed as they walked side by side. "Friends help each other."

There was an awkward silence that went on for several minutes as they tried to navigate their way around the maze, until Hegan playfully nudged Reed's side.

"Did you hear those screams earlier?" Hegan asked curiously after they continued walking for a while without saying anything further between them.

"Yeah," Reed answered stiffly.

'Here I thought he was cold when he killed that beast in Kryonix's cave.'

Reed kept gazing over at Hegan every few seconds, but Hegan stared blankly ahead and spoke aloud. "I'm curious about the slain beast."

Although Reed had a sinking feeling that something didn't add up, he dared not dig any further.

"You should be more interested in the slayer than the slain beast." After seeing something he felt he shouldn't have, Reed expressed himself evasively, unsure of how much he would need to keep to himself.

*****

Damian came to a complete stop as a result of the sound of jiggling metal and clanking chains on his belt. He fixed his attention on the sizable key ring and silver chain that was fastened to his waist. The keys were towards the end, so he reached out and took them, carefully inspecting each one.

He murmured under his breath, "I'll have my vengeance soon enough," as his eyes widened at the sight of his familiar tribe's insignia inscribed on a golden-colored key that was somewhat larger than the others radiate before fading out once more. "I'll make sure that bitch gets what she deserves!"

He could tell that there was less than an hour left and that he was just a few feet from reaching the exit.

In response to the sound of footsteps, he hid behind a wall. He watched Tristan and a lady stop a few feet from the finish point as he cautiously peered through a gap in the ice walls.

'A lady? What's happening? What's with all the nodding and gesturing?' he pondered as he watched the pair closely.

After a short while, Lily turned around and walked back, while Tristan resumed walking towards the finish point while whistling and shoving his hands into his pockets.

Lyla had been staring at Damian from above a few ice walls, but he wasn't aware of it.

In the vain hope that Damian would overtake him, Tristan grinned as he made an agonizingly slow approach to the finish point.

'C'mon don't make this so easy for me.' Damian was only ten meters away when Tristan watched him approach, giving him cause for pride.

"Tristan!"

He turned his head and looked at Damian in feigned surprise after hearing the loud call from him. "You got here pretty easily."

'Is he unaware of what I noticed?' Damian's confusion and curiosity at the identity of the lady who had guided Tristan through the maze caused his mind to race.

"Intuition and gut feeling." Damian snorted. "How about you?"

"Been doing great," Tristan said with a smile, quickly steering the discussion as he went on, "why don't you finish the task as the first for a change? This time, I'll humbly take a second."

Damian's eyes narrowed in disbelief as he sensed something strange but was unable to pinpoint the cause. Tristan was being overly kind and pleasant, so he realized he should be wary of his offer.

'What is he up to?' He thought to himself. 'Is he attempting to rid himself of me?'

"I believe we can both agree that there has never been a circumstance in which being the last resulted in death, correct? Just a loose tongue or action while we wait for the decision of the Empress." With a smirk, Tristan answered as if he had read Damian's mind.

"What's the catch?" Damian probed while wearing a look of mistrust on his face because he didn't believe what Tristan, who was in front of him, had to say.