The supplies had dwindled down to small pickings.
Boris had been unable to gather enough supplies to sustain two toons and a human for a few days now.
Henry knew this would happen eventually but he had held out a speck of hope that he could enjoy the peace the safe house brought for a little while longer. When he saw the few cans of bacon soup left in the supplies, and Boris returning with no food, Henry knew they had to move on.
Sooner or later, the Ink Demon would find them.
Not if.
When.
Henry had been having increasingly worrying dreams, all involving the Ink Demon. He didn't think that they meant anything but Henry didn't want to take chances. Not after the last nightmare, where both Boris and Bendy were destroyed by the Ink Demon.
That wouldn't happen.
Henry had a half-baked plan to tackle the Ink Demon if worse came to worse. Henry would rather it get him than allow the Ink Demon anywhere near his friends.
Henry donned the patched together sweater over the bandages still over his left shoulder. Henry knew that they would all have to leave soon. Henry wasn't very comfortable with Boris going alone to gather supplies. Especially when Henry had been in recovery and couldn't go along to help out.
Even now, the injury still ached.
Henry entered into the main area of the safe house. He hated to break the bad news, but it had to be done.
"Hey guys, we're going to need to leave soon." Henry informed the toons. "We're low on supplies..." Henry looked to Boris, directing his next sentence to the wolf "...but we both know that it really is for the best if we get to the Ink Machine as soon as possible, and shut it down."
Boris' ears drooped.
"Sorry, buddy, but we can't stay here." Henry felt like an ass for forgetting what the future could bring. "We'll do our best to avoid elevators unless absolutely necessary, okay?"
Bendy looked confused as the toon looked up between Henry and Boris.
Henry couldn't bring himself to say anything. He didn't have the heart to tell Bendy what could happen to Boris.
What usually happened to Boris.
It still hurt, thinking about what the end result was.
From the toon's wolfs expression, Boris didn't seem to be willing to communicate with Bendy about what might happen either.
"...or you could stay here." Henry suggested. Why hadn't he thought of that before? If Boris wasn't caught, he couldn't be hurt. "I could draw the Ink Demon's attention away from this place, for awhile. We all know that it is after me from that attack."
Boris didn't even hesitate before shaking his head.
It was a firm 'no' to Henry's suggestion.
The toon wolf still looked unhappy, but Boris was apparently determined to accompany Henry, no matter the danger.
"Thanks, buddy. It's always good to have you along." Henry told Boris, and he meant it. Having company in this hellhole that didn't want to kill him was nice. "I'll see if I can make a difference this time, if we happen to get locked into that fetch quest again." This time, Henry did not have to make soup for Boris in order to leave.
The toon wolf produced the lever to the door and opened up the door himself. Before leaving, Boris put on a hard hat with a light on top of it. The wolf looked nervous but straightened up, showing that he was ready to leave.
Bendy was oblivious to the worries, and cheerfully hopped through the now open doorway. But once in the hallway, the toon's body language reflected a skittishness of his surroundings. Or perhaps it was because Bendy realized that they might run into someone.
Like Sammy or the Ink Demon.
Henry was aware that he no longer had any weapon. Henry knew that he would need to be cautious until he had one in his possession again. Henry reminded himself that he definitely had to be careful this time, because his right hand was still tender. Not to mention, his left shoulder was weakened from the injury inflicted by the Ink Demon's claws.
The ache that lingered...
The ink stains that had spread from the wounds...
Henry would keep an eye on them. For whatever reason, he had a bad feeling about those injuries, even if he didn't have any reason why, apart from his unnerving nightmares.
Focus.
Henry needed to focus right now. He wasn't going to let himself be taken down so easily. He would push on, and protect his friends, while beating the utter shit out of any who dared to try to harm them.
Up ahead, Bendy and Boris came to a halt in front of a darkened corridor.
Henry let out a soft exhale.
Same old, same old.
Henry stepped closer and reached for the light. He had again prevented himself from pointing out the obvious darkness and the need of something to light their way. To Henry's surprise, Boris picked the light up. After exchanging a quiet look with the wolf, Henry nodded his thanks.
Into the dark, creepy corridor they went.
Henry walked side by side with Boris, as Bendy trailed along nervously behind them. When Henry reached the area where a noise would sound out, Henry again bit off his question. But this time, Henry wouldn't have been able to finish his words, because of one thing.
One person, actually.
Sammy fucking Lawrence, who appeared from the shadows.
"Ah, shit." Henry said, as the music director charged toward him. "Already?!"
The Bendy mask Sammy wore was whole again, but for a single thin line of ink down the middle. Sammy must have somehow used the ink to mend it back together.
Henry wasn't sure why he noticed that of all things, because Sammy wordlessly throwing himself at him with his hands outstretched was a much more worrying sight.
Sammy apparently wanted to strange him.
Damn.
The music directors must really be mad about something. Did Sammy happen to find out that Henry hit the Ink Demon with the axe?
"Boris, go on ahead!" Henry grappled with Sammy, not keen on the idea of being throttled. "Get to the door! And take Bendy with you!"
From the look on Bendy's face, he didn't want to go, yet at the same time, the toon clearly didn't want to be anywhere near Sammy.
Boris took Henry at his word. The toon wolf grabbed ahold of one of Bendy's hands and led them both further down the corridor.
Henry was plunged into darkness.
Whoops.
Henry had forgotten that Boris had taken the light. Henry struggled to keep Sammy at arm's length.
Well, damn.
Could Sammy see in the dark?
Henry didn't get to contemplate this idea for very long, because suddenly, a chill down his spine.
The darkened corridor seemed to grow even darker, followed by the whispering in the ink.
Henry desperately shoved Sammy away from him, and only succeeded because the music director had become distracted.
"My lord!"
The Ink Demon had come, filling the quiet with a growl.
Henry attempted to run blindly away from where the darkness seemed heavier. His whole body felt like it was being dragged down, but the worst of it came from his injuries, which ached terribly.
Running into a wall was not part of the plan, but neither was being driven to the floor by the ache becoming a sharp, jagged pain.
Henry sucked in a harsh breath and let it out. He couldn't move, the agony was so great. Just like what happened to him at times in his nightmares.
The growling drew nearer.
The Ink Demon drew nearer.
Henry pressed his right hand to his left shoulder, feeling beneath the sweater. Henry didn't like how his skin beneath those bandages seemed to be warmer than before. Henry bit his lip in frustration as he failed to make himself get up.
Trapped.
Cornered.
This had gone from bad to worse.
-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-
A/N: I guess the Ink Demon gets another chapter sooner than I thought. It will be...showing that the Ink Demon is definitely more aware of its surroundings. The encounter will be more terrifying for Henry, because he REALLY didn't need to SEE the Ink Demon's eyes.
