The warehouse had quickly turned from a safe haven into a prison for Cubert. Mina had promised to go on expedition parties in search for Queen Moon, but after three days he had yet to leave the building. It was driving him mad.

Cubert had tried to leave, but the guards at the doors were under strict orders not to open the doors unless Mina said otherwise. And he had yet to be able to get a hold of Mina since they first met. It was like they weren't supposed to leave. And there were also large parts of the hanger that were off limits, such as the bottom floor and some of the rooms at the back. Cubert often saw Jovi go down the stairs and disappear for hours. What was he doing there, and moreover, why would Mina need to hide anything if all she was doing was sending out search parties?

He'd brought his concerns to Jovi, but he'd brushed them aside, insisting that Cubert just had to be patient and that it would all make sense soon enough. Jovi wasn't the only mewman like this, either. Every person that Cubert talked to seemed totally unconcerned with their current situation. They just blindly trusted Mina. It was infuriating.

Why couldn't he leave? Why couldn't he explore the entire building? Why did no one else seem concerned?

He'd had enough questions. Cubert needed some answers and if no one was going to answer them for him, then he'd figure them out himself.

It was weird, thinking. Not something that Cubert had done much of in the past. he'd left that part to those that were smarter than him. But now that it was just him, he'd have to start using his brain a little.

There wasn't a mewman on guard at the staircase that went to the basement, but there was a door with a lock on it at the bottom. As far as Cubert could tell, if he figured out some way to break the lock, there wouldn't be anyone around to notice and he could go in undetected.

Okay, that seemed like a good plan. Now, how do you break a lock?

Cubert tried to look as aloof as possible as he made his way to the staircase and walked down it. He needed to get another look at that lock. The door was on a rail and Cubert would have to pull it to his left to open it. The lock was a rusted metal square with a "U" shaped piece of metal with both ends going into the metal square. And around the "U" two links of a chain so that in order for the door to open, that "U" had to be broken.

He yanked at the lock and the chains clanked noisily, but the metal held firm. It was much stronger than Cubert had been anticipating. What he needed was some way to apply a force to the weakest part of the lock and snap it.

Honestly, Cubert was proud of himself. His head hurt from all the work it had been doing, but now he was actively doing something instead of watching his fellow mewmans amble around aimlessly. They were just waiting for a purpose, something to do.

Did that used to be him?

Cubert sure hoped not, but there was a small voice in his head that said otherwise.

There was nothing that looked useful down stairs, so Cubert made his way back up.

"Hey there, Cube," Jovi said as Cubert emerged from the staircase, "What were you doing down there?"

Cubert froze for just a millisecond, like a rat caught stealing from the mewman corn fields, before forcing himself to appear calm.

"Just exploring," he replied, "This building is very big."

Jovi eyed him skeptically and Cubert felt a tingle run down his spine. There was something in his look that scared him, but he couldn't place his finger on it.

"I'm getting a little crazy being in this building so long. When do you think I'll be able to go looking for Queen Moon?" He added and Jovi's shoulders relaxed ever so slightly.

"I'll bring it up the next time I see Mina. I'm sure she wouldn't mind having you tag along next time since you're so eager," Jovi replied, "Now let's go get something to eat."

Cubert was so excited at the potential of going on a search party that he bombarded Jovi with questions the whole meal, none of which the man answered, but that didn't matter much to him. He was finally going to do what he had been hoping for!

It wasn't until night fell and he'd fallen asleep did his frustrations come back to him. He dreamed about Mina and imagined all of the things that could be locked beneath them. Chains surround Cubert's body and a lock was snapped shut to keep them there.

He woke up sweating.

He had to know what was down there.

Cubert was about to get up, but stopped. Jovi had promised that tomorrow he would ask about going with the next search party. He could finally go looking for Queen Moon again. But that small voice in his head seemed to think that not all was as it seemed here. This… organization was not run in a way that the queen would approve of. What if Mina wasn't looking for the queen for the same reasons that Cubert was?

Curiosity burned through him, so he got up and quietly made his way through the maze of the other sleeping mewmans around him. No one else appeared to be awake, but even so he made sure to take his time and make it look like he was just heading to the bathroom. Even so, his mind was racing beneath the surface.

The lock appeared too strong to be opened solely from brute force, so he would need some kind of tool. He was very lucky that this building used to be some sort of assembly warehouse, or something. There was a room on the left side of the building, not far from the staircase, that had a lot of various tools.

Cubert made his way over and tried the door. It opened with a slight creaking and he froze. Did anyone hear him? Looking around, there wasn't any movement so he made his way inside and turned on the lights.

Tools lined the walls and suddenly Cubert realized his mistake. These were human tools; he'd never seen any of these in his life before. He could only guess at their function, how was he supposed to know which one would open a lock?

He started picking them up and examining them closer, seeing if he could deduce what they were. Some were long straight pieces of metal with little hands at both ends. Another was a long, slender cylinder with that ended with a flat head on one end and what seemed to be a handle on the other.

That definitely wouldn't help him.

Cubert groaned in frustration; this wasn't helping at all! He grabbed the next one off the wall and nearly yelped in pain. His hand was dripping with blood. There was a clear line where the skin had been removed down the center of his palm. Why would someone even have something so dangerous in here?

He looked at the tool. It seemed to be a thin rectangular line of metal with a handle, but one of the edges, the one that Cubert had grabbed, was different. Under closer inspection, he realized that this side of the tool wasn't smooth. There were hundreds of little mountain peeks that ended in razor-sharp peaks. He ran his finger over the top of the mountains with a much lighter touch and an idea started to form.

If this could cut him so easily, perhaps it would do the same to the lock downstairs!

Cubert left the tool room in such a hurry that he nearly forgot to stop the door from slamming shut behind him. It was painfully slow creeping down the stairs this time. Cubert wanted nothing more than to descend the staircase in one giant leap, but he had to remember that he was doing would be frowned upon by anyone that found him.

The lock was just as solid as last time, but now he wouldn't have to rely on brute strength alone. He angled the saw so that the sharp teeth were resting against one of the shackles and gave it a push. The resistance was disheartening until he realized that it meant that teeth must be digging into the shackle!

It took a little getting used to, but soon Cubert's arm was in a steady back-and-forth motion – save for when the saw got stuck and he would have to wiggle the tool a little. In a little over a minute, the first shackle was cut through. Cubert tugged at the lock and realized that the other shackle would need to be cut as well. If he'd known that at the beginning, he would have tried to cut them both at the same time. Nevertheless, within another minute the second metal beam was cut. Cubert swore under his breath when the metal square hit the concrete floor.

He should've caught that…

But that thought was soon overshadowed by the fact that the door was unlocked. Cubert hesitated. If he left now, he could forget this ever happened. Mina and Jovi would find out that the lock was cut, but they wouldn't be able to trace it back to him. And then he could go searching for Queen Moon with a group. It would be far safer.

Once again, that little voice in his head urged him forward. He needed to know what was behind this door. He needed to know what was really going on here. Taking a deep breath, Cubert slid the door open.

Unlike many of the other doors in the warehouse, this one made no sound. Someone must've kept the tracks lubricated, but why only this one? Cubert was knew to this whole "thinking" thing and couldn't come up with a reason that sounded good enough.

He ran his hands up and down the wall besides the door hoping, searching for a switch of some sort to turn the lights on. Electricity was one of the things that Jovi had to explain to him, and having miniature suns at your disposal at in the dark blew Cubert's mind. It wasn't magic apparently, but it sure seemed like it to him.

He found the switch and gave it a flick. Cubert was blinded as his eyes slowly adjusted to the sudden brightness. Even after he could see, it took him a few moments to realize what he was seeing.

Weapons.

Food.

Water.

Tons and tons of it. One wall was just with human firearms, but there were also pitchforks and machetes and torches. And the food! It was all canned or in bags, but there was so much here – why were they rationing so much upstairs?

The food and water were piled into handcarts. What on Earth was Mina planning?

The last thing that Cubert saw was another locked door at the back of the room. Curious, he made his way over. The door itself was much more solid than the other ones, opening on hinges rather than sliding on a track. The lock was also built into the door so he couldn't use his saw this time. But he may not need to because there was a sliding hatch about waist high that he slid open.

It was surprisingly… empty in there. The only light came through the opening Cubert had created, but there didn't appear to be anything except for a sack of something in the far corner. He nearly screamed in fear when it started to move – and let out a small groan. It wasn't a sack, it was alive.

"What do you want, Mina," it said. The voice was filled with loathing, but Cubert would recognize it anywhere.

"Queen Moon?" His mind was reeling. She couldn't be here. Mina said she was sending out search parties for the queen, but she was right here. Even as she got up and made her way to Cubert, his brain refused to believe his eyes.

"Cubert?" She asked, "What are you doing here? Don't tell me you're working for that… that vile woman."

When he didn't respond, the former queen reached through the slit and slapped him. That did the trick.

"No – well yes, I guess – but this isn't right," Cubert stumbled, "They told me they were sending out search parties looking for you and I wanted to help.

"Why are you locked up?"

"Mina," Moon spat, "She's been pouring gasoline over the tensions between humans and monsters behind the scenes since the very beginning – secretly infiltrating human groups and urging violent protests and other means of terror.

"She was the one who organized the fall of Butterfly Castle."

Chills went down Cubert's spine. How could she do that? She was a solarian warrior and an advisor to the royal family for generations. She was a traitor.

And he had been helping her.

Cubert felt sick to his stomach. He needed to get ahold of himself. He needed to make things right.

"How do I get you out of here." He asked, "You can fix this, I know you can." Even as hope surged in his chest, Moon was shaking her head.

"Mina has the key to the door, and you can't risk your life trying to get it," she rubbed her chin for a moment, "Star may be the only one who can make things right. A mewman that spent a year on Earth and is a monster right's activist, the perfect blend of all three races…

"But I don't even know if she made it out of the castle," a tear slipped down Moon's cheek and she slumped down, hugging her knees.

"I saw Marco about a week ago and he said that Star was with him," Cubert said and Moon was back up in an instant.

"Really?" Hope bubbling in her voice, "Then you have to find them again. You need to warn them about Mina. I'm not sure what exactly she's planning, but I know it's no good."

"But what about y-"

"Forget about me!" she interrupted, "Mina is having too much fun gloating for her to kill me. She wants me to watch as everything crumbles. You need to leave now! Get out of here and find Star.

Queen Moon shoved him back.

"Find Star." She repeated and suddenly Cubert was climbing the stairs again. The sun had risen since he'd descended; light filtered through cracks in the sheet metal wall. There were a few mewmans up, but most were still asleep.

How was he supposed to get outside?

Queen Moon was asking a lot of him, and he was ready to step up to the plate, but there were guards at the doors. It wasn't like he could just waltz outside. There wasn't much time, either. The second that someone saw the cut lock, the entire building would be on lockdown until he was found out.

He was doomed from the start.

Cubert saw Jovi turn the corner and so he tried to look as if he had come from anywhere except the staircase.

"You excited to finally go looking for the queen?" Jovi greeted when he was close enough. Cubert had to force a look of eagerness on his face. He knew the truth, that in front of him was a monster. A traitor. A liar. Jovi must know that Queen Moon was down in the basement, and even if he didn't, he definitely knew about the weapons and other stockpile. He probably knew what it was for too.

"I am," Cubert said with enthusiasm he didn't feel, "I can't wait to get out of this building if I'm being honest – getting a little stir-crazy.

"Even just going outside for a walk and getting some fresh air is a blessing," He added. Jovi stared at him for a second before smiling.

"How about you go take a walk around the building then before breakfast?" Jovi put his arm around Cubert and lead him towards the main door. Being so close to the monster made Cubert puke. He hoped that Jovi couldn't hear his heart thundering in his chest. Jovi nodded at the guard, who unlocked the door for them.

Cubert hadn't seen the outside in so long, he'd forgotten how beautiful it was. So much… space. For the first time in days, Cubert didn't feel trapped. Out there was freedom. It felt weird, to take advantage of Jovi's strangely good mood, but then Cubert remembered the man's cruel secrets and didn't feel bad anymore.

Still, maybe it was a trap, or test of some sort. To be shown what he wanted, only to be shot in the back trying to escape.

"Try not to be out too long or the humans could find you," Jovi half joked before heading back inside. The doors squealed shut and soon it was just him and another guard.

Cubert stood outside for a solid thirty seconds before reality settled in.

He'd gotten outside.

Somehow.

He couldn't let his luck go to waste. Any minute, Jovi would go down to the basement like he did every day, and then the gig would be up. Cubert forced his feet to start walking until his brain could catch up. He walked the length of the building just in case he was being watched.

It was so hard, appearing to be going for a stroll, when his mind was still racing from the morning. Mina and Jovi were up to something nefarious. There was a stockpile of weapons in a basement. And, to top it all off, Queen Moon, the person that Mina claimed to be looking for, was locked up in her basement! How could anyone appear carefree with that knowledge weighing on his shoulders.

He'd left her there, but only because she'd made him. Cubert had a mission now, he had to get to Star Butterfly and tell her about her mother and Mina.

He turned the corner of the building and made a beeline for the trees as soon as the entrance was out of sight.

AN: Hey guys… it's been a little while since the last update, but I have not one, not three, but TWO excuses. The first one is school. I had exams and finals the last few weeks and they were just laying it on us. I barely had any free time. Still, I feel really bad about making y'all wait over a month for the next chapter...

The other reason that it's been so long is that this chapter became so long that I decided to split it in two. On a positive note, I've written almost two thirds of the next chapter already and that one should be out in only a few days so keep an eye out.

Alright, excuses aside, what did you guys think? I didn't really mean to use Cubert this much in the story, but I used him a little in the next chapter and felt that I needed to explain his reason for leaving Mina and then all of a sudden there was enough to make a chapter. I hope you guy's like him, or at least tolerate him – there's a lot riding on his shoulders now.

I didn't mean to take this little side-trek away from Dipper, Mabel, Marco, and Star, but I promise I haven't forgotten about them and we'll get back to them in chapter 11.

See y'all soon!