Hi everyone!

The reception to the last chapter has been unbelievable, thank you all so much! We don't have much more to go in this part, three more chapters I think (it may spin into four), and I'm excited for the rest of the series. I'm hoping all of you will stay with me for it!

Special thanks for reviews: Subtle Shenanigans, Tifflinck

Disclaimer: I don't own anything relating to Markiplier, JackSepticEye or Matthias/Hi5 Universe. If you wish to use anything relating to my own universe, please ask first.

Chapter 13: Your Move

The group had spent a good ten minutes recovering after Jack's near miss, coming to terms with all the conflicting feelings before getting ready to move out. It was only once they had stood again and went to examine the Thundermane's corpse that Alix had an idea. She asked the others to help skin part of the carcass, hoping to get a large stretch of the body fur. When the others gave her an odd look, she spun back to them with a smile. "Well it didn't shock itself, did it?"

An hour later they were headed onwards to the tomb, Mark's shield now reinforced on the inside with the Thundermane skin. It had taken a little bit of fiddling to successfully attach the two items together, but the results had been well worth it. A quick test of Jack firing at Mark gave them exactly the end result they had been hoping for: Mark's shield could now insulate against lightning. That meant two of them could now block Anti at range, and it meant that Mark especially would be highly effective against him. It still didn't really solve the problem of how they were going to combat Dark however…

They reached the tomb just before night fell, and it was only at the end of the day that the others noticed something. "Hey, Alix?" Matt asked, catching the programmer's attention. "Is it just me, or do the days seem a lot shorter here?"

Jack nodded in agreement. "I was thinking that actually. Time seems to be flying in here."

Alix smiled at them. "Time isn't a constant, guys. It's relative to your perception. When we were building this place we had mastery of physics, in a way. Things like time, rules of gravity and the like…we could dictate them to how we choose. How do you think I managed to pull off that jump from the rooftops against Dark? In the outside world I'd have definitely broken a bone, or ten. We tried to project time to move at the same pace in here as it works in reality, but it wasn't easy. We managed to get it so that things move only at about 1.1 times the speed in the Dreamscape. If it was much faster, communication with the outside would become impractical, or even impossible."

Mark looked at her strangely. "Wait, so we've actually been in here less time than we think?"

She nodded. "You guys think you've been in here three days now, but it's actually a lot less than that. The fact that Glaysha days are only 18 hours in length has a lot to do with that too."

"So, while we think it's been about two and half days, maybe 60ish hours…"

"Really you've only been in here about 45 hours in Glaysha time. Take in the discrepancy of time flow, you've only been gone for just over 40 hours."

Jack's head spun slightly. "That fucks with the head a bit."

Alix giggled. "It's not as complicated as it sounds, really. Just assume that you've only been in here for just over two-thirds of the time you think has passed, and you're pretty accurate."

Matt stared at her in concern. "Alix…does that mean it feels like a year and a half has passed in here for you?"

She took her time in answering. "Honestly, I had no idea how long it had been. I gave up counting long ago. Calendars and such don't exist in here, there is no long-term method of measuring time. They don't count years by days and months. A year is judged by the seasons in here, and even they are pretty screwy. Summer and Winter last longer that Spring and Autumn. I stopped keeping track, I thought it would just make me even sadder about everything. The only reason I knew how long it had been was when I went into the game files looking for information when you guys first arrived. I saw the date you guys were uploaded, and that helped me work it out."

The other three all looked at her sadly, to which Alix just smiled gently at them. "Hey, come on, cut it out, guys. It's not so much of a bad thing now, I've managed to make a life here. You've seen some of the wonders of this place, and there is more to keep discovering if I want to. It's not all bad. And…" she blushed lightly, "if this hadn't happened, I'd almost certainly have never met the three of you. Silver linings and all that, yeah?"

Jack was the first to the chuckle. "Yeah, I guess so," he said before walking over and hugging her. The other two soon joined in, making Alix's blush spread even further. When they pulled away Jack smirked at her. "At least lighting a fire tonight will be a piece of cake, we can just use Alix's face."

Matt and Mark both laughed as Alix stuck her tongue out. "Okay, as much as I may love you, Jack, that doesn't mean I won't get my own back later."

Mark swung an arm around her shoulders. "Just make sure you give Matt and I plenty of heads' up to get some popcorn ready."

Their stay that night in the tomb had been an unsettled one, and it had taken a great deal of effort for any of them to get some sleep, especially Mark and Jack. So many thoughts spun through both of their heads that it made getting anywhere near relaxed enough for sleep a challenge. In the end, Mark had managed to get three very broken hours before he gave up. When he left his tent to join the others, he encouraged Matt and Alix to try and rest, the pair having taken the first watch of the night. It had taken a while, but the other two did eventually head off, leaving Mark alone with his thoughts.

Now in the open, Mark allowed everything which he had been trying to quell in his mind come to the fore. He just couldn't stop thinking about his argument with Jack earlier, and the horrible apparent truth which Jack had unintentionally pointed out. No matter how he looked at it, he was at the heart of this situation. There was something there, some reason that Damien had engineered all of this…and he just couldn't figure it out. So many factors pointed toward it – Damien's silence the minute they entered the Dreamscape, Dark's adopting of his alter ego, Darkiplier, his being separated from Jack and Matt when they first arrived… A sinking feeling had settled right in his stomach and he was having a hard time shifting it.

His statement to Jack earlier that day haunted his mind. He could only imagine how much worse this whole situation would have been had any of their other friends said yes to the invitation to Digitalia; it had already nearly cost him one of his closest friends. The image of Jack lying all but dead on the ground jumped back to the front of his mind and it took a great deal of effort to dislodge it.

Stop it! Sean's fine, he's tough. Nothing is going to take him, or Matt, or any of us down that easy. But the darker corner of Mark's mind couldn't let it go: he knew, deep down, there was every chance what happened earlier that day could reoccur. He remembered the words he had seen in the book which Jack had been given to symbolise him as a mage, the same book which lay in the Irishman's inventory.

A shield to those close to their heart.

Mark knew no matter how much Jack would promise to try and keep himself out of danger, it wouldn't stop him. They hadn't really tackled the issue much earlier, but now he had to. If the scenario arose where one of them was in danger and Jack thought there would be even so much as the tiniest chance of stopping the attack, he would use the shield. He would use himself as a shield. And the thought made Mark sick.

I can't let what happened earlier today come about again. I've got to convince him to look after himself.

About half an hour had passed with similar swirling thoughts when he heard the rustling of a canvas not far away from him. He looked up to see Jack emerging from his tent, stretching and mid yawn. Mark chuckled at him and couldn't resist a quick jibe. "You trying to catch flies, Sean?"

Jack finished yawning and waved him off. "Nah, I'm fishing for sarcastic bastards." That earned a hearty laugh out of Mark and Jack joined in softer as he came to sit next to his friend. The pair of them sat quietly for a couple of minutes before a sharp wind cut through the area, sending a chill down both of their spines. "Yikes, this place is freaking creepy. I know it's a tomb but, jeez. I'm beginning to wonder how much of this is our mind playing tricks on us."

Mark chuckled darkly. "Saying that inside the Dreamscape is probably not the best idea, Sean."

The Irishman winced. "Yeah, guess you're right. I almost keep forgetting that we're inside a computer: it all feels so real."

Real. Mark's mind jumped back to earlier in that day again, flashes of their fight against the Thundermane taunting him once more. Jack saw Mark tense, could see the moments of fear and guilt across his face. He sighed deeply before he spoke again, knowing this next conversation was going to be incredibly hard. "Mark…" The half-Korean turned back to Jack. "Thank you, for what you did earlier today. I know we really never talked about it but- Jesus Mark, you actually saved my life with what you did."

Mark shook his head in response. "You don't need to thank me, Sean. I did what I had to do, I wasn't going to let you go. And we don't know that you wouldn't have just uploaded back to your body."

Jack levelled him with a stare. "If you really believed that, would you have done what you did?" The silence sat between them for a couple of seconds before Jack pulled him in for a hug. Mark held him tightly. "Thanks, man."

It took a few seconds before Mark found the courage to speak the words which had haunted his mind. "Sean, we need to make sure it doesn't happen again. It can't happen again. You need to be more careful."

The pair separated, and Jack gave him a confused look. "Mark?"

"I mean, fuck, Sean. You almost died using your shield. What happens if it collapses again and its something that does it instantly? We had the chance to save you this time, but we might not be that lucky again. If we come up against Dark and Anti-"

"You can't be seriously asking me not to use my shield, Mark. That's insane."

"Sean, you are literally using yourself as a shield. If it fails-"

"It did this time, there's no reason to think it will again. I didn't know my limit before, but I do now."

Mark ran his hand through his hair in agitation. "This isn't a fucking game, Sean! If you-" he cut himself off, swallowed hard and physically shuddered, making Jack's words die in his throat. He'd just been about to snap at Mark to stop being so paranoid, but then he suddenly tried to think of the situation from the opposite way around. If it had been Mark, Matt or Alix who had been in that position…he'd probably be reacting very similar.

Wasn't it my determination to protect them against that thing which brought this about in the first place?

After taking a deep breath to refocus himself Mark turned to look Jack in the eye, finally managing to dislodge the words which had been afraid to come out. "If you died in here, I don't think I'd ever forgive myself. Any of you."

Jack could now finally see what was truly lurking underneath the words Mark spoke. His near miss earlier had begun to break Mark's resolve. The older man had been trying his best to stay detached from his perceived involvement in this whole situation: reminding himself that there wouldn't be any defined answers until they faced Damien again. But now…their argument that morning combined with Jack's brush with death had brought all of those feelings to a head, and Mark was beginning to crumble under the strain. Jack knew that wasn't something he could fix, however. Only escaping would do that. "Mark…look, I can't promise that I won't use my shield, that's who I am. The Dreamscape made me like this for a good reason, so I can't ignore it. I can promise I'll be more careful. Alix warned me that it's just when the shield breaks involuntarily – if I drop it willingly just before it gets to that point, then I won't be affected. Or at least that was how they intended it when they programmed it, I've no idea if that is how it will actually work. At least then I can still use it, and if I can hold it long enough, whoever is in trouble can get away."

Mark thought this over and then nodded in agreement. "All right, that sounds fair. Just please, Sean…be careful."

Jack smiled at him. "I will, don't worry." His smile soon turned into a smirk. "I'm not the one with the reputation."

He got a light backhand to the arm for his comment. "Fuck you, asshole."

The pair soon turned their conversation back to more light-hearted topics, but it didn't completely settle either of their minds. Neither of them was truly ready to let out their insecurities to the other – not yet. The new day would maybe bring about courage.

From the shadows of their camp, a figure watched with a satisfied smile. The flickers at his sides begged to be unleashed but he quelled them with a wave of his hand. "That sadistic glitch was right, the anticipation is sometimes better than the end result." Dark's smile turned cruel as he watched Mark and Jack discussing animatedly, fighting the temptation to strike them now. He knew it would ruin his true plan, however. "Oh Mark, I cannot wait to see how you react. This, you will not see coming."

When the group awoke the next day, they spent several hours searching the tomb for the pathway to the Ancient Castle. The tomb had proven to be much bigger than any of them thought, and much creepier. Torchlight lit the vast network of corridors, and the area was decidedly quiet. Moss was growing from the various sections of broken stonework where water had managed to make it in, and various beetles and small insects skittered across the floor and roof. It was much eerier than they had really acknowledged the previous night.

Unfortunately for them, Alix had not been involved in designing this area of Glaysha, so she hadn't the faintest idea where to start looking for the hidden passageway. After nearly two hours of searching the seemingly unending number of rooms on the top floor, they realised they had to split up. They had separated into two groups, keeping a melee and ranged specialist in each while making sure whoever was together could defend against Anti's lightning. That left only one option with the pairings: Mark with Matt and Jack with Alix.

At Matt's direction, they had gone to opposite ends of each floor, looking for any hint of a secret entrance. They each kept their eyes peeled as they raked through bookcases and chests, even getting to the stage where they opened tombs to looks for any switches. Most of the caskets had been empty – two had not. Mark and Matt had fought to keep their stomach contents down after the smell of each one. At the end of the third floor when they reunited, Jack and Alix winced in sympathy when they saw just how green their companions were looking.

As soon as they arrived on the fourth floor, they all felt a cold breeze rip through the area. And given they were now several floors underground… "You guys feel that?" Mark asked.

Jack shuddered, rubbing his arms. "Yeah, it's fucking freezing down here. This is where I'm really wishing I was wrapped up in some armour." Alix smiled at him and flipped up his hood. It wasn't much, but it was a help.

Matt wrapped his cloak a bit tighter around himself, feeling the cold as well. "Dude, my armour isn't helping that much. But there is a definite breeze here, and it isn't coming from the stairs. The entrance must be down here."

A noise in the distance made all of them a little jumpy. "I don't suppose we can hope that was just the wind knocking something down, can we?" Mark asked.

The three men turned their attention to Alix. "Any chance that's just a creature roaming the tomb?" Matt asked her.

She looked thoughtful. "Jack and I have fought a couple of skeletons and zombies on our side of the tomb: creatures can spawn here, though its rare. It could be that, or it could be the wind."

"Do you think it could be them?"

"Gut instinct says no, we haven't seen any hint of them, and there's been opportunities for either Dark or Anti to get the drop on us. I'm guessing it's been the same for you guys?"

Mark nodded. "Yeah, we've not seen the slightest indication. Let's just go with the theory of monsters though, just to be safe."

Matt turned to face the other three. "All right, we'll stay in two teams but keep in sight of each other, just in case the other needs backup." He got three nods back. "Jack, Alix, you head to the right. Mark and I will take the left. Keep your guard up."

The quartet split off, Mark and Matt heading to some statues and caskets on the left-hand side of the room as Jack and Alix began looking through the corresponding versions on the other side. They had been at it for a few minutes when a large clatter of stone in the centre of the chamber made all four of them jump. Alix and Matt quickly drew their weapons while Mark retrieved his shield. They all watched for a few seconds before Matt shared a look with the others. "Cover me, Jack. I'm going to check it out."

After receiving a nod from the Irishman, Matt began slowly traversing his way over, keeping an arrow notched in his bow. Mark stayed a few steps behind him while Jack and Alix watched the surroundings, making sure nothing was amiss. When Matt reached the offending area, he knelt down and examined the loose stone on the floor, turning his gaze upwards to see several missing chunks from the roof. Now satisfied as to the reason, he relaxed his stance and picked some of the pieces. "It's just some of the roof coming away, this stonework looks like it has seen better days." The others also eased, Alix and Mark putting their weapons away as Matt stood again.

"I think this place is just making us jumpy," stated Mark.

Alix laughed lightly. "The tomb specifically, or the Dreamscape in general?" she teased.

That got a laugh out of the others. "Would it be bad to say both?" Jack asked. Matt turned as he was laughing at Jack's statement, walking back towards Mark. Jack and Alix shared a small laugh as they headed back to the bookshelves.

Matt never made it back.

He screeched as the floor beneath him caved suddenly. Fortunately for him, Mark was still watching him and dove forward to catch him. "Matt!" The half-Korean threw himself towards the hole which had appeared, landing painfully on his stomach as he managed to grab a hold of the other man. The momentum pulled them both further in, Jack and Alix barely managing to reach Mark in time to stop him falling in after hearing Matt's scream.

Mark winced and breathed harshly as he came to a stop with his stomach right on the edge of the hole, Jack and Alix both holding a leg each to keep him stable. His hands were locked on to Matt's wrists, the other man reciprocating the gesture with him. "Matt, you all right?" Jack shouted as Mark got his breath back from being winded.

Matt took a couple of seconds to answer. "Yeah, I think so. Jeez, that was close." He turned his gaze back up to Mark, barely able to see his face from the reflections of the torchlight from the floor above. "Thanks for the save, dude. You all right?"

The other man gave him a grimace and answered through gritted teeth. "I'm just fucking peachy…damn, this hurts."

"Matt, can you see anything down there?" Alix shouted.

"What kind of fucking question is that right now?" Mark snapped back, but it was mostly from the painful position he was currently situated in.

"Guys, we're about three stories underground. If Matt's fallen into an open space-" she continued, and Jack caught onto her thinking.

"Shit, she's right!" Jack interrupted. "Matt, do you think you're in the passage, or is it another floor?"

Now catching onto their thinking, Matt tried to look around. "I can't see a thing, it's too dark – there's no light down here. Can you guys grab one of the torches from the wall up there?"

Alix and Jack shared a look, at which the Irishman nodded at her. "I've got them, go." She gave him a quick smile and made sure they were all completely stable before racing away to one of the torches. Jack took a firm hold of Mark's feet and sat on the floor to keep himself steady. "Mark, you all right?"

Matt could see Mark was struggling in his current position. "Jack, can you shuffle him back a few inches? He's in a lot of pain." After fighting slightly with his grip on Mark's legs, Jack anchored his feet as best he could on the stone floor and tried to haul him backwards.

Mark drew in a deep breath as Jack managed to bring him back across the edge, managing to change it so he was resting on his chest instead. "Nice one, Sean. That's a lot better." Mark switched his focus back to Matt. "You okay, Matt?"

He got a nod back. "I'm fine, just feeling a little open is all. Where is Alix?"

A large crash of metal from his left caught Jack's attention, and he saw Alix storing her halberd again after having cut a torch down from the wall. She sprinted back to them, standing to the opposite side of the hole. "Sorry, that was a struggle. Matt, watch yourself!"

She tossed the torch down the gap before returning to keep Mark steady. Matt watched as it fell, eyes lighting in relief as he saw it land another few metres below him: and it was a corridor. "Yes! This is it!" The others whooped in joy. "It's too far to jump though, you'll need to pull me back up."

Mark managed to jump look over his shoulder at the other two. "Think you two could pull both of us?"

They shared a look before Jack answered. "We could try, but this floor really isn't the easiest to get a grip on. It might be easier if Matt tries to haul himself up with your help and we'll grab him from the edge. What do you think Matt?"

Matt nodded at Mark. "Let's go with it. Hang on tight, guys!"

Mark sucked in a breath as Alix and Jack both anchored themselves as best they could. The half-Korean's stomach dropped as he saw Matt's face morph into shock. "Matt?" he asked in concern.

The older man tried shaking his left leg but couldn't. "Something's got my leg."

Before Mark could ask any more, it was taken out of his hands.

Matt screamed as he felt his leg being pulled sharply, Mark barely able to keep a hold of him. "Matt! Shit!"

Jack and Alix felt themselves being pulled too. Realising something was very wrong, they moved up Mark's body towards the hole, Alix leaning fully on Mark's back to keep him in place as Jack moved to lay alongside him. As he leant over he could instantly see the pain on Matt's face. "Matt, grab on!" he shouted while holding out his hands. Matt managed to sift his left hand over to Jack's, allowing Mark and Jack to double up their grips. Alix shifted so that she was laying over both of their backs, keeping them stable.

Another sharp pull almost hauled all four of them in. "Fuck! What is happening?!" Mark exclaimed, fighting to keep a hold of Matt. Then both he and Jack could see it: a black shadowy tendril was snaking its way up Matt's body, slowly grabbing a firmer grasp of him with each passing second. "Shit!" Matt started choking as it coiled around his neck, constricting tightly. With Matt struggling to breathe, his grip began to slip. "No! Fucking dammit! Leave him alone, you son of a bitch!"

Jack and Mark held as tightly as they could, but it was no use. As Matt began to lose more strength and his grip became fainter, it was only a matter of time. The others shouted Matt's name as he was wrenched away from them into the darkness below, Mark holding out his hand in disbelief at seeing him stolen away. Alix could feel the ground beneath them was beginning to crumble and shrieked at them. "Guys we need to move!"

The trio scrambled to their feet, throwing themselves to safety as another couple of feet of floor vanished. They stayed motionless on the floor for a few seconds before they heard a clinking on a nearby wall. All of their attention turned to the change in their scenery and Mark's eyes hardened when he realised it.

Jack and Alix watched as he got back to his feet and marched over to the mirror on the wall. "Mark?" Jack asked before pushing himself upright, Alix right behind him.

Mark didn't answer Jack, instead glaring at the image slowly coming into view in the reflective surface. He could see Dark sauntering over with a smirk on his face, the expression growing as he saw Mark's fury. Alix gasped from behind him as she saw Dark inside the glass. "Why?" Mark demanded.

Dark glanced at Jack and Alix before staring confidently at Mark. "Do you not remember what I said before, Mark? Hostages are a valuable asset."

A snarl came back at the shadow. "Leave them out of this, Dark, or whatever the fuck you are!" Mark exclaimed back at him. "I know you aren't Darkiplier, you're just imitating him to get inside my fucking head! I'm the one you want, I'm the one you've been trying to fuck with this whole time! Let the others go!"

Mocking laughter came back at him. "Oh Mark, were it that simple. This is so much bigger than just you and me. And are you really sure that I'm not your dark side? I seem to be a very good imitation if that were the case." Dark scoffed. "Besides, I don't want to deal with a pissed off glitch. I promised him Jack in return for his help, and I don't care to face the headache he would give me."

Jack jumped in. "Like fuck am I going to give myself to that thing! Dream on, you bastard!"

Dark turned to stare at him. "And were I to say I knew the way to give your new friend a way out? You surrender to Anti, I'll give Alix life again. Does that not sound like a fair trade?"

That caused Jack to freeze. "I-"

Alix snapped at the creature, enraged. "Like hell that would work, you sick fuck! I know I'm trapped in here forever now, Damien saw to that! Try again!"

Dark eyed her critically. "Are you so sure, Alix? All you know of the situation is what Damien spoke to these three when they first entered. Are you so sure your body isn't simply lying comatose somewhere, ready for your mind to return?"

She paused, doubt suddenly filling her mind at the possibility Dark was presenting. "No…it can't be. It's been over a year…"

"People can lie comatose for years. Can you really be so sure that you are trapped here?"

"Leave them alone!" Mark snarled. "I've had it with this bullshit! Just why?! Why do all this?!"

A cruel smile was his answer. "If you want to know the answers so badly, come to me. I've made my play, I have your friend. It's your move, Mark. Choose carefully."

The mirror swiftly shattered, causing Jack and Alix to jump. Mark glared at the broken glass for a few more seconds before he turned to his companions, seeing the slightly shell-shocked look on each of their faces. They all shared a look for several seconds before Alix spoke unsteadily, echoing all of their thoughts.

"What do we do now?"

And that wraps it up for this part. I feel like I'm constantly apologising for cliff hangers, but I don't intend on making you wait too long for the next part!

Please let me know what you all thought and I'll see you soon!

*Smooch*