Red-Handed (an Among Us fanfiction)

- Chapter One -

All was silent as Red crept stealthily through the narrow space of the ventilation shaft. The cold metal walls rattled slightly with the pulsing of the ship's engine, but other than that the only noise he could hear was his own breath, baited and shallow as he kept crawling.

It was almost pitch-black within the shaft, the only light being a dim glow emitted from his suit. Scooching forward on his belly, he desperately hoped nobody would question the faint glow that might be emitted through a random vent.

You're being paranoid. Unless there's a sabotage, it will be too light for anyone to notice.

Finally, he spotted a greyish light up ahead. Crouching now, Red paused to catch his bearings. He had been aiming for Communications, but it was easy to get turned around when you couldn't see two feet in front of you. Glancing up through the metal grating, he could see Brown tapping away at the tablet he was using to upload data into the computer system, totally oblivious to the Imposter skulking just beneath him. 

Nervously, Red checked the small gun he carried. It was loaded and equipped with a silencer - nobody would hear a thing. Brown wouldn't even know what hit him.

Suddenly, however, a female voice met Red's ears. A sweet, sing song-y voice that had to be Yellow's.

"So, are you doing anything tonight, Brown?" she asked innocently.

Red heard nothing, assuming that Brown had only shrugged a response. The guy wasn't very talkative.

"Do you wanna maybe hang out when we've finished all our tasks for the day?" Yellow continued. Red heard her footsteps above him, and suddenly all he could see through the vent was a pair of fluorescent yellow pants. He ducked back, gun still in hand. If she looked down, he would be caught.

However, she seemed far too engaged in talking with Brown. Red listened as the two chatted for a bit, rolling his eyes at Yellow's slight flirtations. Finally, the yellow pants disappeared from view, and Red heard her exit the room.

Come on, come on... step on it! Brown will be done any minute.

Red gave Yellow the count of twenty, just to be sure. Then he threw open the vent and jumped out, gun at the ready.

Brown's head shot up. "Red, what are you...?" his voice cut short when he realized how his crewmate had gotten in, and his dark eyes traveled down Red's quivering arm to the gun pointed straight at him.

Brown stumbled back, voice shaking as he spoke.

"Red, w-what are you doing? Red, where did you get that?"

Red bit his lip, willing himself not to back down. He had never killed somebody before, and now he knew he didn't have a choice. If Brown was given ten more seconds, he would scream for help, and Red would be ejected. His mission would fail.

So, he pulled the trigger. The gun flew back from the impact, but the only noise was Brown's strangled cry as his body fell, his skull smacking against the cold floor. Red stood frozen over his crewmate's dying body for just a second, watching the blood trickle out of his victim's mouth as he struggled to emit a faint groan.

The Imposter shook his head, trying to clear it. He couldn't stop to think about it. He couldn't let himself feel anything. He had to get out, immediately, if he wanted to survive. So, he stashed the gun in his suit and jumped back into the vent, dragging the grate shut behind him and quickly scrambling away.

Back in Security, Red climbed out of the vent and dusted himself off. The vents weren't exactly the cleanest, and he would need to clean up fast before anyone noticed how grimy he was.