Allegory, Allegorier, Allegoriest

[Ruggahissy]

((Mara Montalvo continued from Drink Me))

It had been a quite the hike from the shopping center, but she was feeling as well as could be, given the situation. She still ached, but had the time to re-bandage her hands and face. She ate half the pizza before her stomach began hurting and she put the rest in her bag for later consumption.

Her goal was the lagoon. It made her skin crawl how dirty she was. Mara was the type to take a shower every single day and sometimes twice a day in the summer. It was borne out of insistence from her mother, but became habit. She could feel the filth caking her skin, the grease on her hair and the blood making her clothes stiff.

Mara walked around the mossy cliffs to the lagoon and took in the quiet, beautiful surroundings. She stripped off her clothes and underclothes and beat them in the water against a rock. She then laid them out flat to dry and hugged her bare skin.

Before going into the water she made sure her bag was close at hand next to her clothes and kept a grenade in her hand even as she bathed. For the first time in awhile, she had a glimmer of happiness by herself in the clear water. Birds sang every once in awhile, the wind rustled through the trees and her movement pushed the water too and fro, though she couldn't hear any of it well. Mara took a deep breath and plunged her head under. She curled up with her knees to her chest and hugged the grenade. Wisps of her hair floated near her face. Mara was suspended. She stayed as long as she could and then shot up. Mara ran her hands through her hair, trying to break apart the tangles.

She swam over to the rocks near the shore where she'd laid out her wet clothes and bag and climbed up, laying flat on her stomach in the sunshine. Her slick black hair hung off the rock and her eyes narrowed, looking at her clothes across from her.

"I'm glad I wore black on the trip," she mumbled and rested her head on her forearm. The grenade was clutched in her left hand, dangling off the rock lazily.

[decoy73]

((Zubin Wadia continued from On the edge))

Zubin had not felt this energized since he woke up.

This wasn't due to any rise in spirits - he had simply taken a nap for a long time and woken up some time later.

"Hello, everybody. I'm back on the Island of Screaming Death. It's Day 5 here, and I'm back to being alone because my hare-brained plan won't get off the ground. I'm armed with my two by four, and now I have some pointed sticks, because Brian was armed with them. So I'm alone and effectively unarmed. Yay, me."

Cameras were becoming normal now. The fact that he had just given a confessional was proof of that.

"So, I'm eating these energy bars, and they ain't bad anymore. However, if I leave, I'm probably never going to eat these again."

Zubin stood up and took his bags and plank. It was really affecting him now. Not only did he probably smell like the inside of a Dumpster, he also had what would have been a very jarring answer to a question, if it had been asked three weeks ago.

Question: What kind of a person would kill Matt Masters?

Answer: Damn near anybody if the situation was right.

So now, he was wandering along the beach, which he hadn't left for, what, a day and a half or something, looking around for anybody who could help him, anybody who could

Well, who's this?

There was someone on the rocks, just lying down there. As he got closer, he noticed only one color on the person, as if

Okay ...

So it was a girl, one completely in the buff, no less. Zubin continued to approach. Of course, given the situation, he could have given some more care to how quickly he approached, but he had a fairly good idea of whom it was.

Come on Jaquilyn, I'm ready ...

[Ruggahissy]

Mara buried her face into the crook of her right arm. She rolled her shoulders back and felt the hit she took against the wall from the grenade blast. She picked up her head and turned to look at the bruise down her back, turning a light purple color under the red-brown of her skin. There was movement out of the corner of her eye. Her hold on the grenade tightened and she squinted at it.

It appeared to be male, or possibly a girl with short hair. She was somewhat exposed in the literal sense of the word, but not in the way that mattered. She was never particularly bashful and now would be an especially stupid time to start worrying about modesty. What did it even matter when she was already all carved up and marred? She didn't have her perfect looks anymore that she had so prized before.

She stayed laying on her stomach, picked her feet up at the knees and bent them towards her and propped her head up on her right hand and her left hand resting with the grenade.

"Who's out there?" she demanded.

[decoy73]

That's not Jaquilyn.

As Zubin got closer, what he was able to see was only confirmed what he had heard - he'd guessed wrong. Because unless Jaquilyn had an unknown talent at disguising herself, she did not look or sound like Mara Montalvo. So he was of two minds about this. On the one hand, Mara, while smart, was, to put it diplomatically, a raging bitchaholic. On the other hand, goddamn, did she look good naked. On the third hand (better put that on a foot), she had already killed two people, and won a worthwhile weapon and most importantly, palatable food, for one of the kills. Thus, Zubin had a potentially hostile party who already didn't like him who was well-armed and quite possibly prepared to kill again, who also had food that didn't taste like cardboard and made him very happy down there when she was wearing clothes, never mind in her current state.

So ... it was about even.

"Uh, it's me." He continued forward, more slowly this time. "Zubin. Please don't kill me." He had to remind himself to not smile like an idiot.

[Ruggahissy]

The figure came closer and spoke.

"I know who you are," she said bluntly.

Of course it was Zubin. It wasn't like she would have had a bout of memory loss between last week and today, though if she ever had the ability to selectively forget things, Zubin wouldn't be a bad candidate. Things had shifted since a week ago though. He certainly wasn't someone she liked and she would not have spit on him if he were on fire.

However, here she had worse people to look out for, people who had actually tried to kill her. She didn't recall ever hearing about Zubin, so while she didn't like him, he wasn't a dangerous.

When he first walked up and it became clear that the person was male and Zubin, her first instinct was to slide backwards back into the water for coverage. A second instinct was to grab her clothes or bag to cover up. She didn't though. While he walked up she had a moment to think about it.

Scurrying to her clothes and clutching them to her body would be an act of submissiveness. It would mean she was embarrassed and he would have the upper hand. The classic delicate girl: blushing, meek and nervous. That was certainly not Mara and she wouldn't do that. She was going to stand her ground. She wasn't going to back down to anyone, least of all Zubin.

And so he stood in front of her, shifting and appearing to have some trouble with his face. She had a grenade, but after what happened with Summer she wasn't eager to use it. She never wanted to experience that again. She woke up at night shivering and shaking, having dreamed of the light and sound and Summer. She didn't want to fight at all, in fact. Every movement she made resulted in a screaming round of pain from her injuries. Mara wanted to rest, not fight. This was a situation where her hand was not being forced. This kid didn't seem to be looking to kill her.

Mara put both heavily bandaged hands on the rock, still holding onto the grenade with the left hand, and pressed down like a push up to lift her torso. She sat up with her legs pulled up and crossed at the ankles. She draped her right hand across her chest, covering herself somewhat, but her hand was relaxed as if she was fiddling with an imaginary necklace.

"Are you going to tell me what you want or are you going to keep staring at me like a weirdo?"

[decoy73]

"Are you going to tell me what you want or are you going to keep staring at me like a weirdo?"

If they had been back at school or in any other normal situation, Zubin would have noted that Mara was the one who chose to go naked in a public place. Of course, if this were normal, Zubin would have also claimed to be Frank "Goddammit" Castle, just for shits and giggles. Of course, in a normal situation, Mara would not be armed with multiple weapons, nor would she have the ability to use them without fear of legal retribution.

This was not a normal situation. This fact was enough to eventually set Zubin's face back into a neutral expression, as well as erase any urge to make a smart remark, although her new stance made him very grateful that his sweatshirt went past his waist. In any case, he shifted his attention to the bandages and bruises on Mara's hands, face, and body, meaning, if anything, she had to actually go through shit to get whatever awesome weapon she was in possession of.

"Okay. What I want. I have been essentially alone and unarmed for the past day and a half. I want a partner. Just someone who can, if danger comes, help me fight back. I'll just shut up and carry any extra weapons you may have, noting that I would have no reason to try to hurt or kill someone who could, as it stands, easily kill me dead. I also have one hare-brained plan to get out without having to score any more kills, but it's only benefit to playing as directed is not having to kill anybody." Zubin took a deep breath.

"You okay with that?"

[Ruggahissy]

The offer of a traveling companion was unexpected. She had pretty much accepted that she would be alone after having all of her friends die, try kill her or leave her for dead. She'd slept in hidden brush and barricaded buildings in the nooks where she wouldn't be seen if someone were to stumble upon her hiding spot. During her fitful sleep her only companion was the guns she clutched like a child with stuffed animals. When day came she was afraid to travel in the light and in the night she was afraid of moving in the darkness that was a hinderance and a help. In both, she pushed past the fear and moved forward.

Here was Zubin, asking to stay with her. She hated him at school, but schoolyard hate is very different than what she felt for the people she had come to hate during the bloodsport. He was a familiar goof from a lifetime away and the familiarity itself was a bit of a security blanket, like if she'd found a bundle of prize tickets from The Castle on the floor.

She pulled her knees up, let the grenade dangle by the pin ring on her pinky and hugged her legs close. Mara stared into some far off place with her wet hair plastered to her neck, shoulders, and bandaged face, holding herself close and resting her chin on the gap between her knees.

"No...I can't come with you," she murmured, slightly sad.

The clarity returned to her eyes and she focused back in on Zubin and as if someone had flicked a switch some of her ferocity returned.

"You describing your own plan as 'hair-brained' doesn't really make me want join up," she snapped. Her hold on herself became slightly more slack. "Is that how you've pitched it in the past? Because if so, it shows," she said, tilting her head towards him and the lack of companions by his side. "And in case you don't listen to the local news, I've already killed people. It was really really fucked up!" she said drawing her hand in front of her from left to right. "I'm the strongest girl on this rock. I don't need your help. Is that it? Oh yeah, in school it was all 'Let's fight with Mara' but NOW you want my help?"

She jabbed a finger accusingly at him. "You told me to go home and rub one out or something, you creep!"

[decoy73]

Hm. A very good point. Zubin thought about it for a few seconds, stroking his now bearded chin.

In all honesty, Mara saying no wasn't all that surprising. Some of the reasons behind were also completely expected - he remembered his parting shot in the computer lab regarding a dick-measuring contest.

"That is not an image I want to be stuck with."

It was funny then. Of course, now the recommendation to beat off was coming to bite him.

"You bring up a few good points. Here is my rebuttal: first of all, my hair-brained plan, as we have both called it, is subject to change, which you could actually help me on. Second and third, I don't care. My last ally was Brian Zhdanovich, at least until he played catch with a bullet. His issued weapon was a bunch of pointed sticks. I didn't team up with him due to strength. I teamed up with him because of the same reason I want to team up with you: he was there, and I'm not picky. The fact that you didn't greet me with a hail of bullets shows that there's still enough of you left that you won't go wild on me before the final two. Also, the end part of my plan would have sort of been the end part of the plan if we hadn't come onto this island - namely, after this, we go our separate ways and never have to speak to each other again. Besides, you have killed. Who's' to say someone isn't coming for you? I've already stated I'd help you. You've got nothing to lose." Zubin paused for a few seconds.

"Just to ask, short of injuring or killing myself, what would you want me to do to prove myself?"

[Ruggahissy]

"About not having filled you with holes? That can be remedied."

He finished his rebuttal like they were still in debate club and she sat staring at Zubin with one eyebrow raised incredulously.

"That's your pitch? No wonder you're alone. You know you just told me that you only want me because I happen to be sitting here and that I'm as expendable as your last ally who was shot, right?"

She sat with her legs drawn up and both hands on the rock. He mentioned her kills and her arms tensed up. She crossed her arms tightly and bit her lip.

"I don't care who's after me. I killed because people were trying to kill me. In one case at least...no one is going to come after me. Because if anyone else had killed her, I'd be the one looking for the killer."

Mara visibly wilted again for a moment, but then puzzled over part of what he said. "What even is your plan? I don't understand. You want some plan thing, but then say you want to make it to the end. I still don't know what you want."

[decoy73]

Thank you, Mara. You know exactly how to make me feel good about himself.

"No, no. Mara, I only lost Brian as an ally because he got shot, in an incident both of us were attempting to de-escalate. It's true that I'm asking you because you're here and not shooting at me, and with Brian it was all 'Hey, Zubin. We should stick together.' 'Wow, that's a great idea!' And note, this was a on the first day, after I found out his weapon was a bunch of pointed sticks. If he were still alive, he'd be here with me, and I'd be asking you to join us."

It was true that Zubin was kind of seeing her as a resource, but only because Mara wasn't exactly friends. Even now, she simply expected the worst out of him.

"Also ..." And then the trademark screech came across.

"Good morning, kids. You've had another decent day, though a good number of those responsible for that aren't around anymore to reap the rewards. It's what happens as the game goes on. Let their errors be a lesson to the rest of you trying to make it home."

Must be that time of day again ... Zubin took out his notepad and flipped to his kill page to write.

"And, speaking of errors attempting to get home, let's start with a doozy. A short while before our last announcement, Karen Idel, Gavin Hunter, Cyrus White, and Megan Emerson tried to get their collars off. I'll spare you the details and just say it was a partial success, in that they no longer have collars. Unfortunately for them, they also lost their necks.

"Sophie McDowell and Alexander de Gaulle both fell prey to a grenade thrown by Summer Simms. Ms. Simms didn't get away with it this time, though, being put down by Mara Montalvo. Zubin's eyebrows went up at that. The only other names of note to him were that Ami Flynn got a kill, and both Tolstoffs and Miranda had been taken out - Edgar by Travis, Kat and Miranda by Stacy Ramsey. Once the new Danger Zones were given, thankfully not in his immediate vicinity, Zubin turned his attention back to Mara.

"Okay, so you have three kills. Still don't care. Here is my plan." Zubin turned his notepad to what his plan was walked close enough so that he could hold it out to Mara at arm's length.

[Ruggahissy]

((GMing done as instructed and approved by Decoy))

Mara looked around as the noise started up again. She heard a recounting of what had happened with Summer and to her slight surprise, it was pretty accurate. However, there was something else she wasn't expecting.

"Randa..."

Miranda and Kat were killed by other Stacy. She thought maybe she'd heard wrong. Stacy was a moron, how was she able to get the upper hand over Kat and Miranda? Mara could take her, she was sure. She wasn't afraid of some blonde bimbo. This also meant she was the last survivor of her friend group, Finn aside.

If you had asked her at school if she thought she was the toughest of her friends, she would have said yes. She wasn't entirely surprised, but it was a shock to be the last one. She'd only seen Miranda and Kat a day or two earlier. She'd have to pay Stacy a visit.

And then there was Zubin.

"Maybe you don't care, but I do. God, you have the emotional sensitivity of pond scum!" she said as she hurled a handful of small pebbles and dirt at Zubin.

"You think I wanted to kill Summer? I had to shoot my best friend in the face after she blew her own leg off trying to kill me. All my friends are dead," she said, grabbing hold of her knees and lowering her head. "I know I don't show it much, but it affects me."

Zubin began saying something about his plan. What he said next was so weird she had to lift her head to look at him again. He was saying something about a giant orgy or something and she just stared at him, open mouthed.

"I'm sorry, come again?," she asked shaking her head, thinking maybe her hearing was still fuzzy from the grenade blast.

He held out something to her. Mara shifted from her seated position with her legs pulled up to her chest. Her left hand was still holding the grenade, but she got up on her hands and knees and reached out with the free hand and snatched the notebook.

Whatever plan I say is a decoy to throw off terrorists. Collars are the key to this game. Best plan is to figure out how collars work and disarm explosives only. Must find some way of preventing detection by cameras. Makeshift shelter? Bedsheets? Desk?

Mara looked up at him with a frown after reading the note

"...did you not just hear the announcements? Like...did this very thing not just happen? More than once in fact, if memory serves? And what the hell are you doing asking me about this weird pervert stuff?" she snapped.

"If you think I'm going to sleep with you just because we're alone on this horrible island and I'm in front of you like this, then you're right."

She fluttered her feline eyes and bit her lip.

"I've been so scared and alone and there's nothing as reassuring as the weight of a man. I need a big strong man to keep be safe and whoever that is would certainly entitled to a reward. When you told me to go home and touch myself I was so turned on by you ordering me around. Tell me what to do, Zubin. I'm so tired of trying to figure things out on my own. Make me yours."

[decoy73]

Mara was resistant to an alliance. Either she understood that his stated plan was a lie and was really playing it, she didn't and she was being stupid, or she knew what the notepad said and still didn't want to team up for (idiotic) reasons unknown.

"Okay, maybe I need to speak slowly, so that all the beautiful, intelligent beyond belief people can understand: I'm offering you an alliance, no strings attached. You get that? You know why? Because what I've heard about you so far and what you've told me says that you're still using your head to play this game and have enough of a grip on reality to be affected by it. All the stuff I said before we left? Moot. All the stuff you said to me? Sunk cost. Four years of hating each other? Completely irrelevant. Any pair of people working together will be stronger than those same two people on their own. So you know what? Even though your attitude as if this is still high school is really tempting me, I'm not judging you."

Zubin took a deep breath. Man, he was pissed, and his eyes might have gone over certain parts of Mara's body while attempting to keep aware for anyone else. "But, if you're so intent on having me leave, I'll give you one chance to let it happen." Zubin smiled.

"Name me three people still alive who would join you without question." Zubin's smile dropped. "You have thirty seconds."

[Ruggahissy]

"When did I say I wanted you to leave?"

Mara rolled over onto her back and gaze up at him upside down.

"I said the opposite you know."

He asked her to name three people who'd stay with her and she sat back up. Her big eyes wavered and she chewed on her finger in distress.

"How could I? Why would you say something like that? I just told you all my friends died. I just s-said that and th-then you make me name someone who'd st-stay with me and you, you know there's no one left."

She covered her face and little hiccup and sobbing noises leaked out from behind her fingers. Mara rubbed her hands over her face frantically and sniffed.

"I- I just said I wanted someone to stay with me, keep me warm, protect me and look after me. I'm not sure about this- this plan of yours, but I know I don't want to be alone and I'll do whatever's needed to keep you around."

She stood for the first time during the conversation. Mara grasped him by the shirt collar with the same hand that held his notebook and pushed against him.

"Will you take care of me?" she said softly.

[decoy73]

Okay. He might have reacted to that wrong and holy fuck did she just stand up completely naked?!?! Zubin just gulped and brought Mara in close as he thought about what he was going to say.

Don't touch her ass, don't touch her ass, don't touch her ass ...

That, too.

"I'm, I'm sorry Mara. This thing's just getting to me." Do you understand my actual plan? Blink once for yes, twice for no. Zubin mouthed. "Let's just start clean, okay?"

Are you willing to ally with me? Blink once for yes, twice for no.

To his credit, he was actually being serious with what he said aloud. I just saw Mara naked.

[Ruggahissy]

He grabbed her around the shoulders and brought her in closer. He was clearly flustered and seemed to have some wandering eyes and twitchy hands. He was also mouthing something to her, most of which she couldn't catch. This was getting boring. She was probably going to cause him to have some kind of heart attack before he ever made a move for her to satisfyingly slap down like she'd hoped.

Mara was never much for patience. She rolled her eyes and lifted her left knee up towards his crotch as fast and hard as she could. She ripped herself out of his hold and leapt back onto the rock where her things were.

"No, no clean slate. Let me give you some advice. You think you're what I need, oh brave and noble hero? You're not. I don't need anyone, least of all some boy and even less so you. Everyone who I might have wanted to keep around is dead. Second: you need to pay more attention to current events if you don't want a stump for a head. You think you're the first one to try this?" she said waving around the notebook. "Bad news, dipshit. Your participation trophy from little league was a lie. You're not a unique snowflake, so I suggest you think a little harder."

Mara scooped up her damp clothes, the M4 Carbine and her duffle, stuffing the clothes and grenade in the bag.

"And last, but not least by any stretch. You're still the creep you were at school. Next time you see a girl bathing, maybe approach looking to the side or the ground and open with something like 'Hey, I need to talk. Do you want to get dressed real quick?' instead of leering at her like you're at a strip club."

She hopped to another rock and stood with her hands on her hips, frowning down at him.

"Hmm, maybe a swim will cool your jets?" she said, tossing the notebook behind her into the lagoon.

With her m4 and her bag she leapt from rock to rock until she was at the far edge of the lagoon, when she leapt back onto the ground and ran as fast as her injured body would take her.

Great. Now I need another bath.

((Mara Montalvo continued in Exposure))