Wants and Needs

[Sister Grimm†]

Edward couldn't say how good it was running into a familiar face. Especially Imraan, who he recognized even from his hiding spot along the side of the road. While Imraan might not be what Edward called a close friend, he was certainly close enough in the present situation. If he was going to find someone to tag along with, he could certainly do worse then the star basketball player. He was armed with a deadly looking shotgun that would do wonders to keep people away, not to mention his height alone would probably serve an important purpose of intimidation. No one would want to pick a fight with the school's resident giant. He couldn't do better for protection unless the army sent in some paratroopers then and there. Edward almost glanced skyward, but managed to quell the impulse.

Instead, he flashed a broad smile at Imraan as he drew closer. "Bloody good to see you, Imraan! I was beginning to think my luck was going to be routinely awful." He almost mentioned his luck with the weapon draw as part of his less-then-lucky streak, but he held back at the last second. Maybe it was his natural distrust of everyone around him, but he didn't feel quite like revealing his poor hand so early on. Especially when any one of the others in this little circle could prove to be less amiable then Imraan. All it would take is someone with there screws decidedly loose and it would be over before it began. Not an ideal situation. He may be able to count on Imraan to keep his head...or considering the car, maybe not. Let's put it this way; he could count on Imraan not shooting him probably. The rest? Not so much.

It didn't help he only recognized one of the group right of the bat. Vivien, the little queen. While Edward never interacted with him/her directly, he certainly knew him/her well enough. He/she was crazy enough to convince him/herself that they were a different gender, so why not pushing him/herself far enough to start shooting? The rest were more or less unknown to him. He got a feeling that the cuter girl was named Violet or Veronica, something close to that. The other one was...Madeleine? Also an unknown quantity, but she seemed pretty shaken judging by her point of refuge behind the other girl. As for the boy, Edward thought he recognized him from the stoner set. Mike, if he wasn't mistaken.

It would be wiser to stick together, he thought at first. Of course, that was assuming everyone could be trusted. People were already talking about splitting up. The reasoning was sound, he supposed. More people meant a bigger target for someone with a gun. Of course, the opposite was true. there was a safety in numbers, of course. At least Mike and Imraan had real weapons, and chances were at least one of the other three had something decent as well. Maybe not a gun, but a knife or something. Still, shotgun beats most anything. Anyway, Edward would prefer to stay in a group. Hopefully Imraan and the cute girl with the interestingly coloured hair. But, of course, this was a time for initiative. As much as he liked Imraan's idea about a signal, he knew it was folly. If the Proper Authorities found this island, it wouldn't be because a few students started flashing smoke signals.

"I tend to agree with Vivien. A group might equal safety, but it also equals a greater target. Smaller groups might be the ticket. But, on the other hand..." Edward flashed a grin at the girl with the dyed hair and hoped he was right about the name. "The lovely Violet has a point. Trust is at a premium at this point. As reticent as I would be to cast accusations about, there is a real possibility that the rest of the student body is not as forward-thinking as this little group. There are no doubt students already blasting away at any in sight. Now, this may be naivety and hope for the decency in everyone, but you all strike me as a fairly decent group of people. I feel there are definite worst case scenarios. As such, one might do worse then hanging around. Of course, that still doesn't solve anything. Unless I'm the only one seeing merit in Imraan's plan, I humbly suggest we might make out to higher ground. Someplace immediately visible. Where better to create some sort of signal, after all?" Edward turned, and with a grand flourish, motioned toward the cell phone tower in the distance. "To me, that does seem rather visible."

[D/N]

(extremely sorry for the delay)

After first Violet and then Vivien started going on about how they should just split off and go their own ways, Imraan just stood there for a second, gaping in disbelief.

"Whoa, whoa man. You really want to split up? I mean..."

He trailed off, unsure of how to proceed. On one hand, splitting up was a seriously dumb idea. Violet was going on about trust issues in groups, but didn't she get why that was the whole reason they needed to be in a big group in the first place? If one guy in a group of ten was thinking of playing, what was he going to do, kill all nine other kids without being stopped? Big groups discouraged that sort of thing. It was only when you broke off into small groups that that sorta mindset started taking over.

Unless that was exactly the sort of thing that she wanted to happen. Was she just wanting to split them up so she could take advantage? Yeah, that was definitely possible.

FINALLY, Edward spoke up and added some reason to this whole thing. Imraan could've hugged the guy right then and there. Imraan had considered going north, maybe to the beach area, but he didn't think this was a time to start arguing about direction.

"Sounds like a plan to me, Edward. I'm up for that if you guys are."

He glanced at the rest of the group. He needed to think about people like Mike and Madeliene too. They'd be better off sticking with him, but he couldn't force it. And if they, or Violet or Vivien went off on their own, he had to let them do that. Couldn't say he didn't warn them.

"OK look, no offense, but if you're talking about going off on your own, then I'm not gonna stop you, but I really think that's a dumb idea. Even sticking with like, only one other person, I think that's risky. I'm gonna go with Edward to the tower, I really think it'd be best if you came with us but hey, that's your choice. I'm with you guys when you're ready."

(Imraan Al-Hariq continued in Your Cross to Bear)

[Ella†]

Mike listened as each student made his point- split up, don't split up, send a signal, split your life five ways, etc, etc, etc. As soon as Violet spoke, it didn't matter what anyone said anymore- a split became inevitable the second the notion had escaped the girl's lips. Imraan seemed unhappy- he could tell that his initial plan to form a large group had pretty much failed. So what did this mean? He didn't have to ask, though- he could practically see the party lines drawn on the ground. Imraan would stay with Edward because he seemed his only supporter here. From the moment Maddy appeared, there was no separating her and Violet. And then Maddy had said she would go with Vivien. Heh. He should've known it would split into Girls vs. Boys.

"Well, uh, if we're going somewhere, I should probably go grab my stuff. Wait a sec." Wow, smooth move there. But then he remembered- Shit! My weapon! Dread hit the young boy like a tidal wave- at least, for the split second before he remembered that the mace-thing was right by his feet. He picked up his weapon and walked back around to where he'd awakened behind the back wheel of the truck. His bags were still there, exactly where he'd left them before storming the Incredible Palestinian Hulk (Palestinian! That's what he was). He knelt down and put any leftover items back in the bags- but he knew that he'd probably have to dump them eventually as his strength left him and the luggage became too heavy to carry further.

I wonder how long that'll take. This bitter thought soon gave way to a more important one, however- who would he go with? Mike's first thought was to stick with Imraan and Edward- finish the pattern, you know? But the island's characteristic distrust quickly set in. Imraan and Edward- they were strong, sure, but they seemed pretty much your typical jocks. If they got to talking, Mike would be the first one they turned on. That was just the way it worked. The other side seemed less reliable in terms of strength- but he couldn't just leave those girls alone. Besides, Mike was a guy. If he was there maybe he'd be the one they looked up to, or- wait, that was stupid. They did probably need protection, though... and that Vivien certainly wouldn't be the one to give it to them. Ack... Vivien. Well, he could tolerate him. Mike still wasn't sure if he could trust the Girls' Team, but perhaps they could trust him. That mace thing could sure smash some brains if he- if it tried. Mike shuddered at the thought. He wasn't going to be responsible for that. Not yet.

As Mike stepped back around with bags in hand, he saw that Imraan had already taken off, with Edward probably about to follow. Well, guess that settles it. I can always go off by myself if it doesn't work out... hopefully. He should probably warn them.

"Well..." He turned towards the girls' group. "I guess I'm sticking with you guys. Anyone got any ideas?"

[Hallucinojelly†]

"OK look, no offense, but if you're talking about going off on your own, then I'm not gonna stop you, but I really think that's a dumb idea. Even sticking with like, only one other person, I think that's risky. I'm gonna go with Edward to the tower, I really think it'd be best if you came with us but hey, that's your choice. I'm with you guys when you're ready."

And with that, Imraan started walking.

Violet stared after him, silently wishing him luck as he set off towards the mountain. No, she didn't trust him, nor anyone else here, but she certainly didn't want to find him face-down in the dirt when he'd been trying so hard to convince them all to stay together. A part of her wondered if Edward was going with him, and if they would be alright by themselves, just the two of them. Sure he had a shotgun, but what if someone else had a rifle? The weapons were like Top Trumps, only the loser would end up handing over their lives in place of their cards.

Turning back, she noticed Mike approaching, causing her brow to furrow ever so slightly. There was something in his eyes that she couldn't quite pinpoint, but she felt so wary around him all of a sudden; perhaps it was due to their only protection disappearing down the road, she didn't know. The only thing she could do now was come up with a plan of her own. Would they go together? If so, where would they go? Would they follow the other two, or find somewhere else to set up camp for the night? She preferred the second idea, but there weren't exactly many safe places on an island this full. Plus, Madeleine seemed to want to go with Vivien, so if he convinced her to go somewhere else she'd have no choice but to follow.

"I guess I'm sticking with you guys. Anyone got any ideas?"

She thought for a second before replying.

"Hold on a sec."

Running over to her bags, she pulled the daypack towards her and hastily threw it open. After a few moments of rummaging, she found what she looking for and rushed over to the group with the map in her hands.

"We're... here? I think? Yeah, the logging road. By the looks of it, it'll take us a good few hours to get to the mountain, and that's without breaks and stuff."

Her fingers ran up the length of the road, stopping at a bridge.

"If we walk right to the end of the road, we should get to a river. It'll take a bit longer, but if we follow that, we oughta get to the mountain without any real trouble, and hopefully we won't, er, bump into anyone."

A great stillness overcame them after she spoke. They all knew what she was implying, but at the same time, they all knew it was probably true. Her bangs fluttered around her face yet again, prompting a disgruntled moan as she tried to flick them away without letting go of the map. Looking up at everyone's faces, she was curious to see what their responses would be. If anyone had a better plan, now was the time to say it.

[SOTF_Help]

((Jonathan Jarocki continued from Mirror Mirror))

It had been quite the journey across the island, but Jonathan had moved like a man possessed. He wasn't even entirely sure what he was doing anymore. It had all seemed so clear. The meeting with Alex. The plan to escape. Everything had fallen together so well, and then he'd gone and fucked it all up by letting his anger take hold of him. He'd let Charlene goad him into doing something stupid, let her taunt him into losing his cool. She had destroyed his chances of finding allies and friends, all in one moment.

Thing was, he couldn't pin the blame on her. He knew it was his fault. Nobody else had pulled that trigger. Nobody else had forced him to respond to words with lethal retribution. Alex had jumped in front of Charlene. Was he dead? Were they both dead, now? Worse, had any hope of escape died with their alliance? He hoped not. He did not believe escape was possible. He did not believe he'd see anyone who mattered to him again. He hoped that his actions had not had any lasting effect on the course of the game.

Still, he couldn't be sure.

He had dropped the partially emptied clip to the ground, and replaced it with a full one. Fifteen shots. Thirty more in the bag. Would it be enough? It had to be. He was standing in the old logging road, now watching from a distance. There was a group of people surrounding the stalled out truck. They were talking. Arguing, maybe. They were a group. They were just like he and Alex and the others had been. A group of misfits, drawn together by the shit circumstances they'd found themselves in, now cracking to pressure and suspicion and splitting off. Abandoning hope. They were lucky to have managed without bloodshed so far. If only he'd shared their wisdom.

They were still making the same choice he had. They were still scattering, surrendering any faith in a better outcome. It was sad. It was just plain awful to watch, from the perspective of an outsider. And, worse, it foretold what would happen in the days to come. Where was Chase? Was she, right now, in this same situation? Being expelled from a group? Wandering off alone to be killed, perhaps shot in the back by a supposed ally?

Jonathan didn't know when he'd snuck closer. He was near the group now, though, crouched behind a log. The big guy with the gun was already gone, but the others were still close enough. Maybe, just maybe, he could do something to make up for his fuck up at the golf course.

It was not the best plan. It was not smart, well thought out, but it stood a chance of working. He'd show them the danger. Show them the follies of going it alone. Show them everything he wished he had known. He'd just scare them a little, that was all. Scare them, shake them up, give them something to think about, then vanish back into the island. That could be his mission. Helping people realize that this was real. Helping them come to terms with it, and help themselves. Let them choose the path he had discarded. He'd just have to hope that luck pulled him through, and more importantly, that his actions somehow managed to help his friends. It was all he had left.

A dozen yards from the group, Jonathan popped up from behind the fallen log he'd been using as cover, gun in hand. He just had to scare 'em a bit. A simple thing. Run in, fire some warning shots, and get the hell out of dodge. He sprinted towards the group, letting out a blood curdling scream, firing one, two, five, seven times. Each shot aimed wide, aimed far from anyone. He was just going to scare them. Then run. He just had to make sure they were properly terrified. Had to make sure they would keep themselves safe.

[blastinus]

Madeleine had expected the group to split this way. The instant that people began offering dissenting opinions, the die, as it were, had been cast. Imraan already had gone his way, and Edward was likely going to follow him, as he had offered a suggestion along the same lines. Already, Mike and Violet were making plans to walk off in a different direction, and Vivien was most likely going to follow. As she thought of it, everything seemed to be getting so complicated. Even worse was the air of dread that seemed to hang over the group, as each member seemed to sincerely think that they were due to be attacked.

Oh come on, now. We're all sane thinkers, right? We're not going to go insane just like that.

Fate always had a habit of creating irony where it was not needed, and in this case, a boy suddenly sprang up from behind a log and opened fire. Shrieking in fright as clods of dirt sprang up from the ground, Madeleine threw herself face first to the ground, just as another shot pinged off of the truck. With shaking hands, she pulled the unfolded submachine gun from her purse and began fishing around for a clip, nearly dropping the gun as she did so. She didn't even think about what the other people would say when they realized that she had a gun. Explanations would have to wait for when they weren't being shot at.

The boy was running towards them now, still firing. Following the instructions in the book from memory, Madeleine loaded in a clip and rolled over onto her back. Without waiting to see whether or not she was even aiming at the boy, she pulled the trigger, only managing to fire three shots before the recoil had her aiming into the sky.

Why is this happening? Why the heck is this happening? I'm not a fighter, so why did I get a gun?

Everything had happened so quickly that Madeleine hadn't even bothered to check to see whether her friends had been hurt, or what they were even doing. There were only two people in this manic world: this mysterious shooter and her, and one of these two was not going to make it out of this confrontation alive.

[Danorum†]

My God, I fucking knew it!

Once again, the lovely, astounding Vivien Morin was the only person with a bit of intelligence in the group. It was chemistry class all over again.

He fucking knew that some loser idiot with a gun would start shooting at the first crowd he saw. This particular loser he recognized as Jonathan Jarocki - his name known to Vivien only because he was a loser among losers surprisinglymoresothanVioletbutnow'snotthetime and also because they shared a class together. Math. Or... English. One of those. The point was, the stupid freak was firing gung-ho style at Vivien and Vivien's present company. Thankfully, aiming a gun was placed alongside the many other things Jarocki was bad at - between personal hygiene and being a tolerable human being.

Fortunately, thanks to Jonathan's terrible and a half aiming, Vivien would've easily been safe making a beeline towards him and kicking him in the balls then and there, were it not for the second of two things he knew.

Maddy had a gun.

Well, sorta. It looked like a gun... again, sorta. But more importantly, it shot like a gun. And that was enough to force Vivien into a mad scramble towards the closest haven he could find: behind the big, recently beaten up truck. "Let the armed people do the talking with their silly guns. I'm getting out of this dogfight alive," he thought to himself, completely oblivious as to what a dogfight was. Safely on the other side of the danger, he was determined to stick around until the fighting stopped; someone was going down, and that someone wouldn't be taking their weapon to the grave with them.

[Sister Grimm†]

Edward was satisfied that Imraan saw reason, but the judgment made by the rest of the group left something to be desired. So, they were the only two thinking clearly? Exactly like the dullards at Bayview. He shouldn't have been surprised, of course. After all, what sort of person would think logically in this situation? Apparently just him and Imraan. It was simple, no? Find the highest point, make some sort of signal, wait for help to arrive. Because help would inevitably arrive. It had to. The alternative was too depressing to contemplate. After all, if the only hope to live was to kill his classmates, his friends, what was he supposed to do? He damn well wasn't going to start shooting. So to speak.

While he was disappointed that there were only two of the group thinking clearly, he had entertained a passing hope that the rest would be like-minded. Especially the attractive young woman with the uniquely coloured hair. He couldn't force the decision on them. If they wanted to pursue and futile and fleeting existence before death, so be it. While they were being butchered on the island below, he and Imraan would be sitting back and relaxing until help arrived. If they wouldn't listen to reason, sod 'em.

Edward shrugged, and made to walk after Imraan. "Well enough, then. I'm sorry that you lot won't see reason. Best of luck, then." Edward could make out Imraan departing form down the road, and he started after him when another person approached. Jonathan something. Whomever he was, he'd been beneath Edward's attention up until that point. Before that, he didn't have a gun. Edward froze, watching Jonathan reload his gun with agonizing slowness. This was exactly what he had been afraid of, some psycho deciding that this was open season. Around him, people were already moving. Madeleine was pulling her own gun, and Vivien was running for cover. Considering his night vision goggles probably wouldn't do much to disarm Jarocki, that was a fine idea.

Ina rare moment of altruistic consideration for someone else's safety, Edward made a move to grab Violet's hand as he started toward the cover of the truck. If bullets were going to be exchanged, Edward would want to be behind the thickest piece of cover he could find, and right now, that was the truck. Who knew, maybe this would serve to draw the others to his ideas? If some stranger appearing only to start shooting didn't support his little speech, nothing would.

[Ella†]

Well, that was that. They were going t- WHAT THE FU-

The next several seconds went by so fast Mike almost didn't catch them. Suddenly, bullets assailed the group like horizontal raindrops heading for five unsuspecting Earths. Before he knew what he was doing, Mike dropped everything and rolled beneath the truck. He saw a figure running in the other direction, gun in hands- Who the fuck IS that?! But before anything resembling an answer could come to mind, the completely unexpected happened- the smallest, frailest person in the group pulled out a machine gun and started firing at the assailant. Michael Moretti's mind raced a light year a minute. Who the fuck is shooting at us where the fuck did she get a gun holy shit this shit is out of buttfuck nowhere thank god I did not shit my pants oh god who is that behind me- And surely enough, several pairs of feet had appeared behind him, seemingly hiding on the other side of the truck. Mike attempted to collect himself. Seeing as these guys weren't expelling bullets from their general directions, they seemed like a safe bet to hide with.

The boy managed to slide himself out from underneath the truck and beside the other students, at the cost of any remaining clean areas of his clothes. He could see Vivien, Violet, and Edward- basically everyone but Mr. and Mrs. Crazy McTriggerhappy. Edward was holding Violet's hand, and everyone seemed relatively shaken. Come on. Say something. Say something-

"Okay, you guys. We need to grab Maddy and we need to get away from here. Maybe we could follow Imraan, maybe we could go wherever else you all please. What matters is we need to get the fuck out of here."

[Hallucinojelly†]

Violet was just about ready to leave, until Jonathan Jarocki decided to cut their adventure short.

Gunfire, sparks, shouts, Maddy, running, a hand, hiding, huddling, closing their eyes to the sounds of the song being played out behind the truck. And where were they now? That's right - hiding, like the helpless animals they were.

They had neither gun nor sling, no weapons suitable enough to take on a guy throwing bullets around like cheap confetti at a bad wedding, and yet they all knew they couldn't just sit there forever, especially when the most timid and nervous of them all had accepted the gauntlet so readily, so fiercely, and without an ounce of dread in her eyes.

That look had frightened her, as she watched the artist run off into the wild and flame. Her face had fallen away as though it were rotten, and beneath grew a visage much deadlier and ferocious than she could've dared imagined such a girl to possess. It was filled with the kind of hell-bent determination she only saw in the hardest of people, and to see little Maddy Madeleine wearing it, it just felt... wrong. Not minutes before had Violet been trying her best to protect her, when she didn't even need protecting at all.

Well now she knew. Now she had an idea of what her classmates could be truly capable of, and it struck fear into her very core. It was unreal. None of this could be happening right now, none of it. Jonathan would come walking up towards them, being his strange, awkward self, but they wouldn't turn him away. They'd be hesitant, but they'd invite him into their group if he co-operated well enough. Then off they'd go, the six of them, in search of somewhere to spend the night, and they'd be tremendous and exemplary - they'd find the best place to stay and they'd defend it long into the game's conclusion. They'd be winners, every one of them, and they'd kill themselves before turning their weapons on one another.

Except... that would never happen. She didn't trust them anyway, and now the guy had gone and wrecked their group. That single moment of madness had interrupted their journey so well that the only way out of this now would be to follow Maddy into the dark world she'd immersed herself in, or turn the other way. Could she do that to the girl? Simply ditch her out here in the vast stretch of nowhere to find herself facing the end of a smoking gun? Judging by Edward's hand, she knew they wouldn't let her walk over there without a fight, but now that Maddy had gone charging in all on her own, she just didn't know what to do.

"Okay, you guys. We need to grab Maddy and we need to get away from here. Maybe we could follow Imraan, maybe we could go wherever else you all please. What matters is we need to get the fuck out of here."

And Mike was right. In a single instant she figured out the best course of action for them all, and she jumped into action. Grabbing her gear and securing it around her shoulders by intertwining the straps, she lifted Edward to his feet while motioning at Mike to do the same. Eyeing the woods across the road, she readied herself.

"There's nothing we can do now, right? W-we're all agreed?"

She looked at everyone with stinging eyes.

"I wanna go and help her, I really do, but if we go like this we'll just end up dead - and I'm not dying here! You hear me?! So if you wanna go and help her, that's your choice, but I am not dying here! I won't!"

And with that she ran fast and blind, clearing the distance between the truck and the trees and running far as she could away from the horrors that would surely follow.

((Violet Druce continued in Breathe In, Beathe Out))

[SOTF_Help]

In retrospect, perhaps a little more analysis would have proved useful. Jonathan's plan had been a simple one. Open fire on the group, scare 'em a little, then let himself be driven off. Hope that the fear would keep them together long enough that they could figure a way out of this place, maybe team up with Alex and Hayley and go skipping off into the sunset. The only issue was, he'd forgotten to account for the fact that they'd be armed. He was shooting to miss, but they couldn't tell that, and they reacted all too quickly for him to figure some way of backpedaling, of changing his approach.

Most of them instantly dived behind the truck, seeking cover. One of the guys even slipped under it. The only person who didn't, Jonathan recognized as Madeleine Smith, the quiet artist girl. Harmless. Exactly the sort of person this island would eat alive. Only, now she had pulled out a pretty menacing gun, and was pointing it in his direction, and...

And he found the fatal flaw in his plan. He hadn't been quick enough, and he'd scared them too much. Maybe a better approach would have been to fire from afar. Maybe an even better move would have been to talk with them. It almost certainly wouldn't have worked, but this hadn't either, so it sure wasn't a worse idea. He watched Madeleine, watched her squeeze the trigger of her gun, heard the rattle and watched it kick her backwards, at the same time he was being kicked backwards, the sudden input of momentum opposing that of his run spinning him around. He kept firing his gun randomly, kept pulling the trigger even as he hit the dirt, though no more bullets were coming, just clicks.

He knew immediately that he had been hit at least once, that it was a bad. He couldn't imagine Madeleine had aimed her shots well, so it must have been luck. Bad luck, on both their parts. Nobody was supposed to get hurt. His plan had been designed to help people. To protect them. He tried to push himself up, but immediately dropped back down, letting out a cry. His chest felt like it was on fire. It was hard to breath. Glancing down, he could see that he was bleeding badly. The whole front of his shirt was soaked in red. Was this what he had done to Charlene and Alex? He hoped not. His vision was fading. Hard to make out the truck, Madeleine. Damn, this really wasn't good. He'd need a lot of help to make it somewhere from here. He'd need a lot of medical care to recover.

Only... there wasn't any of that here, was there? Who would help him, when he'd attacked them? Where would he go for medical care? The clinic? To be treated by what doctors? No, injury was a far bigger deal here than back in the real world. A cut on the arm could be fatal, if left alone. A bullet wound to the chest? He didn't have a chance.

What a strange thought. Just a moment ago he'd been full of plans, schemes to help the others in some indirect way, fantasies of saving people. Now he could count the remainder of his life in minutes, at best.

That was a lot of blood.

No. No, it wasn't fair. Shouldn't have been like this. He needed a chance to make things better. To make sure his friends were alright. To do something good. It shouldn't be stopped like this. It was just wrong. It was Madeleine's fault. She had overreacted, fought back with lethal intent against mere scare tactics. She was evil. Twisted. A psychopath!

...no. No, none of that was true. She was a scared girl who had made the wrong call. No worse than he had been. Better, maybe, since he'd first fired his weapon out of anger and a desire for vengeance. She was just doing her best, trying to save herself and her friends. If he was going to die, he would at least be honest with himself. If this was anyone's fault, it was his. No, not his. It was Danya's. The one who put them here.

"Hey," he forced out. He tried to push himself up again, made it this time, though it felt like he was tearing himself open. He sat, barely held up by his left arm, the gun fallen from his right hand. He was seeing double. He wanted to shake his head, clear his thoughts, but there might not be time.

"Hey, Madel—ah fuck!" Raising his voice hurt. It hurt even more than the shooting had. Breathing deeply hurt. Everything hurt. He'd have to be quick.

"Argh... look, I'm... I'm sorry. This wasn't supposed to... I was... trying to...

"Look, just... just keep safe. And... And if you... if you see Anna Chase, tell her... to... keep safe... and that I'm..."

But there, his strength failed him, and he couldn't force out the last words. That was okay. He hadn't been quite sure what they were going to be, anyways. He fell backwards and lay on the ground, looking up at the sky. All he could do was wish. Wish he'd never made this plan. Wish he hadn't messed up back there with Charlene. Wish he hadn't come on this stupid trip. More than that, wish that it had never gone wrong. That they had spent their time laughing together, that life had continued how it had been supposed to.

But nothing could change the facts. And, as the whole world faded, as he lay, wheezing, on the dirt road, he found he couldn't even wish anymore.

At least, right before the world vanished, everything stopped hurting for a second.


B015, Jonathan Jarocki - DECEASED

[blastinus]

At first, Madeleine couldn't quite believe that she had shot Jonathan. When he turned around and fell to the dirt, her first thought had been that he was just pretending, that he was trying to trick her into lowering her guard. Then she saw the blood, coming from a wound created unmistakably by her, as nobody else had had a gun, to her knowledge. The submachine gun was still clenched in her hands, and as she realized this, she eased off a bit, letting her arm fall to the ground.

At that moment, she realized that the man was talking. Moreover, he had spoken her name. Still holding her gun in one hand, she crawled towards the man, not daring to stand up in case there was someone else around. Even at this range, she didn't recognize him, even though she was certain that she had seen him before. However, that wasn't as important as the wound that her shots had created. Even without medical knowledge, she knew that Jonathan was not going to make it, and so it was in her best interest to hear all that he had to say.

And he had much that he wanted to tell her. An apology, an implication that this whole incident was an accident, and a request to pass on a message to someone named Anna Chase. This name also seemed familiar, but Madeleine couldn't quite place it. However, as he finished, Madeleine nodded and said, "I'll...I'll try, but I don't know who she is." But Jonathan was already gone, and as he sank to the ground, Madeleine found herself shouting without meaning to, "Wait! Hold on! I don't know her! How am I supposed to..." Her voice trailed off, as she saw Jonathan's wheezing come to a stop. He was dead, and there was nothing she could do for him.

At once, Madeleine suddenly felt like crying. This man who she didn't know had told her to find somebody who she only had a vague memory about. And she had killed him. With a sudden sharpness of motion, she pulled the clip out of her gun, snapped the gun into its folded position, and threw both objects into her bag, rising to her feet with gritted teeth. At once, she realized that everyone else had taken cover behind the truck, and she wondered whether it would have been better for her to have done so as well. She averted her eyes from them, and gazed back at Jonathan, now pooling blood on the ground.

"I'm sorry," she finally forced out, though whether she was directing it at Jonathan or her friends was anyone's guess. As she slung her daypack over her shoulder, she looked at the group behind the truck and realized that Violet was missing. Her friend had been panicked so much that she had abandoned her. Given how she was already feeling, this was just the topper on a mound of grief. "Guys, I..." she said, but then could only choke out, "I need a moment," before burying her head in her arms and finally letting the tears go as she sank to a sitting position with her back to the truck. All things considered, she would have been happy to have given away her gun right then and there, probably with a thank you. She felt like scum, and probably was scum. She wouldn't be surprised if everyone else left her as well.

[Danorum†]

No tears were shed by the always-stunning Vivien Morin at the passing of Jonathan Jarocki. Born a loser, died a loser. Nobody'd miss him anyway, he was sure.

Of course, with everyone all flustered and panicked, the drama had only just started. With Violet gone away, Mike screaming orders and Maddy in a blubbering mess, Vivien knew that, once again, he was the most level-headed person in the group. Still.

It was almost pathetic, seeing someone shed tears for someone like Jonathan. Embarrassing, even. But it would probably be crushing - no, devastating - to have the blood of a classmate all over your hands - at least to someone as frail as Maddy. And so, as the official sane man of the group, it was Vivien's responsibility to console the poor, weak little girl.

Putting an arm around Maddy's crumpled body, he held her close and somewhat tightly - for his own safety of course. "Look, hon," he started in a soft, but still biting tone, "I can't say I know what you're going through right now. But I can assure you, Jonathan won't be the only person shooting at you throughout our little stay here." Vivien paused a moment, wondering if this was always how he consoled people.

"There'll be a lot more blood. A lot more shootouts. And tears won't do you or them a bit of good." His tone had become harsh, his hand no longer on Maddy's person. "The only thing you can do now is keep living. You don't have to shoot anyone anymore if you don't think you can." Suddenly, Vivien realized exactly what he was doing. It was no longer consoling. It was pure, charismatic self defense. If Maddy didn't have a gun, after all, Vivien would be safe. If Vivien had Maddy's gun, he would be even safer. It was genius in its subtlety, really!

Back to a softer, reassuring tone, he resumed his consolation. "Maddy... you should go talk to Violet. I think..." he paused a moment, trying to think his next move through... Ooh, but he was getting so giddy! He could hardly be serious much longer! "I think you may have scared her a bit, to be honest."

Yes! Perfect!

Sorta. It did make Vivien feel like a genuine Disney-style evil queen. Or a step-mother at least.

"She ran over that way," he continued, pointing out Violet's general direction. "If you want to catch up, you'll have to go now. You can wait here longer if you need to but, well, according to the map, this place is pretty big."

Hook? Line? Sinker? Maybe yes, maybe no. The worst case scenario would be Maddy getting angry anyway. She wouldn't shoot a mostly unarmed Vivien...

He hoped.

[Ella†]

((Sorry to skip you, Sis G- I need to get Mike out of here ASAP))

Mike was proud of that little speech he had given, but it didn't end up changing anything. Violet seemed spooked and immediately ran off, and not even seconds later, the kamikaze of bullets stopped and the students heard a groan. Their attacker had died.

Mike would probably feel more remorse for the newborn cadaver lying in the road later on, but for now, he simply found himself relieved and concerned for the poor little girl who'd come to their defense. Vivien went to her first. Mike couldn't hear but it looked like Vivien was consoling the girl. But one person isn't accounted for... he thought, glancing in the direction Violet had run. Mike approached the pair.

"Take care of Maddy," he said, nodding to both Vivien and Edward. "I'm going after Violet. Just, you know, see if she made it ok." He picked up his bags and placed the weapon into one of them. But as he turned and began walking, he suddenly realized- whether he particularly liked them or not, he'd probably never again see the three people he'd survived his first shooting with. He turned back around.

"Hey, uh, good luck to you guys. I hope you all make it out of here ok." Even Vivien. "And... well, thanks for protecting us back there." He couldn't think of an appropriate goodbye-type word, so with that, he simply took off. Michael Moretti had no time to lose.

[[Michael Moretti continued in Breathe In, Breathe Out]]

[Sister Grimm†]

This was too much. Way too much. The sudden gunfire, Jarocki appearing from nowhere and opening up on them with with his damned machine gun. They were talking, maybe getting things in order when everything went to hell in a fusillade of bullets. As soon as Jarocki drew his gun, he had made a dash behind the car with Violet in hand. Had Maddy pulled a gun too? He felt like he'd seen her draw some odd looking pistol just before he slid into the safe cover of the beaten down truck. Why wasn't everyone as civilized as he was? Why did everyone immediately jump straight into a shoot-out? Why couldn't anyone just, oh, talk things out?

Edward waited until the shooting stopped before the thought of moving even crossed his mind. After the staccato burst of Jarocki's machine gun, there followed a loud burst that must have been Madeleine's gun. So, he obviously hadn't imagined seeing her with the gun in his mad dash for safety. Fair enough. The shooting had stopped and that was all that mattered. The faint moans of Jarocki down the road, the quiet sobs of Maddy on the other side of the truck. Edward waited there all the same.

All the same, Edward was lifted to her feet by Violet. He glanced surreptitiously around the truck to the road in an attempt to get a better idea of the situation he had just tried to avoid. Jarocki was indeed lying prone further down the road. It was impossible to tell how many times he'd been hit, but it was clear he wasn't getting back up. The sight of the body lying in the middle of the road was enough to freeze him in his tracks. He was vaguely aware of Violet and Mike heading off into the tree's, but his attention was focused on the fallen Jarocki.

The boy splayed out in the road somehow made it all real. This wasn't an inconvenience that could be waited out. This was real. Jonathan Jarocki was dead, and he was sure that people were dying all across the island. Whether the military rescued them or not, Jarocki would still be dead. The people around the island, his classmates, would still be killers, would still be dead. Even if the military did rescue them, things would never be the same. Then there was always the possibility that they were all doomed to die on this island. A very strong possibility, actually.

Edward stepped out from around the car, his gaze still focused on Jarocki. Maddy and Vivien were out of his mind for the moment, and they would no doubt stay that way. He was dead, and Maddy killed him. It was too much, too much. Edward mumbled something incoherent to the two remaining students before making his way in the general direction Violet and Mike disappeared in, the burst of gunfire that ended Jarocki's life playing back in his head, over and over.

((Edward Blake continued in Going Round in Circles.))