this topic contains serious koch

[ZombiexCreame†]

((Josie Vernon continued from You Are On a Rock Floating Through Space))

Josie was quite content with her decision to leave the lighthouse, for it instilled nothing but bad ideas within her head. Sometimes she pondered on whether suicide was actually a bad idea or not, but she could never really come up with an actual answer in her mind. Would death now solve anything? Did living prove anything? The red-haired scenester couldn't really decide, so she figured that going with the flow was her best course of action. But where exactly was the flow going? What was there to do, and who would she do it with? There was a hole in her heart where Sierra used to be, and all that was left were tattered and dirty remnants, an image that was slowly fading and a voice that she quite desired to hear once more.

Even though it had only been a little more than a day, Josie was having trouble with remembering the way that things used to be. The tinkling sound of Sierra's voice, the joy that she would feel when her best friend had trouble pronouncing things, specifically anything with an S, the music that they would listen to and the things they would do together... It was all disappearing in a dark void that would never regurgitate its contents for the pleasure of Josie. Everything would be gone soon, and she really had nothing left of her friend. And even if Josie made it off this rock, there wouldn't even be a grave that she could cry at. It scared her that she didn't know where Sierra would be laid to rest, if she would be at all.

With no other goal in mind, Josie just continued to walk. Occasionally she would pass by places, but she didn't feel like stopping to rest. Resting just made her mind go in a thousand different directions, and she would much rather stay active. Sometimes she would pass by people, but she didn't feel much inclined to speak. There was nothing much to say, and she felt branded as a dirty murderer. The only look that people would give her would be a meaningful look of distrust. And Josie didn't really enjoy the feeling of being distrusted.

But those people had a right to feel distrustful. Josie felt like she couldn't quite trust herself sometimes.

It was on one of her many walks (one of the walks in which she tried to pretend that everything was just dandy) that she heard the announcement. It was early in the morning, and Josie's ears were just barely passing over the list of names that Danya was reading off. It was all a bunch of people that Josie didn't particularly care about (what? she didn't), no one that could even hold a candle to Si... Okay, no more mention of her. None at all.

But it was the few sentences tacked on at the end that really caught Josie's attention. Some "Ms. Vernon" person won a prize for "stifling" her friend, and if Josie wasn't mistaken, that Ms. Vernon person was... her. Unless there was another Ms. Vernon on the island who happened to, uh, stifle her friend. Regardless, she was supposed to go to the gazebo to collect her price. This was all a little hard to take in. Josie knew that certain people won this award for killing people, and she knew that the prize was a weapon, usually a devastating weapon, but...

Would it be right for her to collect this prize? This was the part in Josie's tale in which she seriously considered what to do. Collect the prize or forget about it. It seemed almost disgraceful to take the prize, as she had to kill Sierra to gain it, but Josie didn't want to kill Sierra so she could win some dinky little prize. This wasn't a contest. Why did this have to happen to her? It was cruel. It wasn't an accidental kill, no, but it wasn't... She didn't.. Sierra's death was more of a.. Okay, none of this could be put into actual words.

The point was, taking that weapon would be proof that Josie was okay with killing Sierra. And Josie wasn't okay with it because she didn't do it out of ill-will, but rather, necessity. The girl began to bite her nails as she pondered upon her situation, wondering if she should simply ignore the announcement and avoid the gazebo or... actually go there. And if she went and took the prize, would that prove anything about her? Josie bit her lip and thought about it. Wondered if not taking the prize would be distasteful as well. She didn't want it to seem like Sierra had died for nothing, after all. And not taking the weapon would leave it for someone else, and that person could inadvertently kill someone and Josie would feel sort of at fault because that person wouldn't have died if Josie had just taken the weapon herself and yes-

Maybe it was better off in her hands. Josie didn't plan to kill anybody else, and it wasn't like she had any other weapon to protect herself with, so... What was the harm in just seeing?

And that was how Josie found herself at the edge of the gazebo area, gazing quietly at the decimated gazebo and the small metallic box that lied beneath its eaves. At first, she was almost afraid to step forward into the area, knowing that it was a danger zone, worried that this was all some elaborate trick to guide her out of her comfort zone and *pop* off with her head. It would be a terrible fate, a cruel joke, but Josie would feel that it was all well-deserved. Perhaps that would be her proper punishment? However, Josie came all of this way. She couldn't just turn around now. She already had her resolve in place?

Slowly, very slowly, she walked into the area (and seeing as how she was still consciously living and breathing, she was very much alive) and made her way towards the box. Her body was shaking, her nerves were on edge, she still wasn't quite convinced that this wasn't all some elaborate trick and the box would begin speaking to her. And if the box did speak to her, it probably had a goofy voice, probably reminiscent of Barney the purple dinosaur. She knelt down, hands hovering in front of the latch on the box... And she quickly opened it, eyes squinted as if she expected an explosive to go off in her face. There was no explosive, just the prize as promised.

Although Josie didn't know the name of the machine gun, it was indeed a H&K MP5. It was a dangerous and elaborate looking gun, and she was half-tempted to shut the box and walk away. But... yes, her resolve was set. Take the weapon. It's already here, right in your hands. This would be like a new beginning! Yes, this was the start of her life. A life without Sierra. A life with a Heckler and Koch. And as she picked it up and shoved the clips into her pockets (she had no bags, nothing at all except for the birthday invite), a new life was begun and a sense of joy filled Josie.

On to greater things.

((Josie Vernon continued in Float))