Destiny Makes A Fool Out Of You And Me

[jimmydalad]

((Maxim Senders continued from Real American))

Where did the others go? Maxim must've lost track of them somewhere. He looked left and right as he wandered aimlessly again, trying to find any sign of Alex and Chris. This wasn't good. He was lost. Maybe he should've payed more attention to where they walked. Now that he was separate from the two of them, Maxim was once again all alone. He did not like that one bit.

"Alex? Chris? You there?" Maxim called out hopelessly, his mind knowing it to be hopeless. This was it. Once again, he was left to his own thoughts. As of recently, Maxim learned not to trust them. They talked about how it was hopeless. That he would either die or kill everyone else. They wanted to take the initiative. They wanted to kill.

Yet Maxim didn't want to kill. That wasn't supposed to be him. He was Maxim Senders, protector of Minorities. He was supposed to be protecting people, not hurting people. The guilt of his actions in the game were still there and they weren't going to leave. His mind told him to shrug these feelings and cave into the game.

He couldn't do that. Not again. He didn't want things to be this way. He should have been the hero and yet he was a villain. He still clung to the weapon. It was his safety in the game. The only thing that he could 100% rely on. It couldn't betray him, and yet it overwhelmed him. He couldn't part with it. He needed to live.

He needed to see Louisa. He had to find her. Being with her made things easier for him. She was always there for him, and yet in this time of need, he couldn't find her. He heard the announcements. The names that were read out were a shock, but none more so than Tori. His other close friend. She was gone from the world. He couldn't be there for her. He didn't want the same thing to happen to Louisa.

Louisa had to live. She had to live for Maxim.

[Laurels]

((Louisa Bloom continued from Destroying Soda: The Most Heinous of Crimes))

Louisa's running began to slow down, turning into a brisk pace. She had been running for a while now, hoping she would get away from the Clearing and the Pine Stands before her collar blew. Knowing that Tori wasn't able to escape a Danger Zone in time only made her fear them more. Part of her was glad that Tori didn't have to be horribly murdered by someone else, but she couldn't imagine what Tori felt in those last moments of her life. The fear, the adrenaline, the desperation. It must have been terrible.

Louisa began to look around at where she was. She groaned in frustration when she realized that she was all alone.

"Great. I lose complete control of myself, and I manage to lose my friends," she muttered to herself. "This can only get worse."

Louisa continued to walk through the valley. She needed a place to rest for the evening. It was getting almost too dark to walk around the area, and she was hesitant to use her flashlight in case it exposed her location to anyone who was playing. It had been a while since she last changed the bandage on her arm. She also just needed to sit down for a while and try to think.

Louisa's walk brought her close to some sort of structure. She could hardly make it out, but she figured she stumbled on some kind of building.

Well, my collar isn't beeping, so I guess I'm safe here. Still, I guess I better make sure I'm safe.

Louisa reached into her bag and pulled out her flashlight. It was risky to use it at night, but it would flush out anyone who might be hiding in the area. Just for safety, she pulled the Beretta out, turning off the safety and keeping it in her hand.

Louisa began to move towards the area, keeping the flashlight pointed up and the Beretta out as well.

So it's come to this. I'm actually holding the gun like I need to kill someone. Fuck, I hate this game.

Louisa continued to scan the area when her flashlight caught something in its beam. She could make out a figure near the ruins, one that was a bit of a ways off from her. She moved closer to the person, trying to be as quiet as possible and keeping herself low. As she got closer, she noticed something on the figure's head: an American flag bandanna.

No way.

Louisa cleared her throat. She tightened her grip on the Beretta just in case things went south.

"Maxim? Is that really you?"

Her eyes began to water.

[Aura]

((Brian Meyerhold Callison continued from Said the Spider to the Fly))

After a few hours of searching, Brian had not only failed to find Becky, but had managed to get himself hopelessly lost as well. He had no idea where he was on the map, and had absolutely no idea how to get his bearings back. He regretted not joining the Boy Scouts as a child, as he may have had better map-reading skills if he had. He continued to march on, hoping that he might stumble across Becky or the lake through sheer luck.

The announcement blared across the island, and Brian was glad to hear that his fellow Americans had apparently wised up to the point of the Program. A lot of minorities were among the dead, and Brian was pretty sure that there weren't too many of them left in the valley. He smiled, knowing that his plan was reaching its conclusion. The lake had also been cleared of Danger Zone status, as he predicted, but multiple new Danger Zones sprang up in its place, including the Pine Stands that Brian had spent most of the last twelve hours in. Even though Becky had managed to escape himself and Damien, Brian assumed that she would be killed by the Danger Zone thanks to her injury. If such an event occurred, then his and Damien's manhunt for her would have been quite pointless. Oh well, at least that was one less person to wory about.

As night began to fall, Brian searched for a place to hide until morning. He couldn't risk sleeping out in the open again since his name had been on the announcements previously. After some more hiking, he came across a burned-out shell of a building. He entered the wreckage, careful not to make a sound as he tiptoed around the area. After about a minute of sneaking around, he saw a flashlight beam shining in the darkness. He braced himself against a charred wall in an attempt to avoid the light and kept an eye on the beam. As he continued to watch the beam, he was surprised as it shone upon another figure in the ruins, revealing that there were at least two people in the ruins with him.

Brian remained quiet and continued to observe, meat hook at the ready. This could either be a chance to find more people to help finish his mission, or an opporitunity to personally remove an anti-American from his fine country. He would just have to wait and see.

[jimmydalad]

Maxim heard someone clear their throat and immediately turned around, holding his gun at the ready. He didn't want to get ambushed by someone. He certainly didn't want to die yet. He needed to find Louisa and Chris and Alex. If he died now, all of his actions would be for nothing.

Then it came. The voice. When he heard it, Maxim nearly collapsed. Was it really her? Could it be? He hoped that his instincts weren't failing him now. However, Maxim would never be able to mistake that voice. He finally found her. After all of the shit he had been through, Maxim had finally found her.

"Louisa!" Maxim shouted, running towards her and giving her a big embrace. Tears fell down his face at the sight of her. Was it too good to be true? He missed her so much. He had been so alone. He didn't want to be alone again. He didn't want to face the harsh world on his own. He wanted to be with Louisa. Together.

"I missed you so much Louisa. So much has happened. So many things I regret. I'm sorry." Maxim bawled as he cried into Louisa's shoulder. It had been too long. Way too long. The feelings inside him were bubbling high and he experienced a great high. If he was with Louisa, they could do anything.

He kept on embracing her and managed to eventually stop crying. He wanted to be with her for as long as he could before he died. He admitted that he could die happy now. He found Louisa. That was all that mattered. Nothing more, nothing less. This was it. The final thing he needed to do.

"I'm so glad to see you again." Maxim confessed, a great smile spreading across his lips as he looked into Louisa's eyes.

[Laurels]

Louisa stood in place, keeping her flashlight on the figure. It really was Maxim. She immediately lowered the hand holding her gun and put the Beretta back in her coat pocket. She began to feel tears roll down her cheek as Maxim ran up and embraced her. She wrapped her arms around him, dropping the flashlight to the floor. She held him tight and began to cry as well.

"It's gonna be okay now," she said, patting Maxim on the back as he spoke. "It's going to be okay."

After a few minutes of crying, Maxim finally pulled back, giving Louisa some space before continuing to talk.

"I'm glad to see you as well," she responded, her voice aching. "It's been so terrible here. I got shot by Clara, Gwen held an ax to my throat before I watched her die, and......Tori. Oh God, Tori."

Louisa felt a lump in her throat. She quickly bent down to pick up her flashlight, rubbing her eyes as she did so.

"Max, I was so worried about you. Dylan told me how you shot her, and Amanda said you seemed off. But I don't care. I'm just glad you're okay."

Louisa sniffled and smiled at Maxim. It had to get better now.

[Aura]

Brian kept his eye on the flashlight. The peson using the flashlight and the person in the beam had to reveal themselves eventually. After all, they had already found each other, so they might as well just introduce themselves and be done with it.

"Louisa!"

Louisa? Is he talking about Louisa Bloom? The poetry girl?

Wait a second, I know that voice... Maxim!?

Yes indeed, the two people in the ruins with him were, in fact, Maxim Senders and Louisa Bloom. Tow members of that irritating little trio that had blatantly slandered America to his face in the park back home. They were lucky that he didn't report them to any officials for that little infraction. If he had, they would surely have been sent to juvenille hall, or possibly even prison. Slander wasn't something that the government took gently, and those three had gotten off easy for it. Well, Tori had died in a Danger Zone, but Maxim and Louisa had yet to pay for their crimes.

A grin creeped across Brian's face as he realized his situation. He had the element of surprise. He could sneak up on the two and execute them right then and there. He could make them pay for their crimes. He would bring justice to the slanderers for defiling his beloved country.

He slowly took a few steps toward Maxim and Louisa, who were in the midst of a tearful reunion. He held his meat hook in position, ready to swing once he was within range. The smile remained on his face. Justice would be served soon enough.

[jimmydalad]

Maxim listened to Louisa recount her story of the events that had lead her to here. He was surprised to hear about how she was shot by Clara and the thoughts of Josie and Tori's deaths were still in his mind. He tried his best to shove them out. Now was not the time to be miserable. He had finally found Louisa after all of these days. He didn't know how much time had passed. All that it mattered was that Maxim had finally found his close friend.

"So you know about that." Maxim muttered solemnly, looking down at the floor in embarrassment and shame. It was not one of his best moments, shooting off her ear. Nor was any of his actions classified as good. However, that was the past. He was with Louisa. He had finally found her. His mission in the game was to find her and he succeeded. After all of this time. He had finally done the thing he wanted to do for the entire game.

"I don't think you want to hear about what I did in the game. It was just... horrible. I was scared. Scared and alone. I let my negative thoughts get the best of me. I hurt people. I caused deaths. I was a monster. I possibly may still be. Yet, I'm with you now. That's all that matters. Oh Louisa. I never want to be alone again." Maxim declared as he embraced Louisa once again. He just wanted to savor this moment. He didn't know how long it would last.

[Laurels]

Louisa was somewhat surprised when Maxim hugged her again. He was still upset by his actions over the last two days and wanted to be with Louisa from now on.

"Hey," she said, patting him on the back, "you haven't directly killed anyone, and you wouldn't have hurt anyone if you weren't forced into this game. I know who you really are, and I know you're much better than this game."

Louisa closed her eyes.

"We need to find my group. I was traveling with Kyle, Carlyle, and Amanda before I found you. We had to run out of the clearing before it became a Danger Zone, and I must have gone the wrong way. We can find them, then we can defend ourselves. We'll be five strong against the dangerous people here."

Louisa pulled back a bit and looked directly into Maxim's eyes.

"Does that sound good?"

[Aura]

Brian continued to move forward. He could hear their conversations now. Apparently, Maxim had been quite naughty, starting fights and whatnot, but Louisa was willing to forgive him, just like any fool without any common sense would. She then offered him an invitation to join her other friends in the valley. Good thinking on her part, asking a guy who's admitted to hurting people join her little friendship group. Then they just looked at each other as if they were about to kiss. Heck, if Brian didn't know that Maxim was gay, he would've probably expected them to kiss with all the crying and forgiveness they were already engaging in.

Brian just kept moving towards them. Once he got a little closer, he would rush in and strike. He was ready to attack, but he wanted to get as close as reasonably possible before charging at them in order to to give them as little time to escape as possible. He wasn't going to screw this up like he nearly did with that skinny girl from before, oh no. He was going to do this right.

[jimmydalad]

"Actually, Alexander and Chris allowed me to join their group, even after all that I did. I can't just leave them, so I have to go find them. Maybe we could find our groups together? After all, the more people together, the better things are going to be. So, what do we do now?" Maxim asked Louisa inquisitively, thinking about the situation at hand.

His hand stroked his head, where he came across the old bandanna he had worn for most of his life. It felt odd. Maxim had always worn it and never really considered taking it off. He really should've. After all, he stood against America. He realized what America did was wrong. Yet he always was afraid to take it off. Was it because a part of him still clung to the ideals that America sought to give the children of the future? He had been lost this entire time, like Louisa and Tori. Maybe the bandanna was something that kept him safe. He was ready to take the next step though.

Moving the hands to the back of his head, Maxim untied the bandanna and slipped it off his head. The feeling of the breeze in his hair was very odd, to say the very least. His blond hair was ragged and dirty and his bandanna was covered with mud and grime that had accumulated from his time in the Program. What was he supposed to do with it? He looked down upon it with a melancholic look, remembering all the years that had gone by with him wearing it. It was practically his trademark. Was he really ready to give it up?

"Hey Louisa, take my bandanna." Maxim spoke happily, putting it into Louisa's hands. "I don't think I need it anymore. I've always clung onto this. Maybe it was because I was scared to follow through with my ideals. However, I realize that I have the strength to face the world. Whatever it has for me. So I don't need this to protect me anymore. You keep it. For me?" Maxim explained to Louisa, letting out a sigh as he looked up at the dark sky.

"The stars are so pretty tonight. Shame you can barely see them." Maxim commentated, smiling slightly as he looked up into the world of everlasting possibilities.

[Laurels]

So Maxim had allies as well. If Alexander and Chris could trust Maxim, then maybe they could trust Louisa and find her missing group. A group of seven sounded pretty good. Louisa was glad. Things were getting better now that she found Maxim.

Maxim then gave her his bandanna, asking her to hold onto it. Louisa wasn't so certain about carrying such jingoistic paraphernalia, but she accepted it regardless. It couldn't hurt to carry it for him.

"Thank you. I'll be sure to keep it safe," she said, putting the bandanna in her pocket.

Maxim was then trying to look at the stars. Louisa looked up as well.

"Yeah. You can kind of forget how pretty this area is when you're trying not to die," she said.

I could write a poem about that. If there was ever a chance to write a poem again.

[Aura]

Brian's eyes remained focused on the pair in front of him. Maxim had removed his bandanna and given it to Louisa, who pocketed it. That wasn't the important part, however. The important thing was that Maxim and Louisa were still unaware of Brian's presence, and that their lack of attention to their surroundings was going to be their downfall.

Brian's slow paces turned into a run. He held his meat hook above his head, ready to land the finishing blow upon whoever he managed to reach first. He was going to do his duty as a patriot, to strike down those who would dare to speak ill of the country that he loved with all his heart, those who would defile the government he had devoted his life to becoming a part of. Those were unforgivable crimes, and they would be punished for them.

It's time to make Uncle Sam proud.

[jimmydalad]

((Permission to GM approved by Aura))

Maxim heard footsteps and quickly turned his head to face the direction of the sound. Callison. Oh fuck. He had a meat hook. Probably his assigned weapon at the beginning of the game. He moved towards so fast that Maxim didn't even have time to think. His top priority wasn't to save himself, it was to save Louisa. She was an innocent victim of the game. She didn't deserve this like him.

Reacting instinctively, Maxim harshly shoved Louisa out of the way of Brian before she had a chance to say anything. Next thing he knew, Callison had tackled him to floor with such force, it caused Maxim to recoil in pain. It was times like this when he really hated the fact that Brian Callison had taken up football while he had taken up dancing. His figure was no match for Callison's and therefore, he had no chance to push him off.

As Callison was about to swing him meat hook on him, Maxim immediately reacted and gave him a hard punch right in the face. He watched as he recoiled backwards, exclaiming a loud swear word before he advanced on him and swung the meat hook right into his arm. Maxim let out a anguished scream as he felt pain burst from the location where Callison had introduced his hook to his body. It was in such pain and Maxim watched as blood spurted from the wound the moment that he withdrew the weapon.

It didn't stop there. It seemed that Callison wanted to kill badly. He felt the meat hook dig into his skin in multiple places, Maxim yelling out in pain with every strike that hit him. He was in so much pain. The more wounds Callison inflicted with his weapon, the more blood and muscles that were forcibly ripped from his body. Blood was everywhere and was getting in his hair and all over his clothes. The meat hook also did a good job of ripping some of his clothes as Callison didn't hold back with his attacks. It came to him that this probably was going to be the end. Being killed by Callison. He didn't know a sadder fate.

The next thing he noticed was the meat hook about to collide with his face. Maxim was a bloody mess at this point. He guessed this would be the final blow. Was he ready? Yes he was. The action of saving Louisa from the fate that was about to behold him was more than enough solace for him. He saved his best friend's life in exchange for his own. In his mind, this was an honorable death. The fact that it was Callison that did the job only made the situation more poignant. Was it fate?

Maxim smiled as he felt the meat hook get pierced into him. Then it was nothing. Darkness. This was it eh?

"Hey Maxim! Follow me!" A familiar voice called out. Maxim saw a sight that made him smile even wider. It was Tori. Laughing happily, Maxim ran after her, following her to wherever she was going to take him.

He wasn't alone anymore.

He was happy.

MAXIM SENDERS: DEAD

[Laurels]

((Slight GMing approved))

Louisa heard the sounds of footsteps behind her. Before she could even look and see who it was, she felt herself getting thrown aside, dropping her flashlight to the ground. She fell to the forest floor and rolled a few inches to the side. The fall caused her to cry out a bit. She landed on the wound Clara gave her, and the force of hitting that spot on the ground sent a surge of pain through her body.

What the fuck?

Louisa looked up and saw that someone was fighting Maxim. She realized who it was that was on top of Maxim: Brian Callison. That racist, xenophobic prick Maxim used to be friends with. It was then that Louisa realized what Brian was holding in his hands: a meat hook, and he was stabbing it into Maxim.

"No!" she cried out as she hastily stood up.

But there was nothing she could do. Brian had stopped attacking Maxim, and Maxim was no longer moving. Her eyes widened and her mouth hung agape.

No. No no no no no! It can't be! That fucking bastard!

Louisa never felt this way. She had never felt such anger and hatred towards another human being. Even if she didn't like Brian back in Milwaukee, she never would have reacted in such a way towards him. She quickly pulled the Beretta out her coat pocket. Louisa remembered that she still had the safety off, something that would save her the trouble. She pointed the gun towards Brian and quickly pulled the trigger. In her haste she completely missed Brian, the bullet sailing right in front of him and hitting the ground near Maxim's head. But she knew she had his attention.

"You bastard! If you move, so help me I'll put a bullet in your head!" she howled at the boy in front of her.

She kept the Beretta trained on him, gritting her teeth as she felt tears begin to well up in her eyes. She quickly looked down at the body Brian was sitting on before returning her focus to the killer. Maxim was dead. She finally found one of her close friends and he was taken away from her in an instant. In that moment, there was nothing she hated more than Brian Meyerhold Callison, and she had the chance to take his life as well.

Louisa felt her hands shaking as she tightened her grip on the Beretta. She could feel her face getting hotter and her breathing getting heavy.

Fuck, I'm acting like the National Executor again. Okay, let's try to hold onto some morals here. Try to be the better person. Brian has to talk. He has to have a reason. Try to make sure he can't hurt anyone else without killing him.

"Give me one reason," she said, her voice low and intense. "Give me one reason I shouldn't just kill you right now. Because I'll admit, I'm finding it hard to think of a single reason to not kill you."

Choose your words carefully. You're an aspiring politician, so you better know how to talk.

[Aura]

It was supposed to be easy. Brian was supposed to catch Maxim and Louisa by surprise, kill one of them nice and quick, then move on to the other one if they hadn't already run away. It should have been two fast back-to-back assasinations. Brian had planned it all out in his head, and nothing should have gone wrong.

Of course, Maxim had thrown a monkey wrench into the plan when he decided to toss Louisa aside and take the full brunt of Brian's charge. While that wasn't too bad on it's own, the situation escalated when Maxim punched Brian in the face, causing the usually collected politician to shout quite a vulgar word into the sky as he reacted to the hit. After that, Brian lost his composure. What had been planned as a quick execution turned into a long stabbing session. He repeatedly pierced Maxim's body with the meat hook, causing blood to pour out of many open wounds. Brian wasn't sure exactly what point during the stabbing Maxim died, but once he stopped, judging by the amount of blood and his utterly ruined torso, Maxim was most definitely dead.

He continued to look at the carnage, not quite sure how to react, until he was startled by a sudden gunshot. He looked up to see Louisa pointing a handgun at him. She looked incredibly intense, as though she wished to kill him on the spot. Seeing as he had just killed her best friend, he understood why she might be particularly angry at him.

"Give me one reason I shouldn't just kill you right now. Because I'll admit, I'm finding it hard to think of a single reason to not kill you."

Brian got up off the ground and looked Louisa in the eye. She wanted an answer from him, an explanation on why he had killed. It was a simple enough task for him to explain himself to her. He cleared his throat and began to speak.

"You see, Louisa, I'm only doing my part to serve America. The Program exists to weed out the undesirables so that the true patriots can continue to live on and keep society marching forward. Hence the minorities, dissenters, and anti-government types are always the first to go. If I recall correctly, some time before the Program your friend here made some disparaging comments on the way our country is run. I remember those comments because I was there to witness the event in question. He wasn't punished then, but his sentence was written once he was placed in the Program. I was only performing my patriotic duty, to make sure that a true American wins the Program."

Brian had a very self-satisfied look on his face as he finished his argument. "There, is that good enough for you?"