((Shoshanna Kowalczyk continued from Born to Be Public))
Shoshanna stepped into the banquet hall and sighed. It was weird to be back here after a few days, and she could see things had wildly changed while she was gone. Aside from some general disarray, there were now two bodies in the room. One was a boy, and the other was a girl. Shoshanna would have to check her notes on the announcements to figure out who they were. But either way, it meant that, if they barricaded the banquet hall, they at least had two more bodies to test on.
"Okay," she told Rhonda, "let's check it out."
The girls had left the clipper ship in the middle of the night and waited on a part of the jetties near the cruise ship where their collars wouldn't beep. Come morning and the new announcement, they were able to immediately move into the ship. Nadine had asked to step out to the pool area, and they permitted, as long as she shouts and runs back if she runs into trouble. They didn't have the numbers to split up, and they had to be way more careful after what happened to Jasper and Marion. That left Shoshanna and Rhonda in the banquet hall.
The announcement had been somewhat interesting. Three people had died from failing to escape the ship, one of whom was apparently knocked out and left behind. Marion was listed, with Nadine getting the kill credit for the act. That was a bit troubling, knowing that it meant people could assume the worst for her ally even knowing it was collar tampering. They'd have to be careful who they ran into going forward, especially if they were going to target Nadine.
The rest of the announcement had been brief. Anthony had a kill, Seo-yun had another kill, and then it got confusing. It sounded like Mariko killed Laurence, but the announcement cut in and out, so Shoshanna had to leave it as a brief mystery on her notes. There were other deaths and killer that may have been left off, and they might not know who they were until the next announcement. Shoshanna had to caution the girls to be careful for the next period until they knew where the standings were.
It was also while they were waiting for the cruise ship to open Shoshanna explained her plan to the girls. Basically, the needle tests had proven two major things:
First, there was a brief delay between when the collars would activate and when they would explode.
And second, that there were multiple points in the collar that could trigger detonation.
One needle in Marion set it off, three in Jasper also set it off. From what she remembered from Ashley Ex Machina videos, if collars had multiple detonation points they would need to see if they could find a way to block all of those points. Ashley lucked out in her season when there was one central groove that needed to be filled with a nonconductive material to block her collar for removal. If they could find something to either get the collar off in one go and toss it aside before it blew, or if they found something thin and nonconductive to insert into the pinholes, they may find a way to get the collars off.
Shoshanna eyed the piano. She remembered the instrument when she thought about things that could get the collar off in one go.
"Hey, Rhonda," she said. "Do we have anything that can cut wires?"
If I ever acquire wisdom, I suppose I'll be wise enough to know what to do with it
Open, shortly after Fourth Announcement (Content Warning: Eye Trauma/Damage)
(Rhonda Rollins continued from Born to Be Public)
Rhonda was tired of failure. Failing to fight her enemies, failing to keep people alive, and failing to escape. That had been her life for the past couple of days, and it was wearing on her. Just once, she wanted something to go right. She needed something to tell her that she wasn't just wasting her time on something fruitless, that her efforts actually meant something.
That led her to follow Shoshanna to the banquet hall. Even though they had no success, Shoshanna was still Rhonda's best hope at getting off the island in some way. They were still stuck on the collars, but Shoshanna did seem pretty sure that she had some way to get them off despite the explosive results of her previous attempts. But if they were looking for supplies, then a fancy banquet hall wouldn't have been Rhonda's first choice. Sure, she had managed to pick up a couple of things in the bowels of the clipper ship, but here? She didn't think that any of the fine china on display would be too valuable for their purposes.
Rhonda shuffled about, not sure what she could really do but keep watch while Shoshanna brainstormed. She had checked at least three times to make sure that she had a round in the chamber of her shotgun, just in case. She tried not to get too jumpy, though. Nadine was off on her own, said that she'd be at the pool for a bit. Every time she looked at a doorway, Rhonda kept telling herself not to shoot if she saw something, because it might be Nadine. She really didn't want to create another Xander. But even with her vigilance, she wasn't seeing anything. She was just glancing around the room and trying not to look too much at the bodies.
But finally, Shoshanna called to her with a request. Something that can cut wires. Rhonda scratched her head and tried to remember what they had on hand. There was the first-aid kits and their scissors, of course, but would that be enough? Maybe she got something from the clipper ship that would help, but that might be a long shot as well. She had to shrug. She wasn't sure.
"We got the scissors from the first aid kits, but I ain't sure if they've got the strength." She leaned forward with interest. "Why? You got an idea?"
Rhonda was tired of failure. Failing to fight her enemies, failing to keep people alive, and failing to escape. That had been her life for the past couple of days, and it was wearing on her. Just once, she wanted something to go right. She needed something to tell her that she wasn't just wasting her time on something fruitless, that her efforts actually meant something.
That led her to follow Shoshanna to the banquet hall. Even though they had no success, Shoshanna was still Rhonda's best hope at getting off the island in some way. They were still stuck on the collars, but Shoshanna did seem pretty sure that she had some way to get them off despite the explosive results of her previous attempts. But if they were looking for supplies, then a fancy banquet hall wouldn't have been Rhonda's first choice. Sure, she had managed to pick up a couple of things in the bowels of the clipper ship, but here? She didn't think that any of the fine china on display would be too valuable for their purposes.
Rhonda shuffled about, not sure what she could really do but keep watch while Shoshanna brainstormed. She had checked at least three times to make sure that she had a round in the chamber of her shotgun, just in case. She tried not to get too jumpy, though. Nadine was off on her own, said that she'd be at the pool for a bit. Every time she looked at a doorway, Rhonda kept telling herself not to shoot if she saw something, because it might be Nadine. She really didn't want to create another Xander. But even with her vigilance, she wasn't seeing anything. She was just glancing around the room and trying not to look too much at the bodies.
But finally, Shoshanna called to her with a request. Something that can cut wires. Rhonda scratched her head and tried to remember what they had on hand. There was the first-aid kits and their scissors, of course, but would that be enough? Maybe she got something from the clipper ship that would help, but that might be a long shot as well. She had to shrug. She wasn't sure.
"We got the scissors from the first aid kits, but I ain't sure if they've got the strength." She leaned forward with interest. "Why? You got an idea?"
((Ashanti Baker continued from Loyalty: 2))
Silently crying and trying not to sob was one of many things in life that were harder carrying a jetpack.
But Ashanti was managing.
Somehow.
Ever since Marion's name appeared on the announcements, the hope still rattled around Ashanti's head that it could have been with her as the killer. No, Marion wasn't dead, she just killed someone - that was obviously better, because Marion was alive. And every time she kept repeating that to herself, Marion was alive and she wasn't dead, because she'd just killed someone, and that was better. And she just kept repeating that to herself because it meant that Marion was just a killer, not dead, someone else was dead, not Marion, being a killer was better than being dead.
But eventually the words ran out and exited through her eyeballs and Ashanti couldn't even stop to greive because there was a ten tonne pile of nitroglycerin and triggers on her back. All she could do was monitor her breathing and make sure nothing came out as a sob or a scream or a cry because this whole thing was so hard and she had to keep doing it. Large, deep breaths prevented the muscles from tightening and contorting into words.
Matias was treating her better than before. Maybe it was Marion's death, or maybe it was the fact she'd actually sat him down, apologized, explained, and gotten things clear. There was no making up for what she told him after he killed his friend, but not asking for his comfort when her own friend died and she had nothing to do with it probably helped pile up some dirt on the uneven field.
The moment the ship opened up, they went there. Ashanti had spent far too long on the jetties in the open water, that a place with real walls was high on her priority list. The cruise ship still rocked and swayed like the boat it was, but at least she didn't have to look out at nothing anymore. The ocean lost its novelty long ago. Their travels through the ship showed signs of struggle, even if it was days old at this point. Things askew, blood in places there shouldn't be, and even happening upon a body. Matias probably knew who they were better than she did - Ashanti just wanted to keep going.
Eventually, the banquet hall. Next verse, same as the first; askew, blood, bodies. The game-changing hook came when there were people with them.
Ashanti had alreaday made her way through the open doorway anyway, because there wasn't gunshots flying out through the hall or screams of anger permeating through the same location. You couldn't bet on a lot in SOTF, but Occam's Razor was the safest place to put your money.
She recognized them, although not the best. Shoshanna Kowalczyk was an uppity bitch who thought her opinion was the only good one; Rhonda Rollins was probably headed for juvie after graduation. Neither of those things mattered now, though - the only real thing that mattered was that Rhonda had killed someone, although from the mental notes Ashanti took, it seemed to be an accident against her own team.
Better than the group from yesterday, if Ashanti was being honest, even if they were her own team.
Ashanti had long since supressed the urge to send her greetings, and instead waited for Matias to do it for her.
Silently crying and trying not to sob was one of many things in life that were harder carrying a jetpack.
But Ashanti was managing.
Somehow.
Ever since Marion's name appeared on the announcements, the hope still rattled around Ashanti's head that it could have been with her as the killer. No, Marion wasn't dead, she just killed someone - that was obviously better, because Marion was alive. And every time she kept repeating that to herself, Marion was alive and she wasn't dead, because she'd just killed someone, and that was better. And she just kept repeating that to herself because it meant that Marion was just a killer, not dead, someone else was dead, not Marion, being a killer was better than being dead.
But eventually the words ran out and exited through her eyeballs and Ashanti couldn't even stop to greive because there was a ten tonne pile of nitroglycerin and triggers on her back. All she could do was monitor her breathing and make sure nothing came out as a sob or a scream or a cry because this whole thing was so hard and she had to keep doing it. Large, deep breaths prevented the muscles from tightening and contorting into words.
Matias was treating her better than before. Maybe it was Marion's death, or maybe it was the fact she'd actually sat him down, apologized, explained, and gotten things clear. There was no making up for what she told him after he killed his friend, but not asking for his comfort when her own friend died and she had nothing to do with it probably helped pile up some dirt on the uneven field.
The moment the ship opened up, they went there. Ashanti had spent far too long on the jetties in the open water, that a place with real walls was high on her priority list. The cruise ship still rocked and swayed like the boat it was, but at least she didn't have to look out at nothing anymore. The ocean lost its novelty long ago. Their travels through the ship showed signs of struggle, even if it was days old at this point. Things askew, blood in places there shouldn't be, and even happening upon a body. Matias probably knew who they were better than she did - Ashanti just wanted to keep going.
Eventually, the banquet hall. Next verse, same as the first; askew, blood, bodies. The game-changing hook came when there were people with them.
Ashanti had alreaday made her way through the open doorway anyway, because there wasn't gunshots flying out through the hall or screams of anger permeating through the same location. You couldn't bet on a lot in SOTF, but Occam's Razor was the safest place to put your money.
She recognized them, although not the best. Shoshanna Kowalczyk was an uppity bitch who thought her opinion was the only good one; Rhonda Rollins was probably headed for juvie after graduation. Neither of those things mattered now, though - the only real thing that mattered was that Rhonda had killed someone, although from the mental notes Ashanti took, it seemed to be an accident against her own team.
Better than the group from yesterday, if Ashanti was being honest, even if they were her own team.
Ashanti had long since supressed the urge to send her greetings, and instead waited for Matias to do it for her.
((Matias Juarez continues from Loyalty: 2))
So the past day or so fucking sucked.
That kinda went without saying on Survival of the Fittest what with the death and dying and shit, but.
Hm.
Lots of shit to cover.
So, Ashanti had been all weepy and teary and shit for the past couple of minutes, since the last announcement, so they hadn't been able to really talk much. And, like, not even sobby like a normal human being, just teary, just letting tears silently roll down her face looking goddamn miserable. Real committed to the whole voiceless bit she was.
He guessed it was because of a friend. It'd taken him a while to figure it out, but, while he was sorting his Big Binder of Knowledge, putting all the dead kids at the back, he came upon Marion Rosales' page, remembered that she knew ASL a bit, they'd had a few okay-ish convos about both knowing the same language before, and then, it came to him that Marion knew ASL, Ashanti knew ASL, so they probably knew each other somehow? Was that a fair assumption to make or?
She would've been useful to meet, Matias realized a bit late. They could've had their secret convos all together, the three of them, and Marion was on their team.
And that was another thing. After three straight announcements without a single crab death, three of them went just like that in this last one. One of them even, like, slept through a danger zone announcement. Fucking dipshit. He blamed Eric somehow for this, even though he had nothing to do with it, logic be damned. He had to blame someone for it, right? Something something if they'd been able to unite earlier the crabs might still be going strong something something. That made something resembling sense, gave his non-stop mind something to preoccupy itself with for a bit.
But anyways yeah that was a bit of a tangent. Someone died, Ashanti was sad, and things were fucking weird.
And, like, he didn't even get to be mean at her about it, as karmic as it would've been. Because apparently she was really fucking sorry about it and she would never say something like that despite the fact that she did say something like that. And, part of him hated her for apologizing in the first place. Because he'd been so prepared to be mad at her, he'd been so prepared to make her feel how mad he was, but then she went and, like, actually showed regret and repentance and shit and that just took the wind out of his sails. No excuses and shit, just, 'I fucked up, I'm sorry,' and what the fuck was he supposed to do with that? There was all this anger and all these thoughts running through his head but they felt purposeless right now. Useless needless energy.
So, yeah, he didn't get to be mad at her about it. Part of him wanted to spin it as him being 'the better person' and all, taking the higher road, and he was real real tempted by that part of him. But, if you really wanna know, the truth of it was that it felt purposeless, needlessly cruel. Like, it would take effort on his part, he'd have to push himself to be that mean to her, and he just didn't feel like going there. Maybe his parody of a conscience speaking up after Leslie died.
So he left her alone, and she seemed fine to be left alone. Didn't approach him or nothing. And he kinda got it. Leo had died the announcement before this one, the announcement after Leslie's.
He died. The last friend he had on this island, the last one who probably didn't hate his guts was dead now.
Like, sure, Anthony and Kurt were still around, but they were big into the whole 'SOTF is evil' discourse so Matias could only imagine them hunting players. They wouldn't want anything to do with him.
Leo was different. Gentler. Kept Matias around even during his worse, fightier periods. Didn't seem to have a single enemy in this school. He liked that about him.
And now he was dead.
Icing on the shit cake that was this whole situation.
Ashanti didn't know that, know that yet another friend of Matias' had died. He didn't tell her. Didn't wanna give her another weapon to potentially use. Just in case.
Didn't curl up or cry to his mentor like a little bitch this time. He'd done enough of that for a lifetime. And, he was fine without doing that, but that bothered him in its own way. Couldn't tell if it was him becoming number to it all, or if it was just because he wasn't there, or if it was because he didn't care about him as much as he thought he did, or as much as he should, and, and.
He'd done enough thinking, moralizing, philosophizing, agonizing for a lifetime as well.
It was easier to make origami things in silence. So that's what he did after that announcement had come. Paper cranes this time. No artsy symbolism there, there wasn't really much of a connection between cranes and Leo, it was just the other main origami thing he knew how to do. Leo liked books and writing and all, but folding a paper once crosswise just felt a lot less satisfying than making a crane.
That was what he spent most of his day doing. Wasn't much else to do after the apology and the talk, and, oh yeah that last thing. That was pretty important. The thing she wanted to so desperately talk to him about, after all his other fucking dipshit teammates fucked off to go be second-rate Jewels and die or some shit like that.
Ashanti didn't like the idea of killing people apparently. And, like, she'd made that very apparent during the whole Leslie thing, but just her putting it into words, it kinda. It didn't sit easy with him. Like, the literal first thing he told her about, the literal first thing he signed to her, and she wasn't about it, apparently.
He didn't like it because, like, if the one ally he had didn't want to do the one thing they could do to get off this island, then what the fuck were they supposed to do? Just hope other people did the job for him? Sure, Gabby and Eric and, ugh, fucking Junji, sure they were all getting some work done but... he was leaving his fate in someone else's hands, apparently. They were. And, like, this was his own life they were talking about. He couldn't just hope things would go well for him, he had to make sure of it. That's why he'd been so decided on playing in the first place.
But, Ashanti wasn't into it. She was all he had, and he hers. He could've railed against here about it, but despite all his energy and his anger and stuff, he was just... tired of being mad for a while. Didn't have it in him. So he just nodded at her and they'd moved on with their day after. Didn't fight, didn't leave. Not like he was dumb enough to think he could do much better by himself, an extra pair of eyes was an extra pair of eyes.
So, they'd spent the past day slinking among jetties, this weird restless gloom accumulating and compounding on them, more and more bad shit happening. No other teammates showing up, no other people in general showing up, actually. Just the two of them walking around.
The one thing Ashanti had told him through her tears was that she wanted to go to the cruise ship. Was probably angling for a bed after the last couple of restless nights, which, fair point, he was up for sleeping on non-hard surfaces as well.
So they boarded and, well, more bad shit happened. Or, like, showed itself rather. More corpses, more blood, more broken things, general bad shit. Like dark clouds approaching on a horizon. Superstitious shit. Didn't even recognize who the corpses were, just that things had happened to them. One of them in particular smelled like actual shit, and he didn't really feel like approaching that one.
Ashanti eventually decided to just enter a room, just like that. He'd hoped for a little more discretion, caution, so they could decide on their plan of action better, but she just... went in.
She didn't get shot up or stabbed, so he assumed they were at the very least non-hostile. So, he entered, looked at the other two.
"You guys have room here?"
So the past day or so fucking sucked.
That kinda went without saying on Survival of the Fittest what with the death and dying and shit, but.
Hm.
Lots of shit to cover.
So, Ashanti had been all weepy and teary and shit for the past couple of minutes, since the last announcement, so they hadn't been able to really talk much. And, like, not even sobby like a normal human being, just teary, just letting tears silently roll down her face looking goddamn miserable. Real committed to the whole voiceless bit she was.
He guessed it was because of a friend. It'd taken him a while to figure it out, but, while he was sorting his Big Binder of Knowledge, putting all the dead kids at the back, he came upon Marion Rosales' page, remembered that she knew ASL a bit, they'd had a few okay-ish convos about both knowing the same language before, and then, it came to him that Marion knew ASL, Ashanti knew ASL, so they probably knew each other somehow? Was that a fair assumption to make or?
She would've been useful to meet, Matias realized a bit late. They could've had their secret convos all together, the three of them, and Marion was on their team.
And that was another thing. After three straight announcements without a single crab death, three of them went just like that in this last one. One of them even, like, slept through a danger zone announcement. Fucking dipshit. He blamed Eric somehow for this, even though he had nothing to do with it, logic be damned. He had to blame someone for it, right? Something something if they'd been able to unite earlier the crabs might still be going strong something something. That made something resembling sense, gave his non-stop mind something to preoccupy itself with for a bit.
But anyways yeah that was a bit of a tangent. Someone died, Ashanti was sad, and things were fucking weird.
And, like, he didn't even get to be mean at her about it, as karmic as it would've been. Because apparently she was really fucking sorry about it and she would never say something like that despite the fact that she did say something like that. And, part of him hated her for apologizing in the first place. Because he'd been so prepared to be mad at her, he'd been so prepared to make her feel how mad he was, but then she went and, like, actually showed regret and repentance and shit and that just took the wind out of his sails. No excuses and shit, just, 'I fucked up, I'm sorry,' and what the fuck was he supposed to do with that? There was all this anger and all these thoughts running through his head but they felt purposeless right now. Useless needless energy.
So, yeah, he didn't get to be mad at her about it. Part of him wanted to spin it as him being 'the better person' and all, taking the higher road, and he was real real tempted by that part of him. But, if you really wanna know, the truth of it was that it felt purposeless, needlessly cruel. Like, it would take effort on his part, he'd have to push himself to be that mean to her, and he just didn't feel like going there. Maybe his parody of a conscience speaking up after Leslie died.
So he left her alone, and she seemed fine to be left alone. Didn't approach him or nothing. And he kinda got it. Leo had died the announcement before this one, the announcement after Leslie's.
He died. The last friend he had on this island, the last one who probably didn't hate his guts was dead now.
Like, sure, Anthony and Kurt were still around, but they were big into the whole 'SOTF is evil' discourse so Matias could only imagine them hunting players. They wouldn't want anything to do with him.
Leo was different. Gentler. Kept Matias around even during his worse, fightier periods. Didn't seem to have a single enemy in this school. He liked that about him.
And now he was dead.
Icing on the shit cake that was this whole situation.
Ashanti didn't know that, know that yet another friend of Matias' had died. He didn't tell her. Didn't wanna give her another weapon to potentially use. Just in case.
Didn't curl up or cry to his mentor like a little bitch this time. He'd done enough of that for a lifetime. And, he was fine without doing that, but that bothered him in its own way. Couldn't tell if it was him becoming number to it all, or if it was just because he wasn't there, or if it was because he didn't care about him as much as he thought he did, or as much as he should, and, and.
He'd done enough thinking, moralizing, philosophizing, agonizing for a lifetime as well.
It was easier to make origami things in silence. So that's what he did after that announcement had come. Paper cranes this time. No artsy symbolism there, there wasn't really much of a connection between cranes and Leo, it was just the other main origami thing he knew how to do. Leo liked books and writing and all, but folding a paper once crosswise just felt a lot less satisfying than making a crane.
That was what he spent most of his day doing. Wasn't much else to do after the apology and the talk, and, oh yeah that last thing. That was pretty important. The thing she wanted to so desperately talk to him about, after all his other fucking dipshit teammates fucked off to go be second-rate Jewels and die or some shit like that.
Ashanti didn't like the idea of killing people apparently. And, like, she'd made that very apparent during the whole Leslie thing, but just her putting it into words, it kinda. It didn't sit easy with him. Like, the literal first thing he told her about, the literal first thing he signed to her, and she wasn't about it, apparently.
He didn't like it because, like, if the one ally he had didn't want to do the one thing they could do to get off this island, then what the fuck were they supposed to do? Just hope other people did the job for him? Sure, Gabby and Eric and, ugh, fucking Junji, sure they were all getting some work done but... he was leaving his fate in someone else's hands, apparently. They were. And, like, this was his own life they were talking about. He couldn't just hope things would go well for him, he had to make sure of it. That's why he'd been so decided on playing in the first place.
But, Ashanti wasn't into it. She was all he had, and he hers. He could've railed against here about it, but despite all his energy and his anger and stuff, he was just... tired of being mad for a while. Didn't have it in him. So he just nodded at her and they'd moved on with their day after. Didn't fight, didn't leave. Not like he was dumb enough to think he could do much better by himself, an extra pair of eyes was an extra pair of eyes.
So, they'd spent the past day slinking among jetties, this weird restless gloom accumulating and compounding on them, more and more bad shit happening. No other teammates showing up, no other people in general showing up, actually. Just the two of them walking around.
The one thing Ashanti had told him through her tears was that she wanted to go to the cruise ship. Was probably angling for a bed after the last couple of restless nights, which, fair point, he was up for sleeping on non-hard surfaces as well.
So they boarded and, well, more bad shit happened. Or, like, showed itself rather. More corpses, more blood, more broken things, general bad shit. Like dark clouds approaching on a horizon. Superstitious shit. Didn't even recognize who the corpses were, just that things had happened to them. One of them in particular smelled like actual shit, and he didn't really feel like approaching that one.
Ashanti eventually decided to just enter a room, just like that. He'd hoped for a little more discretion, caution, so they could decide on their plan of action better, but she just... went in.
She didn't get shot up or stabbed, so he assumed they were at the very least non-hostile. So, he entered, looked at the other two.
"You guys have room here?"
SC3:
Matias Juarez is fed up. He is currently walking home.
Pregame: now that you are broken by the seas, in the depths of the waters,
Memories: Vamô Detonar essa Porra!
Diego Larrosa is lost. pls give my kids friends tv3 version
Stephanie's Cuckaneers Today at 12:29 AM
maraoone was a mistake - cicada 2021
Matias Juarez is fed up. He is currently walking home.
Pregame: now that you are broken by the seas, in the depths of the waters,
Memories: Vamô Detonar essa Porra!
Diego Larrosa is lost. pls give my kids friends tv3 version
Stephanie's Cuckaneers Today at 12:29 AM
maraoone was a mistake - cicada 2021
Shoshanna listened to Rhonda's response and nodded. She began to walk over to the piano, swinging her assigned bag in front to look through it as she walked.
"I have some ideas," Shoshanna explained. "And for those, I think we may want to pluck some of the wires from the piano. That stuff is pretty tough, and it may help us with the collars."
Shoshanna reached the piano and looked inside. There were a few dozen wires connecting the keys. Shoshanna had already gotten a fairly weak "Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star" out of the piano earlier in the week. She rubbed her hand over them.
"Yeah, these should be nice."
Before she could look for anything to cut them, she heard someone talking. Shoshanna looked up and saw two people in the banquet hall entrance. The boy was wearing a bright orange shirt, while the girl also had an orange bandanna on. They were a pair, and were teammates. That was a bit discomforting, but Shoshanna didn't want to assume much.
She knew the girl was Ashanti due to reputation. The boy was someone Shoshanna didn't know. She was starting to wish she ran into more people from the junior class, since she seemed to only run into seniors.
"Hello," she said to the duo. "We're in the midst on some scavenging and nothing else. Is that alright with you?"
"I have some ideas," Shoshanna explained. "And for those, I think we may want to pluck some of the wires from the piano. That stuff is pretty tough, and it may help us with the collars."
Shoshanna reached the piano and looked inside. There were a few dozen wires connecting the keys. Shoshanna had already gotten a fairly weak "Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star" out of the piano earlier in the week. She rubbed her hand over them.
"Yeah, these should be nice."
Before she could look for anything to cut them, she heard someone talking. Shoshanna looked up and saw two people in the banquet hall entrance. The boy was wearing a bright orange shirt, while the girl also had an orange bandanna on. They were a pair, and were teammates. That was a bit discomforting, but Shoshanna didn't want to assume much.
She knew the girl was Ashanti due to reputation. The boy was someone Shoshanna didn't know. She was starting to wish she ran into more people from the junior class, since she seemed to only run into seniors.
"Hello," she said to the duo. "We're in the midst on some scavenging and nothing else. Is that alright with you?"
G014: Mayumi Tendou
Rhonda offered up her scissors without a fuss. "Whatever you think will work." She said somewhat listlessly. She was past the point of asking about the validity of specific escape ideas at this point. Shoshanna had been doing a lot of experimenting with collars by now, so Rhonda had to sincerely hope that they were closer to a solution now than they were at the start. She didn't know how tough it would be to get the wire out of the piano, but she also wasn't willing to waste time questioning it, so she followed right along with the idea.
But before they could really get going, they had a couple of uninvited guests. Both were wearing orange, showing both that they were teammates, and not on the same team as either of them. Rhonda felt a twinge run down her spine, and her fingers felt stiff. The boy of the duo greeted them, not saying too much about their plans, where they came from, nor where they were headed. Shoshanna's answer was simple. They were just scavenging, which was true. In response, Rhonda nodded, directing her gaze to the orange-clad newcomers.
"Yeah, we're busy." She said curtly. She didn't want things to escalate, and she wasn't sure how they would react to her, so she tried to give them a more conciliatory message. "You guys need anything?"
Rhonda started bouncing her heel on the ground. She just wanted Shoshanna to strip the wire out of the piano and do whatever she needed next.
But before they could really get going, they had a couple of uninvited guests. Both were wearing orange, showing both that they were teammates, and not on the same team as either of them. Rhonda felt a twinge run down her spine, and her fingers felt stiff. The boy of the duo greeted them, not saying too much about their plans, where they came from, nor where they were headed. Shoshanna's answer was simple. They were just scavenging, which was true. In response, Rhonda nodded, directing her gaze to the orange-clad newcomers.
"Yeah, we're busy." She said curtly. She didn't want things to escalate, and she wasn't sure how they would react to her, so she tried to give them a more conciliatory message. "You guys need anything?"
Rhonda started bouncing her heel on the ground. She just wanted Shoshanna to strip the wire out of the piano and do whatever she needed next.
There didn't seem to be any ill intentions here - towards Matias and Ashanti, anyway. Not what she expected from Shoshanna, the uppity junior, but miracles happened every day. They were clearly up to something, on a mission, that much was clear, but as long as it didn't involve going all Season 46 on them it wasn't either of their problems.
Unless, of course, Matias had other ideas. She turned towards her companion.
"So, what are we doing - staying, leaving-"
Ashanti swallowed as Leslie's body hit the deck again, blood already pooling.
"-or something else?"
She could have cut her hand across her palm here, but that would have brought up the issue again.
"I just want to put the J-E-T-P-A-C-K down for a moment, whatever we're doing."
Unless, of course, Matias had other ideas. She turned towards her companion.
"So, what are we doing - staying, leaving-"
Ashanti swallowed as Leslie's body hit the deck again, blood already pooling.
"-or something else?"
She could have cut her hand across her palm here, but that would have brought up the issue again.
"I just want to put the J-E-T-P-A-C-K down for a moment, whatever we're doing."
((Hannah Choi continued from Missing: Have You Seen This Man?))
And just like that, Hannah was all alone again.
She was back where she started.
Somehow she had expected Beau's name to appear on the announcement, even though she wasn't sure if he was actually dead. Maybe it was just some misunderstanding, and it was just her mishearing things. She was looking for him across the map, searching through every possible venue that they previously went to. She tried and tried, but the moment she heard his name in the announcements, she eventually gave up.
She didn't cry or raged like how she did in the House Boat, just very fed up. She wanted to tear up and bawl over her missing and possibly dead friend, but she couldn't. She thought she was doing her best to keep her only ally around, keeping him safe and whatnot. And somehow she still failed.
So why? Why would he just left her some farewell letter and move on? Was he still upset after everything in the houseboat, or was he fed up and just didn't want to drag her along anymore?
She didn't know, nor did she had the energy to find out. Nothing had been right for her since she got into this damn flotilla, she was exhausted of failing again and again, and all she wanted now was to clear her mind.
She dragged her exhausted body onto the Cruise Ship. Logically, she would expect the cruise ship to be crowded with people, which was not an ideal situation for her to stay. However, now with the area being reopened, she wanted to grab an early spot there. Not only to stay there and to think about what to do next but to also fend any latecomers off.
And the first place she decided to visit? The banquet hall. Why wouldn't she scavenge the largest room on the cruise ship, where there could be multiple resources?
She wandered across the corridor and looked through the entrance.
Aaaaand there were people there. A whole group of em. Great. Just great.
She could have left and gone on to the next area, but with her out in the open, people would have noticed her anyways.
So instead, she stepped into the entrance.
"Hey uhm," She spoke up nervously, hoping to get their attention, "I'm not interrupting you all, am I? You mind if I stay here for a while?"
And just like that, Hannah was all alone again.
She was back where she started.
Somehow she had expected Beau's name to appear on the announcement, even though she wasn't sure if he was actually dead. Maybe it was just some misunderstanding, and it was just her mishearing things. She was looking for him across the map, searching through every possible venue that they previously went to. She tried and tried, but the moment she heard his name in the announcements, she eventually gave up.
She didn't cry or raged like how she did in the House Boat, just very fed up. She wanted to tear up and bawl over her missing and possibly dead friend, but she couldn't. She thought she was doing her best to keep her only ally around, keeping him safe and whatnot. And somehow she still failed.
So why? Why would he just left her some farewell letter and move on? Was he still upset after everything in the houseboat, or was he fed up and just didn't want to drag her along anymore?
She didn't know, nor did she had the energy to find out. Nothing had been right for her since she got into this damn flotilla, she was exhausted of failing again and again, and all she wanted now was to clear her mind.
She dragged her exhausted body onto the Cruise Ship. Logically, she would expect the cruise ship to be crowded with people, which was not an ideal situation for her to stay. However, now with the area being reopened, she wanted to grab an early spot there. Not only to stay there and to think about what to do next but to also fend any latecomers off.
And the first place she decided to visit? The banquet hall. Why wouldn't she scavenge the largest room on the cruise ship, where there could be multiple resources?
She wandered across the corridor and looked through the entrance.
Aaaaand there were people there. A whole group of em. Great. Just great.
She could have left and gone on to the next area, but with her out in the open, people would have noticed her anyways.
So instead, she stepped into the entrance.
"Hey uhm," She spoke up nervously, hoping to get their attention, "I'm not interrupting you all, am I? You mind if I stay here for a while?"
"Why the fuck are you all asking permission like I'm a teacher here or some shit?"
The words came out of Matias' mouth before he even thought of them. Wasn't the best foot to enter in or whatever, but just, like... so he was all grumpy and shit because things, in general, sucked, and this whole 'hi hello how are you' shit wasn't for him. If they were gonna plan shit, then plan shit. If someone here wanted to shank a bitch, then shank a bitch. Just, like, get past all the formalities and shit, they meant nothing on this show.
...should probably try to walk back the tone a bit still.
"Sure, do whatever," he mumbled.
He took stock of all the other people with him and Ashanti.
So, like, part of him had been pretty glad that, like, none of his bandmates and a lot of his closer friends weren't selected for SOTF TV, because he was simply not prepared to deal with another Leslie, but... having some nicer company would've been nice too. Some people whose mere presence didn't irritate him.
In any case, the people in the room with him were Shoshanna, Rhonda, Hannah, asshole, bigger asshole, and nobody, in that order.
The first two were fiddling around with things, made mention of scavenging, Matias had almost failed algebra but he could add two and two together at least. The latter was a new guest. His opinion on the people around him aside, he felt uneasy at how many people there were here. The more there were, the higher chances there were of someone pulling a trick or something.
Ashanti asked what to do. He bristled a bit at the last question. At the 'something else.' Wondered why she'd even ask... that, if she was so against it in the first place. He was about to suggest they just leave or something, but then what'd they do? Just walk around for another day or so until someone stabbed them? Deal with the jetpack another day- wait. Hm.
"GIVE - J-E-T-P-A-C-K - TO - THEM?"
Not like they'd gotten to use it yet in all the time they'd spent here. And if the two girls were doing what he thought they were doing, they might make better use of it. Could even jump on board their little attempt if things panned out well enough for them.
Also.
He turned to Hannah. Did a double take.
Eyes drifted down to the thing in her hands.
"You still using that giant crab leg by the way?"
Ben would be so proud of him.
The words came out of Matias' mouth before he even thought of them. Wasn't the best foot to enter in or whatever, but just, like... so he was all grumpy and shit because things, in general, sucked, and this whole 'hi hello how are you' shit wasn't for him. If they were gonna plan shit, then plan shit. If someone here wanted to shank a bitch, then shank a bitch. Just, like, get past all the formalities and shit, they meant nothing on this show.
...should probably try to walk back the tone a bit still.
"Sure, do whatever," he mumbled.
He took stock of all the other people with him and Ashanti.
So, like, part of him had been pretty glad that, like, none of his bandmates and a lot of his closer friends weren't selected for SOTF TV, because he was simply not prepared to deal with another Leslie, but... having some nicer company would've been nice too. Some people whose mere presence didn't irritate him.
In any case, the people in the room with him were Shoshanna, Rhonda, Hannah, asshole, bigger asshole, and nobody, in that order.
The first two were fiddling around with things, made mention of scavenging, Matias had almost failed algebra but he could add two and two together at least. The latter was a new guest. His opinion on the people around him aside, he felt uneasy at how many people there were here. The more there were, the higher chances there were of someone pulling a trick or something.
Ashanti asked what to do. He bristled a bit at the last question. At the 'something else.' Wondered why she'd even ask... that, if she was so against it in the first place. He was about to suggest they just leave or something, but then what'd they do? Just walk around for another day or so until someone stabbed them? Deal with the jetpack another day- wait. Hm.
"GIVE - J-E-T-P-A-C-K - TO - THEM?"
Not like they'd gotten to use it yet in all the time they'd spent here. And if the two girls were doing what he thought they were doing, they might make better use of it. Could even jump on board their little attempt if things panned out well enough for them.
Also.
He turned to Hannah. Did a double take.
Eyes drifted down to the thing in her hands.
"You still using that giant crab leg by the way?"
Ben would be so proud of him.
SC3:
Matias Juarez is fed up. He is currently walking home.
Pregame: now that you are broken by the seas, in the depths of the waters,
Memories: Vamô Detonar essa Porra!
Diego Larrosa is lost. pls give my kids friends tv3 version
Stephanie's Cuckaneers Today at 12:29 AM
maraoone was a mistake - cicada 2021
Matias Juarez is fed up. He is currently walking home.
Pregame: now that you are broken by the seas, in the depths of the waters,
Memories: Vamô Detonar essa Porra!
Diego Larrosa is lost. pls give my kids friends tv3 version
Stephanie's Cuckaneers Today at 12:29 AM
maraoone was a mistake - cicada 2021
It looked like Ashanti and Matias were fine with Shoshanna and Rhonda scavenging, which she was fine to deal with. They'd have to keep a proper eye on them, especially Matias who seemed quite rude right now. Shoshanna knew that, three days in, people would be on such an edge that their ass cracks would be cut up to their shoulders, so she would let him be pissy if it meant they could bust the piano in peace.
Speaking of, Shoshanna took the scissors from Rhonda to go at the strings. The wires were naturally too thick to cut, but Shoshanna had hoped they could at least fuck with the bits connecting the wires to the piano.
She jabbed at them, hoping to pry them a bit, but it didn't look like it was going to do much.
"Damn," she muttered. "We need something stronger."
It was then Shoshanna remembered another girl had walked in. She looked to the girl, not sure who she was or what Matias meant.
"Yeah, we're just peacefully congressing here," Shoshanna told the girl, going back to hitting the joints with the handle of the scissors. "Take a load off."
Speaking of, Shoshanna took the scissors from Rhonda to go at the strings. The wires were naturally too thick to cut, but Shoshanna had hoped they could at least fuck with the bits connecting the wires to the piano.
She jabbed at them, hoping to pry them a bit, but it didn't look like it was going to do much.
"Damn," she muttered. "We need something stronger."
It was then Shoshanna remembered another girl had walked in. She looked to the girl, not sure who she was or what Matias meant.
"Yeah, we're just peacefully congressing here," Shoshanna told the girl, going back to hitting the joints with the handle of the scissors. "Take a load off."
G014: Mayumi Tendou
Shit, the room was getting fuller. Rhonda scraped the tip of her shoe against the ground as she watched Shoshanna work with the wires. All they needed was to cut it, or at least pull it off. She had heard some impressive things about piano wire. Really strong and really sharp, it could do more damage than one would expect. So if Shoshanna's plans were legit, then there was some real upside to grabbing this wire.
Which was why it was frustrating to see her shitty little bandage scissors do virtually nothing while the wire remained in the piano. Damn it, they were so close that they could literally touch it, yet it was still out of reach. It felt like every other step of the plan they had gone through so far. Hope dangled in front of them only to be ripped away, although at least nobody died from it this time.
Irritated, Rhonda sucked air through her teeth and groaned. They were so close, so close. They couldn't give up here, not after everything that they had been through. Pushing her reservations to the side, she turned to look at the newcomers and made a request.
"We're trying to steal some piano wire. Any of you have anything that could cut it up or bust it out?"
Which was why it was frustrating to see her shitty little bandage scissors do virtually nothing while the wire remained in the piano. Damn it, they were so close that they could literally touch it, yet it was still out of reach. It felt like every other step of the plan they had gone through so far. Hope dangled in front of them only to be ripped away, although at least nobody died from it this time.
Irritated, Rhonda sucked air through her teeth and groaned. They were so close, so close. They couldn't give up here, not after everything that they had been through. Pushing her reservations to the side, she turned to look at the newcomers and made a request.
"We're trying to steal some piano wire. Any of you have anything that could cut it up or bust it out?"
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VoltTurtle
- Posts: 491
- Joined: Wed Sep 19, 2018 5:41 am
Seo-yun pressed her back into the wall, just out of sight, clutching the shotgun close to her chest.
((She had arrived, and the morning had passed without bloodshed so far. It was time for her to fix that.))
So she was back here again. Not that she particularly waned to come back, considering that Kamille's ugly mug was still plastered all over the floor and serving as an impromptu decorum, but when she heard all the distant murmurs echoing down the hall, she couldn't resist checking it out. There wasn't any argument to be made to the contrary, if she cared at all about danger at this point she wouldn't have gunned for the spotlight like she did. In for a penny, in for a pound, as her caretaker Alice would always say.
Hm, Seo-yun hadn't thought about her up til now. Part of her hoped that she wasn't watching all of this. Especially considering what was about to happen.
Gingerly, Seo-yun peeked around the corner of the side entrance she had come through, the gathering still some distance away. Going by their current conversation, it seemed this lot was trying to escape, and she couldn't allow that, now could she? Not that they were likely to--she wouldn't describe her classmates as the sharpest tools in the shed--but if they somehow did, it'd mean that she ruined her reputation and killed five people for absolutely nothing. That thought was somehow even worse than that awful itch she kept getting after each of the murders.
And, really, they were better off this way anyway. Better to be a footnote in someone better's story than be left in the dustbin of history, like they would be if their little plan didn't go as intended.
Seo-yun ducked back into cover, taking note of how long it had been since Mandy had split off from her. She had instructed Mandy to take one of the alternate entrances in an effort to cut off as many escape routes as possible. She also made it clear that Mandy was supposed to shoot to maim, not kill. Seo-yun was the one getting the kills, Mandy was supposed to win with her team. That was the deal, and they were sticking to it still, as far as Seo-yun could tell.
She leaned back out, one eye peeking at the group from afar. There were five people in total, Rhonda, Ashanti, Matias, Hannah, and Shoshanna. All Seo-yun needed was five more kills, so if she killed all of them then she'd be done, wouldn't she? The only problem was that she only had five shots loaded in her gun, so she'd need to make every shot count. That wasn't a problem though, because she was Seo-yun, and so long as she put her mind to it then she could do anything she wanted, plain and simple.
Actually, wait, looking a little longer, it seemed Rhonda was actually on her team. Her real team at that, not Shiva's team, like the armband she was wearing falsely suggested. Still, that was hardly a real problem. Four more kills was still very, very good, and frankly, she wasn't about to look a gift horse in the mouth. She was sick to death of all the nonsense that she had been dealing with over these last two days, and she just wanted all of this over and done with. The sooner, the better.
...Mandy must be getting into position by now, right? Whatever, it was probably good enough. Ashanti looked like a fun target too, what with that enormous, unwieldy hunk of metal she had with her. Seo-yun was just itching to take a chunk out of her. Plus, she was a total bitch anyway, and hardly a loss for the world at large.
"I've got something here, Rhonda," Seo-yun shouted as she dove out of cover and took aim at Ashanti, "but you might want to duck!"
Without any further hesitation, the roar of her gun once again graced the banquet hall.
((She had arrived, and the morning had passed without bloodshed so far. It was time for her to fix that.))
So she was back here again. Not that she particularly waned to come back, considering that Kamille's ugly mug was still plastered all over the floor and serving as an impromptu decorum, but when she heard all the distant murmurs echoing down the hall, she couldn't resist checking it out. There wasn't any argument to be made to the contrary, if she cared at all about danger at this point she wouldn't have gunned for the spotlight like she did. In for a penny, in for a pound, as her caretaker Alice would always say.
Hm, Seo-yun hadn't thought about her up til now. Part of her hoped that she wasn't watching all of this. Especially considering what was about to happen.
Gingerly, Seo-yun peeked around the corner of the side entrance she had come through, the gathering still some distance away. Going by their current conversation, it seemed this lot was trying to escape, and she couldn't allow that, now could she? Not that they were likely to--she wouldn't describe her classmates as the sharpest tools in the shed--but if they somehow did, it'd mean that she ruined her reputation and killed five people for absolutely nothing. That thought was somehow even worse than that awful itch she kept getting after each of the murders.
And, really, they were better off this way anyway. Better to be a footnote in someone better's story than be left in the dustbin of history, like they would be if their little plan didn't go as intended.
Seo-yun ducked back into cover, taking note of how long it had been since Mandy had split off from her. She had instructed Mandy to take one of the alternate entrances in an effort to cut off as many escape routes as possible. She also made it clear that Mandy was supposed to shoot to maim, not kill. Seo-yun was the one getting the kills, Mandy was supposed to win with her team. That was the deal, and they were sticking to it still, as far as Seo-yun could tell.
She leaned back out, one eye peeking at the group from afar. There were five people in total, Rhonda, Ashanti, Matias, Hannah, and Shoshanna. All Seo-yun needed was five more kills, so if she killed all of them then she'd be done, wouldn't she? The only problem was that she only had five shots loaded in her gun, so she'd need to make every shot count. That wasn't a problem though, because she was Seo-yun, and so long as she put her mind to it then she could do anything she wanted, plain and simple.
Actually, wait, looking a little longer, it seemed Rhonda was actually on her team. Her real team at that, not Shiva's team, like the armband she was wearing falsely suggested. Still, that was hardly a real problem. Four more kills was still very, very good, and frankly, she wasn't about to look a gift horse in the mouth. She was sick to death of all the nonsense that she had been dealing with over these last two days, and she just wanted all of this over and done with. The sooner, the better.
...Mandy must be getting into position by now, right? Whatever, it was probably good enough. Ashanti looked like a fun target too, what with that enormous, unwieldy hunk of metal she had with her. Seo-yun was just itching to take a chunk out of her. Plus, she was a total bitch anyway, and hardly a loss for the world at large.
"I've got something here, Rhonda," Seo-yun shouted as she dove out of cover and took aim at Ashanti, "but you might want to duck!"
Without any further hesitation, the roar of her gun once again graced the banquet hall.
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MurderWeasel
- Posts: 3431
- Joined: Mon Aug 06, 2018 9:56 am
- Team Affiliation: Jewel's Leviathans
((Mandy Gross continued from ...and so we destroyed everything))
Mandy had been hustling, but figuring out her angle of approach was difficult. At first, she'd been planning to go around to the poolside entrance, like last time they'd done this very maneuver in this very room. Easy peasy, right? It was literally just the same thing again, only now with a large crowd of people she didn't quite know for sure who they were, all armed with who could say what.
But her plans ran off the rails in a hurry. There were a whole bunch of people over near the pool, and Mandy could hear from the tones of their voices that they were going at it, and that meant they might be hyper-vigilant, and that even if they weren't they were unlikely to take too kindly to her skulking around trying to slip past them with a revolver in hand. So she'd doubled back into the corridors, looking for an entrance that would still get her a flanking position.
Ultimately, she'd found her way into a tiled hallway that seemed to be intended for staff to bring food or entertainment or whatever out. The surfaces were hard and sterile compared to the plush banquet hall, and Mandy was kind of itching to just get to the part where they routed everybody and then celebrated. After all that had happened, after Lark and Amy and the conversation on the ghost ship, she was ready to roll. The plan was great, even. She wasn't supposed to kill anybody at all, just keep them in place for Seo-yun to do it.
It was just, she was a couple seconds behind schedule.
Mandy heard the hum of conversation turn into a shout, heard the now-familiar reverberation of the shotgun, and she was still fifteen feet away from the door. She broke into a full on sprint, though, and a second later crashed through the swinging doors at the far end of the hall shoulder-first.
She was, like, at least twenty feet away from everyone else, at a right angle to where Seo-yun had showed herself, and in too big a flurry of activity to even properly process who all she was looking at across the expanse of now-mostly-messy tables. They were arranged around the piano. Lots of them. That's all she could say. How were you supposed to make sure to hit people in the leg from so far away? Mandy hadn't even fired her gun yet, ever.
"Nobody move," she screamed at the top of her lungs instead, then pointed the revolver at the ceiling and shot a chandelier.
There was an explosion of glass shards, and the gun wrenched its way right out of Mandy's hands, and she immediately dived to the carpet to secure it, landing rather roughly on the maroon carpet with the weapon poking her painfully in the stomach.
Mandy had been hustling, but figuring out her angle of approach was difficult. At first, she'd been planning to go around to the poolside entrance, like last time they'd done this very maneuver in this very room. Easy peasy, right? It was literally just the same thing again, only now with a large crowd of people she didn't quite know for sure who they were, all armed with who could say what.
But her plans ran off the rails in a hurry. There were a whole bunch of people over near the pool, and Mandy could hear from the tones of their voices that they were going at it, and that meant they might be hyper-vigilant, and that even if they weren't they were unlikely to take too kindly to her skulking around trying to slip past them with a revolver in hand. So she'd doubled back into the corridors, looking for an entrance that would still get her a flanking position.
Ultimately, she'd found her way into a tiled hallway that seemed to be intended for staff to bring food or entertainment or whatever out. The surfaces were hard and sterile compared to the plush banquet hall, and Mandy was kind of itching to just get to the part where they routed everybody and then celebrated. After all that had happened, after Lark and Amy and the conversation on the ghost ship, she was ready to roll. The plan was great, even. She wasn't supposed to kill anybody at all, just keep them in place for Seo-yun to do it.
It was just, she was a couple seconds behind schedule.
Mandy heard the hum of conversation turn into a shout, heard the now-familiar reverberation of the shotgun, and she was still fifteen feet away from the door. She broke into a full on sprint, though, and a second later crashed through the swinging doors at the far end of the hall shoulder-first.
She was, like, at least twenty feet away from everyone else, at a right angle to where Seo-yun had showed herself, and in too big a flurry of activity to even properly process who all she was looking at across the expanse of now-mostly-messy tables. They were arranged around the piano. Lots of them. That's all she could say. How were you supposed to make sure to hit people in the leg from so far away? Mandy hadn't even fired her gun yet, ever.
"Nobody move," she screamed at the top of her lungs instead, then pointed the revolver at the ceiling and shot a chandelier.
There was an explosion of glass shards, and the gun wrenched its way right out of Mandy's hands, and she immediately dived to the carpet to secure it, landing rather roughly on the maroon carpet with the weapon poking her painfully in the stomach.
There was a lot going through Ashanti's head, but a lot of it became ambient when someone yelled 'duck'. That was the moment that Ashanti let gravity take her, her knees descending to earth, and she felt a force whiz above her head. Considering what her and Matias had been through, it was quite shocking that neither of them had been attacked yet. There was a first time for everything, though, even if Ashanti would rather the times be zero.
But let's think back to the ambience, even if it meant nothing now - Hannah had just appeared, asking if she could stay. Matias wasn't happy, but she was definitely a member of their team, and if Gabriela and Eric weren't going to play ball, maybe the new girl would.
Matias suggested giving the jetpack to Shoshanna and Rhonda - if it meant she never had to carry it again, then Ashanti was fine with it, because it meant she could move faster than a snail's pace, which would more than likely be faster than she'd moved since the crates under the ship. Maybe they could get in on whatever escape plan they had going, which would be a fantastic reward for turning Ashanti's thighs into pillars of muscle.
Rhonda wanted something that could cut piano wire - Ashanti wasn't an engineer, so she had no idea how she was going to help with that. Even if she did, she'd have to get Matias to translate that for her, because going at them with a wrenchdriver could look bad, and if Ashanti wanted to leave a lasting impression here, it wasn't being gunned down for holding something that wasn't even a weapon.
But unfortunately, none of that was coming to pass right now, because the real danger was Seo-yun having just burst in with a shotgun, aimed at her, and fired, so if Ashanti didn't have the impeccable timing of that werewolf costume still in her bag, it wouldn't really matter. What did matter, though, was the fact the ground was becoming awfully clo-
thmp
Ashanti's head bonked the carpet with the force of a jetpack, or at least a jetpack-encombered teenage girl, sending a delayed shockwave through her body like she'd just been told she was ending up on SOTF. Through the throbbing pain, she saw where she was, and grabbed the one leg of the nearest table. It toppled over in front of her, knocking chairs to the ground, its flat surface facing where she though she heard Seo-yun's voice coming from, and Ashanti began scrambling to get out of the straps. But before she could make any headway, she saw another door burst open and some girl she'd never met before ran in and shot at the chandelier.
The funny thing was, whoever this girl was, if this was a movie, this might have done something. Chandeliers tended to hit the ground faster than a drag queen hitting a death drop when cut, except...the gun went flying out of the girl's hands, the bullet visibly whizzed through the crystals, knocking a handful of them from the frame, and nothing else happened aside from Girly Noname diving out of sight.
If Ashanti had seen this on television, she would have laughed until she tweeted. Instead, she immediately went back to unstrapping herself from the fire hazard weighing her to the ground.
But let's think back to the ambience, even if it meant nothing now - Hannah had just appeared, asking if she could stay. Matias wasn't happy, but she was definitely a member of their team, and if Gabriela and Eric weren't going to play ball, maybe the new girl would.
Matias suggested giving the jetpack to Shoshanna and Rhonda - if it meant she never had to carry it again, then Ashanti was fine with it, because it meant she could move faster than a snail's pace, which would more than likely be faster than she'd moved since the crates under the ship. Maybe they could get in on whatever escape plan they had going, which would be a fantastic reward for turning Ashanti's thighs into pillars of muscle.
Rhonda wanted something that could cut piano wire - Ashanti wasn't an engineer, so she had no idea how she was going to help with that. Even if she did, she'd have to get Matias to translate that for her, because going at them with a wrenchdriver could look bad, and if Ashanti wanted to leave a lasting impression here, it wasn't being gunned down for holding something that wasn't even a weapon.
But unfortunately, none of that was coming to pass right now, because the real danger was Seo-yun having just burst in with a shotgun, aimed at her, and fired, so if Ashanti didn't have the impeccable timing of that werewolf costume still in her bag, it wouldn't really matter. What did matter, though, was the fact the ground was becoming awfully clo-
thmp
Ashanti's head bonked the carpet with the force of a jetpack, or at least a jetpack-encombered teenage girl, sending a delayed shockwave through her body like she'd just been told she was ending up on SOTF. Through the throbbing pain, she saw where she was, and grabbed the one leg of the nearest table. It toppled over in front of her, knocking chairs to the ground, its flat surface facing where she though she heard Seo-yun's voice coming from, and Ashanti began scrambling to get out of the straps. But before she could make any headway, she saw another door burst open and some girl she'd never met before ran in and shot at the chandelier.
The funny thing was, whoever this girl was, if this was a movie, this might have done something. Chandeliers tended to hit the ground faster than a drag queen hitting a death drop when cut, except...the gun went flying out of the girl's hands, the bullet visibly whizzed through the crystals, knocking a handful of them from the frame, and nothing else happened aside from Girly Noname diving out of sight.
If Ashanti had seen this on television, she would have laughed until she tweeted. Instead, she immediately went back to unstrapping herself from the fire hazard weighing her to the ground.
Hannah took a seat in the far corner of the hall. Her mind was completely blank. Null. Nothing.
She blankly stared at the others, people who she probably had met before in school, but their names were forgotten. She wasn't even paying attention to the others, probably just more bickering and all that. All she could think about right now was her next move in this show. What was she going to do next? How? Where? When?
She looked up towards the group again. One of the figures approached her. Something about lending her staff.
"Yea, just remember to return me."
She handed in the staff to Matias.
She regained conscience, finally realized what she had just done. Losing her ally and potentially her only weapon, in the span of 24 fucking hours.
Deep inside, she was yelling, mostly towards herself.
'WHAT THE FUCK DID YOU JUST DO?!!!!'
She looked as Matias was about to leave with the staff, her mind went into complete panic.
"Heyy WAI-!"
BOOM!
Two girls. Two guns. Five potential victims. Glass shards were everywhere. And some girl just bonked herself while wearing a jetpack.
Hannah sat there in silence, stunned, shocked. She wanted her staff back, she wanted out of here, she wanted to leave.
Instead, she just sat in her seat. Perhaps if you kept quiet and play dead, they wouldn't kill you. Right? RIGHT?
She blankly stared at the others, people who she probably had met before in school, but their names were forgotten. She wasn't even paying attention to the others, probably just more bickering and all that. All she could think about right now was her next move in this show. What was she going to do next? How? Where? When?
She looked up towards the group again. One of the figures approached her. Something about lending her staff.
"Yea, just remember to return me."
She handed in the staff to Matias.
She regained conscience, finally realized what she had just done. Losing her ally and potentially her only weapon, in the span of 24 fucking hours.
Deep inside, she was yelling, mostly towards herself.
'WHAT THE FUCK DID YOU JUST DO?!!!!'
She looked as Matias was about to leave with the staff, her mind went into complete panic.
"Heyy WAI-!"
BOOM!
Two girls. Two guns. Five potential victims. Glass shards were everywhere. And some girl just bonked herself while wearing a jetpack.
Hannah sat there in silence, stunned, shocked. She wanted her staff back, she wanted out of here, she wanted to leave.
Instead, she just sat in her seat. Perhaps if you kept quiet and play dead, they wouldn't kill you. Right? RIGHT?