Fearful Symmetry

Once upon a time, the quarry, located in the island's western side, was the source of almost all human activity on the island. Now, the large, jagged rock formation stands as a monument to the abandoned aspirations of the miners. A large portion of it has been cleared, and the face is climbable. There are lots of indentations along the face from dynamite blasts and other mining activity, some of which terminate a few yards in and others of which continue far deeper, even in some cases connecting with the tunnels
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Skraal
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Fearful Symmetry

#1

Post by Skraal »

They did it again.

THEY FUCKING DID IT AGAIN.

B27: Cody Jenkins - Start

The sun beat down hard on Cody’s head as he paced around the abandoned quarry, kicking up a storm of chalky dust. The heat in the air was oppressive, almost smothering. Cody’s pacing was interrupted by a brief coughing fit, his throat painfully dry. Getting to a water bottle would probably be a good idea. However, the thought was roughly pushed away by a single question buzzing around in his head like an angry wasp, banging itself around aggressively against the inside of his head.

Why?

Was the first time not enough? Were they not satisfied with the panicking schoolteachers, the television interviews with crying parents, the angry protests simply demanding that oh so mighty government step in and do something to “protect our children”? Apparently the continuing erosion of everyone’s civil liberties just wasn’t going fast enough for them. But still…

Cody frowned, stopping to wipe away some of the sweat that was pouring from his brow. Why do they same thing twice in a row? Was Uncle Sam really that unoriginal? There wasn’t a second 9/11, after all. Why have a second SOTF?

Sighing, he put a pause to his ruminations and glanced over at his assigned weapon sitting on the ground beside him. It was a monster of a gun, looking more like something out of a Sci-Fi flick than real life. Perhaps they were playing some sort of cruel joke on him. Giving the crazy weapon to the “crazy” kid. Whatever the case, he wasn’t laughing.

A camera sat nearby, watching him menacingly from behind a particularly large rock. Cody turned to face it, his face contorting as he stood. Despite the horror of being here, he had one opportunity to make this somehow worthwhile. He could give a speech, telling everything he knew, warning the people back home and making the guys running this shitty game look like fools, just like he had fantasized about people doing while reading about the tragedy online. There was only one problem.

The boy stood still for a moment, his mind completely blank, words completely escaping him. For once in his life, Cody Jenkins, the guy with the explanation for everything, couldn’t think of anything to say. He sighed, before resorting to flipping up his middle finger to the camera. He’d have to come up with a full speech later.
[+] Characters
The Program V2
Josephine "Josie" Luu - Current Status: DECEASED

SOTF-TV 2
Søren Rosendahl - Current Status: DECEASED

Second Chances 2
Soren Rosendahl - Current Status: DECEASED
Cody Jenkins - Current Status: DECEASED

The Program V3
Samuel Rosen - Current Status: DECEASED

SOTF-TV 3
Luciano Ascencio (adopted from UnmaskedMountain) - Current Status: DECEASED

SOTF International
Clara Micallef - Current Status: In Thread

SOTF Supers
Mei-Ling "Emily" Chou - Current Status: DECEASED

New Battle Royale AU
Yuko Sakaki - Current Status: DECEASED

SOTF Cyber
Nicholas Cameron - Current Status: In Thread
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CondorTalon
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#2

Post by CondorTalon »

"Real anti-establishment, stickin' it to the man. Unfortunately, don't think it's going to do much here."

G23: Clair Belvedere, START

Clair had woken up with a wicked headache. Maybe it was the sleeping gas having not quite worn off yet. Maybe it was the gravity of the situation stressing her out. Either way, her head was pounding and she'd tried, rather unsuccessfully, to clear it by taking a walk.

Which is what brought her to the quarry and to her noticing one Cody Jenkins giving... something the bird. Clair wasn't close enough to see what he was flipping off, but really, what else could it have been?

And Clair didn't know why she'd called out to him. She could have just walked by, and left him to... something. But maybe finding someone was better than nothing.

She was about to find out she guessed. It would take a lot to make this shitty situation even worse.
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Skraal
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#3

Post by Skraal »

Cody’s head jerked to the side at the sound of a newcomer. His eyes scanned over her scrawny body. She didn’t seem to be much of a threat at the moment, but then again you never really could tell with this scenario. There wasn’t any weapon in her hands, at least. With that welcome observation, Cody relaxed a bit.

Only a little bit though. He hadn’t interacted with Clair too much over the course of his high school “career”, but he from what he did remember, she was kind of, well, a dick. He took a step towards the Jackhammer, just in case, though he didn’t see the need to grab for it just yet. He didn’t know what kind of heat she was packing, and he didn’t want to risk taking a bullet in the back just yet.

“Well, aren’t you just a ray of sunshine, huh?” Cody gave a shrug. “It definitely doesn’t hurt to tell the guys running this operation what I think of them and their little show.”

Cody licked his increasingly dry lips. He really needed a drink, though now wasn’t exactly a good time for it. Hopefully he’d get a chance after he managed to make sure that the girl standing in front of him wasn’t here to turn him into Jenkins-brand swiss cheese. A quiet cough escaped his mouth before he continued speaking.

“Anyway, you have any better ideas, Miss Smartypants?” He paused before cutting to the question he really wanted to ask. “I’m assuming you got something pretty good?”
[+] Characters
The Program V2
Josephine "Josie" Luu - Current Status: DECEASED

SOTF-TV 2
Søren Rosendahl - Current Status: DECEASED

Second Chances 2
Soren Rosendahl - Current Status: DECEASED
Cody Jenkins - Current Status: DECEASED

The Program V3
Samuel Rosen - Current Status: DECEASED

SOTF-TV 3
Luciano Ascencio (adopted from UnmaskedMountain) - Current Status: DECEASED

SOTF International
Clara Micallef - Current Status: In Thread

SOTF Supers
Mei-Ling "Emily" Chou - Current Status: DECEASED

New Battle Royale AU
Yuko Sakaki - Current Status: DECEASED

SOTF Cyber
Nicholas Cameron - Current Status: In Thread
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CondorTalon
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#4

Post by CondorTalon »

Clair smiled wryly at Cody's question. And his snarky comments.

But mostly his question.

"I got some condoms," she said, "So it depends on what you mean by 'something good'. You want one, by the way?"

Clair shook her head.

"I mean... nevermind. I'm just going to assume you'll refuse, for my own sanity."

Indeed. It was going to get pretty hard to maintain her sanity in this fucked up situation. She looked over to where Cody's stuff was and holy crap that is a big gun. Yep, gonna have to keep that sanity close, lest it fly away.

"As for there being no harm in it... maybe... maybe not," she continued, pacing from side to side, "I mean, sure, flipping them off might be fine, but I wouldn't chance doing anything more than that. After all, these are the guys who kidnapped a bunch of high school kids and killed one of their teachers."

She grimaced as she said that. She'd just reminded herself of Mr. Dolph's violent end, and now she felt a bit sick to her stomach.

"I wouldn't chance it," she repeated.
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Skraal
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#5

Post by Skraal »

Condoms? Well, shit son. That had to suck. At least she had something of a sense of humour about it. In any case, he was glad that he didn't have to deal with any sort of freakout, like what happened to a few kids the last time. It probably wouldn't have ended well for either of them.

As Clair paced, her footsteps mirroring his own from just a few short minutes ago, Cody took a moment to analyze the situation. It didn't seem like she was lying about the condoms, and to be honest, she didn't appear like the type to just casually be carrying them around. Looked like he was safe for now.

He frowned. He definitely didn't want to relieve the moment of watching one of his favourite teachers get shot. It'd probably be a good idea to lighten the mood a bit.

...

Well, it couldn't hurt, anyway.

"Well, you know, getting a box of condoms isn't that bad, really."

Looks like all those hours spent researching the events of the previous SOTF were about to come in handy.

"Like, that's what the survivor from last time got." Cody grinned. "Think of it as good luck."
[+] Characters
The Program V2
Josephine "Josie" Luu - Current Status: DECEASED

SOTF-TV 2
Søren Rosendahl - Current Status: DECEASED

Second Chances 2
Soren Rosendahl - Current Status: DECEASED
Cody Jenkins - Current Status: DECEASED

The Program V3
Samuel Rosen - Current Status: DECEASED

SOTF-TV 3
Luciano Ascencio (adopted from UnmaskedMountain) - Current Status: DECEASED

SOTF International
Clara Micallef - Current Status: In Thread

SOTF Supers
Mei-Ling "Emily" Chou - Current Status: DECEASED

New Battle Royale AU
Yuko Sakaki - Current Status: DECEASED

SOTF Cyber
Nicholas Cameron - Current Status: In Thread
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CondorTalon
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#6

Post by CondorTalon »

"Thanks, I guess," Clair said, smiling a bit, "To be honest, I think I'll need all the luck I can get."

Actually, it would seem like she'd need a bit more than that. Nah, more like a lot more than that.

"Still... I don't think a box of condoms would be able to stop... that thing," she said, pointing to the Jackhammer. "To be honest, that thing is still freaking me out, man."

Clair didn't know why, but she'd started laughing. It was hoarse as it left her mouth, and it devolved into a short set of coughs. Maybe this whole thing was just... absurd. Nah, scratch that maybe. This whole thing was definitely absurd.

"Sorry, I just..." she started, before clearing her throat, "I still don't know what to do."

Clair wasn't going to cry. Crying was for weaklings and Clair wasn't one of those, but her smile faltered and her legs felt weak and she swayed a bit.

"Ah, god, I need to sit down..."
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Skraal
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#7

Post by Skraal »

What remained of the tension soon seemed to evaporate as the girl in front of him began to laugh. Cody chuckled along with her as he gestured towards the massive shotgun lying beside them.

"You and me both, sister."

He knelt down between Clair and his bag, pulling out a bottle of water. There was still a small chance that this was some sort of trick, but that didn't seem worth worrying about right now. There was a moment of silence as he leaned against a nearby rock, letting the water rush into his mouth. It was kind of lukewarm, to be completely honest, but it was good enough for his parched tongue.

Thankfully, it was still pretty early, so they had some time to relax before the carnage really started. Cody wiped his mouth before leaning back against a boulder, his eyes watching the clouds go by. It was a surprisingly peaceful sight, considering that they were both stuck on Crazy Murder Death Island™.

Without taking his eyes off the sky, he spoke absentmindedly, as if to nobody in particular.

"You ever wonder what happens when we die?"
[+] Characters
The Program V2
Josephine "Josie" Luu - Current Status: DECEASED

SOTF-TV 2
Søren Rosendahl - Current Status: DECEASED

Second Chances 2
Soren Rosendahl - Current Status: DECEASED
Cody Jenkins - Current Status: DECEASED

The Program V3
Samuel Rosen - Current Status: DECEASED

SOTF-TV 3
Luciano Ascencio (adopted from UnmaskedMountain) - Current Status: DECEASED

SOTF International
Clara Micallef - Current Status: In Thread

SOTF Supers
Mei-Ling "Emily" Chou - Current Status: DECEASED

New Battle Royale AU
Yuko Sakaki - Current Status: DECEASED

SOTF Cyber
Nicholas Cameron - Current Status: In Thread
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CondorTalon
Posts: 459
Joined: Thu Sep 20, 2018 1:22 am

#8

Post by CondorTalon »

The question caught Clair by surprise. Maybe she should have expected it, given the situation they were in now, but she didn't. Maybe because she didn't expect anyone to ask that question out of the blue.

She slowly sat on the ground, considering it.

"I... I don't know," she simply said, "I mean... I'm not exactly a religious person, ya know? The scientific answer is like... nothing happens. It's like when you sleep without dreaming, except you don't wake up."

She pulled her bag in front of her. Seeing Cody with his water made her suddenly thirsty. She pulled out her own bottle and took a few sips.

"But like... nothing is hard to imagine. It's hard to think about not being able to experience anything. A small part of me thinks... there has to be something else, right?"

This had become something of a downer.

"Sorry... I just made the atmosphere heavy, didn't I?"
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Skraal
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#9

Post by Skraal »

“Nah, if anyone made this heavy, it’d be me. I brought up the subject, after all.”

Cody took another swig of water as he watched the clouds continue to pass by. One of them kind of looked like an elephant, but he couldn’t exactly tell for sure. He sighed before continuing.

“I get you. I’m not exactly religious myself, but I’ve always had the feeling that this isn’t it, you know? Like, how boring would that be?”

It was a weird feeling, having this sort of conversation while sober, but it seemed to be going pretty well so far. It was always interesting to get other people’s perspectives, and, if nothing else, it took his mind away from picturing all the different ways he could get killed over the next few days.

“I’ve always felt that we get another shot, somehow. It seems like every day that you hear about someone who remembers something that happened to them in a past life. The idea that our spirit keeps moving somehow, going somewhere else, seems more likely than just stopping and rotting away somewhere.”
[+] Characters
The Program V2
Josephine "Josie" Luu - Current Status: DECEASED

SOTF-TV 2
Søren Rosendahl - Current Status: DECEASED

Second Chances 2
Soren Rosendahl - Current Status: DECEASED
Cody Jenkins - Current Status: DECEASED

The Program V3
Samuel Rosen - Current Status: DECEASED

SOTF-TV 3
Luciano Ascencio (adopted from UnmaskedMountain) - Current Status: DECEASED

SOTF International
Clara Micallef - Current Status: In Thread

SOTF Supers
Mei-Ling "Emily" Chou - Current Status: DECEASED

New Battle Royale AU
Yuko Sakaki - Current Status: DECEASED

SOTF Cyber
Nicholas Cameron - Current Status: In Thread
Sh4dE
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Joined: Tue Aug 07, 2018 8:27 pm
Location: Whittree, Oklahoma
Team Affiliation: Claudia's Krakens

#10

Post by Sh4dE »

((Lance Adams continued from Second Impressions))

And suddenly a voice came from the distance.

"KAAAAAAAAAAASUUUUUUUUUUUMIIIIIIIIIIIII-"
I'm so glad to be back !
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CondorTalon
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#11

Post by CondorTalon »

"Another shot? That would be... I mean, maybe," Clair said.

Another shot? A second chance? That would be nice thing to have, she supposed. Especially in this situation... but then...

"I mean, what if... do you think maybe-"

Before she could go any further with that train of thought, a loud voice cut through the air.

"The fuck?" Clair hissed. She looked at Cody, before standing up, looking around for the source of the voice.

"That wasn't... just me, right?" she said.
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Skraal
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#12

Post by Skraal »

Cody’s eyes bugged out of his head as his rambling was interrupted. He scrabbled along the ground, pulling the Jackhammer into his arms, cradling it gingerly as he looked around the quarry. Was this it? The first attack? Groaning, the boy pushed himself to his feet, kicking up a rather large amount of dust in the process.

He turned to Clair, nodding slightly. “Yeah, I heard it.”

Crap. If whoever was out there meant him harm, he was in big trouble. The two of them were basically sitting ducks down in the quarry, and the weapon that he was awkwardly gripping in his hands didn’t have much of a range on it, at least according to what he had briefly skimmed in its manual. If he could at least find out where the other guy was, it would even the odds a little bit.

Taking a deep breath, he called out to the void, his voice echoing throughout the rocks surrounding them.

“Hello? Is anybody out there? Show yourself!”

Each repetition of his words was an additional reminder of how exposed they were. He hoped that his worries were misplaced, as they seemed to have been with Clair, but knowing where they were, he couldn’t be sure.
[+] Characters
The Program V2
Josephine "Josie" Luu - Current Status: DECEASED

SOTF-TV 2
Søren Rosendahl - Current Status: DECEASED

Second Chances 2
Soren Rosendahl - Current Status: DECEASED
Cody Jenkins - Current Status: DECEASED

The Program V3
Samuel Rosen - Current Status: DECEASED

SOTF-TV 3
Luciano Ascencio (adopted from UnmaskedMountain) - Current Status: DECEASED

SOTF International
Clara Micallef - Current Status: In Thread

SOTF Supers
Mei-Ling "Emily" Chou - Current Status: DECEASED

New Battle Royale AU
Yuko Sakaki - Current Status: DECEASED

SOTF Cyber
Nicholas Cameron - Current Status: In Thread
Sh4dE
Posts: 736
Joined: Tue Aug 07, 2018 8:27 pm
Location: Whittree, Oklahoma
Team Affiliation: Claudia's Krakens

#13

Post by Sh4dE »

Lance came closer to the quarry and could hear a voice shouting at him. He couldn't quite see yet who that figure shouting was, but he shouted back.

"It's me! Lance! Has anyone of you seen Kasumi?"
I'm so glad to be back !
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CondorTalon
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#14

Post by CondorTalon »

Clair hadn't recognized the voice at first, but then the owner made themselves known after Cody called out to them.

Not that that would really help too much either; Clair didn't really know Lance too well. He had heard that he was dating Kasumi sometime or other, which would make sense as to why he would be looking for her.

"What do you think?" Clair said quietly, "I haven't seen her, so... I don't feel safe if he doesn't show himself."

Was she being too loud? She hoped not. It's not like she was trying to hide her presence to the newcomer, but she didn't really particularly want Lance to know she was here.

If he came up to them and he could see Cody wasn't alone, fine, fair enough, no helping that. But she didn't necessarily want to show their whole hand, especially when she didn't know Lance's.

So she kept quiet and let Cody do the talking. After all, he had the big fucking gun.
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Skraal
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#15

Post by Skraal »

Cody gave Clair a quick nod, letting out a quiet “Yeah” before turning his head to face the direction of the voice now yelling out to them. The Jackhammer was now firmly gripped in his hands, not exactly pointing in Lance’s direction, but easily able to be maneuvered if the situation required it.

All things considered, Lance was a pretty swell guy. Cody wasn’t exactly close to him or Kasumi, but he could always appreciate a good joke now and again. In most circumstances, running into him would be pretty awesome. It was always great to have someone around to lighten the mood when things got boring.

However, this was not one of those times. Cody knew what happened in this place. This fucking place turned decent kids into murdering psychopaths. As far as he was concerned, he couldn’t take chances with anybody. It wasn’t exactly fair, but guilty until proven innocent was the way things would have to be if Cody wanted to avoid an ignominious (that was a word, right?) death at the hands of one of his classmates.

Cupping a hand to his mouth, he shouted out into the distance.

“Uh, sorry man, I haven’t seen her!”

He paused for a moment to let his words sink in before continuing on.

“Do you think you could come in a little closer? It’s a little awkward to have a conversation by shouting at each other from a mile away!”
[+] Characters
The Program V2
Josephine "Josie" Luu - Current Status: DECEASED

SOTF-TV 2
Søren Rosendahl - Current Status: DECEASED

Second Chances 2
Soren Rosendahl - Current Status: DECEASED
Cody Jenkins - Current Status: DECEASED

The Program V3
Samuel Rosen - Current Status: DECEASED

SOTF-TV 3
Luciano Ascencio (adopted from UnmaskedMountain) - Current Status: DECEASED

SOTF International
Clara Micallef - Current Status: In Thread

SOTF Supers
Mei-Ling "Emily" Chou - Current Status: DECEASED

New Battle Royale AU
Yuko Sakaki - Current Status: DECEASED

SOTF Cyber
Nicholas Cameron - Current Status: In Thread
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