((Continued))
She was sat on a rock waiting to see if her friend or the girl had accepted her offer. She didn't know either way if they would or not, or even what configuration they would appear in.
Picking a few final bits of twig and debris out of her hair she took a drink from one of her water bottles. She was careful not to select the that's label had been ripped off.
Her fireflies were still in her possession although they were still in stasis. She had yet to use them and nobody even knew she had them. It was better that way. They were hers and she did plan to use them, but that time wasn't yet.
As she had traveled there she had heard other verses and acts in the song they were all writing but she hadn't ventured near any of them.
She was moving with a purpose even though she lacked a goal, irony among ironies. An animal journeying somewhere that it only knew as a hazy distant memory, a blurry photo in the subconscious. One that had been handed down from parent to child.
There had been no death that she had witnessed but he was waiting for them, hiding just out of sight. If you turned quickly enough you could catch a glimpse of him watching over your shoulder. If you were still enough you could feel his breathing on the back of your neck. An uninvited shadow.
She idly kicked some loose stones around with her feet as she waited. Soon she would move on.
Viremia
They yearn for what they fear for
((Sophie McDowell continued from It's Not a New Wave, It's Just You and Me))
Sophie wiped her eyes as she continued to walk. It had been a few hours since Jeanette died. Sophie had picked a random direction to walk and had made her way there. She had no idea where she was going, but she didn't really care. All she wanted was to find a quiet place to sit and think about what to do with her life now that she had killed someone.
She had a lot to think about, and the quiet time she spent walking had given her a lot of freedom to let her mind run wild. She saw herself being killed by someone even more violent and dangerous than Bunny. She saw herself killing more people. She saw herself being declared the winner and being sent home. She saw her family rejecting her and she saw them accepting her. She saw Jeanette's family taking her to court or spiriting her away. None of these scenarios brought her any comfort, so she tried to push them out.
Eventually, Sophie realized she was near a rock quarry. She tried to walk carefully, something that was difficult with sandals. Rocks kept getting caught under her feet, and she kept stopping to shake them loose. After a bit of walking, she then noticed a girl sitting on a rock. Without even thinking about it, she called out to the girl.
"Hello?" Sophie asked.
Sophie wiped her eyes as she continued to walk. It had been a few hours since Jeanette died. Sophie had picked a random direction to walk and had made her way there. She had no idea where she was going, but she didn't really care. All she wanted was to find a quiet place to sit and think about what to do with her life now that she had killed someone.
She had a lot to think about, and the quiet time she spent walking had given her a lot of freedom to let her mind run wild. She saw herself being killed by someone even more violent and dangerous than Bunny. She saw herself killing more people. She saw herself being declared the winner and being sent home. She saw her family rejecting her and she saw them accepting her. She saw Jeanette's family taking her to court or spiriting her away. None of these scenarios brought her any comfort, so she tried to push them out.
Eventually, Sophie realized she was near a rock quarry. She tried to walk carefully, something that was difficult with sandals. Rocks kept getting caught under her feet, and she kept stopping to shake them loose. After a bit of walking, she then noticed a girl sitting on a rock. Without even thinking about it, she called out to the girl.
"Hello?" Sophie asked.
G014: Mayumi Tendou
She heard the new arrival before they spoke. The noise of their approach gave them away, she looked up, expecting her friend to have accepted her offer and found herself let down.
No, that wasn't truly the feeling. It was a more complex mixture than that, a psychological cocktail with multiple ingredients that when combined together created the emotion she felt but could not describe. The new arrival was a friendly girl from school, she played guitar and had been very active on social media. Neither of those details were important anymore but they were the first things that came into her head.
There was a good chance the girl wasn't a threat.
There was also a chance she was. It was lower, but that didn't mean it wasn't there. She did find that even with that piece of information being considered she didn't feel threatened.
The girl sounded unsure and unsteady. No flashing teeth and carefully constructed greetings, just malignant doubt overtaking.
For a few moments there was a silence between them that steadily grew louder.
Until finally, she broke the restless stillness that had come over the area.
"Hey."
No, that wasn't truly the feeling. It was a more complex mixture than that, a psychological cocktail with multiple ingredients that when combined together created the emotion she felt but could not describe. The new arrival was a friendly girl from school, she played guitar and had been very active on social media. Neither of those details were important anymore but they were the first things that came into her head.
There was a good chance the girl wasn't a threat.
There was also a chance she was. It was lower, but that didn't mean it wasn't there. She did find that even with that piece of information being considered she didn't feel threatened.
The girl sounded unsure and unsteady. No flashing teeth and carefully constructed greetings, just malignant doubt overtaking.
For a few moments there was a silence between them that steadily grew louder.
Until finally, she broke the restless stillness that had come over the area.
"Hey."
Sophie recognized the girl as skate Kris Hartmann. She seemed like a pretty cool person back home, although they didn't have much in common. If Kris was just sitting patiently, then maybe she wasn't like Bunny. Maybe she was taking things a lot more casually.
Sophie adjusted the bags on her shoulder and wiped her eyes.
"Sorry. It's been a rough day. I hope things are going better for you."
Sophie adjusted the bags on her shoulder and wiped her eyes.
"Sorry. It's been a rough day. I hope things are going better for you."
G014: Mayumi Tendou
The girl looked to have been crying. At what she couldn't guess specifically and it wasn't her business to assume. There would have been a good reason, just one from a selection of many. A wealth of options were every one was poisoned.
The twin bags she carried told most of the story.
She shrugged when the girl finished speaking. Her day had been a day, it hadn't been like any other. But it had been a day where the sun rose. Everything had been different, the shadows had changed, the mood in the air felt heavier. But it was a day where the sun had risen and the the same thing would happen the next day.
Still the girl was carrying a burden, it was a monster that weighed her down, it's claws sunk into her back and refusing to be removed. It would gradually eat away at her, slowly but surely.
The silence had returned, carpeting the entire area.
She swung her bag off her shoulder and gently dropped it to the floor.
"You can come and sit."
She looked out and at the cold rocky skin of the quarry.
They were alone.
It was for the best.
The twin bags she carried told most of the story.
She shrugged when the girl finished speaking. Her day had been a day, it hadn't been like any other. But it had been a day where the sun rose. Everything had been different, the shadows had changed, the mood in the air felt heavier. But it was a day where the sun had risen and the the same thing would happen the next day.
Still the girl was carrying a burden, it was a monster that weighed her down, it's claws sunk into her back and refusing to be removed. It would gradually eat away at her, slowly but surely.
The silence had returned, carpeting the entire area.
She swung her bag off her shoulder and gently dropped it to the floor.
"You can come and sit."
She looked out and at the cold rocky skin of the quarry.
They were alone.
It was for the best.
Sophie walked over and sat down next to Kris. The girl seemed friendly, but Sophie knew she needed to be honest with this girl. She couldn't just deny why she had two bags when everyone was given one. Besides, this girl needed to know what was happening on the island.
"So, the game is real," Sophie told Kris as she sat down.
She brushed some hair behind her ears.
"At least one person has died, and at least one person is playing. You deserve to know that."
Sophie hung her head a bit.
"I don't know if you know Jeanette Buendia, but she died earlier. And Bunny Barlowe is playing."
"So, the game is real," Sophie told Kris as she sat down.
She brushed some hair behind her ears.
"At least one person has died, and at least one person is playing. You deserve to know that."
Sophie hung her head a bit.
"I don't know if you know Jeanette Buendia, but she died earlier. And Bunny Barlowe is playing."
G014: Mayumi Tendou
The first piece of information the girl volunteered only confirmed something she had already known. It had never been a question of the reality they found themselves in. Their situation had been clear from the start. It shouldn't have come as a surprise and to her it wasn't.
Still she nodded at the right moments as the girl spoke and committed the name of the person who had fallen to memory. The name of the dead girl wasn't as important.
Despite that she gave the response she knew was necessary.
"I'm sorry."
There were many other things she could say, each one a cliché statement that had been said so often by so many others that it no longer held any meaning. They would have just been empty words that fell from her mouth and to the floor, useless to all.
Instead she offered something else.
"Was she your friend?"
As she waited for a response she wondered where her own friend was.
Still she nodded at the right moments as the girl spoke and committed the name of the person who had fallen to memory. The name of the dead girl wasn't as important.
Despite that she gave the response she knew was necessary.
"I'm sorry."
There were many other things she could say, each one a cliché statement that had been said so often by so many others that it no longer held any meaning. They would have just been empty words that fell from her mouth and to the floor, useless to all.
Instead she offered something else.
"Was she your friend?"
As she waited for a response she wondered where her own friend was.
Sophie hung her head low. She gazed down at her hands as they lay limp in her lap. She curled her fingers a bit, remembering the sensation of them wrapped around Jeanette's neck. She could see a bit of dirt under her nails, probably from working to cover Jeanette's body. She squinted her eyes a bit as she stared at the specks under her nails.
"I wasn't her friend until today," she told Kris.
She clenched her fists.
"She didn't see me as one until today either. That's probably why..."
Sophie gritted her teeth a bit as she breathed in. As she breathed out, she spoke.
"...why she asked me to put her out of her misery."
"I wasn't her friend until today," she told Kris.
She clenched her fists.
"She didn't see me as one until today either. That's probably why..."
Sophie gritted her teeth a bit as she breathed in. As she breathed out, she spoke.
"...why she asked me to put her out of her misery."
G014: Mayumi Tendou
-
Latin For Dragula
- Posts: 399
- Joined: Wed Aug 08, 2018 10:28 pm
((It's better to live in hell than to die in heaven.))
Sound carried easily through the quarry. Maybe they could hear the rocks skittering as she approached its entrance, just as she could hear their voices echoing through it. There were people somewhere in here, though she couldn't see them among the formations yet and could barely understand them.
Are there?
She could hunt them. They would hear her coming, but she would hear them running. Round and around the formations until someone made a mistake or someone made a sacrifice and everything came to its inevitable end once again. She was certain she could do it.
Sometimes.
It sounded tiring. Everything so far had been tiring. Katarina forced herself past her limits every time they rose to challenge her, but there had to be a moment when you called it enough. There was a difference between refusing to submit to weakness and stubbornly forcing yourself past the point of functionality.
Sometimes I hear and see things that aren't here.
It was a marathon, not a sprint. She'd killed anywhere from three to seven people today. Rest had been earned.
The body moved. Or was breathing. Or something. But it didn't. It wasn't real.
Oh. She'd killed anywhere from three to seven people today.
No. Don't focus on that.
The numbers hadn't had time to settle into her mind now. It wasn't prudent. She couldn't help but take stock as she settled with her back against one of the protruding pillars and listened to the echoes. She'd been shot, and kicked, and punched, and bit more times than she could count, but she hadn't had a single normal conversation. She'd shot at nearly everyone she met in hopes of survival, but she hadn't thought of the home she'd be returning to once. Yet even letting her mind drift that way now was enough to know it wasn't going to change. It wasn't the sort of person she had to be right now. She didn't get to be the person who wondered what her parents thought or hoped her cat was being taken care of or sat and had a nice conversation with a classmate.
Those people died.
She got to be the person who killed anywhere from three to seven people today, because that person got to go home. The promise of a future made every snap decision and irredeemable lapse worth it.
This person lives.
She didn't regret what she'd done.
Repeat it until it's true.
It was nice to pretend though. In a way that she could never acknowledge it was better that she couldn't quite hear what the others were saying. As long as they remained indistinct she could fill in the blanks with parents and pets and anything else the parts of her she wasn't allowed to consciously indulge desired.
Sound carried easily through the quarry. Maybe they could hear the rocks skittering as she approached its entrance, just as she could hear their voices echoing through it. There were people somewhere in here, though she couldn't see them among the formations yet and could barely understand them.
Are there?
She could hunt them. They would hear her coming, but she would hear them running. Round and around the formations until someone made a mistake or someone made a sacrifice and everything came to its inevitable end once again. She was certain she could do it.
Sometimes.
It sounded tiring. Everything so far had been tiring. Katarina forced herself past her limits every time they rose to challenge her, but there had to be a moment when you called it enough. There was a difference between refusing to submit to weakness and stubbornly forcing yourself past the point of functionality.
Sometimes I hear and see things that aren't here.
It was a marathon, not a sprint. She'd killed anywhere from three to seven people today. Rest had been earned.
The body moved. Or was breathing. Or something. But it didn't. It wasn't real.
Oh. She'd killed anywhere from three to seven people today.
No. Don't focus on that.
The numbers hadn't had time to settle into her mind now. It wasn't prudent. She couldn't help but take stock as she settled with her back against one of the protruding pillars and listened to the echoes. She'd been shot, and kicked, and punched, and bit more times than she could count, but she hadn't had a single normal conversation. She'd shot at nearly everyone she met in hopes of survival, but she hadn't thought of the home she'd be returning to once. Yet even letting her mind drift that way now was enough to know it wasn't going to change. It wasn't the sort of person she had to be right now. She didn't get to be the person who wondered what her parents thought or hoped her cat was being taken care of or sat and had a nice conversation with a classmate.
Those people died.
She got to be the person who killed anywhere from three to seven people today, because that person got to go home. The promise of a future made every snap decision and irredeemable lapse worth it.
This person lives.
She didn't regret what she'd done.
Repeat it until it's true.
It was nice to pretend though. In a way that she could never acknowledge it was better that she couldn't quite hear what the others were saying. As long as they remained indistinct she could fill in the blanks with parents and pets and anything else the parts of her she wasn't allowed to consciously indulge desired.
The girl revealed what was eating away at her, the guilt that rotted away at her insides. If the girl found any relief in vocalizing what she had done it didn't appear outwardly. Her body was tense, every muscle engaged and helping carry the load. Sadly for her it wasn't something she could carry physically.
She felt some pity for the girl. She had become exactly what they wanted. An image that could be preserved forever, kept evergreen and eternal through social media. The inter-connectivity allowing the spread of their message like a virus infecting all it came in contact. The message it spread simple, clear and easy to understand, an entire manifesto in a picture and a hashtag with likes and re-tweets its vectors.
There the sound of some rocks gently falling down one of the quarries many slopes reached her ears. It was a sign of a presence, but for the moment it wasn't important. For the moment she still needed to give the girl a reply.
"You did the right thing."
She felt some pity for the girl. She had become exactly what they wanted. An image that could be preserved forever, kept evergreen and eternal through social media. The inter-connectivity allowing the spread of their message like a virus infecting all it came in contact. The message it spread simple, clear and easy to understand, an entire manifesto in a picture and a hashtag with likes and re-tweets its vectors.
There the sound of some rocks gently falling down one of the quarries many slopes reached her ears. It was a sign of a presence, but for the moment it wasn't important. For the moment she still needed to give the girl a reply.
"You did the right thing."
"I guess..." Sophie said.
Sophie sighed. She bent her back forward a bit and rested her elbows on her lap.
"It doesn't feel like the right thing, though. None of us should really be in a place where we have to do something like that."
Sophie rubbed her eyes with one of her hands.
"But anyways, look out for Bunny Barlowe if you see her. She's dangerous."
She uncovered her eyes and turned her head towards the other girl.
"So... how are you doing?"
Sophie sighed. She bent her back forward a bit and rested her elbows on her lap.
"It doesn't feel like the right thing, though. None of us should really be in a place where we have to do something like that."
Sophie rubbed her eyes with one of her hands.
"But anyways, look out for Bunny Barlowe if you see her. She's dangerous."
She uncovered her eyes and turned her head towards the other girl.
"So... how are you doing?"
G014: Mayumi Tendou
-
Latin For Dragula
- Posts: 399
- Joined: Wed Aug 08, 2018 10:28 pm
The voices went on for awhile. It didn't escape her that she could be imagining them. She still hadn't seen anyone yet, and there was a surreal tinge to the world around her.
...
It occurred to her that her only rest for the day was watching-
Stop.
No. No names. No places. No detail. Just another body. Another, and another, and another stacking high in the horizon of her vision. That's all she was allowed.
...
KK felt exhausted. There were no comforting voices here, no cat in her lap or a warm shower to watching the blood and sweat and regret off of her body, but if she closed her eyes for a little while longer there could be. She could rest and forget. Imagine herself somewhere else. Dismiss it all as giving her drive by remembering what she was fighting for.
...
The thing that carried her body forward and wouldn't stop pulling the trigger didn't have time for dreams. It pulled her to her feet away from the voices below and dragged her along in a haze step by step as her surroundings blurred together. She wasn't sure where she was when its impulses abandoned her to collapse in a heap on top of her bag, only that it was dark and there were no more voices to be heard.
...
Silence. Darkness.Survival. Until this would over one would keep leading to another. The world beyond the water might as well be in stasis. Imagining it accomplished nothing.
...
Quiet, reassuring voices picked up in the blackness around her. She could have sworn she felt familiar paws climbing along her leg.
Don't let them in.
Neither went away until she drifted into unconsciousness.
((Katarina Konipaski's next target sighted.))
...
It occurred to her that her only rest for the day was watching-
Stop.
No. No names. No places. No detail. Just another body. Another, and another, and another stacking high in the horizon of her vision. That's all she was allowed.
...
KK felt exhausted. There were no comforting voices here, no cat in her lap or a warm shower to watching the blood and sweat and regret off of her body, but if she closed her eyes for a little while longer there could be. She could rest and forget. Imagine herself somewhere else. Dismiss it all as giving her drive by remembering what she was fighting for.
...
The thing that carried her body forward and wouldn't stop pulling the trigger didn't have time for dreams. It pulled her to her feet away from the voices below and dragged her along in a haze step by step as her surroundings blurred together. She wasn't sure where she was when its impulses abandoned her to collapse in a heap on top of her bag, only that it was dark and there were no more voices to be heard.
...
Silence. Darkness.Survival. Until this would over one would keep leading to another. The world beyond the water might as well be in stasis. Imagining it accomplished nothing.
...
Quiet, reassuring voices picked up in the blackness around her. She could have sworn she felt familiar paws climbing along her leg.
Don't let them in.
Neither went away until she drifted into unconsciousness.
((Katarina Konipaski's next target sighted.))
How was she doing?
It didn't matter, not really. She was alive and that was more than some.
Still the girl must have expected a response, a truthful one, considering the information she had volunteered freely.
And in truth there was a feeling she had, tugging at her leg like a small child trying to garner her attention. Not forceful, but insistent. The girl deserved to know what it was as she had offered so much for so little. She could have opened herself up to the girl, pulled her skin back to show what she was made of.
But she didn't.
Not with this girl.
"I'm alive. It's enough."
Eventually, after the sun dimmed and was finally switched off, they drifted away from each other to rest.
In the morning, while it was still dark she had awoken and moved onto the slope to sit and watch the return of the sun. With it came a mechanical screech and a voice. The voice of the man who had trapped them all. He began to speak and she listened to the names.
Not for any greater purpose, but because there was nothing else to do.
It didn't matter, not really. She was alive and that was more than some.
Still the girl must have expected a response, a truthful one, considering the information she had volunteered freely.
And in truth there was a feeling she had, tugging at her leg like a small child trying to garner her attention. Not forceful, but insistent. The girl deserved to know what it was as she had offered so much for so little. She could have opened herself up to the girl, pulled her skin back to show what she was made of.
But she didn't.
Not with this girl.
"I'm alive. It's enough."
Eventually, after the sun dimmed and was finally switched off, they drifted away from each other to rest.
In the morning, while it was still dark she had awoken and moved onto the slope to sit and watch the return of the sun. With it came a mechanical screech and a voice. The voice of the man who had trapped them all. He began to speak and she listened to the names.
Not for any greater purpose, but because there was nothing else to do.
The rest of the day had been peaceful. Sophie and Kris were able to speak without any interruption, going over whatever came to mind. After a while, the sun set, and the girls went to sleep.
Sophie didn't sleep well. It wasn't even just sleeping in a rock quarry and trying to use her vest as a pillow that. Every time she thought she was drifting off to sleep, the sound of Bunny's gunfire filled the air. Every time she felt her body start to relax, she could feel Jeanette's warm throat around her hands. She tossed and turned more than she ever did before.
She was finally forced awake by the sound of the announcement. She sat up and rubbed her head as that Danya monster began to speak. It looked like Jeanette wasn't the only person to die yesterday, as plenty of her other classmates died, while others made the move to kill.
Jeanette was the third to die, and Danya actually congratulated Sophie for killing her. He said he was proud she was "following the spirit of the game so diligently." Sophie clenched her jaw, closed her eyes a bit, and shook her head.
"Don't you dare..." she muttered to herself. "Don't..."
The man continued to announce the dead, including Yasmin, Lyndi, Panya, Vincent, and Aaron. Tania and Simon were still alive, but so was Bunny. Bunny didn't kill either of them, and it looked like she wasn't able to kill anyone. Maybe they were able to get away from her and were in a much better place.
Once the announcements were done, Sophie groaned and reached to put her vest back on. She then stood up and brushed her hair back a bit. She probably needed to find a way to tie it back now that she gave up her bandanna to Jeanette. Maybe Kris had something.
"Kris," she said, standing in place and looking around. "Are you still here?"
Sophie didn't sleep well. It wasn't even just sleeping in a rock quarry and trying to use her vest as a pillow that. Every time she thought she was drifting off to sleep, the sound of Bunny's gunfire filled the air. Every time she felt her body start to relax, she could feel Jeanette's warm throat around her hands. She tossed and turned more than she ever did before.
She was finally forced awake by the sound of the announcement. She sat up and rubbed her head as that Danya monster began to speak. It looked like Jeanette wasn't the only person to die yesterday, as plenty of her other classmates died, while others made the move to kill.
Jeanette was the third to die, and Danya actually congratulated Sophie for killing her. He said he was proud she was "following the spirit of the game so diligently." Sophie clenched her jaw, closed her eyes a bit, and shook her head.
"Don't you dare..." she muttered to herself. "Don't..."
The man continued to announce the dead, including Yasmin, Lyndi, Panya, Vincent, and Aaron. Tania and Simon were still alive, but so was Bunny. Bunny didn't kill either of them, and it looked like she wasn't able to kill anyone. Maybe they were able to get away from her and were in a much better place.
Once the announcements were done, Sophie groaned and reached to put her vest back on. She then stood up and brushed her hair back a bit. She probably needed to find a way to tie it back now that she gave up her bandanna to Jeanette. Maybe Kris had something.
"Kris," she said, standing in place and looking around. "Are you still here?"
G014: Mayumi Tendou
The girls voice echoed around the abandoned quarry, gradually becoming weaker until the silence greedily consumed it. The only sign of a presence beside a spectre of dust caught by a breeze that gently caressed the quarries face.
There was no one around to hear her question however as the ghost she had been addressing had already moved on.
((Continued))
There was no one around to hear her question however as the ghost she had been addressing had already moved on.
((Continued))