Sarah nodded at Jewels statement about fights. She could see the damage that had been done to her friend herself, knew better than to claim she'd be careful. She wouldn't have been able to stick to it. It was weird to her how often she had changed her perception of Survival of the Fittest. It had seemed so simple when she had watched it. Stick with your friends and survive together. Maybe there was a block in people’s brains that made them accept the entire concept when they were watching it. Being it however changed everything you thought you knew.
Because that was the main thing. People thought they knew everything there was to know. People had massive blog updates where they analysed the entire competitor list of the season and made predictions about how they felt they would do. Sarah had read some here and there. Other sides offered articles such as "Top 10 Dark Horses" among others. Everyone who had no interaction with the actual real show trying to claim to know how things were going to go.
But they lacked the actual experience of being on the show. It was the key thing missing. The most important thing and it changed everything.
Sarah couldn't kill Jewel and she wouldn't force herself too. She had tried, she really had. When she had been standing above Jewel with the axe she imagined bringing it down on her friends head. But she hadn't, as much as she'd wanted to in that moment she couldn't make herself do it. Ashley would be another matter however. Sarah knew she would be able to kill Ashley once she found her. She felt something inside her when she thought about killing Ashley, it was an intense feeling but she couldn't place exactly what it felt like.
Jewel got up to go clean her leg and asked about Sarah staying.
"If you don't mind me sticking around." She replied with a small shrug.
Everything as Cold as Life
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MurderWeasel
- Posts: 3442
- Joined: Mon Aug 06, 2018 9:56 am
- Team Affiliation: Jewel's Leviathans
"Alright," said Jewel. Did she believe Sarah? Did it matter? "I think that sounds good."
So then with her left hand and very slowly, she gathered the things she'd need—bag with clothes and first aid kit and not the gun, knife, and stun baton, which she left all lying there where they'd fallen, some covered in blood—and she limped her way off down the hall of the hotel and was so lucky to find a bathroom quickly enough.
Inside she tugged off her stockings, wincing through the pain and letting her mind drift. She wondered again if Sarah had told the truth and if she was still waiting out there, or if she'd just taken the weapons and run. Jewel glanced around the bathroom, figured the most likely angles, bit down on her tongue hoping it might dull the other pains. She dug out three ibuprofens and dry-swallowed them, even though they weren't likely to work. She poured more disinfectant, wiped, patched and bandaged and tried not to focus on the injuries.
A lot of people came out of SOTF pretty scarred and fucked up. Some of them wore it better than others; Jewel had always thought that Jared—and how was Jared's team? She couldn't remember what color that first dead boy, the first dead boy of them all, had worn. Were they all gone now? Had she killed any others?—made the most of his situation, spinning his injury into an iconic part of his image. Without those scars, maybe Jared would be just some other winner trying to make the most of things and stand out in a field of dozens more. His game had been good, his tactics clever and classic, but that was true of others, and others also had good, witty demeanors and clever attitudes. Jewel had never hated Kenny Yamana, who was charming and funny and wore his villainy well, but his limp wasn't so romantic.
The bathroom was very cold—all tile floors and hard, sterile walls. The light was piercingly white, and the sinks had freezing smooth metal handles that made her whole body tense when she brushed her fingers over them to get the water flowing. The stream and spatter of the water broke the silence, and brought Jewel's awareness to her own breath and heartbeat thumping through her head, and she tried to return to the ignorance of moments before. She focused on finishing the dressings, and then on changing.
It was not so drastic and new a look as the costume she'd donned that morning, which now lay crumpled in a corner, in front of the door to the nearest stall. Jewel wore the generic black track pants and the black t-shirt she'd been provided, and she'd moved her bandanna so now it rode around her neck at a jaunty angle. She'd thought briefly of pulling it up to cover her mouth, but she wanted to be heard for now and wanted her breath unobstructed.
Her arms were bare from the elbows down, the bandaging on her right hand and left forearm clearly visible, and while the clothing she wore now was far more modest than what she'd sported before, she felt somehow less protected. It was still cold; she shivered in the new clothes, which had yet to absorb enough heat from her body to reflect warmth back to her.
Then, patched up and more prepared, Jewel took a few seconds. She looked in the mirror above the sink, fixed her hair by reflex, locked eyes with herself but stared through her reflection unblinking and unseeing. The water was off but the ringing of droplets against porcelain echoed in her ears and the beat of her heart sounded in her head and these noises had a rhythm to them that Jewel could tap into and focus on. It was enough to get her moving again, bag repacked and lighter now with the clothes gone, and she walked with a bit less severe a limp back to the room where she'd left Sarah. She did not feel anymore like she would topple at any second.
"Hey," she called, before rounding the last corner. She couldn't say Sarah would still be there, promises or not, but whatever the case Jewel had no intentions of surprising anyone or allowing accidents to occur. It wouldn't do at all to die just because she startled her friend.
So then with her left hand and very slowly, she gathered the things she'd need—bag with clothes and first aid kit and not the gun, knife, and stun baton, which she left all lying there where they'd fallen, some covered in blood—and she limped her way off down the hall of the hotel and was so lucky to find a bathroom quickly enough.
Inside she tugged off her stockings, wincing through the pain and letting her mind drift. She wondered again if Sarah had told the truth and if she was still waiting out there, or if she'd just taken the weapons and run. Jewel glanced around the bathroom, figured the most likely angles, bit down on her tongue hoping it might dull the other pains. She dug out three ibuprofens and dry-swallowed them, even though they weren't likely to work. She poured more disinfectant, wiped, patched and bandaged and tried not to focus on the injuries.
A lot of people came out of SOTF pretty scarred and fucked up. Some of them wore it better than others; Jewel had always thought that Jared—and how was Jared's team? She couldn't remember what color that first dead boy, the first dead boy of them all, had worn. Were they all gone now? Had she killed any others?—made the most of his situation, spinning his injury into an iconic part of his image. Without those scars, maybe Jared would be just some other winner trying to make the most of things and stand out in a field of dozens more. His game had been good, his tactics clever and classic, but that was true of others, and others also had good, witty demeanors and clever attitudes. Jewel had never hated Kenny Yamana, who was charming and funny and wore his villainy well, but his limp wasn't so romantic.
The bathroom was very cold—all tile floors and hard, sterile walls. The light was piercingly white, and the sinks had freezing smooth metal handles that made her whole body tense when she brushed her fingers over them to get the water flowing. The stream and spatter of the water broke the silence, and brought Jewel's awareness to her own breath and heartbeat thumping through her head, and she tried to return to the ignorance of moments before. She focused on finishing the dressings, and then on changing.
It was not so drastic and new a look as the costume she'd donned that morning, which now lay crumpled in a corner, in front of the door to the nearest stall. Jewel wore the generic black track pants and the black t-shirt she'd been provided, and she'd moved her bandanna so now it rode around her neck at a jaunty angle. She'd thought briefly of pulling it up to cover her mouth, but she wanted to be heard for now and wanted her breath unobstructed.
Her arms were bare from the elbows down, the bandaging on her right hand and left forearm clearly visible, and while the clothing she wore now was far more modest than what she'd sported before, she felt somehow less protected. It was still cold; she shivered in the new clothes, which had yet to absorb enough heat from her body to reflect warmth back to her.
Then, patched up and more prepared, Jewel took a few seconds. She looked in the mirror above the sink, fixed her hair by reflex, locked eyes with herself but stared through her reflection unblinking and unseeing. The water was off but the ringing of droplets against porcelain echoed in her ears and the beat of her heart sounded in her head and these noises had a rhythm to them that Jewel could tap into and focus on. It was enough to get her moving again, bag repacked and lighter now with the clothes gone, and she walked with a bit less severe a limp back to the room where she'd left Sarah. She did not feel anymore like she would topple at any second.
"Hey," she called, before rounding the last corner. She couldn't say Sarah would still be there, promises or not, but whatever the case Jewel had no intentions of surprising anyone or allowing accidents to occur. It wouldn't do at all to die just because she startled her friend.
Sarah watched Jewel as she walked away. She was incredibly aware that Jewel had left all her weapons behind. Was it some kind of test of trust? Or did she just want to see what Sarah would do when she had the chance to hinder her and get away unscathed. Sarah's eyes flicked back and forth between Jewel and the weapons that were laid out in front of her. The thought of just taking the weapons and running did cross her mind. It would have been a big enough detriment to Jewel to stop her being able to kill for a while or ever again. It wouldn't have even been hard to just put everything in her pack and go.
She didn't though. Strangely enough Sarah had qualms with stealing from her friend even if she was a murderer. Instead she just sat and waited. Alone with her thoughts. Sarah spent all of five seconds with her thoughts before deciding she didn't want to be alone with them. They were all so dark and morbid and full of death.
To get out of her own head Sarah rooted around in her bag until she got a hold of Chip. After taking him out and setting him down in front of herself, she also removed her PowerAde. It was almost finished but she had another one so it wasn't an issue.
"Look at this Chip. This is what one of my friends did." Sarah said as she waved an arm out over the scene of death in front of her. "I'm starting to think I didn't pick the best friends in the world." She said quietly as she focused on the body of Asa, Jewel's latest handiwork. "None of them have been what you'd call 'stable'" She emphasized the word with finger quotes. "But they're still my friends...well one of them is still my friend. The other? Oh she betrayed everyone's trust and killed one of us. Technically though she wasn't my friend to begin with." Sarah had been absently twisting a length of hair around her finger but she stopped before continuing. "I guess that helps make what I'm going to do easier I guess. I mean, I'm not sure killing her is philosophically the right thing to do but I know that for me personally it’s the right thing to do, y'know? So...so I have to do it. For Caroline."
Sarah heard Jewel call out and patted Chip on the head before slipping him back into her pack. "Such a good listener." She muttered before speaking again but louder. "I'm still here. No one else has turned up while you were gone."
She felt better after...she guessed it was talking to Chip? Not that it mattered in the long run. She would deal with her problems however she felt most comfortable. If it made her seem quirky and give her more fans because of that then that was fine with her. She wasn't interested in fans anymore. She'd told people to go buy their album; there was nothing more the audience could do for her. It was just her, Chip and maybe Jewel.
She didn't though. Strangely enough Sarah had qualms with stealing from her friend even if she was a murderer. Instead she just sat and waited. Alone with her thoughts. Sarah spent all of five seconds with her thoughts before deciding she didn't want to be alone with them. They were all so dark and morbid and full of death.
To get out of her own head Sarah rooted around in her bag until she got a hold of Chip. After taking him out and setting him down in front of herself, she also removed her PowerAde. It was almost finished but she had another one so it wasn't an issue.
"Look at this Chip. This is what one of my friends did." Sarah said as she waved an arm out over the scene of death in front of her. "I'm starting to think I didn't pick the best friends in the world." She said quietly as she focused on the body of Asa, Jewel's latest handiwork. "None of them have been what you'd call 'stable'" She emphasized the word with finger quotes. "But they're still my friends...well one of them is still my friend. The other? Oh she betrayed everyone's trust and killed one of us. Technically though she wasn't my friend to begin with." Sarah had been absently twisting a length of hair around her finger but she stopped before continuing. "I guess that helps make what I'm going to do easier I guess. I mean, I'm not sure killing her is philosophically the right thing to do but I know that for me personally it’s the right thing to do, y'know? So...so I have to do it. For Caroline."
Sarah heard Jewel call out and patted Chip on the head before slipping him back into her pack. "Such a good listener." She muttered before speaking again but louder. "I'm still here. No one else has turned up while you were gone."
She felt better after...she guessed it was talking to Chip? Not that it mattered in the long run. She would deal with her problems however she felt most comfortable. If it made her seem quirky and give her more fans because of that then that was fine with her. She wasn't interested in fans anymore. She'd told people to go buy their album; there was nothing more the audience could do for her. It was just her, Chip and maybe Jewel.
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MurderWeasel
- Posts: 3442
- Joined: Mon Aug 06, 2018 9:56 am
- Team Affiliation: Jewel's Leviathans
"Good," said Jewel, as soon as she had come back into the room and verified for herself that Sarah was telling the truth and was not being held hostage or engaging in some sort of deception. All of Jewel's belongings lay where she'd left them; she made her way around the room, retrieving the knife—which she wiped clean against the side of her pack and tucked into her pocket—and the stun rod—which, she realized, she no longer had an easy place to store and thus held loosely in her left hand.
"You should probably hold onto that," she said, nodding at the axe-gun. "It's tough to load and only holds one shot. I can walk you through it if you want."
There wasn't much to hear in the hotel besides her and Sarah and the noises they made now. She wondered whether Sarah would even want the gun, but didn't pay it too much mind, instead glancing at the bodies on the floor again. She found them harder to ignore now, and as such she looked more at the tiles near them, the areas around them. The room hadn't been in the best shape when she first entered. Now, the backdrop it cast was even more unpleasant.
"I think I'd like to move somewhere else," Jewel said. "Another room or some other building. I mean, if you want to stick together.
"Or," she added, "on my own."
"You should probably hold onto that," she said, nodding at the axe-gun. "It's tough to load and only holds one shot. I can walk you through it if you want."
There wasn't much to hear in the hotel besides her and Sarah and the noises they made now. She wondered whether Sarah would even want the gun, but didn't pay it too much mind, instead glancing at the bodies on the floor again. She found them harder to ignore now, and as such she looked more at the tiles near them, the areas around them. The room hadn't been in the best shape when she first entered. Now, the backdrop it cast was even more unpleasant.
"I think I'd like to move somewhere else," Jewel said. "Another room or some other building. I mean, if you want to stick together.
"Or," she added, "on my own."
Sarah held the axe lightly as Jewel offered her the chance to keep it. She hadn't been thinking about dropping it, but at the same time she wasn't 100% behind taking it. Maybe it was all the blood it was covered in, it had almost ended up with Jewel's blood on it. Sarah exhaled slowly as she thought about the mistake she'd almost made before looking up as Jewel offered to teach her how to use the axe.
"It's a gun too?" Sarah pulled a face before nodding. "That'd be amazing of you Jewel." She was relieved really, glad that she hadn't followed through on her desire to kill Jewel. It had been too soon, motivated more out of grief and a desire to do something more than anything. It would have been a mistake. Of course she realised this now, after almost deciding to lodge the blade of an axe gun in her friend’s skull.
She still couldn't get over the fact that it was an axe and a gun. If she was anywhere else she would have thought it was the most awesome sounding thing that ever existed. Like imagine if the Vikings had access to an axe-gun, they would have been unstoppable. It would have also been the most metal thing ever. Sadly though she was on Survival of the Fittest and as cool as an axe-gun would have been out in her normal life within the confines of the show it was just another weapon to kill people with.
Looking around the room Sarah could see why Jewel wanted to move somewhere else. It wasn't the most pleasant place to be. It was kinda corpse-y. She couldn't actually think of a better word to describe it. Jewel had left offer open to her, adding on the bit about going on her own.
Sarah shrugged. "We can stick together for a bit before I go and find Ashley. I don't think it'll do any harm. We can find a place to camp out and you can show me how the axe-gun works then I'll be on my way. What do you think?"
"It's a gun too?" Sarah pulled a face before nodding. "That'd be amazing of you Jewel." She was relieved really, glad that she hadn't followed through on her desire to kill Jewel. It had been too soon, motivated more out of grief and a desire to do something more than anything. It would have been a mistake. Of course she realised this now, after almost deciding to lodge the blade of an axe gun in her friend’s skull.
She still couldn't get over the fact that it was an axe and a gun. If she was anywhere else she would have thought it was the most awesome sounding thing that ever existed. Like imagine if the Vikings had access to an axe-gun, they would have been unstoppable. It would have also been the most metal thing ever. Sadly though she was on Survival of the Fittest and as cool as an axe-gun would have been out in her normal life within the confines of the show it was just another weapon to kill people with.
Looking around the room Sarah could see why Jewel wanted to move somewhere else. It wasn't the most pleasant place to be. It was kinda corpse-y. She couldn't actually think of a better word to describe it. Jewel had left offer open to her, adding on the bit about going on her own.
Sarah shrugged. "We can stick together for a bit before I go and find Ashley. I don't think it'll do any harm. We can find a place to camp out and you can show me how the axe-gun works then I'll be on my way. What do you think?"
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MurderWeasel
- Posts: 3442
- Joined: Mon Aug 06, 2018 9:56 am
- Team Affiliation: Jewel's Leviathans
"Sure," said Jewel. "That sounds good."
She tried to smile for a moment before giving up. Her hand and arm and leg and head all pulsed with hurt. She was not sure what to make of Sarah's announced decision to split off after a time; it was the smart choice for both of them, probably, but not quite the one Jewel wanted to see made. So she blinked slowly and took a breath in, and she held it while she counted to three and then let it silently out again.
"If anyone makes trouble, just pretend you don't know me."
And that was a favor Jewel could grant, a little thing she could in turn provide for Sarah in exchange for what she'd been offered: if another nobody with a burning thirst for the justice of revenge turned up, Jewel could see to it that her friend was not caught up in the blast. And she'd show Sarah what she needed, arm her and send her on her way to kill some other classmate of theirs, and Jewel would go about her own business just as she had been.
It was a plan.
So she gathered herself and nodded to Sarah to follow and started to move. Time, finally, to leave these bodies behind.
((Jewel Evans continued in Grins and Guns))
She tried to smile for a moment before giving up. Her hand and arm and leg and head all pulsed with hurt. She was not sure what to make of Sarah's announced decision to split off after a time; it was the smart choice for both of them, probably, but not quite the one Jewel wanted to see made. So she blinked slowly and took a breath in, and she held it while she counted to three and then let it silently out again.
"If anyone makes trouble, just pretend you don't know me."
And that was a favor Jewel could grant, a little thing she could in turn provide for Sarah in exchange for what she'd been offered: if another nobody with a burning thirst for the justice of revenge turned up, Jewel could see to it that her friend was not caught up in the blast. And she'd show Sarah what she needed, arm her and send her on her way to kill some other classmate of theirs, and Jewel would go about her own business just as she had been.
It was a plan.
So she gathered herself and nodded to Sarah to follow and started to move. Time, finally, to leave these bodies behind.
((Jewel Evans continued in Grins and Guns))
Sarah returned Jewel's smile. Only to frown when Jewel said it would be better to pretend not to know her. She kept her objections to herself though, Jewel was right. It would be better for her own safety if she just went along with it.
As Jewel got up, Sarah gathered her things together. The axe gun was heavy and would take some getting used to. But it was better than the things she'd had before then. No offense to Chip but he was a potato head, not exactly useful in a fight. As Jewel began to head out Sarah looked over at the two bodies. The not-Asa one wasn't as covered in blood so she quickly jogged over and wiped the blood off the head of the axe gun. After doing that she jogged after Jewel, not wanting to be left alone in a room with two corpses.
Soon she'd begin her hunt for Ashley.
((RBP3: Sarah Bourne continued in Grins and Guns))
As Jewel got up, Sarah gathered her things together. The axe gun was heavy and would take some getting used to. But it was better than the things she'd had before then. No offense to Chip but he was a potato head, not exactly useful in a fight. As Jewel began to head out Sarah looked over at the two bodies. The not-Asa one wasn't as covered in blood so she quickly jogged over and wiped the blood off the head of the axe gun. After doing that she jogged after Jewel, not wanting to be left alone in a room with two corpses.
Soon she'd begin her hunt for Ashley.
((RBP3: Sarah Bourne continued in Grins and Guns))