Pippi stared.
That wasn't a Betty.
She didn't have the face of a Betty.
She bit her lip.
The Betty was right there, either masquerading as one or as a Jodi.
She swallowed, painfully.
Her fingers will gripping the baton so tightly, it felt like she could burst a vein.
Or an artery.
And that Jodi or Betty,
that was right there,
was just starting absently.
Pippi swallowed.
She had to go along.
She had to.
It was a show that she needed to create. A storyline to weave. Even if she didn't have that much time, she still had her feet to rely on. And she was quite good at relying on her feet to guide her. She could move. Fast. At least, inside of her mind. It was easy to track a notion, a concept and to latch unto it like a panther on a gazelle's neck. Were panthers even hunting gazelles? She didn't care. She knew what she was doing, she didn't need to know about wildlife. She smiled.
"Hey Betty," she smiled, but nothing else smiled, "hey Leah."
Her fingers were still so tight. She could feel her bones pop in her articulations.
"I'm Pippi. Steph's team. Pink bandanas. Same thing with Luanne."
She turned her head toward Luanne.
Did she know about the Betty?
Did she know about the Jodi?
Whether one of them was the imposter? Posting themselves as either?
She smiled, but nothing else smiled, and her teeth almost shone on the camera's light.
What We Built To Keep The Waters Clean
Day 2, 12:30 PM | Open
A burning wig. As a weapon, it maimed and disfigured. It did not kill, not unless it set a larger fire. It melted onto skin, and then through. Luanne was pretty sure napalm worked the same way. Betty was lucky that things didn't count as war crimes if they happened on TV. Sure, she was scared, and sure, she'd been beat up, but, like, that didn't mean she hadn't just like totally broken a Geneva Convention.
So, yeah, anyways... Betty was probably lying? About being sorry. Because reflexive apologies didn't mean anything. It didn't matter what you said, it mattered what you did. Which was why Luanne wasn't apologizing for saying to throw the fire in the direction of someone she didn't know was there. It would be an empty apology.
Speaking of saying and doing things, um, Leah! Luanne knew Leah, kind of. Barely. She knew her well enough to know her name, but not well enough to be able to say anything about her other than that she seemed nice, which was what you said about people when you didn't know them well enough to have ever seen them on a bad day. And Leah looked like she'd been having a bad day, because of all the bandages and stuff, and also the flaming wig.
Which it was why Luanne found it incredibly unsettling how Leah was just taking them at their word. Because she had no reason to trust them, and she was hurt, which meant someone had hurt her. And that was a reason not to trust people. And she was just standing there with her arm outstretched, waiting for a handshake. And, honestly, that made Luanne worried that she was bait, or trying to use them, or something. And -
Don't. Don't be paranoid. Don't think about your own thoughts, because when you do that, you can convince yourself of anything.
Maybe being too trusting was what had gotten Leah hurt in the first place. Maybe she hadn't learned from her mistake. Maybe that was why she was still standing there with her arm out. Pippi wasn't shaking her hand. Nor was Betty. Handshakes were important. They used to be. In the olden days, they were how people showed they weren't hiding a gun in their sleeve. Nowadays, though, they were just how people made business.
Luanne didn't like handshakes. They were cold and impersonal. Once, when her dad had just arrived back home from a few months abroad, he tried to shake her hand instead of hugging her. She was pretty sure that was the only time she'd ever shook someone's hand, actually.
...
Well, nobody was shaking Leah's hand, and that wasn't right, because she was scared and alone and probably needed something to lean on. So Luanne stepped forward, and grabbed Leah's hand like she was going to shake it. But then she didn't shake it. She just held it. She was still a bit terrified that Leah was going to pull out a knife and stab her, but Pippi was there with her hitting stick, so she probably wouldn't get stabbed that bad.
...
"Like Pippi said, I'm Luanne. How bad did the fire, um, get you? Because I don't know if we can help, but we can try. Same for you, Betty," she said, looking blankly at Leah's face.
So, yeah, anyways... Betty was probably lying? About being sorry. Because reflexive apologies didn't mean anything. It didn't matter what you said, it mattered what you did. Which was why Luanne wasn't apologizing for saying to throw the fire in the direction of someone she didn't know was there. It would be an empty apology.
Speaking of saying and doing things, um, Leah! Luanne knew Leah, kind of. Barely. She knew her well enough to know her name, but not well enough to be able to say anything about her other than that she seemed nice, which was what you said about people when you didn't know them well enough to have ever seen them on a bad day. And Leah looked like she'd been having a bad day, because of all the bandages and stuff, and also the flaming wig.
Which it was why Luanne found it incredibly unsettling how Leah was just taking them at their word. Because she had no reason to trust them, and she was hurt, which meant someone had hurt her. And that was a reason not to trust people. And she was just standing there with her arm outstretched, waiting for a handshake. And, honestly, that made Luanne worried that she was bait, or trying to use them, or something. And -
Don't. Don't be paranoid. Don't think about your own thoughts, because when you do that, you can convince yourself of anything.
Maybe being too trusting was what had gotten Leah hurt in the first place. Maybe she hadn't learned from her mistake. Maybe that was why she was still standing there with her arm out. Pippi wasn't shaking her hand. Nor was Betty. Handshakes were important. They used to be. In the olden days, they were how people showed they weren't hiding a gun in their sleeve. Nowadays, though, they were just how people made business.
Luanne didn't like handshakes. They were cold and impersonal. Once, when her dad had just arrived back home from a few months abroad, he tried to shake her hand instead of hugging her. She was pretty sure that was the only time she'd ever shook someone's hand, actually.
...
Well, nobody was shaking Leah's hand, and that wasn't right, because she was scared and alone and probably needed something to lean on. So Luanne stepped forward, and grabbed Leah's hand like she was going to shake it. But then she didn't shake it. She just held it. She was still a bit terrified that Leah was going to pull out a knife and stab her, but Pippi was there with her hitting stick, so she probably wouldn't get stabbed that bad.
...
"Like Pippi said, I'm Luanne. How bad did the fire, um, get you? Because I don't know if we can help, but we can try. Same for you, Betty," she said, looking blankly at Leah's face.
Mm-hm, just like that.
Good girl.
It was more like hand holding than something proper- that's fine. She could work with that. Hands were shown. That was good enough. She didn't want to force Luanne to shake her hand, really- well, she felt kind of bad because now everything is awkward, but… oh well. Oh well. She should stop dwelling on that. She didn't want to force anybody to do anything at this point, so she awkwardly released the hand and made herself not think about the gross warmth and put her hands on her hips.
Uh, that part about forcing might be a lie?
Anyways…
Pippi, Luanne, Betty. Three girls. For some reason, she felt kind of safer with them- was it because they were girls? No. That's kind of stupid. Most of the killers were girls from what she's heard.
''I'm… I'm OK, I swear.''
The last time she helped somebody they used her idea against her.
''I can take care of myself, since it's really only skin deep, I think. I mean, I may not look like it, but... ''
But she almost killed somebody already?
''But I managed to get out of some fights doing OK, yeah.''
She smiled- bright and reaching her eyes. She wondered if the girls knew how lucky they were in this moment. Her bag weighed her down and she still wanted to take out Benny the dart and fiddle with him but having a weapon out would remind the girls she might kill them and remind Leah herself that she might kill them and it's a bit of a mess and she wasn't sure what to do!
Well, like, the whole drama and tension was over. Good TV needs somebody to be a threat- they want emotions. All they have is awkwardness. That's fine with her, to be honest.
That's real fine.
She can be boring. She can turn it into a weapon. When she was back at home (god, it was just two days ago) she was so convinced people were watching her and now they actually watched, she… kinda just realized she actually wasn't worth watching at all.
And if she did what she truly wanted to do, she'll end up giving them a good show. That's horrible. That made her feel like her stomach was dropping out of her guts. A rock and a hard place. She could glut herself on Luanne oe Pippi or Betty's innards and they'll laugh and cheer.
''Can I be blunt here?''
Leah didn't wait for an answer. Her hands slid down from her hips to the anatomical model-perfect wrist-at-hip-level position again.
''I'll really, really appreciate it if none of you guys make my third time the charm. Saw someone die already. Not pretty. I wanna...''
Find that word. Pluck it out.
Didn't work.
''Um, at least try not to take anyone out before that?''
Uh Oh, edgelord alert.
''Not a threat, I mean! Just... kind of weary right now. Jewel's gonna be bummed if I get offed by you guys.''
Standing on her legs made her tired. She took one, two, three steps to a crate and sat down on it.
Good girl.
It was more like hand holding than something proper- that's fine. She could work with that. Hands were shown. That was good enough. She didn't want to force Luanne to shake her hand, really- well, she felt kind of bad because now everything is awkward, but… oh well. Oh well. She should stop dwelling on that. She didn't want to force anybody to do anything at this point, so she awkwardly released the hand and made herself not think about the gross warmth and put her hands on her hips.
Uh, that part about forcing might be a lie?
Anyways…
Pippi, Luanne, Betty. Three girls. For some reason, she felt kind of safer with them- was it because they were girls? No. That's kind of stupid. Most of the killers were girls from what she's heard.
''I'm… I'm OK, I swear.''
The last time she helped somebody they used her idea against her.
''I can take care of myself, since it's really only skin deep, I think. I mean, I may not look like it, but... ''
But she almost killed somebody already?
''But I managed to get out of some fights doing OK, yeah.''
She smiled- bright and reaching her eyes. She wondered if the girls knew how lucky they were in this moment. Her bag weighed her down and she still wanted to take out Benny the dart and fiddle with him but having a weapon out would remind the girls she might kill them and remind Leah herself that she might kill them and it's a bit of a mess and she wasn't sure what to do!
Well, like, the whole drama and tension was over. Good TV needs somebody to be a threat- they want emotions. All they have is awkwardness. That's fine with her, to be honest.
That's real fine.
She can be boring. She can turn it into a weapon. When she was back at home (god, it was just two days ago) she was so convinced people were watching her and now they actually watched, she… kinda just realized she actually wasn't worth watching at all.
And if she did what she truly wanted to do, she'll end up giving them a good show. That's horrible. That made her feel like her stomach was dropping out of her guts. A rock and a hard place. She could glut herself on Luanne oe Pippi or Betty's innards and they'll laugh and cheer.
''Can I be blunt here?''
Leah didn't wait for an answer. Her hands slid down from her hips to the anatomical model-perfect wrist-at-hip-level position again.
''I'll really, really appreciate it if none of you guys make my third time the charm. Saw someone die already. Not pretty. I wanna...''
Find that word. Pluck it out.
Didn't work.
''Um, at least try not to take anyone out before that?''
Uh Oh, edgelord alert.
''Not a threat, I mean! Just... kind of weary right now. Jewel's gonna be bummed if I get offed by you guys.''
Standing on her legs made her tired. She took one, two, three steps to a crate and sat down on it.
-
MethodicalSlacker
- Posts: 250
- Joined: Tue Aug 07, 2018 6:26 pm
- Location: Hanging Onto A Buoy For Dear Life
- Team Affiliation: Jewel's Leviathans
- Contact:
Betty's name went down easy but not without forcing others to the surface. Now there was a Jewel for Jodi to worry about, even though she was pretty sure that was a mentor and not someone who could actually set foot in the arena. Although, who knew. First time for everything. Didn't they like changing things up every now and then on this show?
"Oh, I'm fine," Jodi said to Luanne, "it didn't get my hand much, and then only my palm."
Pippi either played along or didn't know any better. Leah babbled on about not making this her last time, or first, or whatever the heck. Whatever it was that she really wanted to say couldn't come out. It was hidden in a thicket of false confidence, of the script that she was supposed to follow. In that script, Luanne had the next line, consoling Leah about how they weren't going to kill her and how they were all just poor girls who couldn't kill anyone or harm a fly and there was nothing to worry about or at least how they could leave this with both parties fully intact.
Not to threaten you or anything. Not to wave any flags or light any signals. Not to impose.
And on and on the diplomacy would go until none of them died then until all of them died because Leah came back with a gun and got them all while they slept.
"You're right," remarked Betty, "because you're not exactly in a good position to make threats. Not unless there's more of those Leviathans hanging out around the corner behind you."
Jodi knew that Leah must have been alone. Any other teammates in hiding would have already come to her rescue when they heard the burning and screaming and footsteps. She only asked so that she could hear it from Leah's mouth and spend that time hiding from the question behind the back of the answer.
"Oh, I'm fine," Jodi said to Luanne, "it didn't get my hand much, and then only my palm."
Pippi either played along or didn't know any better. Leah babbled on about not making this her last time, or first, or whatever the heck. Whatever it was that she really wanted to say couldn't come out. It was hidden in a thicket of false confidence, of the script that she was supposed to follow. In that script, Luanne had the next line, consoling Leah about how they weren't going to kill her and how they were all just poor girls who couldn't kill anyone or harm a fly and there was nothing to worry about or at least how they could leave this with both parties fully intact.
Not to threaten you or anything. Not to wave any flags or light any signals. Not to impose.
And on and on the diplomacy would go until none of them died then until all of them died because Leah came back with a gun and got them all while they slept.
"You're right," remarked Betty, "because you're not exactly in a good position to make threats. Not unless there's more of those Leviathans hanging out around the corner behind you."
Jodi knew that Leah must have been alone. Any other teammates in hiding would have already come to her rescue when they heard the burning and screaming and footsteps. She only asked so that she could hear it from Leah's mouth and spend that time hiding from the question behind the back of the answer.
After what was presumed to be his best rest for the past two days, Mateo continued his journey to wander across the map, feeling more energetic than usual. Sure, the emergency blanket is so thin that it would not felt as different if he did not use the blanket at all, and the stay had cost him nearly one-fourth of his first aid kit, including the bandages, but for him, one night with nothing but peace was completely worth it.
At least, it's much better than having to keep yourself on guard while being asleep.
Zealously yet anxiously, he walked towards the direction of the cruise ship, trying to find a way to enter the largest venue in the arena. He had been wanted to explore the cruise ship for a while now. With such a large ship, there must be some useful supplies that he could use, right? Besides, he could get lucky and found one or two allies there.
The only problem was that there could be people who were hostile and playing the game, people who actually wanted to kill. But to kill 10 people in the same spot sounds...boring, wasn't it?
And after a few walking, he finally found it: the entrance to the cruise ship.
Without hesitation, he eagerly stepped in and went towards the lowest floor: the bowels. Gotta start from the bottom while exploring, right?
The first thing Mateo noticed about the bowels was how he was surrounded by pipes and metallic walls. The bowels reeked with the smell of rust, and Mateo could hear nothing but ambient noises and their echoes. It was unsettling for him, and he was starting to regret his decision.
Well, let's just get this over with.
Carefully, he stepped forward across the corridor, hoping he was stealthy enough to not make a sound. But of course, his stealth plan completely failed, and echoes of his footsteps were now a part of the cacophony. It seemed like nobody was around though, which was great, because if anyone heard that, he would probably had died within seconds.
Nearly reaching the end of the corridor, he made a small turn at the corner, finding a closed, metallic door at the other end of the corridor. Approaching the door, he was hesitant to go in, considering the chances of someone being inside. After all, the door was closed for a reason, right? Someone must have kept it shut.
After a not-so-good attempt of calming himself down, basically, a brief monologue of repetition, telling himself to 'man up' and nothing else would happen, he went up and gave a few, gentle knocks on the door.
No response.
He tried again. This time with a small, shaky hello.
Again, he heard nothing but the ambient noises in the background.
It was then he grew nervous than before. Whoever was behind the door must have been waiting for him to come in for an easy kill, or there was really no one there and his paranoia was just fucking around with him.
Maybe it was time to run away, Mateo thought, but wouldn't that make him a coward? Besides, if no one was really in the room, he might miss out on some important supplies.
And it was then he opened the door and stepped in.
What he did not expect, however, was him being lead into pitch darkness.
Stepping into the dark hallway, he attempted his best to look for a source of light, a switch. Surely there must be some lightings in a room?
He continued to move blindly, stepping on some bolts and screws in the process, as if he was completely blind. He tried stretching his arms forward, hoping he could at least touch something.
It was then when he accidentally shoved someone while moving his arms randomly. The figure was way shorter than him, and he miiiiiight be pushed the figure a bit too hard.
"Ahh, sor-"
Wait
There's someone in here? In this very room?
SHITSHITSHITSHITSHITSHITSHITSHITSHITSHITSHITSHITSHITSHITSHITSHITSHITSH-
At least, it's much better than having to keep yourself on guard while being asleep.
Zealously yet anxiously, he walked towards the direction of the cruise ship, trying to find a way to enter the largest venue in the arena. He had been wanted to explore the cruise ship for a while now. With such a large ship, there must be some useful supplies that he could use, right? Besides, he could get lucky and found one or two allies there.
The only problem was that there could be people who were hostile and playing the game, people who actually wanted to kill. But to kill 10 people in the same spot sounds...boring, wasn't it?
And after a few walking, he finally found it: the entrance to the cruise ship.
Without hesitation, he eagerly stepped in and went towards the lowest floor: the bowels. Gotta start from the bottom while exploring, right?
The first thing Mateo noticed about the bowels was how he was surrounded by pipes and metallic walls. The bowels reeked with the smell of rust, and Mateo could hear nothing but ambient noises and their echoes. It was unsettling for him, and he was starting to regret his decision.
Well, let's just get this over with.
Carefully, he stepped forward across the corridor, hoping he was stealthy enough to not make a sound. But of course, his stealth plan completely failed, and echoes of his footsteps were now a part of the cacophony. It seemed like nobody was around though, which was great, because if anyone heard that, he would probably had died within seconds.
Nearly reaching the end of the corridor, he made a small turn at the corner, finding a closed, metallic door at the other end of the corridor. Approaching the door, he was hesitant to go in, considering the chances of someone being inside. After all, the door was closed for a reason, right? Someone must have kept it shut.
After a not-so-good attempt of calming himself down, basically, a brief monologue of repetition, telling himself to 'man up' and nothing else would happen, he went up and gave a few, gentle knocks on the door.
No response.
He tried again. This time with a small, shaky hello.
Again, he heard nothing but the ambient noises in the background.
It was then he grew nervous than before. Whoever was behind the door must have been waiting for him to come in for an easy kill, or there was really no one there and his paranoia was just fucking around with him.
Maybe it was time to run away, Mateo thought, but wouldn't that make him a coward? Besides, if no one was really in the room, he might miss out on some important supplies.
And it was then he opened the door and stepped in.
What he did not expect, however, was him being lead into pitch darkness.
Stepping into the dark hallway, he attempted his best to look for a source of light, a switch. Surely there must be some lightings in a room?
He continued to move blindly, stepping on some bolts and screws in the process, as if he was completely blind. He tried stretching his arms forward, hoping he could at least touch something.
It was then when he accidentally shoved someone while moving his arms randomly. The figure was way shorter than him, and he miiiiiight be pushed the figure a bit too hard.
"Ahh, sor-"
Wait
There's someone in here? In this very room?
SHITSHITSHITSHITSHITSHITSHITSHITSHITSHITSHITSHITSHITSHITSHITSHITSHITSH-
"Yea-ah, haha," she laughed, her ner-
She spun.
Panicked.
Someone had grabbed her by the waist.
Or her wrist.
Or the neck. She wasn't sure.
It felt like her body was on fire.
She spun faster than she expected.
The rotation took her off guard.
The baton flew into the orbit.
And right into a shattering planet.
An asteroid.
A comet.
Pippi screamed.
She spun.
Panicked.
Someone had grabbed her by the waist.
Or her wrist.
Or the neck. She wasn't sure.
It felt like her body was on fire.
She spun faster than she expected.
The rotation took her off guard.
The baton flew into the orbit.
And right into a shattering planet.
An asteroid.
A comet.
Pippi screamed.
And all out of sudden, Mateo couldn't feel anything.
He felt a sharp pain right in the head, this time from the side.
He couldn't help but to remember when he first woke up in this damn show.
The first time where he fainted. In the same way.
He couldn't help but to feel some sense of deja vu here. In this very scenario.
He wanted to laugh hysterically like a maniac, but he couldn't.
The only thing he could feel now is the cold, hard floor that he's laying on, and the presence of people around him. Panicking. Moving. Realizing what they just did to him.
He could felt as if his senses were leaving him, as he returned to being in a blacked out state.
It was then when Mateo's world stopped. Everything around him came to a pause. And him being knocked back into a forced slumber once more.
He felt a sharp pain right in the head, this time from the side.
He couldn't help but to remember when he first woke up in this damn show.
The first time where he fainted. In the same way.
He couldn't help but to feel some sense of deja vu here. In this very scenario.
He wanted to laugh hysterically like a maniac, but he couldn't.
The only thing he could feel now is the cold, hard floor that he's laying on, and the presence of people around him. Panicking. Moving. Realizing what they just did to him.
He could felt as if his senses were leaving him, as he returned to being in a blacked out state.
It was then when Mateo's world stopped. Everything around him came to a pause. And him being knocked back into a forced slumber once more.
SHE SCREAMED AND SHE DIDN'T STOP HER THROAT WAS ONLY NOISE AND HER MOUTH WAS ONLY TEETH SHE SCREAMED AND SHE SCREAMED UNTIL IT ECHOED IN HER EARS AND IN HER BRAIN BECAUSE IT WAS THE ONLY NOISE THAT DISTRACTED HER FROM THE BLOOD FROM THE SKULL FROM THE BONES SHE SCREAMED UNTIL THE WORLD CONTINUED AND SHE SCREAMED UNTIL THE WORLD ENDED THERE WASN'T ANYTHING ELSE THAN HER SCREAMING
AND SHE KEPT SCREAMING AND SCREAMING AND SCREAMING
"STOP FUCKING SCREAMING AND HELP HIM!"
She wanted to scream it out but she only whispered.
She might have screamed it for real. She didn't know.
Leah took a breath
She wanted to scream it out but she only whispered.
She might have screamed it for real. She didn't know.
Leah took a breath
TIME GOES BY AND I'M CONFUSED
Three seconds later she still didn't let it out
Didn't do anything, either.
Didn't move.
Didn't help him.
She just stood there and did nothing.
Nothing but watch.
Didn't do anything, either.
Didn't move.
Didn't help him.
She just stood there and did nothing.
Nothing but watch.
SHE RAN AND SHE RAN AND SHE RAN
EVERYTHING'S CHANGING
MELTING INTO SHAPES AND FORMS
SCREAMING AND ECHOING
THROUGH THE OCEAN
(she wondered about the creatures beneath them.)
(what did they think about them?)
(those strange skinless humanoids fighting and killing.)
(above their clouds of foam.)
(and with their ocean as their sky.)
(were we the aliens?)
(the foreign ones?)
AND SHE KEPT SCREAMING
EVERYTHING WAS CHANGING
AND SHE MELTED
SHE MELTED INTO SHAPES AND FORMS
IN A GEOMETRY SHE DIDN'T KNOW
SHE TRIED TO FIT THE NUMBERS
THE SIGNALS
THE WAVES
THEY ALL TANGLED UP TOGETHER
AND SHE RAN
MELTING INTO SHAPES AND FORMS
SCREAMING AND ECHOING
THROUGH THE OCEAN
(she wondered about the creatures beneath them.)
(what did they think about them?)
(those strange skinless humanoids fighting and killing.)
(above their clouds of foam.)
(and with their ocean as their sky.)
(were we the aliens?)
(the foreign ones?)
AND SHE KEPT SCREAMING
EVERYTHING WAS CHANGING
AND SHE MELTED
SHE MELTED INTO SHAPES AND FORMS
IN A GEOMETRY SHE DIDN'T KNOW
SHE TRIED TO FIT THE NUMBERS
THE SIGNALS
THE WAVES
THEY ALL TANGLED UP TOGETHER
AND SHE RAN