Luck had nothing to do with it.

[Fiori]

F10 - Stephanie Mason: Start

It wasn't fair.

It had been a bad enough day already for Stephanie Mason. From the minute she'd woken up from a particularly creepy nightmare, the day had only gone from bad to worse. First she'd stubbed her toe on the corner of the bathroom door, then she discovered that they had ran out of milk yet again, THEN they missed the bus and had to run all the way to General's Pride, barely making it in time for The Announcement.

And yet, despite all their bad luck, neither Stephanie or her sister Sophie had expected to be drafted into The Program that morning.

It was like a nightmare come true... The second she heard Sophie's name being read out she nearly screamed, the only thing stopping her from doing so being the multiple armed guards that littered the school yard who's very presence froze her in fear. Fear didn't stop the flow of tears that ran down her face however, seeing as the closest person to her in the whole world had just been chosen to partake in The Program. Sophie seemed to be taking much more maturely, keeping a stern and brave look on her face throughout. Although, not even Sophie could keep a straight face when Stephanie's name was announced. Neither of them could for that matter. Only, whilst Stephanie cried her heart out, Sophie just stood there. Concerned, but nevertheless stern in the face of danger.

Stephanie wished she could be as brave as her sister.

Soon enough, after the rest of the names were announced (Including some of Stephanie's own friends and her childhood crush Karl Chalmers) they were all rounded up in a black truck, taken away to some secret location, briefed by one of the creepiest (If admittedly handsome...) men she'd ever met in her life, gassed into unconsciousness... And now, here she was, hiding underneath a pool table emptying what little remained of her tears.

She wasn't 100% where exactly she had woken up... Some kind of game room from the look of it. There was a a pool table, some chairs and pair of pinball machines amongst other things. Not that she cared. All she could think about at that moment was the fact that the worse thing in the world had just happened. Not only had SHE been chosen to participate in The Program, but her sister had been chosen as well. If it was just one of the, then there was the chance that they could still survive long enough to be able to get out. But both? The very thought made Stephanie resume her weeping once more...

...Only to then stop suddenly when she started hearing footsteps.

NO! Not now! Oh god, I thought i'd have more time! What if it's that brute Harris out there?!? Or one of those creepy Japanese girls?!?

In a panic, she scrambled over to her bag and unzipped it, fundling through its contents in order to retrieve whatever weapon she had been assigned. Considering her recent luck, she expected it to be something worthless like a yoyo or a can of moxie or something... Only, to her surprise, she came across what felt like a large and bulky shotgun.

She wasn't really sure if she should be relieved to discover that her assigned weapon was a gun, or repulsed by the fact that she was expected to kill people with it. She wasn't even sure if she could carry the thing around, let alone put it to good use. Nevertheless, at that moment in time all she needed to do was aim it at the door and pray that whoever was outside would just pass by and not investigate. Because even if they did, Stephanie honestly doubted that she would have what it took to actually pull the trigger.

With this in mind, the young girl crawled away from under the table and laid her back against the corner of the room furthest away from the door. She lifted the gun that had been assigned to her, the weight of the weapon making it especially hard to keep a steady aim. The footsteps outside drew closer, far too close for Stephanie's liking. She wondered what her sister would do in this situation, cornered and alone with no one to rely upon other then a thuggish gun she probably couldn't even use properly. She'd of thought of some smarter way of getting out of this situation, Stephanie was sure about it. But at that moment, Stephanie was all alone. And from the looks of things, the person outside had just stopped right outside her door...

She bit her lip, shivering in fear as she awaited the inevitable. There was slight pause, a subtle noise as the newcomer opened up the door and peaked through to see who was inside. And then...

... Luck, as it seemed, had decided to throw Stephanie Mason a bone.

"S... Sophie?"


F06 - Sophie Mason: Start


"Steph?"

Neither of them could believe it. Of all the people in the compound, of all the many many people they could have come across, the first person the Mason twins happened to come across was their own sibling. There was a brief pause as they each tried to figure out whether or not this was all actually real before running into each other's arms, embracing one another in relief.

"Oh god Sophie, I was so worried! I... I thought I'd never see you again!"

"Heyhey now, its okay... I'm just glad you're alright."

As usual, Stephanie had broken down into tears again. Only, this time she didn't cry because she was scared. She cried because she was relieved. Relieved that Sophie was all right, that she hadn't been killed by one of the early players that often cropped up in The Program who just couldn't wait to start gunning down the competition.

She eventually pulled back, a smile appearing on her pale face as she attempted to suppress her tears. There wasn't a doubt in Stephanie's mind that things could only get better from now on. Barely seconds ago, things were at their absolute worst. She was alone, afraid, and almost certain that she was about to die any second. But now that Sophie was around, she was certain that she'd come up with some plan to get them out of here. Maybe they'd build a tunnel underneath the wall or something like that, just like in The Great Escape. Only, it won't end so tragically...

"I see you got a better starting weapon..." said Sophie, referring to the shotgun Stephanie had left lying on the floor.

"Y... Yeah, I guess. Yours isn't bad either." Stephanie replied after noticing that Sophie was clutching a crowbar in her right hand. "You can take mine if you want though. I don't think I'll be able to use it very well..."

"No, you keep it. You'll be needing it..."

Needing it? What did she mean by that? Stephanie assumed at first that she was referring to using it in a defensive way, and yet there was something about the way she said it that just didn't seem right... Like she had something else on her mind.

"Oh, fair enough. Guess I'd need something to defend myself with if we're to look for a way out of here anyway..."

At that moment, Sophie's expression went from one of relief and happiness into one of concern and grief as she turned away from Stephanie, avoiding eye contact with her sister entirely. There was something about the look in her eyes that caused Stephanie's smile to fade away. She looked worried about something. Something Stephanie had yet to either know or fully comprehend. Something she just had to find out...

"Sophie? W... What's wrong?"

He sister closed her eyes and sighed, pausing for a moment or two before she finally replied.

"Steph, I... I don't know how to say this......"

There was another long pause, one which seemed to last forever as Sophie tried to figure out what to say next.

"...But, I don't think escape is really an option."

Stephanie was silent. Escape? Not an option? What was Sophie going on about?

"I mean, think about it Steph. We're surrounded on all sides by armed soldiers. There are cameras watching out every movements, and high impenetrable walls that are virtually impossible to bypass. Hell, it wouldn't surprise me if they had microphones which could pick up everything we're saying!"

At first Stephanie wasn't sure where Sophie was heading with all this. Why she was listing all the obstacles that would be in their way.

And then it clicked.

No...

"What i'm trying to say here is..."

No no no...

"...The only way either of us are going to get out of here alive..."

No no, please god, no!

"...Is if we play along."

It was the last thing the young girl ever wanted to hear coming out of her sister's mouth.

"What!?! How could you say that?!? Surely there must be a better way?"

"Steph, I've already thought this through thoroughly. Don't you see? There ISN'T a better way! Escape plans has never worked in the past, and neither will they work now!"

"B... But Sophie! How can I... What about all our friends? What about Siobhan, and Louis, and Sherilyn, and Chanel, and..."

...And Karl.

"Stephanie, LISTEN TO ME!"

She grabbed a hold of her sister at that point, looking at her dead straight in the eyes as she calmly and methodically spoke to her.

"First of all, they're YOUR friends, not mine. Secondly, do you think any past relationships are going to matter to them anymore? The moment they were chosen to partake in The Program, they become our enemies. Neither of us can leave here until they are all gone. Do you UNDERSTAND Stephanie?"

Stephanie remained silent, tears beginning to wet her cheeks once more.

"I don't want to have to do this... If there was another way out, I'd take it within a heartbeat. You know I would... But right now, all we can do is survive. And in order to survive, we'll have to be proactive. Its the ones who lay low and try to stay out of harm's way who end up getting it the worst."

Her sister still remained silent, not even letting out a whimper.

"But the thing is, I can't do this without your help. I NEED you Stephanie. WE need each other! That's the only way we're going to make it out here."

She remained silent a moment longer, only to then open her mouth briefly to ask a question.

"But... Won't one of us have to die so the other can get out?"

Sophie paused... A long, drawn out, painful pause. She bit her lip, looking away from Stephanie briefly before answering.

"I... I don't know. We can worry about that later..."

They both stood there for a minute or so as they took on board the situation they had winded up in. There was a subtle but repetative noise of dripping water somewhere in the background, as if there was leaky pipe somewhere down the corridor outside. The two twins looked away from one another, Sophie observing the sturdy crowbar she held tightly in her hands whilst Stephanie watched over her assigned weapon that laid silently against the wall. Would she really have to use that to kill her own classmates? Could she handle such a thing? Could SOPHIE handle such a thing? The very idea was causing her to shudder in fear already... And yet, as Sophie put it, there wasn't else she could do about. Escape was impossible, that alone was obvious enough. Her idea about digging a tunnel underneath the wall was full of so many holes that she mentally berated herself for even seriously considering the thought.

After what felt like an eternity, Stephanie finally made her decision.

"I'll... I'll do it. If it means we can get out of here, I'll do whatever it takes."

Her sister smiled. "Thank you Stephanie... I knew you'd see things my way eventually."

Sophie smile was quickly cut short by a schreech which rang out through the corridors, prompting the two to attention. "Well, I think that's our cue to get out of here... Coming Steph?"

"Yeah, sure. Hang on..." her sister replied, quickly darting back to retrieve her weapon and sling her bag over her shoulder. Once she's retrieved all her stuff, she nodded to her sister and the two of them made their way out of the small rec room and into The Program.

It'll all be worth it. You'll see...

((The Mason Twins continued in It's On))