This Is Where I Died

[Lord_Shadow]

((Genevieve Erickson continued from ))

Pain

A dull, yet undeniable pain

That was what she awoke to, groaning with effort as she got up.

It was a miracle she hadn't gotten shot, and she thanked every fucking god she could think of for that mercy.

She still cursed her shit luck for having done something wrong during her tumble and fucked up her arm.

And of course she needed the gun to even get up, and of fucking course she couldn't use her right arm to hold it.

So of course getting up was the easiest shit she had ever done. Easy peezy lemon squeezy nice cool breezy fuck your weezy cough.

"Fucking fuck shit fuck holy balls fuck that hurts AGH FUCK!"

She was vaguely aware that she was inside of something.

The metal walls and ladder and shit told her either outside had become some sort of metal tube, or she was in some kind of submersible watertight vehicle or something.

Probably in a small boat of sorts

She leaned against the ladder, leaving the gun standing upright next to her also leaning against the ladder.

Somehow, she felt this place wasn't as safe as it seemed during the night. Still, she had been running out of steam fast and needed a place to collapse.

Quite literally, after she descended the ladder

"Hey mentor person? Can you answer something for me?"

She took a deep breath

"What in the fuck am I supposed to do?"

[Namira]

The response from Genevieve's collar is swift.

"Okay well first thing's first, you gotta make sure that shoulder of yours isn't gonna be a problem. So, take a sec to take look for any bruising or anything obviously out of place. Can't work on fixing it up if you can't tell what might be wrong, and ignoring injuries is a dumbass way to die.

"Name's MarWIN, beeteedub."

The last past is spoken as if it carries weight.

[carduinal-cyn]

(Olivia del Rio continued from Retrograde Analysis.)

Where had the time gone?

Night two, day three, night three, day four blurred together. Olivia stood atop the submarine, but her head was still swimming in a blood-soaked temporal soup. She peered down into the hatch. Her dull eyes stared into the head of a girl who looked vaguely familial, back against the wall. Her name was Jennifer, or something like that — Liv hadn't remembered the names of every classmate — and she had a fearsome pistol lying right next to her. A few days ago, the sight of a gun-barrel had sent a thrill of fear up the young athlete's spine. Now, the only thing she felt was a pang of resignation. Besides, she thought, if she sees me, all I gotta do is... no. No way in hell I'm shooting again.

Little Joe, her stolen companion, glinted in the noonday sun. It hung limply at her side, clutched haphazardly in a hand that had killed once before. (She'd fled the scene long before she could confirm it, but she knew it was so.)

Olivia forced a smile. Hopefully, the girl at the bottom of the hatch had better things to do than shoot her down.

[ciphermitarai]

This was not the time to bicker, and Lucia was fully aware of that. It would be supremely immature of her to bicker over the death of the classmate, anyway, and though she knew this, lifelong attitudes were hard to shake. Still, she envisioned herself going out in a fashion other than accidentally facilitating a death and being struck by regret so long she wandered, aimlessly, into her own death.

And yet that was the path what she’d seen would have her believe—so when she came upon another student, evidenced by Olivia’s sudden halt, her ego prevented her from stopping, too.
If she stopped, the guilt would catch up to her, anyways.

Down the hatch, down the ladder. In her hustle, her usually-perceptive eyes only met the gun by the time she was halfway down—right above the girl there.

Okay, maybe she shouldn’t sacrifice rationality for coolness. And maybe she should’ve realized this when it became harder to climb the ladder with a damn cleaver in her other hand.

Ah. Shit. Her balance began to teeter, which she knew she should’ve expected, but wasn’t about to admit to. Instead, Lucia opted for hopping down the rest of the ladder—the cleaver clattering flat as she did.

Hopefully that looked impressive, and extra-hopefully this girl’s reaction time wasn’t fast enough to shoot her before she snatched the cleaver back fully into her hand. A bit rattled from the fall as even the most trained athletes could be, she couldn’t muster up the cool action girl voice she’d planned. Maybe the jump-fall would speak for her there, and the fact that she didn’t accidentally stab herself on the way down—

“... hey.”

[Lord_Shadow]

She was wondering how to get about fixing her arm when she heard the footsteps coming down the ladder.

What the heck?

Then the girl coming down sort of halted and stopped, like she just realized Genevieve was there.

What the hell?

And then she practically flew off the ladder, her cook preparation implement clattering to the ground.

What the fuck?

"Wow, nice" She blurted out in a mix of amazement and amusement that would now come to be called amuzement, like with a 'Z' instead of an 'S'.

She shuffled her position, reaching for the gun.

No sense forgetting her protection.

"Okay, impressive. Now what?"

What was going to happen, she couldn't tell. But she did not like the fact that her new friend came down without a second's hesitation.

That was, in technical terms, no good

[ciphermitarai]

"Just going through. Sorry to bother." Lucia's nerves remained steeled. No need to acknowledge the knots in her stomach from the fall and the circumstance--she'd seen enough people with guns by now to realize that she wouldn't die immediately in their presence.

But, as a precaution...

"If you don't shoot, that would be nice too."

She squinted at the girl, waiting for an aim that didn't (yet) come. She'd only left the request open for half a second when she decided that that was enough to verify her safety, and that she might as well go for the goal.

"You heard of a kid named Vasily? Purple hair, e-boy type? I've been lookin' for him. He's probably still up. I taught him a thing or two." She sighed, pushing any dramatic-flashback memories away. (The clearest death flag, she knew, was some sort of sweet memory to prime the audience for shock and sadness when she found a corpse.)

(She'd become too used to morbidity.)

"'S fine if you don't. Liv and I just haven't had loads of luck." Her eyes flitted up the hatch with a clear implication of what could happen in case Genevieve changed her mind.

[carduinal-cyn]

Lucia's olive-green eyes flicked up the submarine and momentarily met Olivia's, still as big and brown as ever. Though she had approached the submarine cautiously, the girl at the bottom didn't seem murderous enough to shoot the two of them immediately; Liv judged Genevieve safe, and so she gave away her position with a good-natured little grin.

"Yeah, hi, that's me!" she called down the hatch to the women inside. "I'm the Liv she's talking about! Vas is a good friend of ours, so, uh... have you seen him anywhere? We've been searching for days, and so far, there's been no sign of him..."

The little white lie escaped her mouth faster than she could breathe. Was that their end goal in all of this? To wander an endless sea of boats for a friend who'd probably died by now? Even if they should find him alive, would he join them? Would he kill them on the spot? Would he just run away, like Cory had before she...

Bleeding from his stomach.

No, not again, she'd just managed to forget—

A crossbow bolt in the wound.

Olivia's smile unfurled into an awkward grimace, the kind reserved for school picture days and cringeworthy comedy flicks. An acidic taste flowed into her mouth. She longed for the comfort of her room. Coach would be hollering at her to shoot the new girl by now, but she could almost hear the sympathetic squawks of her beloved Holly, and that bit of nostalgia trumped any inclination of hers to etch another horrible memory into her head.

[Lord_Shadow]

"Your luck hasn't improved I guess. Haven't seen him, no idea where he is."

She relaxed her position. Didn't let go of the gun but she didn't keep it at the ready.

She sighed and leaned back. This was fine, but not exactly what she expected.

They weren't trying to kill her so that was nice.

But it didn't look like they were interested in staying put. Searching for their friend was probably their priority.

"So what do you plan on doing? Keep searching for him, or head somewhere else and hold the fort? Honestly I'm not sure what the best course of action is anymore."

[ciphermitarai]

“Me neither. It’s kinda lookin’... grey for the future. If I can find him, then—“ Lucia sighed, a sudden stabbing pain in her heart.

“... well, I just wanna say goodbye, at least. I don’t wanna give these mentors what they want, but—“

She was running out of time. They were all running out of time.

“... you know how to talk to them? I figure they’ve been listening, but, y’know, Liv and I haven’t done anything interesting—“ Lucia’s eyes darted to the side as she said it, and she began to pace a little.

In the context of this game, that wasn’t technically a lie.

“I need to keep movin’. Sorry. You, uh—“ She blinked, apparently just realizing Genevieve had barely moved at all. “You need help?”

[carduinal-cyn]

"Hey, Lucia..." Olivia peered back down into the hatch, now sporting a look of visible concern. "The way you're talking, it's like he's already, you know... Gone. We don't know for sure..."

It didn't take long for that unpleasant sensation to well up in her chest again, an icy grip of uncertain terror. We really don't know for sure, an intrusive thought whispered. Vasily was like the lacrosse ball at the start of a match: a superposition which those adjectives, "living" and "dead", could both easily ensnare in their ethereal sticks. Liv forced a smile again; Vasily was alive, she told herself. He was smart, resourceful, charismatic: in a word, kickass. The idea that he'd die at this stage in the game was laughable.

If only the possibility was just that — an idea, not a pressing concern.

"Well, anyway!" she suddenly exclaimed. Her voice was full of manufactured good cheer, the only way she knew to distract herself from those racing thoughts. "We do have to keep moving, but, uh... thanks a lot for your help! And for not shooting us. We super-appreciate it."

[Lord_Shadow]

Despite herself, she gave a smile. Not a large one, but warmer than she thought she could make this far into things. She felt for these girls, really.

"I'll be okay, I'll just hunker down and wait things out for a bit. As to your earlier question, I've just been talking hoping my mentor was listening in. Emmy's been replaced by some idiot though so I don't think I'll have much help going forward."

She let the gun down, and extended her good hand. For once in this godforsaken game, she felt safe.

"Good luck you two, hope you can find your friend."

[ciphermitarai]

Lucia shook it, even finding the courage to smile.

“Good luck to you, too. Rooting for you. I’ll give the talkin’ a try,” she nodded, looking down briefly as if to verify everything was still there. “Just keep fighting, y’know... and thanks for the help.”

She looked back up to Olivia. “I know Vas better than anyone. He’ll be—he’s good. Swear on it, ‘kay? I’ll even prove it to ya. Watch!”

With that, the girl and her cleaver were off.

(Lucia Cuevas Valdez continued elsewhere)

[carduinal-cyn]

Olivia could only watch, blindsided, as her travelling companion practically Apparated out of the hatch. Then Lucia dashed away, compelled by a fervent wish. It was as if they'd switched bodies: Lucia assumed the role of the fiery, impulsive leader; Liv, the cautious, subdued follower. Just one crossbow bolt, and she'd been knocked off her metaphorical feet. She wouldn't stand for it!

"Hey, wait up!" she called after her comrade in arms. "Wait! C'mon! You're not gonna just leave me behind, are you!?"

No answer. Lucia Cuevas Valdez was already long gone.

Olivia grinned down sheepishly into the hatch one last time. "Oh, and thanks for the tip about the mentors. You've got a super-good hiding spot down there, and a gun, so, like, I dunno. You're gonna do just fine. Trust me on this! And see ya 'round!"

And so, she raced after Lucia as fast as her well-muscled legs could carry her!

(Olivia del Rio continued in Talking About Fight Club.)

[Lord_Shadow]

And once more she was alone, and once more she was wondering what she could do.

---

She gritted her teeth and braced herself. She hung on to the railing with her right hand gripped as tight as she could muster. Just don't think about how much this would hurt.

She pushed off the railing with her feet and let herself hang from one arm. The pop and crack as her arm put itself back into its proper place was what she hoped for.

It still didn't stop her screaming in agony, letting go of the railing and falling onto the floor in a heap. She sobbed and cried and moaned and writhed and just bawled her fucking eyes out. It hurt so goddamn much fuck shit why goddammit fuck why fuck god FUCK

---

Thank fuck for something to wrap her arm in. Still hurt like a motherfucker but now it was more of a 'holy God I repent of all my sins forgive me Lord' type of pain than the 'Fuck me Fuck you Fuck everything kill me god please I want to fucking die please God Fuck no Fuck FUck FUCk FUCK F U C K' kind of pain

She was an absolute mess and it was a damn miracle no one else came around to the sub in the hours she had been emptying her tear ducts and losing her voice with the moans and screaming. Anyone could have easily popped in and shot her like a damn fish in a barrel of monkeys typing Shakespeare while not seeing or doing anything

Metaphors were hard when you were in excruciatingly painful pain, she observed. Also so were adjectives.

"I'm sure this would be the most boring thing to watch right now. Thankfully, I don't give a fuck about entertainment with my life on the line. Fuck me, I just wanna make it through this in one piece."

She checked on the gun in her hand. She looked up at the sub entrance and wondered what time it was. It was getting dark out, that's for sure. Hopefully she'd just be able to coast on through the night and stay safe and stay put. No danger, let it be a stranger.

Fuck her arm hurt so damn much

[Lord_Shadow]

She needed rest, but with the pain as it was there was no way that was happening. She needed her arm useful for the next day, but fuck the decision was not an easy one to live with.

She tried to distract herself with other thoughts, but nothing came up. Every moment was an ordeal. At least she was alone and could wimper in peace.

---

All of the pain almost distracted her from the announcement. It was so dark out she couldn't really see anything outside anymore. Damn, she almost made it through the night without having to hear that annoying bitch mock her classmates and praise the killers.

When she heard Vasily's name she punched the wall beside her. Fuck, when had it happened? Did they even get to see him before he died? How long ago had that been.

Emmy was back to mentoring, that was nice. "Good to have you back Emmy." She mused to herself.

And the danger zones were announced. Fuck there were so many.

Wait, was the sub one of them.

Beep

She gasped in shock. No.

No way.

No fucking way

Not a chance in hell

Fuck no there was no way

Beep

"What the fuck!?!"

She tried to bolt to her feet, tripped and fell over onto her recovering shoulder.

She yelled in pain

She had to get out

Beep

She had to get up

Fuck. Not here, can't die like this. Not her. Not yet. Have to live, for those that didn't. For

For... For...

Beep

For herself

Get up

Beep

She got up

Beep

It hurt so much

Beep

She reached for the ladder

Beep

She couldn't climb up

Beep

She forced herself to grab hold

Beep

Fuck me fuck this fuck everything fuck all of you I'm not dying here never ever never ever not ever never

Beep

FUCK YOU

Beep

One rung up

Beep

Two

Beep

Three

Beep

She was doing it

Beep

A flash of pain

Beep

A slip

Beep

A fall

Beep

Crying, sobbing, wailing, pain

Beep

Beep

Beep

Try again

Beep

Slip on the first rung

Beep

Fall

Beep

Please God

Beep

Not here

Beep

Not like this

Beep

"FUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUCK!"

Beep

Beep

Beep

Halfway up, holding tight fight the pain

Beep

Almost

Beep

Almost

Beep

"FUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUCK!"

Beep

Beep

Beep
Beep
Beep
Beep
Beep

She was going to die

This was it, this was the end

B

There was no hope

E

Goodbye

E

I'm sorry

P

I tried, god knows I tried.

The beeps continued on, growing faster and louder in intensity.

She was vaguely aware she was screaming, or sobbing, or something. Who even could tell?

Then an idea came to her.

Her salvation

She crawled over to it, left behind in her panic














One shot














One last hope