Violence Is Usually The Answer

[VoltTurtle]

((Isabel Ramirez continued from TFW you'll never find out what's in the basement))

Isabel felt at home as she sat in the dank and musty shower room behind the water treatment room.

Her back was pressed against the wall as she slowly slid a damp rag along the length of her sword, her sickle and flashlight sitting on the ground next to her, the flashilight illuminating the corner of the room she sat in. The blood that had coated her sword had begun to stink, and Isabel didn't want any chance of someone detecting her in case she needed to hide. The blood that had coated her sweater didn't stink, fortunately enough, perhaps because it had been absorbed into fabric rather than coating a non-porous metal.

Isabel eye's flitted over to the airlock-like doors separating the showers from the main room. There had been several bodies in there, all murdered fairly brutally, the handiwork of another student no doubt. Whoever did it was obviously long gone after a bit of careful examination of the room, and clear signs of who murdered who had begun to rot in the damp air. If Isabel had to guess, it was probably that Nancy girl, knowing the details she remembered from the announcements. Idiots fought her head on when they could have just turned tail and run, or maybe engaged her with a surprise attack.

Isabel rubbed the cloth on the end of the sword, getting off the last bits of Danny's blood. The stench from the corpses had been awful when she had entered, but thankfully the doors in the back seemed to keep the worst of it out of the showers, and Isabel got the security she needed to clean her sword and take a breather after all the events of the day.

Isabel smiled as she wiped away the last of the blood on the tip of her sword and examined her work. All nice and polished, ready for anyone that dare try to stop her from winning... or anyone else, for that matter.

She scooted herself and her stuff over into one of the few showers with a still standing curtain, her halberd's handle awkwardly scraping against the floor before she shut the curtain behind her and flipped off her flashlight. She was safe in here, she could wait out the rest of the day, and if anyone came in... well, it seemed that this area was already proven to be a fairly good defensive stronghold.

Now to just sit, relax... and listen.

[ViolentMedic]

((Lillian 'Lily' Caldwell continued from TFW you'll never find out what's in the basement.))

Lily's feet were cold and damp.

It reminded her of history class. Of the stuff about soldiers who sat in the damp for too long and got trench foot. Here she was. Feet in a mucky slush, bodies littering the area. Wearing a soldier's helmet on top of everything else.

She'd almost lost Isabel a few times on her way here, particularly once they got back into the asylum. Lily hadn't even been sure she'd tracked Isabel properly, even standing here in the damp surrounded by bodies. Only when she heard a sinister scraping noise (though what noise wouldn't sound sinister in this place) did she feel sure she was in the right place.

That noise, however, meant that Isabel was still awake. Still at the ready. It wasn't yet time.

Lily looked around. Only a set of doors separated her from Isabel. And there was nowhere to hide, except perhaps underneath one of these big tubs. One of them had already been overturned. If Lily overturned another one, Isabel might notice the dissimilarity. If she moved any at all, Isabel might hear her. Especially with all this water and the heaviness of those tubs.

...Hm. That just complicated everything, didn't it?

Lily gave a wary glance towards the doors separating her from the back of the water treatment rooms. Then, very slowly, she started to back away towards the entrance. There had to be somewhere she could hide nearby. Somewhere she could wait. She tried not to slosh the water with her feet.

[Deamon]

((Kimiko Kao continued from Why We Fight))

Kimiko had slowly made her way to the asylum, being careful to stay as hidden as she could. She had hesitated once it had appeared on the horizon, slowly looming over her as she moved closer. It represented a lot of different things, many of them dark and she was certain some were evil. Her fingers had nervously fiddled with her necklace, she didn't like the place. It was the superstitious part of her brain that was telling her to fear it. She knew the building itself held no power, the real power lay in the ideas it represented. That people could be fixed by shipping them off to an island prison and forgetting about them. All the while the doctors got to experiment on them.

The idea of monsters lurking in the dark corners of the asylum itself was also a crazy thought her brain had conjured up out of all the fear and uncertainty that floated around her mind like the wreckage of a ship. Kimiko was sure she was still sane but her increasing paranoia had her worried, she had enough to fret about without conjuring up monsters that didn't exist.

Once she had entered the asylum through its main door Kimiko had been presented with a choice. She could have stayed on the ground floor, gone upstairs or go down. After a brief moment of internal debate, she had decided to descend into the darkness.

She had one singular thought, a concept even enter into her head as soon as she saw what was at the bottom of those dark, unwelcoming stairs.

Diyu

Kimiko had never given the stories about hell much stock. The whole idea of the afterlife was different for Taoist's. But faced with what was at the bottom of the staircase she thought she was close to Diyu. It even reminded her of another name for hell - Mingjie. The asylum itself could have even been hell, or a hell. There was a name for that as well but it eluded Kimiko as she stood in the layer of cold water that coated the floor. It didn't quite soak into her boots but every step brought forth a soft clapping noise, like something was pleased she was there. Still she forced herself deeper into the bowels of the asylum, until eventually the darkness enveloped her.

After what felt like an unending corridor she finally came to a set of double doors. Being careful to minimize the noise as she pushed them open, the first thing Kimiko noticed was the smell. Instinctively she put her hand over her mouth as she gagged, eyes watering. There were bodies in the room, she had no idea how recent they were but her right-hand reached into her pocket and gripped the tantō tight, as much for comfort as any intention to use it.

Taking much more deliberate steps Kimiko moved further into the room closer to the bodies, as soon as she was able to make them out more clearly so too did one thought become much more prominent than all the others.

She had been right.

[VoltTurtle]

Isabel was jarred awake after hearing the sound of the doors outside creaking open.

She had begun to doze off in the dark room, the serene quiet and overall peacefulness of the showers too difficult to resist. She had been here a while, though, so no surprise that someone finally showed up. Isabel sat up, before awkwardly unfastening the halberd and gently leaning it up next to the wall. The halberd was too large and clunky to be any use in quarters as close as these, she needed to rely entirely on her sword and the sickle.

Isabel stood up, slowly, the sickle at the ready in one hand and the sword in the other. The person that came in might be on guard, but they still had the shower doors to go through, and Isabel had the inky blackness to help hide her. She would hear it if anyone came through to where she was lurking, and it would be simple to pop out from behind her curtain and sink the sword into their gut before tearing open their neck with the sickle. Give them a good scare before their life abruptly ended.

She pressed her back up against the wall of the shower stall she was in, waiting.

Listening.

[ViolentMedic]

As Lily backed towards the doors, they swung open. And standing in the doorway was Kimiko Kao. Of course. Why wouldn't it be? The only thing that would complete this situation was if Nancy had followed Lily here.

There was a killer at her front, and a killer at her back. Nowhere else to go.

Lily froze for a moment, hands raised and eyes wide. Even then, her eyes scanned Kimiko. Blood on her clothes. Weapons visible. No gun. Dangerous. But not Isabel. Not Tina's killer.

Slowly, Lily held one finger in front of her lips and motioned for Kimiko to be quiet. (She felt foolish a second later, remembering that Kimiko was mute. She couldn't remember where she'd heard that, a cousin maybe?)

Still keeping her movements slow, so as not to be noisy, Lily reached into her bag and removed her notepad. She turned over several pages, then scribbled out 'ISABEL' in big letters across a blank page.

She turned the page over so Kimiko could see it, then pointed at the double doors at the back of the big room.

The enemy of her enemy was her friend. And considering that Isabel was a murdering lunatic, she was everyone's enemy.

[Deamon]

Her eyes read over what Lily had written once, and then a second time to ensure she wasn't making a mistake.

Seeing Lily had been a shock for Kimiko, she had been so focused on the corpse that everything else in the room had faded from her vision. A stupid mistake, especially considering how close Isabel was. It was lucky that it had been Lily in the room and not Isabel. If it had been Isabel, Kimiko would have been dead.

Isabel was in the back room. Kimiko hadn't even noticed the doors when she had entered. She ran her gaze over Lily, assessing her potential as a threat. She didn't have anything on her person Kimiko could identify as a weapon. Still Kimiko was unsure of whether or not Lily was trustworthy. There was always the chance the other girl had a weapon hidden just like Kimiko did herself. Kimiko did have a height advantage though and if Lily wanted to harm her she had been presented with an opportunity while Kimiko had been distracted.

The question of why Lily was letting her know Isabel was nearby did play across Kimiko's thoughts. It seemed pretty simple, either Lily was genuinely cautioning her of the fellow killer in the next room or what Kimiko thought was more likely due to the circumstances; Lily hoped they'd end up killing the other or they would each end up dying in the fight.

Slowly nodding her understanding at Lily, Kimiko slowly stepped past her and towards the double doors she had pointed at earlier. Her heartbeat quickened with each step she took towards the doors. The fact she knew exactly what awaited her on the outside did scare her. She wasn't going to lie to herself, but at the same time she felt compelled to go and meet the other girl. Kimiko was familiar with Isabel and what she had been doing on the island. Turning back to Lily, Kimiko signaled for her to wait where she was. She was glad for the darkness because she was sure her eyes would have betrayed the confidence with which she was moving. She didn't want Lily nearby though, in case things went bad, a third body in the way would make things messy. The dull throb in her leg that her been present ever since the attempted robbery the day before returned as if reminding her of the danger she was in. Slowly she slid her pack off and placed it down, if Isabel attacked her straight away, which Kimiko had no reason not to expect she needed to be as mobile as possible. She hoped it didn't come to that.

They were both killers but Kimiko hoped even a little that Isabel was like her, a normal person and not some monster.

As she turned away from Lily, Kimiko took a deep breath and forced her grip on the tantō and nodachi even tighter, her fingers constricting around them like a lifeline in a storm. The next few minutes or seconds would be some of the most dangerous and important of her life.

Her mouth silently forming a prayer she pushed the double doors open as quietly as possible and stepped even deeper into Diyu.

[VoltTurtle]

Isabel gripped her weapons tighter as she heard the double doors gently and slowly creep open, the smell of the corpses in the following room flooding the area.

Whoever had just walked into the room with her was either being needlessly careful, or had figured out that someone was there, hiding in the darkness. A meager amount of light from the hallway outside entered the room, lighting it up to Isabel's darkness adjusted eyes. She held by the curtain, peeking through the gap between it and the wall dividing the shower stall she was in from the others around her. She just needed to wait for whoever to get a little bit closer...

A small bit of movement came from the darkness in front of her, before she saw a face pause just where she could see, unaware but nonetheless alert.

Kimiko.

The dumb, mute, Taiwanese bitch that had stolen her best kill award. Arguably her main rival for the attention of the terrorists. The main threat to her own survival.

Trembling with rage, Isabel tossed the scarf she was wearing down into the corner, before she readied her weapons again. Kimiko probably thought that she was better than Isabel. That she was going to be the one to survive all of this and go home.

Isabel was going to make sure that this dumb bitch payed for her arrogance, her audacity.

Ripping the curtain open, Isabel lunged at Kimiko as a furious snarl escaped her lips.

[ViolentMedic]

Kimiko didn't attack Lily. She just looked at the paper, nodded. Neared the double doors and clearly prepared for what was beyond them.

Lily, on her part, moved back towards the doors that Kimiko had come through. She didn't want Isabel to know she was there, or at least wanted to be in a better position to flee if she had to. She didn't want to completely leave the area until either Isabel or Kimiko was dead, or until there was no other choice.

Lily backed away and slipped through doors Kimiko had come through. But she stopped just out of sight, pressing her back to the wall right next to the door and rummaging in her little bag for the shard of mirror. As she heard the sound of Isabel snarling like some insane, rabid mutt, she grasped the shard and waited.

[Deamon]

Something moved in the darkness.

Kimiko had just enough time to realise she had been wrong before diving to the side, landing with a heavy thud on the cold tiled floor. There was a dull throb in her shoulder as she rolled backwards and away from Isabel.

Definitely bruised.

If she hadn't been expecting something she would have been impaled...just like Bradley.

She had Lily to thank for her life.

Isabel could just be made out in the darkness. She was different, more dangerous and violent then anyone Kimiko had met on the island.

Kimiko had been wrong. Isabel was a monster.

[VoltTurtle]

The sword collided with nothing but cold, empty air as Isabel lunged forward.

She hadn't been fast enough.

Her right foot slammed down to the ground, stopping her momentum. Her sword retained in her hand by an awkward, loose grip. A direct result of not getting the resistance she was expecting.

A lock of hair fell from where it had been resting to right in front of Isabel's face.

Her head turned left towards the now floor bound Kimiko, and before she could muster up a second thought, she found herself taking a brutal swing with the sickle towards Kimiko's neck.

[Deamon]

There wasn't enough time to fully avoid Isabel's wild attack so Kimiko rolled to the side and felt the sickle carve a line across the back of her other shoulder.

She inhaled sharply at the pain and felt a wetness immediately start to ooze from the wound.

The shape of Isabel was above her, preparing for another vicious swing.

Before the strike could land, Kimiko lashed out with the hardest kick she had ever thrown, aiming directly for Isabel's knee.

[VoltTurtle]

Isabel hissed as she found herself tumbling to the ground, her leg having collapsed from underneath her.

The sword clattered to the ground several feet away, having flown out of her already loose grip. Her elbow stung from hitting the ground as hard as it did.

She scrambled to get back up on her feet, she couldn't give the other girl a single moment. This was life or death.

Now on all fours, Isabel looked up to see that Kimiko had scooted back, and had started to pull a sword out of its sheath.

This was it.

Isabel pushed off with her feet, launching herself at the other girl.

[Deamon]

The nodachi was half out of it's sheath when Isabel dove at her.

Again Kimiko was forced to roll to one side. This time however she successfully avoided the attack. A searing pain still came from her shoulder.

The nodachi made a singing noise as it was finally freed from its sheath. The full length of it's three foot blade unleashed on the world for the first time. Ready to do what it was created to do.

Now or never.

End the monsters life.

The nodachi arced through the air, straight at the form of Isabel.

[VoltTurtle]

Isabel hissed as she brought the sickle up to block the nodachi, the clang of metal on metal echoing through the room.

Both hands held onto the sickle, the inward curve having only caught the sword inches away from her face. The blade was massive, but it was blatantly being wield by someone lacking the body strength to truly use it. Isabel didn't have to fight to keep it above her.

This was her chance.

Twisting the sickle away from Kimiko, Isabel gained control of the blade and forced it out of her grip, the sword clattering to the ground noisily.

She was finished.

Isabel rolled and leaped at the other girl, forcing her to the ground again, but now with Isabel right on top of her.

The sickle was raised high into the air. This was it.

"You're done!"

[Deamon]

Violently and painfully the nodachi was ripped from her grip by Isabel's sickle.

Then with the brute force of a bull Isabel smashed onto her stomach, all of her body weight crushing down on Kimiko keeping her in place and knocking the air out of her lungs.

Frantically Kimiko's right hand dug into her pocket, gripping on the handle of the tantō, her thumb pushed the wooden shirasaya off the blade.

The sickle was raised high into the air. This was it.

Kimiko slashed the tantō through the darkness at Isabel's head and face.

She felt the tantō catch Isabel in the face and heard her cry out.

In that same instant Kimiko's free left arm snaked it's way across Isabel's body and with all the strength she could muster from her position on the ground Kimiko threw Isabel off aiming for the edge of one of the shower cubicles. She saw Isabel collide back and spine first with the stall and those precious few moments were all Kimiko needed.

She scrambled up to her feet, coughing as her body tried to get air back.

Grabbing the nodachi and its sheath off the floor Kimiko raced for the doors.