As everything erupted around him, Leo stayed still.
He couldn't bring himself to move. His limbs felt heavy, chest tight, breathing shallow. He could hear the others shouting and scuffling, but when he blinked, all he could see was Howie standing there with a hole punched through his chest and his blood spattering the sand.
"Stop-" His voice was barely a breath.
so this is the part where i regret making an elvis impersonator when i've never listened to an elvis song in my life, is
Phase 4 (37+ Hours)
She’d pointed a gun at her.
Charlie braced herself for a split second. But the gunshot never came. Instead, she saw a blur she only loosely recognized as Buddy kicking into the girl. The scream of shock filled the air.
He wasn’t down for the count, Charlie realized.
She gripped tighter on the chair.
He needed help. Part of her wanted to run for it, maybe she was better off alone, but at the same time she couldn't just--
An image of brains splattering against the wall, caused by a loud cracking noise, filled her mind for another split second. But she pushed it aside.
She darted forward, chair held in her arms like a shield.
Remember to breathe.
He might need you.
Charlie braced herself for a split second. But the gunshot never came. Instead, she saw a blur she only loosely recognized as Buddy kicking into the girl. The scream of shock filled the air.
He wasn’t down for the count, Charlie realized.
She gripped tighter on the chair.
He needed help. Part of her wanted to run for it, maybe she was better off alone, but at the same time she couldn't just--
An image of brains splattering against the wall, caused by a loud cracking noise, filled her mind for another split second. But she pushed it aside.
She darted forward, chair held in her arms like a shield.
Remember to breathe.
He might need you.
CYBERS:
HARERAISER (Winter Castillo)The synthwave bunnygirl programmer roller weeb!
Currently: Confused? Horrified?
SECOND CHANCES
Junko KurosawaThink Johnny Knoxville but a teenage girl.
Currently: Ridng a shopping cart (in-between threads)
Bella Bianchi
Ballet dancer with pressure.
Currently: In the student lounge
(Meanwhile in the past...)
-
Irina Ivanov
- Posts: 222
- Joined: Wed Aug 08, 2018 9:47 am
- Location: The Land Down Under
Ignore it all, focus, Edward, focus.
Each sound that was close to him hampered his ability to find his weapon. It should have been simple, zip, search, found, done. But it wasn't. The fight was too close to him, and he could become a casualty any moment now. He didn't dare look it in the eyes, he needed to find his weapon.
He remembered burying his bow under everything else in the case it got looted. He had chosen to do what he thought was smartest, but now he realised that it was a double edged sword. He too was having trouble finding it.
Water, brownies, first aid kit, MRAs, everything else was present, and hampering his scavenge. Edward gave a look of frustration to the objects, although he knew they weren't sentient. This was no time for common sense after all. Just where could it be?
....
...
Bingo.
Without even thinking, Edward grabbed the bow and arrow and stood up. He couldn't move. There was a scream coming from there. Was someone hurt, dying? Was it that girl who gave him the bottle that was now on the floor? The girl with the chair? The attacker? Whoever it was, it was a terrible scream.
Edward forced himself to turn around, and shakily aimed his bow at the attacker as best as he could.
He walked closer, still looking as pale as a ghost and also as if he saw one.
"That-t's enou-enough. Please don't use that g-gun."
Each sound that was close to him hampered his ability to find his weapon. It should have been simple, zip, search, found, done. But it wasn't. The fight was too close to him, and he could become a casualty any moment now. He didn't dare look it in the eyes, he needed to find his weapon.
He remembered burying his bow under everything else in the case it got looted. He had chosen to do what he thought was smartest, but now he realised that it was a double edged sword. He too was having trouble finding it.
Water, brownies, first aid kit, MRAs, everything else was present, and hampering his scavenge. Edward gave a look of frustration to the objects, although he knew they weren't sentient. This was no time for common sense after all. Just where could it be?
....
...
Bingo.
Without even thinking, Edward grabbed the bow and arrow and stood up. He couldn't move. There was a scream coming from there. Was someone hurt, dying? Was it that girl who gave him the bottle that was now on the floor? The girl with the chair? The attacker? Whoever it was, it was a terrible scream.
Edward forced himself to turn around, and shakily aimed his bow at the attacker as best as he could.
He walked closer, still looking as pale as a ghost and also as if he saw one.
"That-t's enou-enough. Please don't use that g-gun."
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Wham Yubeesling
- Posts: 1257
- Joined: Mon Aug 06, 2018 9:15 pm
- Location: there is a man standing behind you
- Team Affiliation: Stephanie's Buccaneers
- Contact:
He felt flesh hit flesh as his kick connected. He watched as Danielle was knocked back. His mind was goin' through all the possibilities of what to do, to keep going, to pull back, to figure out some way to end this which lined up with his plan which didn't end with his death which made sure shehisryfortheinvisitextwas the one who died here whichsryidontknowwhattheindentbuttonisonthisboardmade
sure
His head span. His brain hurt. His body dropped, hit the floor.
There was only darkness after that.
sure
His head span. His brain hurt. His body dropped, hit the floor.
There was only darkness after that.
Sylvia had another bottle in her hand, her right arm back and ready to throw.
She was on the wrong side of the bar, the scuffle far too close. She had nowhere to throw the bottle without a chance of hitting someone she didn't want to hit. No reason to throw it elsewhere other than to shatter glass shards all over the floor and make things harder for her own allies. There was nothing she could do, not from a distance and certainly not close up. After all she'd tried to appear capable, she was useless here.
The only thing she'd done was giving Edward a bottle of his own. To shut him up, somehow. It hadn't been his fault. He'd been afraid, and that had been more real to her than anything else. That was how she felt too. She just hadn't wanted to see her own fear mirrored and amplified back to her.
When the gun had fallen to the ground, she'd had a feeling this had all happened before.
The rest was different, flashing by in front of her as if she was flipping through a slideshow. Buddy crumpled for a reason that she couldn't tell in the dark. Charlie tackled their attacker. Edward had an arrow nocked just in case.
The fight was over.
She wasn't sure what came next. She could check on Buddy, and try not to think about what she might find out. She could find something to make into restraints. She could retrieve the gun. They could keep the other girl prisoner, for whatever good it would do in the end.
Right then, something changed. If anything had been happening outside during the fight, she hadn't been paying attention. But now she was, because something suddenly felt out of place.
In that moment of relative silence, she could hear the sound of helicopters.
She was on the wrong side of the bar, the scuffle far too close. She had nowhere to throw the bottle without a chance of hitting someone she didn't want to hit. No reason to throw it elsewhere other than to shatter glass shards all over the floor and make things harder for her own allies. There was nothing she could do, not from a distance and certainly not close up. After all she'd tried to appear capable, she was useless here.
The only thing she'd done was giving Edward a bottle of his own. To shut him up, somehow. It hadn't been his fault. He'd been afraid, and that had been more real to her than anything else. That was how she felt too. She just hadn't wanted to see her own fear mirrored and amplified back to her.
When the gun had fallen to the ground, she'd had a feeling this had all happened before.
The rest was different, flashing by in front of her as if she was flipping through a slideshow. Buddy crumpled for a reason that she couldn't tell in the dark. Charlie tackled their attacker. Edward had an arrow nocked just in case.
The fight was over.
She wasn't sure what came next. She could check on Buddy, and try not to think about what she might find out. She could find something to make into restraints. She could retrieve the gun. They could keep the other girl prisoner, for whatever good it would do in the end.
Right then, something changed. If anything had been happening outside during the fight, she hadn't been paying attention. But now she was, because something suddenly felt out of place.
In that moment of relative silence, she could hear the sound of helicopters.
This signature intentionally left blank.
Leo wasn't sure when he stood up. He didn't remember moving. One second he was flattened against the bar, half-sitting in the sand with Howie standing before him, dead, and then he blinked again and Howie and his ghost were gone, and a second later Leo was standing, one hand clenched so tightly around his crucifix that he thought he might bleed.
"Stop."
His voice was hoarse and louder than he thought it should be in the space left by the abrupt end of the fight. Over as soon as it had begun, all over again.
"It's over," he said, and he wasn't sure who he was telling that to. "Okay? It's over."
Leo forced his fingers to uncurl from the necklace and ignored the déjà vu of the ache in his palm. It was too dark to make out the mark that had been left, so he didn't bother looking.
Charlie and Edward had things under control. Sylvia was behind him, safe. Buddy was-
Leo staggered over, took a knee harder than intended, and fumbled at Buddy's collar. The breath that threatened to catch in his throat came out in a gust as his fingertips found a pulse.
"He's okay. I think he's just had too much excitement." Who was he announcing this to, in its almost flippant way? Himself mostly, he supposed. Maybe he just didn't want to look over at Danielle. He could make out now that it was her on the floor, disarmed, battered, and held at weapon-point.
In the school hallways, Danielle was friendly, cute in that passing way that you didn't dwell on because you might live in the same neighborhood and go to the same school, but you came from different worlds. Here, he'd heard her name the first time and not thought much more about her than anyone else.
The faint background buzzing he'd been hearing suddenly cleared and solidified, and Leo realized that it wasn't tinnitus or blood rushing in his ears.
"Stop."
His voice was hoarse and louder than he thought it should be in the space left by the abrupt end of the fight. Over as soon as it had begun, all over again.
"It's over," he said, and he wasn't sure who he was telling that to. "Okay? It's over."
Leo forced his fingers to uncurl from the necklace and ignored the déjà vu of the ache in his palm. It was too dark to make out the mark that had been left, so he didn't bother looking.
Charlie and Edward had things under control. Sylvia was behind him, safe. Buddy was-
Leo staggered over, took a knee harder than intended, and fumbled at Buddy's collar. The breath that threatened to catch in his throat came out in a gust as his fingertips found a pulse.
"He's okay. I think he's just had too much excitement." Who was he announcing this to, in its almost flippant way? Himself mostly, he supposed. Maybe he just didn't want to look over at Danielle. He could make out now that it was her on the floor, disarmed, battered, and held at weapon-point.
In the school hallways, Danielle was friendly, cute in that passing way that you didn't dwell on because you might live in the same neighborhood and go to the same school, but you came from different worlds. Here, he'd heard her name the first time and not thought much more about her than anyone else.
The faint background buzzing he'd been hearing suddenly cleared and solidified, and Leo realized that it wasn't tinnitus or blood rushing in his ears.
Leo stayed kneeling by Buddy, trying to puzzle out the noise of the helicopters and what they should do about Danielle and a dozen other fleeting things, until he heard them outside.
Footsteps. Voices. He knew that accent -- he'd heard it in movies. Always the villains and betrayers.
"Stay here," he said, and his voice didn't sound like his own, and he didn't know what he would do if nobody listened to him, anyway. Buddy had seemed like he wanted to lead things, and now Buddy was in a heap on the ground, a victim of low blood pressure or something.
Leo stumbled up, past Edward and Charlie and Danielle to the door. He intended to peek outside and see what the new commotion was all about because it certainly wasn't fitting into events as Leo understood them so far. They met him at the doorway instead.
Leo came face to face with an assault weapon and did the first thing that came to mind, which was to put his hands on top of his head like he was being held up by the police, or perhaps taken hostage. For a moment, he and the guy holding the gun -- some freckle-faced man who barely looked older than Leo himself -- stared at each other.
The enemy solider laughed, sounding surprised, and lowered his gun.
"Put your hands down, mate. We're friendly- to you, anyway."
"What," Leo said. He didn't put his hands down.
"I mean," the freckle-faced soldier said slowly, like he was trying to keep Leo calm or thought that Leo was stupid or both, "that we're here to rescue you."
When Leo kept staring, the man shook his head, impatience trickling into what Leo could see of his expression. "You deaf?"
"Kind of?" The ringing in Leo's ear was still loud and constant.
"God!" The soldier lifted one hand from the gun and clapped Leo on the shoulder, not very gently. "Put your hands down, you knob- do you want out of this shithole or not?"
"I." Leo blinked at him. Third time's the charm, and all that; the words sank in.
Leo dropped his arms to his sides. "Yes- yeah! Yeah, we just- I'm sorry, I'm sorry okay, I'm not usually-" Shut up, shut up. Leo took a faltering step back, then turned and barreled back inside.
"Guys." His voice was loud in the expectant silence that awaited him inside like a held breath. "We're going. Come on." He gave no further explanation and didn't wait for an answer. Maybe it wasn't his choice to make for all of them, but he was doing it anyway. Leo crouched next to Buddy again and pulled him into a sitting position. From there, he swung one of Buddy's limp arms over his shoulders and stood, hauling Buddy up with a grunt.
"Eddie, put that down, Sylvia, come on, Charlie-" Leo hesitated for just a second, no more. "Bring Danielle."
That was it. Leo led the way out, half-carrying and half-dragging Buddy. He trusted that the others were on his heels. He couldn't do anything else now but trust. Leo had told the whole country that he was about ready to die, but he wasn't dead yet.
God and everybody would have to wait.
((The Dogtown crew & Danielle continued in ...And An Ending))
Footsteps. Voices. He knew that accent -- he'd heard it in movies. Always the villains and betrayers.
"Stay here," he said, and his voice didn't sound like his own, and he didn't know what he would do if nobody listened to him, anyway. Buddy had seemed like he wanted to lead things, and now Buddy was in a heap on the ground, a victim of low blood pressure or something.
Leo stumbled up, past Edward and Charlie and Danielle to the door. He intended to peek outside and see what the new commotion was all about because it certainly wasn't fitting into events as Leo understood them so far. They met him at the doorway instead.
Leo came face to face with an assault weapon and did the first thing that came to mind, which was to put his hands on top of his head like he was being held up by the police, or perhaps taken hostage. For a moment, he and the guy holding the gun -- some freckle-faced man who barely looked older than Leo himself -- stared at each other.
The enemy solider laughed, sounding surprised, and lowered his gun.
"Put your hands down, mate. We're friendly- to you, anyway."
"What," Leo said. He didn't put his hands down.
"I mean," the freckle-faced soldier said slowly, like he was trying to keep Leo calm or thought that Leo was stupid or both, "that we're here to rescue you."
When Leo kept staring, the man shook his head, impatience trickling into what Leo could see of his expression. "You deaf?"
"Kind of?" The ringing in Leo's ear was still loud and constant.
"God!" The soldier lifted one hand from the gun and clapped Leo on the shoulder, not very gently. "Put your hands down, you knob- do you want out of this shithole or not?"
"I." Leo blinked at him. Third time's the charm, and all that; the words sank in.
Leo dropped his arms to his sides. "Yes- yeah! Yeah, we just- I'm sorry, I'm sorry okay, I'm not usually-" Shut up, shut up. Leo took a faltering step back, then turned and barreled back inside.
"Guys." His voice was loud in the expectant silence that awaited him inside like a held breath. "We're going. Come on." He gave no further explanation and didn't wait for an answer. Maybe it wasn't his choice to make for all of them, but he was doing it anyway. Leo crouched next to Buddy again and pulled him into a sitting position. From there, he swung one of Buddy's limp arms over his shoulders and stood, hauling Buddy up with a grunt.
"Eddie, put that down, Sylvia, come on, Charlie-" Leo hesitated for just a second, no more. "Bring Danielle."
That was it. Leo led the way out, half-carrying and half-dragging Buddy. He trusted that the others were on his heels. He couldn't do anything else now but trust. Leo had told the whole country that he was about ready to die, but he wasn't dead yet.
God and everybody would have to wait.
((The Dogtown crew & Danielle continued in ...And An Ending))