Care For a Dip?
Phase 1 (0-12 Hours)
"Jesus fucking Christ I think I'm gonna vomit," Marion said, retching a bit as she turned away from Lisa's mutilated corpse. "Maybe coming here wasn't such a good idea after all..."
Kass had no words. What could she possibly say to this? It was the single most disgusting thing she had ever seen. And that wasn't in the same way she would call a couple in school having a sloppy makeout in the cafeteria right across from her while she was trying to eat lunch. This was straight-up nauseating.
Where should she begin? Maybe with how the stone was turning green with all the algae growing from it? Or maybe how the water had already turned green and seemed to have a solid layer of seaweed on top? Oh wait, maybe she should focus on the girl who had her innards wrapped around a pitchfork like some kind of grotesquely gory parody of spaghetti and meatballs? Would that be a good place to start?
She has horrified, but she couldn't turn away. The only thing she could do to block the view was close her eyes but that didn't keep the image out of her mind. It was in there, and it would be lodged deep in the recesses of her brain for a long, long time.
The worst part? One of her classmates did this. Someone she probably saw almost every day had ripped someone apart. Hell, maybe it was someone that she had talked to before. And that was the thing that scared Kassandra the most. Not the brutality, but that someone that she probably never would have suspected could have done something like that. And all it took was a little push.
Fuck, she hated the Program.
She still didn't say anything. She just stood in place and tried to find some semblance of balance as her breathing started to get heavier.
Where should she begin? Maybe with how the stone was turning green with all the algae growing from it? Or maybe how the water had already turned green and seemed to have a solid layer of seaweed on top? Oh wait, maybe she should focus on the girl who had her innards wrapped around a pitchfork like some kind of grotesquely gory parody of spaghetti and meatballs? Would that be a good place to start?
She has horrified, but she couldn't turn away. The only thing she could do to block the view was close her eyes but that didn't keep the image out of her mind. It was in there, and it would be lodged deep in the recesses of her brain for a long, long time.
The worst part? One of her classmates did this. Someone she probably saw almost every day had ripped someone apart. Hell, maybe it was someone that she had talked to before. And that was the thing that scared Kassandra the most. Not the brutality, but that someone that she probably never would have suspected could have done something like that. And all it took was a little push.
Fuck, she hated the Program.
She still didn't say anything. She just stood in place and tried to find some semblance of balance as her breathing started to get heavier.
Marion couldn't look. Just the initial glimpse at the carnage was nauseating, and trying to look at it again only brought that nausea back. One of her fellow classmates was now a arms, legs, a head, and a gory mess of a torso, with a disgusting pitchfork nearby that still had some of her innards on it. God, just thinking about it made her want to throw up. It was a shame too, as that pitchfork maybe could've been a nice weapon to add to the collection, but she didn't want to look at the disgusting thing, so she definitely didn't want it added.
Whoever did this must have been a sick freak. She couldn't imagine mutilating someone's stomach like that and not getting the urge to throw up. God, did she hate her country. It was a breeding ground for monstrous psychopaths like Scott. Brittany, and whomever massacred that poor girl.
She leaned her head on Kassandra's shoulder. "Hold me. I don't wanna think about this anymore."
Whoever did this must have been a sick freak. She couldn't imagine mutilating someone's stomach like that and not getting the urge to throw up. God, did she hate her country. It was a breeding ground for monstrous psychopaths like Scott. Brittany, and whomever massacred that poor girl.
She leaned her head on Kassandra's shoulder. "Hold me. I don't wanna think about this anymore."
Kassandra barely needed any provocation to hold Marion. She needed quite a bit of comfort herself.
It just felt so unreal. They were high school students. They should have been doing homework and hanging out downtown after class, not finding bodies that someone else had torn up, or ripping people open for other people to find later. It was true that they lived in a deeply fucked-up world, and lots of things happened that really shouldn't. And beyond a shadow of a doubt, the Program was one of those things. Yet they were just supposed to accept it as a natural event in their lives.
It was wrong. It was just fucking wrong.
She thought back to the gazebo. Marion had been trapped there for hours, unable to escape until she sprung her free. Worse, she had been attacked by someone while Kass was away, and he had tried to torture her. If Scott had been assigned a weapon more along the lines of the pitchfork, or if Marion hadn't been able to fight him off... the ideas of what could have happened to her immediately surged into Kass' mind.
This could have been Marion.
No. She couldn't think about that. That wasn't going to happen, because Kassandra wouldn't let things get to that point. She was going to protect her from anyone who would even think of trying something like that. She wouldn't forgive herself if she let that kind of person slip by.
"Hey." She gently stroked Marion's hair, as much for the other girl's comfort as her own, and spoke to her softly. "Let's get out of here."
It just felt so unreal. They were high school students. They should have been doing homework and hanging out downtown after class, not finding bodies that someone else had torn up, or ripping people open for other people to find later. It was true that they lived in a deeply fucked-up world, and lots of things happened that really shouldn't. And beyond a shadow of a doubt, the Program was one of those things. Yet they were just supposed to accept it as a natural event in their lives.
It was wrong. It was just fucking wrong.
She thought back to the gazebo. Marion had been trapped there for hours, unable to escape until she sprung her free. Worse, she had been attacked by someone while Kass was away, and he had tried to torture her. If Scott had been assigned a weapon more along the lines of the pitchfork, or if Marion hadn't been able to fight him off... the ideas of what could have happened to her immediately surged into Kass' mind.
This could have been Marion.
No. She couldn't think about that. That wasn't going to happen, because Kassandra wouldn't let things get to that point. She was going to protect her from anyone who would even think of trying something like that. She wouldn't forgive herself if she let that kind of person slip by.
"Hey." She gently stroked Marion's hair, as much for the other girl's comfort as her own, and spoke to her softly. "Let's get out of here."
Marion melted under Kassandra's embrace. It was comforting; it made her feel safe. She normally didn't show such vulnerability, preferring to keep up a tough exterior to match her rebellious biker chick persona, but she trusted Kassandra, who went out of her way to save her, and even now continued to help her. There was no one she trusted more at the moment. She smiled to herself as Kass stroked her hair.
"Yeah, let's get out of here," Marion agreed. "Got any ideas on where to go next?"
"Yeah, let's get out of here," Marion agreed. "Got any ideas on where to go next?"
"I don't know. Anywhere's fine as long as it's not here."
She turned around, putting their backs to the awful scene behind them. There was no reason for either of them to look at it anymore. She brought her head down to meet Marion's, their foreheads just barely touching. The closeness and warmth between the two did a little to ease her nerves, and she couldn't help but wish that they were living in happier times.
"Come on, let's go."
She turned around, putting their backs to the awful scene behind them. There was no reason for either of them to look at it anymore. She brought her head down to meet Marion's, their foreheads just barely touching. The closeness and warmth between the two did a little to ease her nerves, and she couldn't help but wish that they were living in happier times.
"Come on, let's go."
As Kassandra's forehead touched hers, Marion couldn't help but lean up and steal a quick kiss from her.
"All right, you lead the way," Marion said as she walked away from the pool, not wanting to look at it ever again.
(Marion Williams continued in Exploring)
"All right, you lead the way," Marion said as she walked away from the pool, not wanting to look at it ever again.
(Marion Williams continued in Exploring)
The kiss that Marion gave her wasn't like the others they had shared. It wasn't animmersive experience where they enthusiastically explored each other's faces. It was a simple, quick peck, a small gesture of tenderness. And Kass cherished it all the same.
"Okay." She left the pool behind them, not looking back for a moment. She didn't have much optimism for wherever they were headed next, but she figured that they couldn't find anywhere much worse than that.
(Kassandra Vaitaki continued elsewhere...)
"Okay." She left the pool behind them, not looking back for a moment. She didn't have much optimism for wherever they were headed next, but she figured that they couldn't find anywhere much worse than that.
(Kassandra Vaitaki continued elsewhere...)