Do Not Go Gentle

[PlatFleece]

The day was starting to take its toll.

More than anything, Lucine was just happy to get some shade and rest. She hadn't dressed up for the desert. She hadn't had time to properly consider the implications of them all being here, kidnapped, away from their families. The fact that they were in actual mortal danger, that their families could also be in danger, or worse, that people here might not come back.

But it was because she wasn't thinking of those thoughts that she was able to keep going, one leg in front of the other.

Right now, the students that were here were separated into two groups, those who stayed calm, and those who weren't. Lucine was determined to be the former, especially as Nora seemed to be the latter. She was secretly glad that Orion couldn't read minds, or he would've discovered just how much Lucine was suppressing the panicked part of her mental state.

They were nearly there now. That building at the center should have both shelter and a chance to make contact with some people. Good people, Lucine hoped.

Then she looked at the sky, and in the distance, she saw...

...was that a moving dust cloud? No, actually, it was more than a dust cloud. It was something else converging onto the building at the center. Lucine tried to find some rational explanation for the bizarre sight, before her thoughts went back to what Joel said a while earlier.

Bugs.

That's not Izzy, is it?

"Uh... guys?" Lucine stopped in her tracks, pointing at the swarm in the distance. Suddenly shelter seemed so far away.

[KamiKaze]

((Nora Moriarty continued from Old Town Road))

“Bugs?” Nora whimpered.

Isabella was always kind of odd. She knew it wasn’t the nicest thing to say, but she knew about what her Gift was and what she liked to talk about. Everyone did. Nora guessed that, if you got a nice Gift, you’d use it as much as you could. Kind of like Lily with her illusions, or Melodie with her meat. Nora had memories of her father at parties aiming his blood out of eyes to hit a target, of Rusty eating cereal with his tongue, of an uncle who could unhinge his jaw and swallow a sandwich whole, of her mother being able to know where she was even from another part of the house.

Many Gifts were odd, sure. But what made Isabelle odd wasn’t the Gift itself, but how she acted because of it. Of course, if God gave you an affinity for bugs, then you’d use your talents, right? But then… she was… kinda… obsessed? Was that the right word?

She remembered what Joel said as she stared at the forming cloud. It must have been full of creepy-crawlies descending from everywhere, forming a swarm.

Nora once again imagined insects biting and stinging at purpling, swelling flesh. She imagined insects laying inside a puddle of water, still twitching and convulsing. She imagined seeing Isabella smiling amongst her friends as they ravaged everything among them.

She rubbed her wrist. The backpack was still heavy on her back.

“That’s her, right?”

[AnimeNerd]

It was at this point, as he stared at the growing cloud of bugs that flowed like water into the sole building in sight, the distinct feeling of his right eye twitching, that he came to a realization.

Joel was far too sober for this bullshit.

[[Joel Foster continued from The Old Town Road]]

He knew that, whatever the situation was, it wasn't going to be easy. Real or not, people were going to take it hard, what they'd seen on the bus and during that briefing. His short encounter with Isabela earlier showed as much. And because of that, he knew he'd have to be prepared for a good amount of bullshit.

But this? Even after seeing her freak out earlier? It looked like a god damn Egyptian plague brought to life before his very eyes.

Joel groaned in frustration as he dragged a hand down his face, eyes locked on the nightmare that was Isabela's fury.

"Yeah, that's...yeah," he sighed out, glancing to the poor terrified Nora before looking back to the building, what he had hoped to be a safe haven turned into the center of a fucking horror show.

"We're gonna need a bigger can of bug spray."

[Aster]

"I doubt they put any in our bags."

The few extra feet probably didn't matter, considering how far away the swarm was, but Orion still made sure to stand further back than the others. He bounced on the balls of his feet as he glanced between them.

"Well, that's it, right? We fall back to Plan B?" His plan, he wanted to say, but he didn't want to sound smug. Nobody wanted to make an ass out of themselves in a situation like this—besides Joel and his mystery friend, however—but Orion had the right idea. The building would be swarming with their classmates, and now it was literally swarming. With fucking bugs. Sure, there were probably bugs and other nasty critters waiting for them out in the desert, too, but at least they weren't being mind-controlled by someone intent on killing you dead.

He paused, waiting for a response. As much as he'd like to make a 180 degree turn and nope the fuck out of there, there was no way in hell he was gonna do it alone.

[PlatFleece]

Plan B? As if Plan B was going to be simple.

If they had to make camp and a fire, Lucine could help, but they had a severe lack of tools to do so. Their pack didn't contain any flint and steel, so they'd have to find rocks that could create sparks, and other necessary things needed for a fire. Lucine silently thanked her mother for teaching her some basic survival while she was studying biology.

Her mother... would she ever see her again? What about her father? Her sister?

She shook those thoughts away. One foot at a time, right?

"So we set up camp? I guess we can do that. The problem is, we'll need a lot of tinder. We also don't have flint and steel, so we'll need some rocks to start a flame. We don't have flint and steel, so we'll need to find rocks like quartz to start one... I can touch the rocks to find out what they are, but finding it? Well... that's going to take a bit of luck."

Lucine hoped that the four of them could make it work. If they could, then their group could be solidified. Maybe by then Izzy would've calmed down, and they can visit that building the next day.

"If we're going to do this though, we should be efficient. The sun's going to be our worst enemy here." She wiped some sweat off of her forehead. Already she was feeling mildly thirsty, but she should save those drinks for later, when they're resting. For now, they had a way to make it just one more day.

[KamiKaze]

“Camping? Camping… right… uh… I can do that…”

She’d actually camped before. It was with her family. Just her, Rusty, and their parents.

It was at a lake. It was a popular low-cost location, so sometimes finding reservations and thus planning for it was tricky. But when they were able to go, they’d set up a tent that she’d spend a lot of time huddled inside a sleeping bag like a cocoon, perhaps reading, perhaps working on a project. At night, they’d roast things over the fire and stargaze. Like always, she had her own plate, her own silverware, her own skewers.

Nora had once overheard her parents say that they wanted to give her ‘a childhood.’

She smiled behind her mask at the thought, the memory.

Then, she was snapped back to reality.

“Uh… yeah, m-maybe there’s some stuff I can help with…”

Are you sure, Nora? Sleeping with other people nearby? Sleeping when someone could sneak up on you? Sleeping when bugs filled the air, walked all over the ground? Sleeping when you…

“Right, yeah. Sounds good.”

[AnimeNerd]

Joel wanted to groan. Bang his head against the nearest rock until he knocked himself out. Scream into the void until he lost his voice. He didn't have time for setting up camp-he needed to find people! Family, friends, future family if Martin had planned far ahead enough, people he generally cared about and didn't want to put a label on their relationship because he was scared of fucking things up! He had shit to do!

But Joel didn't do anything self-destructive. He didn't make any rude comments. Because as much as he wanted to find people and make sure they were safe, anger and panic would only make things worse. He'd taken care of his brothers and sisters long enough to know that. Plus, while he wasn't very close to two of the three people in this little group, he still felt responsible for them. Responsible to make up for his stupid mistake to Orion. Responsible to keep a sane person like Lucine sane so that they could work with each other. Responsible to make sure Nora, the one friend he's run into so far, stays safe and doesn't break despite her fragile nature.

So he just sighed, shaking his head as he finally turned away from Isabela's rampage. "Sounds good to me, considering that's a big case of 'fuck that' over there."

Camping was, surprisingly, something Joel had little experience with apart from watching it on television. Mom and Dad weren't outdoors-y people, Martin hated sunrise and sunset, Fox's interest in gross things did not include bugs that could crawl over him in his sleep, Sasha barely got sleep when lying on anything less than a bed, and the twins were far too young for it.

But he could handle it. He could do this. He can find rocks. He can find twigs and dead plants and whatever else can work as tinder. And if they needed good luck?

Well, he could just give them some good luck.

Joel gave a thumb up to Lucine, already sending good vibes to Nora as he walked to the nearest shrubbery that looked dehydrated. He would've extended his power to Lucine, but she had enough on her side as it was, so helping Nora out wouldn't make things too unfair.

And maybe he did have a bias for his friend. What was anyone gonna do, call him out?

[Aster]

It was not the course of action he expected, but not one Orion was going to complain about. He just hoped that nobody would stumble upon their little camp—or at least, that they wouldn’t get him first.

Orion dropped his bag, and then took off his jacket. Joel seemed to be looking for the kindling, so he could probably help Lucine find the rocks. She was apparently going to use her gift to find some, but it shouldn’t be that hard.

He ambled over to the closest pile of rocks he could find and crouched down. Orion picked up each one individually, turning them over in his palm before moving on to the next one. Once he’d gone through all of them, he paused and gave Lucine a sidelong glance.

“Hey. Quartz is, like, the shiny ones, right?”

[PlatFleece]

Lucine knew what to look for. She knew in general what to do, but actually doing it was much harder than knowing it. Here comes the hard part of survival out in the wilderness. Actually accomplishing it.

Then she heard Orion talking to her in her head. That's right, she would just be struggling to actually find the rocks, everyone else might not know as much as she did. She turned around to Orion. "Yeah, they're white-ish and shiny. We just need really hard rocks. Here, lemme take a look."

Lucine touched the rocks that Orion gathered. Her hands only felt them all for a few seconds, each one gathering information on what kind of rocks they are.

Nope. Nuh-uh. Not it. Not even close.

Lucine shook her head. "None of these are hard enough. Keep trying. Try looking by bushes and shrubbery, or finding places where the ground and the rocks are whiter. I'll do the same. I just hope Nora and Joel are faring much better."

[KamiKaze]

Nora breathed. She was feeling a little better, honestly. Maybe she was overreacting. Maybe she was just dwelling on things, right? Maybe…

They’d make it through this.

That voice of reason helped some.

She looked around. There were plants, and rocks too. She tried to remember what her parents used. Dry pieces of wood were best. There’s tinder, which burned fast, and kindling would last them a bit longer. And then there’s fuel wood.

Nora saw a small shrub sitting nearby. She stepped towards it knelt down, looking it over. Would that work? It seemed dry enough. Her hand reached out to touch it.

Another voice came in, this time outside her head. And she flinched. Then, her eyes widened. Her body began trembling again.

They– their captors– were going to start killing people if no one was dead by the end of the day. No one was dead, and they were… pushing them. Making them go through with hurting each other. And if they didn’t, they… they would…

Nora looked down for a few seconds. Her heart was racing. She knew Joel was there, and Lucine, and Orion. She lifted her head, and checked everyone. Joel had been looking at a different plant, while it seemed Lucine and Orion were looking for quartz, like they’d said.

“Did you… hear that too?” she whimpered quietly.

[AnimeNerd]

Snap

Snap

Snap

The yellowest parts of the shrub were easiest to find. Most of it was green, so what wasn't stuck out. Joel didn't know a lot about tinder, but leaves changing colors always meant they were dying, and dead things burnt easier than living things, so yellowing twigs and leaves it was. It was not much, but it was.

With another snap came an inner reassurance. If he tried doing this and sending good luck to Nora and Lucine, this definitely would've been painful. Not full on migraine, but that kind of dull thudding headache that you could probably sleep off. As it was, all that he had to deal with was feeling a little spread thin, and that was nothing new.

A new sound filled the air, earning a wince from Joel. He'd heard worse, but that still didn't make it enjoyable.

And then the woman started talking, and Joel had to focus not to instinctively curl his hand into a fist and crush the plant life that sat in it.

Maybe he could deny it with everything else that had happened at this point. Some gifts were absolutely crazy, so maybe Phelps and Duffy and Spencer were still alive. Prank shows could've gotten even more extreme than before, and no one really read permission slips, so maybe they'd even signed up for something without realizing it. And Isabella may have gone crazy, but it could've been her just making a show of things, maybe being a man-er, woman on the inside of sorts. All of it could've really been okay.

But what the woman said struck him then. Even if the metal around their necks wasn't actually deadly, a threat like that could still scare people. And there were a lot of people that would be dangerous to scare that could be here. His mind went to electric crackling and rays of heat and eyes that bore into someone's soul.

Joel grit his teeth, blood boiling as he glared at the nearest camera.

"Yeah," he said, nearly growled. "Heard the feathery bitch loud and clear."

[Aster]

Huh, he could’ve sworn that the shiny stuff in rocks was quartz. It’d been a hot minute since he’d been in the Girl Scouts, and maybe those skills were deteriorating faster than he thought. Then again, they weren’t really camping in deserts up in Oregon. Before he could say anything, hidden speakers around them crackled to life. Orion stayed quiet as the woman spoke, and for a long while after everyone around him reacted.

He was honestly shocked that nobody had died yet. With all the characters in their class, Orion figured that someone would’ve had their head bashed in or incinerated or melted into a puddle by someone’s batshit insane gift by now. A small part of him was relieved—and maybe even proud—of everyone.

That wouldn’t last long, though. Not with the ultimatum they were given.

Orion glanced between the other three. They’d been trustworthy up to this point, but who knew what was going through their heads after that? He cleared his throat to speak to them with his gift. Force of habit.

“I’m gonna go find some of those rocks. Won’t go too far.”

With that, Orion wordlessly disappeared into the brush. He didn’t have the guts to go out on his own just yet, but he’d risk it if he heard any screaming.

[PlatFleece]

It was a strange feeling, the sense of relief in knowing that your friends were still alive, only to be followed by the dread that any one of them could die. Lucine didn't want to kill anyone, and she was certain that the people she knew wouldn't do anything like that either, but then they'd all be dead.

A small part of her wished that they could find a way out of this somehow, or that they'd have been given more time. She'd been resting on her laurels, she'd gotten a lot more relaxed ever since she found familiar faces, but now everything was going to fall apart if what that woman said was going to put everyone on edge again.

And then Orion wanted to head out. Now, of all times?

...At least he's stable enough.

But what about Nora? Was she going to be okay? And what about Lucine's other friends. Sayuna? Raja? What about people like Isabella?

One at a time. She decided she was going to go check up on whatever it is that Nora and Joel found. Maybe they had much better luck than the both of them.

"Alright. Meet up in a bit, yeah?" Lucine yelled out to Orion, not expecting him to answer her back before she headed off towards where Nora and Joel were.

She didn't want to discuss that announcement. Better to focus on surviving, and to keep Nora from freaking out. If she breaks, then Orion or Joel might, and truthfully, Lucine didn't know if she could handle it if they were going to split up because of that.

"How's the search going? I can give a touch to the rocks you found." She approached the two.

[KamiKaze]

“OH! Ummm… I found tinder kinda, and… uh…”

Useless Nora.

She pushed that aside.

Nora looked to the side, her hand dropping to rub her other arm. The announcement kept playing in her head. Five days. If no one was dead, they’d start popping them like how someone would pop one of the insects hovering inside the cloud.

She thought about how everyone looked and sounded. Joel had growled out his bit, Orion had ran off, and Lucine… she seemed calm? Calmer.

Nora breathed.

“Just… give me a few minutes.”

___

Nora shortly arrived with an array of rocks nestled inside her arms. She dropped them to the ground, still looking off to the side.

“Uh. Will these do?”

She was pretty lucky. She found a reasonable-sized assortment.

[PlatFleece]

Lucine quickly sorted through the rocks that she found. She was certain that she'd have to sort through the whole lot of them before they found--

"Uh, wow."

Lucine then placed them all on the ground. She spread them out just so slightly, and removed a single rock from the pile. "This was the only one that's not quartz. You found a whole stockpile, Nora. This'll work."

Lucky was undercutting it. This was great news! So great that she almost forgot that they were going to get killed if nobody died. Almost.