Night Diving

Dark, dank, and dreary, the caves snake across the island, leading deep down into the depths and surfacing in multiple locations. Some areas have been declared hazardous, while others are just downright scary. Forty years ago, the soldiers used to tell ghost stories about these caves, saying you could hear children crying if you ventured far enough into their depths. Of course, they'd always make good shelter, but you'd better not venture too far underground lest you never return.
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Ares
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Night Diving

#1

Post by Ares »

((Gabe continued from Weighing In))

To say that the last two days had been rough on Gabe would be an enormous understatement. He'd been like a machine, walking with a purpose, the purpose being to destroy Nathaniel Harris. Make him suffer like he'd never suffered before. Rip his stupid little mask off and shove it down his throat. In the middle of those thoughts, an announcement kindly informed him that is best friend had shot his girlfriend. All Gabe could think about was what this game was doing to people. If it could get to someone as strong as Steve, what would it do to him?

Look what is already done to you.

Gabe, shook the thought out of his head and continued on. He could see a cave up ahead, and decided to take a short break in there. As he sat down inside, the announcements for today came on, and delivered the most bittersweet news Gabe would ever receive.

"Nathanial Harris is dead? That son of a bitch is dead?" Gabe broke into a laugh, and began to cry at the same time.

It was such a relief. He was happy that the son of a bitch, from what it sounded like, got what was coming to him, and he was happy that he wouldn't have to kill anyone, but deep down, Gabe couldn't help but feel like he'd failed Kara in a strange way. He couldn't help but think that she would have wanted Gabe to avenge her, and now he couldn't do it.

Here he was, Gabe McCallum, couldn't avenge his girlfriend, and the best friend of a killer, sitting on a cave floor crying.
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#2

Post by DetectiveArcher* »

((Continued from Running Free))

Morning was teasingly close, now. The sky was still that deep, bruised purple that promised to slowly fade to rosey pink if only given enough time. When he'd first started out from the swamp, Eddie had been well into his fifth wind. Now, on the move again, he felt a familiar drowsiness begin to gnaw at the edges of his thoughts.

How long had it been since he'd actually managed to sleep? Not since Jodene.... He shook his head, trying to scatter the forming memories. Two, three days? No, four. Was that right? It was getting harder to gauge time accurately. At least two days without sleep, possibly four. "Heh. Jodene, if only you could see me now. What would you think? Maybe you'd actually notice me."

He didn't know why he was talking aloud. Maybe he hoped that somewhere, his love could actually hear him. An achingly familiar sense of loss snaked through his chest, and up through his tightening throat. "I miss you so much." It took the boy a moment to realize that Jimmy (who wasn't so extremely far behind him, the last time the eavesdropper had checked) could probably hear him. Straightening up, and clearing his throat, Eddie kept his gaze locked on the area ahead of him. Don't look. He's probably making faces.

The foliage thinned near a large rock face. Following the edge of the stone, a large opening presented itself. Passing in front of the mouth, Eddie barely picked out a faint echoing in the cavern. Stopping he motioned quickly to Jimmy before realizing his stupidity.

"Hey, J-Jimmy, come here. Someone's in there, and they s-sound hurt. I'm gonna see if they're ok."

It was a stupid move. Not at all smart, but Eddie always was too nice and too eager to please. Making his way into the dark stone maw, he called out, "Hey, anyone d-down there? If you're in there, are you ok-kay?"

The echo of his voice did little to assuage the nervous tension growing in his stomach. "We're n-not p-playing, so it's ok if you're hurt. M-maybe we c-can help you." Swallowing hard, Eddie listened for a response even as he stepped deeper into the dark.
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#3

Post by Ares »

Gabe heard the voice, but couldn't pin point who it belonged to. Did he need help, yes he did, did he want it from a stranger not really, but it was his only option. His ski pole long since gone, Gabe readied himself just in case, the voice in the dark wasn't so friendly. Being a running back had certain advantages, like being able to bowl people over.

"Yeah, come on in, but keep your hands in what little sight I've got in here."

Gabe waited, ready to bolt at the slightest sign of danger.
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blastinus
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#4

Post by blastinus »

(Continued from Running Free)

The coming of dawn brought a small bit of light to the forest, allowing for easier navigation. Having a comrade with a completely functional pair of eyes didn't hurt either. As the two of them moved through the jungle once again, Jimmy was a lot more comfortable, except for the fact that his pants were still coated in slime, giving him an icky feeling from the waist on down. He resolved that the instant they stopped for a rest, the first thing he'd do would be to change them out. It would be far too embarrassing if he couldn't shoot straight due to shivering too much. Not that he could shoot straight at all, but that was another matter altoge–

"Heh. Jodene, if only you could see me now. What would you think? Maybe you'd actually notice me."

Eh, what?

"I miss you so much."

I'm right behind you, buddy, walking through leaves and snapping sticks. You couldn't miss me with a peashooter.

Apparently, Eddie was starting to talk to himself. This was not too strange, seeing as fatigue will make you do strange things, but it was rather surprising that he completely lost the stutter when he said that. Jimmy almost didn't recognize his new buddy without it. At that moment, much to his great joy, he saw that they had cleared the trees again, and were now in the area with the caves. Jimmy figured that these would be good for a nap, seeing as there were so many shadows and cubby-holes in caves. Besides, everyone would know that caves were obvious traps. Nobody would be stupid enough to venture into one.

It would be very easy to rig up a snare at the cave entrance, and then when people are hanging, steal their stuff. That sort of thing would even fool me. I bet that it'd work on Eddie too.

Of course, if it is so easy, maybe we should just avoid the caves altogether.


Coming up a small distance behind Eddie, the blind man could sort of see him gesturing about something. It looked somewhat like he was urgently beckoning him over. Walking forward at a crouch, and wincing when he stepped on a hard rock, he came over, hiding by the side of the cave's entrance.

As Jimmy came up, Eddie said to him, "Hey, J-Jimmy, come here. Someone's in there, and they s-sound hurt. I'm gonna see if they're ok."

I pity the guy. I really do.

Giving a nod to Eddie, Jimmy whispered back, "Be careful. I'll keep watch out here." Laying his bag down, Jimmy watched Eddie move further into the cave. At that moment, he had a very wicked idea for keeping watch. Pulling the revolver out of his bag, he left the bag at the cave's mouth, and backed into the darkness. Sitting down against the cave wall, he kept his eyes on the outside, watching to see if anyone would take the bait.

It's easier to get the drop on someone who isn't looking at you. And I can also rest my feet some more.
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#5

Post by DetectiveArcher* »

Eddie nodded at the cave boy's plea. Or, maybe it was a warning. These days it was getting harder to tell them apart. Cornered people were always desperate. And, truly desperate people could be very dangerous, even when unarmed. Raising his arms above his head, Ed tried to look and sound as unimpressive as possible. It didn't take much effort. Slowly stepping deeper into the dark of the cavern, he cleared his throat. The echo that came back to him set him on edge. The place had a wholly unnerving atmosphere.

Finally able to make out a human silhouette, Eddie came to an abrupt stop. The lack of light made it hard to identify the boy in the cave, so the eavesdropper decided to try to get him talking. "I'm Eddie. Eddie Sullivan. I'm not p-playing, so there's no need to be afraid. You ok? You sound like you're in t-trouble." He scoffed at the statement. "I mean, not that every friggin' p-person here isn't in t-trouble. But, you get what I mean, r-right?"
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#6

Post by Mimi »

(Kimmy Redmond continued from Running Free)

Rays of light pierced through the density of the jungle, making the area look like something from a painting. Had she not been in a killing game, Kimmy would have appreciated the view. Instead, she discovered what a wreck she was. Her once white jumper had adopted a dingy light brown color. Several rips and tears from sharp thorns and branches covered her jumper and her pants. The exposed skin on her legs, arms, and face had been scratched a number of times. All in all, Kimmy looks as though she had been in a war- which wasn't very far from the truth at all.

Eddie and Noname were walking at a snails pace through the jungle, which annoyed Kimmy to no end. It meant that she had to stay a good distance behind them and doing that made it very hard for the small girl to keep on their tails. As much as she wanted to just jump out and attack them, she couldn't. Noname, the moron, had given Eddie a gun and that was a problem. It'd be impossible to attack them head on while he had it, so she'd just have to wait it out. Sometimes you just had to roll with the punches, and that's exactly what she was going to do.

Somehow, Kimmy had lost track of the two boys. One second she could see them a good bit ahead of her and the next they were gone. It wasn't the first time she had lost Eddie, so she did the exact same thing she did last time; just keep walking straight ahead. She'd just have to trust that the two boys weren't stupid enough to walk right into a danger zone.

Sure enough, Kimmy emerged at the caves. She wasn't sure if they had gone inside or not, but she did see one thing. A daypack. Lying right there in front of the cave's mouth.

Morons.

Who'd be stupid enough to just leave their daypack out in the open where anyone could just waltz up and take it? Kimmy inwardly grinned and walked over to to the pack. She'd teach them not to leave their stuff laying around.

As she bent down the scoop up the pack, Kimmy felt that strange sensation that she was being watched. Kimmy faced the darkness of the cave and just about pee'd herself. She wasn't sure if it was just her eyes playing tricks on her, but Kimmy could clearly see what she thought was the outline of a person.

Shit.
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#7

Post by blastinus »

Jimmy had only paid a halfway attentive ear towards the discussion in the cave. His eyes were set on his bag, and they had barely wavered. It wouldn't do to lose his bag, and thus his only chance for survival. While seated on the ground, with his revolver hanging loosely from his right hand, he thought about what would happen if he stuck with Eddie? His chances for survival had dropped considerably by siding with a man pursuing a vendetta, as that inevitably resulted in combat. If he were to ever get caught in the crossfire....

Funny, ain't it? I don't want to die, but I can't let the poor guy kill himself either. This is either the ultimate test of my character, or I'm just blessed with horrible luck.

As if on cue, someone came into view at the cave entrance. Apparently fascinated by the seemingly abandoned daypack, the blurry figure didn't realize his/her mistake until s/he had already walked up to the bag. Coming onto his feet, Jimmy stepped out into the light, with his revolver prominently displayed. As he got closer, he was able to discern that he was either dealing with a woman, or an especially effeminate male, as the person he was approaching had a good amount of hair. Not saying a word, he let down the hammer on his revolver.

Well, you've got one. Now what are you going to do with it?

That was a very good question. Keeping his weapon trained on the general body area, he said to her/him/it, "Alright, what were you planning to do with my bag? Talk quickly, because I'm currently debating whether or not to kill you, and I think the 'Kill' side is winning." This was a lie, of course. Thus far, he was still divided fairly evenly. But the more his brain's logical end reasoned it through, the more he realized that he couldn't chance letting someone like this go. The more he thought about it, the more his hand began to shake, and sweat started collecting on his forehead.

Please, tell me something. Anything! Give me an excuse to let you go. Do it, lady! Or girly man!
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#8

Post by Mimi »

Kimmy's heart was racing a mile a minute as she studied the outline. It was as if she was watching a scary movie, she knew something was going to pop out and scream or something... except, this wasn't a scary movie. This was her life and what was really happening to her. Much to her dismay, that was what happened. The figure lifted itself up and walked towards the entrance of the cave.

Her jaw literally dropped as Noname appeared in front of her. At first, Kimmy just stared at the boy standing in front of her. She felt like a bad kid who had just been caught stealing sweets, only this situation multiplied the feeling by a dozen. Her mouth was dry and she felt like a ball of paper was stuck in her throat, which proved to be a problem when Noname pointed a gun at her and threatened her.

"Alright, what were you planning to do with my bag? Talk quickly, because I'm currently debating whether or not to kill you, and I think the 'Kill' side is winning."

"I...w-...nng.." Kimmy attempted to plead, but the words were lodged in her throat. Fear had fully replaced the cocky attitude that she once was so full of. She tried to run, but her legs weren't responding. All she could do was stare up at the boy and hope that he wouldn't shoot.

The nervous energy was building up within the girl. Her whole body was shaking with fear as she stared at the gun. The whole scene was unfolding out before her in her head and needless to say, it didn't end out good for Kimmy. Water was quickly clouding the girls vision and she averted her gaze from the boy to the bag.

The bag...

A power from beyond must have wanted her to live, because somehow she broke free from the freeze that had overtaken her body. In one quick motion, Kimmy grabbed the strap of the bag and hurled it at Noname.
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#9

Post by blastinus »

The voice was female, that was for certain. So one question had been cleared up. However, she wasn't giving Jimmy anything besides that. All that came out of her mouth was nervous gibberish. Thinking about it, he probably wouldn't have been able to say anything either in this situation. Especially considering the nutcases that apparently were populating this island. For all this lady knew, he could be one of those killers, trying to rack up as many kills as he possibly could before being taken down in a blaze of glory.

I've got to defuse this situation. Let her down slowly. Have her know I'm not a-

Before he could finish that thought, Jimmy realized that the lady was in motion. Having lowered his revolver somewhat while thinking, he brought it up again, only to have his vision obscured by a flying bag. Reflexively, he reached one hand up to catch the thing. However, such was its momentum that he instead fell backwards. His right arm went down to deflect the damage from the fall. There was a dull ping as metal hit rock...

POW!

A sudden ringing in his ears and a sharp pain in his arm revealed to Jimmy that his weapon had gone off. His vision went even blurrier than usual, and parts of his vision even went completely dark. It didn't feel like he was leaking anywhere, so the pain in his arm must have just been the recoil. Thrusting his bag aside, he growled angrily as he hoisted himself up to a sitting position. If he could have seen in the blackness of the cave, he would have seen the area where the bullet had embedded itself into the wall.

See, this is what happens when you try to go halfway. Either shoot them instantly, or don't let them see you at all.
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#10

Post by Mimi »

"AAAAH!"

The loud boom from the revolver was reverberated off the walls of the caves and turned it into an ear splitting explosion. Kimmy's ears had instantly popped the minute the sound reach her and she let out a very loud, high pitched scream. It sent a wave of terror through her body and she threw herself to the ground, as if to protect herself from invisible debris cause by the fake explosion.

As she laid on the ground, arms over her head and knees by her chest, Kimmy couldn't believe her luck. This was the second time in a few hours that she was shot at and she still wasn't dead. Her mind went directly to her parents, wondering if they were finally proud of her. She had survived a week on this island with no more than a few scratches. It had to mean something. She must be strong.

No, not yet she wasn't. Eddie was still alive and he was one of the weaker people on the island. He should have been dead within the first three days, but somehow he managed to slip through the cracks and make it to the seventh day.

Not for long though. She'd make sure of it.
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#11

Post by Ares »

"Heh, Sully you make a good point." Gabe said lowering his guard. Something in Eddie's voice was telling Gabe he could trust him. Gabe stood up and walked into a part of the cave where Eddie could see him.

"It's just been so rough man. Our friends dying and, well Kara," Gabe paused, thinking of her face brought a tear to his eye, "And then I heard about what Steve did to Serenity, and my head is telling me, there is no way he could have done that maliciously, but how the fuck am I supposed to know?"

Gabe put his head down and ran his fingers through his hair. It was all just one giant headache. Unfortunately for him, the headache got worse as from the front of the cave came voices followed by an monstrously loud gunshot.

"What the hell? Who is that?" Gabe shouted, wincing as his head continued to ring.
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#12

Post by DetectiveArcher* »

It was good to see that the game hadn't managed to make everyone paranoid or murderous. Opening his mouth to respond, Eddie's words were lost when the cave was suddenly full of thunder. The crack of gunfire echoed off the cold walls, roaring in the dark space. Throwing himself to the ground, the cowardly teenager dropped his rifle as he clamped his hands over his ears.

The ringing in his ears had already begun to clear when he heard the other boy's question. "Oh shit. That might be J-Jimmy." Surging to his feet, and grasping at the strangely elusive rifle, Eddie awkwardly sprinted back towards the mouth of the cave. Nearly stumbling or dropping the gun by turns, he managed to avoid any sort of accident as the forest came back into view. Taking aim, the raspy breathed student scanned the area.

"Jimmy, you ok? Who's her-" Eyes catching on the huddled mass just outside the cave, Eddie's voice trailed off. "K-Kimmy?"

Blinking and lowering the rifle, the boy shook his head, not quite understanding the situation. Why had she followed him? You know, there's no guarantee that she followed you. She might have just wound up here by coincidence. Whatever the circumstances, nobody should be shooting at anyone else. Oh, shit, Eddie thought to himself, Jimmy's still down.

Hurrying over, Eddie turned his back to the cowering girl, struggling to help up his fallen companion. "You ok, Jim? Don't worrry about her, she's not playing." He had no evidence to support his belief, but the eavesdropper didn't dwell on the idea. If she was here, she was here. If she wanted to stick around she would. His parents had told him that certain things were meant to happen. Maybe this was one of them.

He suddenly remembered a saying his mother often used. There will be water if God wills it. Even in the desert, water if God wills it. Eddie wasn't always sure how he felt on the matters of religion or predestination. He'd rather let someone who cared dwell on such things. But, now he couldn't help but wonder if this was his water. Turning his head to the dark cavern, he called out to the boy inside, "Hey, Mr.C-Cave-person, you c-can c-come out now. I think it's safe."
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#13

Post by blastinus »

Jimmy considered himself quite fortunate. If the unknown woman had kept her wits about her, she would have had herself a perfect target. While he couldn't see a weapon, it'd be foolish to assume she didn't have one. He slowly raised his gun, only to feel agonizing pain in that arm. Obviously, the kickback from it was stronger than he thought. It might have been better for him if he had simply let the revolver go. Jimmy's other arm grabbed hold of the sore one, allowing him to pull it up to the point where it was trained on the cowering girl.

That's when Eddie stepped in. His footsteps on the wet cave floor echoed through the chamber, permeating the blind man's ringing ears. Lowering the revolver again, Jimmy turned to see who was coming back up, and saw....absolutely nothing. The darkness in the cave, coupled with his own blindness, made seeing his comrade a total impossibility. Worse, when Eddie came around to check on Jimmy, the fool blocked the woman from sight. The fellow tried to tell Jimmy something, but it was mostly inaudible. Something about being okay. And a person named Kimmy.

Sure, I'm fine. Except, oh yeah, I'm deaf, blind, and one of my arms is useless. The one that happens to be my good arm. I'll have even better luck trying to shoot with my left.

Slowly, painfully, Jimmy managed to pull himself to his feet. Leaning past Eddie, the half-blind man trained his pistol (using his left arm now) on the cowering form of the girl who he had threatened, probably the Kimmy previously mentioned. He wouldn't allow himself to get surprised like that again. "Hey! Get up!" he shouted, much louder than he normally would. Even so, he only sounded like he was talking normally. His hearing was slowly clearing up, but as he was at ground zero of the deafening blast, his ears had taken much more punishment than the others in this cave. They wouldn't be working completely for a little while.
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#14

Post by Mimi »

(Sorry for holding you guys up.)

The overbearing ringing that had settled into Kimmy's ears was slowly wearing down, but her body was still in a state of disorienting shock. She felt sick to her stomach and the constant rotten smell that seemed to own the island just made the nausea worse. Had she not been in such a tense situation, Kimmy gladly would have taken the time to release the bile and make herself feel better, but that was a luxury she couldn't partake in at that time.

Over the ringing, Kimmy could somewhat make out a voice that seemed very familiar. It wasn't as deep as Noname's and cracked more often than not. In all honesty, the voice made her feel safe- like a warm blanket. It wasn't strong.. but it was warm and friendly, something she could curl under and it'd protect her from monsters.

It wasn't until the voice stuttered her name that Kimmy realized who it belonged to. She was ashamed that she even thought about Eddie in such a manner, but she did. To make matters even worse, Eddie was trying to stop Noname from shooting her. From shooting the girl who had just attacked him not three hours beforehand and said horrible things to him. Yet, he was still trying to preserve her life.

As much as it conflicted with everything she believed in up until that point- Kimmy admired Eddie. It was a feeling she didn't want to feel for anyone, especially someone she was trying to kill. But she did and as hard as she tried to push it out, it wasn't going anywhere.

"Hey! Get up!"

Kimmy had completely forgotten about Noname during her inner conflicts and the minute he shouted at her, she came back to reality. She wasn't sure if he still had the gun pointed at her, but she decided things would go smoother if she just obeyed orders- no matter how bruised her ego got.

Standing up and facing Noname and Eddie showed that Noname was still pointing the gun at her. Not sure of what to do in that particular situation, Kimmy lifted her hands into the air. They always did it on the cop shows, so why not here?

"Stop pointing that at me! I don't even have a weapon!" She said, letting the defiance in her get the better of her. Who did he think he was to push her around?
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#15

Post by DetectiveArcher* »

((Sorry for the post order, just something to keep Eddie from getting the inactive axe.))

The pistol shaking in Jimmy's hand pulled taught Eddie's nerves. Jimmy was upset, that much was obvious, and when put under too much stress, people were liable to act in haste and do something they might regret. Quickly looking from the petite girl and back to his companion, Eddie decided it was best to cool the situation down a little. A twitch of a finger could make the whole situation end in tears. He didn't want that.

"H-hey, Jim, c-calm down. She doesn't have a w-weapon and seems just as f-freaked out as we are." Eddie reached out, carefully placing a hand on the barrel of the gun. Pressing lightly, he began to guide the pistol's muzzle towards the ground, where it could do the least harm. "J-just relax and we can w-work this out."
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