Girl #34 - Into the Fire

[Megami*]

Run, Jill, run! It was almost as if she was unable to control her body. The breeze danced around her as she ran, as hard as she could, for no particular reason. An ominous odor lingered in the air. It reeked of blood, burnt flesh, and rotten bodies. Tears streamed down Jill’s eyes as she picked up her pace. This was insane. It was inhuman. She had to leave. Now! Footsteps echoed through the mossy grass as Jill darted through the trees. They were her own footsteps, and to Jill, the resounding echo they made as they padded against the ground was almost deafening. Refusing to stop, she raced onward, until the view in front of her suddenly changed angles. Face first into the mossy undergrowth she fell, she had tripped over a tree root jutting out of the ground. More determined than ever, she pushed herself up from the ground, ignoring her now blood smeared hands, and continued running. Finally, the dense forest faded and before her, Jill saw a cliff. A tall figure stood on the edge of the cliff, overlooking the setting sunrise that seemed to inflame the horizon. She came to a skidding halt as she approached the figure and leaned down, planting her hands firmly on her knees, tainting her jeans in the process, as she gasped desperately for breath.

“Wait!” Jill shrieked, “Please... please don’t leave me here!”

The figure turned around slowly, a delicate smile brushing their face. Slowly rising to her full height, Jill removed her hands from her knees, leaving remnants of her bleeding hands on her jeans. She found that her lips were forming a meek smile as well. At last, she was safe... no more running. She repeated the words in her head once more. No more... The face was still unrecognizable, shadowed by some unknown object. Two facial features were the only things that stuck out from the face: the figure’s eyes, and their mouth. The figure smiled. It was a kind smile, a happy smile. Suddenly, the figure’s eyes narrowed and their face contorted into an evil and sinister grin. Jill froze. She did not have time to move or think. All at once, the figure raised a gun and pointed it straight at her forehead. She looked at the figure, a look of confusion and terror forming on her face.

“But... why?” she inquired softly.

BLAM! Jill’s head slung backward in a rapid motion as the bullet entered her skull. The figure lowered the gun solemnly as it watched Jill’s body collapse on the ground. The distorted grin faded into a somber and grim look as the figure trudged nearer to the girl lying on the rock covered terrain.

“Because...” the voice said in an eerie and distorted manner, “There can be only one winner.”

With that, Jill’s attacker proceeded to once again raise their weapon and pull the trigger, over and over, relentlessly. As the final few rounds of the cartridge were emptied into the dead girl’s now disfigured body, the figure stood over her, dropped the gun to the ground, and proceeded to howl with cruel and insidious laughter.

Jill’s fingers clawed into the ground beside her and the dirt dug down underneath her fingernails. She was dead, wasn’t she? This was hell... she had died and she was in hell. Her head jerked upward as she looked around, in a state of sheer panic. Almost instinctively, Jill’s hand flew upward as she rubbed her forehead, checking for the initial bullet which had “penetrated” her skull. Her breathing eased as she realized there was no bullet hole after all. It was all just a dream. A sick, twisted, nauseating dream. She felt as though a bag of bricks had just connected squarely against her head. Looking next to her, Jill found the culprit. Somehow, she must have connected with the flat rock on the ground near her as she was... how exactly did she get here? It took a moment, but suddenly the memories flooded back to her... the end-of-the-year Barry Coleson trip, the plane hijacking, the video... and now, here she was. Glancing around, she noticed an old rugged bag that lay on the ground not far from her, as well as her suitcases from the trip. Another quick survey of the area told Jill that she had been thrown from up high... a plane perhaps?... and rolled.

"Obviously." she thought to herself, “I’d be dead right now if I’d landed on it.”

Situating herself accordingly, Jill proceeded to crawl toward her bags. Stretching out as far as she could possibly muster, she grabbed them. Suddenly, a thought occurred to her. She glanced outward, noticing that she sat in a small grove of trees on the verge of white sands. The azure waves lapped lightly at the edge of the white sand, engulfing it in blue every few moments. The breeze changed direction, blowing toward Jill. Gentle as it was, the breeze was almost foreboding, as it carried a rank and ominous odor along with it. Another thought suddenly occurred to the girl. There was no telling how long it had been since she had arrived on this island. Obviously, the large rock had played its part in hindering her awakening. The stench that was cast toward her from the sands was an obvious sign that something terrible had happened here. Of course, this was the furthest thing from Jill’s mind at the time.

She needed a few minutes to get herself together. After all, she had no idea what was in the old dufflebag that she had pulled toward her and she most certainly could not afford to lug her suitcase around the island with her. Glancing out toward the shoreline once again, Jill searched for somewhere safe to hide while she could compose herself. Alas, her search was in vain. There was nothing on the horizon that would provide even moderate cover. Her scan of the area had failed to accomplish anything. Jill ran her hand through her dark hair, straightening it out somewhat. After a quick contemplation, she decided that most likely, her current location was the safest place in the area. She pushed herself up against a nearby tree and quietly unzipped her suitcase, then began removing a few of her more essential items. This process only took a few minutes. After cramming these items into her daypack, Jill noticed a book resting conveniently near the top of the bag. The cover read something along the lines of "Student Handbook". Not even bothering to look at what weapon she had been designated, Jill began flipping through the handbook, trying to be somewhat conscious of her surroundings. After all, the beach seemed to be deserted, but Jill certainly knew that looks could be deceiving.

(OOC: S'pose I should add that I'm a little lacking in the self-defense department at the moment. Play nice, 'kay? ... Please?)

[Megami*]

It seemed like so much time had passed since she had been sitting there. In reality, it had only been minutes, but to Jill, it seemed like hours. She glanced down at her watch, slowly watching the second hand as it ticked away, counting down... counting down to what? Her doom, maybe? Since she first arrived at this place, Jill tried to move as little as possible. Now, she was becoming almost paranoid. The slightest noise made her cringe.

But... somehow, Jill just did not see anyone playing this game. She could not deny that people were indeed playing. The stench of blood that reeked from the white sands at her feet was more than enough to testify to that statement. But... somehow. Surely, not everyone was playing. Jill knew she could not be the only Barry Coleson student on the island. The island map now lay in her lap in place of where the student handbook had been moments ago.

She had to find somebody. At this point, Jill did not care who it was. So... where could she go? The hospital, perhaps? No, too obvious. Not to mention, it had probably been previously pillaged. Jill's eyes skimmed over the map, searching for a destination... the ravine? Too dangerous... Maybe the river? ... Too risky. The warehouse? The warehouse... maybe someone was there. Someone that she could trust. Jill rose to her feet, stuffing her map inside her daypack as she did so. Running her fingers through her chocolate colored hair, Jill sighed. Perhaps the warehouse was indeed the best destination.

(Continued at the Warehouse.)