((S017 - Jessica Romero - Game Start))
When she opened her eyes it was black. She blinked a few times and sat up, rubbing at her eyes with the sides of her hands. It was still black. Jessica pulled a face, even though no one would have been able to see it. She hoped she hadn't gone blind. It was enough that they had been kidnapped and were being forced to take part in Survival of the Fittest, if she had also been blinded by some freak accident somehow, that would have been too much to deal with. Reaching out with a hand Jessica felt cold, pockmarked and craggy stone.
Her predicament started to come more into focus at that point. She hummed softly to herself and then spoke, at a bit of a volume, as if she was trying to say something to someone at a party.
"Hey," The sound of her voice bounced around and echoed off into the distance. She gently nodded.
Cave.
"Hey," She said again, louder this time, trying to get someone's attention when they were on the other side of the street. The sound bounced and then her voice returned to her clearly. She grimaced at the sound. But it confirmed it. She had been left in a cave. She turned and stepped around, unsure of how to proceed using the information she'd gathered. It was too dark for her to see a way out from where she was, but it could have just been the case she was around a corner from the entrance. Of course, finding that out depended on not going deeper into the cave itself as she didn't know how deep it was going to be.
She shuffled a foot forward, aiming for the wall she could feel, and immediately kicked something hard with the point of her toe.
"Ow! Shit!" Came her yell of surprise, which the cave threw back in her face with a mocking tone. She grimaced again and mumbled a quiet shut up. Crouching down Jessica felt around and after her hands found the weird square object she'd kicked into the cave wall they also found a bag. Settling into a kneeling position she fiddled with the bag, trying to open it in the pitch black, eventually managing to worm a hand inside and felt around, hoping to find a flashlight. Luckily her hand did find something that felt flashlight shaped, unlucky in her haste to withdraw it she knocked the bag over and spilled the contents all over a floor that she could not yet see.
Letting out a loud sigh of frustration Jessica flicked the flashlight on and after blinking a few times to adjust to the light shined it at the floor to gather up her things. One of her water bottles had managed to get a decent distance away and when Jessica sent the beam of the flashlight after it to reveal the form of someone else in the darkness.
She gulped and took a step back.
"Hey uh, you awake?"
Cambrian
Open (TW animal harm)
((S048 - Rebekah Hayes - Game Start ))
There were certain species of deep-sea fish that supposedly died when exposed to bright light, because their evolution had bred them to live in total darkness. But it was impossible to tell for certain; no marine biologist had ever admitted to having done that kind of thing because intentionally shining a spotlight on a fish that was happily living in darkness would be a form of torture.
Whoever was here right now was not a marine biologist, and would probably be considered Satan incarnate in the depths of the Marianas Trench. The flashlight speared into Rebekah's eyeballs, ruining the cozy darkness and forcing her into the waking world. She held up a hand to block the light, which took the edge off the glare.
"Hnggrrgh," she said, conversationally. After squeezing her eyes shut and swallowing the phlegm in her throat, she tried again. "Yeah... I'm up."
She took a second to get her bearings. The ground beneath her felt stony and cool to the touch, and everything was dark. There was a slight echo to her voice, so that implied cave rather than really dark mountaintop. She stared muzzily at the shadow behind the flashlight. It was human, which was good and significantly decreased the possibility that she was about to be mauled by a hyperintelligent cave bear. That was good. Wait, no it wasn't. It was bad. Something was bad. The tiny hairs on the back of her neck were tingling. She was afraid. She was afraid of this human? That, in and of itself, was strange. Rebekah wasn't normally unnerved by humans. They were largely docile, and she'd been thoroughly trained in the arts of self-defense. But this human was setting off danger signals in every part of her brain.
"I'm up," she repeated again, stalling for time while she eased back so that her right arm and shoulder were outside the flashlight's field of view.
Automatically, she reached for the canister of bear spray in her back pocket. It was empty. The bear spray wasn't there. A yawning chasm of dread opened up somewhere inside Rebekah. Of course the bear spray was gone. She should already have known that. There was something she was missing here, something she'd forgotten about, like a dream she'd woken up from; one of those vivid nightmares where you wake up in a cold sweat and you can still feel all of the feelings but you can't for the life of you remember what you were screaming about. Something bad had happened. Something really bad. Something that explained why she was in a cave and why she was afraid of this human and why her back pocket had nothing in it but butt.
There was a water bottle lying halfway between her and the human. The man had said they'd get water. Water and food. Wait, what man? The man... Mister Danya. And in a flash, she remembered it all. The pop of the gun when Mr. Pérez's skull burst apart. The smell of gunpowder and blood, and the sound of wet meaty bits hitting the floor. The bang of the collar and Mr. Ramos' blood arcing through the air.
She looked back at the human, and said, "Oh."
There were certain species of deep-sea fish that supposedly died when exposed to bright light, because their evolution had bred them to live in total darkness. But it was impossible to tell for certain; no marine biologist had ever admitted to having done that kind of thing because intentionally shining a spotlight on a fish that was happily living in darkness would be a form of torture.
Whoever was here right now was not a marine biologist, and would probably be considered Satan incarnate in the depths of the Marianas Trench. The flashlight speared into Rebekah's eyeballs, ruining the cozy darkness and forcing her into the waking world. She held up a hand to block the light, which took the edge off the glare.
"Hnggrrgh," she said, conversationally. After squeezing her eyes shut and swallowing the phlegm in her throat, she tried again. "Yeah... I'm up."
She took a second to get her bearings. The ground beneath her felt stony and cool to the touch, and everything was dark. There was a slight echo to her voice, so that implied cave rather than really dark mountaintop. She stared muzzily at the shadow behind the flashlight. It was human, which was good and significantly decreased the possibility that she was about to be mauled by a hyperintelligent cave bear. That was good. Wait, no it wasn't. It was bad. Something was bad. The tiny hairs on the back of her neck were tingling. She was afraid. She was afraid of this human? That, in and of itself, was strange. Rebekah wasn't normally unnerved by humans. They were largely docile, and she'd been thoroughly trained in the arts of self-defense. But this human was setting off danger signals in every part of her brain.
"I'm up," she repeated again, stalling for time while she eased back so that her right arm and shoulder were outside the flashlight's field of view.
Automatically, she reached for the canister of bear spray in her back pocket. It was empty. The bear spray wasn't there. A yawning chasm of dread opened up somewhere inside Rebekah. Of course the bear spray was gone. She should already have known that. There was something she was missing here, something she'd forgotten about, like a dream she'd woken up from; one of those vivid nightmares where you wake up in a cold sweat and you can still feel all of the feelings but you can't for the life of you remember what you were screaming about. Something bad had happened. Something really bad. Something that explained why she was in a cave and why she was afraid of this human and why her back pocket had nothing in it but butt.
There was a water bottle lying halfway between her and the human. The man had said they'd get water. Water and food. Wait, what man? The man... Mister Danya. And in a flash, she remembered it all. The pop of the gun when Mr. Pérez's skull burst apart. The smell of gunpowder and blood, and the sound of wet meaty bits hitting the floor. The bang of the collar and Mr. Ramos' blood arcing through the air.
She looked back at the human, and said, "Oh."
V8 Characters:
Juanita Reid
Rebekah Hayes
Karin Han
EXTREME STEVE Dodds
Juanita Reid
Rebekah Hayes
Karin Han
EXTREME STEVE Dodds
"Yeah." Was Jessica's response.
It had taken Rebekah a moment to realize exactly where they were but it had clicked eventually. Jessica could think of worse people to be in a cave with than Rebekah. They shared a love of nature and both enjoyed hiking. In addition to that Rebekah had always seemed nice enough when they spoke. So their situation could have been worse. There were other people on the trip Jessica had no interest in spending any time around. She pointed the flashlight up at the roof of the cave so as to stop blinding Rebekah.
"It's Jessica by the way." She said, looking around at their surroundings. "They've left us in a cave somewhere."
The cave itself looked to be igneous rock, with all the characteristics Jessica expected. Shades of black and grey. the occasional twinkle of a small amount of a mineral. They seemed to have been placed in a medium-to-large-sized chamber although the ceiling itself was low. Jessica was five-foot-six and she was sure she could have touched the roof of the cave if she had jumped. If she jumped high enough she may have even been able to headbutt it. There was a passage where the ceiling dipped that clearly led deeper into the cave itself but Jessica's attention was taken by the part of the cave roof that sloped up and went around a wall. That was likely their way out.
She turned her gaze back to Rebekah.
"How you feeling?"
It had taken Rebekah a moment to realize exactly where they were but it had clicked eventually. Jessica could think of worse people to be in a cave with than Rebekah. They shared a love of nature and both enjoyed hiking. In addition to that Rebekah had always seemed nice enough when they spoke. So their situation could have been worse. There were other people on the trip Jessica had no interest in spending any time around. She pointed the flashlight up at the roof of the cave so as to stop blinding Rebekah.
"It's Jessica by the way." She said, looking around at their surroundings. "They've left us in a cave somewhere."
The cave itself looked to be igneous rock, with all the characteristics Jessica expected. Shades of black and grey. the occasional twinkle of a small amount of a mineral. They seemed to have been placed in a medium-to-large-sized chamber although the ceiling itself was low. Jessica was five-foot-six and she was sure she could have touched the roof of the cave if she had jumped. If she jumped high enough she may have even been able to headbutt it. There was a passage where the ceiling dipped that clearly led deeper into the cave itself but Jessica's attention was taken by the part of the cave roof that sloped up and went around a wall. That was likely their way out.
She turned her gaze back to Rebekah.
"How you feeling?"
"I feel kinda groggy," Rebekah confessed, taking off her mitts and rubbing her head. "Whatever they knocked us out with packs a pretty good punch. I think I'm good enough to walk, though."
She looked at Jessica, whose face was only visible as a series of fine contours against the darkness. She was an outdoorsy person, one of the few people Rebekah might consider a kindred spirit among all of the interchangeable humans who made their habitats at John Endecott. They weren't exactly friends, but that was fine. Desirable, even. In a situation like this, friends would... complicate things.
Rebekah cast about in the gloom, spotting a bit of darkness that was slightly less dark than the rest of the darkness, and made a grab for it. Her hand encountered some kind of rough plastic-y fabric, the duffel bag that the terrorists had promised them. She went to open it, then reconsidered. She had no idea what might be in that bag. "Hey, can you shine the light over here for a sec? If there's a knife or something in here, I don't want to cut myself."
She looked at Jessica, whose face was only visible as a series of fine contours against the darkness. She was an outdoorsy person, one of the few people Rebekah might consider a kindred spirit among all of the interchangeable humans who made their habitats at John Endecott. They weren't exactly friends, but that was fine. Desirable, even. In a situation like this, friends would... complicate things.
Rebekah cast about in the gloom, spotting a bit of darkness that was slightly less dark than the rest of the darkness, and made a grab for it. Her hand encountered some kind of rough plastic-y fabric, the duffel bag that the terrorists had promised them. She went to open it, then reconsidered. She had no idea what might be in that bag. "Hey, can you shine the light over here for a sec? If there's a knife or something in here, I don't want to cut myself."
V8 Characters:
Juanita Reid
Rebekah Hayes
Karin Han
EXTREME STEVE Dodds
Juanita Reid
Rebekah Hayes
Karin Han
EXTREME STEVE Dodds
-
Ruggahissy
- Posts: 2554
- Joined: Mon Aug 13, 2018 4:13 pm
On the floor of the cave, a girl stirred. Her shiny black hair slid across the smooth stone and her cheek warmed the cool surface she laid on.
Her brow furrowed as a little bit of stray light from closer to the mouth of the cave fell near her.
Between 1692 and 1693 over 200 people were killed in Salem, Massachusetts after being accused of witchcraft. Young girls pointed to these people and said that they had consort with devilish influence, and the religious fervor combined with perhaps some other less righteous motivations, condemned these people to their deaths.
What did these girls feel when they pointed to the members of their communities, their friends, their family, and made these claims?
Who could know?
((Mal Valdez start))
Mal opened her eyes, awoken by voices bouncing around the cave walls. One was more familiar than the other.
Groggily, she pushed herself up into a seated position and rubbed her eyes until the faint outlines of two other people came into sharper view.
Oh.
Mal scooted backwards, but didn't make it far before bumping into a canvass-y lump. Her hands rushed over the surface until they found the zipper and without thinking of the noise it would make, ripped the bag open.
ZZzzzzzzzzp.
She prayed with her heart of hearts for something to protect her. She prayed to God, to Jesus, to the Saints, to the Niño...
and found a rifle.
Shaking and still in near pitch black, Mal grabbed the rifle and pointed it at the two shapes knowing that one was Jessica.
Her brow furrowed as a little bit of stray light from closer to the mouth of the cave fell near her.
Between 1692 and 1693 over 200 people were killed in Salem, Massachusetts after being accused of witchcraft. Young girls pointed to these people and said that they had consort with devilish influence, and the religious fervor combined with perhaps some other less righteous motivations, condemned these people to their deaths.
What did these girls feel when they pointed to the members of their communities, their friends, their family, and made these claims?
Who could know?
((Mal Valdez start))
Mal opened her eyes, awoken by voices bouncing around the cave walls. One was more familiar than the other.
Groggily, she pushed herself up into a seated position and rubbed her eyes until the faint outlines of two other people came into sharper view.
Oh.
Mal scooted backwards, but didn't make it far before bumping into a canvass-y lump. Her hands rushed over the surface until they found the zipper and without thinking of the noise it would make, ripped the bag open.
ZZzzzzzzzzp.
She prayed with her heart of hearts for something to protect her. She prayed to God, to Jesus, to the Saints, to the Niño...
and found a rifle.
Shaking and still in near pitch black, Mal grabbed the rifle and pointed it at the two shapes knowing that one was Jessica.
"Sure," Was Jessica's reply as she swept the light over to shine on Rebekah's bag.
As the other girl started to look through the pack provided to her, Jessica took a glance over her own shoulder to see what exactly it had been she'd kicked. As it turned out she'd been given a portable camping stove, which, of things to get was both useful and not. She would be able to cook some food but she had no real way to defend herself. That was if they were able to find any actual food that required cooking. Jessica found herself dimly hoping that Rebekah would end up with something that could at least deter people from trying to get violent with them.
Otherwise, it was looking like they would need to camp out in the cave to stay safe. Which probably wasn't the worst plan ever because it was certainly dark enough to make hiding out a viable option.
"It looks like I got a camping stove," She announced to Rebekah, turning her attention back to the other girl, "You get an actual weapon?"
As Jessica asked the question she realized she wasn't sure if she wanted Rebekah to answer yes or no to it.
As the other girl started to look through the pack provided to her, Jessica took a glance over her own shoulder to see what exactly it had been she'd kicked. As it turned out she'd been given a portable camping stove, which, of things to get was both useful and not. She would be able to cook some food but she had no real way to defend herself. That was if they were able to find any actual food that required cooking. Jessica found herself dimly hoping that Rebekah would end up with something that could at least deter people from trying to get violent with them.
Otherwise, it was looking like they would need to camp out in the cave to stay safe. Which probably wasn't the worst plan ever because it was certainly dark enough to make hiding out a viable option.
"It looks like I got a camping stove," She announced to Rebekah, turning her attention back to the other girl, "You get an actual weapon?"
As Jessica asked the question she realized she wasn't sure if she wanted Rebekah to answer yes or no to it.
"A stove? That's so cool! We can cook all kinds of stuff with that!"
Rebekah unzipped her bag, and paused for a second. That sound sounded really familiar. She'd heard a lot of zippers in her life, so she might have just been imagining it, but she could have sworn she'd heard this exact noise while Jess was talking earlier. But Jess was already holding her flashlight, so she must've unzipped her bag already before Rebekah had even woken up. She'd have thought about this a bit more, but then she saw what was in her bag.
It was full of blue. A Cookie Monster costume? A tarp? She pulled out a big swathe of it. "I think I got... a blanket. Oh! Whoa! It has sleeves! It's one of those Snuggly things! I saw this on TV, and I always wanted one! I was gonna get a white one so I could pretend to be a ghost and my mom would think I died!"
She pulled out her own flashlight, and then jammed her arms through the Snuggie's sleeves, which were slightly too long and floppy. Between the massive Snuggie blanket and the flashlight, she looked like a rejected breakfast cereal wizard mascot. "Heh heh. Well, it's not exactly a weapon, but it'll keep us warm at night! So we can have food and comfort. All the important things for cave living. Now we just gotta find something to defend ourselves with."
She clicked on the flashlight, and shone it around the floor of the cave. "There's gotta be like, rocks or something, right? Ooh! There's a bone over here! We can totally use this! Look around and see if there are any more..."
Rebekah unzipped her bag, and paused for a second. That sound sounded really familiar. She'd heard a lot of zippers in her life, so she might have just been imagining it, but she could have sworn she'd heard this exact noise while Jess was talking earlier. But Jess was already holding her flashlight, so she must've unzipped her bag already before Rebekah had even woken up. She'd have thought about this a bit more, but then she saw what was in her bag.
It was full of blue. A Cookie Monster costume? A tarp? She pulled out a big swathe of it. "I think I got... a blanket. Oh! Whoa! It has sleeves! It's one of those Snuggly things! I saw this on TV, and I always wanted one! I was gonna get a white one so I could pretend to be a ghost and my mom would think I died!"
She pulled out her own flashlight, and then jammed her arms through the Snuggie's sleeves, which were slightly too long and floppy. Between the massive Snuggie blanket and the flashlight, she looked like a rejected breakfast cereal wizard mascot. "Heh heh. Well, it's not exactly a weapon, but it'll keep us warm at night! So we can have food and comfort. All the important things for cave living. Now we just gotta find something to defend ourselves with."
She clicked on the flashlight, and shone it around the floor of the cave. "There's gotta be like, rocks or something, right? Ooh! There's a bone over here! We can totally use this! Look around and see if there are any more..."
V8 Characters:
Juanita Reid
Rebekah Hayes
Karin Han
EXTREME STEVE Dodds
Juanita Reid
Rebekah Hayes
Karin Han
EXTREME STEVE Dodds
-
Ruggahissy
- Posts: 2554
- Joined: Mon Aug 13, 2018 4:13 pm
The rifle shook in Mal's hands and for a moment she thought maybe Jessica or the other person had heard her.
But not so. Her luck held for once.
Jessica had a camping stove, so she wasn't an immediate threat. But she was stronger than than Mal. When Mal's sister had been sent away, Jessica's eyes locked with hers and the spark of information passed between them.
I know you did something. And you won't get away with it forever.
Now they were in a deadly game where people were never punished for their violent actions. But would Jessica really be the type to take this opportunity?
Would you let someone spin a wheel where there was even a 30% chance of it landing on "death."
Mal stood and saw where the light coming from the Jessica direction was. She put the rifle up against her shoulder and took aim.
I can't. I can't let her get to me. She'll kill me. She'll tell others. I never even did anything to her!
But just as she pulled the trigger, a second light reflected off something and bounced into her eyes.
But not so. Her luck held for once.
Jessica had a camping stove, so she wasn't an immediate threat. But she was stronger than than Mal. When Mal's sister had been sent away, Jessica's eyes locked with hers and the spark of information passed between them.
I know you did something. And you won't get away with it forever.
Now they were in a deadly game where people were never punished for their violent actions. But would Jessica really be the type to take this opportunity?
Would you let someone spin a wheel where there was even a 30% chance of it landing on "death."
Mal stood and saw where the light coming from the Jessica direction was. She put the rifle up against her shoulder and took aim.
I can't. I can't let her get to me. She'll kill me. She'll tell others. I never even did anything to her!
But just as she pulled the trigger, a second light reflected off something and bounced into her eyes.
Suddenly, there was the sound of thunder within the cave.
Jessica felt something burning hot skim past her head and face and dropped down to the floor of the cave. All her hearing was taken up by a loud ringing that danced through her ears and into her brain. In a wild haze, she tossed her arm around, shining the light of the torch around the cave.
It illuminated the figure of another girl she knew standing further back, it took Jessica a moment to recognize both her and the rifle she held pointed at them.
Mallory.
The ringing in Jessica's ears turned into a roar and before she knew it she was on her feet rushing at her. As she ran she could feel thin lines of something warm and wet running down the side of her face. The light from the flashlight danced wildly projecting different shapes across the walls of the cave.
Jessica collided with Mallory at full speed, sending both of them tumbling to the floor.
Jessica felt something burning hot skim past her head and face and dropped down to the floor of the cave. All her hearing was taken up by a loud ringing that danced through her ears and into her brain. In a wild haze, she tossed her arm around, shining the light of the torch around the cave.
It illuminated the figure of another girl she knew standing further back, it took Jessica a moment to recognize both her and the rifle she held pointed at them.
Mallory.
The ringing in Jessica's ears turned into a roar and before she knew it she was on her feet rushing at her. As she ran she could feel thin lines of something warm and wet running down the side of her face. The light from the flashlight danced wildly projecting different shapes across the walls of the cave.
Jessica collided with Mallory at full speed, sending both of them tumbling to the floor.
(CONTENT WARNING for descriptions of animal harm)
Rebekah had only heard a gunshot up close once before. She and her father had been driving, out on a camping trip up north. No idea where. She remembered pine trees. They'd seen a truck, skidded to a stop at the side of the road. It was an industrial truck of some kind, with a rack and a lot of equipment in the back. In the middle of the road, something was thrashing. It looked like one of those toys at the mall kiosks, those little feathery things that would squirm and turn everything. The thing in the road had black fur, and kind of a canine shape to it. A wolf, or a coyote. Maybe something in between. It was hard to tell. The animal wouldn't stay still, rolling and flopping on the blood-smeared pavement with its back set in a crooked arch. Though it never stopped moving, it never went anywhere. Slavering jaws snapped and stretched wide, not making any sound. For a brief second, the wolf, or coyote, or whatever it was, looked directly at Rebekah. The moment etched itself into her memory with breathtaking clarity. Those wide, shimmering golden eyes; the way radiated fear and pain, but were mostly full of a raw, agonized confusion. The animal didn't know why it was hurting. It couldn't figure out why its limbs weren't working properly, why it couldn't just get up and run off into the forest. It didn't understand why any of this was happening.
"Stay here," her father had said. Then he'd gone to the toolbox in the back of his truck, and pulled out a rifle. He leaned into the window, trying to keep the gun out of sight. "Don't look, okay?"
The gunshot had blown the entire world apart.
This shot was louder, amplified by the cave's natural echo; it sounded like it was coming from everywhere all at once. Rebekah saw the shooter thrown into sharp relief by Jess' flashlight - a human she didn't recognize, pointing a hunting rifle at the two of them. Before she could properly process this, Jess went running at the other girl, her light strobing and bouncing all over the place as she ran. Rebekah darted after her, and heard the sound of two bodies colliding, first with each other and then the floor. There was another sort of clattering sound. Rebekah looked down, and saw the rifle lying by her feet. It must have skittered off in the collision.
She reached down and picked it up by the stock, more to keep it out of reach of any of the combatants than anything else. Once it was secured, she pointed the light at the scuffling girls to see how the fight was progressing.
Rebekah had only heard a gunshot up close once before. She and her father had been driving, out on a camping trip up north. No idea where. She remembered pine trees. They'd seen a truck, skidded to a stop at the side of the road. It was an industrial truck of some kind, with a rack and a lot of equipment in the back. In the middle of the road, something was thrashing. It looked like one of those toys at the mall kiosks, those little feathery things that would squirm and turn everything. The thing in the road had black fur, and kind of a canine shape to it. A wolf, or a coyote. Maybe something in between. It was hard to tell. The animal wouldn't stay still, rolling and flopping on the blood-smeared pavement with its back set in a crooked arch. Though it never stopped moving, it never went anywhere. Slavering jaws snapped and stretched wide, not making any sound. For a brief second, the wolf, or coyote, or whatever it was, looked directly at Rebekah. The moment etched itself into her memory with breathtaking clarity. Those wide, shimmering golden eyes; the way radiated fear and pain, but were mostly full of a raw, agonized confusion. The animal didn't know why it was hurting. It couldn't figure out why its limbs weren't working properly, why it couldn't just get up and run off into the forest. It didn't understand why any of this was happening.
"Stay here," her father had said. Then he'd gone to the toolbox in the back of his truck, and pulled out a rifle. He leaned into the window, trying to keep the gun out of sight. "Don't look, okay?"
The gunshot had blown the entire world apart.
This shot was louder, amplified by the cave's natural echo; it sounded like it was coming from everywhere all at once. Rebekah saw the shooter thrown into sharp relief by Jess' flashlight - a human she didn't recognize, pointing a hunting rifle at the two of them. Before she could properly process this, Jess went running at the other girl, her light strobing and bouncing all over the place as she ran. Rebekah darted after her, and heard the sound of two bodies colliding, first with each other and then the floor. There was another sort of clattering sound. Rebekah looked down, and saw the rifle lying by her feet. It must have skittered off in the collision.
She reached down and picked it up by the stock, more to keep it out of reach of any of the combatants than anything else. Once it was secured, she pointed the light at the scuffling girls to see how the fight was progressing.
V8 Characters:
Juanita Reid
Rebekah Hayes
Karin Han
EXTREME STEVE Dodds
Juanita Reid
Rebekah Hayes
Karin Han
EXTREME STEVE Dodds
-
Ruggahissy
- Posts: 2554
- Joined: Mon Aug 13, 2018 4:13 pm
In a flash, Jess rushed over and threw her entire weight into Mal.
Mal curled and avoided hitting her head on the cave floor, but her shoulder and hip took the brunt of the blow.
She shrieked and everything became a whirlwind of sound and images.
The fallen flashlight spun on the ground, sending the light around and around, periodically illuminating parts of the chaotic scene in quick bursts. Her hearing was muffled from the shot, but she could make out their screams behind the layer of cotton.
"YOU'RE CRAZY!" she shrieked and flailed her hands around, trying to scratch the other girl and slapping at whatever she could as they wriggled on the slippery cave floor.
"It was an ACCIDENT!" she screeched, grabbing a handful of Jess's hair and pulling.
"HELP."
Mal curled and avoided hitting her head on the cave floor, but her shoulder and hip took the brunt of the blow.
She shrieked and everything became a whirlwind of sound and images.
The fallen flashlight spun on the ground, sending the light around and around, periodically illuminating parts of the chaotic scene in quick bursts. Her hearing was muffled from the shot, but she could make out their screams behind the layer of cotton.
"YOU'RE CRAZY!" she shrieked and flailed her hands around, trying to scratch the other girl and slapping at whatever she could as they wriggled on the slippery cave floor.
"It was an ACCIDENT!" she screeched, grabbing a handful of Jess's hair and pulling.
"HELP."
"FUCK YOU!" Jessica screamed back at Mallory as they clawed at each other.
There was no doubt in her mind that Mallory had been aiming the gun at her. The blood that was dripping down her cheek was proof enough of that. Meanwhile, one of their flashlights spun around momentarily revealing them and their movements until Rebekah focused a light on them, throwing their features into sharp relief.
Jessica glared down at Mallory as the other girl screeched and tried to escape.
She felt Mallory's hand reach up and grab onto her hair yanking it and her head backward.
Jessica responded in kind, weaving her right hand into Mallory's hair and yanking hard to one side while her left hand tried to blindly strike down at Mallory's face.
There was no doubt in her mind that Mallory had been aiming the gun at her. The blood that was dripping down her cheek was proof enough of that. Meanwhile, one of their flashlights spun around momentarily revealing them and their movements until Rebekah focused a light on them, throwing their features into sharp relief.
Jessica glared down at Mallory as the other girl screeched and tried to escape.
She felt Mallory's hand reach up and grab onto her hair yanking it and her head backward.
Jessica responded in kind, weaving her right hand into Mallory's hair and yanking hard to one side while her left hand tried to blindly strike down at Mallory's face.
Rebekah's mother didn't like nature documentaries. On the few rare occasions where Rebekah could cajole her into watching one, she'd look away from the screen whenever an animal was getting attacked or eaten. Sometimes she'd complain, wondering how the filmmakers could just stand by and watch these things happen. Why, she'd ask, didn't they ever intervene? Why didn't they stop baby gazelles from getting mauled by lions, or shoo birds away from hatchling turtles?
Watching these two human girls fight on the floor, Rebekah knew the answer. It was because the filmmakers knew better than anyone that nature had to be what it was. Nature was never as simple as "this animal is good and that animal is bad." A hawk that ate innocent baby chicks wasn't nice, but it wasn't evil, either. If the hawk didn't eat the chicks, the hawk would starve. You had to let nature take its course.
Rebekah held the flashlight still, watching the girls struggle within the pool of light. They were yanking each other's hair, screeching and yelling. She made no move to intervene, not yet. The truth was that she wanted to see how this all played out. Humans didn't generally fight for survival, at least not nowadays. They tended to fight with words, much in the same way dogs snarled to intimidate one another. She'd seen human children rough one another up on the playground, and older specimens drunkenly take a swing at one another. But they threw those punches out of wounded pride, or anger, or jealousy; they didn't do it out of a genuine fear of death. This fight, the behavior of these two humans, was human nature in the most literal sense of the term. Natural, primal animal aggression, an actual struggle for survival. A scene like this wasn't just rare. It was unique. This, she thought, was what Nathan Robinson must have felt when he became the first person ever to capture a giant squid on film.
Of course, Rebekah wasn't a documentarian. She didn't have the luxury of packing up her camera and trucking off to the editing trailer after the carnage was done. She was part of the fauna of this island, and the fallout of this fight would affect her survival one way or another. Rebekah didn't want dead bodies despoiling her cave or a victorious combatant to decide that they wanted to take her on in round two. That meant that she'd have to intervene at some point. Not just now, though. She'd seen enough fights at various parties to know that getting physically involved was never a good idea, and shouting at them now wouldn't do any good. Better to wait and let them land a few blows on one another. That way, when she did speak up and tell them to cut it out the pain would give them an incentive to listen.
Watching these two human girls fight on the floor, Rebekah knew the answer. It was because the filmmakers knew better than anyone that nature had to be what it was. Nature was never as simple as "this animal is good and that animal is bad." A hawk that ate innocent baby chicks wasn't nice, but it wasn't evil, either. If the hawk didn't eat the chicks, the hawk would starve. You had to let nature take its course.
Rebekah held the flashlight still, watching the girls struggle within the pool of light. They were yanking each other's hair, screeching and yelling. She made no move to intervene, not yet. The truth was that she wanted to see how this all played out. Humans didn't generally fight for survival, at least not nowadays. They tended to fight with words, much in the same way dogs snarled to intimidate one another. She'd seen human children rough one another up on the playground, and older specimens drunkenly take a swing at one another. But they threw those punches out of wounded pride, or anger, or jealousy; they didn't do it out of a genuine fear of death. This fight, the behavior of these two humans, was human nature in the most literal sense of the term. Natural, primal animal aggression, an actual struggle for survival. A scene like this wasn't just rare. It was unique. This, she thought, was what Nathan Robinson must have felt when he became the first person ever to capture a giant squid on film.
Of course, Rebekah wasn't a documentarian. She didn't have the luxury of packing up her camera and trucking off to the editing trailer after the carnage was done. She was part of the fauna of this island, and the fallout of this fight would affect her survival one way or another. Rebekah didn't want dead bodies despoiling her cave or a victorious combatant to decide that they wanted to take her on in round two. That meant that she'd have to intervene at some point. Not just now, though. She'd seen enough fights at various parties to know that getting physically involved was never a good idea, and shouting at them now wouldn't do any good. Better to wait and let them land a few blows on one another. That way, when she did speak up and tell them to cut it out the pain would give them an incentive to listen.
V8 Characters:
Juanita Reid
Rebekah Hayes
Karin Han
EXTREME STEVE Dodds
Juanita Reid
Rebekah Hayes
Karin Han
EXTREME STEVE Dodds
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Ruggahissy
- Posts: 2554
- Joined: Mon Aug 13, 2018 4:13 pm
Mallory opened her mouth and let out a piercing scream as Jessica pulled on her hair in return. There was now a light on them, but her eyesight hadn't adjusted from the dark of the cave. The vision of the other girl swam in front of her as they both yanked handfuls of hair.
This situation had very little to do with the death game.
Mallory had told her parents what she saw, well, perhaps a little more than she saw but information which was her logical conclusion, which was fine. It would be a sin to lie, and she wouldn't sin. She's seen her sister sitting very close to another girl, and saw them whisper something, and their faces were close. There could be no other conclusion to draw.
And she didn't know Maritza would be sent away, she thought it would maybe just be a severe punishment of a different kind.
Or did she?
Maybe she knew what it would do and she didn't care.
Life wasn't fair to give some people more than you, so she could be a little unfair back, right?
Jessica, Maritza's friend, had decided to make the family matter her business and had been hostile ever since, for no reason. So while the death game may have removed the guard rails of this conflict, it was not the progenitor.
Mallory forgot about their circumstances and reared back, slamming her forehead into Jessica's. The cave and anything she could see spun like a top and her eyes filled with tears.
"You just -- you super mega nature freak. You've been on my neck ever since -- "
Mallory let go of Jessica's hair and wrapped both hands around the other girl's neck.
"You and my freaking dyke sister," she growled, squeezing. Blood from a scratch near her eyebrow started trickling down her face.
This situation had very little to do with the death game.
Mallory had told her parents what she saw, well, perhaps a little more than she saw but information which was her logical conclusion, which was fine. It would be a sin to lie, and she wouldn't sin. She's seen her sister sitting very close to another girl, and saw them whisper something, and their faces were close. There could be no other conclusion to draw.
And she didn't know Maritza would be sent away, she thought it would maybe just be a severe punishment of a different kind.
Or did she?
Maybe she knew what it would do and she didn't care.
Life wasn't fair to give some people more than you, so she could be a little unfair back, right?
Jessica, Maritza's friend, had decided to make the family matter her business and had been hostile ever since, for no reason. So while the death game may have removed the guard rails of this conflict, it was not the progenitor.
Mallory forgot about their circumstances and reared back, slamming her forehead into Jessica's. The cave and anything she could see spun like a top and her eyes filled with tears.
"You just -- you super mega nature freak. You've been on my neck ever since -- "
Mallory let go of Jessica's hair and wrapped both hands around the other girl's neck.
"You and my freaking dyke sister," she growled, squeezing. Blood from a scratch near her eyebrow started trickling down her face.
Loathing and hatred, that was what fuelled her.
The idea that Mallory would wake up and shoot at her would have shocked Jessica in another scenario, but given their history, it made sense to her that Mallory had taken that opportunity.
While Jessica had never been made privy as to why her friend had been sent away she was able to put the puzzle pieces together. It wasn't difficult, not taking into account what Maritza had told her and Mallorys' own beliefs.
The headbutt impacted Jessica's face, snapping her own head back and making her vision swim. Before she could recover she felt her hands wrap around her throat. Her own hand released the hair it held and reached up, grabbing hold of a wrist to try and pull the grip away.
She remembered the sense of abandonment she'd felt at first before the sequence of events became clear. The emptiness as her messages were no longer replied to. In the end, she had started writing letters, keeping Maritza informed on the goings on around Salem and at school, in her personal life and how she was doing at volleyball and climbing. Normally she'd post them but sometimes she' would hand-deliver them to the Valdez house, hoping that Martiza would answer the door, but she never did. Jessica hadn't ever seen Maritza again.
Jessica heard what Mallory called Maritza.
The fire kicked up in her gut again and she reached across Mallory's face, fingers grasping blindly for an eye socket.
The idea that Mallory would wake up and shoot at her would have shocked Jessica in another scenario, but given their history, it made sense to her that Mallory had taken that opportunity.
While Jessica had never been made privy as to why her friend had been sent away she was able to put the puzzle pieces together. It wasn't difficult, not taking into account what Maritza had told her and Mallorys' own beliefs.
The headbutt impacted Jessica's face, snapping her own head back and making her vision swim. Before she could recover she felt her hands wrap around her throat. Her own hand released the hair it held and reached up, grabbing hold of a wrist to try and pull the grip away.
She remembered the sense of abandonment she'd felt at first before the sequence of events became clear. The emptiness as her messages were no longer replied to. In the end, she had started writing letters, keeping Maritza informed on the goings on around Salem and at school, in her personal life and how she was doing at volleyball and climbing. Normally she'd post them but sometimes she' would hand-deliver them to the Valdez house, hoping that Martiza would answer the door, but she never did. Jessica hadn't ever seen Maritza again.
Jessica heard what Mallory called Maritza.
The fire kicked up in her gut again and she reached across Mallory's face, fingers grasping blindly for an eye socket.