Survival Of The Fittest

Zach piped down as Sam told him that she was trying her best. Yeah yeah yeah. What the fuck ever. Why were they so worried about this girl? Zach was more nervous about the fact that neither RJ or Samya could put their guns away. I mean it made sense, in some sort of screwed up "all in the game" logic that Zach no doubt knew that both of them were using. Zach didn't think like that. Zach thought like Zach, and death game or not he was not going to change. As if to insist, Zach took the cigarette out of his mouth and blew the smo-

He coughed. Shit. The cigarette flew out of his hand. Landed on the ground.

Zach grew quiet. He stared down at the cigarette on the ground. Now his cigarette was out. Again. And now it was crooked. He hated when his cigarettes got bent. He picked it up and looked at it.

"...shit."

And before Zach knew it Zach wasn't thinking like Zach. He was more of a machine gun with lips. Zach just looked at Kris, bitch was literally drooling like a... bitch. Snarling. Crazy. He threw the half-smoked cigarette on the ground.

"Halt die Klappe." He said, clicking his tongue. "Hör auf zu jammern."

Zach turned to RJ. Guy had wrote GO on the ground. Go where? Home? Sorry Dorothy but Minnesota was so far away.

"Scarface, lemme be blunt." Zach said. "If you don't put that gun down, I'm going to take it and shove it up your ass."

He left it at that. Zach hated people who tried to play the hero. They didn't need a hero, they needed people who would decide to jump in front of a bullet before actually jumping down and taking cover. He hated heroes, fucking boyscout "must save everyone." It was almost impossible for Zack to keep himself composed.

"Tryin'?" Zach almost cracked a smirk when he went over what Samya just said. Almost. "Sam, if you were trying you would put that gun away too. You know her right? Am I the only one who isn't freaking out?."

Jesus christ he was crumbling. He was rambling. Calm down. Calm down. Shut the fuck up Zach. He'd slap himself but he knew it wouldn't work.

"I don't know why you three are getting all fucking scared. It's not like she killed someone in front of our eyes. Cuz' that's what you're acting like. Like she drilled a hole in someone's head and laughed so hard she threw up and decided to fuckin fall asleep in her own puke."

Cigarette. Needed a cigarette. They were the locks that kept Zach caged. He grumbled and fished for another cigarette. Used one, wasted one. He needed to put this under control, he'd have none if he kept smoking. These cigs were the only thing holding him in and goddamn it he was going to need as much self control as possible if he didn't want to freak out and start rambling. Zach didn't like to talk. This was like a record for him - he hasn't spoken this much in a single day since forever.

"What I'm tryin' to say," Zach summed up his thoughts as he reached for his fancy lighter, his hand trembling "is that just because some fat suit told us to kill each other don't mean we have to. Fuck that shit. Can't we just chill out, for the moment, please? Maybe I'm naive but..."

Flick. Light. Click. Inhale. Exhale. Zach finally simmered.

"... all this is givin' me a headache. I don't need this fucking shit."

They just didn't get it. Not in the slightest. Kris felt lost, angry, afraid, all at the same time. Why wouldn't they back off!? She told them, she told them to get away from her and they were all just standing around like she hadn't said a word. Crowding her. Accusing her. What did they know? Samya, at least, had put her gun away.

Samya...

Up until that moment, the identity of that part of the group standing around her hadn't even processed in her frantic mind. Kris' expression changed into one of surprise and she merely stared at Samya, a keening sorrow ripping through her. Samya was one of her friends, she bladed (much like Tabi, perhaps an even closer friend). Kris had always looked down on the rollerblading a little, seeing skating as superior, but never on the people that practiced it. They had a right to their hobbies, after all. Samya herself, she was friendly and bubbly and... and... too good.

They couldn't be friends, not anymore. Not after what Kris had done. You couldn't just laugh off what happened with Reika and Kimberly, close your eyes, smile and forget all about it. This wasn't a slate that could be wiped clean, not in the hours since the morning, not in years. Never.

Kris tore her eyes from Samya to look at R.J, whose own gun was still pointed at her. What should she do? His silence spoke of judgement, execution, but... could she go to her death already? After what Kris had done, it seemed fitting, yet... if she was dead, how could she make up for it all? There had to be something - some atonement, that she could do that would...

Kris bowed her head. Not unless she spontaneously developed the power of resurrection. Still... lying down and accepting it all just didn't strike a chord with her. That was submitting to it all. What Kris had done was unforgiveable, but that didn't mean she was helpless to do any good.

Slowly and carefully, without making any sudden movements and keeping her hands well away from her gun, Kris rose, picking up Simon's water bottle on the way. Once she was on her feet, she opened up the bottle and splashed her face with it before wiping it off with her arm. Kris was still filthy, but damn if she was going to have puke all over her face. Taking a gulp from the bottle, she capped it then simply let it drop to the ground.

Then, she looked around sharply as a voice spoke in german. 'Shut up. Stop whining'. It was another guy, Zach, if she remembered correctly. One of those activist types, not anybody she'd had much contact with, certainly not somebody she was aware of being bilingual. Whatever.

"Look," Kris tried to say, then winced. Her throat felt like sandpaper. "You don't want to be around me. I'm not threatening you, it's just... some real bad stuff has happened. I'm better off on my own, you're better without me," Kris turned and began to walk away from the group, still not putting her hands anywhere close to the gun, even though she had an overwhelming urge to grasp it 'just in case'. She stopped a few yards away and looked over her shoulder. "Please... don't try to follow me."

Who knows, huh? Anything could happen. Grip. Finger tightens. Pressure. smile. Bang.

((Kris continued in Clean and Righteous))

Oh, you are some stupid sons of bitches, not listening to a man with a gun when he tells you to leave. Well, Sam, he supposed, he couldn't really fault, as she was just as armed as he was, but the other two, well, if they all wanted to see their families again, they were going to have to shape the hell up and learn not to be so trusting. The Asshat - R.J. had forgotten his name already, but he figured Asshat was as good a name as any, really - said something in... hell, Dutch? Fuck if he knew. Then he decided to get snarky? I'm sorry, did you just threaten the guy with the gun? While unarmed? Who the fuck does Eddie fuckin' Gaedel here think he is? Whoever he supposed he was, he didn't receive the dignity of being offered so much as an aside glance.

Kris looked R.J. in the eyes. It was a look that almost seemed as if she was staring the Grim Reaper himself in the face... and for a moment, she seemed ready to accept his offer. Her eyes spoke of a twisted combination of fear and guilt. Jesus, what the hell happened to you? As she rose to her feet, he lowered his gun, listening to her parting instructions.

Listening, and ignoring.

God, I'm stupid.

Here he'd seen this girl at her worst, her most miserable, at the lowest point in her life, lying on the ground and drowning in her own vomit, and what had he done? Just aimed a gun at her head, that's all. Is that the kind of person he'd become?

Fuck no.

As Kris faded off into the distance, he let out a mournful sigh. He glanced over to Simon. Sorry, dude, but I gotta take this for a while longer. Sam's got a piece on her, so stick close to her. You'll be safer that way. Once he tucked the gun away in the back of his pants, he spun quickly around, decking Asshat right across the jaw. It hurt his knuckles like hell, but damned if it didn't let off some much-needed steam. He gave him a stare that just screamed "Say what again, motherfucker," as he slowly trailed after the girl, disappearing around the nearest corner, grabbing his bag along the way and ducking between buildings where he could to avoid pursuit.

An idiot and a hypocrite, eh? Go figure.

Whatever he was, he had to find Kris. He had to make things right between the two of them. Most of all, he had to be sure she was okay.

He'd work out the matter of how on the way.

((R.J. Lowe continued in Mad World, GMing approved by Ciel))

Ash muffled her sigh of relief with the collar of her rust stained sweater. This turned out better than she expected. Nobody was killed, and the chances of them getting in a shootout that could affect her were nil now that the girl had fled and one of the males chased after her. Since they didn't seem like they would shoot her on sight now that only one of the gunslingers was left, she figured it'd be safe to leave. But this was a quandary. If she wanted to survive, she couldn't go at this alone. She could join up with these people, but they would eventually have to kill each other. Unless....

Manipulate them? No, that's not reasonable. This isn't one of those novels where I can pull this off with a bit of luck and lots of lies. This is reality. If anything, I'd be the one being played.

Her cold grey eyes narrowed. She would just have to take a chance. Her life was close to being ended anyways, so risking herself like this wasn't going to shorten her remaining time significantly. Ash peeked out from behind the corner, then walked out into the street with her hands held up where they could be seen. "Hello." Was she going to be gunned down here and now? "Please don't shoot. I mean no harm." Her icy expression and passive gaze didn't betray the panic deep within.

Kris had just left. She looked like something was haunting her, like she had some serious guilt issues. Like she needed a hug. And what had Samya done? She gone and shoved a gun in her face, as if Kris had done anything but be nauseous. Had she turned in to someone else already? It was all so stressful, getting accepted into school had been cake in comparison. If she could, Sammy would just curl up in a ball and cry. But there wasn't any time to be a scared scared girl. She just had to be . . .

She didn't even know, really.

After Kris left, that other guy with the gun did too. Sammy assumed he went after Kris (Please, try to take care of her.) but he had to go off and punch Zach in the face first. Oddly enough, she was more annoyed than upset. After all, up until that point, she'd wanted to slap Zach herself. Besides, he could have been cruel and shot him in the foot or something. Still, she'd have words for RJ if she saw him again. Like jerk, dummy, or . . . meaner things, yeah.

Samya ran over to him with her bag. "Hold on hun, lemme find some pain pills. That punch looked nasty." She put her irritation aside, digging through her bag. After all, friends got mad at each other. It wasn't that serious, and they had to stick together. Until someone else came along, it was Sammy and Zach against the game.

Boy, you've got a friend in me
Yeah, you've got a friend in me


Okay, that image (cowboy Samya, astronaut Zach, slinky Simon; what in the world?) was bizzare. Yeah, she needed a vacation. Or a cookie. Or at least for people to leave the three of them alone so she could get her bearings back. Yeah, some peace would be nice.

"Please don't shoot. I mean no harm."

Samya laughed, she couldn't help it. This was just. too. much. God apparently was using her for his own personal variety show, because he was just making fun of her now. What did she have to do to get a break around here?!? Kill someone? She kept laughing, the whole idea of this game was, for the moment, completely ridiculous. She didn't look up from her bag when she spoke. "Do either of you know this chick? I hope she's friendly, but if she isn't? If I was her I would leave. Like now." Sammy kept laughing. She was emotionally worn, but completely aware of how silly she looked. But it was grimly funny, and she'd always been able to laugh at herself.

Zach, handle this please? Because what is this, I can't even . . .

The girl had walked away, taking her gun with her. Simon breathed a sigh of relief. It seemed like he wasn't as doomed as he thought he was before. Obviously, Kris had seen some pretty gruesome things to mess her up like they did. Or was she the one who did the gruesome things, that seemly normal teenaged girl? It was best not to try to dwell on that, Simon reasoned. Even if the most potentially explosive factor was gone, there were still two armed people and another, angrier guy around. Well, at least Kris had taken the damn water, if only one gulp.

Well, make that one armed person. R.J. had taken off, most likely after Kris. Simon wasn't sure why, but he was pretty sure that the other guy had taken his gun with him.

That little...oh, wait. No gun. I don't have to shot anyone. If I caused someone of this island to die, it'll be myself and myself alone. That feeling was surprisingly comforting. Simon was a follower, not a leader, and certainly not a decision-maker. The responsibility of holding a firearm had simply been more than he could handle. You pathetic coward. Those thoughts were not for R.J. Lowe, but for himself. As far as Simon was concerned, the other boy had done him a favor. Use that gun well, okay?

Sam was trying to help Zach when a new girl showed up. Simon knew Sam a little; he had seen her at Debate Team. But the girl had had talked to once or twice was different than this new one. "Do either of you know this chick? I hope she's friendly, but if she isn't? If I was her I would leave. Like now." He did know her. The girl's name was Ash Morrison, and Simon had seen her around the library enough times to recognize her face. But as far as trusting her went...Well, he was 0 for 2, in terms of people he tried to help not trying to kill him.

But really, did he care anymore? Simon had thought he was doomed to die even when he had the gun. Now he was armed only with a stick he found of the ground, and backed up by people he didn't know. He was so beyond dead by this point that it was even funny anymore. Not that it ever was funny. Simon wasn't thinking straight, he understood that.

"Don't worry, I'm not going to to shoot anyone." Simon tried once again to look as unimposing as he could. The newest girl looked positively icy, but he didn't let that unnerve him. After all, she was in the same situation they were. "I'm Simon Fletcher, and these guys are Sam and Zach." For whatever reason, those simple words sounded sort of ridiculous coming out of his mouth. Simon ignored that. "Where did you come here from?"

"The dumpster." Was that what he meant? Either way, she had to remain focused. "I was there when that girl fell on her face." She briefly pointed over her shoulder to the alley where she emerged. She straightened out her rust stained sweater before continuing on with her request. "I want to join your group." She said simply, not letting any emotion creep into her words. "It's harder to survive when you go at it alone."

With her message delivered, she awaited the results. She didn't think they would kill her, although it was a possibility. If they did let her in, chances were that they would have to fight each other in the end if they couldn't think of something. A way to survive this 'game'. She stared coldly at Simon. "And if we work together, there is a chance we could find a way out of this without having to kill each other."

Unlikely, but possible. We just need the right people...

"What do you say? Will you let me join you?"

Zach was pissed that he got punched in the face. He managed to hold his anger in though. Zach's face hurt, he had wasted precious minutes trying to save this one chick, he had a headache, Samya was treating him like a kid but at least Zach had his cigarette. He could do anything so long as he had a box of cigarettes. The rest of the world didn't matter, fuck everyone else, it was him and the ciggy against the world. Buildings on fire, zombies eating brains, hamburgers getting burnt, total chaos. Just him and his cigarettes. Bring it on.

Sam had to start talking and break Zach out of his daydream. He remembered the pain in his face, and Zach really wanted to go running after Scarface and beat the ever-loving shit out of him. Then again, there was this one chick that just showed up. Far be it from him to go storming off, especially when Sammy was telling him to do something. When she tells you to do something you don't fuck around no sir. Zach looked back at Samya, clearly annoyed over the whole deal.

"Yeah yeah yeah," Zach took a shaky drag, "lemme deal with it."

... what kind of name could he make for her? Jesus. Gray? That was what he thought when he looked at her. Shit. Emo girl? Pfft, fuck no. Ice girl? That just ran off the tongue but that was retarded. Zach shook his head. Damn it. Damn it damn it damn it.

"Ash." Yeah, Ash was all gray right? Heh, Zach was pretty clever he had to admit. "Now I don't give a shit whether you stick with us, but if you want to stay with us, you had better keep up." He looked at the girl. He studied her. She wasn't a threat. Maybe. "If you're cool with that, then you're cool with me. You best not go thinking of backstabbing us, because I'm warning you I will figure you out and I will crack down. Got it?"

He sighed and inhailed his cigarette. The pain was leaving his body. He looked over at Samya and gave her a nod. It looked like this group needed a plan. They wouldn't be getting anywhere unless someone stepped up. Why couldn't it be him? Zach got up to his feet and brushed his pants off. He cleared his throat.

Zach Jamis. Leader of a group. It really didn't surprise him.

"Alright." Zach blinked with his cigarette dangling from his lip. "None of you want to be partnered with an asshole like me but I don't think you've got a choice." He turned back to Doc. "I don't like talking. Makes my head hurt. However, what I think we should do is keep forward through this little town. Maybe we might find something. Wouldn't hurt to try."

Zach took a drag. "Got any problems?"

"No problems. I agree to your terms." Ash said decisively. She couldn't keep a look of mild disgust from creeping onto her face when she saw Zach enjoy his cigarette, but tried to ignore the feeling as best as she could.

This was a change in her fortunes. Her chances of making it through this 'game' had gone up from almost impossible to very unlikely. It was certainly something to be happy about, but this was no time to celebrate. Survival came first. Escape would be have to wait.

She dropped her hands slowly and took a step forward. "Do you want to start searching this town for supplies now?" Her grey eyes glanced over the group. They looked like they weren't about to move any time soon, but she had to ask anyways. Only then did she realize that she could be overstepping some boundaries.

She didn't know Zach that well, but she suspected that he could be a tyrant deep down inside. No, that probably wasn't true. But she had to be careful nonetheless. They didn't trust her, and with good reason.

Ash was supposed to follow, not be a backseat advisor. If she started acting like she wanted more power in the group, it would not reflect well on her. She actually had to care about her image now, especially since her life was on the line.

She decided to remain silent and appear to be brooding instead of demanding. Not the best move, but it was the only one she could think of at the moment. She just hoped that it wouldn't come back to kill her when she least expected it.

Hey, ET, we'd really appreciate it if you stuck somewhat close to post order so that everyone gets a chance to respond. Thanks.

SOTF_Help wrote:Hey, ET, we'd really appreciate it if you stuck somewhat close to post order so that everyone gets a chance to respond. Thanks.

Sorry, I'm kind of tired right now. I'm not really getting what you're saying.

(Sorry to jump out like this, but it's all about the post order dude. I really don't mind you posting ahead of us, but we kind of have an order. Like, for now, let's say that the post order is Ciel, you, Fri', Tagabasa, Ciel, you, etc, etc. So yeah, with you posting every other turn doesn't give Taga or Fri' a chance to have their characters do something. Y'see what I mean? Ash is doing all of these things before Samya and Simon can even react.)

Okay, I guess I'll wait for Fri' and Tagabasa before I make my next IC post.

Sammy never though she'd say this, but she was very glad Zach had his cigarette. Apparently, she was bothering him by being worried about him. Well, he was bothering her by being an ass (there was no other word for how he was acting, really) about everything. He needed to relax, because she was going to. After all, what else could go wrong at this point? Zach was acting like he hated her, that new girl was working her nerves already, and . . . this was just bad.

Normally, Samya loved meeting new people. Then again, normally Samya wasn't packing heat either. So okay, normality had flown out the window the moment she woke up. But something about Ash was off. Like she'd sell you up the creek and steal your paddle. Or turn on you for a penny and some advice. She would have said something to Zach, but she didn't want to risk him saying something she'd want to hurt him for. If he wanted to be Captian Jackass, she would let him.

Owe him that much, at least.

She turned to Simon, he seemed the most likeable of the bunch right now. At least he wasn't creepy or mad at her. But what was there to say at this point? She yawned.

"Hmm, we've been up for about a day. It'd be nice to rest someplace. But ya'll lead the way, I don't really care what we do anymore." Maybe sleep would make her feel better.

Zach had started smoking a cigarette. Where he managed to get one of those, Simon had no idea. It could have been from his pack, or he could have brought it, or whatever. It really didn't matter. What mattered is that he and the new girl weren't at each others throats, which made them all, by default, allies. If there was one thing Simon didn't totally and completely hate about this game, it was that your friends are fairly easy to figure out. They were the ones not killing you. Of course, it got confusing when people suddenly attacked you, but that was just how things went.

"None of you want to be partnered with an asshole like me but I don't think you've got a choice." Zach turned to Simon. "I don't like talking. Makes my head hurt. However, what I think we should do is keep forward through this little town. Maybe we might find something. Wouldn't hurt to try."

The shorter boy nodded. "This place is pretty big. There's a good chance that maybe we can find something helpful. It's worth a shot, at least." And it was better than just standing around, doing nothing. He didn't know Zach, and the guy seemed...well, abrasive. But if he was going to lead the group, he could be a total douche for all Simon cared. As long as he didn't kill anyone, he fell into the category of 'good'.

"Hmm, we've been up for about a day. It'd be nice to rest someplace. But ya'll lead the way, I don't really care what we do anymore." Sam sounded tired as she spoke.

Simon nodded. "There's that too, I guess. We'll have to figure out how to do sleeping arrangements, as I'm sure we're all really tired." Simon knew that he was getting a little bit sleepy. Not so much that he wouldn't be able to pull a watch, though. "If we g-" He stopped suddenly. He had heard something. The noise was a good deal away, but still close enough to be audible. It was a noise he had heard before, if only in movies and video games, but it made him jump all the same.

"Did anyone...did anyone else hear that?" Simon asked, suddenly on edge.