Survival Of The Fittest

The morphine had taken effect quite nicely.

As with most times when Adam was given a shot of morphine by someone other than a licensed doctor, the rush that he felt when the drug went into his system was that like none he'd ever felt before. He recalled the very first time; Hawley had told him that he was going to feel like he could take on the world - and perhaps, he could...but when it wore off, he'd be in absolute agony. Of course, Bill had given Adam the shot, and the absolute agony had worn off completely, allowing Adam to lean back and close his eyes as Bill tried his best to remove the bullet from his leg.

Trying to keep his mind blank throughout the entire thing, Adam found that it was nearly impossible to do, and his thoughts kept spilling back on to his past experience, and how it different from this. He'd had a much easier time meeting up with people the first time around, and while it was true they'd all managed to die somehow, it seemed now as though things were going far less his way this time. At first, he'd met up with Alan and Hawley, and had managed to avoid injury for a good deal of the time. This time? He'd already been next to an exploding building, been shot, and was bruised up and down.

Not fun...

Testing his leg, he flexed it, and felt what he assumed was the morphine-version of a dull ache. Once it wore off, this was going to hurt like bloody hell, but Adam had to keep on going. In fact, now that he thought about it - this could very well be the most serious wound he'd sustained in his life, mainly because it took away the ability to run, unless he shot himself up with loads of morphine.

If I live through this, I'm sure I'll be able to sue the government for enough negligence that they'll pay my rehab bills...fuckers shouldn't be able to let this happen three fucking times...

Adam lost himself in his thoughts while Bill patched Izzy up, and tried to make sense in his mind of the sound that he'd heard while Bill had been working on him. It seemed familiar, somehow, but Adam couldn't put his finger on it, or where he'd heard it. Shrugging, he dismissed it. If it were that important, he'd remember it later.

Bill quickly finished taking the bullet out of Izzy, and then extended his hand to Adam, who stared at it for a moment before shaking his head and trying to clear the cobwebs out. The morphine was in full-blast now, and Adam now felt invincible, if not with a weaker leg. Nodding to Bill as he was helped up, Adam tried to steady himself. It wasn't stabbing throughout his leg anymore, and the pain seemed to be a dull throb - which was something Adam felt that he could deal with; even after the meds wore off.

"Thanks, man...this'll help, probably be a pain in the fucking ass once the drugs wear off, but hey...drugs! S'what they're for, yeah?"

As Adam turned around to help Izzy up, his eye caught the pair of Julie and another guy, Julie about to have her head bashed in, but her assailant seemed to be distractedly looking about for something, or someone. Ordinarily, Adam would have just opened fire towards the two, but...

Yeah, she just tried to fucking shoot us, but...man, she saved your life. And...

Internally, he quarrled with himself for a moment. There was no rational sense for doing what he was about to do. It didn't make any sense, and Bill and Izzy would likely be confused. Maybe Adam was damaged enough that it had no basis in reality - it was hard to tell. Even Adam himself wondered a bit why he felt such a strong urge to help people out.

Even if it doesn't work out, all the time...

He had a brief flash of faces through his head; Owen Fontaine, Guillaume Archambault, Hawley Faust, Amanda Jones, Madelaine Shirohara, Marcus Roddy - all people who he'd been unable to save, who he'd tried to. In the end, it had been useless. They'd all died, and he'd tried to save them all. He'd failed. Julie had come back for him, she'd trusted him, and he'd trusted her. He owed her his life, without a doubt. The guy was obviously trying to kill her, and Adam couldn't just stand back and let it happen.

Turning to Bill, he grabbed the M1 back from the larger boy, and checked the weapon to ensure that it'd been properly loaded and reloaded from when he'd fired it. It had. Reaching over, he carefully helped Izzy up, and brushed some dirt from her back and arms. Quickly turning around, Adam started to walk towards Julie and the other boy. It didn't matter what Julie had done, she'd helped Adam, and that was a debt that needed to be repaid. Adam was about eight feet away from them, when he stopped short, M1 pointed at Julie's attacker.

Adam stopped, and he just looked at the two of them, struggling.

He waited, and watched for a moment, seeming almost unsure of what to do.

No...I can't do this to myself anymore...

Slowly, Adam turned around, and walked back the way that he'd come. As he neared Bill and Izzy again, Adam had tears in his eyes. His expression remained neutral, but even amongst all of the wetness, the tears were obvious. Finally stopping in front of them, Adam looked at the both of them rather carefully.

"I've got to stop trying to save the world, and just concentrate on what's most important to me."

His words were quiet, hollow, and laced with many different kinds of underlying emotion. His eyes still teared, his decision obviously giving him far more pain than any leg wound could ever give him.

"And right now? That's you guys."

His words were tempered, his tone quieter and barely audible above the rain. He let his hand slide over to Izzy's hand and gave it a light squeeze, and then gave Bill a squeeze on the shoulder. These were his comrades. They were his allies, and more importantly, they were his friends. They were going to find some way out of this, or Adam knew that he would ensure that he gave his life trying to make sure that one of them got to the end.

Without question. I'm not playing for me anymore. Now, I'm playing for them.

Nodding at the both of them, albeit weakly, Adam gestured with his head towards the pathway opposite Julie and the other kid. It was time to leave the marsh behind, no matter what was still going on in it.

That was the thing that hurt the most.

((Adam continued elsewhere))

Unlike Bill, Izzy was having a slightly harder time becoming absorbed—let alone able to focus onto anything at the moment.

She almost felt as though she was lost in a riptide or something, everything was swaying back and forth in a fast motion that was leaving her wanting to fall over until everything just stopped moving and spinning around her. Was morphine supposed to do this, allowing what little focus she had on her surroundings to turn it toward Adam and try and judge how the other was doing since his injection of the medication from Bill. Though besides the clear indication of pain, at least some he seemed to be… fine? She wasn't too sure on that one; he seemed to be speaking rather oddly at the moment. Though maybe that was normal for being under the effects of morphine, though speaking odd thoughts were currently the least of her concerns, in fact that want to just lay down on the ground and go to sleep—hopefully wake up and trying would stop trying to get up and move around her.

Shaking her head though Izzy forced herself to focus though on trying to keep helping Bill to remove this bullet from Adam's thigh, her own bullet stuck in her side causing her dulled pricks and pinches of pain compared to what she had been dealing with moments before. Still the fact that she had to go into another different sort of pain to stop that pain seemed almost stupid and unneeded. Bill suddenly yelling though caused her to admit a startled sound in her somewhat less-than-focused state of mind, glancing up just as a weird sound reached her ears that she noticed to be the intercom system just as an even louder explosion of sound echoed through the jungle leaving her almost reeling in place. Lost in trying to figure out what the hell was going on now she missed Bill putting the bullet away and starting to dress the wound, only focusing on the boy again once he was suddenly near her.

Finding herself staring almost unsure for a moment before leaning somewhat and hitching her shirt up so he could actually get to the wound in question, attention flickering and focusing Adam for a brief moment before glancing down and biting against her lip to help with pain—though dulled by the morphine was still painful nonetheless to her. But it was thankfully over just as quickly as it had began, taking in a small breath of air as he worked to now dress the wound, more wounds being said but Izzy found herself unable to listen as her thoughts once again began to swim away from her and for another moment lose herself in the haze that was the morphine running through her system. She only focused back when Adam held out a hand toward her, Izzy watching for a moment because Adam seemed distracted by something in the distance.

Izzy too glancing off but from where he seemed focused but was unable to see anything from where she was sitting on the ground, distracted once again as Adam returned to help her feet. Swaying somewhat in place but managing to steady herself, a small word of thanks leaving past her lips as he went on to help brush off some of the dirt that was probably covering her from having fallen. Covered in dirt, mud, and blood really she wanted to do nothing but get a shower and change into something not so… soaked and dirty. Closing her eyes somewhat and taking in more air as before looking toward Adam as he seemed to move off and look off again before returning to where Bill and herself where standing. Confused by the sight of water in the other's eyes, sifting somewhat herself—curious now to what was striking up all this emotion.

Listening to his words she stood, trying to see whatever Adam had seen… barely able to make something out from where she stood but it was clear what it was. After all, Julie wasn't where she remember where the girl had fallen after being shot, feeling her stomach clench and turn as she turned away at the sensation of someone touching her hand, glancing to Adam at the squeeze and giving a small smile. Watching as he nodded toward the pathway and began to walk off, Izzy glancing back toward the other people standing in the marsh and feeling her stomach clench in an uncomfortable manner before shakily following after where Adam was heading in the opposite direction at what was happening in the marshy water. "W-wait up." She found herself calling out as she limped after Adam.

Managing to get close enough to reach out and grasp her hand along his elbow, not only there for the needed physical support—the morphine still making her sick to her stomach and woozy, along with the wound on her leg but also the mental support that she could very well be leaving someone for their death right now.

[[ Izzy continued elsewhere~ ]]

((I can't find it in myself to write a post mostly of "Bill went with them" so, Bill went with them, and is thus continued in the magical relm of "elsewhere"))

[Real sorry about that. Preparing for Con and waiting for the hangover to ease off, I'm getting back into business with Julie]

Thoughts, emotions, physical pain...these were the sorts of things that reminded Julie that she was a human. Human in the sense that she was something that was capable of feeling emotions, as well as a sense of relatedness and intentionality to the people around her. But as a result of experiencing all three, Julie was gradually becoming rather numb to the overstimulus... And as a result, a kind of haze had engulfed Julie's mind for a while...

She only managed to snap out of it as she suddenly found herself being startled by the shout over the announcement systems...and no sooner felt something fly by her head.

Bewilderment suddenly faded into a cold, sharp nothingness, the instant that she realized....

That motherfucker is trying to kill me.

And in an instant, adrenaline spurred her to her feet, though she wobbled unsteadily on the weight of an injured ankle.

It nearly shocked her that she wasn't feeling any pain. No, she wasn't feeling anything at all. There were no thoughts running through her mind. She was emotionless. She felt cold and pure.

It was funny...the very will to survive was what made humans into something akin to a machine.

She reached under the hem of the trench coat that was tied under her waist... In a flash, the butterfly sword was in her hand, it's handle a cold and sharp sting, blade extended.

Setting her jaw grimly, Julie looked towards the one who'd just dared to attack her. There was no spite, no malice being poured into the action she was about to make right now. She had to stop him before the distraction lost his effect and he turned his attention back towards her.

Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Adam leave....but that was the last thing she could be concerned about right now.

She was right all along. Friendship and solidarity had no meaning on this island. Julie didn't blame him for leaving...at least she wouldn't have to worry about him anymore.

On this island...friendship was nothing but a liability. Julie should have seen it earlier. Instead, she got too attached. Adam had been gradually becoming the friend that she would have hated to lose. Better to lose him before that happened. Not that it mattered now.

Onto the matter at hand...Julie lunged towards Edgar, sword in hand. Crouching low, she made a swipe towards him, but instead of aiming towards the head and torso, she made a movement to skim the blade in a slashing motion across the back of his calves, hoping he'd lose balance and fall forward.

Edgar continued to look around him for the source of the loud voice, though the darkness, combined with the heavy rain, did nothing to help him find it. Finally, he realized. Wait, that came from the announcements, didn't it? There's no way a human voice could be that loud. He was sure of it. That fucker Danya trying to screw with our heads...

As he started to turn back towards Julie, instinct made him quickly take a step back, though not before something made a cut right above his ankle. What the fuck? He stumbled back, but kept his footing, as he saw what had made that cut. Shit, she had another weapon all along! Now he was pissed. For a brief moment after that sudden "SHORYUKEN!" he had considered just letting Julie go. She was unarmed, as far as he could tell, and with those injuries she probably wouldn't last long. Besides, the last thing he needed was his name up on there on the announcements, proclaiming to the entire island that Edgar Hoskins is a killer. Not if it could be avoided.

This cinched it, though. He held the two rattan sticks in...some kind of battle-ready stance, examining the weapon his opponent held. Though her sword was...well, a sword, Edgar's weapons had the advantage range-wise. I just have to keep her at a distance. He thought to himself.

Taking a short moment to think up an attack, he finally took a step forward and thrust out the stick in his off-hand at Julie's torso, aiming for the gunshot wound. If it connected, he'd make a swing with the other stick, aiming for the side of Julie's knee, hoping to bring her to the ground just as she tried to do to him.

[I apologize for lateness and completely neglecting to post, I'll just end it right now so Super Llama can get back to posting. Really sorry SL. ><]

The bastard had more range than she did... Julie thought with a look of contempt towards the boy, gritting her teeth as she struggled to support herself in light of her injuries. And he was going for her wound? As if Julie would even let him try.

To be honest though, this was no place for her to get angry or reckless, as much as an attempt on her life was something very....VERY personal.

She stepped back, still holding her butterfly knife out, though keeping at a more defensive position than anything. As much as she felt like sticking it through the eye of this jerk for attacking her, she was at a disadvantage here. Plus what would killing him prove? Nothing except that she was just as he'd and everyone had said: A killer.

Julie stepped back, breathing heavily.

"You're going to play the game huh? Well I don't blame you, but I hope you know what you're getting into. My advice for you? If you're going to kill someone from behind, try not to miss. -_-"

With that, she suddenly turned and bolted as fast as she could with her injuries away from the area, butterfly knife still in hand. If he wasn't going to follow, that was just fine. If he went after her, then God help him.

[Continued elsewhere.]

[And now it's time for Ed to take his leave and end this thread once and for all.]

Edgar watched as Julie stepped back to dodge the attack, quickly taking a step back as well in case she decided to go for a counterattack. From his spot he stood his ground, waiting for her next move.

"You're going to play the game huh? Well I don't blame you, but I hope you know what you're getting into. My advice for you? If you're going to kill someone from behind, try not to miss."

Ed blinked in surprise as Julie suddenly took off. He started to chase after her, but the next moment decided against it as what the girl had said repeated itself in his head. "I hope you know what you're getting into." As he watched Julie's retreating form, he considered those words. Indiscriminately killing people, like that Blood Boy character or Bobby Jacks seemed to be doing, was only going to bring him trouble. Their victims more than likely had friends; friends who wouldn't have been the least bit happy about hearing about their deaths; friends who, if they spotted their killer, would definitely shoot first and ask questions later, if they weren't actively hunting them down, seeking revenge. Suddenly, the announcements came to life, and speak of the devil, Blood Boy was listed among the dead, killed by being enough of a fool to take on three people at once. And in a dangerzone, no less.

Ed wasn't playing for fame, he wasn't playing because he got turned on by slaughtering people, or whatever the fuck excuse these psychos had for doing what they were doing. He was playing so he get out of this shithole and go home. That was all, nothing more, and nothing less.

Just stay under the radar. Only kill if you have to. That's how you survive this game. He already had one advantage over many of the students; no personal ties to others. Whoever had died over the course of the game, and whoever was going to die in the future, he couldn't give less of a shit. He wouldn't be one of the ones distraught over hearing about his best friend's death, throwing reason and logic to the wind and going out to take on a murderous psychopath so they could sleep easier that night.

Edgar looked up as the rain started to lighten up. "Well, it's not what I was hoping for, but it's a step in the right direction." He said to himself as he turned around and wandered off. "God, I need a smoke."

{continued in Cause and Effect}