Survival Of The Fittest

Dark.

Wet.

Quiet.

What's going on? Where is this? I don't...ugh, my head...why is my neck so cold?

She stumbled forward, the sun mostly blocked out by the trees, making the area quite dark. But she tripped, a bag blocking her feet. She looked down at that bag, squinting at the sticker on the daypack which certainly wasn't hers.

G110.

She remembered the cold feeling on her neck and moved a hand up, touching the collar that she was wearing.

Oh no.

She screamed at the top of her lungs.

MARIA SANTIAGO [G110] - ALIVE

Maria remembered it now. All of it. The auditorium, the teachers dying, the announcement...that they were on Survival of the Fittest. God, it's all real...what did I do to deserve this, Jesus? Why me? What did I do...? She was sobbing, hysterical by now. I'm going to die...I'm going to die. All the world's going to watch me die... Oddly enough, that thought calmed her. Not the thought of dying, of course- the thought of being on television. She was going to be famous, just like she always wanted.

Not that this was how she would have chosen to go about it.

Sitting down on the forest floor- grimacing as she noticed how gross and covered in mud she was- she rifled through the contents of her daypack. They said we get a weapon, right? Please be something decent... But there was nothing. Food, water, flashlight- which she immediately took out and turned on- all of that was there, but the only extra she had was a Survival of the Fittest commemorative postcard, the image on the front an artist depiction of Adam Dodd's killing of Cody Jenson. Maria stared at it for a minute. What is this? Is this supposed to be...my weapon?

She almost began crying again. No, Maria, calm down. Don't worry about it...all you need is someone to help you. No problem. Plenty of people will be willing to save you...Everyone loves you. You'll be fine. Maria nodded to herself and looked over at the other object on the floor- her own personal bag. She flipped through it- and smiled. New clothes! I can get out of this muddy...grossness...

Maria pulled out another school uniform, identical to the one she was already wearing except in cleanliness, and started to take off her clothes, praying no one would decide now was a good time to walk by.

((B132 - Jay Holland Start))

Jay Holland lay sprawled across the couch in his apartment, the blinds shut and the lights off. It had seemed like it had taken forever for Jay to find his way back to the apartment, the buses in St. Paul didn't run all night, and stranded across town he had found himself in quite a predicament. Eventually at around 4 in the morning, Jay had managed to bum his way back to the modest apartment complex where he lived and slip through the back door of his house. His mother appeared to be sleeping, and not wanting to risk waking her at such a bizarre time, Jay had simply decided to collapse on the giant couch and catch some much needed shuteye.

He yawned and flipped over. That all had occured at least a few hours ago. He'd awakened, stiff from the walking with his head spinning. He let out a groan and looked out towards the gigantic grandfather clock across the room.

10 AM. Monday Morning. Jay's brow wrinkled in confusion, and he began to rub the gunk out of his eyes. Usually his Mom kicked up a racket in the morning, and it was near impossible to sleep through her morning routines. He should have heard her if he was on the couch, hell, she probably would have kicked him in a bid to get him up and moving for school. But yet, the apartment was silent... silent safe for a strange chopping noise coming from the kitchen. The rhythm was perfect, a steady chop ever two or three seconds. Jay sniffed the air.

Something was cooking. He sat up on the couch and pulled up his blue jeans. He shook his head and tried to fix his sweaty mop of hair, still tied back in a ponytail. He felt like a pile of shit. A shower would be in order. Jay groaning, got up and headed towards the kitchen.

"Mom?"

The smell... it was unlike anything he'd ever smelt before. A mixture between Grade A steak and some kind of high class cuisine. His stomach growled expectantly. He was hungry, and he could feel it. His Mom had never cooked anything that had smelt this good before...

Entering the kitchen, Jay was overwhelmed by the smell. It filled his nose, caressing his senses, his mouth watered and he rubbed his stomach. His mother stood at the stove, back turned, dutifully hacking away at the meat.

"Lookin' hoof Mom. I didn't know you had a day off." He said as he pulled out a chair, taking his seat at the small table the Hollands' used to serve supper on. It was covered in paper and trash and Jay gave a disgusted growl, shoving it onto the floor, clearing a spot for himself. The entire apartment looked messy come to think of it.

Didn't ever seem to get this dirty... I wonder why?

"Why's the place so messy? I thought you liked to keep things clean.." He said towards his Mother in a joking manner.

No answer.

Jay realized what was going on. The cold shoulder. She'd probably woken up late, to realize that Hay was crashed on the couch, dead to the world. Yet another unexplained abscence for the teachers to mark down in their books. Not that they cared, this was Jay Holland, slacker extraordinaire.

"Er," he began befor stopping himself. He didn't really have an explanation for why exactly he had been out so late. So, like many things in Jay Holland's life, he decided to half-ass it. His Mother stood dutifully at the cutting board, never failing to miss a chop every two (or three?) seconds. If Jay didn't know any better, he would have thought she wasn't paying attention.

"So, Ma, I know it's Monday... yeah I do know what day it is, don't worry. Uh. Well, look, first off. I don't exactly have anything y'know, due today. English, it's just all review. I didn't have anything to hand in for Math, so like, it's all just review y'know? I DID try to get away early but man... well, I DID get away early. Like, when I left the place uh, I was at, Alex and them, they were still partying. I was like 'Hey, we gotta get to school tommorrow', but nuh-uh, they wouldn't listen. So I left alone. I knew I had to get back, y'know, for you. It wasn't my fault, y'see the buses all stopped running and then..."

Jay stopped midsentence, or rather, midramble. The smell... the smell had changed. It was different now. It didn't remind Jay of fancy living and good eating anymore no, it was.. rotting. The previously welcome aroma now attacked him at all sides. He tried to think why his Mother was cutting something that was rotting, but his mind wasn't working right. He began again.

"So... I left, right? And I was like, 'Oh I've got to get to sleep for... for tomorrow.' But see.. you got.."

The smell was growing worse.

"Did, did something die in here? Okay look so, I mean, I got in and was just like boom! Out and... really you could have told me you were staying home, I would have set my alarm or something and that you wouldn't have.. waken.. up. Because, really you should have know I sleep.. er.."

Jay began to cough, his eyes began to water. He waved his hand in front of his face, trying to figure out what exactly he'd been saying. This was strange. It was getting worse by the second. Rotting, something was rotting. His Mother dutifully hacked at the cutting board every two or three seconds.

Jay wiped his mouth and coughed. He could see lights dancing in the corner of his vision.

Welcome to Surviv...

It doesn't ever get this messy. Who're these people? What's a Riz.. Smell. Why does it smell?

"Man, this- this is really bad Mom. You trying to kill me with this stuff?" Jay laughed. He reached up and covered his mouth with his sweater sleeve. He cursed.

"Mom, it's rotten. Why're you... why do you just... Why... It's gotta..."

Jay stood up abruptly, his chair toppling backwards. His mother looked strange. His vision was becoming blurry, the image of his mother was disolving into a hazy green mess and Jay could feel himself swaying back and forth, as if he were being carried somewhere by someone.

"Wait, wait! Stop! It... can't... Leave me here for a min... just... gotta breath." Jay stumbled forth and grabbed his Mothers' arm. Spinning her about, he realized why she looked so bizarre. She was young. She was so young. Jay had never seen his mother look this way, except in old photographs, back with her parents.. back with his dad... Her knife was crimson and she was still chopping through the green filter, methodically with no emotion whatsoever. Cutting the skin. Cutting the flesh. Cutting into the face of Jay Holland, laying upon the tray. Black gunk oozed from beneath the skin, mizing with the blood to create a thick black paste that dripped down the countertop, and stained the front of his Mother, as if she had been doing arts and crafts.

Jay opened his mouth to speak and calmly realized that that wasn't possible. His mouth was filled with the same godawful concoction, it oozed out the sides of his mouth and down his shirt. Jay realized rather matter-o-factly that it was dripping from his nose as well. His mother smiled.

"You ain't worth it Jay. You were never worth it."

And Jay felt to his horror, something clawing it's way up his throat and out his mouth.

----------

Jay Holland awoke with a start, the cool sunlight upon his face. He rolled about on the ground, trying to figure out why he felt so strange, why he could feel something tight around his neck. His past memories faded into a fuzzy blur and the smell of rotting meat faded from his memory.

Oh Man, was I dreaming? Did I... what's going on..?

Jay snapped back to reality and staggered to his feet, adjusting his black toque upon his head and shaking his head to clear the cobwebs.

Did I get wasted? Fuckin' booze, I hate booze... Fuckin' Christ, isn't this a camping trip?

Jay looked around, scanning his immediate surroundings. He was in the woods, well, some type of wooded area. He didn't know where. His memories flooded back to him, the room, the gunfire...

This.. this is real. Am I going to.. Why? Why us?

Why not?

Jay looked down, his pack lay on the grassy floor, his name and some number written on it. He reached down and unzipped the pack, glancing at the contents, his heart hammering.

This is insane. Do they really think we're going to kill each other? What a joke. No, no, this isn't going to happen. People here, Bayview, we're a little crazy, but not THAT type of crazy.

Jay's mouth fell open in surprise as he pulled a small pistol from his pack, something he was suprisingly familiar with.

A Nambu Pistol? This is what the Jap Officers in Call of Duty have! I get a pistol? Why do I get a pistol? Is that supposed to mean something?

Jay examined the gun for a minute. He wasn't exactly familiar with weapons, but he knew there was usually a switch on them, a safety to prevent misfiring it. That little informative clip the bastards had shown had showcased it. That Psycho... Riz. How did he remember that? He prayed the weapon had one. He didn't want to accidentally blow someone's balls off walking through the woods. In the end however, Jay couldn't bother to find it and decided to simply hold the pistol for now. He picked up his pack and slung it over his shoulder.

"Fuckin' Christ, this is nuts..." He breathed through his mouth as he began to walk through the woods. "Was I layin' here clocked out for the last few fucking hours? Yeah, great plan on an island full of potential psychos.."

That's a great idea. A plan. I should get one of those.

Jay headed off through the woods, looking for something that he could use as a waypoint.

Could you kill your best friend Jay..? Could... could your best friend kill you?

He shivered. "Well, let's find out." He said, rubbing his neck. Was the collar chafing him? Why did his throat hurt so much?

Okay. New clothes. That's a start, right?

Maria nodded to herself, doing a little twirl in her clean clothes. She left her filthy old uniform, along with the rest of her duffel bag, on the ground, picking up her daypack instead. She kept the flashlight in her hand and on- both so that she could see and because it was the closest thing she had to a weapon. She began to walk. Why? Who knew? What else was there to do out here? Sitting, alone, in the darkest part of the woods, with absolutely nothing for a weapon, with hundreds of other kids out there who might have knives or swords or- Maria gulped- guns wasn't going to do much for her.

She was gonna have to get a move on.

Find that hero.

She hated this. It was a sign of how desperate, how hysterical that she was that she was looking for someone to help her. Maria Santiago did NOT rely on others. Ever. But with a postcard as a weapon, what was she supposed to do?

Maria began to walk, taking a look at the map in her daypack as she did so. There was plenty of woods around the island, and technically she could be in any of them, but the thickest woods seemed to be in the northeast. She took her compass out of the daypack, angling herself towards the southwest- the quicker she got out of these damn woods, the better.

---

She made progress. Turned out most of the woods wasn't quite this thick- soon enough Maria found herself not needing the flashlight. It was still quite sunny outside, and the light shone quite easily through the trees here. She turned off the flashlight but continued to hold it, steadily making her way southwest. Towards what? Who cares? Anything! Anything but this...

Footsteps.

That weren't hers.

Maria screamed and jumped, practically falling backwards in fear. Someone was nearby. Someone...either her hero or her killer. Or someone else, she supposed, but that seemed unlikely- this game seemed to work in absolutes.

"Hello?!" she called out, sounding more afraid than she'd wanted to. "Who's there? I...Who's there?!"

B089 - John Smith - Start

John tore through his day pack as if he were starving and it was a packet of peanuts. He'd already emptied it of his clothes and provisions, finding only a pump-action shotgun and booklet as an unexpected item.

He muttered a swear when he reached the bottom of the bag. He was hoping to find some sort of collar-tracking device in his bag. He'd read a list of weapons used in previous televised SoTF games on Wikipedia once, so he knew that kind of thing existed. He had just hoped he had two weapons, not just a gun and ammo.

He looked at the shotgun which lay on the floor, the instruction booklet thrown on top of it. Why couldn't it be that collar-GPS? He wanted - needed - to find Celeste. Surely they were owed one more naked-time together...

He had woken up when he rolled into a tree in his sleep - that woke him with a shock, the scene in the auditorium flooding back to him. The collar wrapped around his neck confirmed it, too.

He shook his head and started throwing things back into his bag. All he wanted was to hang out in a shack with his girlfriend. Was that so much to ask?

"Hello?! Who's there? I...Who's there?!"

John jumped and looked around. Someone else was here? She sounded scared - like she wasn't playing - or pretending to not play so she could kill someone.

"Uhm, I'm John!" he called back, standing and picking up his shotgun and manual. He could come back for his bag in a moment. "Who's that? Where are you?"

....The fuck is going on?

Jay Holland stood in the clearing, looking down at the damp pile of clothing. He'd expected blood. He'd expected bullets and gunfire and explosions and his classmates already tearing each other to shreds. He didn't expect to find a pile of clothes.

GIRLS clothes at that. Worn and dirty yes, but there was no mistaking them. A skirt, blouse, the works. Someone had been here. That someone had stripped down, and was now probably running around the island. Naked.

...That's hot.

Jay couldn't help but grin as he stared down at the pile of clothes. He couldn't help imagining the reasoning behind such a weird act.

I mean, what, 1-2 hours into the game and this girl strips down? Is she gonna distract us with her jubblies before she plugs us? Pfffhaha. Jubblies. Where did that come from?

Jay kicked the pile of clothes around in the dirt. The forest had been pretty much silent on his walk over, he hadn't yet seen a single one of his classmates. He'd started to consider the possibility that this was an elaborate prank pulled on him.

Maybe. Maybe, that's the explanation for everything. They expect me to go ape-shit and they'll film me, then they'll come out and I'll have a mental breakdown on camera when I realize it was all a big macabre joke. Then we'll get pizza. DOMINOS PIZZA. I could really use some Domino's right now. Fuuuuck....

He reached up and rubbed his throat. The pain in it had gotten slightly worse as he walked. He was beginning to wonder if laying in the middle of the forest for so long had actually made him sick.

That would be the most anticlimactic thing EVER. I'd probably get killed by some scared ass chick, like Carly. Oh! Or Sarah. She's probably flipping her lid right now. Heheh... Poor girl. That's sad. I hope no one's actually gone ass-up fucking bonkers yet or el- HOLY SHIT, PANTIES.

Jay dropped to the ground and tossed his gun aside, he began to rifle through the dirty skirt. Sure enough, Jay pulled up a pair of girls underwear, high for all to see, like a trophy.

HOLY SHIT. PANTIES. GIRLS PANTIES. I AM SUCH A PERVERT.

Jay glanced around at the clearing around him. Cameras. Where were the cameras? He began to wave the panties around in the air, smiling and laughing.

"Yo' hey, cuntfuck Danya! Everyone at home! Check it out! Check it out! Panties! SotF Panties, ALL UP. IN. THIS BITCH!" He laughed and spun around the clearing.

"I'm not killing school kids, I'm too busy finding used fucking PANTIES! What the fuck, this is so fucking stupid!" He began to wave the trophy around over his head, and hum the American Anthem.

Wow, well, those sick fucks watching at home are getting a different show then they expected from me at least...

Jay's laughter subsided and he picked up his weapon and pack. The thought of a naked girl running around the island scared shitless, while he was walking around with her panties was too hilarious. A fresh wave of laughter enveloped him and he stuffed the panties in his back pocket. Looking up into the trees, Jay laughed.

"See that everyone at home? That's for later."

Ewww. When would I even get the TIME to masturbate on an Island full of psychopaths? Oh well. At least everyone at home knows I'm not some sadistic bastard gunning for my former friends... They just think I'm a pervert. A FUNNY pervert though. Good for ratings. And I mean, on this show I think the viewers probably need a laugh... They probably think I'm stoned. Ohhh shit, I wish I was stoned. Well, least I'll get a cool gravestone. Here lies Jay Holland. He came, he saw, he mostly came in some panties he fou-

The scream was loud and close. Jay's eyes grew wide with shock as his vision snapped upwards. He raised his Nambu instinctively in the direction, and froze in fright.

Shit, I don't even know how to use this thing yet and I'm waving it around like Bruce assfucking Willis! Assfucking Will... Oh shit pay attention Jay! Someone's dying! This is REAL. THIS IS DANGEROUS.

He could hear a girl yelling something, rather high pitched. She sounded like she was in trouble. Trouble. Danger.

Oh fuck. Am I going to play the hero? I'm playing the hero. My balls are going to get blown APART.

He bounded through the forest in the direction of the noise, hoping he wasn't too late to stop the bloodshed.

Oh god.

It was a boy.

Now, Maria wasn't exactly the flirtatious type. Hell, she hardly talked to boys at all. Ten years of gender-separated Catholic school education meant that she was most comfortable around girls. Boys made her nervous as hell, truth be told. Especially here, considering that everyone was supposedly out to kill each other...and all she had to defend herself with was a flashlight and a postcard...Oh...oh my god...

I'm going to die, aren't I?

For a moment, it was pure fear. Then, reason.

No...no I'm not. Boys...boys are easily manipulated, right? Right. So are girls, but...eh...I'll just get them to love me. Easy enough. They can take care of the bad guys for me.

Maria made a face, just thinking that. Relying on some boys to keep her safe...she didn't exactly have a choice in the matter, but it was still enough to make her cringe. Maybe I can just...keep them around and...get one of their weapons? Maybe I can protect myself...but I need a gun or something. In the meantime, though...dumb muscle.

Maria shook her head, concentrating. Now was the time to act- to act, as in to pretend. She'd have to be sympathetic. It wasn't too hard to make herself tear up- she was, after all, terrified- though doing so made her more angry at herself than anything. She held the flashlight tight in her hand as she made her way, slowly, towards the voice she'd just heard.

"J-John?" Maria said somewhat loudly, this time purposely letting the fear come through in her voice. She searched through her memory banks for a John. There was...well, she couldn't say nothing. There was more than one John in the school, after all. "I...My name's Maria...I n-need help..." Her voice decreased in volume and fell to a whisper as she suddenly came upon the boy she'd been looking for.

He had a gun. A BIG gun.

Maria whimpered- a real, unplanned reaction, which she was immediately irritated at herself for. He has a gun. Whatever. That's good. The better to protect me with. And to steal later, maybe. She rubbed at her eyes, partially because she was tired and partially to provoke herself into producing more tears.

"Ah...um, hello. I...Hah, I don't really know what to do...m-my only weapon is a postcard..." She hoped she looked properly pathetic as she whispered those words.

And then, more unforeseen circumstances.

The bushes behind her rattled.

Maria screamed, again- not planned, again- and whirled around to find another boy. Another boy with a gun.

Either I'm getting a really good bodyguard squad together, or I'm gonna be really dead, really soon.

"J-John? I...My name's Maria...I n-need help..."

John felt bad for her. From the sound of her voice, she was scared and alone. Of course it could be an act to draw him out - then she appeared from around some bushes and spotted him. Too late to run now.

"Ah...um, hello. I...Hah, I don't really know what to do...m-my only weapon is a postcard..."

"Oh..." was all John could think to say. He remembered the man on the intercom saying that not everyone will get real weapons. It looked like he was really lucky, getting a shotgun.

He was about to speak again, say something to comfort her or at least confirm that he wouldn't hurt her. But then another guy, about his height came barging through the bushes. He was brandishing a pistol and seemed to be ready to fight.

"Stop!" John shouted, lifting the shotgun and holding it with both hands. He hadn't a clue how to use it, if there was a safety or if it was even loaded yet - but he wasn't going to let that stop him from seeming to know what to do. His finger went near the trigger, but he didn't put it inside the trigger-guard. Who knew what slight pressure could cause it to go off?

(Daniel Vaughan continued from And So It Begins,The Epic Stuggle Of Man And Bear)

Daniel looked around the woods he had entered, he needed to stop somewhere, but if he stopped, he might die. He couldn't survive on his own, it was a simple fact of life, most of his class had guns, he had rusty karate skills. He was about to stop anyway, mostly out of sheer tiredness when he noticed a group nearby, a group with a girl who looked really scared and two guys with guns on either side of her.

Daniel dropped his bags as he rushed toward one of the boys, the one with the larger weapon. Made sense, the more powerful enemies always had the good guns, Daniel said to himself as he launched a kick at the boy's back

As Jay stepped into the clearing, he was near positive that he had made one of the dumbest mistakes in his (soon to be cut) short life. Standing in the clearing, in front of Jay was a small girl, skinny with brown skin and darker hair. She was dressed in a school uniform, and she looked scared shitless as she glanced back at him. She seemed familiar, although Jay couldn't exactly place where he'd seen her. Most likely just around in the hallways, or in a class. She didn't strike him as a party person, he knew most of the party people.

Yes Jay, yes. Hear screams, RUN TOWARDS PEOPLE WHO WANT TO KILL YOU. Least that way you'll know this isn't some elaborate prank!

He barely had time to even process this information before he heard another voice yelling at him across the clearing and his head swung up to see John Smith, of all people, waving a shotgun at him. The pudgy boy was waving his gun around like in an action movie, and Jay froze mid step.

"Stop!" He screamed, aiming the gun in his (and the girls) general direction.

HOLY SHIT, FATTY GONNA KILL YOU JAY. FATTY JOHN GOT A GUN, FATTY JOHN OF ALL PEOPLE, IT'S RIGHT THERE, HE'S AIMING AT YOU, ONE SQUEEZE AND YOU'RE PASTE, YOU'RE GONNA TURN INTO PASTE CALM DOWN! PASTE, JEEZUS, YOU'RE DEAD, YOU'RE DEAD AND IT'S AS SIMPLE AS THAT AND YOU NEVER EVEN GOT TO, TO... HIDE YOU STUPID FUCK!

Jay let out a delayed scream and threw himself behind a nearby tree. He sunk to the ground, heart pounding in his chest.

About time you did something, you stoner fuckface! HE HAD A GUN and you stood there gawking at him! Something WRONG with you?

This is real! Get this in your stupid head Jay, this is for real, this is for keeps! This is Survival of the Fittest, and Fatty John from Tech Design Class is gonna stick that 12-Gauge up yer' ass and fuck you like never before unless you get your shit together and focus!

"Hey! John! Johnny! I-it-It's me, Jay!" He called out from behind cover. "Look, let's talk about this! Come'on be reasonable here! I went to school with you!"

Well DUH of course you went to school with him...

Jay extended his shaking hand out around the tree, and dropped his Nambu Pistol. It was still within arms reach if his plan failed him, but it was a token of peace at least.

"Look, my gun is down! Put your gun down! Let's, let's just chill for a bit, yeah...?" He called out.

Jay thought the surprises would be done for the day. He could never be more wrong. Jay suddenly picked up on a noise, running nearby. Something, someone. Running. Towards him?!

He swung his head around his cover to look at the scene. The girl was still there, John was still there. But another boy was in the midst of flying through the air, aiming a kick towards the back of Johns' head.

The fuck, Jackie Chan?

Jay was even more surprised when he began to shout out loud, almost on instinct.

"Holy- JOHN WATCH OUT!" He hollered as the boys' collided together.

"Hey! John! Johnny! I-it-It's me, Jay!"

John recognised the guy as soon as he said his name, but had lower the shotgun slightly as Jay leapt behind a tree.

"Look, my gun is down! Put your gun down! Let's, let's just chill for a bit, yeah...?"

John watched the gun fall to the ground and felt a lot better about this whole thing. Maybe he could use the shotgun as a deterrent and just try to outlive everyone else. Except Celeste. She deserved to live. Of course, that could just have been the whole 'love the only girl who puts out for you' thing. Nonetheless, that thing was strong.

"Holy- JOHN WATCH OUT!"

John blinked, not having time to come out of his thoughts and turn to look before he was kicked in the back. He let out a grunt of pain, the shotgun flying out of his hands and landing at Maria's feet. There's a 'tic' but nothing else happens. John hadn't loaded it, nor pumped the pump-action.

John himself landed face-first on the ground, small stones scraping his skin and dirt covering his face, hands and clothes. The wind was knocked out of him but the pain he felt was nothing compared to the fear he suddenly felt.

'It was a set-up! They're gonna kill me! So much for No Good Deed Goes Unrewarded! Fuck you, mom! Your crappy advice just got your son killed! Is that why you got pregnant again? To replace me?! You didn't want me to fuck Celeste again! You planned this all!'

His thoughts were all over the place but his body was frozen in place, not wanting to suffer before he died.

That first boy...John, his name was? He seems nice enough...even waving a big gun like that around. He looks so...harmless. He's not gonna shoot me. Why on earth should he? And this other boy...

Maria almost laughed, but doing so would've blown her cover, wouldn't it? He's like, ten times more afraid than I am! Pathetic, really. He's the one with the gun, what's he so worried about? I'm the one with the postcard...ugh...he won't shoot me either. Though having him point a gun at her was enough to make her nervous for at least a few seconds.

Then that second boy- he seemed familiar, at least as someone that Maria made a point not to talk to. Something with a J?- found cover behind a tree. Seemed like a good plan, kind of pathetic but whatever- he dropped his gun, probably not so smart, and-

"Holy- JOHN WATCH OUT!"

By the time Maria turned back to John, he was on the floor. She screamed for the third time in so many minutes. For a moment, she thought he might be dead- someone had shot him in the back. But, she figured, she would have heard that-

Maria didn't really have much time to ponder, as there was another boy behind John, the one who'd knocked him down, and now John's shotgun was lying on the floor-

Gun-

It was practically instinct that led Maria to grab the gun, even though it was practically bigger than she was. She took several steps back, holding it on her shoulder, pointing it at the boy who'd just arrived. Should I run off...? No, I have no clue how to use this thing...no ammo either. Ugh, this whole playing the victim thing is getting on my nerves... She kept the act up though, forcing a stutter into her voice.

"D-don't...don't do anything stupid! I...I've g-got a gun!"

As Daniel's leg hit the back of the larger boy, his immediate thoughts were that he should of through this through more, he landed on the ground, staring at the other two, one of whom had dropped his gun and was staring in shock and the girl had grabbed the shotgun and was now pointing it at Daniel.

Daniel held up his hands, "Um....yo" He was going to die, wasn't he, he couldn't hit a girl, it went against his nature. The red-head stepped forward slowly, moving towards the girl as he ignored the kid on the ground ranting. "Um yeah, I'm not playing. Don't know if you are, my name's Daniel Vaughan, you might of seen me around, I know you, forget your name though, sorry." he pointed at the other guy who now being closer, he realized was Jay Holland. "He's Jay"

The gamer stopped moving. "So, could you not shoot me, that would be awesome"

Jay watched helplessly as John was dropkicked from behind and was sent sprawling into the clearing, his shotgun clattering to the feet of the girl. The boy, with long red hair likewise came flying into view and crashed a little ways away from John. His mouth hung open.

The fuck. Just. Happened.

Jay panicked and grabbed for the Nambu pistol, laying by his side. By the looks of things, diplomacy was failing.

Oh God, this is gonna turn into a Grade A shitfest... it already has. But even more high octane shit!

Before Jay knew it, he had jumped out from behind cover, and Nambu Pistol first was rushing towards the group. His body was shaking even as he ran towards them, his heart felt like it was going to explode out of his chest.

WHAT ARE YOU DOING, WHAT ARE YOU DOING!?

More than any other decision thus far, Jay regretted this one. What could he do to calm these people down? Who would listen to the party boy waving around a pistol?

Is this gun even loaded?

"Stop! Fuckin' crap, stop!" He cried out as he ran forward, his throat raw with fear.

And then, just like that, Jay was flying through the air. He couldn't really say what it had been, most likely a rogue tree-root, but the result was undeniable. Jay Holland pitched forward and rolled into the clearing, gripping the gun and crying out in pain. He didn't try to stay down long. With a desperate cry Jay swung about on his back so he could face the others. As the dust and dirt kicked up about him, he swung the gun towards the boy with red hair.

"You, Jackie -fucking- Chan! Stay the fuck down!" He screamed at him. He whiped the gun over towards John. "John, you too! Everyone just chill your balls for a sec! ONE SEC!"

But even as he spoke, Jay watched the Spanish Girl dart down and snatch up the dropped Shotgun. She raised it and pointed it between John and the Red Head.

Oh man, this is just like Reservoir Dogs. This is like a fuckin' Mexican Standoff...

"D-don't...don't do anything stupid! I...I've g-got a gun!" The Girl cried out in fear. Jay cursed, she didn't look like she had any idea how to work it, much less hold it. She'd probably be more likely to blow off her tits rather then actually put that gun to any use. He could feel his face drain of color. He raised his hand and frantically waved towards the girl, motioning for her to put it down.

Oh Man, I can't shoot a girl. CHRIST, I can't even shoot a guy! I'm in way over my head, WAY FUCKING OVER.

"Hey! You too! Drop the shotgun! I mean, just- Christ! Nobody kill each other!" He yelled again, his voice cracking slightly. He had no idea what he sounded like, but he was pretty sure they could see the fear just underneath the surface.

Do these people have fuckin' balls of steel that they don't comprehend the fact they have A LOADED SHOTGUN POINTED AT THEM!? This school is more fucked up than I thought...

The Red Head began to speak, introducing himself.

"Um yeah, I'm not playing. Don't know if you are, my name's Daniel Vaughan, you might of seen me around, I know you, forget your name though, sorry." He gestured towards him. "That's Jay."

What? I know this guy? Where do I know this guy from? Was he at a party or something? Why is he so calm when we're pointing guns at everyone?! And if you're not playing, why the fuck are you running around dropkicking people in the back of the head!?

"So, could you not shoot me, that would be awesome."

Jay gave a nervous laugh. This entire situation was growing darkly humorous. Jay's eyes flickered between the Spanish Girl and Daniel.

"Okay, that's fantastic. You hear that? That's fantastic! Fantastic! Now, drop the gun, let's everyone just- just like, calm the fuck down for a second!" He shouted. He wasn't making a very good example he realized. How could he when some chick was waving around a shotgun?

"Okay, let's try this again, let's all just... drop our guns..." Jay said, lowering his weapon.

John got monumentally confused by the next series of events. He was certain they were going to kill him but the girl was shouting
"D-don't...don't do anything stupid! I...I've g-got a gun!"
like she didn't know what to do with it, Jay was screaming and waving his gun around - generally spazzing out about the entire thing and the guy behind John was...

"Um....yo... Um yeah, I'm not playing. Don't know if you are, my name's Daniel Vaughan, you might of seen me around, I know you, forget your name though, sorry. He's Jay. So, could you not shoot me, that would be awesome"

Introducing himself?

'What the fuck is going on here?!' John screamed in his own head, risking a look up. The frightened girl was still holding his weapon and Jay was holding his ready to shoot.

"Okay, that's fantastic. You hear that? That's fantastic! Fantastic! Now, drop the gun, let's everyone just- just like, calm the fuck down for a second! Okay, let's try this again, let's all just... drop our guns..."

And then he wasn't...

"Can I get up...?" he asked, his voice croaking and sounding a LOT quieter than he intended. They'd probably laugh and kick him. Kids were cruel - kids who were being threatened with head-based explosions were probably worse.

"I... I didn't load the shotgun... I kinda didn't think I'd need to use it..." he explains, getting up slowly, rubbing his back where it was kicked. "I just woke up and... She was shouting, so I came to look... It all kinda went to shit."

Chaos, chaos, chaos. Maria hated chaos. The other boy, the one with the J name, came out of nowhere waving his gun around, he'd fallen, he was freaking out, the third boy- a redhead- looked scared, the first boy, John, was still on the floor, and she was of one mind just to pop everyone in the damn head right about now, just so they would all shut up, stop yelling at each other, urgh, why is everyone yelling all of a sudden, this is so stupid, what do people think this is gonna accomplish, like- wait. What?

"I... I didn't load the shotgun... "

Oh. Well, hell.

So, what had that J-boy been ranting about? Putting our weapons down? Well, I might as well, now. This thing's useless. Maria sighed and rested the shotgun at the ground by her feet. No idea how to use that thing, anyway...oh well. She sniffled rather pathetically, looking back and forth between the boys, putting on her best cutesy act for the cameras.

"I...um...can everyone please calm down...? All the yelling, it's...it's hurting my head..." All in the puppy dog eyes, Maria. Works on everyone. "M-my name's Maria. C-can we all just try to...to get along?"