Saturday, October 15th, 2016: Johannesburg, South Africa, 4:30 PM
The domino effect that led Adimabua Lawal from poverty to comfort started with his obsession with detail. It had convinced instructors, in the most generous sense of the word, from his village all the way to Kaduna State that he was worth their attention. When he became a desk clerk at the Bafra his attentiveness carried him from part time work to meet education expenses to a position in management. A Master’s in Accounting and a fifteen year reputation took him to Abuja, Accra, Cairo, Luanda, Kampala, Dar Es Salaam, Johannesburg; any city on the continent would receive him with the right recommendation. Many cities in the world at large as well, if he desired to see them as more than numbers. Looking at all they had given him, it was hard to deny his curious instincts were a gift.
Adi would deny it, of course, but he would not blame an outsider for their confusion. Dredging through information that seemed benign beyond the uneasy twinge in his gut was often a thankless task. You could consider it like turning over loose stones in the wilderness. Most often you would find nothing at all, and once in countless numbers of flips you might find something of notable value. A man who dedicated his life to the task might make a passing career with enough luck, but only if he avoided the outcome that fell between common failure and rare success. There was always a chance when you exposed the dirt to daylight you would disturb something irritable, some coiled creature now wary of your intrusion. Any reasonable person would be wise to retreat carefully enough to make it seem you were never there before forgetting they saw anything. Only a fool would press on after its greeting, and they were owed no distress when bitten.
The black 2009 Acura TL waiting beside his normal parking spot would not have raised suspicion if Adi had not been very, very foolish. Scanning his apartment’s underground parking structure had become a habit over the last few months. It would have been more productive to stop prodding at the inconsistent transactions he’d discovered, but he could no more do that than stop staring at every unknown vehicle he noticed before he parked. So every day he came home expecting to be discovered, and every day his paranoia was unsatisfied.Today was no different until an impeccably dressed woman exited the Acura’s rear passenger door and tilted her glasses down at him. She could pass for a foreign consultant, though one you would not notice unless she demanded your attention. When her dark brown eyes fixed on his, though, Adi understood her purpose. He had been noticed.
No.
He had been bitten.
They took M1 out of Killarney. He was more familiar with the motorway’s southern path to Soweto; if he had not been interrupted he had planned to visit Lwazi, treat him to dinner if his pride would allow it. Instead they headed north to the highway. They could end up roundabout to the CBD, perhaps, Joubert or Hillbrow. Alexandra. Honeydew.
“Mr. Lawal?”
Sonia, as she’d introduced herself, sat across from him in the back seat. She had questioned him again a few moments ago. He’d already lost it. The silent driver she had declined to introduced gave him a look of contempt through the rearview. “I apologize. Could you repeat that?”
“How long have you been following these transactions?”
Fingers bridged in his lap with a long exhale. “The first...it is hard to say. No more than a year ago, maybe less. I did not pay much attention to it.”
The driver’s eyes returned to the road. There was silence other than the sound of traffic and Sonia’s scribbling. “Why?” She did not look up at him.
His bright, broad smile reflected in the mirror. “It was not my account.”
“How many accounts have you connected now?”
Adi tapped his fingers together. “Twenty-three.”
She looked up from her notes. “Are you responsible for any of them?”
“No.”
Sonia raised an eyebrow. He did not wait for her to verbalize the question before he chuckled. “I know, I know. It is hypocritical, but I am getting old. Little excites me but mystery. My boyfriend, he never stops scolding me, I cannot help prying where I do not belong. It causes him much stress trying to keep up.”
“Does he know about this?”
He made sure to have her attention before he spoke. “No. We do not discuss business, only gossip. He is harmless.”
Her expression did not change. “Of course. What about your coworkers? Your supervisors?” Eyes settled on him in the mirror. Adi swallowed and shook his head.
“No. I did not know what I would tell them I found at first, and once I did…”
“What have you found?”
His hands came up slowly. “I do not know. I know what surrounds it; forged dates, suspect accounts, names and companies that seem to come from nowhere, but the heart of it? I could not tell you. I do not believe I would want to tell anyone if I could.”
When Sonia’s pen stopped and her eyes lingered on his face, he knew he had misspoken. “Say you have to come up with something. What would you tell me?”
No matter what else was to come, Adi could not say they had been unkind to him. He had entered the car on invitation, been allowed to retrieve his satchel though it sat out of reach in the empty front seat, even been given a cold bottle of water for his troubles. He had not opened it until now, but Sonia’s unflinching stare had left his mouth dry. She was still looking after he wiped the condensation from his lips. “Have you heard of the Miss World riots?”
For the first time since they’d met under his apartment, Sonia gave him a hint of a smile. “I haven’t.”
Adi shook his head. “I do not blame you. They did not hold international interest long. I lived in Kaduna before they broke out. We never wanted the contest to come here, you know, even those with no religious objections. It was a messy thing, too controversial. It is fascinating if you wish to learn another time. For now...it is simplest to say a journalist in Lagos took the opportunity to make unkind remarks at The Prophet’s expense.” He paused to take another sip. “It went as one would expect.”
His gaze went from Sonia to the window past her. At the speed they were going the countryside all blurred together. If he let his eyes unfocus he could be anywhere, even Kaduna on the morning of November 20th, 2002. “I managed for a hotel at the time, the Bafra. I heard discontent on all sides every day, so I should have known it was coming. It was so fast and so slow at once. Nothing came the day the article was published, or the day after. Monday morning she was fired, Tuesday they issued a front page apology. It was finished. We would return to unrest rather than outrage, that was the hope.”
His left hand stilled the nervous bouncing in his left knee. “I am not a religious man, but I appreciate the buildings. There was a church a few blocks from my apartment I liked to visit, and Wednesday morning was free." It was clear now. His tense slipped' drifting from recollection to visualization. "As I approach it a van tears down the street beside me, nearly clips me with a mirror. It screeches to a halt in front of the church but before it stops I see men pour out of it, more than I imagine can fit. Crude weapons in some hands, gasoline in others. I should not be here, I tell myself, I must go but I do not. I stare as bodies are dragged screaming from the church. Beaten, tossed down its steps. There are flames lapping at its walls. That is when he sees me.”
The eyes in the mirror bored into him with increasing impatience, but Sonia’s hint of a smirk had not faded. “I know him,” Adi continued, “I know his face though I have never seen it so twisted in anger. It has been some years since we attended class together now, but we still recognize each other, and that is dangerous for a man in his position. He cannot know the rioters will be too numerous to name or to punish. He approaches me with carnage in the background and asks, very simply, what I have seen.”
His time was running thin. There was only so long before it looked like he was stalling. “You do this for a living, so I am sure you know the first instinct in all of us when we are caught doing something we should not have done. To deny. I tell this man I have seen nothing, and now I have not wronged him....unless he does not believe me. I am not a good liar, but this man does not want to hear the truth. Not this truth which makes his work harder.” Adi shrugged. “So I offer him another. I tell him on my walk I saw a building. A warehouse, I think, though for what I only guess. It has been undisturbed for all the years I have lived near it. A disservice to the community. If someone were to put it to use it would be for the greater good, even if their works go unseen. Perhaps, I wonder aloud, he would like me to show it to him, and you know? He smiles. He claps me on the shoulder as a brother, and he returns to his business with new peace of mind.”
Adi’s gaze returned to Sonia with fresh intensity. “What I am trying to say, miss, is with all of this laid out in the open I would not tell you anything.” He watched her face closely. “Instead, I would like to ask you if you want to see a warehouse.”
Her expression melted back to professional neutrality. Sonia leaned back into her seat and returned to her notes without response. “I don’t have any interest in warehouses, Mr. Lawal.”
Adi’s heart sank into his stomach.
“But I know someone who does.” She kicked the front seat. “Eyes on the road. Pretoria.” Sonia turned back to Adi. “Hell of a pitch. Hope you can pull it off twice.”
If he looked closely enough, he swore he could see amusement in her eyes.
Monday, June 11, 2018: Undisclosed Location, 9 AM
Tracen stood looking at the set-up in front of him thoughtfully. He was considering how things were and whether a change had been necessary. In the end, he decided that yes, he did deserve the new chair.
He stepped forward, cup of coffee in hand and took his seat. It felt different, but not in a bad way. He took a sip as he spread his notes out then placed the cup down on the desk. It had been an interesting day, to say the least. He was pleased with that. It was exactly what they wanted.
After a quick skim through his notes, and a small line alteration he was ready.
He pressed the button and the speakers hidden around the island burst to life for the first time. There would be many more times yet to come.
"Good morning everyone and welcome once again to Survival of the Fittest." He took another quick sip of coffee.
"I'm glad you all took our briefing to heart. We worked hard on it, so it's good to you see you all taking that inspiration."
"First up this morning, we have what could be a new speed record when Abel Zelenovic was beaten to death by Paloma Salt. Don't worry about it too much, most of you were still asleep."
"The next person to meet their end was Toby Underwood who got his head blown open by Tirzah Foss. There's an important lesson for you all there and it's trust no one."
Tracen paused to take another drink and idly spun the pen in his fingers.
"We continue with the first day craziness as Christine Bright was extinguished by Tyrell Lahti when he bit through her throat. Watch out for him kids. I think he might be rabid."
"In the first of what I'm sure will be many star-crossed lovers moments, Beryl Mahelona was reunited with Nick Ogilvie as he put a knife in her neck. It's sad, but this is what happens in this game."
A small grin played at Tracen's lips as he read the next pair of names.
"Felix Rees was the next one of your classmates to meet his end as busy boy Tyrell Lahti shot him in the chest and then double-tapped. I don't know if Felix was a zombie but either way he's not coming back from that."
"Meanwhile as that was happening we had an example of having a twitchy sword arm as Katrina Lavell tested her blade on Yuko Hayashibara."
"Next up there was some Quinn on Quinn violence as Quinn Abert stabbed Violet Quinn in the gut. A classic method of murder but people appreciate the hits."
"As if it wasn't already obvious to all of you, Dante Luciano Valerio found out the hard way that taking a nap on the island is a bad idea as Blaise d'Aramitz blew his head wide open. Presumably, there was nothing inside."
"Finally we finish with a bit of a health and safety PSA. Head injuries are very serious and can have unseen complications. If they aren't properly treated the results could be fatal. This lesson is brought to you by Benedict Murray who collapsed hours after Justin Greene cracked his skull with a tire iron."
Tracen tapped the pen against the desk and hummed gently over the microphone.
"I feel like I'm forgetting something...Oh right! As I mentioned when we first met there are danger zones you need to be aware of. Today's is The Waterfall! For those of you that can't remember, that means anyone in there will have their collars explode on them. You have ten minutes from the end of this announcement to leave, so don't waste time."
"And finally we were big fans of Blaise d'Aramitz and are pleased to announce them as the very first winner of the V7 Best Kill Award. Head to the Waterfall to collect your prize, consisting of a meal of pulled-pork sliders with coleslaw and a Coke, and of course a shiny new weapon."
DAY TWO: MONDAY, JUNE 11, 2018
Weather: The sun is still in the sky in the morning but there are dark clouds moving in throughout the day; rainfall is expected later on. The temperature has steadily risen and highs of around 89 degrees F, 31 degrees C, are expected. The humidity across the island has also risen and the air has become sticky. The wind across the island has completely died down. The moon is in a waning crescent with two days until the new moon. The second announcement will come at 9 AM on June 12.
Of course, no announcement is complete without rolls, and here are the latest set:
Summary:
1. Caitlyn “Katie” Agustien (Pippi) Kyle Harrison (Aura, Hero Card used)
2. Julien Leblanc (Endellion) Phillip Olivares (MurderWeasel, Hero Card used)
3. Shauna Cooke (Namira) Danny Chamnanma (Melusine, Hero Card used)
4. Dane Lennox (CondorTalon) Camellia Walker-Grimsley (CondorTalon, Swap Card used)
5. Yuki Hayashibara (Ryuki) Mikki Swift (Brackie, Hero Card used)
6. Nona Hart (Emprexx Plush) Bree Jones (Kamikaze, Hero Card used)
7. Colin McCabe (Catche Jagger) Sapphire Waters (Catche Jagger, Swap Card used)
Please remember there are three days for cards and for regular posting to wrap up for threads that are now in danger zones and a further seven days for deaths and leaving posts. Please also remember all the rules summarized last time, and particularly to not PM anyone for death rights unless they explicitly request such PMs in this thread.
And finally, congratulations to Cicada for the death of Beryl Mahelona. The quote nomination thread will be up soon.
