03-14-2010, 04:26 AM
There was a concept that Sophia had always heard of, but it never stuck much in her mind until she found herself leaping through a portal in a desperate attempt to avoid being decapitated by a playing card. It was funny the little oddities that life sometimes could throw a person. That concept was karma. It was the idea that if a person did good things in life, then good things would start happening to said person. It was a decent enough thought, but unfortunately, the opposite was just as true. Sophia had lived her life on level, and yet somehow, she felt that she managed to do something bad enough to warrant...everything that had been happening.
A second later, she found herself lying face-down in the dirt of the lively carnival, groaning from the pain she felt on multiple levels. Pushing herself up to her knees, the healer sank backwards and looked around—things had picked up by quite a bit since she last had been present, a sort of vibrant sensation filled the air that had previously been absent. It was surely the result of the teenage mastermind behind the event itself, the excitement, but it was a change nonetheless. Sadly, Sophia wasn’t feeling up to any company, so she scrambled to her feet and removed herself to some alleyway or dark corner. A few seconds later, she found herself leaning against a stack of crates, fighting for breath and trying not to sob at the same time.
“You look like you could use a smoke, sweetheart,” a figure at her side shoved a carton of cigarettes in front of her face, summoning her attention upward towards his face. He was an peculiar man just by the looks of him, adorned mostly in red, with a top hat and slicked moustache accentuating his persona. The healer sighed and allowed a faint smile, turning her body so she could sit on top of the wooden box in front of her.
She waved politely. “No thanks, I don’t smoke.”
“Why not?” he asked innocently, hanging a cig from his lips and lighting it.
Sophia opened her mouth to respond, but she ended up hesitating. “…good question. I always thought it was for health reasons, but I guess I’m not a normal case.”
“That’s for sure,” the man chuckled. “With an outfit like that, I thought you were one of my hostesses, but I realized that I didn’t know you.”
“Outfit?”
Sophia looked down, only to spot clothing that she had never even seen before. The first thing she noticed was two long white gloves covering and surrounding her hands. The crawled halfway up her arm, but they were covered in part by a blue and white-themed outfit, punctuated by a red tie wrapped around her neck. She reached up to feel the cloth of the crimson tie, but her attention was again redirected when she felt her hair, suddenly much longer than she had been keeping it for the majority of forever.
The odd man laughed. “Yes, your outfit. It’s a little eccentric, if you ask me,” he cleared his throat. “Not like I’m one to talk.”
“I think it’s nice, if you ask me,” a feminine voice injected itself into the conversation from around the bend, sourced from the woman who began walking towards the pair. She was a lovely lady, to be sure, with a tight blue leather suit that left…little to the imagination. She flipped a curl of her brown hair as she flashed a smile. “Formal, yet sexy. It’s a tough look to pull off, but you’ve managed to do it.”
“Um…uh…thank you?” Sophia said. “I’m sorry, I…uh…I’m just trying to register…everything. All of this. I’ve never seen these clothes before in my life.”
“Typical of a lady, as far as I’m concerned,” the man laughed.
The other woman shot him a glare, but eventually resigned and looked back at Sophia. “Ah yes, I suppose that would be quite the shock, wouldn’t it? Your attire is a gift from Master Gamer.”
“I didn’t ask for this!” the healer grunted.
“But you look good. You can’t be too mad about that,” the woman giggled. Holding out an index finger, she snapped with her other hand, and a hand mirror materialized in the palm of her hand. She held it up to Sophia as she continued. “See? Look at you. Simply stunning.”
Sophia was about to protest, but she was distracted by her reflection. She frowned and tossed her hair, turning her head to the side as she examined herself. “I, uh…it’s not…bad.”
“See? Nothing to worry about,” the woman grinned. “My name is Mixie, by the way. It’s a pleasure to meet you. You are Sophia, correct?”
“…how did you know that?”
“It’s my business to know,” Mixie replied. “I’m here as a guide for every Kill Town player.”
“Oh, so you’re…” Sophia closed her eyes and shook her head. “Don’t bother acting all nice, then. We’re not friends.”
“That’s a shame,” the AI responded. “I was looking forward to getting you know you.”
“Somehow, I doubt that,” the healer narrowed her glance into a glare. “Your boss is a jerk, you know, and totally not original. If I had a dime for every time some madman stole me and put me inside a game, I’d…”
“You’d…?” Mixie crossed her arms, her attitude matching the healer’s.
“…well, I’d have thirty cents,” Sophia almost winced. “But that’s more than enough for a girl like me, don’t you think?”
“I think you’re stronger than you let on,” the program said simply. As those last words left the tip of her tongue, the device Sophia had been wearing at the hip buzzed and opened a large blue portal beside her. Mixie smiled softly as Sophia turned to walk through. “Thank you for your time, Ms. Rosario. I understand your situation, but please…try to enjoy yourself.”
The healer couldn’t help but laugh as she strolled through. Enjoy herself or die, was it? What a laugh. She took a deep breath and closed her eyes as she made her way into her next event. To her surprise, however, water began to flood inside her mouth when she made it to the other side, swishing against the back of her throat as her entire body converged into fluid, filling her nostrils with the liquid and her senses with fear. Her eyes snapped open, and all she could see was the murky depths of a tunnel, likely safe for use before the entire ocean seemingly spilled into it.
She struggled. She fought for every motion that she made as she swam towards the door, but fighting only forced oxygen bubbles outward and her impending death inward. Her eyes darted back and forth for some sort of sign that she would make it out alive, but all she could find was another room and another apparent dead end. She turned around to give the other room another go-around before her lung capacity was tested to its limit, but a hand grabbed her shoulder before she could make much progress. It was the hand of a child, a boy of maybe fourteen, and he was in the same unfortunate situation as she was. The healer held out hope that he was there for her rescue, but his eyes said everything that she needed to know. He was just as scared as she was, but he was too young to do anything about it. Such was the plight of the weak to the strong.
To her surprise, nothing she felt nothing inside for the little boy. Pity may have snuck its way into her heart of hearts, but somehow, she just knew that he was just a figment of her imagination, or a product of the game that she was subject to. Maybe it was his dated clothing, or something less tangible about the kid. When she came into contact with normal people, she could immediately identify with them, like she could see through a window into their soul, but when she touched this particular person, she felt…nothing. It was a lot to comprehend in just a second, but it was enough for her to consider not helping. Besides, she wasn’t exactly bursting at the seam with options, anyway.
The boy pointed an index finger at Sophia, and then turned to point at the wall. Her eyes followed the path which the finger directed, and she stumbled upon the discovery of a ladder that crawled up the wall, leading to a hatch door. Wherever they happened to be, they were probably at the very bottom, and perhaps it led to safety. Puzzle piece after puzzle piece was put into place in her mind—the child knew the way out, but he was too weak to force it open because of the water pressure. Nodding, Sophia grabbed the boy’s wrist and swam towards their means of escape. Placing her hands around the wheel, she attempted to turn it. At this point, her lungs were screaming for release, letting her know quite forcibly that she didn’t have much more time to waste. However, the mechanism failed to move much on her first try. Her eyes widened as she tried again, forcing it a little bit more. Her biceps bulged as she swung her legs up, placing her feet flat against the wall to give her more leverage. She exhaled in a grunt, air flooding out of her mouth and bubbling up towards the door as the wheel turned ever so slowly.
Her heart raced, pulsating fear and panic as her brain began to comprehend another death with every second that ticked off her mortal clock. She glanced to the side, not allowing her head to turn with them, but able to see the child just enough to know what he was thinking. And it was more or less a sentiment that she shared—they only had a few more seconds left. Her vision blurred with the water that beat against it, her head feeling as heavy as her heart. Memories of two lives and an afterlife flooded her brain. What would she say to King Yemma after that short of a sabbatical?
The metal groaned. The hatch lifted along with her spirits. She grabbed the boy by the cloth of his shirt and dragged him along with her body as she crawled out of the hatch. She wanted to rest, but with the amount of water that pulsed from the opening, the healer realized that there was still one more thing to do before she could even consider living. Slamming the hatch shut and grinding the wheel shut, she prayed that nobody else was down there. If they were, it was likely that they would never be found again. She lowered her head and threw up what seemed like a gallon of liquid before she collapsed back to the ground.
The boy gasped and sprang to his feet, running up the stairs behind them. Sophia held out a hand as she watched him leave. “Hey! Wait!” he failed to heed her voice, however, and he vanished from her sight. Sighing, Sophia fell back down, turning so that she could lie on her back, still gasping for breath. “Oh…whatever. You’re probably…not real…anyway.”
A pulsing silence replaced any sounds that filled her ears before then, a clock ticking, a pendulum swinging down on her as time passed by. She didn’t know where she was, but if the hatch was any indication, she couldn’t stay where she was for very long.
A second later, she found herself lying face-down in the dirt of the lively carnival, groaning from the pain she felt on multiple levels. Pushing herself up to her knees, the healer sank backwards and looked around—things had picked up by quite a bit since she last had been present, a sort of vibrant sensation filled the air that had previously been absent. It was surely the result of the teenage mastermind behind the event itself, the excitement, but it was a change nonetheless. Sadly, Sophia wasn’t feeling up to any company, so she scrambled to her feet and removed herself to some alleyway or dark corner. A few seconds later, she found herself leaning against a stack of crates, fighting for breath and trying not to sob at the same time.
“You look like you could use a smoke, sweetheart,” a figure at her side shoved a carton of cigarettes in front of her face, summoning her attention upward towards his face. He was an peculiar man just by the looks of him, adorned mostly in red, with a top hat and slicked moustache accentuating his persona. The healer sighed and allowed a faint smile, turning her body so she could sit on top of the wooden box in front of her.
She waved politely. “No thanks, I don’t smoke.”
“Why not?” he asked innocently, hanging a cig from his lips and lighting it.
Sophia opened her mouth to respond, but she ended up hesitating. “…good question. I always thought it was for health reasons, but I guess I’m not a normal case.”
“That’s for sure,” the man chuckled. “With an outfit like that, I thought you were one of my hostesses, but I realized that I didn’t know you.”
“Outfit?”
Sophia looked down, only to spot clothing that she had never even seen before. The first thing she noticed was two long white gloves covering and surrounding her hands. The crawled halfway up her arm, but they were covered in part by a blue and white-themed outfit, punctuated by a red tie wrapped around her neck. She reached up to feel the cloth of the crimson tie, but her attention was again redirected when she felt her hair, suddenly much longer than she had been keeping it for the majority of forever.
The odd man laughed. “Yes, your outfit. It’s a little eccentric, if you ask me,” he cleared his throat. “Not like I’m one to talk.”
“I think it’s nice, if you ask me,” a feminine voice injected itself into the conversation from around the bend, sourced from the woman who began walking towards the pair. She was a lovely lady, to be sure, with a tight blue leather suit that left…little to the imagination. She flipped a curl of her brown hair as she flashed a smile. “Formal, yet sexy. It’s a tough look to pull off, but you’ve managed to do it.”
“Um…uh…thank you?” Sophia said. “I’m sorry, I…uh…I’m just trying to register…everything. All of this. I’ve never seen these clothes before in my life.”
“Typical of a lady, as far as I’m concerned,” the man laughed.
The other woman shot him a glare, but eventually resigned and looked back at Sophia. “Ah yes, I suppose that would be quite the shock, wouldn’t it? Your attire is a gift from Master Gamer.”
“I didn’t ask for this!” the healer grunted.
“But you look good. You can’t be too mad about that,” the woman giggled. Holding out an index finger, she snapped with her other hand, and a hand mirror materialized in the palm of her hand. She held it up to Sophia as she continued. “See? Look at you. Simply stunning.”
Sophia was about to protest, but she was distracted by her reflection. She frowned and tossed her hair, turning her head to the side as she examined herself. “I, uh…it’s not…bad.”
“See? Nothing to worry about,” the woman grinned. “My name is Mixie, by the way. It’s a pleasure to meet you. You are Sophia, correct?”
“…how did you know that?”
“It’s my business to know,” Mixie replied. “I’m here as a guide for every Kill Town player.”
“Oh, so you’re…” Sophia closed her eyes and shook her head. “Don’t bother acting all nice, then. We’re not friends.”
“That’s a shame,” the AI responded. “I was looking forward to getting you know you.”
“Somehow, I doubt that,” the healer narrowed her glance into a glare. “Your boss is a jerk, you know, and totally not original. If I had a dime for every time some madman stole me and put me inside a game, I’d…”
“You’d…?” Mixie crossed her arms, her attitude matching the healer’s.
“…well, I’d have thirty cents,” Sophia almost winced. “But that’s more than enough for a girl like me, don’t you think?”
“I think you’re stronger than you let on,” the program said simply. As those last words left the tip of her tongue, the device Sophia had been wearing at the hip buzzed and opened a large blue portal beside her. Mixie smiled softly as Sophia turned to walk through. “Thank you for your time, Ms. Rosario. I understand your situation, but please…try to enjoy yourself.”
The healer couldn’t help but laugh as she strolled through. Enjoy herself or die, was it? What a laugh. She took a deep breath and closed her eyes as she made her way into her next event. To her surprise, however, water began to flood inside her mouth when she made it to the other side, swishing against the back of her throat as her entire body converged into fluid, filling her nostrils with the liquid and her senses with fear. Her eyes snapped open, and all she could see was the murky depths of a tunnel, likely safe for use before the entire ocean seemingly spilled into it.
She struggled. She fought for every motion that she made as she swam towards the door, but fighting only forced oxygen bubbles outward and her impending death inward. Her eyes darted back and forth for some sort of sign that she would make it out alive, but all she could find was another room and another apparent dead end. She turned around to give the other room another go-around before her lung capacity was tested to its limit, but a hand grabbed her shoulder before she could make much progress. It was the hand of a child, a boy of maybe fourteen, and he was in the same unfortunate situation as she was. The healer held out hope that he was there for her rescue, but his eyes said everything that she needed to know. He was just as scared as she was, but he was too young to do anything about it. Such was the plight of the weak to the strong.
To her surprise, nothing she felt nothing inside for the little boy. Pity may have snuck its way into her heart of hearts, but somehow, she just knew that he was just a figment of her imagination, or a product of the game that she was subject to. Maybe it was his dated clothing, or something less tangible about the kid. When she came into contact with normal people, she could immediately identify with them, like she could see through a window into their soul, but when she touched this particular person, she felt…nothing. It was a lot to comprehend in just a second, but it was enough for her to consider not helping. Besides, she wasn’t exactly bursting at the seam with options, anyway.
The boy pointed an index finger at Sophia, and then turned to point at the wall. Her eyes followed the path which the finger directed, and she stumbled upon the discovery of a ladder that crawled up the wall, leading to a hatch door. Wherever they happened to be, they were probably at the very bottom, and perhaps it led to safety. Puzzle piece after puzzle piece was put into place in her mind—the child knew the way out, but he was too weak to force it open because of the water pressure. Nodding, Sophia grabbed the boy’s wrist and swam towards their means of escape. Placing her hands around the wheel, she attempted to turn it. At this point, her lungs were screaming for release, letting her know quite forcibly that she didn’t have much more time to waste. However, the mechanism failed to move much on her first try. Her eyes widened as she tried again, forcing it a little bit more. Her biceps bulged as she swung her legs up, placing her feet flat against the wall to give her more leverage. She exhaled in a grunt, air flooding out of her mouth and bubbling up towards the door as the wheel turned ever so slowly.
Her heart raced, pulsating fear and panic as her brain began to comprehend another death with every second that ticked off her mortal clock. She glanced to the side, not allowing her head to turn with them, but able to see the child just enough to know what he was thinking. And it was more or less a sentiment that she shared—they only had a few more seconds left. Her vision blurred with the water that beat against it, her head feeling as heavy as her heart. Memories of two lives and an afterlife flooded her brain. What would she say to King Yemma after that short of a sabbatical?
The metal groaned. The hatch lifted along with her spirits. She grabbed the boy by the cloth of his shirt and dragged him along with her body as she crawled out of the hatch. She wanted to rest, but with the amount of water that pulsed from the opening, the healer realized that there was still one more thing to do before she could even consider living. Slamming the hatch shut and grinding the wheel shut, she prayed that nobody else was down there. If they were, it was likely that they would never be found again. She lowered her head and threw up what seemed like a gallon of liquid before she collapsed back to the ground.
The boy gasped and sprang to his feet, running up the stairs behind them. Sophia held out a hand as she watched him leave. “Hey! Wait!” he failed to heed her voice, however, and he vanished from her sight. Sighing, Sophia fell back down, turning so that she could lie on her back, still gasping for breath. “Oh…whatever. You’re probably…not real…anyway.”
A pulsing silence replaced any sounds that filled her ears before then, a clock ticking, a pendulum swinging down on her as time passed by. She didn’t know where she was, but if the hatch was any indication, she couldn’t stay where she was for very long.