[4] Through the Caves

[Friend or Foe]

Sophia
Juno

Zena
Ares



As soon as Sophia spun around, having made her decision to save Juno instead of ending him, she found nothing. The podiums were gone, the throne was gone, and the briefcase was gone. More importantly, the enigmatic woman was gone as well, with only words floating in the air to end her performance. A wonderful choice, little ones, it had said, Hope it was worth it...

As soon as Juno's chains were off and he had fallen to the ground, seething with hidden rage, a gun went off. They had no time to react except to run. All around the room, on the fenced balconies above the pit, were soldiers blasting pistols and shotguns filled with ki energy. Enough to kill.

"Let's go!" Sophia had said, pulling Juno out the door.

"Don't touch me!" He shouted, pushing her hand away and running down the stone hall in the opposite direction. Feeling hurt, but deserving it, Sophia followed him. After some weaving through a maze of man-made halls through the underground system of mining caves, they finally stopped, feeling like they had lost them.

They caught their breaths just in time to hear something entirely different from gunshots.

"Get away from me, creep!" A female voice.

"Look, I'm not tryin' to hurt ya, I just think we should stick together!" A male one.

"You got my friends killed!" It was getting closer, this time female again.

"I'm just tryin' to not get killed myself, alright!?"

The male voice spoke just as both figures, a girl and a young man walked into the small open space Sophia and Juno had found themselves in.

The two, Zena and Ares, had been outside in the desert when Zena made a break from the wreckage of the jeep, unaware that Ares had followed her. After barely evading barely killed off, both of them had found a very tiny entrance underground, only for it to shot and closed off behind them.

"Who the heck are you?" Juno asked, seemingly annoyed at the entrance of the two.

"I could ask you the same thing," Zena said, backing up against Ares, who she had finally decided to work with. "Friend or Foe?"















(Bammage. Obviously you can work in how your characters got to the point they're at on your own. Keep in mind soldiers are chasing you. Rosemary is long gone.)

[Juno]

Descending down the cavern wall, Juno panted despairingly. His black Saiyan hair was matted to his head from sweat, and in the shimmer of the candlelight his pale façade glistened with even more perspiration.

He dared not to even look at her—at Sophia. He had thrown himself out there for her. He had thought her to be—above all things—a good person, something he knew he could never even hope to aspire to. Now, her image was stained, and he didn’t think he could take the sight of her beautiful face teasing him once more with an innocent masque.

Then, his brief moment of internal monologue was cut off by a gunshot. “Let’s go!” Sophia yelled in urgent alarm, grabbing his wrist.

What the heck did she think she was doing? “Don’t touch me!” he barked, jerking his arm away from her grasp. He refused to make eye contact as the not-so-dynamic duo raced down the tunnels of the cave, shots of ki speeding just past them, sometimes barely missing their mark.

They reached a small ledge, just a bit taller than Juno himself, and the halfling leapt down with a grace normally impossible to one of his heritage—it was his human genes—and looked up unconsciously to make sure that Sophia made it down alright. She jumped, but he realized what he was doing and looked away, letting her fall flat to the cave floor.

“Hey!” she shouted, but Juno didn’t give her the satisfaction of seeing the fury on his face. No, he wouldn’t. But suddenly—

“Get away from me, creep!” said a woman’s voice that came from just around the next bend in the rocky tunnels. Juno smirked. It seemed someone else was having quite a similar problem as he was.

A male and the same female argued back and forth for several seconds before finally coming into view. The woman seemed oddly familiar; although he was quite sure he’d never seen anything like her before. Pale skin, long, brown hair; it was a common mold, but there was something unique about her.

The boy was less appealing to Juno’s eye, however, to a woman, Juno might’ve considered him slight competition. A lanky but stern build with crimson hair, he seemed to be—pun intended—a ‘fiery’ lad.

“Who the heck are you?” he spouted.

“I could ask you the same thing,” Zena retorted. And then, with an eerie echo of the cherry-haired beauty that’d recently tormented them, she asked, “Friend or foe?”

Suddenly, the quartet was ambushed by the soldiers that Juno and Sophia had been evading. From the top of the small cliff, several men in blast suits knelt down, aiming their rifles at the warriors. Shots of ki rained down upon the group, and they quickly turned tail and ran back the way Zena and Ares had come.

“What on earth did you guys do?” Ares asked.

“We didn’t exactly play by the rules,” Juno answered, and Sophia shot him a stern look. He avoided her glance, but rather looked straight ahead, and fell into a short vision. He stumbled, then looked dead at Sophia.

He took her by the collar and leapt over the edge of the path, as it was swerving down into another chamber.

They glided towards the ground, and behind them, Juno heard the mine that Sophia had stepped upon explode in a rush of embers. They landed quickly, Sophia panting with shock and awe. Juno looked about for Zena and Ares and saw that they’d barely escaped the blast, but seemed alright, albeit a bit shaken up. It seemed the group of warriors had more problems than just soldiers chasing after them here. Sophia looked up at him.

“Now,” Juno said coldly, “We’re even.”

[James]

Their escape through the caverns had ceased to be along any type of respective route, becoming more a desperate search down directionless paths for a beacon of light in the distance- possibly signaling an exit to this mad dash within the darkness. Far behind them their pursuers lagged unable to keep up with their prey or possibly knowing an alternative way of cutting them off in order to annihilate the group in one fell swoop; the latter likely being the stronger case but either way they were safe for now. They kept in step with the young man in lead who used some strange technique to predict the safety of the ground ahead or maybe it was he just knew the results of stepping on a certain plot of earth that kept them safe.

"Wait!" the young priestess fell to her knees defiantly heaving out an exhaustive breath of air, "please." still quite distressed over the rapid chain of events following their escape, this opportunity for rest was one she didn't wish to pass up even on the run.

Juno sighed halting his advance to return to her. "For only a moment then we need to get moving. We're kind of sitting in a mine field if you weren't aware."

"I know I just need to collect myself." she breathed in effect to a steadily decreasing heart rate returning to normalcy.

Coming up from behind the two hybrids joined the group who sat in silence, lingering in dimly lit caves waiting on the woman. He heard them coming but Juno still bothered to glance up, feeling it best not to overlook anything with the situation in such exigency. After the ambush and sprint into yet another rally of men with guns the pair eased, Zena dropping to a crouch with her hands to her knees as she recalled back the scene of Dimitri's body disappearing before her very eyes at her expense. It dawned an even more expressive amount of pain over the loss of yet another who had followed under the call of her title to their race.

"Didn't see a body," Ares commented on the Saiyan's fate while straightening his clothing, bringing himself to a leisurely stand nearby. "Shame. I'm sure we could've gotten at least some of the bounty if we arrived with just a head."

"You bastard!" exploding up at him with arm extended she threw an unexpected white-knuckled fist across the side of the Saiyan's face who turned his head in accordance with the delivered blow, his cheek left with a mark viewable in but the slightest bit. She fumed, spitting words like fire from her lips as she spoke. "His sacrifice was of honorable intentions! Something a Saiyan of your caliber would know nothing of."

With that the male halfling retaliated violently with a strong armed backhand against the insinuating daughter of royalty. His attack came as a surprise, knocking her into a slight stumble before she could regain her footing.

"Of my caliber? Who are you to make any conclusions over who I am?" he growled now inflamed over the woman's high-and-mighty nature that felt ladened with every word that slithered out her mouth.

"Still surrounded by mines here!" Juno persisted but the two were too far gone in their own quarrel to pay any mind to neither him nor the increasingly distraught blond nearby.

Zena scoffed at the youth's ignorance, wiping her lip with the back of her hand. "The princess and enviable queen of the Saiyan race. Your queen." she rose, standing as if declaring her status had almost raised her above that of the others surrounding her, flaunting a proud and dignified prestige. Against ivory skin the bruise lifted but only hardly visible under the faded light.

A member of the royal family? the boy surmised scanning the length of the woman before him, not even of full blood and yet declaring supremacy over him. The earliest length of his memories had been spent as the blade's edge of whatever hailing government encompassed his home planet and now it appears his recent life's work was, to some degree, at the beckoning of this puppet master's hands?

He locked gazes, blazing a look of sheer hatred opposed to allowing himself to succumb to the full intensity of rage boiling within him. The lies he convinced himself into believing began unraveling at their very core as he yearned for the strength the truth provided, the truth masked behind his excuses for what he had been ordered to carry out. The type of preparation he took and the utter thrill he felt as he carried it out- the disgusting lust of eradicating to all who bore his blood relation.

"I have no queen." Ares proclaimed, his voice bathed in a ebbing spite as he allowed peace to once again balance himself.

Through the length of the confrontation the two others of the group had been silently observing in an uneasy calm. With the waning drive of conflict between the two Saiyans Juno spoke up, "If you two are done, shall we get a move on?"

[Celena]

The ambush by one of Kai’s goons had caused the group of hunters and hostages to divide. Ares had followed her like a lovesick puppy into an unknown cave, but there would be no Chitty Chitty Bang Bang involving Zena. He could do it himself for all she cared. Wasn’t that what hands were for?

Yet again on the large island, new faces emerged, a saiyan, from the sight of his furry brown tail, along with a blonde haired woman. Zena could tell from the annoyed look on the saiyan’s face and also from the dirty look he had given the woman that there was definitely tension between them. Everyone suddenly became nonexistent as she drifted off into thought. Something had surprised her, the fact that she had let her personal feelings of resentment towards Orion prevent her from anticipating any signs of danger, while in the scorching desert. Her foolishness should have taken her into the afterlife; that much she deserved, but it was the valiant sacrifice of another who had prevented that. This person was Dimitri, a young saiyan. Despite being absent minded, he had proven to have had a lot of heart for doing what he did. Given the choice, Zena would have rejected the idea of being rescued from the clutches of death by anyone, but despite that, for Dimitri’s sacrifice, he had earned her respect, something which only a handful of people shared in common with him. She knew why he had risked his life for her. The two had not become close, so it had nothing to do with friendship. He had sacrificed himself for her like a pawn would do for their queen in a game of chess.

Around 12 years ago, during a (once in a while) family meeting organised by Kirano, he had explained to his twin girls that as princesses of their saiyan race, they were very important people and that they were the future of the Vegeta Dynasty, and because of this, there would always be people to fight for them and protect them and risk their lives for them, not just the ones who pledged allegiance to the Vegeta Dynasty. Xena had not been happy with that information and had assured her parents that she would never want anyone fighting for her and especially not to riski their lives for her. Her mother however had proved to be right when she told her Xena that people would fight for her and risk their lives for her regardless of her objection to the idea, and that they would do so out of honour and pride.

Kokukashin and Dimitri were honourable and proud saiyan’s. Thanks to her parents, she had learned to understand the importance of her role as a princess and the choices others would have to make because of her hierarchy. As much as she still hated to accept this fact, their choices, she had no other option but to live with it. The only thing she could do for Dimitri now was to make sure his sacrifice would not be in vain. Now, she was more determined as she had been before to bring down Kai and organization, once and for all.

======

Four people, two boys and two girls, continued their dangerous journey through the dark and damp caves of an island unknown to them. Kai Demolic glared as he zoomed in on the saiyan princess.

“Oh please,” said his wife Trisha, standing by his side as usual, after she had taken note of his cold expression. “I wouldn’t worry about the princess, she isn’t that tough. There’s no chance in hell she can stop you.”

Those were Kai's exact words at the start of FoF, but Jackson had told him that he shouldn’t underestimate her. He believed she had an incredible amount of potential as a fighter that even Zena herself could not imagine.

“You shouldn't listen to Jackson and his crazy opinions,” Trisha Demolic added.

A confident smile appeared on Kai’s face as he zoomed out.

“You agree with me, right?” his wife said to him, sure it was her assuring words that had turned his frown into a smile.

“Sorry Trisha, but I’m with Jackson on this one, which is why I’m determined to put a stop to her as soon as possible. My gunmen are professionals and I have faith in them. I assure you, she will be gunned down in one of the caves. Muahahahahaha!”

======

Zena had done it again, let her personally feelings take control and as a result, she had uncharacteristically, physically lashed out at Ares. This was not Zena. She only ever assaulted someone in retaliation of being physically abused, but not because of verbal abuse. She was used to controlling her emotions and had never ever flipped out on someone before, no matter how offensive a comment directed to her may have been, or a person’s opinion about her may have been, this was of course until Friend or Foe 3. So why had she assaulted Ares? All answers to this question were unacceptable, as her physical outburst as a reply to his verbal abuse was inexcusable under any circumstance.

“I have no queen,” Ares informed Zena after the negative drama between the two had died down.

No more outbursts, she assured herself. Maintaining a level-head and being alert at all times is the only way I can survive on this island. Therefore, without a response other than a look of disgust towards the spiky haired hybrid, Zena advanced forward to join Juno and Sophia, but despite the union, she kept herself a little distant from them.

“Nothing? No retort?” said Ares, surprised. “Not going to fight me?”

“Absolutely nothing,” replied Zena without finding the necessity to look at him while she had spoken.

After a minute or two had gone by, she stopped for a moment, taking a rubber band out of the pocket of her blue jeans, which had been ruined with dirt and holes. She then carried on walking as she tied her long, black hair into a ponytail. A rubber band would have to make do. This was not a fashion show after all.

[Jesper]

Sophia sighed deeply. Things hadn’t exactly gone her way.

Of course, that could hardly be expected. Not much good can come from being kidnapped in your own home, getting knocked out by chloroform, getting stranded in the middle of nowhere, being chased by scorpions…you get the point. The priestess hardly had the time to even sit down and think about all that had transpired, and if she were to sit down and think about it at this point, there was always the chance that she would sit on a mine, and consequently, her fiery death. At least she had people there to support her.

…or maybe not. Juno was completely pissed off at her—and rightly so—while the other two people that she had just met remained locked into what Sophia thought to be a lover’s quarrel, though further listening (or actually paying attention) provided different information. The priestess shook her head; for the first time in the competition, she truly felt alone. As the group proceeded, Sophia began to lag behind, more to distance herself than anything. This was much to their chagrin, as she had already held them back once to rest.

“I’m sorry if we’re moving too fast for you, princess,” Juno rolled his eyes coldly.

“What?” Zena, who was in the front of the pack, stopped and turned around to give him a confused look.

“Oh…uhh…I was talking to Soph…” Juno hesitated. “I was talking to the blonde over there.”

Was he always on? Sophia felt awful for what she did, and if they had the time, she would be doing everything she could to make it up to him. But they didn’t have time—with every wasted step, their pursuers came that much closer to catching them, and in all likelihood, killing them. She knew that they didn’t have the time to exchange harsh words, but she caved in anyway.

“Look, I’m sorry, okay?” Sophia closed her eyes. “I got caught up. Overwhelmed. I…”

“I answered friend. You didn’t,” Juno responded, cutting her off with a blank expression plastered on his face. “You knew what was at stake, and you said foe anyway. Excuse me if I’m a little upset about it.”

“I don’t recall you being very quick on the trigger,” Sophia retorted, almost indignantly.

Juno stopped altogether. Whipping his head around, his eyes locked with hers in a cold stare. “What did you say!?”

“I…” Sophia shook her head again. Too late to go back now. “I just mean that you considered foe just as much as I did. I even saw you mumbling it to yourself.”

“But I didn’t say it, and that’s all that matters,” Juno’s voice lowered, hinting of rage.

“Oh?” Sophia was feeling bold now. “And why didn’t you? Because I’m a woman?”

Juno hesitated.

“Ahh,” the priestess started to laugh bitterly. “Trying to sweep me off my feet, I see.”

The air was filled with a very negative tension. Ares and Zena looked at each other with their eyebrows furrowed; they had been fighting with each other, but even they seemed to be thinking that the arguing pair needed to chill out. Before Juno could even respond, she sighed. “Look…the ordeal was hard on me, too. Let’s just…focus on escaping, okay?”

Juno merely scoffed and ran past her. Ares scratched his head. “Bad history, eh?”

“You have no idea.”

*

The group had reconciled—at least to the point where no words were exchanged, and nobody looked as though they wanted to tear out each other’s throats, anyway. There were so many things for Sophia to worry about that she didn’t know what to place a priority on—first of all, they were running in a cave with as many twists and turns as one could expect from a maze. Add to that several randomly-placed mines and a few menacing, gun-toting grunts chasing them, and the events of last round started to take its place in the back of the priestess’ mind.

It seemed as though they had been running for a while now--it was hilariously ironic that their pursuit of the very same cave in the sandtrap seemed to take just as long. It was hard to tell where they had been and where they were going, as the interior of the place looked the same no matter where they ran. Something told Sophia that they weren’t getting anywhere very quickly; fears which were confirmed when their path was cut off by a soldier.

“Son of a—…” Zena scoffed. “Must have taken a side-passage.”

“Makes sense. They know this place a lot better than we do,” Sophia commented, jumping out of the way of the ki blast that rang out of the soldier’s shotgun. She narrowly avoided a large part of the attack, but part of it singed her arm. She cried out in pain as smoke rose off of her body, clutching her arm. She looked up at Juno, apparently unaffected by her ailment—something that was unsurprising. Ares took the window of opportunity that had opened when the soldier’s focus shifted by lunging at him, decking him square across the jaw. The soldier stumbled backward, falling towards the priestess. Reacting purely on instinct, she reached out and caught the man by the shoulders.

She felt something that she had never felt before. Ki, in Sophia’s limited understanding of it, seemed to be leaving the man’s body and flowing into hers. The pain in her arm began to fade. However, the odd feeling made her jump and shove the soldier away. Her foe, weakened but still strong enough, turned around and raised his gun. He took a step back and was about to pull the trigger.

A small click sounded as his heel touched the earth beneath him, followed by a beep.

“…shit. Move!” Juno shouted, apparently aware of what was about to happen. The group began to run once more, leaving the loud sound of the explosion behind.

“The rest are sure to catch up to us, lady,” Ares pulled her by the arm, ushering her to continue running. Sophia looked at her hands through tear-soaked eyes as she ran. What was this game doing to her?

[Juno]

Why couldn’t he do it? He felt such a hatred for her—as if he could bash her brains out all over the dirt that covered the cavern floor. Yet, somehow, someway, something came over him back in Rosemary’s court. He couldn’t end her life like that. But she could end his—was this pathetic little girl even stronger than he?

She couldn’t be. Sophia was humble, modest, compliant, and easily-swayed; she didn’t have the strength to defeat him in a fight, and he contested that she—or anyone—could beat him in a mental challenge. But Rosemary’s game had been an emotional challenge. Juno hadn’t been too experienced with emotions before. He would admit that the woman of God had a leg up on him in that department.

He cursed himself silently. Why hadn’t he been stronger? He could’ve ended her life before it started. He’d done it many times before. Why on Earth couldn’t he do it this time?

Then, reality set in, and they were running again. Juno quickly caught up to Ares and Sophia, Zena tagging along just slightly behind. Without a second thought, he rushed past the priestess and the fiery-haired kid and took the lead in this little party.

Abruptly, he felt a surge in his mind—and he motioned for the group to stop running. The other three people complied, and silently remained in their places. Juno heard footsteps around the next bend, and reached down towards a sharp stalagmite that rose out of the cave floor. Using his Saiyan strength, he ripped it from its place, and held it ready.

Three soldiers emerged from the corner, rifles at the ready. Ares raised a palm and shot a ki blast towards one of the foes, while Juno shot a blast at one and lunged out at the other, piercing his armor and then his flesh with the sharp piece of rock.

The soldier he’d stabbed fell to the ground, writhing in pain. He was a good as dead, but something inside Juno swelled up—anger flushed through his veins, and he stabbed the man again, and again, and again. Crimson blood spewed forth from his chest with each thrust of the stone. It spat forth from the wound that slowly grew larger, staining the halfling’s pale skin with blood.

Juno didn’t know it, but the others were staring intently at his murderous rampage; and not just because of the violence, but because he was screaming as he continued his assault.

“Foe!” he roared despairingly, “Foe! Foe! Foe! Foe, foe, foe, foe! FOE!” His eyes reddened and watered with tears that he could feel just about to burst through his barrier. He’d never felt this many emotions before—they all just seemed to be pouring over, and his soul poured out with them.

“Juno!” he heard faintly in the background. He knew it was her, but he didn’t stop—he kept stabbing. Even though the man’s face was long frozen with death’s cold sting, he couldn’t stop unleashing his anger, his frustration, his despair, his sadness, his gratitude, his hopelessness, his misery, his uncertainty, his indecisiveness, his longing for answers on him.

Her icy hand touched his shoulder, and with a jerk, he reached around and backhanded her hard in the face. She fell back, collapsing into the wall, her face red with pain. She yelled in pain, but attempted not to show any other sign of weakness. Juno approached her weapon in hand. He wanted to kill.

“I trusted you,” he realized, “I don’t know why… this game has done something to me. It’s—I’ve never—I don’t know how—how did you do it? How did you fool me?” Sophia stayed silent, shuffling to her feet and lowering into a battle stance.

“Juno, I will fight you,” she said abruptly. He scoffed.

“I hate you so much,” he told her plainly, his hand tensing around the rock, “You can’t even understand. You’re a good person. That’s what you were supposed to be. Why would you do that?! You killed me. You signed the warrant for my death. And then you didn’t even have the guts to do it yourself. I swear to God, I could kill you right now!”

“Juno,” she whispered fearfully, “You don’t know what you’re doing. You don’t know what you’re saying.” Juno huffed with anger—who did she think she was, trying to reason with him?! This was all her fault, and now she was trying to weasel her way out of it? Just like last time. With that one word. Foe. Foe, foe, foe, foe, foe, foe, foe! Just one word!

“No,” he sighed, “I know exactly what I’m saying. I know exactly who you are—you’re a falsity, in and of yourself, Sophia. I know how you did that. You lied to yourself, you lied to the world. And then when you finally had the chance—nobody would know you killed me—you took it.”

“No,” Sophia denied it.

“Yes,” Juno confirmed, looking in her eyes. “You’re a selfish person. But Sophia—there’s one question I’d like answered. What was it about you that changed my mind? I was prepared to say foe, but something within me altered my judgment. So I saved your pathetic, worthless life, and for what? To be betrayed? WHY?”

“I—I don’t know!” she screamed at him in pure fury as he came closer, raising the rock above his head, poised to strike.

“You don’t know?!” he screeched angrily. His anger was swelling, his face was already flooded with tears, his eyes were puffy and red, and his teeth gritted in frustration. “How could you not know? It was you! You’re the one that did it to me! You have to have the answer!”

Sophia winced. If only slightly.

“I couldn’t kill you then,” he murmured regretfully, raising his arm higher than he ever had before in this conversation. “…and I… I can’t kill you now.” He dropped the rock, letting it fall to the sand.

He relaxed himself, but he felt another surge run through his mind, and raised his hand up, catching Sophia’s wrist as she tried to punch him when his guard was down.

“You’re so predictable,” he chuckled lightheartedly, tossing her aside. He seemed relaxed, but Sophia could tell he was tense, too—all at the same time. The trio shot him confused looks, but he paid no mind to their pathetic attempts at figuring him out.

She raised up her hand, forming an orb of ki. Juno stopped, and then said without facing her, “Soph.” He was calmer, friendlier. He faced her. “I can’t kill you. I don’t know why. But I’ll find out.”

He started off. “Hey, wait—” Zena interrupted. Juno scoffed. He’d almost forgotten Zena and Ares were there. “—where are you going?”

“To find someone, something—” he smirked. He walked back in the opposite direction they’d came, leaving the trio to stare at him as he walked. He heard shuffling feet, and quickly formed a ki orb, and shot it to the ground just behind him. A mine was activated, and the resulting smoke shielded him as he took to a run. Within moments, he was out of sight.

As he ran, a smile flickered on his face—he’d finally solved the puzzle.

[James]

"One less burden to worry about," he commented strolling over to the body of the soldier, examining the feign attempt to equal that of their hunter counterparts already on the playing field. Blood had ceased its relentless pooling about the corpse and allowed the air to savior the aromas released. It was amusing though. Ares admitted, turning from the body and making his way towards the other poor souls.

Even with the abandonment of the opposing male hybrid his own personal odds still stood with him severely at a loss- strategically in any case. From what he could devise from the vainglorious princess was that she held ground against his elder partner far longer than initially anticipated. This in itself was a large set back as it left him with no true experience nor confirmation on any of her techniques or capabilities in battle.

As for this other little addition to the group she held just as much mystery as the other woman, baring no signifying abilities or even sufficient stamina. Her only strength he had seen thus far had been her incredible luck of tossing her foes into hidden explosives.

Either way the lack of tranquilizers made procuring the two alive anything but a feasibility, even more so the idea of finding his way out of these catacombs whilst hauling the pair made it a difficulty far more arduous than its payment. Not to mention the situation he would fall into should the two wake to find themselves in a battle to their favor in numbers against him.

His hand drifted down into his satchel, fingering its contents of a water bottle and the remainder of a tough chunk of bread saved since earlier that day. Reluctantly he drew the loaf, downing it with a sprinkle of liquid and returning the leftovers to his back as he happened upon his kill.

Luckily his mark wasn't in as bad of shape as the lunatic halfling's had been, decapitated but singed by the passing heat of the blast had sealed in much of the troublesome fluids that would have otherwise spilt.

Sophia hummed in slight agreement to the Saiyan only having half listening to what was being said, her eyes remaining fixated down the tunnel the teen had retreated after his dramatics. She sighed with a defeated facade as she returned her attention to the immediate surroundings and, as blood rushed to her cheeks, whipped her gaze downward as nearby Ares removed his shirt, tossing it casually aside.

"Don't think you'll be getting any kind of freebie from either of us," Zena barked scornfully. "Go find yourself a corner alone."

"Fuck off." the Saiyan snarled in retort while his hands undid the shirt of the dead man, removing and carefully folding it, placing it several steps from where he stood.

With a twisted expression set pressed on her face the royal princess watched in horror and disgust as the halfling mounted; placing a foot upon the man's chest and taking up an arm it only took a quick jerk to tare the appendage from the man's socket. Blood rained lightly from the exposed muscle tissue that he quickly worked to eliminate but not before ridding the arm of its hand, using a well placed ki bolt on either side closing the liquids in.

"What are you doing!" the blond's voiced echoed asperated from its normal calm.

He stuffed the meat into his ration's bag, undoing a belt string from one of the marksmen to hang it from a belt loop at his side; proceeding to take up his old shirt to dab the blood from his body. "Forage from the enemy when rations are low." winking, he tossed on the enemy's over shirt to replace his blood-spotted attire.

Sooner or later they would find their way out from this place and, once replenished and restocked; the halfling would be able to go on the hunt once more. Morality had no objective here- he was still under contract to Kai after all...

[Celena]

On this island, Zena had come across a substantial amount of personalities, compassionate, selfish, selfless, heroic, clumsy, moronic, but nobody as enigmatic as Juno. The boy was worse than the showers in her hostel, which switched between hot and cold every 15 seconds or so. He was an emotional wreck; a ticking time bomb. Sophia must have meant a lot to him for him to have lost his mind. One of the reasons why Zena was against getting close to people was not because she was afraid of getting hurt, but because of what she might do to the person who hurt her. Regardless, Juno had gone overboard; the hybrid could not condone his psychotic behaviour. Thank goodness the lunatic was out of sight now. She could not care less where he had gone, but whatever he had planned, or whoever he had to see, he had better not put her life at jeopardy, since her situation was bad enough as it was. She had to watch her step at all times in order to avoid setting off land mines, also, keep her eyes open for Kai’s gunmen who were relentless on making bullet burritos out of the group.

She thought the absence of Juno would restore normality among the group, but Ares had shown his true colours. He was a sick fuck and Zena was not sure how long she could stomach the fact that she was travelling with a person who had a piece from another male’s body in his backpack. She never thought she would have this opinion, but she would have preferred being with Orion right now, rather than Ares.

As they continued their dangerous journey, Zena for the first time took interest in the slightly older female Sophia. She had done something which impressed the princess, something, which she could not ignore. It was during their altercation with the soldier who had a shotgun. She had transferred ki from the man’s body, into her own.

“Sophia, was it?” she wondered, while rolling her cautious eyes about to continue spotting any signs of danger. The hybrid was not too good with remembering names after a first time of meeting someone. It was kind of embarrassing, yet she had made it a habit of forgetting.

“Yes, you got it right,” the other woman replied, also cautious during her venture, same with Ares.

“You have an admirable ability.”

“Uh,” Sophia replied, shocked. How did this woman know she possessed the ability to heal people? Sophia eyed the younger female with suspicion.

“Why the face?”

“How did you know I could heal people?” the blonde haired woman asked. “Have I seen you before?” Perhaps she had seen the princess at the temple. Rather than ask, she awaited a reply.

“Heal…you possess that ability too?.” This girl was something out of the ordinary. It was ironic that the person, who the hybrid had no intention to regard, was now the centre of her fascination. “Very impressive, any other rare abilities, excluding Flight and Ki control as they are as common as grey pigeons nowadays?”

“No other that are rare,” Sophia replied, not sure she had provided an accurate answer. It was Sophia’s ability to heal, which made her the centre of attention back at the temple too.

“Heal…you possess that ability too?” she remembered the dark haired girl say, which meant that her capability to heal had not been the ‘admirable ability’ Zena had referred to. So what other ability…? Suddenly her thoughts were interrupted as the other woman spoke.

“Look,” the hybrid whispered, nodding her head in order to point at the source of her interest to the sadistic saiyan and the angelic human, and then came an abrupt stop. They halted too once they had also seen it. A blue rucksack identical to that of the FoF participants lay on the ground, a few metres away from them. It appeared to be empty.

“Juno,” Sophia uttered in horror.

Zena felt a bad vibe about this and she was not sure like the other woman that this bag belonged to the one known as Juno. Something was not right. “No blood stains in sight,” Zena pointed out. “And look at the position of the bag, it’s just lying there out in the open, in the middle of this area. Even Juno would have been able to anticipate an ambush from the position the bag is in, if we assume Juno was within range of the position the bag is in, before he got captured,” she emphasized, using her fingers to make inverted commas. “We need to keep our eyes peeled more than ever,” she continued, scanning around the cave just like the other two. Her brown eyes followed a bat swoop from the ceiling and into a dark tunnel ahead. Suddenly, her eyes moved onto another image, a small hole in the caves wall, small enough to fit a body inside it. A chill ran through her body as she caught sight of a black nozzle poke its way out of the hole.

“FUCK!” she uttered in a statue motion, causing all eyes to turn in her direction.

BANG!

The next moment, her body sailed backwards. The velocity of her backwards motion caused her body to slide across the floor. “Argh,” she whispered in pain, laying on her back.
With anger, Ares fired a surge of ki towards the hole in the cave. His accuracy was pinpoint as the blast sailed through the hole, the impact of the explosion caused chunks of the wall to collapse downwards in a powerful rush, comparable to the Niagara Falls. Meanwhile, Sophia instinctively rushed towards the body that had taken the bullet. The body convulsed as blood splattered from its chest. “Hang in there Zena,” said the priestess in a panic. Relax she thought. You can heal her. “I’m going to heal you!” she exclaimed, holding onto the woman’s hand to help stop her involuntary movements.

“Shit!” yelled Ares as he tore off a piece of the soldiers over shirt, which he was wearing. He then crouched and pressed the piece of cloth against the woman’s chest wound. He needed her alive. The instructions Kai Demolic had given where ‘bring the bodies back sedated’, not ‘bloody and dead’. “You’re not going to die dammit!” he roared frustratingly. The elite warrior had not followed Zena only to have her die here.

Holding her bloody, left elbow, a blonde haired woman picked herself off the floor. Her heart raced with heavy thumps as she walked forwards towards the commotion, her jelly like legs almost gave way as she stumbled to the right. Ares and Sophia spun around to view the girl at the same time and then rising to his feet, the male saiyan extended out his arm and then ki formed into his palm.

“What’s the meaning if this, Ares?” she asked, gazing at the light of ki, which hummed from his palm.

“How do you know who I am?!”

Sophia returned to the body, only to discover that it had stopped moving completely, eyes closed too. The healer checked for a pulse, but got nothing.

“It’s me, Zena you fool. Are you hallucinating or what?!” the girl answered.

“What the fuck are you talking about?! That’s Zena!” he roared, pointing at the bloody body near his feet.

“No,” the blonde haired girl whispered, gazing at the body in horror and then in a flash, she appeared by the body and knelt down next to Sophia. “Zasha!” she screamed, placing her hand on the woman’s bloody chest.

“Who?” asked Ares, ki fading back into his palm. He was just as puzzled as Sophia.

The blonde haired girl gripped onto the bloody T-shirt of her counterpart in the flesh. ‘In the flesh’, she realised. How had they separated? It had all happed too fast for Zena to figure out and in Zasha’s condition, she was not in the position to give an explanation. “This wasn’t supposed to happen!” the hybrid yelled, tugging onto the T-shirt. Taking a moment to calm down, she placed two fingers against the woman’s neck, another cold chill sweeping through her body as she checked for a pulse. No pulse. Zena felt the force of an imaginary train crashing into her as her hand sunk in defeat. “She’s gone,” the girl whispered, losing grip of the blood drenched T–shirt and then subconsciously sinking onto her bottom. “And I’m on my own.”

Ares observed the dead body, noticing a style of hair, which differed from the Zena they had been travelling with. This woman’s hair was untidy and spiky and there were no signs of a brown streak, along her raven hair. It was too different to remind him of Zena. What exactly was this dead person? Where had this other blonde haired girl who claimed to be the saiyan princess, come from?

“Go,” said the blonde haired girl to Sophia and Ares, while her hands rested on her knees, staring at the dead body in a trance. “Leave me alone with Zasha.”

There was no reply from either of them. They were still trying to get their head around the whole thing.

“GO!” she barked again.

[Juno]

Rosemary’s court looked largely the same as it had when Juno and Sophia had sprinted out of it. There were only a few differences: all the candles were out and the podiums looked as if they had been tossed about without a second thought.

The hybrid stepped from stone to hardwood, his bare feet sticking to the floor because of all the mud and sweat that had collected upon them. He moved to the center of the room and sat cross-legged on the ground, taking the navy bag from his shoulder and plopping it into his lap. From its confines he pulled a bottle of water, and took a much needed swig.

“I know you’re out there,” he called. “I want some answers,” he demanded, looking up at the space around him, but for a while, it was all silent in the disheveled chamber.

~

Rosemary leaned over Kai’s shoulder. Her cherry-blonde hair tickled his neck, and the head of the compound shot the girl a look. She backed up, but attempted to focus on the screen that showed Juno’s image. “What the heck is he doing, boss?”

“He’s talking to you, Rosie,” Kai giggled. Rosemary looked to him—what was he going on about now? Then, she glanced back at Juno’s screen. Kai was right. The boy was talking to her.

“Do you want me to go back down there and teach him a lesson? Or do you want me to give your troops his location so they can shoot him down?” Rosemary asked, hoping for the first answer—she really didn’t want Kai to kill Juno. Not just yet, not when the fun had just begun.

“No,” Kai shook his head. “Neither option, Rose; just let him come to you.”

Rosemary shot her superior a confused look. “Let him come to me, sir?” Kai merely chuckled and stood. He gestured towards the seat, and Rosemary sat upon command, staring at the screen holding Juno’s image. Then, she felt something tapping at the back of her mind. All of a sudden, she realized what was going on, what she would have to do.

Juno.

~

Rosemary.

He closed his eyes tightly, remembering back to what it had felt like. A wonderful choice, little ones. Hope it was worth it. These were the last words he had heard Rosemary speak, but she hadn’t been even close to earshot when she’d said it. His only possible clue was to infer that the woman was telepathic. So, he had decided to use his telepathy for some answers—if he couldn’t get what he wanted playing the game straight, why, then, he’d cheat!

He found himself sitting on a mental plane, the ground shiny obsidian black and the sky around him filled with stars, looking to be like outer space itself. He was sitting cross-legged on the ground, staring out towards the other end of the plane, where sat Rosemary in her throne.

“Deductive, aren’t we?” Rosemary chuckled. Juno merely smirked; he was satisfied that he had finally made it here, but he wasn’t about to let Rosemary play games with him. He’d have to kick this into gear—and the first step was not showing weakness by, as he’d grown to refer to the practice, ‘playing along.’

Without a second thought, he glanced up at her and poised his question: “Why?” His expression flushed over with longing and curiosity, but Rosemary’s was amused and effervescent.

“Why, Juno?” she laughed heartily. “Is that all you’ve got for me—why?” Juno nodded quite innocently, and Rosemary’s smile faltered. She quite obviously had expected something more than one word from this hybrid. She tossed her hair over her shoulder, collecting herself.

“You really want to know why?” Rosemary assured herself, and Juno nodded once more. “It’s because you’re whimsical, Juno. You can’t ever stay in one place, with one decision. I know how long it took you to come up with your answer—I was reading your thoughts the whole time.”

“But there’s something about you, Juno,” she continued, “That isn’t whimsical. There’s something about you that’s constant. You first discovered it back when you were just a boy back on the streets of South City. Then, you felt it again, for Juliet. Now, you’ve come close—if not quite—to that feeling for Sophia.”

“I was in love with Juliet,” Juno argued. “I don’t love Sophia, and I never have.” Rosemary shook her head.

“You’re missing my point,” she scolded. “The one thing about you that is constant is not your ability to love or your ability to hate, or anything of that sort—no. What’s constant about you is your ability to feel. We have six senses. There’s sight, there’s touch, there’s taste, there’s hear, there’s smell, but the most important one there is you have mastered, and that’s the ability to feel.” Juno looked away from the cherry-haired fiend.

“Why are you being so honest with me?” Juno asked. He wondered why Rosemary had opened up to him and spilt this information out. Rosemary then put on a light-hearted façade; more of the traditional woman he’d known her as than of the one he’d just met with.

“It’s because you’re one of my favorites, Juno,” Rosemary flattered him. “One of my favorite players of this game.” She stepped down from her throne, and suddenly Juno found himself standing at the center of the room, eye-level with her. “My boss; he picked up a lot of different people, but there were only a few he picked that were truly smart. You, my young friend, are one of them.”

“So I challenge your intellect?” Juno posed.

Rosemary laughed. “You’ve yet to challenge my intellect, Juno. You’ve just… entertained it. But I see you have the potential to. That’s why I picked the girl who couldn’t kill to play the game with you. That’s why I’m telling you these things now. Dropping you little hints as you go along.”

“So that’s why you’ve been so truthful?”

“Hey, now!” Rosemary warned, “Don’t be so sure I’m being truthful. I could’ve been lying to you the whole time. Don’t be so trusting, my little June-bug—” Juno cringed when she referred to him that way “—you do remember that’s what almost got you shish-kabob’d last time!” Juno nodded weakly.

“I remember,” he said reproachfully. Rosemary smiled her sweetest smile, and then tugged on one of her scarves. The chamber reappeared around him, and the red-haired woman was gone. In the back of his mind, however, Juno could still hear her laughing.

Be careful, my June-bug…

~

“Done, sir,” Rosemary sighed, leaning back into his chair.

“Why were you so truthful with him, Rosemary? Giving up secrets, are we?” Kai asked, slinking in behind her.

“Because he is one of my favorites,” she repeated.

“Hum,” Kai pondered. “Well, I suppose you’re not going to be too happy with my next decision, Rosie.” Kai picked up the walkie-talkie that laid on his desk and whispered quite maniacally into it. “Alright, boys, Rosemary’s had her fun, now you can have yours—kill him.”

“WHAT?! KILL HIM?!” Rosemary screamed, standing and letting the office chair slide backwards frantically. Her eyes were glued to the monitor. What was to become of her beloved June-bug? Surely he’d be smart enough not to let his emotions cloud him again? Surely he’d see them coming? Surely he would… survive?

~

Juno’s head singed slightly, and he saw the picture that he’d been expecting—several soldiers rushing in from all sides. Within seconds, that picture had come true, and now, once more, Juno was rushing down the cavern, soldiers on his tail, in an almost exact replica of the beginning of this ordeal… minus Sophia.

He never thought he’d miss her company so much.

[Jesper]

In the light of recent circumstance, Sophia ran.

Of the many things that the girl could be running from, perhaps the furthest from her mind were the soldiers chasing her. The game in which she had been cast into had since fulfilled its likely purpose—to threaten the lives of its participants, plant a seed of doubt of their morality and values, and, most of all, entertained the viewers that made such a lavish competition possible. The thought of it made Sophia want to vomit. The chase had already depleted the group; Juno ran away and hadn’t been seen since, and Zena…Sophia honestly had no idea what happened to Zena. She hardly had the time to think about it.

Part of her wanted to go back to help the newly-formed blonde woman, whomever she was, but the part of her that wanted to survive kept running. Regret and guilt stung at every string of her heart with each step that she took, but she knew that she couldn’t stop; not when so much had been lost at the hands of Kai and his cronies. She looked behind her shoulder to see if Ares was following. The tailed man remained a few steps behind; probably intentionally, though Sophia didn’t know if it was to watch out for her safety or just to watch…her. She slightly rolled her eyes and continued her pace.

“Doin’ okay back there?” Sophia called out, taking a right when met with a fork in the path.

“Hm?” Although Sophia wasn’t in a position to notice, Ares’ concentration was broken. He looked up. “Oh, yeah. Yeah. Everything’s fine, girly. Just worry about yourself, eh?”

Lots of that going around, Sophia thought.

Sophia didn’t know how, but lighting was never really a problem inside the cave. It was odd, since the defining characteristic of caves and like caverns was darkness; that’s why bats typically dwelled within them. However, Sophia could see where she was going just fine, though she couldn’t tell where the source of light was. What she did see, however, caused her eyes to widen significantly; the right path in the fork yielded a dead-end. Tears welled up in her frantic eyes as she skidded to a stop and looked around.

“…oh no,” Sophia closed her eyes tightly.

“Now, now…there’ll be none of that,” Ares was looking around. He shrugged, conceding that there was indeed nowhere else to turn but back. “We’ve managed to gain some distance on the grunts. You need to rest?”

Sophia raised an eyebrow. “No, I’m fine.” She had been wondering for a while now why everyone—minus Juno, of course—was treating her like the weak link; like the helpless princess that they just had to bring along. She wasn’t the most gifted athlete to ever exist, but she was far from being fatigued. Sophia supposed that she had to stop for a moment earlier, but that was due to emotional fatigue more than anything else. She shook her head; maybe this was to be expected. She would just have to prove that she’s not just a liability.

“Well…alright,” Ares shrugged again. “Let’s go back, then, before they catch up to us.”

“R-right.”

The pair continued their chase scene back down the path, winding around and within the rocky terrain until they were met with the fork once again. Sophia recalled an old adage that when one comes to a fork in the road, they are to take it. Sadly, that adage served no practical purpose in real life, and if it meant that they were to split up, the priestess thought it a bad idea. To make matters worse, a blast sounded from the side—their brief window of opportunity had all but closed as their pursuers caught up to them.

“Found ‘em!” one of them shouted to the others. “Bastards are quicker than I thought, but they’re dumber than shit.”

Obnoxious laughter could be heard from the direction in which the goon shouted. Sophia stewed over the comment, but she really wouldn’t be dumber than…that if she stood there any longer. She looked at Ares and the two exchanged nods and took off.

“Don’t go down the middle!” the tailed man shouted, not even stopping to look.

“Go down the middle? Okay!”

The priestess sprinted down the path and disappeared in the background.

“They split up! You two go after the girl!”

Ares frowned and slowed his pace upon hearing that, turning back around. He rolled his eyes when he noticed Sophia’s absence. “Oh…son of a bitch,” he muttered before taking off again at the sight of two pursuers giving chase.

Sophia soon began to realize that Ares was no longer with her, and, subsequently, that she misheard the tailed man. And to her chagrin, she could see why he had warned against this path. Apparently he had taken the time to look down the path that Sophia had not—if she had, she would have noticed the lack of light. Footsteps behind her made it impossible for her to turn back around, but the darkness made it equally difficult to know where she even was.

Bats survive in caves, she reminded herself.

Bats also use sonar, the cynic inside retorted.

Sophia sighed and shook her head. The point was that if an animal like a bat could survive in a cave, so could she. Raising her arms, she began to feel around, still trying to keep up a pace so that she wouldn’t be caught from behind by one of Kai’s soldiers. Air turned into cold stone quickly, and she knew she was out of space to work with. She closed her eyes as she felt along the cave wall, hoping to find the edges of another path. However, the footsteps drew nearer, and she found nothing.

“Dammit, I can’t see a thing,” she heard one of the soldiers say.

“Yeah, I know what you mean,” the other responded. “I wish the boss gave us one of those night-vision dealies that he put on the cameras.”

“They weren’t supposed to get this far.”

“Yeah, yeah…” the other one sighed audibly. “Well…I dunno…start shootin’ stuff, I guess.”

His partner agreed by cocking his gun. The pair counted to three under their breaths and opened fire, shooting randomly in the air. Ki bolts zipped past her head, and she gasped, crouching to the ground a bit. The light from the energy lit up the room, revealing the crazed visages of the soldiers as they opened fire. Luckily, they didn’t seem to see her before they had to stop and reload. Shaking but determined, she started to double back to the entrance.

“Shh! Did you hear that?” she heard one of them say.

“Yeah…”

Sophia gulped and lifted a hand. Taking a deep breath, she created a ki orb and absorbed it back into herself as quickly as she could. The priestess rolled forward as the solider to her left gasped and raised his gun to fire. Another ki blast shot from his barrel and crashed into the chest of the other lackey. Sophia groaned and broke out into a mad dash back towards the fork—hopefully she would make the right path choice this time. She had to.

There was only one more way to go.

[Celena]

Kai had played the scene involving the shooting, over and over again. He had specifically concentrated on the part where the supposedly girl named Zena, got sniped, watching that specific part in slow motion. The moment the bullet had struck the young ‘witch’ (he liked to think she was), another body had emerged from it and had sailed backwards, while the body that had taken the bullet, dropped dead. Now he was meant to believe that the new, blonde haired woman was really Zena. He could not comprehend it, but nevertheless, if the woman was who she claimed to be, then that would mean that she was one fortunate bitch for escaping death. “This isn’t what I expected,” growled the furious president of FoF, watching the blonde haired girl carry the dead body of a saiyaness in her arms, back in the direction, which the group had come from, before the incident. “And where is she taking that dead carcass?” That was a question, which the woman by his side, his wife, could not answer. Kai was not expecting an answer since he was talking to himself. “The whole thing makes no sense. What I have come to realise is that this blondie really is Zena,” he said to his wife this time.

“What makes you so sure?” asked Trisha Demolic, using both hands to rub the tense man’s shoulders. He flicked her hands off because the man did not need her comfort right now.

“Can’t you see the stress vein?” he asked, directing his finger to the right side of his head. “That’s how I know she’s really Zena. The fortunate witch somehow used a substitute to take the hit. It was like wearing a bullet proof vest, only far more impressive.” He smirked at the screen and then laughed, applauding the young hybrid with claps. “She’s remarkable. That’s twice she’s escaped death now. Look at her…” he instructed to his wife, who had already been looking. “That arrogance of hers and her resilience; she’s just what the show needed, which is ironic considering her intentions, BUT, I cannot allow her to ruin my show.”

“Don’t worry, her luck will run out.”

“No, she was lucky the first time. This time, her survival was down to sheer brilliance, yet you still foolishly underestimate her… but despite her nine lives, I will rid her from my island.”

------

Despite the struggle to carry Zasha’s dead weight for over five minutes, determination had led Zena to her destination. A still and green river stood 8 feet below her now. This was the only place suitable for Zasha’s body. Zena had too much respect for her to allow her to rot in the middle of nowhere.

The princess, who was stained all over with the full-blooded warrior’s blood, put her down for a moment in order to pay her last respects. There she was, lying motionless on the ground. Zasha never looked so peaceful. At the tender age of 21, she had yet to experience the beauty of life beyond its darkness.

I will live on for you and your sacrifice. After lowering her face towards the raven haired woman, she closed her eyes, placing her lips on the warriors pale forhead, giving her a soft kiss goodbye. Next came the part, which she was reluctant to do, let go. A tear formed in the corner of her left eye, but she refused to let it stream down her face. She would not cry because she had to keep her emotions in check.

Until we meet again, she thought, picking up Zasha’s body from the ground, leaving behind a patch of blood. Slanting herself forward against the edge of the rocky face, she released the body. It sailed downwards and dropped into the water with a big splash, and down in the water it sunk, turning a shade of green into crimson.

There was no need for Zena to wait around and watch the way the river flowed. Dimitri and Zasha had not sacrificed themselves just so she could mope. Survival and revenge were her clear-cut goals and with that in mind, she needed to find the others since strength came in numbers.

[Jesper]

“Figured it would come to this,” Ares mumbled to himself as he turned the next corner. He started out this little turn of events with company to the tune of three people—now, by one mean or another, he was alone. For all he knew, the others had already been killed. Zena already got shot, Juno was skilled but unstable, and Sophia…Ares chuckled. Sophia seemed to be just a normal, scared little girl. Running into the dark like that surely made tipped the odds against her favor. Taking a deep breath, he took a hard step to the right and hid in a corner for a little bit.

Sophia’s misty eyes made it difficult for her to see her way around cave. She knew that she couldn’t afford to have any mental or emotional breakdown at this point, but she couldn’t help it—she had never taken a life before Friend or Foe, and within the span of about an hour or so, the priestess had already caused, albeit indirectly, the deaths of two soldiers. She blinked hard and fought past the tears as she ran, however; she couldn’t allow such events to get the best of her. Their deaths would have been for nothing.

As she cleared the entrance of another path, something caught her attention from the corner of her eye that neared made her jump out of her skin. With a rather loud gasp, she clenched her fist and sent it flying towards the foreign object. Sophia didn’t notice that the said object was in fact Ares until it was already too late—luckily, the tailed man had the presence of mind to duck out of the way. Her fist sailed over his head and crashed into and through the rocky wall. Ares winced as he raised his hands to get her attention.

“Woah! It’s me, Sophia, it’s me!” he waved his hands wildly. “Put that hammer down, alright?”

“Oh, it’s you,” the priestess sighed. “Don’t do that to me.”

Ares looked back up at the wall. “Don’t do that to me.”

“What?” she frowned, but then took a peak at what he was looking at. She blushed. “Oh, I…I’m sorry.”

“For people trying to hide, you guys are pretty easy to find.”

The pair turned their heads towards the direction of the voice. It was Juno, standing beside the blonde-haired girl that had shouted for them to leave her alone just moments before. His countenance was significantly…brighter than it was before, which gave the priestess a rather odd feeling, like a chill. The girl standing beside him looked more depressed, which was a natural reaction, given the circumstances.

“Juno, you’re…” Sophia noticed the difference in the tailed boy immediately.

“Yeah, you’re not batshit crazy anymore,” Ares blurted out suddenly.

“Yeah…” Juno responded airily, pointing a thumb back at the blonde. “I found this chick a ways back. Apparently she’s running, too.”

“Wh—what are you talking about? It’s me,” she spoke up finally. “Zena.”

Ares frowned and leaned in to whisper to Sophia. “That’s…not Zena.”

“I know that. I have eyes, too,” Sophia rolled her eyes. She shook her head—it honestly didn’t matter who this girl was. Whether or not she was Zena was irrelevant; whether or not she was trying to kill them, however, was a different story. Since she seemed harmless enough, she shrugged it off. “Well, no matter. We should probably try to find the exit. Running around these caves constantly isn’t going to help us.”

“Agreed,” Juno nodded, flashing a smile at the priestess. “Let’s go then, shall we?”

They all nodded in unison and turned heel. As Ares and “Zena” ran on ahead, Sophia consciously stayed behind and ran alongside Juno. For the longest time, no words were expressed between them as they ran along the curves, avoiding the places in which they heard the echoes of footsteps. Had Juno forgiven her, just out of the blue? Was he secretly plotting her death? Had he officially gone insane? His smile made it difficult for Sophia to read him even a little bit.

“Juno…” Sophia began. “I’m…sorry.”

“Yeah…” he sighed. “I know.”

They stopped, and suddenly Sophia was at a loss for words. She stumbled along as she found them, “Look…I know what I did was wrong, and I’m sorry. Really, I am. I know it’s selfish for me to play the victim when you were the one chained up, but…you have to understand my side of things. I needed that money, and…”

“…Sophia.”

“…and I let my desperation cloud my judgment. You have to believe me when I tell you that I never intended for you to get--…”

“Sophia!” She looked up to see his smile. He continued with a laugh, “It’s okay. Really.”

“…I don’t understand.” What an odd thing for her to say! She wanted to cringe, but she managed to avoid it.

“Yeah, it’s okay,” he nodded. “Look, Soph, we’re all just looking for answers. I think I might have finally found mine.”

Sophia looked down, hard-pressed to find something—anything—to say in response to that rather cryptic comment. Both of their focuses were broken, however, by Ares when he cleared his throat. “I hope I’m not interrupting anything.”

“You’re not,” Sophia and Juno spoke in unison.

“Then hurry the fuck up.”

[Friend or Foe]

All four of you survive, but nobody wins the reward. Congratulations on making the final 10