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Posted: Fri Apr 22, 2011 3:23 pm
[ Alpha Eight is entering from the Task Thread ]Landing safely outside, he watched as the parachute collapsed back into the unknown container it had emerged from. Funny that something unknown actually ended up saving him. Funny. Yes, haha funny. He liked the idea of something actually being funny for a change. His sense of humor had been dulled by panic and fear thanks to some zombies and a crazy explosion. However, he tried to put his mind at rest a bit. His body was still experiencing the panic as indicated by his hands shaking. You're okay now. It's alright. They're gone. See, nothing there.These words rang out through his mind as he entered the building. Quickly becoming a mantra, the words only slightly soothed him as he found himself in another classroom. Odd he thought that his first memory was in a similar classroom and that after so many close encounters with death, he would find himself there once again. It almost felt relieving, as if he could say he never left to begin with. Almost. Taking a seat in the middle of the row, he read over the instructions once. Eight attempted to pick up the pencil, hand still shaking. However, at that instant, he dropped it back onto the desk. His eyes widened in fear. This realization hit him like a ton of bricks. He didn't have pendant yet. What if now was the time in which the pendant saved you? Oh no, oh no, oh no. Please, no no no. He started taking heavier breathes as he once again picked up the pencil in his right hand. His hands were shaking and his stomach felt like it had been torn in half. Placing his left hand over his mouth, he tried to calm himself down. There wasn't anything he could do now. Time was up. Maybe he could save himself if he answered to the best of his ability. Yes, that was it. They had issues with giving out pendants. It was only fair they do their best to give everyone a chance. Yes, that's it. He began to fill out the form, pushing the fear to the back of his mind as best he could. His hands calmed after a few seconds and he was able to write. Name: α VIII Coward and spineless came to mind as he wrote. Not that he felt he was a coward. On the contrary in fact. However, he could still recall the feeling of being mentally pinned down by that awful Zeta Eight. Her brutish figure still looking down on his every action. "b***h" He muttered. How dare she. He didn't even get a chance to knock her down. That would be his greatest regret. 1. The area I was training in was called the Beach and then the Abandoned TownTraining huh? He let out a short laugh before writing down his answer. Talk about a rough bunch. How funny for his life and death struggle to be called "training". Hilarious really. He let out another chuckle then he tried to wrack his brain for his own meaning of the word training. What little he could relate to, he certainly knew it didn't mean putting his life on the line. Maybe the life of others, especially those stupid pigs, but not his own. They should have placed him higher up on the list. Maybe given him a weapon. Yeah, that would have actually made it training. Eight didn't like all idea of being forced to play along with the others since he was stuck with some bandages. No, he should have received one of those crazy giant weapons. That would have been some real training. 2. Two squad members I worked with were α I and ζ VII."Worked with were?" Alpha Eight didn't work with anyone. He let out a snort at the idea. Though he regretted it a second later after thinking about the question. He used anyone and everyone he could to stay alive. That was as close as he got to "working with" anyone. However, he couldn't bring himself to say he had gone it alone because in all honesty, he wouldn't have made it this far alone. He owed them this much. Yes, they were disposable and Alpha One even managed to protect him for a short while. Zeta Seven had even accepted him into their group, though briefly. Yes, he owed this credit. However small and insignificant, he owed them this. 3. What were the supplies necessary for your training? BandagesIt felt strange to say they were necessary, but after a little thought, he realized that those bandages had saved his life on more than one occasion. Not just by healing his wounds, but they were the first thing to define him on the island. His identity as the essential medic, a crucial member to any group, had given him more purpose than anything he said before or after he met everyone else. They were more than necessary, they had become an integral part of him. At this point, if he could take anything with him, he would take the bandages. He may have questioned their worth every step of the way, but now that he was forced to think about them, he knew they were his true saving grace. 4. List four unusual things about the training routine that you encountered or heard of. 1. A giant, fire-breathing horse that demanded sacrifices. 2. Strange hooded figures with even stranger weapons and abilities. 3. A mysterious fog that seemed to have a will all its own. 4. A shadowy figure who possesses boxes that have even stranger seeds.Everything from start to finish had been unusual. Every single memory filled with some out of the ordinary, so what was he to write. He paused for a moment and finally decided on things that were closest to home. These four events were the things that threatened him directly. Of the insane occurrences, these four put his life at risk and ruined his unstable view of the world as he knew. The island had thrown him so many curve balls, but these were the worst of them. Each one unique unto itself in that these four entities had set in motion the events that would lead him here, to this desk. Everything else would have to be put in the background since they didn't push him to his current state. 5. Think of when you first woke up on day one. Think of everything you have encountered and experienced. What do you think is your purpose here? Survival, who deserves to live and who doesn't. My idea of the purpose was to see who proved their worth by living on to endure another training session. Those who made it this far can say they have proven their worth for the most part.This was more of a plea than anything else. Eight couldn't bring himself to really write down that he was begging for any kind of a savior. Something to prove that all his efforts weren't in vain. Now the fear was taking hold once more. He had to stop half way through and place his pencil down as his hands started to shake. He hated this feeling. He hated the fear. The idea of dying after so much made his feel physically ill. Eight was sure he was going to either pass out or throw up. However, once more, he repeated his mantra. This time it was more forceful in an effort to get him through this. He had to finish now. This was the only option. Still on unstable ground, he picked up the pencil and began to write once more. 6. Are you afraid of dying? Yes, I believe so.This questions was the easiest for Eight to answer. Everything he had done, every single step taken, had been to avoid death. Death wasn't an option. He couldn't fathom it. Eight just wanted to live. Live at any cost, whether it was a pendant or another life. He couldn't die. No, he just couldn't. The Paper Name: α VIII (Please fill in the blanks to the best of your capabilities. If they do not apply to you, please leave them blank) 1. The area I was training in was called the the Beach and then the Abandoned Town. 2. Two squad members I worked with were α I and ζ VII. 3. What were the supplies necessary for your training? Bandages4. List four unusual things about the training routine that you encountered or heard of. 1. A giant, fire-breathing horse that demanded sacrifices. 2. Strange hooded figures with even stranger weapons and abilities. 3. A mysterious fog that seemed to have a will all its own. 4. A shadowy figure who possesses boxes that have even stranger seeds.5. Think of when you first woke up on day one. Think of everything you have encountered and experienced. What do you think is your purpose here? Survival, who deserves to live and who doesn't. My idea of the purpose was to see who proved their worth by living on to endure another training session. Those who made it this far can say they have proven their worth for the most part.6. Are you afraid of dying? Yes, I believe so.
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Posted: Fri Apr 22, 2011 5:37 pm
[ Theta Two is entering from the Zone One Thread. ]
Used to the throb of waking by now, Theta Two blearily roused herself to consciousness once again, what felt like an iron ball in her head lolling angrily to one side. It crashed into her skull, echoed in the space where her brain should have been. She vaguely remembered swearing about twenty foot horses and fire as she picked herself off the ground, a hand reaching to blindly steady her against the door way into... into what? A classroom? "Am I --- " The question jilted to a stop in her throat, swallowed along with the surprise that she'd begun to feel. She remembered the way they'd all talked about final tests and obeying rules, stressed the importance of playing along. But she'd expected the "final" exam to be... grander. More extravagant. Something that would put their flaming horses and zombie outbreaks to shame. Instead, she stood in the bleak interior of a classroom, leaning like a drunk against the frame. Her heart was a steady, slow drumming in her ears; a deadly reminder that she was still alive, and others were not.
But right now wasn't the time for reminiscing.
A caustic flavor chilled her mouth and throat, the slow throb in her head no competition for the rush of apprehension at what she had to do. It was easy enough to tell, after all, without the disembodied voice echoing out to explain. Desks, papers, and HB pencils. She didn't have a past to reminisce on, but common sense told her that this was a written test, and she sure as hell was going to get a hand cramp from it. Dragging herself away from the wall, Theta Two dragged herself to one of the empty desks and fell into it with a nearly relieved sigh. Her legs felt like lead weights, and if she wasn't so concerned about one of them falling off, she might have been suspicious about sitting in the seemingly normal chair. After all, what if it exploded upon contact? Luckily, she wasn't sent flying in the air again, and with a slow exhale, the girl tugged the test towards her, the pencil twirling distractedly in her left hand. Left handed, huh, she thought for a moment, a smile almost glimpsing on her lips. The girl glanced up, almost sarcastically looking for a timer counting down, but aside from the scratch of other pencils on paper, there was nothing that shouted 'three-two-one-bam; pencils down, times up.'
Without much though, Theta Two raised her pencil, and began with her name.
Name: Theta Two.
She paused. She brushed the eraser near her jaw. And then...
Name: Theta Two. ( common nicknames include Tattoo, Spock, and Batman. Creative, huh? )
She laughed. Sarcasm on a test? She scrawled out the second part of the last line and continued on, a shiver trailing her back. The dull ache in her head seemed to take second place to the way her pulse pounded rhythmically against her senses, pulling her down and chaining her to reality. She wasn't detached anymore, she wasn't mechanical. This was the final test. What the hell was she supposed to write, when everything seemed like a trick? A trick for the eyes and a trick for the mind. Maybe its just that nothing's as it seems here. She thought absently to herself, twisting her pencil between her fingers as she glanced down at the next questions.
(Please fill in the blanks to the best of your capabilities. If they do not apply to you, please leave them blank)
She paused. She nearly laughed. And then she moved on.
The next question asked about the area she'd trained in. First, she scrawled Lighthouse. There wasn't even much thought to the matter, the words showing with careless elegance on the paper as she moved her hand. Theta Two sat back in her chair after scrawling the name and chewed her lip. Brief memories brushed against her skull, only adding strength to the iron ball in her head. She remembered touching her hands to the lighthouses exterior, a panic when she didn't see Thyme and Fedora right away afterwards. The memories pressed to her and played in her mind like badly filmed clips, covered in static and brushed with blacks and whites. Tilting her head, the girl leaned forward, neatly scrawling more words underneath the question.
1. The area I was training in was called the Lighthouse. ( However, I have also participated in other exercises at the Beach, and the Abandoned Town. There was also a place with purple sand, but we were interrupted half way through. I imagine jumping across chasms and playing swords and shields isn't much in the grand scheme of things, but it was "training" enough. Or at least, heres hoping. ) <********> the girl thought, drawing the pencil away to shake out her hand, hand cramp already, damn it. She imagined that if she had any memories, she would dig and find that she'd hated tests. Ones that required a lot of writing, at least. Or perhaps you loved them, she thought distractedly, tapping her pencil against the desk as she thought on the next question, how do you know what you were even like back then? A slight sigh under the mask, another bothersome attempt to push the who-was-I's out of her head. She listened to the sound of others shifting and writing, and then she was writing again herself.
2. Two squad members I worked with were Theta Nine ( Thyme ) and Delta Four ( Fedora. ) ( They were pretty awesome. )
She laughed under her breath at the impulsive comment, almost reaching to erase it. But she paused and drew her hand away, settling back in her seat with a slight smile on her face. But the ache in her gut twisted, an emotional virus that was racing through her veins and brushing her with cold heat. What if they were dead? What if they were gone? She thought about Bones and Kirk, and the ways that they had gone. She remembered seeing others fall, and looking out from the fort at the zombies. The girl had forced herself to forget the way they were dressed, the familiar colors and the way they moved. She didn't want to think that the dead ones that she'd known had actually reanimated themselves for brains. And she didn't want to think that she might have had to kill them if she'd stuck around a bit longer. Even though you would have, a brittle side of her thought, you'd do anything now, wouldn't you? She forced both the emotions and the thoughts to a corner of her mind, untouched and ignored. Enough of that.
3. What were the supplies necessary for your training? Excalibur, the wooden stake. The medkit, and the map. Should I count gasmasks too, since I don't we were wearing them to make a fashion statement? ( I suppose we also had cellphones, but really, those were just used for congrats, its a new day. want to know something cool? )
Satisfied, Theta Two rocked back in her chair, considering her answer. It was true, her wooden stake had been the best damned thing she'd gotten out of her home base. The medkit... she flexed one hand, feeling the cramp begin. She'd never used it, but she knew it would have come in handy if she'd found herself in a situation of one-leg-down-and-a-whole-league-of-zombies-to-go. She hadn't even used the map, but she remembered the way it had been laid out on the table back at the camp. And anyways, it had saved them from an eternity of wandering the mist, hadn't it? The gasmask... she'd partially put that down out of spite for wishing half the time that others could see her face. But at the same time she understood that bad s**t happened to people who took them off. She didn't really know what kind of bad s**t, but hell, it had to be pretty unlikable if none - that she'd seen, thank god, - had ever tried. And those damned cellphones - were they really any use at all? Aside from the special test invitations and the thrilling its-the-next-days!, there hadn't been much to contribute to what this test was calling training. Theta Two gave a slight hum, turning her eyes to the fourth question.
Unusual things?
The girl laughed, a candid sound spilling from her lips and instantly forcing her to regret it when the iron ball in her head returned. This one was easy. Her pencil moved, even while her brain stilled into static silence.
4. List four unusual things about the training routine that you encountered or heard of. xxxx( This whole island is unusual. ) xxxxa. Zombie apocalypse. People raising from the dead. xxxxb. The people testing us. Grim reaper clothing and ******** up grading methods. xxxxc. Twenty foot horses. 'nough said. xxxxd. Us, I guess. ( the gas mask troopers. )
There were a lot of other things she could write about. Transporting cellphones, giant chasms and floating islands. Not to mention the purple sand beaches and the mist that seemed to go on forever. But it had said four, and as much as her caustic edge was leaking out of her pencil, she refused to add more. After all, she didn't want to go about breaking the hidden rules, did she? After all, here, in this place, there were always unsaid rules. She was learning quickly that disobeying them just brought more than it was worth. It didn't stop the itch in her gut from aching though. Next question, babe, she thought to herself, eyes half lidding as the words on the paper blurred in and out of focus. Keep going.
5. Think of when you first woke up on day one. Think of everything you have encountered and experienced. What do you think is your purpose here? I think I'm still working on that. My purpose? I think I'm here to prove something. To train, obviously. But for what? To rise above something? To become better for some reason? Maybe. At first I thought it was just to survive. But I've been trying to do that for seven days, and I may be completely wrong, but I don't think its as simple and easy as that. Nothing on this island ever is. So no, I don't think I'm here to survive. I think I'm here to prove something, to be worthy. I just don't know what for. Yet.
Feeling her hand cramp again, the girl hissed softly under her breath. Only one more question. And this one was easy.
6. Are you afraid of dying?
She smiled.
No.
Theta Two's Answers Name: Theta Two. ( common nicknames include Tattoo, Spock, and Batman. Creative, huh? )
(Please fill in the blanks to the best of your capabilities. If they do not apply to you, please leave them blank)
1. The area I was training in was called the Lighthouse. ( However, I have also participated in other exercises at the Beach, and the Abandoned Town. There was also a place with purple sand, but we were interrupted half way through. I imagine jumping across chasms and playing swords and shields isn't much in the grand scheme of things, but it was "training" enough. Or at least, heres hoping. )
2. Two squad members I worked with were Theta Nine ( Thyme ) and Delta Four ( Fedora. ) ( They were pretty awesome. )
3. What were the supplies necessary for your training? Excalibur, the wooden stake. The medkit, and the map. Should I count gasmasks too, since I don't we were wearing them to make a fashion statement? ( I suppose we also had cellphones, but really, those were just used for congrats, its a new day. want to know something cool? )
4. List four unusual things about the training routine that you encountered or heard of. xxxx( This whole island is unusual. ) xxxxa. Zombie apocalypse. People raising from the dead. xxxxb. The people testing us. Grim reaper clothing and ******** up grading methods. xxxxc. Twenty foot horses. 'nough said. xxxxd. Us, I guess. ( the gas mask troopers. )
5. Think of when you first woke up on day one. Think of everything you have encountered and experienced. What do you think is your purpose here? I think I'm still working on that. My purpose? I think I'm here to prove something. To train, obviously. But for what? To rise above something? To become better for some reason? Maybe. At first I thought it was just to survive. But I've been trying to do that for seven days, and I may be completely wrong, but I don't think its as simple and easy as that. Nothing on this island ever is. So no, I don't think I'm here to survive. I think I'm here to prove something, to be worthy. I just don't know what for. Yet. 6. Are you afraid of dying? No.
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Posted: Sat Apr 23, 2011 4:56 pm
(( Delta 3 is floatin' on in from Zone 1~ ))
If Deli hadn't had an emergency parachute, it would have been a certainly rough crash landing. Not that he enjoyed the sensation of leaving his stomach behind somewhere with the four horses . . . Beggars couldn't be choosers though, right?
Oh hey look: people! 8D He waved a little to them, espying several familiar figures (including that of Thea, at which he hoped she didn't look up at all. God, but he felt horrible for leaving her behind . . . Though really, he expected her to follow!).
So . . . now what? Deli blinked and noticed that he was in a classroom, and for a moment he felt a terrible sense of foreboding - but then he looked down at his legs.
"Phew. Not a bad dream. Still got my knickers on~"
Still he had a pencil and paper on the desk and, seeing some of the others scratching away on it, he figured why not? Grim wanted them to fill out a customer service opinion, sure thing. Snatching the necessary items, he slid into the nearest empty seat and pondered over the paper.
Name: ______
He scratched in without thought Deli. Then he figured that might not help distinguish who that is, and with a sigh he added (Delta 3). Because God forbid they don't add a squad and number. Meh.
1. The area I was training in was called the _____.
Um . . . Lighthouse, Deli thought, and jotted it down. But to be honest, he didn't do much in the way of physical training there. Mostly he had been in . . . yeah. There. The Cove, he added to the paper with a small nod. That was the place he had been called to, where he had first began friendship with Davii, Thea, and Thev . . . Where they had been forced to strike down the zombies-that-were-not-rotting. Where he had learned not only that Grim was a walking enigma, but that not even Death seemed to be a permanent end. That could be considered training, he supposed.
Also. Damn shadows . . .
But then Deli thought it over some more, and decided that the entire island was up for fulfilling the answer as far as he was concerned. After all, there had probably been other weird stuff and "games" that had happened. Like those Tests in the texts. So he added The Island as well, to be thorough. Each had a small comment behind it to boot on the paper.
2. Two squad members I worked with were _____ and ____.
Well that was easy! Deli smiled a little and quickly notated Thev (Theta 7) and Thea (Theta 1). If you mean on the same team as me, I also had Davii (Delta 7) and Deva (Delta 5). There! Maybe they rewarded for doing overtime on these papers?
3. What were the supplies necessary for your training?
Also easy for the most part. Gas masks, backpack, and armor for sure, he answered. Weapons (I got a nunchuk but I stink at those), first aid kits, a map. Er. He mentally scratched his head and thought back on what Grim had told them. Hard to remember now, like it had been an age ago . . . Enemies to fight (humans and shadows and whatever the hell those ponies were), survivor instincts, and a thirst for knowledge, Deli decided upon after a minute or so, the smile replaced by a grim expression. Ultimately that's what it boiled down to: fight and become strong, or die and never know. Or, so he thought at least.
Then he facepalmed himself with a small, forced chuckle and squeezed in towards the end: Pendant and cellphone. Durr, Deli. Durrrrr. And finally, just because he felt like writing even more - Allies. Friends. Whatever you want to call them.
He was pretty sure he couldn't have survived without 'em.
4. List four unusual things about the training routine that you encountered or heard of.
Only four? Deli thought wryly. Oh he could name more than that. In fact, he would! Call it passive-aggression against rules set on paper, but Deli was a bit of a coward: he took his boldness when he could, even if it was just writing more than a person was asked to. Besides, writing was just . . . easy for him to do. He felt as if he could sit and write all day.
Having absolutely no memory before waking up. Phones teleporting people. Horses that look like they came out of Lovecraft's imagination. Shadows that hit like they're solid. People coming back from the dead as "husks". People coming back from the dead as zombies - and he made sure to bold that word to emphasize that the shambling corpses had been different than the two he and his group had to take down in the Cove - Us not needing to eat or drink. Us supposedly exploding if we take our masks off. Pendants = magic enough to save lives but killing more in the process. Hooded person with a huge scythe that can also teleport stuff. Seeds exploding into plants in seconds. FOG EVERYWHERE ALL THE TIME AND NO SUN OR MOON.
Then he paused, grinned, and added one more for the hell of it: Purple sand. 8U
Well that was enough, no?
5. Think of when you first woke up on day one. Think of everything you have encountered and experienced. What do you think is your purpose here?
To be an example that comedic relief does not always get offed first on horror films!
. . .
Sigh. He was sure that wouldn't fly as an answer. Damn. Deli quickly scratched it out and tapped the eraser end of the pencil to his mask in though. Purpose . . . purpose . . . Eventually he scrawled down what he could. Dunno, but here're the postulations: we're playing a really effed up game of Survivor with the prize being your life, and with the twist being the Grim Reaper is a special guest who lets you become a zombie to scare the ever living s**t out of people.
No, that wouldn't work either . . . Also scratched out.
Back at the Cove, Grim mentioned a legacy, so . . . I guess we're supposed to prove ourselves to become part of it. Why 13? Iunno. I hope legacy doesn't mean making babies, because I love my womanz and all but I don't feel like this island is the perfect romantic getaway and everything. Plus if our head explodes should we take our gas masks off, what d'you think's gonna happen if we take our armor off? Well I guess in the guys' case, a different head's gonna explode . . . Ow.
And then Deli paused, stared at what he wrote, really stared at what he wrote, facedesked (or rather face-mask-desked) a few times, and scratched most of it out again. The last sentence was particularly embarrassing, so an eraser was put the the test . . . and mostly failed. Now it looked like he had a seizure on that last bit!
@w@ THINK, DELI.
Is he trying to make us into super soldiers, maybe? Against the horrid hellions of our imagination? I think I could provide a better answer if I could remember what happened before I got here. But I guess until then, my purpose is to survive and communicate with whoever I deem is an ally until the next big bad is thrown at us.
6. Are you afraid of dying?
There wasn't really a lot of room for Deli to write on now thank to his tangents above. Thankfully the answer was simple: Yes, he admitted on paper without shame. But I'm more afraid of being alone or dying without having at least a few answers. Or all three. Yes, all three. I'm also very, very afraid of coming back as a zombie.
Finally noting that his hand was beginning to cramp from the effort, Deli sat the pencil down and sighed, leaning back in his desk. He'd enjoy his time sitting while he still could. Deli Rantings Name: Deli (Delta 3)
1. The area I was training in was called the Lighthouse (started there). And the Cove (thanks to the text summon and Grim). And the whole island really, when I think about it (a beach and . . . a weirdo place with zombies and seeds and more shadows).
2. Two squad members I worked with were Thev (Theta 7) and Thea (Theta 1). If you mean on the same team as me, I also had Davii (Delta 7) and Deva (Delta 5).
3. What were the supplies necessary for your training? Gas masks, backpack, and armor. Weapons (I got a nunchuk but I stink at those), first aid kits, a map. Enemies to fight (humans and shadows and whatever the hell those ponies were), survivor instincts, and a thirst for knowledge. Pendant and cellphone. Allies. Friends. Whatever you want to call them.
4. List four unusual things about the training routine that you encountered or heard of. Having absolutely no memory before waking up. Phones teleporting people. Horses that look like they came out of Lovecraft's imagination. Shadows that hit like they're solid. People coming back from the dead as "husks". People coming back from the dead as zombies. Us not needing to eat or drink. Us supposedly exploding if we take our masks off. Pendants = magic enough to save lives but killing more in the process. Hooded person with a huge scythe that can also teleport stuff. Seeds exploding into plants in seconds. FOG EVERYWHERE ALL THE TIME AND NO SUN OR MOON. Purple sand. 8U
5. Think of when you first woke up on day one. Think of everything you have encountered and experienced. What do you think is your purpose here? To be an example that comedic relief does not always get offed first on horror films!
Dunno, but here're the postulations: we're playing a really effed up game of Survivor with the prize being your life, and with the twist being the Grim Reaper is a special guest who lets you become a zombie to scare the ever living s**t out of people.
Back at the Cove, Grim mentioned a legacy, so . . . I guess we're supposed to prove ourselves to become part of it. Why 13? Iunno. I hope legacy doesn't mean making babies, because I love my womanz and all but I don't feel like this island is the perfect romantic getaway and everything. Plus if our head explodes should we take our gas masks off, what d'you think's gonna happen if we take our armor off? Wel gues uys, a diernt onna expe o.
Is he trying to make us into super soldiers, maybe? Against the horrid hellions of our imagination? I think I could provide a better answer if I could remember what happened before I got here. But I guess until then, my purpose is to survive and communicate with whoever I deem is an ally until the next big bad is thrown at us.
6. Are you afraid of dying? Yes. But I'm more afraid of being alone or dying without having at least a few answers. Or all three. Yes, all three. I'm also very, very afraid of coming back as a zombie.
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Posted: Sat Apr 23, 2011 5:32 pm
{ Theta IX enters from the {This is a Test} thread. }
Wanting to laugh at the platitudes that accompanied him to the portal, Theta Nine found himself walking into... a classroom? It was a little anticlimactic, to Thyme's giddy mind, but it was a better fate than Fedora and Gamma Eight's. There was still a sharp pain in his heart when he thought of them, of their departure. He really should have punched that Dr. H in the face when he had the chance, but he had let his curiosity sidetrack him. His fists clenched down at his sides, but it was too late now, with the portal behind him long gone. And there was, after all, a task ahead of him. A task that might just put everything that happened into perspective.
As he walked to the front desk to pick up the exam, pencil, and eraser, a quick mental count of the desks and chairs noted fifteen, and the Gamma's earlier words drifted back into his mind. There could be thirteen survivors, come the seventh day. Would they be asked to kill? He shoved the thought from his mind. These desks could have been arranged this way for... for convenience, that's it. A part of his mind noted the wishful thinking with some scorn. In the mysterious past that seemed so distant now, he had been -- or perhaps had wanted to be -- someone who confronted the truth, however hard. Focus now, Thyme, focus.
Once his exam materials were in his hands, he took the first open seat on the way from the desk. Was that Tattoo at one of the desks? He didn't take a second look to be sure, but he settled down to take the exam with a slightly lighter heart.
Filling in his name was straightforward enough. He gave the name that he had been assigned, wondering briefly if he might get extra credit for remembering his former name. Alas, it was just not coming to him.
Name: Theta IX
What did come back to him was a shred of memory -- "You'll also have a number. That number is how you'll identify yourself until you have earned something better." Had he earned something better? Wait, did he even care whether he had earned something better, in their eyes? He must have started to care, to even have wondered. Abruptly grumpy, he scuffed a foot against the classroom floor and moved on.
(Please fill in the blanks to the best of your capabilities. If they do not apply to you, please leave them blank)
He read the parenthetical note, then skimmed the questions, curious to see why the questions might not apply.
1. The area I was training in was called the Lighthouse. (Also, I had taken part in a game at the Beach, as well as a special test at a gym in... the Abandoned Town, I assume.)
He felt rather safe in making the assumption -- or at least, as safe as he ever felt on this island with all its surprises and uncertainties. He had seen no gym at the Lighthouse or the Beach, and he couldn't quite picture a gym in the middle of the Cornfields.
The next question was too easy. There could be no one else. Well, there had been all the others in the so-called Snuggieman's game for a pendant, so many of whom had fought the hooded figure. Though he had bandaged up Gamma Eight and Eta Eleven earlier, that action had not encouraged them to ally themselves in the gym. Even more than that, he realized now how much he had grown to trust the two whose names he wrote down.
2. Two squad members I worked with were Theta II and Delta IV.
As he wrote down the first name, Thyme couldn't help but wonder what Tattoo had been up to, in the time she had been away, but he fought down the temptation to turn around in his seat and greet the person he thought might be her. Who knew what passed for cheating here? He couldn't endanger her chances. As he wrote down the second name, he wished with all his heart that Fedora had made it here as well. He wanted to succeed, for her.
3. What were the supplies necessary for your training? Protective gear.
That came easily to him. Without protective gear, he would have exploded without ever having taken part in any of the training, without ever having met Tattoo or Fedora. He considered writing down "Companions" as well, but doubted Tattoo or Fedora would enjoy being thought of as supplies.
A soul-deep streak of contrariness prompted him to add, A deeply flawed conscience.
He had also been assigned other equipment as well, all gone now thanks to Dr. H's test. And of course, there was the cell phone. But were they truly necessary? He wrote on.
Possibly the cell phone as well, which transported us to the special tests. I had also been assigned medkits and extra bandages, which were undeniably useful but not strictly necessary.
4. List four unusual things about the training routine that you encountered or heard of. - the general indifference to the deaths of participants
He had meant it as a barb toward the people running this test, but in truth, they weren't the only ones to be so callous. That had bothered him the most, especially when he found himself starting to succumb to it.
- the transportation - glowing blue portals and cell phones that teleport people
If he had a chance, he wanted to check the room for another such portal.
- the island fauna - horses do not generally breathe flame and spread corruption, nor do shadows usually lunge out with sharp little teeth and claws.
He was not merely a little bitter as he added the next two items.
- the management - tricky bastards, all of those cloaked figures
Not to mention, weird uniforms and far superior weapons than the gas masked participants had. And what was up with all their cryptic little answers and their messed-up games? Thyme let out a frustrated huff of breath. He hated being set up, and even more, he hated being set up for no reason he could discern.
- the tests - tests are not generally designed to kill their participants. Or to require their participants to kill other participants.
But those tests had reminded him of other tests in the past. Milgrim was the name that kept popping up.
He stumbled over the spelling in the next part, having only heard the name. Third time's the charm, though. He liked what he settled on, even though he didn't quite see the name's relevance.
- the command and Fier Fyre Fear pendants in Dr. H's special test
Even though it had been Fedora, whom he had actually trusted, Thyme was still startled and just a little aggrieved at feeling the compulsion to obey the command-user's orders. He had always valued his free will, even if it came with the weighty responsibility of knowing that he couldn't blame anyone but himself for his failures and mistakes. Still, he knew he had been luckier than some of the others. He fought a shudder as he recalled one of the command pendant holders calling for Delta One to strangle herself.
5. Think of when you first woke up on day one. Think of everything you have encountered and experienced. What do you think is your purpose here? To re-enact the Milgrim experiment on obedience to authority figures somewhere no ethics review board can intervene, apparently. Our behavior has perhaps failed to redeem the researchers' faith in the strength of human conscience, if indeed they had any such faith to begin with.
Thyme scowled down at his answers. When had he gotten so fussy and pompous in his writing? He didn't bother to rewrite his answers, though, and carried the tone through the rest of his response to question 5.
To what end such an experiment was conducted I do not know. It could have been simple sadism or knowledge-seeking.
Tempted to leave his speculations at that, he nonetheless thought back to the words that had convinced him to come here. Effective party line, that was, even if it ended up being all lies. He wrote it down. If this were true, would Dr. H get into trouble for divulging this? Thyme really didn't mind that prospect too much. What was the worst that colleagues could do to each other, anyway? But would this be considered cheating? Then so be it.
But I want to believe that it is to judge who of the many gas mask troopers were worthy of becoming something more, of becoming a hunter rather than remaining one of the hunted.
What did that even mean? He should've asked himself that earlier. Ah well. It did seem to be a plausible reason to have joined this crazy game, and he had the sense that he had heard this turn of phrase before. But still, it could just be... well, not attribution bias, but a different kind of fallacy. Next question!
6. Are you afraid of dying? Not if I'm dying for a cause I deem worthwhile. But really, death comes whether I want it to or not. Fear won't stave it off.
With that, he read through his answers again. He had listed more than four items for question 4, so he had to cross out two of the items. First to be struck off was the deeply felt first item, because he had a dim sense that the indifferent attitude had shown up elsewhere. What did the initials t.v. stand for? On further consideration, he crossed out tests as well. Nothing says that tests couldn't be as crazy as the people who had come up with them.
He crossed out "A deeply flawed conscience" as well, judging it not strictly necessary. He knew he could have chosen differently. So many did, during that last task.
That was that, then. He sat back and waited for the test to be over, come what may.Theta IX's Exam Responses Name: Theta IX
(Please fill in the blanks to the best of your capabilities. If they do not apply to you, please leave them blank)
1. The area I was training in was called the Lighthouse. (Also, I had taken part in a game at the Beach, as well as a special test at a gym in... the Abandoned Town, I assume.)
2. Two squad members I worked with were Theta II and Delta IV.
3. What were the supplies necessary for your training? Protective gear. A deeply flawed conscience. Possibly the cell phone as well, which transported us to the special tests. I had also been assigned medkits and extra bandages, which were undeniably useful but not strictly necessary.
4. List four unusual things about the training routine that you encountered or heard of. - the general indifference to the deaths of participants
- the transportation - glowing blue portals and cell phones that teleport people
- the island fauna - horses do not generally breathe flame and spread corruption, nor do shadows usually lunge out with sharp little teeth and claws.
- the management - tricky bastards, all of those cloaked figures
- the tests - tests are not generally designed to kill their participants. Or to require their participants to kill other participants.
- the command and Fier Fyre Fear pendants in Dr. H's special test
5. Think of when you first woke up on day one. Think of everything you have encountered and experienced. What do you think is your purpose here? To re-enact the Milgrim experiment on obedience to authority figures somewhere no ethics review board can intervene, apparently. Our behavior has perhaps failed to redeem the researchers' faith in the strength of human conscience, if indeed they had any such faith to begin with.
To what end such an experiment was conducted I do not know. It could have been simple sadism or knowledge-seeking. But I want to believe that it is to judge who of the many gas mask troopers were worthy of becoming something more, of becoming a hunter rather than remaining one of the hunted.
6. Are you afraid of dying? Not if I'm dying for a cause I deem worthwhile. But really, death comes whether I want it to or not. Fear won't stave it off.
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Posted: Sat Apr 23, 2011 6:53 pm
Tick-tock tick-tock
Riiiiiiiiiiiiiiiing.
"All right, time's up. Please wait and we will pick up you papers from your desk shortly. Please do not leave your desk."
Five minutes passed, and then the sounds of footsteps approaching from outside the room, wherever the squad members were. There was a sound, a strange, hissing noise, gentle, non-threatening.
" Once again, please do not leave your desk, simply wait for us to deal with your exam." The voice seemed strange, hollow, drawn out. Everything was blurring, for some odd reason, the walls wavering, the floor seemingly sinking underneath it.
The entire ordeal they had gone through, the trials, the strange creatures, and now this exam, everything was just so tiring. It would definitely be okay to rest a while waiting for their test papers to be examined right? Just a small nap... noone would notice.
Yes, it would be okay to just close your eyes....
((OOC: ALL PARTICIPANTS: Please head over to THE DEATH THREAD to write your solo - Please make sure to read the rules in the thread especially how to write your solo here, and mark your thread with [Candidate] if you'd like to be eligible for prizes - Good luck on the solo, and thank you for participating so far! ))
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Posted: Sun Apr 24, 2011 6:56 pm
{Ah... I'm not sure if this is open still or not... but I was told to come here.. and it said it'd be open for the next 3 days.. Sorry if this is wrong... u u;}
{Theta 8 entering from task thread.}
Great... this place again. And just like that, the man mysterious to his own self, was back in that same room that he'd started in. In front of him was a neatly pressed sheet of parchment. An exam, of sorts. He'd seen this kind many times before... what a pain they were. Answering pointless and idiotic questions. Gripping the utensil in his left hand, Theta 8 begrudgingly began to respond to each point. The faster he got this done, the faster he'd get home; hopefully.
Staring at the first line, the man frowned hard. Name? Heck if he knew. None of his idiot team members even spoke to him during this whole stupid ordeal. Grumbling to himself, he scribbled in a b.s'd name.
Name: your mom
1. The area I was training in was called the Lighthouse.
Staring at the next question, his covered eyes rolled, and a low grumble murmured from him.
2. Two squad members I worked with were me and myself. 3. What were the supplies necessary for your training? -my stake. -this... body suit.. thing.. -the sorry excuse for a cell phone.. -definitely the map...
4. List four unusual things about the training routine that you encountered or heard of. -Some... mutant horse thing.. -a random shade jumping me while I was wandering in fog. -others wearing the same gear as me... with different colours... -these stupid pendants that everyone fought over like the last scrap of meat..
A scoff escaped the Theta's mouth, head shaking slowly.
5. Think of when you first woke up on day one. Think of everything you have encountered and experienced. What do you think is your purpose here?
I have no freakin` clue. To waste my time as some sort of pawn in a twisted man's game.
He paused to stare at his last question. Huh. What an amusing question. but he didn't take long to answer.
6. Are you afraid of dying? F---. No.
There. He was done. And with that, he set his pencil on the table.
Now let me the f--- out of here...
Ah, I see it's closed. x x;
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