#simptime

Part One, Part Three, Series Masterlist

Later that night, you managed to find some peace in your bed. The exhaustion took hold of your subconscious, easing you fast to sleep. If only the sleep was restful.

The nightmare was nothing new. It was now more intense than ever though. You could feel the flames burning, heating your face and body with their ferocity. You could hear the screams inside the house like it was happening at that very moment. Your body didn't seem to move, it just stood grounded in place. You wanted to scream, too. Scream for your family that could no longer, scream for the ones you've seen die on the way. But a deep, dark part of you seemed happy. Relishing in this, almost. 'Nothing they didn't deserve.'

You awoke mere hours after you had found sleep, drenched in sweat. Your heart was racing, and your breathing was heavy. You wiped your forehead, grabbing onto the bedsheets to hopefully find some sense of reality. 'It was just a dream...' You sat up, trying to catch your breath. If only the nightmare was just that, a nightmare. A fictitious tale of worries and fears, or maybe a telling of inner thoughts. But no, some nightmares are just a retelling of the life we've experienced, no matter how much we try to shut it all out.

Your stomach made its discomfort known, as you rested your hand over it. You took note of the color of the sky, early dawn, hopefully, no one will be downstairs. Hopefully. You sat up, your heart finally steadying itself. You found yourself in the cafeteria rather quickly and with much less guesswork this time. You saw no one inside, feeling hopeful you pushed the doors open, making your way to the other shelves you've yet to explore.

You quickly found and demolished a bottle of water, sighing relief over the coolness. You grabbed another for later, the fewer trips the better. Granola bars caught your eye, your favorite kind too. Ripping one open you found yourself relishing in the chewy goodness, it had been so long after all since you ate normal, packaged food like this. You decided to sit down, your stomach aches turning to slight nausea from eating too fast. Pacing yourself, you looked around at all the food and that's when you noticed, Niragi was leaning up against the wall to the side. He must've been out of sight when you entered. You felt your mouth clench and stopped chewing, his eyes locked onto yours.

Readying yourself for the worst, your muscles tensed themselves, and your eyes darted quickly to the door and back again. Yet, he did not approach. His gun was nowhere to be seen, yet it felt as if his eyes could do more damage than a gun could. He pushed himself off the wall, making a slow pace toward you. Jumping out of your seat, you took a few steps back. He stopped when you moved, his eyes boring into yours. He was faster and stronger, but it didn't mean you had to go down without a fight. 

You raised and balled your hands into fists. Your father made you take some basic self-defense classes when you were quite young. Not that they would do you any good. You got knocked down by your brother in class and cried so much, your mother made your father stop taking you.  Niragi didn't seem fazed, instead, he looked like he was deep in thought.

"(Y/N)."

You froze a bit. The worst part about being the new kid is you forget everyone knows who you are, even if you don't know everyone.

He seemed slightly annoyed at your silence but continued regardless. "... Do you have a brother?" You felt your body turn white. You started to shake, your grip on your fists beginning to crumble. Your lips began to quiver, and your mind started to collapse in on itself. "Y-you... Leave me the hell alone!" You darted for the door, leaving your food behind as you ran as fast as your feet would carry you. You didn't stop until your door slammed itself shut.

You pressed your back into the door, sliding down and hugging your knees as tight as you could. Your body began to rock itself back and forth and the tears started. All that could be heard from your room was your sobs, followed by your apologies, sang over and over from your dry throat. It wasn't until your eyes gave in on you and your mind began to waver off that you realized, Niragi didn't pursue you. He let you leave. You didn't dream that night.

You were awoken by a knock on the door. You rubbed your swollen eyes as the light pierced them through the window. You pulled yourself up, opening the door a crack. "Yes...?" Kuina stood in front, holding a plate and a bottle of water. "Hey, breakfast?" You graciously took the plate from her hands, opening the door for her to come in. "Thanks, I'm starved." She looked at you with concern in her eyes, "Are you okay?" Kuina's voice rang that of genuine concern. "Yeah, just a rough night." You gave a little chuckle, trying to wave her concern for you. "Thanks again for the food, I appreciate it."

She sat down on the bed next to you, "You're gonna need your strength. The games are tonight, ya know. You'll go down to the lobby and get your slip, everyone gets paired up for the games." You nodded along, taking a bite of the white rice on your plate. "Oh yeah, I almost forgot I was in a death game for a second." You managed to get a smile out of her, You sat your plate down and stared into your hands in your lap, "I... I hope we get paired up together." You felt her hand on your back, "Brings back old times, eh?" She nudged your side with her elbow gently, coaxing a laugh from you. "You'll do great. You've made it this far." 'Yeah... For what?'

You found yourself in between everyone in the lobby. You were given a small blue piece of paper with the number four on it. Some people were already forming groups with others, planning on which car to take. You felt a tap on your shoulder and turned to see a stranger. "Hey, number four?" He held up his piece of paper, showing the same group number as yourself. You held yours up as well, "Four." You forced a smile, mentally readying yourself to potentially see this man die.

You both made your way out to the cars, waiting to see who else was joining you. You were overcome with a feeling of dread as a voice rang behind you. "Well hey there Princess, miss me?" Niragi shoved the other man out of the way, pinning you against the car with his free hand. It seemed the curious man from last night was gone. "I think we make a good enough team ourselves, just you and me..." You shuddered as he caressed your cheek, and he laughed in response. Another militia member had also been put into your group, 'Figures as much.' 

Niragi made the other two sit in front, and squished you in between himself and the door, wrapping his free arm around you tightly. "Don't think about jumping out now, road rash is a bitch!" He laughed as though he would be the one pushing you out of a moving car. Not that you would put it past him.

The arena was fit for the game. The wild animals, however, seemed a bit out of place. There was a cage in the center of the stage, empty, above it, a blue flag lay hanging from the ceiling. The announcement didn't take very long, thankfully. 

"Registration has now closed. Ten players entered. The game will be: Capture the Flag. Game difficulty: Six of Clubs"

The rules were pretty simple, players divided into two teams, and whoever is the first to not get casually mauled by each other or the animals and grab the flag, wins. You rolled your shoulders back, loosening up your muscles. You readied yourself for the easiest route, straight for the flag. You were thankful for the stranger who approached you earlier is on your side, at least you wouldn't have to kill him. Not so much thankful for Niragi swinging his gun around.

The game began, and everyone started sprinting. It didn't take long for animals to be released from their cages, they seemed to be released in order. One every 30 seconds. The larger animals would prove to be an issue if they didn't complete the game fast enough. Someone from the opposing team began to open fire on the animals, 'Awful shot...'

It didn't do much as you heard screams and the tear of human flesh from afar. He would serve as a decoy for now, as three people made it to the cage, immediately pulling themselves and their teammates up as quickly as possible. You were lucky to get there fast, pulling up your unknown teammate from the side. Those atop the cage started clawing at each other, trying to grasp the flag above them. The distance can be quite deceiving, as the flag was slowly getting higher.

"The flag is getting farther away!" A man pushed a woman off the cart, taking her place beneath it, pushing others down to make more room for himself to lunge and grab it. You pulled Niragi up by his hand, surprising yourself. You stayed low to the top of the cage, not wanting to be pushed from its safety. The panther that attacked and devoured the man earlier was now looking for seconds. There was so much screaming you could hardly think. 'Only so many people can fit on the cage, how are we supposed to grab it if it's just going to get higher?'

Your thoughts were interrupted by the unknown man, who kicked another one of his teammates to the ground to serve as bait. You tried to extend your hand to him, but Niragi held you back. "Don't." You couldn't help but be distracted by the look in his eyes. He didn't seem threatening, but something... different. You pulled yourself back into reality as another person was thrown from safety. Anger began to boil in your heart, your mind began being clouded by intrusive thoughts.

'What kind of a man throws his comrades to the literal fucking wolves..'

But you knew well to know what kind of man would do that. A man that deserved the worst. Anger got the best of you and, surprising even Niragi, you kicked the man with all your strength. You watched as he fell on top of the wolf, distracting it from its current meal. It took mere seconds for the screams to start. A small part of you cried out, eager to watch. You pushed it to the side, and pulled Niragi up to his feet, "Put me on your shoulders! Now!"

Shockingly, he did what he was told, he bent down and allowed you to clasp his neck with your thighs, his hands holding you in place as he stood. You outstretched your hand as far as it could go, just grazing the flag, "Just... A little bit.. more..!" Niragi pushed you up by your thighs, allowing you to pull the flag down from its chain. The game board rang loudly, "Congratulations. Team B has won."

You looked at the cell phone you picked up at the beginning of the game, "Your Visa has been extended by six days." You sighed a breath of relief, 'Six more days...' You looked down, realizing you were still atop Niragi's shoulders. "You, uh... You can put me down now, please." You were surprised he did so without question. You looked over at the edge of the cage, the animals had gotten the laser it seems. Your other three teammates have also had their fate handed to them this game. You said a silent prayer for the stranger from the Beach, he seemed nice.

You hopped down from the cage, pain pulsing from your left ankle, "Fuck!" You immediately took the pressure off it, slumping into the cage. 'Must've sprained it kicking that fucker off the cage...' You were met with surprise as Niragi silently put your arm around his shoulder, his arm wrapping around your waist. He stopped at the table by the entrance, grabbed the card, and put it in his pocket. He guided you back to the car without a word. Ushering you into the passenger seat, he gently placed your injured foot in, even going as far as pulling the seatbelt over you and buckling it in.

September 20, 2023:

Shale Primary, Aether, Edged.