not dead max for @telegion !!
MAX IS AWAKE at last , after who knows how long . even before she died , she doesn’t think she was really conscious ( of herself , of the enemy , of the stakes ) . but now there is no enemy ; there are people who want to survive , and there is fear that makes them stupid , and there are whatever weird monsters david’s shouting at . at least he’s come back ---- when she first woke up , she was alone in a house of corpses . it isn’t like her to sit around waiting for someone to rescue her , but she doesn’t particularly want to know what happens if those weird , smiling CAT DEMONS catch her . maybe they’ll freeze her in time like a few others in the house .
SHE’S GOTTEN HER HANDS ON a big-ass knife , gotten herself backed into a corner so she can’t be taken by surprise . she checks the path ahead by throwing something that direction and hoping it doesn’t freeze in midair . but when it doesn’t , when it hits the floor , the demons catch up to her . trying to escape the house is slow , dangerous work , and max is losing focus after doing it for what must be hours .
WHICH IS WHEN SHE HEARS THE VOICE . somewhere nearby , probably in the hallway , somebody is unmistakably not dead . the cat things hear it too , and they scurry in their weird , stop-motion fashion towards new prey . max follows in their footsteps after waiting a moment , trying to ensure it’s not a trap . she returns to the hallway and sees a man in orange--- a man , she realizes slowly , is david . and the cat demons are listening to him .
MAX COULD KILL HIM RIGHT NOW , from her hiding place behind the door frame . the knife in her hand itches to be thrown . but for once in her life , she waits . she listens , and while the knife doesn’t leave her hand , her gaze leaves david and focuses on the demons . it took her a whole new life to realize it , but she doesn’t want to kill him . he isn’t her enemy anymore . together , they’re united against the cat demons . she listens , lying in wait , and then the demons are on fire .
SHE STEPS OUT FROM BEHIND THE DOORFRAME , standing behind david in the hallway . silently , carefully , she kneels and places her knife on the floor at her feet . as the blaze quiets down , she swallows hard and speaks the first words of her new life . “ AM I LATE TO THE BARBECUE ? ”
