ARENA 04-Decay

[gamemakers]

For some this is starting to be routine. For some it is new, and little is done to ease them into it. The peacekeepers are never warm on these flights, but they are rougher, quieter today, and after having their tracking devices inserted or reactivated, the tributes don't see them until they are lead to small, metal rooms.

They are dressed quietly by their stylist, and the stylist move quicker this time, dressing them in heavy cargo pants, boots, thick socks, an undershirt and sweater. A light, plastic jacket is laid over the top, with a hood and plenty of pockets.

They are lead to tubes, with a reminder not to leave the pedestal. The tubes are metal this time, thick, the door sliding closed over them and leaving the tributes in the small, dark area. Entombed until they start the smooth rise to the surface.

25 - 24 - 23

Rising to the surfaces, they can see before them a building, ravished by time but still standing. Behind it, cliffs fall to the ocean, glittering in the sun for miles and miles, a dark blue distance that offers no escape. Behind them, the last trails of fog lead into a forest, still spotted with the lingering remains of the buildings that had once stood there. The air is cool, crisp, and the warmth of the sweater can be appreciated quickly.

20 - 19 - 18 - 17 - 16

One wall of the building before them is gone, exposing deep into the building's heart. There, about 50 yards into the ruins, lies the cornucopia. It's weapons and supplies are scattered among the ruins, dropped haphazardly among crumbling walls and exposed rebar.

11- 10 - 9 - 8

Warned not to move from their pedestals, they are given the last 10 seconds to plans their attack.

5

4

3

2

The gong sounds, clear in the crisp air. Let the games begin.

[OOC: Check here if your character ran for the cornucopia to see your results. Post here to play those out.

Characters on reserve have until Wednesday, Nov 14th to be eligible to tag into this arena and this post, but anyone who did not sign up for the Cornucopia will be handwaved as having not not been part of the Cornucopia battle.]

Comments

CORNUCOPIA

[gamemakers]

[nightlightheart]

He swallows and stares straight ahead. Third time's the charm they say, but he's already having his doubts. The cold wind and the ruins are the first things he notes. But the ruins are different from those of the wrecked city from the last arena. Well... the last arena Tony counts.

He hadn't experienced much of the islands past what he caught on the television screens. The memory of why makes him focus hard on the Cornucopia before him, and then on the tributes that surround it. A good mix of familiar faces and complete strangers. He's been up against worse odds before, and that wind is cold and this place is going to suck if he doesn't have something to help keep him alive.

...3... 2... 1

He's suddenly wishing that maybe he'd spent a bit more time on a treadmill than at the bar, but its too late now. Straight ahead, Tony spies a bag he thinks he can get a hand on before anyone else can even get close.

[polyturtle]

Donatello always faced the Arenas with some trepidation. This was no exception. The moment he felt the cold wind come upon him, he knew this would not be an Arena entirely favorable to him.

And yet. And yet.

10

9

8

7

Something...something felt different about this Arena, almost the minute he came up the tube and moreso as he looked around. And it wasn't because of the fact it was just a different climate or environment (though he was thankful for the extra protection, to be sure). No. It was something in his gut. It was instinct. It was warning him.

Something was off about this Arena.

6

5

4

"Instinct is your sixth sense. And when you feel it, you must never ignore it. Always be aware of everything around you; follow what your instinct believes must be done!"

I know, Master Splinter.

Don always used his instinct - primarily for intuitive, scientific reasons. But this feeling was more animal than reason. It was a deep, primal feeling of wrong that he'd not felt in...well, a long time. This Arena unnerved him. Even the Cornucopia looked and felt wrong. Haphazard, scattered, unorganized within the ruin and waste. Not like it normally was, where it had some kind of pattern. It was weird and wrong and something was just not right.

But it had his lifeline in there. This time, he had to go for it.

3

2

He spotted a bag next to a pile of twisted metal. It was a little out of the way of the better spoils and weaponry. But, Don decided, that bad would be a start.

It had to be.

1

The gong sounded, and the turtle was off his pedastal, his feel pounding into the thistle and concrete as he ran towards his target.

[the_marshal]

Wyatt's tube opened and the sound of the waves, salty breeze, washed over him, and his heart sank.

More water. More sand.

His eyes scanned the distant, blue horizon, a litany of curses whispering over his lips.

10, 9, 8, 7....

He turned his attention to the Cornucopia and its treasures, then other tributes. Then, glancing over his shoulder, he saw it.

The prettiest site he'd seen in this strange, future hell.

Trees. A forest.

One that looked, for all intents, like one he'd have come across back home.

6, 5, 4....

Yes'ir, he could make that work.

He turned back to the Cornucopia, face set with grim determination.

He was going to make it to those trees.

3, 2, 1.

The gong sounded and he sprang forward, hitting the ground at a dead run.

There was a bag dead ahead. He could make it.

And then he would be gone.

Re: CORNUCOPIA

[luckofthedevil]

Alex knew the Cornucopia was dangerous. He remembered how many people had been shown in the sky the first night of the previous Arena. There was a chance it could be him shown up there tonight, but he avoided thinking about that. Instead, the moment his head cleared the edge of the tube, he started searching the area around him for items to grab. The second he spots a couple bags that look promising, he doesn't look at them again, and instead starts eying the other tributes around him. The danger isn't grabbing an item, but not seeing someone else who is going for the same one.

3 ... 2 ... 1 ...

The moment the gong sounded, Alex sprang toward the first bag.

ATTN: Anna Morasca! :)

[tailforbrains]

This time Neeshka had nothing to lose, since she'd come back from the dead if she died in here anyway, and everything to gain. She needed weapons, and supplies, and she was not risking fishing with her bare hands again. Not as chilly as it already was.

So this time, when she saw the wind-ravaged building with its supplies strewn everywhere, she braced herself, eyes flicking over the supplies. Big weapons. Useless weapons. Lots of bags of unknown quantity, but even just a bag could be useful. That was about it, though-- until she spotted the bow and the quiver of arrows right beside it. Then she knew where she was going first.

As soon as the gong sounded, she leaped out and bolted across the field. She jumped over the bags in her way and dove for the weapons, tail flailing wildly to keep her balance.

[retrieverchef]

10, 9, 8...

Eliot gave his brother a last brief glance and shook his head. He turned his gaze back to the Cornucopia, eyeing what he'd aim for.

3, 2, 1, 0.

His feet left the ground as soon as the countdown ended, charging in toward the supplies and weapons. The machete would be his best option and he ran toward it, pausing briefly to grab a bag.

[fire_punk]

Kevin's eyes widened as he saw the ruins and the Cornucopia. He wanted a weapon this time. He really wanted a weapon. But he wasn't sure he'd know what to do with any of them. He'd gone down to the training floor some but he hadn't been sure where to go first. One of his mentors had said to look at the weapons but last time he'd been so hungry. No, there were more important things than weapons just now. He'd grab one of the bags and any other food he could reach on his way out. Finally, the countdown ended and he took off running, heading for the closest bag.

[needsaprince]

She doesn't think, she doesn't wait. She just runs. As fast as she can, towards the woods. She can sort out this place, and the best way to survive here later.

For now she was just getting herself out of the way, before someone did it for her.

Finally she found a depression, surrounded by crumbling concreted, and tucked herself down into it to catch her breath.

[gruesome]

Their mentors had told Some to stay well away from Lottie, to give either of them a better shot at victory. But he had no plans to win himself, and so the moment he could, once he had reached cover and gotten well away from the Cornucopia thrashing, he'd circled around as widely as he could. He knew her scent well enough to pick it out, and so he followed, creeping along from tree to tree.

"Lottie?" he whispered, coming close.

[poisonnectar]

Whatever Minatsuki had expected, it wasn't this. When they'd said 'arena' she'd been thinking small, enclosed spaces, not a vast open forest.

She'd never seen anything like it in her life.

10...9...8...

Minatsuki had almost forgotten to think. Think! This wasn't what she'd planned for at all. But she could make it work to her advantage, if she could just -

7...6...5...

The waiting was the worst part, she decided. There were so many targets in easy reach right now - hell, if she'd have had her powers she could've taken out two of them before the fighting even started.

There were bags on the ground. Yep. Minatsuki was gonna go for one of those. Probably full of weapons, ripe for the taking. Exactly what she needed.

4...3...2...

Except, just in time, she realized that everyone else had the same idea. So that was it, huh? A trap? Obviously a cheap trick to get everybody fighting right at the start of the game. Best avoided. She was too smart to fall for that -

1.

Oh.

For a second Minatsuki just stood there on her podium, torn between dashing for the nearest bag and running and just plain running.

Someone picked up the bag. Then they turned around, meeting Minatsuki's eyes. It was time to go. Without a second glance at the others, Minatsuki ran off, trying to put as much distance between her and the other tributes as she could.

She'd missed out on whatever was in those bags. Eh. She could manage without it... right?

[itwasrhetorical]

She had been given absolutely minimal information. All she knew was that she had been brought here to fight all these people. Her hands shook and she glanced around, terrified, as she took in the sights around her.

Glinda was a slightly built woman but once they gong ran she was off like a shot once she got a seconds view of people dashing toward the large metal - she didn't quite know what on Oz it was but it looked like a horn - horn. She headed straight in the other direction, only stopping once she was into the wilderness and her legs shook from the exhaustion of carrying her there. The witch sat beneath a tree and forced herself to take a deep calming breath while she tried to summon some of her magic to her.

She wept bitterly and openly when she realized she couldn't even summon a damned bubble.

[the_marshal]

Before long there came the sound of movement, of someone approaching at a steady clip without any real concern for being quiet.

Twigs snapped, leaves rustled... and Wyatt appeared, looking ruffled but unharmed from his scuffle at the Cornucopia, his bag of spoils slung over his shoulders.

At the sudden sight of the crying woman, he stopped short, boots skidding in the soft, damp, earth.

[itsananimalthing]

Standing on his platform still, Riddick stared around at all the other Tributes through the tinted lenses of his goggles-- which he'd apparently been allowed to keep. All of them were running. Running one way, running the other, just running scared in general.

He didn't move. He stood on his platform, folded his arms across his chest, and watched impassively. This was some kind of game to the people who brought him here... didn't mean he had to play by their rules. Besides, he was curious what everyone else was going to do. If they tried to come get him, they'd probably have another thing coming.

For now, though, he was just watching.

[polyturtle]

While Riddick is watching, Donatello is running past him. He does give the man a quick glance, but that's about it. He's already given the man a once-over despite that wrong feeling. He at least figured well enough that fighting him was not a good idea at the moment. Supplies first, find Momoko and Lottie next. Everything else could come later.

[hartless_cowboy]

Lindsey had been warned ahead of time about the dangers of heading to the Cornucopia, at what a bloodbath that area would be, at how he should go in the exact opposite direction.

As the numbers counted down to zero, he waited, observing for the first time the determined faces, young and old, of those who surrounded him. Yup, all those people were ready to kill.

3...2...1...0

Not listening to sound advice, he dashed right towards the tent of survival equipment. His legs weren't as long or fast as some of them though, others beat him to the tent, and as he saw people began to get slashed down, he turned and veered himself towards one of the supply bags that littered the ground instead.

Again, too late, he could see it before he even got within 10 yards of it. Two others were dashing to the same one he was, and rather than join them in a scuffle, Lindsey veered again, shifting directions at the last moment to just grab some of the random things that littered nearby. They could be things that dropped out of the bags in a tug-o-war, or they were there before, he couldn't be sure, but he got them.

He didn't have time to check what, but carrying his armload of prizes, he turned and hightailed it and dashed towards the forested hills.

[trixieplease]

Being greedy was plenty to get you shot even back at home. Trixie didn't even consider leaping into the fray.

She didn't like running much more than she liked the immediate threat of death, but she wasn't new to either. Trixie had to admit it was easier to bolt like a startled cat when not balancing on the kind of heels that elongated naturally graceful legs into the eighth and ninth wonders of the world, but she'd have much preferred the heels if she could also have Toronto back. A murderous crowd, even one this size, would be no problem with a couple of guns, a door to hide behind, and Jack to taunt relentlessly.

But still. The shoes were a neat trick. And made it all the more irritating when her foot caught a little depression in the ground and she tumbled. "Stupid nature," she growled fiercely.

[mudbloodhater]

Draco isn't exactly new to this game, but he's not exactly used to it either. He's clearly jumpy where he stands on his platform, breath caught in his throat, hands held in fists at his side. He's not running for the Cornucopia, not by any stretch of the imagination; he's going to run the opposite direction as soon as that gong goes, disappear into the brush and the ruins, keeping his head down and waiting for everyone else to kill each other off. And maybe, if he's lucky, he'll be able to get back and swipe something to defend himself with.

There it goes.

And he's frozen in place for a moment before turning on his heel, whisking himself away from the sight of the Cornucopia and the other Tributes, inevitably ready to kill each other off.

[itsnoteasybeinggreen]

Not this crap again. After dying twice here already he was pretty much over it. There was no fear in it anymore, which would probably make the competitors that had already been here more dangerous. The only reason he would even try would be so he didn't ever have to do this again.

He scanned the arena for Lindsey, allies were always a good thing in here. When he went for the tent Lorne decided to run for it and catch up with him later. He headed for the forested area and kept an eye on the direction he headed.

[makeflowersgrow]

Eponine was bewildered. Completely and utterly confused. One minute she had been in France, running from her papa and his gang. Running for dear life. And then she was here, and being thrust in front of some people, and trained. Trained to kill. Eponine didn't want to kill anyone, particularly. She's seen murder. She'd rather scavenge from the body.

And now - now she was here, dressed in unfamiliar clothes, shoved into a tube and sent out into a world. She shifted uneasily in her shoes. She was not used to having things on her feet, though in this cold, miserable place, she was glad of them.

Eponine looked around uneasily, staring at the other people. Some of them looked vaguely confused, but some looked as if they knew what to expect. Eponine was betting it wasn't anything good. But, as the counter begins, she took a breath. Right. This was serious. This was happening. Eponine was determined she wasn't going to die. Not here. Not now.

As soon as the klaxon sounded, Eponine turned tail from the cornucopia and ran, as fast as she could (which was considerably fast)for the woods. She'd hide there until this was all over, just another nightmare.

[stormcell]

There had been nothing in the chaos near the horn that had struck Thor as essential; some of it, he hadn't even recognized at a glance, and what weapons there were were bound to be a dear commodity. Rather than squabble for trifles with others who he was certain had no more choice in being in this place than he himself had been given, he had opted instead for the forest, the promise of room and cover, and the hope of game.

That others have had the same thought is unsurprising, and that his path should intersect with one of them almost inevitable. He spotted a flash of movement only barely in time, and checked his ground-eating stride, feet skidding on the damp earth as he attempted to shift his own momentum rather than colliding with the girl and toppling them both to the ground.

[overbite]

One can.

One can.

She had gone for a bag first, knowing that going right into the focal point of it all would have been nearly as stupid as sprinting to the sidelines without allowing herself any equipment, but by the time she was anywhere near it there was already a giant turtle there taking the bag out of a scuffle with somebody significantly less distinct and nope, nope, nope, she was not about to try and deal with that, so she'd turned and ran the other way. Everyone else was starting to disperse by then, though; she couldn't stay there, and so Jade had just kept running.

When the tumult was far enough behind her that she didn't hear anything that wasn't her own footsteps and ragged breaths, she clambered up into a tree and sat on one of the first strong and stable branches she found and sat there to rest. With a moment to herself at last she reached into one of her many coat pockets and took out a single can—it had been in her path when she was escaping and she'd grabbed it without a second thought or glance. It was unlabeled, but certainly filled with food, and also the only thing that she had.

"Oh my god," she groaned and put it back in her coat.

One can.

This was a whole lot of complete and total bullshit.

[poisonnectar]

Minatsuki didn't realise she'd been running at a diagonal until it was too late. When she spotted Jade in her path she sidestepped behind the nearest tree, heart hammering away in her chest.

She wasn't the type to freak out about this kind of thing, but she'd seen that girl pick something up just now, and if it turned out to be a weapon... she was in big trouble.

So Minatsuki held her breath and desperately resisted the urge to peek around the tree trunk and get the measure of her "opponent".

[wheresthepie]

Short of having training, and a bit of the warnings prior to entering the arena, Dean's first instinct was definitely not to run directly towards the mob of people. He'd heard stories, that it was a complete blood bath, and he was still battling his morals to kill people in cold blood. So when the gong sounded, he ran away from the cornucopia, away from all the people, determined to get as far as he could before stopping and finding shelter.

[itswhoyouare]

Anna struck out on a weapon in the Cornucopia, and of course there's no luck with the first bag she wants, because there's a man grabbing the bag before she can get within ten feet of it, and she diverts her course yet again for another nearby bag. She picks it up and slings it onto her back effortlessly mid-run and narrowly misses getting her head taken off by one of the larger Tributes who thought that she'd be too stupid to notice him lumbering over loudly to clothesline her.

She booked it into the woods and ran for what felt like forever until she figured she was safe. But then she heard rustling nearby and crouched behind some rubble of what used to be a building to see who was there, letting out a relieved sigh when she saw Dean there. She leaped over the mound and made her way over to him - her small size and police training giving her the advantage for stealth just in case they had any unwelcome company.

"Dean." She whispered, coming up behind him and reaching out to tap him on the shoulder.

Re: CORNUCOPIA

[big_badass_hero]

Chris hated the waiting, he had been warned not to move until the timer went down though, and he stayed, tensed ready to move. As soon as it hit zero he was off. He hated the idea of the whole thing, but didn't mean he'd stay a sitting target. Chris had seen the tree line and was headed for it.

[mudbloodhater]

It wasn't that Draco wasn't looking where he was going. Except that that was exactly what it was. He was looking everywhere but right in front of him, having been almost positive that he would be the only one heading that direction, convinced that everyone else was at the Cornucopia trying to off each other. He stumbled as soon as he ran into Chris, feet giving out beneath him as he slid to the ground with a shrill shriek, trying to roll out of the way before he got trampled.

[cowardfacinghappiness]

This was almost becoming rote by now. Momoko scans the other Tributes and the Cornucopia, discards them both as possible targets and turns her back just as the gong sounds. She's had marginally more luck with trees than buildings so far, so she heads for the forest, trusting that it'll have some good places to hide.

She's still essentially hopeless in pretty much all survival and fighting related skills, but she's becoming quite the sprinter, all things considered.