thearena | [OPEN] ► Week 1

There wasn't any way he was going to stay at the Indiana Jones ride. Not after what happened.

Daniel thought himself pretty open-minded. Able to think outside the box. A tiny part of him had been mentally preparing himself to one day run into an actual, walking mummy one day. With everything they saw each time they went into the Stargate, the odds practically made it inevitable. Daniel would never admit to anyone, not even Sam, that the same tiny part of him was looking forward to it.

For some reason, encountering an actual zombie hadn't been part of that. If he hadn't woken up to one trying to eat his foot by going through his boot, he still wouldn't have believed it. Aliens were one thing. Actual zombies were another. And if he hadn't woken up just then...

Better to keep moving. Find somewhere that one Tribute couldn't get to for sure, in case he did have his scent or something. Daniel made his way towards where he thought Tomorrowland had been.

Daniel was just about round a corner when he heard the mutter of a human voice. He quickly hit the wall, hand clenched around the makeshift dagger he'd made out of rusted metal. His heart hammered in his chest. Now what? Talk to him, hope he didn't get one of those "kill first" types? Or go around, find somewhere else?

He'd never have a chance at settling this as peacefully as they could if he turned tail. Sometimes you just had to take the big risk. If the killing could end, then it was well worth it. Daniel peered round the corner, studying the man. The Tribute was shorter than he was. He made up for it by looking pretty sturdy, Daniel noted. He was armed with a large, metal bar, and hefted it easily. He couldn't see any ranged weapons from here.

Daniel didn't come out yet, waiting to see if the next few seconds would reveal anything more before he gave it a shot.

"Didn't know anyone still believed in faeries," said Gaius, who had somehow managed to clamber atop part of the old, ruined train. He knelt down, peering over the side to get a better look at Lindsey.

For his part, he'd managed to salvage some old leftover cloth, which he'd reworked into some semblance of a sack. Not as good as his old one, but beggars couldn't be choosers, and now that he had a few items to carry around in it, it felt almost like the old days.

"You look like you know what's up. Feel like a little cultural exchange?"

"I think that's never-land..."

It was Barbara's first trip, too, and she wasn't enjoying it. Where ever Harley had gotten off to, today, searching for her had Barbara too tired out to even bother hiding from this one... mostly because she'd left enough distance between them that nothing short of a projectile could catch at her.

Unaware that he was being watched, Lindsey continued rummaging through the wreck to see what else he could salvage. Wood, mostly rotted and splintered into small pieces; those would be good for starting a fire. He had a fire starter kit, but that would require things to burn after all.

Gathering some of the smaller pieces for kindle, he tossed them into the interior of the bag he held.

And despite himself, he couldn't resist the irony of humming "Hi Ho" as he dug through the debris for more treasure.

The voice from above startled him and Lindsey swung his bar around defensively, thinking that he was to be attacked. Except the tribute stayed on the train and looked like he had no intention of coming down, so relaxing, Lindsey stuck the bar down into the ground and leaned against it like it was a walking stick. It was still in easy access should the need arise.

"Hey, you're in Disneyland. Wouldn't be surprised if there's a Tinkerbell flying around here somewhere." He craned his neck a bit trying to catch a better glimpse of the other tribute. "So, so how can I help you?"

"Neverland, kingdom of the mouse. It's all part of Disney like one small world."

Lindsey looked up, warily watching the other even as he noted the space between them. He had a weapon, but for now he had no interest of killing anyone until he figured out what the heck was going on with this arena. Hopefully, it was the same way for others too.

Barbara's not interested in killing anyone - not now, not ever. She'll try and knock out anyone who attacks her, though, and in a place like this... that might just be asking for trouble.

"Guess that maeks them the new evil empire, huh?"

Yeah Chris wasn't going to get himself into a mess with Lindsey again, last time had hurt!

Though seeing him getting the same idea he had Chris stayed back a moment. "Yeah knowing our luck fairies would be spitting acid and the toads probably have fangs." Chris leaned against one of the nearby buildings having stopped to pick a few oranges from a tree he had passed. He'd remember that location in case he couldn't properly hunt at least it was something.

Gaius was used to seeing that kind of reaction in his line of work, and besides, enforced deathmatches tended to put a fellow on edge. Hell, he wouldn't have held it against Lindsey if the man had launched that nasty metal bar at Gaius like a big, tetanus-covered javelin.

"Well, talking to a couple of these other folks, I got the distinct feeling that I'm missing something. Namely, where this is." He rapped on the train. "And what these contraptions are."

Case in point -- Lindsey had referred to this place as 'Disneyland', but that didn't sound like any fief Gaius had ever heard of. And who would waste this much good steel on a... well, whatever it was he was perched on at the moment?

Right, so the other Tribute seemed practical. He had to have come from Earth if he knew that song. And he had a strange sort of humor.

Daniel closed his eyes. Took a breath. This was a potentially suspicious, unknown culture, not a Tribute forced into a life or death situation, Daniel told himself. This wasn't any different from encountering any unknown people on the other side of the Gate, since they had a potential to draw weapons on them or try to kill them if they were offended or got spooked or any number of things that sometimes went wrong. Except they weren't forced into it by an outside force usually, or to participate in a gladitorial game. For all he knew, this guy had a friend waiting nearby who was armed.

So the pep talk wasn't really working.

Daniel stepped out from the wall before he could over think it much further. Maybe he would after better luck trying to pass the idea along to the surviving Tributes than the previous one. Granted, that had been a zombie.

He made sure not to get much closer. The metal he'd taken earlier was slid into the belt, nestled against his back. Daniel kept his voice light and his hands out in the open. "So... which dwarf are you supposed to be?"

"Not new," Lindsey said as he looked the lady up and down. "Just more obvious now than ever before."

After all, Disney used to be one of the companies that had Wolfram and Hart on retainer, just like Walmart did.

"Guess the lie's fallen apart after an apocalypse or two."

And lose his newly acquired weapon? No thanks. It took him a while to find something that had the same heft and swing as a broadsword. Anyway, the bar would be useless when thrown, to get it up that high, his target would be able to get away before he could do something about it.

"Huh, you've never heard of the magic kingdom?" Lindsey tilted his head in consideration.

"What dimension are you from?" It was an honest question asked with a straight face too.

Lindsey spun around at the first sound of noise behind him, metal bar picked up and brandished in a gesture of wariness. He didn't launch straight into an attack though as he merely watched the other man carefully.

"Try an 8th one called Wary." He pointed the tip of his bar at the other man.

"Have you been watching me?" Lindsey couldn't think of another reason why the man would be lurking about the wall corner like that.

Lindsey was all smiles when he saw the familiar face appear. He even stopped his rummaging to give the other man a handy wave in greeting. It wasn't as if either of them were within attacking distance of each other unless Chris decided to throw oranges.

In terms of projectiles, Lindsey probably had the advantage standing in the midst of a train wreck's debris.

"Nah, it'd be the toads that spit the acid and the faeries with the fangs." On second thought, faeries with fangs wasn't that alien a concept, some species indeed had them.

"Magic kingdom?" Gaius thought that one over for a second. "Nope. Never heard of it. Not saying that there isn't a lot I haven't heard of, what with all these outrealms around." In fact, he counted Panem squarely within that number, although it was clearly even more bizarre than most.

"We don't really have a name for it. I'm from Ylisse, south of Regna Ferox. Nice place; not too many roaming undead."

Oh geez. Daniel found himself with a metal bar pointed at him, but thankfully, the guy didn't take a swing first before he saw who it was or what they might have to say. He couldn't blame him at all for the jumpiness. Daniel had been all nerves since the game started.

"Cute. Wary might have saved Snow White a load of trouble if he'd been around," Daniel replied. He kept his hands up, see, palms out, no weapons in them. He was harmless. Don't mind the archaeologist, he won't bite. "Yes. Sorry. I wasn't sure what kind of Tribute you were. I'm Daniel by the way."

"Why do I get the feeling you're not talking out your ass with that one Lindsey." He tossed one of the oranges his way. "Here catch, and relax it's safe. If I was going to take you out I would have while you're back was turned, no way I'm getting caught off guard by you again."

"Wait... Disneyland's evil? ...Even Mickey" say it's not so! It's not like they're all just demons controlling human puppets while they gather the energy of innocents or something, is it?

Barbara returned the gaze while she talked, assessing a little.

Edited 2013-03-25 06:57 (UTC)

"Never heard of it," Lindsey answered back like an echo, although he did pull a face at the comment about roaming undead.

"Don't need too many to be a nuisance," he muttered, "One is all it takes." Yet letting that pass, he was here now, he went back to surveying the young man. "Ever heard of Earth?"

Lindsey couldn't find fault in someone who had a sense of humor like that. Breaking into a wide grin, he lowered the long bar and planted its tip into the ground and proceeded to lean on it. It was a very sturdy metal bar.

"Wary was the smart one, he knew enough to stay away from all the trouble." He chuckled and gave Daniel a tip of his head. "I'm Lindsey," he said, friendly despite not to the point of offering his hand. "I dunno, what are the different kinds of Tributes out there?"

Lindsey grinned back, quite proud of the effect he had on Chris already. Catching the orange tossed at him, he gave it a sniff then tossed it into his pack. Good fruit, but he wasn't making the same mistake of letting go of his weapon like Chris did before.

"I know it is. It's the apples that are the poisoned ones, right?" No comment on the catching the other off guard though. There was no denying he would take an opportunity if one presented itself.

"Don't know about the Mouse," Lindsey answered with a large grin. "But I never had any talking, walking, giant mice for clients. The corporation though, you won't believe in the fraud and laundering they're involved in."

He was sure there were a few demons in Disney, but probably not for soul sucking purposes. At least, not where he was involved.

"You've got that right. The Risen were a real sour apple just a little while ago, but they're less common now. I figure that the Shepherds will have the rest of them mopped up soon, and then we can get back to worrying about everyday problems again. Like thievery." Gaius smiled, as if entertaining himself with a private joke.

"Earth?" He rolled the unfamiliar-sounding word around in his mouth. "Can't say I have. That where you're from?"

"Yeah, that's the planet where I'm from. If you haven't heard of even Earth, I'm pretty sure we're from different worlds, you and I."

It bothered Lindsey less that he may be speaking to a being from another dimension than that Panem were kidnapping people from all over. He was sure that broke an interdimensional rule somewhere and in some world, some being was probably very pissed.

Not really his problem though. He was a victim here.

"Just so you know, I also have no idea what you're talking about. Our undeads are usually called vampires, zombies, or ghouls. There's more, but they're just names for different demons."

"No kidding," said Gaius. He shifted a little to get into a more comfortable position. Fine grains of dust slipped down the dilapidated side of the train as he did so.

"So, tell me about this Magic Kingdom of yours."

Daniel eyed the bar as it was planted into the ground. That pipe looked pretty sturdy; sturdy for his liking, namely the part where he suspected that if Lindsey took a swing at his head, his head wasn't going to put much of a dent in it. Daniel's eyes flicked back up, to find the other guy grinning. Well, that was...a good start. He'd rather go with that.

He didn't fail to notice that the Tribute didn't bother offering his hand. It was probably better he didn't. Shaking his hand put Daniel too close to Lindsey, and right now, he was happier to stay out of swinging range.

"Nice to meet you." And there's a sheepish smile. "There's all kinds of Tributes. The ones who might listen first, or the ones who'd rather kill first."

"You're in it," Lindsey answered wryly although at some point he stopped looking up because it gave him a crick in his neck.

"Are you going to stay up there the whole time? You're killing me with a stiff neck."

"Two doesn't quite add up to 'all' kinds," Lindsey pointed out, still amused enough to not attempt a swing at Daniel's head like the 'type' of Tribute he sometimes might be.

"But nice to meet you too. Don't think we've met before, so what District are you?"

With how many people dropping in all the time, Lindsey couldn't keep track of them all.

"Disgruntled ex-employee?" she guessed, frowning faintly. He seemed to know an awful lot about Disney. "Or current lawyer?" In which case he really shouldn't be throwing around the evil label.

"You know what I meant. I'd be here all day if I listed all kinds," Daniel wanted to sigh. He hoped he didn't get the difficult, pain in the butt kind of tribute; Daniel was all for questioning, not taking what someone said at face value, but they didn't have time to pick everything apart just now. For all he knew, they had Tributes converging on them. The kill-first type.

"District 10; but I came from Earth - Colorado." After Gaila and some of the other Tributes present he might as well be specific. Not everyone here was human. "I was wondering if you had five minutes."

Oh, so close but no cigar. "Disgruntled ex-lawyer," Lindsey revealed with the flourish of one announcing himself to a gathered audience, even if the audience was the total of one. "But good guess. Although, with Disney in this state, I don't think they're in any shape to retain legal council."

"I have I have much more than five," Lindsey smirked and gave the other man a weighing look. He also tapped lightly on his metal bar as reminder of its presence.

"District 5. Guess you can say I hail from L.A." He arched a brow at the Colorado guy. "So, tick tick, what did you want five minutes for?" He could tell that the man wasn't going to attack him. If Lindsey still knew how to judge people, though he could be wrong, this guy looked more of the dodgy survivor type than a confrontational style.

Daniel's eyes strayed to the metal bar, just the tiniest bit uneasily. He'd been hoping he'd gotten somewhere with the Tribute, but it seemed he didn't trust him too much, if at all. That, or it was a reminder to make it quick. That wasn't helping.

He shifted from one foot to another, glad he was out of striking range for the moment. At least if he took a first swing. Daniel watched Lindsey's face carefully as he finally spoke, wondering how he'd take what he had to say. "There may be another way to end the Games. Without all the killing, I mean."

That was an interesting proposal. "Oh? And what is that? I'm not joining hands and singing Kumbaya."

Lindsey smirked a bit, wondering if Daniel also remembered that he was being watched by the millions of people in Panem, including those guys who made the Games and frankly, thrived on the violence. Knowing how big powerful dictators worked, he wouldn't want to be in Daniel's shoes if the guy was about to announce to those people's faces that he wanted to not play by their rules.

"Pretty sure they're gonna need it, too," she said, looking at the ruins around her. Only for a moment, though, before the attention focused back on the flamboyant lawyer before her. "This place kinda looks like lawsuit central..."

"If they have cash, they might want to consider its upkeep." Lindsey shrugged his shoulders as either way, he wasn't in that profession anymore. "This place looks like the apocalypse ran through it."

It was time he turned his attention from their surroundings back to the young woman before him. "So, don't think I caught your name."

It would be nice if Punchy could get his interference plan going a lot faster, but since he hadn't heard any music drowning the Capitol's ears out, Daniel was going to go with no, he hadn't yet. Peachy.

"I don't know if anyone could take your singing if you did.," Daniel shrugged. Too bad Lindsey probably wouldn't let him in as close as Punchy had; there probably wasn't any chance of writing on his hand, where the cameras couldn't see, what he had in mind. Anyway chances were that the Capitol would start to get suspicious if they saw him grabbing every Tribute's hands he could. Daniel hoped that Lindsey was a little quicker on the uptake than Punchy was, at least. There was only so clear he could make this without spelling it out.

Here's to hoping Lindsey got the message. "Unless you somehow manage to get everyone to sit down, get yourself a captive audience. Then I guess you'd win."

It might have worked. If Daniel hadn't insulted Lindsey's singing first.

"I sing fine," he shot back, instantly taking offense to the implication that his singing would turn people away. Subsequently, any hidden message afterwards was missed for the red that Lindsey saw. In fact, it caused him to lift that hefty metal bar up and prop it onto his shoulder.

"Ain't a singing contest, don't see how that'd help me win." Perhaps Daniel should reconsider his hints.

Oh geez. And he thought Punchy was trouble. Daniel thought that maybe they were onto something here but it looked like he'd gone and offended Lindsey. There was a time and place to take things at face value, and even so, singing abilities? Come on, this wasn't the appropriate time even if it was called into question. Still, the way Lindsey hefted that bar wasn't exactly friendly.

Lindsey, if anything, felt surprising strongly about his singing. However that was.

He held up a hand. Wait, don't start swinging yet. "It's not about singing-singing, per se," Daniel said quickly. "It's about the sitting down part. Do you get me?"

Indeed Lindsey took his singing seriously, especially when he was killed back in his home world because his singing had apparently revealed him to be sub-par. Well, it was a very long story, but, in short, he felt offended.

But lucky for Daniel, Lindsey gave him the chance to try and explain himself before he smashed his head in.

His eyebrows raised when he realized that the guy was trying to pass him along some sort of message. He was horrible at it though for Lindsey just looked and stared at him, confusion and shaking his head in that yes, he got that he was trying to say something but he got none of the message said.

"I'm sorry? You're going to have to be clearer."

Daniel tried to ignore that considering look Lindsey was giving him, the kind that likely said that he was having second thoughts about whether he should take that swing or not. Daniel tensed.

Oh please, tell him this wasn't like Punchy. He wasn't sure he could take another round of trying to get his plans to him under the Capitol's eyes and ears; especially since Punchy not only had an aversion to thinking before he spoke, he had an aversion to doing it front of those very cameras. Daniel's smile was small and terse. He glanced off to the side, then towards the sky, as if trying to search for those cameras. The air was also very quiet; Punchy had not gotten his part of the plan - deafen Capitol ears - online yet. "I can't say it any more clearly right now. It's not the right time. If you have anything to write with, I'd be happy to spell it out that way."

She lifted one eyebrow, staring up at the skies - towards where the fireworks would usually show tribute faces. "What do you mean like?"

The second question, though... That got a little smirk. Right hand on her hip, left hand hanging down. "I don't remember giving it."

The hand that wasn't holding onto the metal bar was used to spread out in a simple gesture of open and emptiness. Did Daniel really expect Lindsey to have something to write on or with? They scarcely had food, where would they get items of luxury such as that?

"Doubt you'll ever find the right time," Lindsey pointed out although it indicated he at least figured out what Daniel was so wary of.

"But sure. Meet me again outside of this place and maybe we'll talk."

Lindsey liked a snarky girl, and this one promised to be full of snark. "Then maybe you should remedy that, hm?"

"And I said 'like' because if an apocalypse ran through, there shouldn't be anything left."

She can be a regular fountain of snark when she wants to be. Or when she doesn't. Call it nervous habit. "Barbara."

"So what do you call all this?" she asked, gesturing to the ruins. It's got nothing she recognizes in it.

"This? This is a bad imitation of an apocalypse, it got all the destruction and mayhem exactly like how humans imagined it to be. None of the overrunning monsters though, that's a relief."

The way Lindsey spoke, confident and with just that little bit of smirk, it may make her wonder if he was pulling her leg or whether he really knew what he was talking about.

"You know much about apocalypses?" she asked, ready to shift into combat mode. He sounded like one of the villains back home.

"Passing knowledge of them," Lindsey answered vaguely without going into details. He still seemed relatively relaxed though, not yet wanting to go into battle so early in game. There would be time aplenty for that later.

She didn't really want to get into it, frankly. A super hero she might be, but fights to the death weren't her things.

"How much is passing?" She's watching his language.

[OPEN] ► Week 1 | East Side

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