(no subject)

[gamemakers]

Who| Anyone left in then arena, particularly anyone who wants to die.
What| A dragon. Yep.
Where| The areas around Rivers of America.
When| Dusk, late in the week.
Warnings/Notes| See below.

The areas around New Orleans Square and Frontierland have been appealing lately.

Rich, delicious smell have been coming from them, at first very subtle, but today rich. Smells that by pass your nose an sneak into your brain that something good and delicious is here. The trees are blooming, the animals scurrying around seem almost friendly. And, you know, easy to catch. It just feels nicer over there.

Anyone near the River's of America could see the ripples that day, if they were looking. They were the pattern of something large moving under the water, but anyone who'd spent time around the river knew it was certainly not deep enough to hold something that big.

Must just be ducks diving.

Just as the final rays of dusk began to fade from the sky, music began to once again play over the loud speakers. What might have once been an epic song was reedy, broken and old, the eerie tune warbling through the quiet air before sputtering out into heavy silence.

And then the water burst up, and up, and up with a massive roar.

The beast was massive, black wings stretching up towards the sky as it's body writhed out of the water, shaking the ground as it stepped on to it. It was hungry, it was pissed, and it was not happy to be at Disneyland.

And, as it opened it's massive jaw to screech it's rages at the sky, it let out a blast of fire that arched up to the sky, flattening against the previously invisible forcefield above it's head.

And then it started to move. To seek out prey. And to leave it's mark all over.



---

See the sub threads below for the timeline of the night, and then hop in.

This dragon mutt isn't very smart, and is woundable, but too dense to kill (at least before the gamemakers short circuit it.) It's covered in hard scales, and does breath fire in short blasts, although it takes a minutes or so to build up after a blast. Feel free to NPC and handwave the dragon as needed for your threads.

Most of the buildings in Splash Mountain, New Orleans Square and Frontierland are smouldering and burned out after this, and a few still actively burning, but the fire doesn't leave the areas.

It is also ediable, if you are so inclined, but incredibly tough and not very tasty. It also causes vague nausea, but won't kill you.

Although technically the subthreads are the top-level comments, any replies to those three will count as "top-level" comment in regards to activity.

Comments

[grandmas_gurl]

There's the sound of splashing water as Ruby succeeds in lowering herself down to the basement. With a light cough and several more splashes she's working her toward Snow's voice.

"Snow?" she calls back, wishing for light; for something other than the feel of crumbling earth around them. She'd give almost anything for the freedom of the outside world. Just so long as she can leave with Snow.

"here are you?" arm outstretched, randomly waving. Her own breath is coming more rapidly. Every mouthful tastes bad.

[no_apples_please]

"I'm here," her voice comes out more as a wheeze than anything else, and she notices there is a distinctively metallic sweet flavour on her tongue as she stumbles through the darkness. There are shapes and movement all around her, but there is one in particular that Snow thinks may look familiar.

She reaches out her hand and feels her way forward. Still, she struggles for breath. And there in the darkness, she cannot see that the dampness on her arms and hands is more blood than water.

"Red!" she's frantic and an she doesn't know if its fear or smoke that are the cause of the tears in her eyes. "We have to go!"

She wants to run, but its dangerous work picking her way through the rubble of the ruined mountain while keeping out of the way of that which still feel from above.

The dragon above roars into the night, and Snow can hear the sound of it's wings, beating violently through the midnight air as it climbs its way into the sky. It may have left its perch, but that was not going to keep the building from continuing to collapse around them.

[grandmas_gurl]

It doesn't matter. So what if it's a dragon, and a mountain, and entire world teaming up to kill them? They've faced worse, haven't they? They've survived more. They'll do it again. Because family always find each other.

Her powers are off. Her nostrils are stuffed with dust and dirt and smoke and sniffled mucus that flows with tears. "I'm not leaving without you..."

She splashes forward blindly, water slapping at her ankles; listening for that wheezing breath that tells her Snow's alive. She ignores the trembling of the mountain, caring only for the trembling of her best friend's heart.

She's almost reached her friend.

[no_apples_please]

The darkness seems to be pressing in around her. The world growing smaller.

Air in her lungs feels more like poison and the pain in her body has spread so quickly, so fiercely that she's become numb. And that numbness is spreading quickly. Devouring the sensation in her legs, her arms, her

"Red..." the sound is weak. Inaudible unless she's close.

She's falling through the darkness and she can't find anything to hold on to...

[grandmas_gurl]

Arms. They wrap about Snow as she falls into the darkness, holding her tight against the possibility that the woman might not even feel it.

Can she sense anything in that darkness of hers? The struggle of her friend as she clings the slight body and begins to pull it out with agonizing slowness. The trembling of the mountain as it groans, still threatening to crush them both. The worried cry of Snow, as the hot tears of relief and fear and dust fall atop the dirtied cheek?

Ruby hopes she can. That's what gives her the strength to pull her friend out, over wooden fragments and through the water. Trying not to think about what else might be in there, or how little time they have left. What might be waiting outside?

"Just a few more steps," she promised, glancing back out and toward the exit.

[no_apples_please]

The world is nothing but a blurry thing, moving by rather inexplicably, and she can hardly sense up from down.

The pain and the panic seem to cancel one another, and so she feels neither. Just numbness. Shock.

For what little she is aware of, she is largely unresponsive. For as much as her will drives her to keep going, to fight, she's past the point of fighting her own body's responses.

She wants to wake up.

To keep fighting.

But instead, she has to rely on her friend to carry her out of this mess.

[grandmas_gurl]

Ruby does, step by step. She lied about how many were left, though. It feels like forever before the light really reveals itself. Countless scrapes and bruises attest to that, where her back hit the wall because she couldn't see. But she hadn't bumped Snow.

That mattered, she told herself. That was important. Don't bump Snow, and everything will be okay. don't drop Snow, and everything will be alright. Just get out. Simple. Get out.

Then there was light. There was shining glaring light, and she was almost dropping her friend. Trembling. They were out. So it was alright.

Right?

sorry this is so late. :c

[no_apples_please]

The air is cleaner here. Less black and suffocating, but still, she feels like she's downing. She can't breathe.

She's only vaguely half aware that Ruby is anywhere near her. Hovering above her. Keeping her safe.

The world around them screams and crashes down. The noises so loud she would hear nothing else if she could truly hear them at all.

But her world? Her world his fading. Fuzzy. Dull. It all hurts so much that she can't feel anything at all. She's scared. But knows that if she tries to say anything at all... it will only make things worse.

It's okay. <3

[grandmas_gurl]

No. She's not allowed to fade away. She's not allowed to go - to disappear. To leave Ruby behind. That's not the way it's supposed to go.

They were out of the cavern. They were supposed to be safe. She wasn't supposed to be crouching down by her friend, screaming Snow's name as she clutched the woman's arms.

Could she even hear her friend's voice? The screams?

[no_apples_please]

"Red?" she finally manages to get the words out, even if they are the wrong ones. "I ..."

She can't even finish her sentence. Not out of the inability to speak, but because of the reality of how that sentence ends. I can't move. I can't breathe. I'm scared.

In the light, the dampness that coats her skin is far more blood than water. Her fall in the darkness having done far more damage than she could have realized; she's already on borrowed time.

She tries again to pull in a good, decent breath, but the air just fills her mouth and all she can taste is blood. It coats her lips in a liquid vibrant red.

"You have to run," she insists and fumbles as best she can for her friend; any part of her she can touch and cling on to. Because she knows it will be the last time.

[grandmas_gurl]

She clutches the body against herself, heedless of the red stain growing on her dress. Her other hand took Snow's in it, clutching it tight. She didn't think she'd held onto something so tight in her entire life, but she knew it wasn't enough to keep Snow there with her. She wasn't even sure Snow could feel her.

"I'm not going without you," she said, half in a whisper. It was followed by a sob, coming up from deep within. "You're going to be fine." It was a determined growl. Daring the world to prove her wrong. Denying the evidence before her.

[no_apples_please]

"You have to," she insists through the tears in her eyes. Her voice is quiet, whisper-soft, and there is an audible twist of pain on every word. Her fingers curl around Ruby's, though her grip is anything but tight.

[grandmas_gurl]

"Snow?" her voice is soft. Desperate. Don't go, Snow. Don't leave her...

[no_apples_please]

She wants to answer her. To make these last moments count, but all that comes out is a string of garbled sounds. Her red lips quiver and her hazel eyes are full of tears. There are a thousand things she wants to say and do and.... it wasn't supposed to end like this.

Nothing about this even approaches the happy ending she had in mind. Instead, it's a nightmare. But at least Red is here with her at the very end. If she has nothing else to hold on to, she is glad for that small favor.

It's the last thing she thinks. Sees. Feels. Her best friend staring down at her, tears in her eyes as she holds her hand, and she wants to tell her so many things. To run away from this place and keep herself safe. She wants to tell her to keep running, and fighting and to win. She wants to say how much she believes in her; more than Red will ever know. And that in this life, Red was one of her most precious and treasured things; her dearest and greatest friend.

Perhaps, because of that, there is the smallest hint of a smile on her face as the light fades from her eyes.

[grandmas_gurl]

"Snow?" it's a faint whisper, choked on tear and desperation. Fear. Emotions that Ruby had always bottled up in the back of her head - only taking out for brief looks, when they were too much or when she was alone. They were the sort of feelings she didn't like to burden her friends with.

Except, without Snow, she had no friends to worry about.

Putting Snow to the ground, her hands moved to the woman's chest, feeling for the heartbeat. Nothing. Pumping. Nothing. Breathing in, lips on lips... nothing. Kissing? Nothing. It wasn't a curse. It wasn't something she could stop. It wasn't... it didn't make sense.

Suddenly nothing made sense/ There was wind, and there was screaming, and there was blood. Pain. Her throat was so sore...

A grave. She had to dig a grave. She stared at the ground, and pressed her hand against the dirt. A grave....

[no_apples_please]

No response will ever come from Snow again; no warmth, no laughter, no tears.

Around Ruby, the world rages on. The screech of the dragon above and a terrible crash as the night turns into day, but for only an instant. The ripple of energy can actually be seen above: the impact of the dragon against the force field. She lands with a the grace of a meteor and does nearly the same amount of damage. Very little now remains the false mountain that Snow and Ruby had only just been inside.

And still, the world moved on.

[grandmas_gurl]

Not Ruby's. She didn't think it would ever move again.

All there was was the grave. If she knew the capitol would take that, too...