Chapter 2: Perspective.

CHAPTER 2: Perspective.

A low gruff voice murmured.

“Trigger, can you feel it?

‘Squeak!’

Yeees, It’s almost time to play.”

Deep within a hot damp jungle, an inconspicuous hilltop covered in dense lush bushes and mossy trees hid away a small clearing.

Laid on his stomach was a large figure covered head to toe in modern camouflage tactical gear. His face obscured behind his ballistic helmet's visor and a black balaclava.

An assortment of local leaves and branches had been attached poorly and sporadically into a makeshift ghillie suit.

‘Squeak, squeak?’ 

The butt of a long sleek rifle as long as he was extended from his shoulder.

Out of place though, was a small metal finger puppet shaped like a conical mouse that gripped the trigger.

“No Trigger, I hope we do!

The little vermin scurrying about her maze is the best toy of the bunch!

She tries so hard! 

That way, it’s far more fun when they fail.”

Trigger slumped, shaking.

“Now now, it’s only play time! We can watch her squirm and beg all we want!

Miss magic will make it all be better!”

The glass ruby card hovering inches above the ground changed.

‘THE TRIAL HAS BEGUN!

Trial match: 2 v 1.

Location: Modern city center.’

*BANG!*

“Hii hii hii hiii~!” 

His piercing cackle broke through the chorus of distressed whopping monkeys.

They fled through the treetops but remained centered in the sight of his scope. 

One remained still, lying on the jungle floor.

“See?

I told you Trigger, it’s the vermin girl! 

And she’s invited a friend over!“

Trigger wrapped himself around the trigger, looking Soldier in the eye with his marker-pen eyes.

Suddenly, red light began to exude from his extremities like a disco ball and Trigger crumbled into dust, as did the rifle.

His vision faded into nothingness.

The jungle went unsettlingly quiet and still.

— — —

An empty dead-end alleyway between two tall white buildings flashed with light.

The ruby red cloud of glistening dust and light reconstituted itself into a large camouflaged soldier with a metal finger puppet.

‘Squeak!’

“Yes Trigger, and we’re close too, look.”

The ruby card flew to his side, Trigger swiped across it, a map of the city showed their location not too far from

one of the four main streets.

‘Squeak, squeak squeak?’

“North Main street .

‘Squeak?’

Because that’s where she’ll expect us to be.”

He hung the strap of his rifle over his shoulder and looked up.

A winding metal fire escape led up to the roof of a building.

“Let the fun begin!”

‘S-Squeak…’

The conical metal mouse hung low by Soldier’s side.

— — —

Laid on top of layered roof shingles, out of view from the street, Soldier and Trigger watched the playfield as a translucent card slotted itself next to the little vermin girls card.

‘Squeak.’

He chuckled under his breath. “Actually, I’m enjoying the mystery!

What could it be!

I hope they’re quick, I like when the vermin scurry and dash!”

A stifled murmur echoed through the air.

“Shhhhhh.” He whispered. “Let’s get a look at our new toy, shall we?”

Crawling over shingles slowly and carefully, the large man poked his head and rifle over the crest, elbows leaning on the tip of the pointed roof.

He adjusted his aim, perching the butt of his rifle into the nook of his shoulder, looking down the sight.

The scope moved from window to window, door to door, starting from the closest ones to the farthest.

Two bodies soon came into view at the opposite end of the street.

“There we are.”

‘Squeak!!’

Dead center in his sight was a thin man, around 30, the same height as the little vermin girl. 

“Nnnnnnngh!

No fun!

‘Squeak!?’

He’s a little puppy, a mutt that shouldn’t be here.

Look Trigger, he’s shaking more than you do!”

The little metal finger puppet left the trigger of the rifle and approached the scope.

…

He looked at his trigger finger twitching and circling in the air, tapping at the scope of his rifle.

…

 He frowned, his finger froze.

‘It’s my finger.

So…’

“Trigger? Where have you gone?”

…

His finger twitched. ‘Squeak.’

He sighed a relieved breath. “Don’t hide from me like that Trigger!!”

*FLUTTER!* “COO-ROO-OOO!”

Flapping wings and the coo of a bluish-grey pigeon distracted him.

It perched atop his ballistic helmet, craning its neck to look at the shiny wriggling trinket.

“RUN!” A shrill man’s voice echoed from down the street, Trigger dashed back to his position, and Soldier swung the rifle.

He lined up a kill-shot the moment the vermin girl’s center of mass occupied his scope.

Trigger shuddered, unwilling.

‘S-squeak!?’

“Do it Trigger!

Hurry!

Watch them squirm! Watch them scurry!”

*BANG!*

The shot recoiled with a familiar pain, the ring of the bullet sang its little tune in his ear.

“I love this song trigger-“

*AAAAAAAGH!*

“This is the best part!” He chuckled.

He centered his scope back on the vermin, examining his work.

*sigh*

“Oh dear Trigger, you missed!

Looks like we’ll have to punish you when we get home.”

‘SQUEAK!’

Soldier slid back from his position behind the roof.

He made his way over to a neighboring flat rooftop, changing his position.

Setting up a few houses down with a better vantage on his target, Trigger was still squeaking in protest!

‘SQUEAK SQUEAK!!’

“Well then, you better not miss the next shot! 

You remember what happened to Clippy.”

Trigger glanced over at Soldiers other hand, one pinky finger missing.

Trigger shuddered and readied for another shot.

Looking down the sight, a red glow was lighting the wall at the entrance of the alleyway.

“Oh fun!!

She’s doing it Trigger! 

She’s finally doing a magic thing!”

“AAAAAHHHHGLGH~” A blood curdling scream died down into a whimpering gurgle.

The translucent card had shattered on the playfield.

As the red light faded, he glanced at the vermin girls new stats.

‘300 Attack 150 Defense’

“Mhmhm! Hihihihiii~

Time to play!!”

‘Squeak!’

*BANG!*

— — —

Weightlessness.

Drifting through nothingness.

Feeling hopeless.

‘That rhymes.’

“Ha- *COUGH! COUGH!~*”

Coughing up water, my eyes shot open, and my senses activated like a light-switch.

Rushing water.

Crowds chatting.

My eyes stinging and my heart pounding in my ear.

I found myself floating.

‘The safe zone?’

Kneeling in the shallow water, I wiped my eyes with my shirt, digging my fingers into the corners of my eyes in a vain attempt to stop the stinging.

I shot mucus and algae out of my nose, wiping it on my sleeve.

‘Ok.’

Taking a beat to breathe and gather myself, I sat there in the fountain, feeling its tide push and pull me.

A bolt of lightning shot through my mind.

“CARD!”

I patted my trouser pockets.

‘Nothing!? Where-‘

Floating horizontally in the air beside my head was the ruby glass card.

‘Trial Loss!’

The words were written in bold across the playfield, two of three support cards slots occupied in the opposing field, and one Hero card.

Our side was empty.

‘We lost?

What-‘

…

The scene silently replayed in my mind.

Once, I felt the knife in vivid detail thudding 

Against the back of my skull.

The second time, I heard the crunch of my bones, the death-scream evacuating my lungs.

The third time, I saw my pitiful reflection. 

The blood, sweat and tears rolling down my cheeks into my screaming mouth.

The fourth time, I saw her.

A rush of terror built with every repeat until the panic and adrenaline was overwhelming.

Every ounce of my body felt it, like I was ripping at the seems.

I ran.

Dashing out of the water, through the unbothered crowd, and into the nearest open doorway.

The eighth time, I counted her teeth, the second to the left on the upper row had a chip in it.

I found a dark corner and curled up into a ball.

Hugging my legs, I realized I was shaking uncontrollably.

I squeezed my hands tight and burried my head in my knees.

The fifteenth time, I watched her sunken cheeks stretch into laugh lines as she smiled.

It sent a shudder down my shaky spine.

Then her face froze into a muted frown.

‘I’m sorry.

I love you.

…

I’m sorry, I love you.’

The words finally registered, like the ringing tinnitus in my mind finally faded.

‘I’m sorry.

Sorry for what? For herself? To the knife for getting it dirty? For lying to me?

…

I love you!? 

Fuck off! Disgusting putrid filth!

How god damn dare she say that before-‘

I swallowed back the tears along with the image threatening to replay itself again.

“I. Love. You.” *sniff*

‘Who the hell says that like that?

It wasn’t even sarcasm, what the hell is she talking about?

When the hell had we talked about love?

She thinks I’m that pitiful? That pathetic?

Is that it?

She’s mocking me?

…

She’s mocking me.

Laughing at me right before-‘

“SHUT UP!!”  I screamed the memory out of my mind.

‘Sorry you’re such a worthless piece of shit.

I’ll do you a favor and end your miserable life.

Love you!’

“Bitch.”

…

“Creepy, skinny, lanky, skeletal, girl from the ring looking ass, bitch.”

“What did you just call me?” Her voice cut through my panicked rage in an instant.

Every inch of my body froze and tightened.

In my mind, reality warped. I saw an unshelled embryo being guzzled down by a  vicious and bloody vulture.

But reality refused to fade like the scene in my mind.

There she was, stood in the doorway of the empty convenience store, knife in hand.

“Huh? Repeat what you just said.

I’m what?” She took a step forward, teeth clenched.

I shuddered as her foot hit the floor.

Her knife hand twitched, my death flashed before my eyes.

I stood up, shaking, fists clenched.

“What!? What are you going to do?

*tut*

Sit down, shut up and learn, before you end up back in that fountain!” She pulled her knife up across her chest, and threw it!

I flinched, my body jolted like a shock of lightning.

*thud*

‘Am I-

Am I hit? 

Where?’

I looked up and saw the knife stuck into one of the boxes of cereal beside her.

Four shelves lined the walls, I stood between two of them in a corner.

She walked to the register to the left of the doorway fishing out some rubies from under her rags.

She put them on the counter and-

*PUFF*

They went up in a puff of pinkish-red smoke.

Wafting the smoke out the way, she pocketed the leftover ruby shards.

Grabbing two boxes of cereal from the shelf nearby, she hopped herself up onto the counter, slicing one open and stuffing her hand inside.

She looked up at me.

My nerves were shot, heavy breaths, sweating. My body was frozen like a songbird facing down a hawk.

“So?” She grunted with a mouthful.

The weight of a question hung over me like a guillotine.

“Why.” Is the only thing I managed to say.

She took a deep breath in between mouthfuls, taking a second to answer.

“Because you didn’t need to know.” She stuffed another handful into her maw.

‘What? Know what?’

“Why did you do that?” My voice warbled.

‘There's nowhere to run.

She’s at the exit.

She’s armed.’

Sucking her fingers, her bloodshot eyes still staring at me, she furrowed her brow. “What?” She looked at the box of cereal.

“Because I’m hungry.” She stuffed more cereal into her mouth.

I looked to the ceiling, clenching my fists, my jaw so tight I could chip a-

The memory of her smile triggered the crunch of the knife, the squelch, the scream.

“WHY DID YOU KILL ME!?”

The scene replayed in my head again.

‘I’ve lost count.’

I slumped against the shelf and slid to the floor, packets of branded snacks clattering past me onto the floor.

My lungs burning like I’d run a mile, I saw white spots in my vision, blood whooshing between my ears.

Shivering, I held my head, as if I could go back in time and stop it from happening.

“Ah.” She smacked her lips, picking food from her teeth.

“Like I said.

You didn’t need to know.

If you’d have known that cards are only destroyed in real matches, you wouldn’t have taken it seriously.

And now you know what it’s like.

Dying.

Next time we do it, you won’t be such a cowering burden.”

She lifted the cereal box, turning it upside down above her head, catching the crumbs.

‘Next time…

Next time.

Fucking next time!?’

“So that’s it. Just a lesson I needed to be taught.” The nerves and fear were slowly turning back into rage.

“That’s one way to put it.” The last of the crumbs fell, bouncing off her cheeks.

The box was empty. She flattened the box into a frisbee.

“What the fuck do you mean by I love you!?”

She hung her head, looking away.

…

“I said, what do you mean by-“

I flinched again, ducking out the way, the cardboard frisbee clattering into the now empty shelf behind me.

She hopped off of the counter, and strode out the door.

“HEY!! YOU DON’T GET TO JUST WALK AWAY!”

I grabbed the flat piece of cardboard and threw it back at her.

It came nowhere close to hitting her,  bouncing off a shelf.

“HEY!! ANSWER ME!”

She stopped just outside the shop, her back to me.

My heart skipped a beat, I almost fainted on the spot.

Her hand raised up to her face, itching or maybe wiping something.

“No.” She said, her voice very weak.

“You expect me to just be fine with you murdering me!? Just walk it off!? You owe me some fucking answers, bitch!!” 

My voice was getting hoarse from the sudden yelling.

‘Move, god damn it! 

Go after her!

She’s just a worthless coward, shutting off her emotions!

MOVE!’

I couldn’t, the scene of her killing me was playing on loop, even as I stood there screaming at her. The fear tying me down while it played.

“Take the day off, hang out here.

Bitch or not, I’ll be back tonight.

I have essence to get, and I’ve wasted enough time helping you. 

Dickhead.”

With that she rounded the corner, out of sight.

‘Why?

Just move.

You’re pathetic.

Stupid.’

All the energy in my body was suddenly rushing to my face, it quivered with force.

‘Fuck pride, fuck fear.

I hate it.’

For the first time in years, I cried.

Actually cried.

Not out of fear or desperation… Maybe just a little, but I just let it all out.

…

It took hours before I calmed down.

‘She left a box in the counter…’ 

I hugged my knees tightly, my stomach grumbled.

‘I wish the fountain had ducks.’

— — —

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