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It's been days—or hours—weeks? Gosh, time is terrible in this place. The sun never rises and the moon remains stuck in the sky right up. Every clock that may be in the place all tick backwards, so no help there either.
Those were just some of the small observations her curious eyes made when they were first dropped in.
Now she has no time to dwell on such small matters. Who cares if time isn’t running smoothly, or that they don’t get hungry, when you’re being killed over and over and over and over—
She shakes her head. Thinking like that doesn’t get you out of the past. Present, Jane, focus on the present. The bandages go to the side, alcohol in the middle… How do the supplies get replenished after every day—round?—isn’t something she’s figured out yet. Will she ever get an answer though…?
The case clicks shut and she brushes a hand over the label. Even after running and dropping and kicking it to the side, it remains unscratched. At least the world provides her some use, something Robloxia never gave her. After spending years in their school, the hospital, surrounded by medical certificates, all she got for it were complaints. The others constantly thank her, it’s just her job… yet she smiles every time they offer.
The buzzer rings through the sky, and her heart leaps, stomach lurching. Trembling hands wrap around the handle and legs as hard as stone slowly support her body.
“Jane!”
She whips her head back to find the familial face.
“Stick by me, our plan hasn’t failed us yet.” Builderman adjusts his hat with a confident smile. She just replies with a shaky laugh.
“Dad… you never know what can happen, we might not be as lucky this time.”
“We don’t die forever though, that’s something, right?”
“I guess, but it doesn’t diminish the pain…” she shivers, gripping the handle tighter.
“I know, sweetheart, but we have to do what we can.”
Jane sighs in defeat. He’s right, there’s no point worrying about what there is to come, but it’s just death after death right before her eyes, as she clicks the case open to help and sees the new body slammed into the ground…
She sees it all the time.
If I was just faster, ran earlier, then maybe I could have helped!
The heavy weight on her shoulder snaps her back to reality, noticing her father’s worried gaze. “Uh…” she glances away for a second, “have you found anything on where we are yet…?”
He brings his hand up to ruffle her hair. “Nothing yet, but me and Shedletsky are working on it, so don’t worry about it.”
“Dad! Stop! I’m not a kid anymore!”
“You’ll always be in my eyes!”
“But you don’t ever do this to John, why am I the only victim?”
“Because you’re my little girl, John was always your mother’s.”
The memory replaces the fear and brings a smile to her face. Whenever they would argue, Jane always ran to dad while he ran to mum. They would argue for hours about who was right… but looking back, she realised it was definitely them laughing about the situation and pretending to defend their rightful kid in front of them.
Of course though, she was always right. That didn’t change.
The barometer drops and the pain comes flooding in all at once. The urge to claw out her brain seizes her muscles, but her will forces it down. The handle of the medkit digging into her palms. Her eyes clench shut, tears subtly forming.
Then it’s over. She opens them again, and sure enough.
They’re in one of the game arenas. Bloxxer offered the names to refer to them as ‘rounds’ and ‘arenas’, thinking of it as one large and unending game. The thought brings shivers down Jane’s spine.
New place, same objective. Collect scraps, swords, glass or whatnot and survive until the timer in the sky runs out.
Jane grits her teeth and readies herself. She spots Builderman in the distance and rushes over, not before hearing a scream from the other side. The two nod at each other and Jane sprints over, climbing and weaving through bushes and allies before reaching him.
“Brick! Over here!” She calls out and the swordsman darts over, checking behind to make sure —— wasn’t following.
“Jane it’s—it’s someone new, not 1x or that Coolkid…!” Brick heaves over, hands on his thighs and the sword on his back. He grips the wall and props himself up, the world spinning and entire body aching.
Builderman glances to where Brick came from. “No one there,” he mumbles, loud enough for Jane to hear, and walks down.
With the protection in place, Jane gets to work. There’s no time to assess just what is injured, the only thing needed is treating of external wounds—anything else just has to be dealt with. “Head up,” she says, and Brick complies with a scrunch of his features. “Bleeding from the back,” she leans in, “and definitely concussed… Just what did he do?” Jane asks and takes out a bandage and dabs it in alcohol before wrapping it around his head as swiftly as she can.
He winces at the added sharpness of the alcohol but keeps his wits about him. “He like… jumped up and slammed into the ground as I ran up to slash, sent me flying and I hit the ground pretty hard…” His fingers run along the bandage as Jane draws her hand back. It’s a temporary solution to the absolute pain coming from his head, but he knows her situation, there isn’t much she can do.
At least he understands. “That’s all for now,” and she tries to give him a thumbs up, but feels her hand paralysed.
“Thanks Jane, you da best!”
“It’s just my job.”
And the smile tugs at her lips.
She steps out to where Builderman was last, peeking around the corner, she sees him talking with someone… Who is that? She leans further, narrowing her eyes to scrutinise any features, but nothing. All she can see though is her dad’s furrowed brows and shaky eyes, did something happen?
Nevermind, not now! Jane steps back and leaves. He’s busy and she can handle herself. Well—er, not until the medkit is oddly replenished by the world. Whenever a glint catches her eye, she bends down to collect the broken glass, often hissing when it cuts her hands.
Each little injury causes her to hitch a breath. The supplies have to stay for the others, she reminds herself. It’s stupid why they have to collect things to bring the timer down, but anything to end this hell sooner.
The cycle repeats itself. Someone gets injured, Jane runs into action, Builderman is usually nearby to keep watch, and they disperse. Rinse and repeat, just like a hospital.
Tick, tock, tick… tock.
The ear-shattering sound booms across the playing field. The portal! Jane gasps and quickly finishes up the patient. “Try to ignore the injury as much as you can, and run!” Not the best advice to give, but Guest is an adult, he can handle it.
She’s close behind too, but the unyielding sense of a presence behind her constantly lingers in the pebbles she steps over.
There!
Her arms tremble and the adrenaline only grows stronger as she inches closer!
Didn’t Brick say it was someone new? So who?
The portal is in arms reach.
Curiosity beats rationality.
She stops for one second, and turns around.
And stares.
and stares.
…no.
…no
…ⁿᵒ …ⁿᵒₙₒⁿᵒ
…No
…ₙₒ ...no
…NO
NO NO
NO NO NO
NO NO NO
NO NO
NO.
no…
“ᴶᵒʰⁿ﹖”
something cold grabs her.
“John…”
frigid and firm. another set.
it advances.
“JOHN!” she struggles, “JOHN! JOHN!” she cries out.
they pull her back. she fights against the current, wanting to tear apart from them.
“JOOHHNNN! NO! LET ME GO! HE’S MY BROTHER! LET ME GO! JOHN! PLEASE! LET GO OF ME!”
he flashes before her eyes,
and she wakes up, tears pooling and breath startling.
The thick, piercing grass doesn’t go unnoticed by the Doe. She brushes her hands over, then rips some out. A figure looms over her, its shadow casting itself upon her battered features.
“Hey, we made it.”
Now she knows who pulled her back. Who refused her from looking her brother in the eye.
“...You.”
No longer does she try to steady her breathing, to force her tears back. No. She lets it all come out, from her face to her fists.
Jane stands up and faces her father, tears streaming and cords breaking. “WHY DID YOU PULL ME BACK?! THAT WAS JOHN! DID YOU NOT REALISE?! WHAT KIND OF DAD ARE YOU!”
“Jane, please, calm down—” Bloxxer interjects, extending a hand out, but Jane slaps it away.
“Why should I? Don’t I have the right to be angry? Wasn’t Shedletsky terrified when he saw 1x? WHY DON’T I GET THE RIGHT TO CARE FOR MY BROTHER!” The wind rustles the trees, carrying the silence with it.
Why did Bloxxer speak though?
Why…
…
Oh.
“So he was talking to you, then,” she spits out. “That’s why he looked so scared. He saw John, and instead of telling me about this newfound discovery, he decided to try and protect me by hiding the fact that my brother is being controlled by some—malicious force or whatnot,” she says with unnerving calmness.
When Builderman opens his mouth, Jane turns away, one step after the other, and leaves.
To where? Why does she know? The lobby is so small that they’ll find her in a matter of minutes anyways.
She resorts to climbing atop a building, dangling her legs off the end and allowing her tears to fall to the bottom of the world. At least the world allowed her this. Her heart.
When a pair of footsteps echo, she turns her head away. She knows those heavy and uncoordinated stomps, and her suspicions are confirmed when Builderman takes his seat beside.
“Nice view, right?”
No answer.
“Jane… please let me explain myself. You don’t have to forgive me, but I…” he trails off for a second, noticing her sheltering further.
“I’m sorry.”
She tightens.
“I’m… sorry for keeping this from you. I should have told you the moment I found out because—”
“Because what, dad? You feel sorry for me now?”
“Because I care for you, Jane, and you’re right. You’re not my little girl I can keep under my wing anymore, but maybe I like to pretend you are because the world is just so…”
“...bad?”
“Yeah, something like that.”
She slowly turns back around.
“My wife, your mother, she made me promise to forever take care of you both, to never let anything get out of hand. When I realised what happened to John, I…” he chokes for a second, gaze downcast, “didn’t want you to think I was weak, or you were next… because I failed to protect him…”
He stifles a sob, and Jane does too.
He always had a reason, and always made sense. That’s where Jane gets her unending accuracy from.
She shuffles closer. He wraps an arm around her.
“He can still be saved, right?”
“I don’t know sweetheart, but we can try.”