The Colors That Bleed

Day 1

...Another day, ...another dollar... Turning over to see the time tells me it is... wheres my alarm clock? I look around the room and realize... this isn't my room. Where am I? The room I'm in is very minimalist with the only furniture I see is a table with a chair, the bed I'm in, and... a camera? Is this prank or something? There's a door on the opposite wall from me, maybe it's the exit. I get out of the bed and head for the door, only to find out it's locked, even after unlocking the bolt. A soft and deep beep plays overhead, followed by a slightly distorted voice of "reassurance." He calls himself "the Announcer" and explains the situation I am in.

"Before I start, please keep in mind this conversation is one way only, I cannot hear you. So please keep all questions until after today. The situation you are in right now is a killing game I created with 9 other people. Don't worry there is a way to escape safely, survive to the end of the week with the most kills. If that happens to you, you will be allowed to leave with no hidden restrain. However, if you get the 2nd most kills, you must play Russian Roulette with 1 bullet for escape. If you get the 3rd most kills, you must play with 2 bullets, and so on. Please keep in mind, kills serve no other purpose besides a point closer to escape. Discovering the killer does nothing for, nor against the killer, or the one who found the killer. Finding a killer only helps keep track of the points on everyone. Speaking of killing, I made it easy to kill, as all the rooms, including the ones you will discover, are completely soundproof. Not even a gunshot can be heard from the other side of the door. Speaking of... (a drawer from the wall opens to reveal a Pistol.) Here is the perfect tool to kill, a simple M18 Service Pistol. Inside is a single bullet, and next to it are instructions on how to operate the gun. Please take it, even if you have no intention to kill, take it for protection because the others will be given the same gun with the same amount of ammunition. If you haven't noticed yet, on each of your arms is a colored armband, the other 9 people will also have armbands but each has a different color. I heavily advise you to refer to both yourself and others according to the color. I assume the first and biggest question on your mind is 'Why would someone so twisted do this to an innocent me?' The simple answer is to show how far common people will go for their own survival. Now, before I open the doors and let the game start, one last thing I forgot to mention. As it stands it seems very one-sided against investigations since the rooms are soundproof, so if necessary, I will add a hint of my own to investigations if everyone is stuck. Since I have surveillance in every room of this building, I can guarantee that I will see every kill that happens, no matter the location. Now, I believe that is everything, in just a moment I will open everyone's door and let the game start. Before I do, keep in mind, if no one kills, everybody gets first place and gets to leave safely. Good luck."

I could barely understand almost anything he said before my door opened. I don't know what kind of people I would meet on the other side, Killers? Psychopaths? Whoever it is, I need to be ready, I'll keep my gun at the ready. Wait... I've never fired a gun, what if I miss my one bullet? What if someone shoots me before I even get a chance? How much kickback is this gun going to give me if I fire? Should I hide? I'm so dead! I'm so dead! I'm so dead! The door finally opens, I first saw a big, muscular man in a doorway across from mine. His armband is red, what does that mean? Is he a threat? Is he going to kill me? We lock eyes for a little bit, but when we did, I didn't see a killer, I saw someone who was just as scared and confused as me. I slowly look around outside my doorway, and I saw many other people with the same look of bafflement. Nobody had yet to even step out into the hallway yet. Should I step out? Will that make me a target? Will they kill me on sight? Should I just wait for someone else to-? Just as I thought that a tall man wearing a black leather overcoat stepped out, displaying nothing but confidence saying, "What? Are we all savages now? Come on out and show each other we are all decent human beings." One by one everyone slowly stepped out with their pistol in hand, including myself. The person to my right broke the silence and asked the one question we were all thinking. "Anyone wanna explain to me what the hell is going on?" The person who said that was a short, plump man who seemed confident in his pistol as if he knows his way around a gun. His armbands are Blue, but what does that mean? The initial guy who got us all out of our rooms answered. "If I heard correctly, there are 10 of us total each with uniquely colored armbands. Our goal, to survive, is to get the most kills by the end of the week. To make killing easy, everyone is given a gun with one bullet, and all the rooms are soundproof. To make finding the killer easier, and the announcer will give a hint if necessary." He was cut short by the Red man across from my door. "Yeah we heard him, but what does any of that mean?" So I'm not the only one with a LOT of questions, perfect. "I think I have a general understanding of this 'game,' how about I try and answer any question I can that you all have." Why is he so confident, how does he understand all this? "What do the armbands mean?" Looking at the first questioner, she looks like a fairly young, cute girl, her armband is white. She immediately turned her head away while her face turned red when everybody turned their attention toward her. He answered, "I believe they're nothing more than a name tag-like system. The announcer recommended that we refer to each other based on the colors. For instance, my color is black, sorry if it's had to see with the black coat, but because of this, you may all refer to me as Black." Wait a minute isn't there suppose to be 10 of us? I only count 9. "Didn't you say there is supposed to be 10 of us?" Black takes a second to look around and replies, "you're right, there's only 9 here." Without missing a beat I hear, "maybe someone already got a kill." The dark humor came from a girl with pigtails, an oversized hoodie colored in black and purple stripes and a devious grin on her face, her armband was purple as well. There's a door with no one standing in front of it, I slowly walk towards the doorway to see the last person. Looking inside, I see... a kid? WITH A GUN?! I move to the side and bring this to everyone's attention. No one enters the room because the kid is pointing her gun at the doorway crying, sitting at the foot of her bed. Her armband is orange. Black takes a look in and says, "This kid really shouldn't have a gun, I suggest we hold it from her." He tries to walk toward her but she screams to stay back still pointing her gun. Black and Orange start arguing leading nowhere, if this goes on any longer I'm going to get a headache from the screaming. "SHUT UP! Can't you see she's terrified? Shhhhhh it's ok, it's ok, everything is going to be ok." This one has a motherly tone, assertive but calming when it needs to be. Yellow. She was making her way to Orange, slowly, trying to calm her down. Orange was resilient at first but eventually gave in. Yellow was holding her in a hug that reminded me of my own mom, protective and loving. This is cute and all... but the kid still has a gun. "Getting that firearm off her, I'm sure, would make everyone more comfortable." It's like Black is reading my mind. Yellow and Orange whisper to each other for a bit, then Yellow says "she won't give up her gun, but I can teach her how to use it." I look around, and it looks like everyone has the same mixed feelings about that as me. "Fine, but from this point on, she is your responsibility. Speaking of more comfortable, I recommend all of us to holster our gun unless we plan to kill." Another good idea from Black. Everyone follows. "So what should we do now?" This person is Brown, he looks like if a teddy bear turned into a person, big and plump. "Let's examine our surroundings, look at any other rooms, look for an exit, maybe clues as to where we are, anything." At least it's not just waiting to see what happens, but who knows what we could find. Looking for rooms is a good place to start, see what kind of place we're in. Let's see... besides the rooms, we all came from, there is a dual bathroom with a sink and toilet in each, a laundry room with 6 washing machines and 6 dryers, and a cafeteria with a long table and a kitchen in the back with plenty of food. Oh, they have doughnuts, I'm sure the others won't mind me taking a quick break. One by one the others started gathering at the cafeteria table, Black was the last to enter, and when he did, he wasted no time. "Ok, what did we find so far?" Almost immediately someone answered, "so far, we have found 4 rooms excluding the bedrooms: the laundry room, bathrooms, cafeteria, and kitchen. Laundry has 6 washers, 6 dryers, and a few hampers as if we brought more than one outfit. Bathrooms are one male, one female with a sink and toilet in each behind doors with locks. The cafeteria has one long table with ten chairs, assumed to be one for each person here. And a kitchen connected through the cafeteria, the kitchen is just a storage room for food complete with a pantry side and a few refrigerators, full of food that can last up to a month." Short and brief, that's Gray, looking at her is like trying to tell a wall's emotions, no tells whatsoever, just a constant blank monotone face. "Just the essentials, this can definitely last us the week. Alright everyone, let's all take it easy and relax until we get out. There is no reason for anyone to kill, so let's not do anything stupid so we can all go back home. Dismissed." Ok, so Black is our self-appointed leader. At least he knows what he's doing, so I'm not against it. Well, there's not a lot to do, so imma take another doughnut and lie down for a bit to gather my thoughts. While I head there, the biggest question on my mind is, how is this 'killing game' suppose to start? If no one kills by 7 days, everyone goes home and pretends that this never happened...? In the middle of my train of thought, Purple stops me and strikes up a conversation I wished I missed.

Purple- So, who are you gonna kill first?
Green- ...Excuse me?
Purple- You and I both know someone is gonna screw up, you gotta plan for these things. Just like my dad told me before he died, you're never the best if you're never prepared for the worst.
Green- ...W-Well your dad was a smart man.
Purple- Kidding! I never had a dad. But seriously, when someone screws up, who's your first target?
Green- ... You think someone is going to accidentally kill someone?
Purple- That, or someone will start the killing game for fun. Wouldn't that be exciting?
Green- ... ... EXCITING?!
Purple- How about this, you don't seem ready for this kind of game. If the killing game starts, I will personally kill you myself, take you out of this hell before it gets too hot. Ok?
Green- ... ... ... K-... Kill... me?
Purple- Oh lighten up, I was only kidding... unless you want me to-
Green- No no no! That's fine, you don't have to do that!
Purple- Ok. Let me know if you change your mind.
Green- ...
Purple- Kidding! Come on, little white lies never hurt anyone. Anyway, night.
Green- ... Night...

Well, that was something. Is she already thinking about killing? Is she thinking about killing me?! Is she really going to wait for the game to start, or is she going to start it herself? Ow ow, huge headache. Stop thinking so much, but this doesn't make any sense. Maybe I can sleep on it and- WOW, this bed is comfy! The pillows and comforter are so soft, it's like a warm hug I never wanna leave. No, I need to think, maybe I should think of a plan in case anybody does kill as she said. I could stay in this bed forever... and relax for a week... that sounds nice... ... ...