WARNING: homophobic and racist language, and gore as per usual.
"YOUR MEALTIME BEGINS now. All players please line up in the center."
The way the woman announced mealtime over the intercoms was similar to the way she announced the games each time. Far too cheery, and inappropriate for the situation at hand. Her jovial tone was more reminiscent of a blood-thirsting beast enjoying the stench of death at every corner, and the promise of a sacrifice made her excited. The disembodied voice was too optimistic and gleeful despite the horrors the contestants were presented with. It was just tone deaf and out of place, an insult directed at them, as if this happy-go-lucky persona was supposed to make the players feel safe, and less like prisoners being shepherded from their cells to the dining hall for their meal.
The way this facility worked was so meticulous that it almost did feel like a high functioning prison, and like sheep, the contestants did as they were told. It was all a part of the routine, the promise of food would momentarily drag the players out of their despair, and they would patiently stand in lines at the front of the stage as several workers pushed two-medical looking carts into the barracks, and rip off the stark-white sheets that covered the contents underneath it. Asuka briefly thought that the players were going to be served a dead body for dinner until the contents were revealed. Though, as the raven-haired woman shuffled into the line with the rest of the players, she couldn't help but notice the mass amount of triangle soldiers guarding the room.
Now that wasn't part of the routine.
Classical music accompanied their arrival like their very own theme song as they took their places, and a trickle of paranoia skittered up Asuka's spine as she examined them carefully. Immediately she was put on edge by their threatening aura spilling into the sombre room, their bright colours clashing against the dull theme with their guns perched in their hands, like they were prepared for something to happen. It's not unusual for a couple of soldiers to follow the workers into the dormitory when they distributed rations to the players, especially when the room was filled with agitated, hungry contestants who had just experienced copious amounts of death and trauma, and could easily create an uproar and overpower them. The soldiers would accompany them for their own safety, but it only felt threatening when seeing so many in one place.
Since waking up in this strange place, the dormitory had become something of a crude safe space for the players considering they were less likely to die in here, than out in the games, but still. That didn't completely rule out the possibility. They already had one particular player who roamed the barracks with his chest puffed out, tormenting anyone who looked at him funny, one who was happy to beat the shit out of a girl who was half the size of him. Not to mention that the guards hadn't even showed up until the last second to announce their arrival and scare everyone into silence.
