The Adaptive Game

"SHATTERED"

- Emilia

"Conner. What are you doing here?"

"Please. You're the only person I have left. I need to get help with my leg or it'll get worse."

"I can't help you! We're enemies in this game."

"It doesn't mean we have to kill each other now! Emilia, this doesn't have to be a negotiation. We're friends, I need you this time and I need you now!"

He looks like hell. I don't know what to do.

"Urrr... Fine! I'll get you a splint. Stay here, sit down and don't move!"

I run back and take the splint, the I4S-DS, and a UlayCola for him to drink.

"I'm here, I'm here! I got the-"

Conner is in one piece, but he's being held still by Gavin and has a knife to his throat.

"CONNER!"

"I'M OKAY, EMILIA! Gavin, don't do this!"

"IT'S THE ONLY WAY I CAN WIN! I WANT TO GET OUT OF THIS STUPID GAME AND GO HOME! I WANT TO SEE MY BROTHER! HE'S THE ONLY FAMILY I HAVE LEFT!"

"And he wants to win his money so he can get himself a new home! He has ZERO money!"

Conner struggles to get out of Gavin's grip, but can't.

"Gavin, relax! We can deal with this later! We're not fighting right now."

"THERE ARE 4 HOURS LEFT! I'M GONNA END THIS!"

I tuck all the medical supplies into my bag, and take out my katana from my holster.

"Gavin, drop the knife! We're done!"

"YOU WANT ME TO DO IT? YOU THINK I WON'T DO IT?!"

A large bang goes off in the distance. All three of us turn our heads and see at light speed someone slamming right into Gavin.

"What the-"

Gavin immediately drops the knife and falls to the ground. And the person who knocked him over?

Shaun.

"Sorry Gavin."

Shaun loads a shell into his shotgun cannon and fires it, but then suddenly Gavin pushes Shaun's arm away and throws a mind-killer spider on his face.

"Gah! No, not this time!"

Shaun pulls the mind-killer off of his face and turns to face Gavin, but Gavin already has gotten into position, with Shaun's gun in his hand.

"You didn't have to cut me off."

He points his gun at Conner. Then at Shaun. Then at me.

He shoots Shaun, and Shaun jolts back with his hand covering his shoulder.

"Alright. Let's play."

Suddenly taking his hand off his wound, he activates his cannon again and knocks Gavin all the way back. Gavin takes cover and dumps the magazine on me. Luckily, he misses all of them.

I take Conner in my arms and drag him into cover, then walk over to where Gavin's hiding, nice and subtle.

Gavin dives out of cover, with a submachine gun and a mindkiller spider on his arm.

The mindkiller spider hops in my direction, but I'm fast enough to cut it in half with my katana.

However, this gives Gavin enough time to start spraying bullets at me, which many of them actually hit me. But I'm not done. The adrenaline is still spiked.

"GET HIM, EMILIA!"

Gavin starts sprinting away from us, but I already know what I'm gonna do.

With my KSG shotgun, I pepper him in the legs with buckshot. It hurts him bad and he falls over, and is completely unarmed.

"Alright, where are you going now?"

"HOME!"

There's something I don't see coming?

He draws a large pistol out of his coat. I can recognize it, it's a Desert Eagle.

Yes, I didn't see it coming. Cause the bullet hits me square in the chest.

On a hopeful note, all of us were given quality body armor with our gear. But, it doesn't save everyone, as you can tell.

The .50 Action Express that just hit me knocks all of the air out of my lungs - I'm not dead, but I feel like I've been punched through the chest.

No, not punched IN the chest. Punched THROUGH the chest.

Gavin shoves me down to the floor even more and gives me a hard and blunt punch in the face just to be sure - then Shaun comes behind him and stabs him in the neck!

"Take that, you son of a bitch!"

Gavin elbows Shaun back, and goes to face Shaun with his Desert Eagle.

I need to get up, and kill Gavin.

But instead, he picks me up and points the gun at me!

"I'll kill her! Step the fuck back!"

"Do it! I fucking dare you!"

Wait, was that an intimidation or a suggestion?

Gavin, with my shirt collar in his hand, lifts me up mid-air! As some kind of, scare tactic for Shaun, I guess.

But this isn't the first time people have done stuff like this... That's what it's like being short.

I still can kill Gavin. But I'm being held up, literally. My katana is holstered, so I need a distraction, or anything!

Shaun isn't a very good negotiator. Something needs to happen.

I know something needs to happen.

From behind me, I hear yelling!

This is something good!

I can faintly hear it, but something is coming.

"LEEEEEROYYYY..."

"CONNER!"

Conner charges by with a chair in his arms, using it as a battering ram!

"JENKIIIIIINS!"

Gavin drops me, and shoots Conner - the bullet passing through the chair.

Shaun, with Gavin distracted, blasts him with his knuckleboom. With my katana, I take the chance to jab the blade through his belly.

"GET HIM, SHAUN!"

Shaun puts one knee on Gavin and blows his face off with one last shot to the head.

Finally.

"Are you guys okay?"

"We're fine. Conner, take my splint and fix yourself up."

"I will, thanks. Everything in my body is shattered."