Alice in Borderland: New York

Pain (1): Three of Hearts (1)

Motorcycle noises started being heard all over the district. Jake and Teddy were there, ready to clear a game together, yet again... Teddy had explained the basics of the games. The suits, the difficulty... As long as it was not a hearts, it would be a piece of cake.

As they arrived near the hospital, it became clearer that no one was around... They were the only ones here. And it seemed good, because the registration limit for the upcoming game was only 2 players.
They entered, not even noticing the laser gate, and saw 2 doors, a red one and a blue one. Next to it, there was a sign saying: "1 per door". Jake, not thinking about it too much, entered through the Blue door, and Teddy through the red door. Suddenly, Jake heard a sound, and saw a white gas enter the room. He tried to hold his breath, but unfortunately, even someone like him could not stop breathing for that long. It was... Sleeping... gas.......

"Hey Jake! How's it going? What did you do yesterday? You left the casino at night." Teddy asked.

"I just had to give him a proper burial. I found a paper with coordinates on the map, so I buried him there. I think he tried to join a faction." Jake replied.

"Anyways, do you think we should play more games to increase our visas?I have quite a lot of days, but I don't think you have as much."

"Let's play together, in order to increase our chances of survival. Then, we will be able to help each other."

If only I knew what would happen, I would never have wanted for us to play together.

He woke up, strapped to a hospital bed. He tried to analyze the place. He saw multiple objects that could fit in a hospital: Scalpels, syringes, defibrillators, IV drips... But most importantly, Teddy was in the corner of the room... Crying. Jake looked at the screen, which displayed a card: The 3 of hearts. "Hey, calm down, it's only a 3, it can't be that bad!" Jake told Teddy.

The rules of the game were then announced: "
Game: Operation.
Difficulty: 3 of hearts.
Rules: Player Teddy is the Doctor, and player Jake is the patient. It is GAME CLEAR for the doctor if they manage to complete all their tasks within the allotted time limit, and GAME OVER for them if they fail to complete even one of the tasks. It is GAME CLEAR for the Patient if they remain alive at the end of the game."

"Remain... Alive... What tasks is that voice even talking about?" Jake screamed, confused and angry at the game creators.

"The first task is: The doctor must stab the patient in the leg with a scalpel. Difficulty of the operation: 1/10. You have 10 minutes to do so" The voice announced.

Teddy took a scalpel in his hands, and started shaking. Would he ever be able to do that? Jake was his only game partner, his only... friend... He was everything he had in that world.

Jake was still confused about what was happening, and realized he had one free arm. Was he supposed to... prevent Teddy from doing those tasks? Even if it guaranteed that he could survive, would he be able to kill Teddy? In the normal world, he was powerful, but... Teddy was the only person he could ever really trust. The only person he really liked.

"Come on Teddy! Do it! Stab my leg! After all, it can't be too harmful! I'm tough, I will survive!" Jake screamed.

"I- I'm sorry Jake!" Teddy screamed, closing his eyes and hitting Jake's leg with the scalpel. Blood sprayed from the wound, as Jake let out a scream of pain. Almost instantly, Teddy pulled the scalpel out and ran to the sink, crying. His hands shaking, he washed the scalpel clean of blood- Jake's blood- before returning.

"The doctor must cut the patient with the scalpel 3 times, then stab them once with an empty syringe. They have 10 minutes to do so. Difficulty of the operation: 4/10" The voice announced, without any emotion.

"Do it! DO. IT!" Jake screamed at Teddy.

Teddy tried to make the cuts as small as possible, still shaking. But he wasn't precise enough because of the shaking and, on the third cut, accidentally stabbed Jake in the abdomen. Letting out a scream of pain, Jake continued to tell Teddy to hurt him, pointing out where he could safely use the syringe.
Tears were blinding Teddy, but he still moved on. It was only a 3, after all... No task could force him to kill Jake, right? It was only to make him feel emotional pain... Right?

"The doctor must cut the patient in the chest, before stabbing them in the ankle 5 times. They have 10 minutes to do so. Difficulty of the operation: 8/10" The voice announced again. Teddy froze, and Jake paled. "Shit, that's wicked..." he thought to himself, looking up at Teddy.

Teddy tried calming down, and attempted to cut Jake's chest as slightly as possible. However, for the second part...

"I'm... So sorry for this, Jake!" Teddy screamed, before stabbing Jake in the ankle repeatedly. Jake let out cries of pain as the blade went through. When it was done, Teddy kicked a chair, before burying his face in his hands.

"This next task will be the very last one" The voice announced.

"It's almost over!" Jake said to Teddy, trying to encourage him. "The last one. Soon, it would all be over. As long as there was nothing extreme, it would be fine. It's only a 3, after all, isn't it?" Teddy thought to himself.

The voice then announced: "Difficulty of the Operation: 10/10.

The Doctor must put the Patient out of their misery. They may use any means necessary to get the Patient's heart to stop and CLEAR the game. They have 10 minutes to do so."