Righteous Royale Part 2
Dec 14, 2020 18:40:45 GMT -6
Deana Barrows, Jack Puffer, and 5 more like this
Post by heavenstobetsy on Dec 14, 2020 18:40:45 GMT -6
21:00
23 Hours Remaining
Eliminations: 3
1: Kylie Moore 2: Anonymous 3: PerZag 4: Ed Houston
Betsy and James huddle together in the cave used for their rendezvous point. Outside, waves crash against the jagged boulders that made up the shoreline of the island. White sprays of freezing water splash above the boulders and onto the sand. To her relief, Betsy had no problems finding the location on her map. Warstein had already been there when she arrived. Noah Jackson and Jackson Hart had found them not long after. They were still figuring out the island and how to use their surroundings to their advantage when Atara slipped in on silent feet.
Betsy looks up and greets her friend with a warm smile. She gestures to the spot next to her and Atara sits.
“If we want to stick together, we need to find a way to do so without actually traveling in a group. That will only attract attention to us and make it easier for everyone else to get us out of the way. But we don’t want to get so far ahead or behind one another that we aren’t within range to assist in case of ambush.” Betsy points down at the opened map in the center of the group. “You can bet your ass about half of those morons ran off into the woods to climb a tree and wait. Other’s on the more productive side are either strategizing like we are or attacking first, hoping for the element of surprise. Others just don’t care and will continue to terrorize after they are eliminated… Although, that may be another use for the collars.” Betsy uses the sand to start drawing out a battle strategy. “I guess that tag teams will think like we did and stick together to try and take out as many of us as possible. In theory, that should make them easier to spot. However, most of our opponents are lone wolves who are ready to tear each other apart about now. As long as we have each other’s backs and stay discreet, we should have no problem eliminating everyone else.”
“So how do we decide how we pair off and who takes what position in our lines?” James asks almost reverently. He’s not alone, Betsy’s battle plan has everyone looking at her with surprised eyes.
Betsy looks up for the first time and realizes everyone’s surprise. “Why does everyone keep forgetting I’m clever?”
“Forgive us, Dove, we’re not used to seeing you plan battle. But James asks a good question. We may have a common goal, but some of us don’t exactly see eye to eye.”
“We rotate,” Betsy replies. “Every two hours, we switch partners and positions. Eyes need to be everywhere and…” Betsy’s mouth quirks upward into a wicked grin. “We could all afford a team-building exercise now and again.”
01:00
19 Hours Remaining
Eliminated:
5: Anonymous 6: Sara Cross 7: Xavier Lux 8: Marcus Ka’Derrion 9: Anonymous
Camera’s spot Betsy and Fuzz walking together through thick foliage in the woods. They currently hold up the rear as the rest of their frenemies march ahead. The group had already taken down three folks of their own, including a satisfying moment for James and Noah that involved a double “kill” on Sins of the Father. Now the current aforementioned duo kept a comfortable silence between them for a long time, but Fuzz finally makes his way over to Betsy and falls in step with her.
“Tell me something, Bets. What is it you're hoping happens here tonight?”
“What do you mean?” Betsy asks, feigning ignorance.
“Don’t play dumb Bets, you aren’t good at it.”
She allows the silence to fall between them again as she ponders his question. “I suppose my main objective is to make sure James gets a fight that’s worthy of his skills.”
“Bullshit” Fuzz scoffs, opening mocking her now. “You wouldn’t have entered the rumble just to protect your Jimmy-Poo. You know the man is more than capable of handling whatever competitor comes his way; even when he has to carry them through the match itself.” Up ahead, Atara signals for a pause with her flashlight. They stop and both of them reach for their water tumblers. “Eventually, the rest of the competition will be out of the way and it’ll be just the six of us. I’m not an idiot, I know you’ve been thinking ahead to that.”
“I… Don’t have a plan yet.” Betsy replies, but something in her tone causes Warstein to glace over at her.
“Atara’s right, you know. Eventually, this cozy little faction is going to devolve into chaos. I hope you’re ready to do what needs to be done when the time comes.”
Betsy looks up and her emerald eyes seem to shine against the moonlight. “When the time comes… I will be.”
The two stare each other down for moments that drag on like eons. They break their stare when the flashlight signals for the group to begin moving again. Betsy and Shawn finish the rest of their rotation in silence, both lost in thought.
07:00
13 Hours Remaining
Eliminated:
10: Dylan Thomas 11: Dave Branson 12: Amelia Abernathy 13: Terry Marshall 14: Enforcer 15: Anonymous 16: Chad Vargas 17: Outcast 18: Jackson Hart 19: Jack Puffer
Several rotations have come and gone. As a group, they now had successfully taken down at least a third of their competition. However, an unfortunate ambush found themselves down a man. Jackson Hart had been eliminated when Jack Puffer had jumped out from behind a bush and got him square in the chest. He was quickly avenged.
Now Betsy and Atara were walking ahead of the guys, who had insisted on sticking together to cover the women. They’ve made their way through the thick of the woods and found themselves on the top of the cliffs just as the sun was rising. The terrain is bumpy with rocks mixed into the grass, and they were open to anyone hiding among the boulder or just beyond the treeline. The girls have made a game of skipping across the bigger rocks as they navigated on nimble feet for the men who trailed behind them.
“Have you ever thought about how you’d handle it if you ended up winning this lunacy?” Atara inquires, gracefully leaping to the next boulder.
“You mean if I become the number one contender and have to face James for the title?” Betsy retorts, jumping like a gazelle to the next rock. “Of course I’ve thought about it.”
“What if it’s not James you're facing?”
“You’re not serious, are you? You don’t think Mack O’Connor can beat James for the title, do you?” Betsy’s lets out a scornful laugh.
“No, but I do think that could anything could happen. Or have you forgotten so quickly how you fell victim to such bullshit in your XWF debut?”
Betsy cringes as the memory floods back unbidden. “I see your point.”
Both women stop dead their conversation dead and spin on their heels, guns raised, as a female voice calls out to them from the woods. The guys have already taken cover and are ready to defend the girls. A few moments later, Alice Knight busts through the clearing, gun over her shoulder and hands in the air.
“I thought that was you guys! Hey, it’s good to see your faces! Uh… Would it be alright if I joined up with you?”
Exchanging a smirk, Atara and Betsy lower their guns. Relief floods over Alice’s face, but it only lasts a moment. A shot goes off from behind her and a paintball hits her between her shoulder blades. She cries out in pain as Betsy and Atara drop and roll behind boulders. Betsy pokes her head around her boulder in time to see Mike Zybala, Raging Dead, one of the Anonymous entries, and Cartier all running from various spots along the treeline. It’s at this point that all hell breaks loose.
15:00
6 Hours Remaining
Eliminated
20: Michael Graves 21: The Big Bifford 22: Alice Knight 23: Raging Dead 24: Cartier 25: Outcast 26: Atara Themis 27: Noah Jackson
Back in the cave, only Betsy and Warstein survive of the actual competitors. James sits in between them as each one of them contemplates the events of the last few hours. A random, unrelated three-way attack led to the eliminations of Noah, Atara, and Alice. Before being taken out himself, Raging Dead had managed to eliminate Atara. In a fit of rage, Betsy jumped out and had taken care of Raging Dead. Before Zybala disappeared from the fray, he managed to take down Noah.
The three had made their way back to the cave without being followed. The silence had loomed between them for almost an hour now. Finally, Betsy decided to break it.
“Zybala is still out there.” She says, her voice quivering slightly. “We still need to keep our wits about us until we nab him.”
“Fuck that,” Shawn mutters. Betsy and James look up as he gets to his feet. “I’m not sitting around here and waiting to be snuck up or betrayed. This is as far as we go.” Turning, Shawn makes his way for the cave entrance.
Betsy jumps to her feet. “Wait! We haven’t finished the job yet! There’s still one to go.”
Shawn turns back and his eyes are hard. “Far as I’m concerned, there’s two.” With that, he leaves.
Shivering uncontrollably, Betsy turns back to James. “Now what?”
James sighs and shakes his head. “Now you do what needs to be done, Bets.”
19:00
1 Hour Remaining
Grabbing her flashlight, Betsy ducks under a thick bush and checks her map. James has made his way back to the safe house after Shawn had broken off from them. She was on her own. Using her finger, she draws a line from her spot to the entrance. 2 miles. At her pace, she’d be there in no time. But she’s all too aware of the fact that Shawn and Zybala were still out there as well. Looking around, she kills her light and stuffs everything back in her bag. Slinging it over her shoulder and tucking her gun under her arm, she takes a lookout and heads north.
When she hits the clearing, she stops dead. She quickly realizes she hasn’t been noticed and takes cover behind the trees. Fuzz and Zybala had already made it and were having a stand-off. Dropping down to her belly, Betsy carefully moves closer, finding a vantage point with a decent cover. She sets up her gun and stares down at the two men with her scope. Taking in a deep breath she aims… And lands a perfect shot square on Zybala’s ass.
She quickly ducks for cover as Warstein spins towards her and opens fire. When he pauses, she hears him curse and the click. He was empty. Jumping out from behind the rocks, Betsy fires… Bullseye. Fuzz looks down at the paint stain then up at Betsy in stark disbelief.
19:47
Game Over
Eliminated: 28: Mike Zybala 29: Shawn Warstein
Winner: Betsy Granger
James rushes out and hugs Betsy, but she has a faraway look on her face. His smile fades quickly and he takes a step back as she raises the gun towards him.
“I’m so sorry, my love.”
_____
“Sorry for what?”
“Huh?”
James’ voice is from far away, but she can feel him shaking her gently. She opens her eyes and realizes she’d been sleeping. Looking at James, she reaches over and touches his face softly.
“I just had the strangest dream… You were in it, as well as everyone from the Righteous Rumble. Deana and O’Connor were in there as well.”
“Sounds like a special kind of hell.” He says with a chuckle.
“Yeah… It was something, alright.” She gazes at him with warm eyes and smiles. “It was silly, anyway. Probably just my nerves over the rumble working themselves out.”
James pulls her in and they start to cuddle. He falls asleep quickly, allowing Betsy to stare at him thoughtfully, puzzling over her very telling dream...