Her heartbeat was roaring in her ears when she woke up.
The cotton sheets of her pillow rubbed up against her sore head as she shifted underneath her blanket. Her stomach twisted and turned within the confines of her abdomen. Nausea was something that was familiar to Carmine; the packets of frozen food that she ate during the nights would often not sit in her stomach right while she slept, and she would usually be at the verge of throwing it up in the early hours of the morning. Even the light filtering through the cheap plastic blinds hanging in her bedroom made her want to puke. A groan crept through her partially open lips as she rolled onto her back, her stomach protesting loudly with every movement she made. Did I get drunk and black out or something? she thought to herself, her eyes remaining screwed shut as she struggled her best to get some semblance of what happened the night prior. But no matter how hard she tried to think, nothing really strange came up within the confines of her mind—other than the nightmare that plagued her the night prior.
A weary groan escaped her lips as she threw her legs over the side of her bed. It creaked loudly as she moved, which only aggravated her throbbing headache. She was not brave enough to open her eyes; she waited until her light-headedness went away, and that was when her eyes crept out from behind her eyelids. The rays of sunlight, pale gold in the morning breeze, shone brightly into the room. Even if she did not puke up the contents of her stomach, the bright sunbeams taunted her from beyond her window frame. She was lucky she could get out of bed, but even luckier that she did have work today. And if by some chance she did have work, it would not have been a good day. She wasn't even sure if she would have been able to properly fix her dark, matted hair, much less apply the usual blush and mascara to her exhausted and dry features.
It took longer than it should have for Carmine to shower. Perhaps she shouldn't have decided that right then was a good time to shave her legs. It certainly wasn't fun to nurse the bleeding wounds that littered her ankles, and even it was even worse to watch it mingle with the bathwater as she stood in the shower. Her stomach turned again, and she prevented herself from gagging. Maybe I should watch what I eat today, she thought disdainfully, stepping out of the shower as she grumbled a curse to herself.
After drying off her hair and let it fall over her shoulders, she pulled on the clothing that she laid out overnight; a soft, pink short-sleeved sweater and a pair of gray cotton yoga pants. She eyed herself in the mirror, noticing the dark rings below her eyes. "Wow," she sighed, running a hand through her hair. "I really do look like shit."
It wasn't like she really cared, anyway—it was the weekend, and a chilly one, at that. So what if her limbs ached and her head throbbed every time she moved? Carmine didn't have any big plans, anyway. That, and she looked pretty decent for someone who actually felt like passing out for the rest of the day. She left the bathroom, pulled on a dusty old cardigan hanging from the closet, grabbed her purse, and stepped out of the door to her small apartment. The musty smell of the apartment complex's corridors reached her nostrils, stronger than ever. She cringed at the stank, covering her nose as she marched down the stairs and out the door.
Carmine released her grip on her nose, wondering what exactly could be wrong with her. It couldn't just be the frozen food, could it? Maybe it was that moldy donut she ate as dessert. Or maybe it was the several hours of League of Legends she played before getting to bed.
League was her favorite pastime. Sure, it was just some stupid little game that one could easily get addicted to, but to her, it was something more. Each match was different— with two teams, five roles, three lanes, and an area known as the jungle on each side, each player had some sort of purpose that they had to fulfill via picking from a multitude of different characters, or "champions". Top lane players were the tanks that absorbed damage from the damage dealers and made sure to keep them away from their powerful teammates, junglers were the ones who lurked in the shadows of the brush and jungle camps, just waiting to pounce on unwary prey, mid lane and attack damage carries were usually the champions who dealt huge amounts of damage but died rather easily, and supports were the ones who kept the players alive by healing, shielding, and locking enemies in place using specific spells.
To her, League was something that she was extremely passionate about. She could spend the whole day playing without getting bored of the game. She could play by herself, with friends, with enemies, or even fool around and test something new. The possibilities were endless. And luckily, Carmine had friends in Darkwell City that actually played, so she could actually hang out with them and talk about her previous games in person.
It was true that she might play a little too much, but it wasn't like she had anything better to do. Nothing exciting happened in Darkwell, anyway. They were lucky if they got a Christmas parade in the winter, or if the kids went Easter egg hunting in the spring. It felt as if a whole year was really a decade within the small town, and a decade was just a string of centuries. Time seemed to truly stop within the borders of Darkwell, but that was probably because the citizens really had nothing to do in their spare time—other than loiter at bars or watch movies at home.
Some time passed by before Carmine found herself at her destination: a cozy little café on one of many street corners. As she pushed open the glass-paned door, she felt the smell of dark roast coffee work its way into her nostrils. A couple of people stuck near the windows as they sat at round, pale oak tables, seemingly unbothered with the light that filtered through the clean glass. Even though they spoke, their voices were almost a drone as they discussed the night prior and what they had planned for the day.
"Carmine!" a familiar voice rang out, cheery and bright much like the scathing sun. Her light brown eyes flickered towards the area it sounded from, almost expecting the caramel-haired woman sitting at one of the corner seats. Her smile only widened as she was noticed. "You're late… I thought you'd never get here!"
With a sigh, she shook her head as she strode towards the table. She slung her purse over the backrest of the wooden chair before sitting down across from her friend. "Sorry, Naomi," Carmine couldn't help but apologize half-heartedly. "I had a bad night. I woke up feeling like I had the flu."
Naomi's bright blue eyes widened. "I feel you," she said. "I think it's just that time of year again. Flus and germs and sneezing and all. I think my allergies are even starting to act up."
"But you don't even have allergies."
"That's what I thought!" Naomi pouted childishly. "But you can't explain waking up feeling like you have a balloon for your head! I couldn't even breathe properly for the first half of the morning. It was like having a cat sitting on my chest—"
Carmine shook her head as Naomi continued to rant about her terrible first hours of the day. Sure, her voice was a hassle to deal with when she still felt the fuzz from her dreams still lurking around in her head, but she really was a good, loyal friend. She had known her for about three years, ever since she arrived in Darkwell. Naomi had been the one to introduce her to her own friends and even helped her get a place for herself. She didn't know if it was because she just liked her or she just pitied her for being alone.
The black-haired woman rubbed the surface of the table with her index finger as she listened to Naomi drone on. "Naomi, did you order my coffee?" she asked her, interrupting her frivolous monologue about stale bagels.
"Yeah, I did," she answered, narrowing her eyes at her as her tone became somewhat offended. "Do you really think I'm that forgetful?"
Carmine snickered. "I don't know. After last night, I think I'm prone to believing anything you did."
Naomi's eyes widened slightly. "So what if I forgot to build sightstone in our games?" she cried out. "I'm human! I make mistakes!"
"Yeah, and the lack of vision in our jungle caused us to lose the game," Carmine became somewhat sour as she remembered the matches that she played with Naomi. She had always been a support player, and she knew that wards were important when it came to protecting her teammates from the games' murky fog-of-war. But Naomi was somewhat of an airhead—she often forgot to buy game-changing items from the store. Once, she had even bought an item that did not work hand-in-hand with her champion at all. There were only certain types of items that one could buy for a champion to make them relevant in team fights, and if you fucked up or fooled around, then you'd be useless when it came to a game-changing moment. "Do you have any idea how many times the enemy players killed me on our side of the map?"
Before her friend could open her mouth to retaliate, one of the café workers pranced over to their table with two cups upon the tray that he carried. Steam drifted off the lips of the porcelain mugs as the waiter set them upon their table, complete with a coaster to prevent rings of moisture from staining the wood of the table itself. The sight of the delicious coffee distracted the two friends from their disagreement as Carmine was the first one to grab a hold of the hot cup.
"You know, they say that Nidalee is good in the jungle now," Naomi explained.
"Duh," Carmine rolled her eyes as she blew the hot steam from the cup. "That's why I play her so much. There's just something satisfying about max-range spears, and leaping onto an ADC in her cougar form and chunking their health bars."
"She looks pretty fun, but you know I suck at playing a damage dealing role."
"I hate to break it to you, but I'm pretty sure you suck overall."
"Hahaha. Very funny."
Banter was a common occurrence between the two friends. Carmine noticed that she was not bothered by Naomi's feeble attempts at trying to be "mean to her", as she would call it. She was sure that the younger woman was indifferent to the jabs that she tossed at her, as she had never brought it before no matter how heated their little "arguments" became. "Honestly though, she is actually pretty fun. She was one of the first champions I've ever tried, even though I completely did shit at her," Carmine continued, ripping the top off of a sugar packet before dumping its contents into the coffee.
Naomi sipped at her own mug, swinging her legs from atop the high chair she sat in. "Mhm," she simply said in response.
"Anyway," Carmine played with the small spoon that was given to her along with her drink before placing it within the container. She stirred the silky drink, watching the froth swish around in a circle as it flowed around the shaft of her spoon. The word she uttered brought Naomi's eyes back to her. "How'd that date with Xavier go?"
The other female spluttered at the question. "What—" she coughed, her cheeks becoming dusted with red. "What's with you asking all of a sudden?"
"Well, it's been like a week since you went out with him, and you haven't even said a word to me about it yet."
The brunette puffed out her cheeks, seemingly realizing that her friend wasn't going to give up until she gave her an answer. "It was terrible," Naomi sighed, resting her chin in her hand.
"What?" Carmine couldn't help but feel surprised. Naomi had met Xavier in school, and their relationship delved deeper once they discovered they had a similar love for video gaming; when Naomi found out that Xavier played League, the two of them had played several games with one another.
It wasn't long before Naomi's eyes once again drifted down to the coffee before her. "So, like," she began awkwardly, swinging her spoon as she avoided eye contact. "He's pretty cute and all, but he wouldn't shut up about himself. I literally learned all about him. Like, literally," she leaned forward in her seat. "He wouldn't keep his trap shut."
"Well, what do you expect when a rich boy takes you out to eat," Carmine snorted.
"I didn't think he was one of those rich boys."
"Really now?" she tipped her head. "I could smell those kinds of people from far away, and trust me, he stank of arrogance."
Naomi huffed. "I'm not as smart as you are, you know," she retorted almost immediately. She could tell that she really was embarrassed about the whole ordeal.
Deciding to let the whole ordeal finish once and for all, Carmine gulped down her coffee in silence. It was funny to see Naomi get all flustered about her errors, even though the object of humor certainly didn't think so. "What do you have planned for today?" she asked.
"Dunno," Naomi shrugged. "Probably gonna get home soon."
"Home? Already?"
"I really don't feel all too well."
"Are the allergies really messing you up that much?" Carmine quirked a brow, prodding her for the source of her discomfort.
Naomi nodded her head. "It's really weird," she said, looking out the window at a couple that passed by. "I felt just fine yesterday, but now I feel like I'm literally drowning."
"Maybe you should go and pick up some Claritin," the raven-haired woman explained. Even though Naomi could be considered somewhat of a person that exaggerated, seeing her friend in such a state concerned her greatly. The fall-time allergens hadn't even made a huge impact. "Or maybe it's just that you're getting sick."
"Maybe," Naomi sniffled.
Carmine sighed in response. It was during these times that she truly felt like a mother, especially towards Naomi; even though the girl was only two years younger than her, it was as if she had to take care of a baby. Though, she couldn't really complain. She liked having someone to care for, even if it was a rather loud young woman with a bad taste in boys. "Just take care of yourself," she told her, setting down her empty cup upon the coaster.
"I will," her companion replied.
"That means no playing League for tonight," she emphasized what she meant sternly, much to the distain of Naomi, who groaned in response.
"But the ranked season ends soon, and I gotta get out of bronze!"
"You have enough time for that—and even if you don't, you have next year, too. I don't want you to text me at three in the morning saying that you threw up because you played five games while you were sick."
"Finnneeeee," Naomi sighed, grimacing as if she had just swallowed a spoonful of cough syrup. Carmine watched as she pulled her wallet from her purse and unzipped the side in order to gain access to her coins. Her fingers struggled to pull out several quarters from the confines of the pouch, but once she was done with the battle with her wallet, she had four large coins sitting upon the table. "It's a good thing that this coffee is so cheap," she said as she poked the quarters. "A dollar a cup isn't much to complain about."
Carmine hummed in agreement, pulling out a dollar from her own wallet. She set it beside Naomi's quarters as she thought about what she was going to do when she didn't have her friend around. Usually, they just roamed the streets and talked, but it appeared as if her plans would have to change. "I guess I'll see you around, then," she told her as she got up from her seat and slung her purse over her shoulders. "Text me if you need anything and I'll pass by the pharmacy before I get home."
Naomi only nodded at her proposition, and that was when Carmine waved in farewell. She knew that her friend didn't like to follow her directions, most of the time—but this was something fairly important, at least, to her. If she didn't tell her to get rest, then she would whine to her over text message or the phone, and she would have to explain that she told her to rest when she didn't. It was an endless cycle.
At least the coffee was good, Carmine thought as she exited the café, feeling the chill of autumn once again ravage her exposed skin. Even though Darkwell was near the border of northern California, she felt as if the temperatures were lower than usual. Then again… she probably should have worn something that covered her more. The short-sleeved, pink sweater that covered her torso wasn't really doing anything to protect her body from the chilly breeze. She cursed herself, rubbing her bare arms as she braced herself in the wind. Shit. I don't know what told me to wear this in the first place…
Despite being somewhat uncomfortable in the breezy weather, she continued to make her way down the street. "If Naomi isn't available to hang out, then I'll just go through the rest of my contacts," she muttered to herself as she pulled out her phone. Her fingers swiped down the contact list as she searched for a familiar name. It was funny to see how many people were on the list in the first place—she still even had numbers from her friends back at New York, and she didn't even talk to them much anymore.
She didn't really find someone who she wanted to spend the day with. Most of her friends were alright, she guessed… but Carmine found herself to be extremely picky for that day. Not to mention, she was beginning to feel a little ill as well. I really hope that Naomi didn't give me her little bug, she cursed under her breath. She was pretty sure that she got her flu shot just before the school year started, but she was beginning to feel her face start to heat up.
It was probably best if she were to get home, even if it was only two o clock in the afternoon. But it would be even worse if she got extremely sick—Carmine hated to be sick in the first place. Especially if she could have taken precautions to prevent disease from infiltrating her immune system…
Not many people drove down the streets as she made her way home. It was strange to see Darkwell in such a state; usually people would be up and about during the early hours of the afternoon. There would be mothers bustling about the town square, struggling to do errands while their children were at school. The students from the nearby community college would roam around the streets in search of food. But now, there was hardly a dozen people up and about. It was quite strange to see on a weekday.
As Carmine walked, she felt her phone buzz within the confines of her purse. She dug her hand into the bag and once again pulled out her cellphone. The screen flashed with a text notification, but she didn't even bother to read it. Whoever sent it would probably keep spamming her with messages if they saw that she read it, and honestly, she wasn't in the mood to have her phone be flooded with texts in the first place. She shoved the phone back into the purse, zipping it shut and deciding to ignore whoever else tried to get in contact with her. Even the bright light from the screen got her nauseous enough.
She couldn't get over how weird this all was; first, there was the strange dream, and then it was the aches and pains, and now the fever and chills. Something had to have happened the night prior in order to make her feel this way. There had to have been something other than the several games she played. Carmine hoped that a good bowl of soup or ginger ale would make her feel better. If not… then she should probably make an appointment to go to the doctor if she didn't feel better tomorrow.
Just like she left her home to go to the café, it felt like forever to get back to the apartment complex. As if she were some sort of soldier, she marched up the stairs and pulled out the keys to her own little living space. It took some effort for her to push open the door to her room, her body basically screaming in complaint as she dealt with the faulty lock with force. Jesus Christ, she thought, finally able to shove the door open. It's a miracle that they still haven't bothered to check the quality of these damned doors. I wouldn't be surprised if I'm locked out during the winter, when the frosty weather sets in.
The thought of being stranded outside her apartment while she waited for her landlord to go fix it in the dead of winter made her blood boil. It was a shame that the guy didn't take her complaints seriously. Then again, he really never listened to the protests in the first place. Typically, Mister Garland was your normal landlord: fussy, angry, and one of those people who didn't want to deal with bullshit.
Carmine rushed to get herself into warmer clothing as soon as the door closed behind her. She slipped on one of the few pajamas she had—even though they were embroidered with some sort of childish Disney character, she liked how warm and comfortable they made her feel. "Finally," she told herself as she slipped into her slippers. "I didn't want to be outside for too long, anyway."
She sloppily folded the clothing that she had worn for the few hours she was outside and placed them within the drawers. They didn't smell, so they didn't need to be washed. Mister Garland would probably have her head if she did laundry too often, anyway, and so Carmine tried to only use the washing machine once every week or so.
The wooden floors of the apartment building creaked as she walked into the small dormitory she had. Her bed was messy, still having not been made since the morning. Light still blared through the window onto the wrinkled sheets. I'll fix that later.
The empty space that the coffee filled in her stomach was once again vacant. Carmine was surprised to hear her belly grumbling lightly to itself. She shrugged. Usually a cup of coffee lasted her a few hours, until dinner time. But maybe her body needed the extra food in order to fend off whatever little ailment she had. Plucking a packet of ramen from one of the cabinets at her desk, she carried it to the kitchen and tore it open. Her fingers deftly worked to open the smaller packets within the plastic bowl, filling the container up with tap water before dumping them inside. Within a few short moments, the ramen was being heated up by the microwave.
Carmine leaned against the small table that her microwave was on, eagerly waiting for the three minutes to pass. She was never fond of processed foods, but the hunger had been clawing at her stomach ever since she got home. It was like something that she had never even heard of; her famished body was not only begging for food, but her legs and arms itched to do something. What, she didn't know. She brushed it off as if it was some sort of anxiety attack, and continued to watch the timer tick away. The few moments of "peace" were interrupted when something abruptly brushed against her elbow, making her practically jump up in shock.
But when she turned around to see who was her supposed assailant, she was only met with wide, inquisitive orange eyes. "Oh," Carmine forced herself to relax as she saw that it was just her cat. The brown-furred creature pointed his berry pink nose towards her as he sniffed the air. "Hi, Stripes. You're up early."
The cat simply blinked at her, twitching his tail as he watched her pull the ramen from the microwave oven. After she finally settled down behind the cheap countertop, she flicked on the dusty old mini television that had found a place near the microwave itself. It took a while for it to power on, but luckily, it was able to show her a vague image of a pair of news casters. While it produced a light static sound and the picture wavered slightly, Carmine couldn't bring herself to complain. She was lucky she had a television, after all. She watched the screen intently, chewing on ramen noodles as Stripes laid on the table next to her.
"We now bring you to the daily report," said the woman in the pretty dress as she stared back at her. "We've received details about a rabid dog in the area. Last night, at approximately one o clock in the morning, bystanders within the alleyways of Darkwell reported that they saw a large creature traversing the district. It was only described to be skittish while it avoided human contact. This morning, a man was discovered mortally wounded within the alleyways as well. He was rushed to the hospital where he later died. Authorities say that citizens should avoid going out in late hours of the night and should always be in plain sight. Travelling with others is recommended. Now, continuing on, look at how cute this dog is—"
Carmine realized that she had stopped eating her noodles, staring at the television screen while she was mid-chew. What?
There was no way that… that dream of hers was true. It would be as crazy as saying that she was a skin-walker, or skin-changer, or whatever, and those things only existed in fantasy tales. Then what exactly was that dream? Had she predicted the future? Or was it just coincidence?
Her phone snapped her out of her trance, once again buzzing from the inside of her pajama's pocket. Carmine was almost afraid to pick it up. Had someone else found out about the news and was rushing to tell her? Or was it that someone she knew had gotten hurt by that rampaging dog? Her hands felt cold and clammy as she shoved her hand into her pocket, pulling out her phone and swiping to unlock it. She stared at the screen, struggling to comprehend the simple words that blared up at her.
LIAM: Hey. League?
She stared at the screen for a while longer before she found herself typing a reply.
ME: Sure. Who's playing?
LIAM: Just me and Zach. Naomi says she can't play.
ME: Ya she's sick. Told her not to play today. I'll be on in a bit. Finishing my lunch.
LIAM: Kk.
Carmine hesitantly turned off the television before turning back to her so-called meal. The sight of the pale noodles in the tap-water broth made her stomach turn, no matter how hungry she had been before. There's no way that I'm connected to that incident at all, she told herself sternly. It's the craziest thing that I have ever thought of.
Deciding that the ramen would not satisfy her, she dumped the contents of the plastic container into the garbage. But even as she washed her fork and spoon, the silence in her apartment unnerved her. She never felt anxious within her own living space, especially after spreading her wings and leaving home. Carmine forced herself to calm down, knowing that she was still just worried about the news. Kicking herself mentally, she reassured herself that it was stupid for her to keep fretting about some sort of rabid dog being loose in the neighborhood. She was indoors. There was no way that anything bad could happen to her behind a closed door.
She brushed off her hands and made her way back to her room, booting up her desktop. The black screen that greeted her when she got home blossomed into life within a few moments. But Carmine kicked herself mentally as the computer began to load up the start-up programs: Skype, Discord, and League began to show up upon the screen. She closed Skype and kept open Discord while she logged into League. Her earbuds found their place within her ears as she joined Discord's voice channel.
"—so what exactly do you want to play?" she recognized her Liam's voice almost immediately. She had known Liam almost as long as she did Naomi, having met him when he came into her workplace.
"Dunno," Zachary's voice came next. He never really spoke much, and when he did, he was rather blunt and dry. "I'll probably choose mid or top again."
"But I want to practice my Azir. Haven't played him since he got gutted by nerfs…"
"You that you can play whatever you want, Liam," Carmine finally spoke up. "If you wanna play Azir, then just do it."
Liam made a sound of disdain. "I'm not doing well as him recently."
"Then why not keep practicing?"
"'Cause we want to play ranked."
"Ranked?" Carmine was confused. "There's only a week till the end of the season. What's the point in trying to climb the ladder now of all times?"
"Don't know," she could picture Liam's shoulders shrug. "Zach is the one who wants to play."
"I want to see if I can make it to silver," Zach's voice sounded once again. "I've been in bronze for the whole year, and I'm finally in my promotion games."
Carmine chewed on the inside of her mouth. She really just wanted to have fun playing the damn game for once. "Alright…" she agreed reluctantly.
"Okay, then," Liam spoke. "I'll just play support. It's easy enough to do at this level."
"I'll go top. I'm better at tank Ekko rather than full AP Ekko."
"I'll go jungle, then," Carmine added. "I promise that I'll carry this game for you, Zach."
The older man simply snorted in reply. Within moments, the trio were in a lobby as they waited to get placed with two others in order to play. Carmine hoped she would get her role—she inserted jungle and mid as her options, and it always worked when it came to securing a spot in jungle.
As they waited, Liam's voice spoke up again. "I thought you had work today, Carmine, but I texted you to play just in case," he told her.
"Nah. Isabella took over my shift today," she replied as she watched the screen. "I've worked this whole month. I haven't been able to take a day off, so she told me to take a little vacation until next week."
"Oh? Then are you going to the party?" he questioned.
"What party?"
"There's a party happening at the city diner tomorrow at noon," Liam explained to her. "Sully is hosting it. He sent fliers all over the place."
Sully was a name that most of her friends knew. He appeared to be a man in his mid-thirties and spent much of his free time at Darkwell City Diner. Even though he stayed mostly to himself as he indulged in newspapers, he always seemed to know many things about everyone. It wasn't surprising, at least, to her; he did spend hours in a very public place, and even had a good ear for picking up information. Even though he was quite the strange individual, he still did things for the city—which included holding parties and even celebrations to keep Darkwell's moral intact. "What's the celebration for this time?" Carmine raised a brow as their queue ended, sending them into champion select. She couldn't help but smile as they were placed on the blue side, which meant that their time would be slightly easier than if they were placed on the red side. Not only that, she had even gotten placed in her desired role, jungle.
"Darkwell's hundredth anniversary is soon, apparently," Liam sighed, sounding deep in thought. "Hey, Zach, you got top. Great."
"I'm ready for you to carry me as support," Zach's voice was somewhat humorous as he proclaimed his own trademark champion. "Give me Ekko, and I can carry the game myself."
Liam scoffed. "I really would have liked to play mid lane. Hopefully this guy knows how to play his god damn role."
Carmine rolled her eyes. She knew how Liam felt. If she didn't get her role, usually the one who did played like shit. "Just focus on playing," she said. "You can pull out that Thresh of yours."
Liam muttered in reply, falling silent as the ban phase rolled around. She never really liked the ban phase. It lasted about a few minutes, and the first two people who were allowed to pick their champions had no chance to pick a champion to ban from the game. The last three players on each side, however, had an option to pick one champion each to ban from the game that they were about to play. Unfortunately, Carmine found that she was second pick, and would not have the likelihood to ban a champion that she didn't want to play against.
It felt like an eternity before she was finally close to be able to choose her champion. But the teammate before her waited until the last second to pick his own champion to play. "First pick Zed?" Carmine said in surprise. As an assassin that relied mostly on signaling out an individual enemy, picking Ze didn't seem much like a good idea to her.
"It's bronze," Zach replied as he watched the first two enemy players picked their champions next. "Pretty much anything can work if you have enough determination."
She couldn't really argue with that kind of statement. Since they were ranked so low and played extremely poorly, one could literally play anything and win if you did well enough. Carmine didn't say anything else as she picked Nidalee, locking it before the timer ran out.
Champion select took a little while, but soon enough they were in the loading screen. "Hey, did you guys hear about that dog that attacked the poor guy in the alley?" Liam spoke up once again.
"Yeah," Carmine really didn't want to hear anything else about the damn dog. She had just gotten herself to relax.
Zach made a humming sound, as if he had just heard Liam's question. "Dog?"
"Dog, yeah," Liam repeated. "Some mongrel mauled a poor guy in the alley. It even killed him."
"Weird," Zach simply said.
"Just focus on the game. Don't you guys see that we've loaded in already?" she wanted nothing else than for them to shut up about the news. It was probably just going to blow over by the next week. Seriously, why couldn't they just shut up about the damn dog?
The first few minutes of the game passed by rather normally. Liam protected his ADC using his Thresh mechanics—he kept the enemy ADC and support away while his partner farmed the minions for gold. Zach spent the time farming and trying to harass the enemy Nasus out of lane before he could get much gold; if he kept it up, then the enemy top laner would have a very difficult time catching up to the rest of his team. He'd basically be useless if Zach continued to bully him like he was.
Carmine noticed that their mid laner played rather well for someone who instantly picked an assassin—especially since he was even going up against someone who attacked him every time he went up to farm gold. It was interesting to see that he still didn't die to an enemy Lux, who could easily stun and burst him down with her spells before he could even use summoner spells in order to flash away. Maybe they did have a chance at winning, after all. But she couldn't speak so soon—anything could happen throughout the course of the whole game, no matter how ahead they were.
That was where she came in. As someone who played Nidalee, she had to make sure to get other lanes got ahead while she kept the enemy behind. And so, when she had slain enough jungle monsters and gotten enough gold from them, she decided that it was finally time to gank lanes and make an impact on the game.
Ganking was something she was good at, or so she believed. The role of a jungler basically revolved around the act of ambushing opponents as they traversed the jungle, invaded, or pushed up their lane too much. Avoiding detection and helping her teammates was her cause.
"You guys are doing great," Carmine said into her computer screen as Liam landed a hook from a brush he hid in. With the enemy ADC stunned and disabled, she took advantage and landed a spear from her own hiding place over a nearby wall. It chunked the Ezreal's health, and which allowed their Caitlyn to use her ultimate ability to finish him off.
"Their Blitzcrank has been doing nothing but sitting back and allowing us to fuck Ezreal up the ass," Liam sounded content. "It's not that hard to play support, especially if you're playing one who's so easy to learn."
Carmine grinned. They were lucky that the enemy bot lane weren't so hot about each other. That, and the Nasus was getting destroyed by Zach as well. The enemy jungler, an Elise, didn't even show her face yet. Elise was a jungler that was similar to Nidalee—she had to make a difference early, and if she didn't, well… she was as good as useless.
Her attention turned to mid lane. The Zed had gotten a kill on his lane opponent, and was already playing extremely aggressive. Maybe I should add more pressure to mid, Carmine thought as she made her way back up the jungle's river. It was good that the Zed had seen that she was coming his way, and so he adjusted his playstyle; he allowed the minions, filled with gold, to push more towards him, while Lux had to overextend before she could even get some gold for her items.
Carmine hid in a brush for a while, waiting until the minions did not block the way of a properly aimed spear. But as soon as that moment came and Lux's health was slashed down to about half with one max range spear, Zed did not follow up. What is this Zed doing? she thought as she pressed the button to shift into her cougar form and leapt into the lane. This is a free kill!
Before she could even touch the Lux even further, the mage tossed out her snare and rooted her into place. And before she could even leap away from any other damage dealing abilities, she was dead. Carmine was left staring at a gray screen and her crumpled corpse.
FEERSOHM (Zed): wow you suck
She couldn't believe that the mid laner had even typed that to her. Carmine had broken her back in trying to help her teammates, and with one mistake, he started to flame her. Her fingers quickly typed a message back as she fumed.
SurvivingOutcast (Nidalee): wtf? that was a free kill, not my fault you didnt go in for it
FEERSOHM (Zed): stfu you cost me lane now im not even going to be able to fight her anymore
SurvivingOutcast (Nidalee): lol well ok then
SurvivingOutcast (Nidalee): not going to gank mid anymore since you're apparently fucked cause of me
"It's alright," Zach's voice sounded after a long while of remaining silent. "So what if Zed can't handle Lux? The rest of the lanes are winning. We'll be fine."
Carmine ground her teeth. While Zachary was right, she couldn't help but feel upset at what the asshole said. "Fine," she sighed, her grip on the mouse becoming tighter as she finally respawned in base.
After the incident with the Zed, the game spiraled downhill. The Lux had killed their mid laner another three times, and her pressure on other lanes was overwhelming. Carmine couldn't keep up with her, as she had slaughtered her teammates before she could even do any damage on her. Nasus and Elise kept her safe while she and Ezreal dealt damage in the backline. Before they knew it, the enemy was already chopping away at the nexus. It was game over.
"Wow," Liam breathed out while Carmine stared at the screen. The word "DEFEAT" mocked her with its all its glory as it hovered over the destroyed nexus. "What even happened?"
"We lost the game. That's what happened," Zach's tone was sour.
"Oh well, throws happen, I guess. It's a shame. There's always another game, though. Carmine, you planning on playing more?"
She found herself shaking her head to herself. Carmine didn't think that she should play another, especially since she was still extremely heated up over that game. "No," she glanced at the time. It was about four o clock—had the game really lasted about an hour? "I think I'm going to hit the hay early."
"At four?" Liam sounded incredulous.
"Yeah, I really don't feel well."
"Looks like Naomi's pretty contagious. I'll have to remember to keep away from her during our classes."
"Do that," Carmine sighed as she logged off from League. "Bye, Zach, Liam. I'll talk to you tomorrow."
Her two friends bid farewell before she finally closed out from Discord. Her arms ached as she pulled off her earbuds, and she was surprised at the pain. She even felt dizzier than she was before… "I really shouldn't have played," she cursed herself, feeling the dizziness beginning to set in as she got up from her seat. Carmine glowered at the computer screen before turning back towards the window. Surprisingly, not as much light filtered through the window; clouds began to blot the sky and shield her from the blinding rays.
She sighed, trying her best to pull back the sheets from her bed. The covers were still clean from the night prior. Good, Carmine thought as she fell onto the creaky mattress. She straightened out her aching body, bringing up her arm to cover her eyes. Maybe, if she slept in for the day, she would feel better tomorrow. She prayed it was so, closing her eyes and allowing her breath to become even. Sleep came quickly as it spirited her away into her dreams once again.
The night was cruel to her. Her dreams were faint, vague, and fleeting, and she could not rest without waking from her sleep every hour or so. She felt her body become coated in sweat and her face felt like it was burning with fever. Carmine struggled with the discomfort, trying to sleep through the febrile heat, but every hour or so she would wake. Pain ravaged her body as she moved in her bed, the sheets beginning to get coated in her sweat.
Her fit continued for a while; there was some points where she wondered if she should call the hospital. But her head roared every time she moved, and she could hardly see in the darkness of her room. She couldn't even form proper thoughts, as even thinking about one simple thing would make her head ache even more.
She didn't know what time it was when she was finally able to lift her head from her pillow. Her body felt as heavy as lead, and she could hardly lift her torso from the bed. At least she could actually see within the room, now—and rather well, at that. Carmine groaned as she dragged herself from the mattress, wincing as she dragged herself across the floor. She couldn't even get up from the floor, but she had to go and get help. There had to be someone that could help her.
As she staggered to the kitchen, she heard a low, animalistic sound near her ear. She couldn't even register what it was—that was, before she turned her head to see something staring straight back at her. Stripes was pressed against one of the pieces of kitchen furniture, his back arched and fur standing on end. Even his tail was sticking straight upwards, his eyes wild with fright as he stared straight at her. Stripes, Carmine tried to speak, but she could not even form words through the pain. What's wrong with you?
She took a step closer to him, but the tom cat only screeched in terror and flung himself at her. Carmine recoiled in surprise, but Stripes only bounded past her and rushed into the living room. What the fuck, she found herself panting as she struggled to get to her cellphone, which was still on its place on the kitchen counter. When she looked up from the floor, she saw the edge of it sticking straight out over the edge of the table. The woman knew that there was no way that she could get the phone by sticking on the ground, and so, she leaned upwards to cling onto the ridges of the cabinet. But once she caught sight of her supposed arms, she froze in place.
Dark fur covered her forearms, only becoming lighter as the thick hair traveled up her biceps. Long claws protruded from her fingers, which had become nothing but paws. Even clinging to the cheap wooden furniture caused deep gouges within it. What the fuck.
Her heartbeat began to beat rapidly within her ribcage. What had happened to her? She was obviously not human. There was no way she was, especially with how she looked. Then… what exactly was she?
Carmine didn't know what to do; she couldn't use her phone in this state. She wondered if staying in bed would help her recuperate from this "disease" that she had. Was it lycanthropy? Did turning into werewolves exist all this time, and it was simply fed to them as a myth? Confusion ravaged her starved mind, but all she knew was that she had to get help… from somewhere, at least. And she knew that she wouldn't get help just by staying in her home.
The bestial woman crawled to the door with effort. But as soon as she got to the exit to her apartment, the doorknob twinkled down at her teasingly. Carmine cursed to herself, feeling her brows furrow in frustration. There's no way I can get the hell out of here without thumbs, she told herself. Panic was beginning to set in again, but she knew that if she lost focus, there was no way she could make all of… this work. Her eyes, now fully adjusted to the dark, searched for another way to leave the apartment. She glanced upwards, looking at the window that decorated the kitchen's walls. It had been open at one point, and now, the chilly wind filtered into the kitchen. The opening that had been created would definitely be large enough for her to slip through. Hope fluttered in her heart. Maybe she would finally be able to find someone that could actually help her.
With great effort, she leaped onto the countertop. Her claws scraped against the hard material below her feet, making a terrible sound as she walked towards the window. It was just in front of her nose; while there was space that she could crawl through, she realized that she would have to make a tight squeeze. Worry once again invaded her mind—what if she got stuck? It would just make a bad situation even worse.
I have to calm down, Carmine thought as she stuck her head through the open window. The fit around her neck was tight, but she found it easy to slip her torso through. She was surprised to see that she was actually able to make it through. Even the second-story fall onto the ground was easily supported by her four legs, which absorbed most of the shock from the collision with the ground. It was impressive to see her strength and dexterity, even in such a state.
Without a second thought, she pelted down the street. She didn't even know where she would go—there weren't even any people in sight. Maybe it was because of that dog attack… or should she say, her attack. Oh god, I really did do that, didn't I? Carmine was distraught. That dream really was real, wasn't it..?
She had killed an innocent being while she was in this…. monstrous state. Why the hell did she think that going out was a better idea rather than staying inside? What if that strange, wild voice started to speak to her again? Calm down, Carmine… just… calm down, she tried her best to calm herself as she turned a corner and strided in front of things on display behind shiny windows. Carmine eyed her reflection, noticing that she really was some sort of beast, but a familiar one at that. She was covered in the light brown fur with sharp, elongated front fangs. Her tail was long and tufted, and her eyes shone a bright green. She almost immediately recognized what exactly she was; she was nobody else but her very favorite champion, Nidalee, in her cougar form. There was no way that this was real—how could she become a video game character? No, she didn't become Nidalee, she was pretty sure that she still felt like herself. It was probably most likely that she had Nidalee's powers, other than turning completely into her. Still, she was still freaking the fuck out. Was she going to be in this cougar form forever?
Footsteps sounded to her right, making Carmine turn her head towards the arrival. A tall man with dark blond hair and bags of food turned the corner down the street and began to walk toward her. She almost got up to flee before she could be spotted by the man, but as he got closer, she realized that it was someone she knew. Liam! Maybe he can help me!
Carmine found herself overwhelmed with joy as she bounded towards him. But the young man certainly didn't appreciate having a large, unidentifiable creature run in his direction, falling over as he yelped in shock. Though, she didn't care if he was afraid of her—she had finally found someone who could actually help her. She stopped at his feet, staring down at him as she panted lightly. His eyes, giant orbs of terror, stared up at her as she showed him a toothy grin. Please tell me he knows me, she grinned further, her eyes straining lightly as she put more of her teeth on display. For the love of God, get me out of this damned mess, you brainless idiot! You have to know who I am!
But Liam stared back at her, seemingly at a loss for words. The more she stared at him, the more tension that crackled between the two friends. She wasn't sure if standing so close to him helped the cause, or simply terrified the shit out of him. Scuttling her paws backwards, she took a few steps away and sat before him, allowing her head to hang low. Finally, the man propped himself up on her elbows, his green eyes continuing to stare at her own. "Uhm," he began, hesitation clear in his voice. "… Carmine..? Is that really you?"
So he wasn't a brainless idiot, after all. She once again leapt up to her paws, nodding her head as she tried to make the closest noise to sounding pleased as she could. Liam scratched his head, blinking wearily at her. "This is pretty interesting," he remarked. "So you have powers, too…"
What does he mean by that? Carmine thought, tipping her head. The way that he spoke confused her somewhat. Were there really others like her?
"You must be frightened," Liam sat up, reaching forward and running a hand over her muzzle. She didn't have the energy to pull away from the strange gesture. "And wondering why exactly you got these powers. Trust me, I felt the same way."
Carmine blinked, her lips curling downwards as he continued. Did Liam have powers as well? If she had Nidalee's powers, then he must bear Azir's powers, as well. Or maybe he had another champion's? Either way, it was hard to think that someway, somehow, there were players that got powers through a stupid video game. And, as cool as that may sound, she had a bad feeling about all of what was happening.
The blond laughed dryly, eyeing the carton of food that fallen onto the ground. Luckily, none of its contents had spilled onto the floor, but some of it had begun to peek out of the side. He promptly picked it up and placed it back in its bag. "If it's okay with you," Liam turned towards her again. "You can stay at my place for the night, and then we can talk in the morning. Pretty sure that you'll actually be able to talk by then," he suggested, getting up to his feet as Carmine watched him quietly. "Just nod your head if you think it's a good idea."
She knew that she could trust Liam, and if he really thought he knew what was going on, then she supposed that she go along with what he said. Carmine nodded her head, and Liam smiled in response. "Good," he said, turning away from her and walking further down the street. She followed him, making sure to keep low to avoid detection. "I promise I'll try to keep you sane enough during the morning."