A/N: Oops, this one was a little late.

But guess what? I'm on spring break now. :] I am going to try my hardest to bring you two chapters this break. If I don't bring you two, then I'll bring you one long one.

Anyway, happy Friday! Read on, friends. ;)


I really wished that I had listened to Vaas and brought someone with me. I bet they would have known what to do when faced with a tiger. The scariest things I had to deal with back home were spiders! This animal in front of me had fangs and claws, and I'm sure it wouldn't hesitate to eat me. I really didn't think that I could just call in my brother to come and squish it with a shoe or tissue box this time.

I swallowed and kept my eyes on the cat. Its tail swished a few times, eyes still on me.

I wasn't a cat person, so I had no clue what it could have been thinking. My heart rate started to quicken. What if it leapt at me? I was just a single person! I couldn't kill this thing, not even if my life depended on it. And in all honesty, that's what it was looking like right now. Life or death.

I heard a rumble deep in its chest. I swallowed and held the machete tighter in my hands. The sides of its mouth went up a little, showing its teeth, and a low growl escaped its mouth. The sound was just the beginning of a snarl, a roar. Something jumped into my head, then, about animals and eye contact. I quickly lowered my eyes to the ground, hoping that I hadn't just challenged it by staring. Oh shit, what if I just made it angry? Shit, shit, shit… I probably just condemned myself with such a stupid act.

"Help," I peeped quietly, not wanting to scare the tiger. I swallowed. "Help?" I cried a little louder. I doubted anyone could hear me, but I felt better knowing I had at least tried.

The tiger let out a snarl this time and started to come towards me, its shoulders rising and falling like waves as it padded over.

"S-stop, that's close enough!" I said, waving the knife at it. It slowed and stopped, growling lowly at me. "Good. Now, just… stay there. Don't—don't attack. I'm not gunna hurt you." Hey, if it listened when I told it to stay, maybe it would listen and not attack me? I swallowed again and kept the knife aimed at its heart.

I was getting this strange sense of déjà vu, holding the knife aimed at the predator… though I know for sure this is the first time I've seen a live tiger other than in a zoo.

Man, I was in so much trouble. It looked like this was gunna be the end of me.

Wait, no. I said I was going to be like Vaas, damn it. What would that crazy captor do in a situation like this? What would he do? What would Vaas do?

A slice of an earlier conversation with him came to mind. He had told me the key to winning was staying one step ahead. He made people do his bidding without lifting a finger. He made them trip over their own feet. That was what he did.

I'd make the tiger be its own downfall. I wouldn't have to do it; I'd make it take itself down. I would be the end of this tiger, but I wouldn't do it personally; I'd make it fall on its own.

Feeling more grimly confident, I tightened my grip. What would I do? Could I get it to drown? Hit itself on a rock? I had no idea how to trick a tiger. But I had to be like Vaas; I had to do something. Maybe I could scare it into thinking I was the bigger predator or something? Maybe I could—

"Hey!" shouted someone loudly, scaring both me and the giant cat. It dropped down low and let out a sharp roar at the guy running towards us. "What the hell are you doing, having a staring contest? Hey, hey! Get out of here! Hey!" shouted Bayani, waving his arms wildly.

The tiger snarled one last time and then turned on its heel and bolted back into the underbrush, the trees and bushes wavering behind it. Bay whipped out a gun and stared at the space it ran off to. "Look, this place isn't that bad, but if you hate it enough to go picking fights with tigers, maybe I am wrong. Fuck, what the hell is wrong with you? Why didn't you tell me you were getting water?" He put his gun away. "This is a jungle. Haven't you figured that out by now? It's not fucking safe! That's like the fifth time this week we've seen that one alone around here. Must have decided this is his new territory. They do that, you know. Patrol their land. Like little guards."

As happy as I was to see Bay and to have him scare the tiger away for me, part of me felt a little cheated. That was my chance to shine, to be like Vaas. And I blew it. I let my shoulders slump a little. "Thank you," I still said, though. I mean, he had just saved my life. I was afraid that I was going to die; he literally saved me. "That—I just didn't know what to do… I thought I could do it."

"Yeah, well…"He shook his head and sighed, coming over to me. "Look, you aren't even holding it right." He took the knife out of my hands and held it the correct way. "You were holding it backwards. And when you use it, you slice so the knife goes away from your body. Keep your machete arm towards the object." He handed it back to me. "If you're going to come out here, you should at least know how to do it right. Shit."

I frowned. "I know…"

"You could have gotten yourself killed! Where would we be then, huh? What lot of good that would have been?"

My frown deepened. "Yeah."

"Look, I woulda been out of a friend, you know? And money. Money would have been lost," he said, taking note of my sour mood, trying to lighten it up a little. I still wore the scowl. Rolling his eyes, he took out his own machete. "Here, let me teach you the basics. That way you won't be caught with your pants down and your dick out next time, all right?"

That finally garnered a little bit of a smile from me. "Okay, tough guy; you're on. Show me how to use this thing."

After all, wouldn't Vaas have wanted to know how to use what he had to his advantage?


I learned a lot of useful stuff from Bay. He told me that the kind of machete I had taken from Tito was called a bolo machete, and that the long blade was used for cutting underbrush and other kinds of trees. He of course told me the general things, like how to clean it and keep it sharp, and told me to make a better strap once I got back to camp. This one was old, apparently.

I was surprised that he hadn't said anything about me taking it from Tito and stashing it. In fact, he never even asked me how I got it. Maybe… maybe he had just expected it from me, overestimating me, just like Vaas had as well. This thought brought a huge grin to my face. I was finally getting the respect I deserved from them. It felt good to be on the same playing field as the big kids.

He taught me the basics, too, like how to swing it and what it was good for. He told me that the kind that he held was called a kukri knife, and that it was better for stabbing and close combat work. He also jokingly said it was good for threatening his girlfriend to make him food, but I shot him a look and he simply grinned at me.

"So I say we head back to camp. You've taken long enough to bring back that water. And you didn't come get someone to come with you."

I sighed. "I thought that I could have done it on my own. I mean, it's just water. But I know I was wrong. Sorry."

He shook his head. "It's not like Vaas was doing it to protect you or anything. It's just fucking protocol. We never come out here on our own; that's like suicide. You just don't do that; you learn it on day one, you know? He was just telling you because you hadn't been outside of the camp. Haven't you figured out by now that this place isn't like your pretty little house back home? Things are different around here. You'd be fucking tiger fodder before you knew it."

"Yeah, I get it," I snapped. I made a mistake, yes, I know. I don't need to be reminded every second of it. I just wanted to show them that I could do it on my own. I didn't need someone to hold my hand and babysit me every few minutes.

"Good. I'm glad you do. But just know that… well, that there's worse things than tigers out here. Just keep that in mind," he said ominously as he looked around.

I felt a prick on my neck and slapped at the unlucky mosquito. "Yeah, like these damn bugs. That was like the eightieth one that's tried to make a meal out of me."

"You get used to it. Sometimes it isn't all that bad." He slapped a hand to his shoulder. "Though they are pretty damn—"

Just as he was saying it, another one jabbed me painfully. "Stupid things!" I went to slap at it again, but was met by something different than bug and skin. "What…" I winced and pulled whatever the heck it was off of my skin. I was surprised to see a little pin in my hand with a bright red tip. "What the…"

"Oh no." I looked up to see Bay holding a similar one. "We run. We run, now." But just as he said it, I felt another small stab on my leg. By his stance, another had hit him, too.

I looked up at him with wide eyes. "Someone's… someone's…" The outline of him started to go fuzzy and blobby. The world started to shift under my feet.

"Shooting at us," he finished, rocking on his feet, too. "Run!"

The two of us started to sprint off towards the camp, but I didn't get more than a few meters before my legs gave out like an exhausted runner's legs. I fell to the ground, but forced myself up, adrenaline pumping through my veins, urging me on. Bay grabbed my arm and tugged me up, but the act caused him to fall, too. "If we don't get back to camp, we're… in a load of… of shit?" he said, almost turning it into a question for some reason.

I remember it didn't make sense to me. It was like all other tasks were slowly being shut off one by one in my mind. Like switches. My thought processes went from getting Bay up on his feet, to getting back to camp, to getting back to running, to just running somewhere.

The ground rushed up at me. It felt immensely smaller and rounder, as if I were sitting on the top of it. My vision fish-eyed and it felt like I could see all of the sky and the trees and the ground in just one view. My head rolled to look at Bay, and I could have sworn that he was starting to morph and change size and change color. "Why are you doing that?" I asked, but I don't think those were the words that came from my mouth. It was definitely something much more round sounding.

I remember that the last thing that I coherently gripped onto was a pair of tattooed arms reaching for me and pulling me up. After that it was all a blur of greens, browns, blues, oranges, reds, yellows, and every other color of the visible spectrum and then some. I was spinning and rocking and going every which way. I was on an ocean. A brown and green ocean, up and down, up and down. I just wanted it all to stop.

I let my eyes close, but that was a bad idea. I couldn't open them again; millions of sounds flew through my system, and I was somewhat sure that I had passed out, though I think I could still feel. Maybe I was dreaming. Though I could hear things, but I didn't know what I was hearing. I could see things flashing before my eyes, but I had no clue what they were. Images, faces, things, people, animals, shapes, colors. Sounds—I was pretty sure I saw sounds, too. I didn't just hear them; I saw them. Rushing in and out of my mind like people dancing, twirling, spinning. Just like my head.

When I finally came to, I noticed that I was lying on the ground. I was on the ground? Had I even moved at all? But I could have sworn I was on an ocean, dipping and heaving.

My eyes slowly opened. I was in some sort of… hut. Testing my arms and legs to make sure they were still there, I noticed I was tied up. Again. Great. I sighed angrily.

The sound made something move next to me. I saw a pair of bright eyes look up at me. I let out a relieved sigh; it was Bayani. He was tied up and lying on the ground too. "Are you all right?" he asked quietly, no more than a whisper.

I moved all my limbs again. "Yeah… yeah, I think so. They… took my machete. Bay, what… what the hell—?"

"Blow darts. Mother fucking, goddam, son of a bitch blow darts. I think it's too sneaky for their style. Look, they're gunna try to get information out of you. No matter what, don't say anything. Okay? Our lives depend on it."

My eyes went wide. This felt scarier than the first time I had been tied up. "What do you mean? What's happening? Who is out there?" I asked breathlessly.

"Rakyat," he spat, as if it were a terrible taste in his mouth. He tilted his head back down. "Our enemies. Didn't you see the tattoos on their arms?"

You know, I think I did. "I couldn't tell if that was just… a drug-induced thought or it actually happened. Are they bad?"

He laughed. "Bad? Please. They're nothing but a group of winey-ass bitches. They've only got a small following. We're the big dogs on this island; I just can't believe they caught us. See? This is what would have happened to you if I hadn't saved you. You would have been caught with your pants down."

"I don't think we should be joking about this right now, Bay," I grumbled. "That was some serious stuff they shot at us. They really didn't want us to get away. What do we do?"

He tilted his head to look at me again and grinned. "We do what we do best; we fight."

"I don't know if you've noticed, but I'm not the best fighter…"

"Ah, but you do have some good escape skills under your belt. And lucky for you, so do I. I always keep a spare knife hidden in my pants. Right… here." He moved around so he could dig for the knife. He patted himself down the best he could, and then frowned. "Damn it, are you kidding me? How did they find it?" He patted a little bit longer and then signed angrily. "They must have someone new on their side, now. Someone who knows what they're doing. I haven't told anyone about that secret knife I kept on me. Had it just for these situations, you know? Came in handy a few times, too."

"Not to interrupt or anything, but we should really be thinking about how to get out of this mess." I thought for a moment. "What about… Vaas? Will he come looking for us?"

He snorted. "You've really got yourself set on that bastard. We're just a couple of cronies; he won't come looking for us. We're dispensable. No, he'll never come looking for us."

That hit me a little off guard. Frowning, I said, "I thought you said that he was a good guy?"

"I didn't mean that he'll skip about and place daisies on everyone's heads! He doesn't give out hugs and rainbows. He's a fuckin' leader of our camp! It's not like he's gunna keep tabs on every single one of us. He has enough on his plate already. Ever wonder why he trusts you so much? Because he thought you were old enough to hold your own! We're all fuckin' adults now, you know? Damn."

"Say what you mean next time!" I snapped. "People listen to you and base their thoughts off of what you say. If you say Vaas is nice, then I'm going to believe that he's nice. What if I was in a life or death situation, and I based my choice off of what you said to me, huh?"

"Woah, woah! Why so much hostility?" he growled, looking at me. "I only said he wasn't a bad dude. I trust him with my life, because he trusts me to look out for my own life. I don't depend on him; I look up to him. There's a goddam difference. And why the hell are you getting mad at me? I saved your life. No need for anger."

I sighed. "Okay fine. Whatever. Maybe you're right. I'm just… I don't know. I'm scared. I'm scared, okay?"

"You've acted so fearlessly so far. What's changed you?"

"I don't know. This just feels so much more dangerous than before."

"Trust me. They aren't the ones you need to be afraid of," he muttered. "See, I told you that we were the main dogs on this island. That's true. But it's only true about just this island. There's another great landmass south of us. The people there? Those are the ones you should be afraid of. These guys? They're just the locals. They follow this bitch of a leader. But the men on the south island? They make us pirates look like fucking saints. So, now, you've been here for a while, listening to us talk and whatnot. Tell me… does the name Hoyt Volker mean anything to you?"

Hoyt… Volker? It struck something in me, but I couldn't place it. The name sounded familiar, so I must have heard it somewhere before. "I… I don't know. It kind of sounds familiar to me."

He smiled grimly. "Yeah, well, you should know then. That man is evil. He's a nasty, frightening dude. And the worst part is, he's Vaas's—"

I never found out what he was about to say, because the door to the hut suddenly opened and light came streaming in, blinding us. We looked up just in time to see three men walk in, two of them with guns.

"So, you two are finally awake," said the one who came in first. "Are you comfy?"

"Don't say anything," whispered Bayani. I swallowed and nodded.

"Shut up, pirate scum!" spat the man, advancing on us. He kicked Bay, who winced in pain. My eyes widened. Shit, I had just gotten done with being beat up; now I had to get beat up again. Great. "There. That'll teach you to whisper again. Now, I asked you a question; are you comfy?"

"Yeah, just peachy," snarled Bay.

"See, that wasn't so hard," said the man, straightening back up. His eyes fell on me, and then he raised his eyebrow. "A woman? Since when did Vaas take on women henchmen?" He turned around. "You didn't tell me there was a girl."

One of the guys shrugged. "She was wearing a hat earlier. I didn't know either."

He looked back at me. "Hmm." Bending down, he peered at me. I shied away from him. "How did you get that black eye?"

I glanced at Bay. He told me not to say anything. He shook his head just the slightest and I looked back up at the guy. I didn't say anything.

His eyes narrowed. "All right, fine. You don't want to talk? We'll make you talk then. Tell me. Where's Vaas? Where is your camp? Where have you been staying, huh?"

But they were so close to the camp… How did they not notice it? Why did he want to know where Vaas was? I know Bay told me to not say anything, but… "Why do you want to know?"

Bay immediately looked at me, and the man smiled a little. "Because I need to pay Vaas a little visit. He has something of mine. I want it back. So… where is he?"

I wasn't going to tell him. It wasn't because Bay had told me not to. No, it wasn't. It was because I didn't want to give away Vaas's location. I'm sure he could take these guys on, but… but I didn't want to be the one to instigate it. I think I was actually… starting to care for Vaas. It kind of freaked me out, since he still was a crazy captor, but he had watched out for me. He saved me from Tito. And if he had saved me from Tito, then I would save him from these men.

I held my chin up higher and stared straight into this man's eyes. I wouldn't tell him where Vaas was. Never. Not in a million years.

He saw the look in my eyes and frowned. He could see the resolve right down to my very soul. He knew I would never tell him a thing. It gave me a smug satisfaction that I am very proud to say that I barely even showed. His eyes fell to Bay. "Grab the man. We'll take him for questioning. Leave the girl and leave someone outside so she doesn't get away."

One of the men with the guns came and roughly pulled Bay up. "Don't hurt him!" I shouted, but they paid literally no attention to me.

"Hold strong!" muttered Bay as they pulled him away.

Damn it, I was supposed to be like Vaas! I was supposed to be fearless, a step ahead of everyone! They were supposed to look up to me! I was supposed to surprise everyone with everything I did!

They dragged him from the hut and shut the door before I even had a chance to try and wiggle my way out of this situation.

Okay, now I was fucked. If I thought that situation was bad when I was with Vaas, then I was terribly mistaken. If I thought the problem with the tiger was bad, then I was also incredibly wrong.

This was my new problem, and I had to deal with it. This is what I was faced with now.

And damn it, I had to fuckin' save my friend, Bay.


A/N: It looks like it all really comes down to perspective when you decide who to trust.

Have an awesome weekend! I'll see you soon. ;)