Death is but a Game

Getting into the Glitz Pit lobby was the easy part. Once they had entered through the main entrance, the real challenge began.
"Hello!" a friendly Toad called to Koops and the girls. "Welcome to the Glitz Pit!"
Completely ignoring the man, Alice and Erika wandered away to the left side of the lobby.
"Er, thanks..." Koops awkwardly responded before following after the twins.
Alice raised a hand at the foot of the staircase to stop the other two just before they rounded the corner. She turned to her sister.
"Good luck." she said, but something about the tone of her voice made it seem like she was being sarcastic.
"Godspeed." her sister replied in a similar tone. They smirked at one another, as if sharing a private joke, then folded themselves into a caring embrace. Koops looked on, almost finding it all rather sweet...that is, if he could briefly forget that the people before him were complete lunatics.
After the girls peeled away from one another, Alice turned and strode past the corner and towards the guard at the door.
"Sorry, girlie." they heard him rumble in a gravely voice. "Nobody 'cept fighters and officials back here."
Alice put on a wide smile and narrowed her eyes, sashaying up to the man.
"Really? Not even for me?" she asked. Koops' jaw nearly dropped. It was the first time he had heard Alice speak in a tone other than emotionless and low. He especially hadn't been expecting her to sound...seductive. Koops was rather appalled given that Alice was several years younger than the man, but it did not seem to be much of an issue for them. Alice continued to flirt with the man, who, despite his initial reluctance, seemed to be giving in.
Beside him, he noticed Erika's hands curl into tight fists. It was clear she wasn't enjoying this. Perhaps in an effort to hold herself back, she bit into her lip. Still, her gaze did not waver from the guard, and her fingers twitched towards the knife concealed under her dress.
A few minutes later, Alice was walking through the door with the man, apparently heading to the storage room where they could be 'alone'. Koops prayed silently for the man, but he knew that his would soon be a grisly fate.
"Okay." Erika said precisely two minutes after they had gone. She wiped blood from her mouth. "Let's go."
Koops glanced around. There were very few people in the lobby, and the ones that were nearby paid them no attention. He could, however, hear a muffled roar coming from the arena area. It seemed the match was starting soon.
Koops followed Erika through the door. He was immediately overcome with a sense of nostalgia as well as unfamiliarity. The hall he had once known that ran around the Glitz Pit in a square shape had changed drastically, yet still retained its original appearance. There were more rooms and the hallway was longer than he remembered.
True to what Alice had said, the hallway was devoid of life. Only the two players stood there.
"Let's try to find Jolene's office." Erika took a step forward. Koops followed.
It didn't take long to find it. Koops recognized the style of the door. He tried the handle, but it was locked.
"Locked." he told his partner.
"I thought so. Let's go then, to the locker room Alice told us about."
Koops thought for a moment, then stopped her. "Actually, in the champion's room, there's an air vent that connects to her office. Or, at least there should be. I don't know how much has changed since the remodeling...If it's there, it would save us some time since it connects directly to Jolene's office. Plus, since there is sure to be nobody in the champion's room, we won't risk running into anyone."
Erika thought for a moment, and then nodded.
A few moments later, they were at the champion's room. Surprisingly, it was unlocked, as if it had been expecting them.
Koops hesitated, but Erika walked in immediately.
"You're both so...fearless..." he muttered to himself, but Erika had heard and deigned to respond.
"No, not exactly. There are differences between us. For instance, Alice can't track fast moving objects with her eyes. I can."
"Is that so?"
She nodded. "It is due to an injury she sustained as a child. But we make up for one another's weaknesses. We may be two different people, but we are one, you see. We are equally as lethal."
Koops nodded, although he didn't know what she meant by that, exactly. Except for the last part. He was sure he understood, and could vouch, for that.
"Now, then," Erika changed the subject. "That is the vent, I presume?"
She pointed at an area in the corner of the room near the ceiling. The room hadn't changed at all, by what Koops could see. The vent was no exception.
"Yeah, that's it."
The allies climbed up into the vent. Koops was forced to hunch over slightly. Had he grown or had the vent always been this small?
When they reached the end, Erika peered through the grate.
"I don't see anyone." she told him. "But be on your guard."
Koops nodded, and Erika removed the grate. After one last careful sweep of the area, the two descended into the room.
Again, Jolene's office looked exactly like it had been when Koops was standing in it so long ago. He thought about how different things had been then. He had been on a mission to save the world, surrounded by friends, and gripped with a feeling of anxiety and excitement. Now, he was on a mission to save himself, surrounded by enemies and temporary allies, fear his constant companion.
"Search the desk." Erika commanded.
"Uh, why?"
She stared at him as if it was obvious. "It's possible that she could have some evidence of other players in the Game. We could use any information she has."
"Oh." the Koopa muttered and made his way to the desk.
"I'll watch the door." Erika said, tapping her temple with her finger. "If anyone comes by, I'll warn you so we can hide."
Koops nodded. It would be handy to have a mind reader on guard, just in case someone were to intrude while they were searching the area. Unless Erika was just bluffing, trying to keep him guessing. Koops still wasn't sure whether Erika or Alice was the one with the supernatural ability.
Koops opened one of the drawers and rifled through the papers and folders within. There didn't seem to be anything very interesting. Documents on fighters of the Glitz Pit, expenses made at the Glitz Pit within the last few months, letters from various business associates.
After finishing his inspection of the drawer, Koops moved to the next one. However, an envelope he had not noticed before was laying on the desk by the computer. It was addressed to Jolene. Curious, and without a second thought, Koops tore open the envelope and unfolded the letter within.
Skimming over its contents, Koops deduced that it had been sent from Jolene's doctor (who, ironically, worked at the same hospital that Toadette, another player of the Game, had). He had barely read a few words when Erika interrupted him.
"What's that?"
"A letter." he explained. "From some doctor."
"Let me see."
Koops approached her and handed her the paper.
"Hopefully she has been diagnosed with some crippling disease..." the girl muttered as her eyes scanned the words.
A minute later, she shrugged and handed Koops the letter again.
"What did it say?" he asked, but was already looking over the letter himself.
"Nothing terribly interesting. Mainly just about her scheduling an appointment with him in a few weeks time." She grinned. "Although, once we're done here, she won't be meeting with him after all..."
Koops paused as an unfamiliar word stood out to him. He had a bit of trouble pronouncing it and was forced to sound it out slowly like a child. "What's...pro...so...pag...nosia? The doctor mentions something about it, but I don't know what it could be. Some kind of illness, maybe?"
"Oh, that. Yes, it does appear that she has prosopagnosia."
"Ok. So do you know what it is?"
Looking very disinterested, Erika leaned against the wall and checked her nails. "Prosopagnosia. It's a disorder in which one cannot, or has difficulty, recognizing faces."
"Recognizing...faces?"
"Yes. Those with prosopagnosia do not posses the ability to distinguish faces from one another. Instead, they typically use other traits to distinguish individuals from one another, like height, voice, clothes, or even one's gait. But they cannot remember faces. It's very appropriate that people also call it 'face blindness'."
"Hmm," Koops hummed, scratching his chin thoughtfully. "That's interesting. Seems like it would be a lot of trouble for someone, though..."
Erika nodded. "Yes. Those afflicted by it even have trouble recognizing family members."
"Well, what about me?" Koops inquired. "I mean, for example, wouldn't Jolene be able to tell me apart from, say, you? First off, we're not even the same race. Second, I'm male and you're not."
"Yes, I suppose so. But like I said, they use other features to tell people apart. Just by looking at our skin tones and differences in anatomy, she would never be able to mistake one of us for the other. However, she may not know that you are Koops if she saw you. She would see a Koopa, but might not know it is the same person who she met long ago. However, your clothes may give you away."
Koops glanced down at himself and agreed. He was wearing the same outfit he had worn when he had last been to Glitzville. Jolene may be able to recognize him by his clothes, or his voice.
"I guess so. But-"
Erika suddenly held a finger to her lips and pressed herself against the door. Koops froze, and when he saw her motion for him to hide, he instantly turned and teleported back into the air vent. Erika silently leapt behind a big potted plant beside the door.
Koops lifted the grate and placed it back just as the door swung open. He heard the sound of high heels clicking against the floor, and soon a familiar figure was standing in Koops' field of vision, just beside the desk.
It was Jolene. Her back was turned to him as she gazed at her desk. Koops realized with horror that he had left one of the drawers open.
Jolene slowly approached the drawer and peered inside. As she did this, Koops reached for his knife, his other hand moving to remove the grate.
Before he had time to act, however, a crack rang out, followed by a dull ping as the metal beside Koops' face exploded in sparks. He jerked back farther into the air vent, barely suppressing a yelp of surprise.
"Damn." Jolene muttered, the end of her pistol smoking. "And I had a 90% chance, too."
Immediately, she tossed the computer on the desk to her side just as Erika leaped from her hiding place, firing off a shot of her own. The bullet glanced harmlessly off of the machine, protecting Jolene from what would have been a fatal blow.
"What...?" Koops heard the girl mutter. Jolene, however, was wasting no time. She darted past Erika, sweeping her legs out from under her as she went, and was out the door in a flash.
"Erika!" Koops tore the grate off once more. He took note of the hole that was very close to where his fingers had been. "Are you okay?"
The Koopa offered her a hand, but she waved him off.
"I'm fine." she snapped. "She just caught me off guard."
Koops glanced at the door. "She got away. And she knows we're here."
"Probably because you left the damn drawer open, you idiot." Erika barked. "I swear, if you just ruined everything, I will drown you in your own blood..."
Koops rolled his eyes at the threat. "Come on, we've gotta go after her."
Sprinting out of the room, the two stopped, glancing back and forth for any sign of Jolene.
"Any idea where she went?" Koops asked.
As if on cue, they heard a muffled series of roars from one of the colored doors that led to the arena.
"The arena." Erika said. "Of course. It's packed with people, and while she oversees the match onstage, all eyes will be on her and the fighters. There's no way we can get to her."
"Dammit." Koops swore.
"I'll call Alice. If we can't get to the prey, we might as well burn down the entire forest to kill it." Erika put on a headset and turned it on. Koops did the same, tuning it to the same channel the twins were on.
"Sister?" He heard Erika's voice both in his ear and a few feet away. "Where are you?"
"At the last bomb depot." Alice answered, a cheerful note in her voice. "I assume you've already sliced that whore's throat?"
"No, unfortunately. Thanks to somebody's careless mistake, she escaped." she glared at Koops.
"Not a problem. She doesn't know about the bombs, does she? We can still kill her with those."
Erika cursed. "Yes, I suppose so. But it's much more satisfying to take one's life personally. It is more...intimate."
"Ah, I agree, but-hm? Ah!"
"Alice? Alice!?" her sister called into the mic.
"What's going on?" Koops asked, hearing the sounds of a struggle on the other end.
"N-nothing." Alice replied a moment later. "It was a security guard. He's dead, now. But I don't see how he knew I was here. Wait...there are more. They're trying to disarm the bombs!"
"What?" Koops cried, but Alice did not answer. She had most likely turned the communicator off or dropped it.
"How did they...?" Erika began, and then turned on Koops. "There's no way she could have known all of this. A traitor must have told her."
Koops raised his hands defensively, not liking where this was going. Erika drew her gun.
"N...no..."
"You betrayed us, didn't you?"
"No...!"
She laughed dryly at this. "What proof do you have?"
"Well, what proof do you have that I did do it!?"
This caught the girl off guard, but only momentarily. She shook her head and raised the gun so that the barrel was pointed directly between Koops' eyes. He stared it down fearfully. It was a cold and dark tunnel, and the object that would burst forth from it would end his life in an instant.
"No use in reasoning with a mole." Erika spat. "Better to just exterminate them."
Koops flinched and raised his hands higher, as if it would defend him from the bullet. However, upon noticing the mark on the back of his hand, he suddenly felt the pieces of the puzzle click into place.
"Wait!" he shrieked. "Wait! W-we haven't even discussed all of the possibilities!"
"Like what?"
Koops almost sighed in relief. He at least had the psychopath talking. And as long as she was talking, she wasn't putting a bullet in his head.
"U-umm...well, Jolene's power. What do you think it is?" he asked slowly.
She didn't answer. Koops took the silence as an admittance to the fact that she didn't know.
"Well...I-I think she might...she might be able to predict the future...or something..."
"Predict the future?"
"Y-yeah! Well, not completely. You see, when she shot at me back in the office, I heard her say something about 'a 90% chance'. Maybe-and this is just a theory-but a well based one! Maybe...she can sort of see the most likely future..."
"What do you mean?"
Koops groaned. He knew what he meant. He just needed to put it into words!
"Um, think of it like this: Imagine a big tree. Start at the trunk, then work your way up until you get to a branch. Think of the point where the branch splits from the trunk as a 'divergent point'. These branches are smaller than the trunk, so it's more likely that you'll keep going up the trunk. Just like the analogy, these divergent points arise when things like choices are presented to an individual. There are more likely paths to travel down, the trunk, but one can also diverge off onto a branch. From there, they continue until they hit another divergence point. Again, the person must either choose to diverge or continue. However, these choices may not be totally black and white as to which is 'Divergent' and which is 'Continual'. I think Jolene's power allows her to see the next Continual path coming up on us. She can see the most likely outcome of what will happen, but not the other possible routes with a smaller chance of occurring, the Divergent Routes. I know it all sounds pretty complicated and far-fetched, but I swear, I'm sure I'm right!"
Erika thought for a moment, then shook her head dismissively. "Ugh, forget it. Let's just assume that this asinine theory of yours is correct for now so we can kill that bitch."
Koops nodded, relieved to have kept his life for now. And also relieved that he had been able to bullshit his way to convincing someone of a theory that he wasn't even sure he believed himself. He had just come up with it on the spot in order to avoid death. However, the more he thought about it, the more sense it made...
The sound of footfalls reached Koops from the opposite end of the hall. A security guard, bloodied and beaten, was staggering down the hall as fast as his legs could carry him. The door he had charged through burst open behind him and Alice shouted, "Don't let him get away!"
Koops and Erika moved to stop the man, but it was too late. He had already pushed his way through the doors to the arena. They swung shut behind him, and the three allies stood motionless. There was no way they could go in there without attracting the attention of hundreds of people. They would be recognized in an instant.
Alice cursed. "He was one of the guards who tried to disarm the bombs."
"What is he going to do?" Koops asked.
"Tell Jolene. The bombs are still armed, but now that she knows about them, they are no longer a viable option as a means to her demise."
"I guess that means...we really do have to kill her..." Koops had secretly been hopeful when the twins suggested that they just blow up Jolene instead of personally killing her. Leaving her to die by the bombs made him feel less responsible for ending her life, somehow. Erika had been right in what she had said earlier. Personally killing someone was certainly more intimate.
The dull, pounding bass and roars of the cheering fans in the stadium died down within a few seconds. An amplified voice spoke up, although, since it was coming from the other room, Koops could not make out the words. He could tell the voice belonged to Jolene, however. Several audible gasps could be heard as she pronounced something to the crowd.
"I sense fear." Erika said.
Alice nodded. "Despair."
"She's told them of the bombs."
"She's told them to evacuate."
"She must die."
"She will."
Once again, the twins left Koops guessing as to who was truly the player and who was merely the player's accomplice.
Screams and shouts erupted from the room, and even though the door to the arena was closed, Koops felt the sound roll over him like a wave.
Erika lunged forward to open the door, but Koops held an arm out to stop her.
"Wait." he said. "We'll wait for the citizens to leave first. We don't want them to see us."
Feet pounded and the voices lessened. Soon, there were only a few voices on the other end of the door, their words too low for Koops to make out.
Koops placed his hand on the door. "Ready?"
The twins brushed past him, too thirsty for blood to wait any longer.
Koops took a deep breath and followed.

Thanks for reading! I hope you enjoyed this chapter, and I hope to bring you another one soon!