A few minutes later...
A new boat comes in,with Beth lying onto the barrier. She acts as if she's unaware of what happened earlier. As soon as it arrives to the bridge,the passenger fastly gets out with her baggage at her hand. She excitedly runs to the ground,looking forward to meet the famous Chris. But he's nowhere to be found. Instead,the speaker triggers and someone speaks loudly.
" Attention,attention ! Beth,are you listening ?! "
" Chris,is that you ?! " Beth asks loudly,excited to meet her favorite presentator. But that question forces the interlocutor to pause for a moment and then chuckle with hidden frustration.
" Wait for everyone in the campfire site and you'll see. "
Beth calmly obeys and brings her baggage with her. Once she arrives to where he said to reunite,she puts her stuff onto the rock before to slowly sit happily on a wooden totem seat,her hands on her knees. After a pretty long while,all the participants of the TV show are now reunited in the area. Besides Beth,there was also DJ, Bridgette , Cody , Courtney ,Duncan , Eva , Ezekiel , Geoff , Gwen, Harold , Heather , Izzy , Justin, Katie , Leshawna , Lindsay , Noah , Owen , Sadie ,Trent and Tyler. In total,they are 22,as written in the contract. Since everyone is here,Chris should have been here since... At least three minutes. Duncan,beginning to lose his temper,gets up from his seat and walks around armscrossed.
" That is not funny ! "
" What's not funny ?! Did I miss a joke ?! " Lindsay asks,focused precedently by the birds on the trees.
" This whole deal is the joke ! " Duncan screams suddenly. " That bastard Chris is enjoying himself by bringing us to this shitty island before making us wait here while he hides somewhere,watching us through those weirdoes cameras ! " As he says that,he points at one of the cameras hidden onto a tree with a lot of leaves. What's "weirdo" with the camera,according to Duncan,is his red overall color. Usually,there is not such a red camera in the world,except for rare exceptions.
" No I don't think he is hiding. " Heather objects,polishing her nails while sitting. " Knowing this kind of man,I'm sure he is somewhere in his big palace taking a long bath with a whole harem for him alone. "
" There is a harem here ?! " Cody suddenly asks with a smile,not having caught the whole conversation. Meanwhile,Courtney,having listened Duncan's complains,heads to the tree where the camera is hidden. First of all,she rubs one of the leaves to see if it's true. And it is a true leave. After doing this,she stares at the camera posted on top of her head and focuses on its color.
" Red... I wonder why Chris picked this... Unusual color... "
" Maybe because,I think,Chris would like to add more color in order,maybe,to gain more popularity... " Ezekiel tries to explain.
" You know,people usually can't see those cameras. So it would be meaningless to change it. " Courtney corrects him kindly.
" Enough with the cameras. " Goeff interrupts the dialogue. " What are we supposed to now,except waiting eternally ? "
" What if it was the first event of the show ? " Bridgette suggests to the surfer man.
" What ?! Hide'n'seek ?! Find where he is hidden ?! Don't be ridiculous ! " Heather mocks while getting up.
" I was just suggesting a possibility ! "
" Well suggest better. "
" Everyone ?! " Suddenly Noah,who was reading his book all along,calls out everyone and asks them to look at where he's facing. " Have you seen this ? "
He shows them something pretty scary : a statue of a humanoid little man who has the same height than a dwarf. This creature was fully black with no face and has no particular form. So it was just a black shadow standing before them.
" What is this ? That's scary... " Lindsay wonders.
" It's just... A black statue. " Trent describes the object.
" And it's very small and empty. It doesn't even have a face. " Justin adds.
" And his pose. He thinks he rules the world,with his fists on his hips. " Heather comments too.
" Do you think Chris put it here... To represent himself ? " Beth asks shyly.
" Why would he do that if he doesn't draw his face on it ? " Duncan wonders logically. " Chris clearly is a narcissistic. "
" That's weird... What if it was a joke from the decorator ? " Geoff deducts.
" Hey decorator ! That's not very funny ! " Lindsay shouts out naively. All of a sudden,the light goes out,even if it's the morning. Everyone has trouble seeing anything and stops moving... Until the spotlight aims at the statue. But something shocking has happened : the statue has moved. It is now into a dancer's pose,trying to seduce every girl thre and hiding his face. A jazz love music plays at the same time,confusing more the victims.
" Good morning everyone ! " A loud voice appears from the statue.
" It speaks ?! " DJ questions himself.
" It is surely a micro. " Noah explains logically,bored by this entertainment.
" Welcome to my island ! " The statue continues,not moving at all.
" Chris ?! Is that you ? " Courtney asks suddenly.
" If it's you,come out and apology like a real man ! " Duncan comes in front of the statue and tries to intimidate him,but it ignores him.
" Don't worry ! Chris... Has caught a nasty cold ! Now I am in charge of this show ! Please welcome... The most beautiful... The most intelligent... The strongest man in the WOOOOOOORLD... " Then the figure spins around like infinitely then stops turning and jumps forward,sliding on his knees and raising his arms while shouting his name. " MAX... JACK... LAYTON ! "
Everyone doesn't dare to move or speak,seeing that strange black dwarf moving and dancing as if it was nothing particular. This one looks around him and sees the faces of the candidats,petrified of shock and disgust. Then Duncan finally speaks.
" What... The... Fuck... Is this ? " He points impolitely at him.
" What the fuck am I ?! I am MAX JACK LAYTON ! The master of entertainment ! The king of humor ! The architect of media ! The king of the world ! "
" Why is this little statue moving ?! " Lindsay says,still shocked.
" Hey,that's kinda mean calling me a statue. " Then the mysterious host changes form : he becomes a pink balloon with sweats all over his head. That makes DJ step backward.
" He changed form ! "
" Ah yeah. I didn't warn you. I am multiform. "
" Multiwhat ? " Tyler asks again,confused.
" Multiform. I change form depending of my mood. Like... Bird happiness... Bull anger... Devil malicious... Dog sadness... Cat fear... Monkey smartness... " Each time he citates a creature,his face gets the face of the creature named with the appropriate color. After doing this,he return to his basic feature and stops moving.
" Why do you return to your... Black empty form ? " Heather asks curiously.
" Because,if I wanna have a neutral face,I gotta stay like this. " He explains without any emotion. " If I get at least only one random emotion... " Suddenly his face turns into a green smiling hyena. " I change head ! Hahaha ! "
" That's too weird ! " Bridgette steps back,disgusted.
" That's too cool ! " Harold screams,amazed.
" Dont worry... " He turns into a purple blob with a large tongue coming out. " I don't usually eat humans ! "
But everyone steps back anyway. So the creature goes to his normal form and explains to the comptitors.
" So... Is everyone here ? Perfect ! " Max doesn't even take time to count everyone. " But I need one of you to get the last participant. "
" The last ? " Courtney loudly asks.
" You,Owen ! Fat boy ! Please go there,you'll see a little caban. Go free my special guest ! "
" Wait ! You kidnapped a teenager ?! " Eva asks,shocked by what he said.
" Technically... He came on his own. I just... Preserved him somewhere... Like food in a freezer ! " As Owen has already gone to the caban,Layton speaks to everyone else.
" Except that... Trent,what is your Ultimate talent ?! "
" What... My Ultimate talent... I don't know... "
" What do you mean you don't know ?! You surely came here because you have an Ultimate talent ! "
" No I came here only for the money. "
" You say... You don't have any ?! "
" We don't know what you're talking about. " Courtney responds,saving Trent.
That response makes Layton turn his head to an angry red bull raising his arms to everyone.
" WHAT FUCKING LOSERS YOU ARE ! " Cody instinctively hides behind Heather who shoves him away. Meanwhile Max keeps shouting.
" If that's the case,I'll give you Ultimate talents. " He returns to his normal form.
" Wait. How are you gonna do... " Beth tries to ask but is quickly cut off by Max.
" Here goes ! Beth,Ultimate Majorette ! DJ,Ultimate Animal lover ! Bridgette, Ultimate Surfer ! Cody, Ultimate Cool loser... "
" Hey ! What does that mean Cool Loser ?! " Cody objects,offensed.
" Despite your attempts to look cool,you stay a loser ! " Max humiliates him,taking the head of a gorilla underestimating him. " Let's continue. Courtney, Ultimate... Inreresting. "
" What is it again ?! " Courtney asks,frustated by Layton's habit to have too much fun. This one meanwhile turns his face to a blue monkey wearing glasses and reading a paper.
" Interesting... Normally,you would be called the Ultimate Perfectionnist but I will add you a new talent : Ultimate Detective ! "
" Detective ?! " She repeats,confused and angry.
" Of course,Miss Perfection ! You can confidently solve cases. I'm sure of it. Next : Duncan,Ultimate Bully ! Eva, Ultimate Gymnast ! Ezekiel, Ultimate Idiot... "
Ezekiel doesn't react,prefering to stick his finger in his nose.
" Geoff,Ultimate Nice Guy ! Gwen, Ultimate Gothic ! Harold, Ultimate Geek ! Heather, Ultimate Manipulator ! Izzy, Ultimate Tarzan ! Justin, Ultimate Mannequin ! Sadie,Ultimate... "
" Wait ! Can't you make an exception... Make for the two of us one Ultimate talent ?! " Sadie pleads,making a powerful hug with Katie.
" *Sigh* Both of you... Ultimate Twins ! " After turning into a bored grey wolf,Max accepts the proposal,making both girl scream victory. " Anyway ! Leshawna,Ultimate Talker ! Lindsay, Ultimate... Ultimate... Ultimate Blonde ! " Max finds nervously. " And Noah... This was hard but I found... Ultimate Intellect. Trent, Ultimate Guitarist ! Tyler, Ultimate Energic Man ! And finally Owen,the Ultimate Greedy ! And there he is,with my special guest !"
Owen runs with all his energy to the campsite. Once he is arrived,he puffs loudly as if he ran since a hour. The only thing new is that he is accompagnied… by a new participant walking to them peacefully,hands in the pockets. The teenager is a white man,with black short hairs contained with gel,green eyes,heighting the average and wearing a grey top with long sleeves into a black T-shirt with short sleeves,blue pants and black average teen shoes. The man was smiling innocently and greets everyone.
" Good morning,everyone ! Sorry for that unwarned arrival but I was locked into the caban and I dunno how I went inside. "
" When I entered in the caban,I found him tied up like a prisoner. " Owen confirms.
" Who are you ? " Duncan asks undiscreetly.
" My name is Brian and I am very pleased to meet you… Duncan. " This one suddenly startles angrily.
" We never met each other ! How do you know my name ?! "
" Oops ! I said too much. " Brian responds provocatively,armscrossed and looking away. " But I'm sure that doesn't matter right now. What matters is to know what this weirdo wants from us ! " Even if he speaks calmly with a reassuring smile,Brian leaves to the others a confused mood ; how does this man know Duncan's name,everyone is thinking.
" Wait. Courtney speaks next. Do you have an Ultimate talent,too ? "
" Brian is my favorite jewel ! Max suddenly confesses,getting almost an orgasm. He is the jewel of this group,the perfection among humanity,the real heart of my life. "
" What does that mean ? Tyler asks,confused. "
" Maybe I should tell them myself. Brian volunteers carelessly,still armscrossed. Actually,my talent is… Ultimate Despair… " He announces without excitement.
" Ultimate… Despair… What does it consist ? " DJ demands,curious.
" That's pretty obvious to me. Ultimate Despair… is the ultimate despair among humanity… Basically,my whole life is full of despair. Even since I was born,I bear no emotion,no will,no faith,no dream… Only void… Desperated void. Everywhere I go,I inspire despair,and those who let themselves consumed by my powerful despair… End up spreading havoc and chaos around them. I call them : the Anarchy of Despair ! HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA ! " The laughing makes everyone frightened and forces them to step back quickly from him. " Sorry sorry ! The laugh was to tease you. " He then regains his cool behaviour,raising his hands to chill everyone out.
" Dude… You're weird. " Tyler reacts,shocked.
" You should be interned. " Ezekiel advices,unexpectedly indifferent.
" I was supposed to be interned. But I was so desperated that I ended up killing the doctors and fleeing. " He tells that as if it was the routine. " I had the knife with me but I threw it to the sea because of the police. "
" Just… Stop. Stop right there. " Courtney pleads,disturbed. " We have heard enough of you. " And just like a robot,Brian,armscrossed,stands on his feet and shuts himself up.
" After you made your happy introductions with Brian,you 22,you will be... "
" Wait a minute ! Beth interrupts. Actually,we are 23 with Brian. "
" What ?! Max quickly counts everyone out and when he's done,he turns his head into an angry red bull and yells at Beth. WHO DO YOU THINK YOU ARE,TELLING ME I'M BLIND ?! THANKS TO YOU,MY PLANS ARE RUINED ! "
" What plans ? "
" Oh yeah… The main topic. Guess why I am here. "
" To piss us off. " Duncan responds rudely.
" One good answer. But it would be better if you watched your language for the next time. Actually,the real reason is that I made up a new rule for that formerly-boring TV show. "
" What is this rule ? Beth asks,worried. "
" If you want to get out of here… " He suddenly transforms into the Ghostface wielding a kitchen knife,a chainsaw and a scythe. " You're gonna have to KILL UNTIL TWO OF YOUR DEAR COMRADES ! "
" W-W-W-W-What ?! " Leshawna reacts,having the pale skin.
" I said… K-I-L-L… " Max spells jokingly. " Take one's life violently by any mean necessary. Do you need more definitions or what ?! "
" That's not that the problem… B-B-But… " DJ loudly stammers.
" Killing each other ?! No one would do that,even for money ! " Eva groans to the robot.
" Haha. You know,something like that occured into a videogame… And you can be surprised about how many reasons there is to kill someone ! "
" We're not into a videogame ! " Suddenly Eva dashes forward and grabs Max Jack Layton by his neck before raising it to the air. " NOW YOU WILL LET US GO BEFORE I GET REALLY ANGRY ! "
" HAHAHAHA ! You know what's funny ?! If you knew what I was capable of,you would never have done that ! "
" Enough mockery ! I will turn you to… " Suddenly,before she ends her sentence,Max changes into a small dragon and turns a flashing red. The flashes go faster and faster with a total silence. " Now now ! Why the dragon ?! "
" Wait a minute… " Harold thinks before to shout to Eva. " You should toss him. "
" With pleasure ! " The strong woman tosses the red dragon to the air ; Max catches fire on his own,and then… BOOOOOOOOOM !
Everyone instinctively steps away,avoiding the fired particles. Meanwhile Eva,traumatized,doesn't move at all. Everyone is shocked and questioned by what happened.
" He exploded ! " Trent shouted.
" So that means… " DJ tries to say until a black hand lies on his shoulder. That makes the giant jump to the sky.
" You would really like to go this way ! But sorry ! I am alive ! "
" How is he still alive ? " Bridgette says.
" It has surely multiple toys at his commands. "Noah rationalizes.
" Y-Y-You tried to kill me… " Eva stammers,still shakened.
" Yes ! After all… YOU tried to strangle me. I cal it… Fair Self Defense ! Now aside from that… little accident,in order to make that killing game easier,I decided to separate the group in two groups,but thanks to your dumb friend Beth,my plans got mixed up. Hopefully,I got a backup plan : Brian,I will give you the advantage to travel through both team freely without restriction,even if there's one bed free. "
" Wow. Thanks. " Brian reacts emotionlessly.
" And why would that be Brian and not… " Duncan tries to object but is rudely cut off.
" What did I hear ?! " Max asks rhetorically,taking a golden lion's head with a crown on his head.
" I said… "
" I heard nothing ! Moving on ! The two teams will be…
Team Monkey : Sadie,Katie,Ezekiel,Izzy,Owen,Cody,Eva,Tyler,Lindsay,Justin,Heather
Team Falcon: Beth,Harold,Bridgette,Geoff,Gwen,Noah,Courtney,Trent,Duncan,Leshawna,DJ .
And of course,Brian isn't officially part of any team. He is like my Joker ! "
" Why the names ? " Beth suddenly asks.
" What ? "
" Why Monkey and Falcon ? "Max turns his head into a gorilla underestimating.
" Why are you named Beth ? "
" I dunno.
" I dunno either ! I chose it like that ! Now off with the questions ! Before you part away,here !"
He suddenly lauches a lot of cards to Noah,who was close to him. He hopefully catches all of them are reads one of them.
" What is this… Electronic Handbook ? "
" I was too bored to make an original name. Except that,that handbook is too cool ! It allows you to access locked door and especially,it contains the rules of the school. Please read them seriously. And Noah,tap on the middle of the screen. " Noah obeys and as soon as he does,the screen shows his full name.
" That's my name. "
" That means it belongs to you now ! Each of you,grab the Handbook with your name on it. And let's be clear. " Max,more serious than before,stands in the middle of the group and stays emotionless,while taking an authoritary gesture. " Don't swap your cards with the one of a living being. Otherwise,the card simply won't work. Hahaha. Off you go ! "
And with that,Max Jack Layton runs away at speed Mach 20 and finally leaves the participants alone.
" What… Just happened ?! " Noah manages to say.
" Some weirdo invaded the show and is telling us to kill each other ! "Beth answers,her voice full of fear.
" That's a pretty good summary,Beth. " Tyler comments,uneasy.
" Before we do anything,let's check those rules he talked about. " Noah advices.
" You're right. " Courtney agrees. " That will avoid us some bad surprises,like what happened to Eva. "
" Okay,I will read for everyone…
RULE 1 : Welcome to my island ! MY ISLAND ! I am the only ruler of this show. Only I have the legal power over all of you !
RULE 2 : It is forbidden AND impossible to leave the island. But if one of you is eager to try,I shall send him instantly to hell.
RULE 3 : It is forbidden AND impossible to destroy the surveillance cameras in the island. The one committing that shameful act shall be sent to hell ASAP.
RULE 4 : However,you have my total permission to make out. If you are decided to do it,my cameras will seal their eyes.
RULE 5 : It isn't a school. You are free to do whatever you want. Except escaping of course.
RULE 6 : At nighttime,you are free to sleep wherever you want.
RULE 7 : You are allowed… No ! You are totally recommanded to kill each other ! But beware ! You only have the permission to kill until two pals. Otherwise,I shall punish you.
RULE 8 : If order to leave the island,the other participants mustn't discover the blackened. Otherwise it would be sad,knowing at the start who is the killer.
RULE 9 : After a murder is committed,if three people,OTHER THAN THE KILLER,discover the body,a Murder Discovery Announcement will play instantly.
RULE 10 : The blackened can be helped by an accomplice. But it would be meaningless,because only the blackened can leave the island. Ha ha ha ha !
RULE 11 : After a while,a Class Trial will debut to find out the blackened.
RULE 12 : A few more rules could be added during the days on the island.
Any questions ? "
" I got one question. " Beth begins shyly. " About the Rule 8… I don't understand the part " The other participants mustn't discover the blackened. " "
" Basically,the killer must commit the crime and get out of the island without anyone knowing his identity. " Noah responds.
" But the Rule 2 clearly stipulates that it's forbidden. "
" I didn't mean directly. I wanted to say… We can surely leave the island… With the Class Trial,as he calls it. "
" What is it ? " Lindsay asks.
" The Class Trial,according to the rules,is a trial where we must,somehow,find out who is the killer. " Courtney answers gently. " If we fail,the killer will have Max' permission to leave the island.
" But if he leaves the island,everyone will see his face. That doesn't make any sense. "
" You're right. This doesn't make sense. Or he hasn't thought deeply about it… Or he is hiding something important. "
" But for now,what if we stop thinking about that murder stuff ?! " Geoff cheerfully advices everyone. " If we keep thinking about it,we may begin to distrust everyone around us. Just don't think about it. "
" And don't think about committing it. " Duncan orders angrily.
" I doubt about it. " Heather says silently.
" What is it,Heather ? " Lindsay asks,worried.
" Sorry but I got my doubts… We don't know each other perfectly… Except some exceptions. " As she says that,she stares at Sadie and Katie playing together. " And especially… We know nothing about the new guy… Brian… " She sees him staring mysteriously at the tree where the camera is hidden. He still has his arms crossed and seems to be thinking about something. " Did you hear his monologue about despair ?! It's obvious he may be thinking about killing. The point is… Anyone around is able to kill someone else… "
" Let me clarify something. " Brian's scarily cheerful voice sounds right behind Heather. That makes her step away,same for Lindsay. " Sorry for frightening you. " He says then,raising innocently his left palm. " I always do that to people. But all I wanted to say is that I may be a scary guy… But I don't kill anyone without any real reason,don't worry. I may be full of despair,but I still have a conscience ! So you can sure that,if I kill someone,I haf a desperatedly good reason to do that. Ha ha. That sounded funny in my mind. "
" Please… Go away. " Heather orders to Brian who instantly leaves both girls alone.
" Well… The best thing to do now is to reunite with our team. "
" Indeed. The teams have already been made. And that weird guy is nowhere to be found. Let's join the others. "
" Alright. I follow you. "