Author's Note: Here we come to save the DAAAAAY! Not really, but we do bring an end to our cliffhanger! We know you're all terribly excited. So. Anyway. On with the tale!
Also, why don't you people give us some "Yo Daddy" jokes? We can't hand out one shots without anyone giving us anything. So, nothing this time. Come on, people, you're creative! We don't care what it is, give us something! Please?
WARNING: This chapter, while not horribly graphic, WILL contain rape and other unpleasantness of that nature. If you don't like that, and don't want to read it, we understand. Please note that we do not condone such acts, and that this is just a story. Please don't be angry.
Disclaimer: We own nothing. Seriously. We're in college, people. We're POOR.
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Chapter 12: Don't Burst My Bubble!
Marie groaned, feeling as if her head was about to burst like a rotten melon. Evie woke to her friend's soft groans and nuzzled into Marie gently. Marie blinked, looking over, feeling horribly confused. Seeing the gag over Evie's mouth and feeling her own bonds, Marie's memories came back swiftly.
Staying still, Marie glanced about the truck they were in. The men were still awake and fairly alert, holding weapons. Marie was incensed to note that the man who had hit her head was lovingly stroking HER Hand Cannon.
The truck halted and she and Evie were picked up and carried out. Clearly the men had learned their lesson about letting the two women having their feet free. One man was still recovering from a savage kick to his groin from Evie.
The two were carried through a large camp. Taking it in as best as they could in their groggy state, Evie and Marie both noted how huge the camp was. A large caravan, probably close to a hundred or so people, give or take. Most likely that was a generous estimate.
There were mostly men, but a few women and children could be spotted slinking along behind the men. Soon, Marie and Evie were dumped, still bound and gagged, in a tent at the center of the camp. The men left, laughing and congratulating themselves, while Marie and Evie desperately tried to get the ropes off.
Needless to say, they failed miserably. Soon, some women entered the tent. Marie and Evie looked at each other askance, then back to the women in front of them.
The three women looked AWFUL. Their hair was loose about them and they wore skirts to the knee, but it was easy to see the bruises on them, and the defeated, whipped look on their faces. These were women that had given in to their situation and had been broken.
Mentally, Marie swore she wouldn't let that happen to her and Evie. She made a mental note to speak with Evie as soon as possible about possible escape plans. If nothing else, she would kill Evie and then herself before letting them become like these husks of women
The women pulled out knives and began cutting the thick clothes off of Marie and Evie. They both thrashed violently, and Marie managed a good wallop to one woman's gut, but soon the two were naked.
They both curled up, trying to cover themselves with their bound hands. Again, it proved fruitless. The broken women laid out a small tarp and placed Evie and Marie onto it, and began gently scrubbing the dirt and grime from their bodies with sponges.
Despite the struggles of the warriors, the tarp was soon put away and they were clean. Their hair was washed and dried and brushed, Marie's left down, which annoyed her to no end. Quickly, the women finished up, somehow managing to get Marie and Evie into scanty nightgowns, without leaving them unbound for too long.
Marie was infuriated and Evie looked like she was going to be sick. The night gowns were flimsy, filmy, see through monstrosities. Marie thought that she would have been happier without the farce of this being a willing encounter.
The women had pulled out pillows and blankets, making two nests of some sort. Marie was placed in one and Evie in the other. Then, just as quickly as they had arrived, the women left. Marie managed to wiggle enough to look over at Evie, locking gazes with her terrified friend.
They both heard male voices from outside the tent, getting closer. Ugly laughter pervaded the air. Marie looked over at Evie again and nodded to her friend. Evie whimpered behind the gag and shut her eyes, burying her face in a pillow.
Marie lay back, sighing, feeling empty and hollow. She had sworn to never let Evie be hurt like this again. But, not even her strength and skill could protect Evie from all the cruelties of man.
As the men entered, stinking of booze and sweat, Marie shut her eyes tightly. She felt hands on her, touching her, and horrible voices whispering in her ear of all the things that would be done to her. If she hadn't had a gag in, she would have hurled.
The gag was removed and her legs were shoved apart and she could hear Evie crying and she was so angry and frustrated and helpless. She bit down, hard, on the first thing to enter her mouth and she smiled in satisfaction at the cry of pain.
She winced as she was punched and felt her nose go out of alignment. She had already been lightheaded from her head injury earlier and her head lolled on her neck. She fought against blacking out. She would stay awake for this, remember every injustice, and exact it back upon these monsters in men's bodies a thousand fold.
She glared furiously, refusing to cry. She stared her attacker in the face, in his eyes, and she knew that he was afraid of her. But, not as afraid as he would be. She would make sure of that. They would let their guard down. Then they would know to be afraid.
As the next man came to her, she caught a glimpse of Evie. Evie seemed to be comatose, staring at nothing as she was abused. Marie winced, knowing that Evie was reliving every past suffering. Laying back, Marie longed for her past to return to her, where she and Evie were safe and respected and protected.
Now, they were alone. And no one cared about respecting them. Unbidden, an image of a man came to her. He was tall and broad, with a gentle smile and kind, blue eyes. Marie shut her eyes, focusing on the image of the man that she had loved, her fiancé. She hoped she could pretend that it was him in her, that it was their wedding night, that the world was kind and good and just.
She felt tears burning behind her eyes, but she wouldn't let them fall. The men in the tent would think that she had broken. She refused them that pleasure, since she could deny them little else.
Bruises were already appearing on her as yet another man took her. Suddenly, in her mind, next to the image of her beloved, came a second man. Yet, this man was not a man. He, too, was tall and muscled, but with skin the color of the Arizona sands.
Tightening her fists, she shoved the image from her mind, focusing on what had been there previously, keeping her mind barely intact. The night wore on and her suffering continued, long into the hours of the morning.
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Marie was deeply focused on wiggling her right leg. She almost had it loose, and the man grunting away above her hadn't noticed. She grinned mentally as her foot slipped free. The man had just sighed, pulling away, and Marie glared at him furiously.
Her right knee slammed into the relaxed man's side, and Marie giggled as he made a satisfying yelp of pain. Cursing, he stumbled away from her, nursing an already bruising side. He snarled at her, furious that his post coital bliss had been ruined.
"You fucking crazy bitch! Dingo was right about you two!"
Marie blinked, processing the words that had come from her most recent attacker's mouth. He grinned at her sickly.
"Yeah, that's right! He came to us, telling us all about you two nutjobs. Trying to kill those freak aliens. We thought it would be a mercy to reign you two in, teach you how ladies should act. But no! You're a goddamn hellcat, and your friend is a cold fish!"
Marie took a deep offence to Evie being called any sort of fish. Evie hated seafood. Marie's foot lashed out once more, hitting into the man's knee and sending him toppling over.
He cursed, reaching for the escaped foot. Marie managed to land one more kick to his face before he was able to secure her. Panting heavily, he stood, pulling his clothes on, cursing at how insane the new bitches were.
Just before he left, the man looked over his shoulder. "Good thing Dingo will be back soon. Maybe he can beat some manners into your thick head!"
As he stormed from the tent, Marie sighed, relaxing as much as she could. Rolling her head, she could see Evie laying still. Then, slowly, Evie turned her head and the two women locked gazes. Evie began to tremble slightly.
"Marie?"
"I know. Don't worry, it's gonna be okay. I won't let him touch you or me."
"But… You can't promise that. He'll keep coming after us!"
Marie frowned, thinking hard, before taking a deep breath and gazing serenely into her dearest friend's eyes. "I swear I won't let him touch you. I promise you that, if all else fails, I will kill you to keep him from you. And I promise that I'll follow right after. Okay?"
Evie blinked, then slowly nodded. "I'll do the same for you, if it turns out that way. We'll go together."
Marie nodded once more and shut her eyes, hoping to get some sleep before the next onslaught of "visitors".
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A few days later, Evie was now busily working to loosen the ropes around her wrists. Since she was always so still, the men had been tying her less carefully. Marie encouraged Evie to get the ropes loose, but not to slip from them. Not yet.
This day, they heard noises, and singing. Evie began panicking "It's Dingo! He has to be back! Oh god, oh god, oh god!"
Marie tried talking Evie down. "Hey, now! Maybe they're just singing because it's someone's birthday. Come on, now, let's try and slip away while we can. And, if nothing else, we'll keep our promises. Now, come on, slip out of those ropes and help me."
Evie nodded, quickly releasing herself from her bondage, then setting Marie loose. Marie rubbed her chafed and raw wrists and ankles, sighing and stretching as her muscles got used to moving again.
They stood, staring at each other. Marie glanced at the tent door. "Well, do you want to try running? Cus if we're going to do that, I demand pants and a shirt. Have I ever told you how much I have missed wearing pants?"
Evie gave a shaky smile. "Yeah, pants would be nice."
Wrapping some blankets around themselves, Marie and Evie slipped out of the tent, picking their way through the camp, aiming for the tree line. Marie took the lead, blinking in the fading sunlight.
Marie paused, whispering to Evie. "Hey, do you feel how warm it is?"
Evie nodded.
Frowning, Marie looked about them. There was little to no snow on the ground and grass was slowly growing. Marie sucked in a breath. "Goddamn! The bastards have had us all winter! That's, like, seven or eight months! Fuck."
Evie slipped closer to Marie, whimpering. They kept going and just as they were close to escape, shouting commenced in the camp. The two women charged towards the trees, desperate to reach freedom.
But, they were too slow and weak. Months of little to no movement had left them tired and worn. Just as Marie hit the trees, she heard a yelp behind her. Wheeling about, she saw Evie in the grasp of the man she hated most in the camp. The man that had taken her knife and her Hand Cannon.
He grinned at her, holding a gun to Evie's head. "Come on back here, hell bitch. Nice and easy. You don't want your friend losing her head, hm?"
Marie snarled, spitting curses at him, but she came back, slowly. Two men grabbed her and the women were marched back to the camp and thrown into the back of a large van. They were locked in.
Marie pounded on the metal doors to no avail. Turning, she saw Evie hunched in a corner, rocking back and forth. Sighing, the bespectacled woman went to her friend and wrapped her arms around the shivering wreck.
"Shh… Evie, shh. It's gonna be all right. I'm sorry we couldn't make it. But I'll make everything better, all right?"
Evie nodded, curling more closely into Marie. Marie pulled a knife from out of nowhere and settled Evie in front of her. Marie looked at the blade in her hand, and then gently pressed it close to Evie's throat.
Evie sniffled. "Marie?"
"What is it?"
"You'll come right after, right? You won't leave me alone?"
Marie hugged Evie. "You know I'd never leave you alone. You never left me. Now, shut your eyes. I'll make it quick."
Evie nodded and relaxed into Marie's grasp, baring her throat. Marie touched the blade down and took a deep breath. Just as she was about to slash through, a familiar noise broke through the air.
"STOP!"
Marie jerked the blade away, looking about her wildly. Evie blinked, confused.
Evie looked up at Marie. "Marie? Why did you say stop?"
"It wasn't me!"
"It's HAMMERTIME!"
Marie and Evie blinked rapidly together, then looked towards the doors of the van. Marie set the knife down. "Was that?"
Evie nodded. "Martello."
The two women ran towards the front of the van, where the doors had been previously guarded and they clambered out, looking about them at the rampant chaos taking place.
There were screams and gunshots and fire blazing in every direction. They hurried away, but Marie stopped, hearing a familiar voice. She grinned, cradling her knife lovingly.
"Evie. Wait here."
Evie grabbed Marie's arm. "Wait, where are you going?"
"Not far. I have to say hello to an old friend."
Evie frowned. "First of all, that line was horribly cheesy. Second, can't we just leave?"
Marie shook her head. "I'm sorry, but I have to do this. I'll never forgive myself if I don't. Besides, he's got my knife. And I can't see Martello again without it."
Evie nodded and stepped back, hiding behind some vehicles as Marie advanced into the eerie light.
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Marie carefully slipped through the shadows, clutching her knife, eyes locked on her target. The man that had tormented her from the beginning, the man that had taken her special knife and her Hand Cannon, was right in front of her.
A Xenomorph darted out, screaming at Marie's intended victim. He jerked, surprised, and whipped a gun around, sending a round into the creature's torso.
The Xeno writhed on the ground, acid blood leaving a swath of destruction, then it lay still. He grinned, giving the gun an affectionate pat.
Marie took her chance. Putting on a burst of speed, she flew towards him and slipped the knife into his back.
He screamed, jerking away, and Marie took her chance to grab HER GUN, and throw him to the ground. Panting from the exertion, Marie cured the fact she'd gotten so weak. He should have been dead on the first knife strike.
He stared at her, wide eyed. He tried to run, move his legs, but Marie was still proficient enough that she had severed part of his spinal cord. He looked up at her in horror.
Marie smiled. "Yeah. That's right. It's me. So, I think you have something else of mine. I don't want to touch your disgusting self, so you better just hand it over, so I don't have to search your corpse for it."
"Why are you doing this? I'm going to die this way! I can't move!"
Marie crouched down, staring him in the eyes. "Why am I doing this? Really? Did you seriously just ask me that? You kidnap me and my friend, you take my special knife, you hit me in the head and probably gave me a concussion, you rape me and my friend constantly for several months, AND you've taken and have used my Hand Cannon. What, am I supposed to be madly in love with you now?"
He whimpered, holding up his hands. "I'm sorry! I was just following orders!"
Marie blinked. "Seriously? You were ordered to steal my things and rape me?"
"Uh, um, no? Yes! I mean, yes!"
Marie scowled. "Bullshit, you bastard. Now, I won't say this again. GIVE. ME. MY. KNIFE."
He fumbled about, pulling the large, beautiful knife from behind his back, holding up to her with shaky hands. "Here! Take it! Please don't hurt me!"
Marie gently took the blade from him, smiling at the mysterious metal knife. Then, she checked her Hand Cannon, and looked back at the terrified man.
"So. This? This is MY GUN. That you have been using without PERMISSION. Now, tell me. How much ammo is left for my baby Cannon?"
If possible, the man looked even more terrified and he whispered. "There… There is none left. I used the last of it, just now, to kill the alien…"
Marie made a blank face, staring at the now useless gun in her hands. Slowly, she stood and glared down at the man cowering before her. She smiled evilly. "Well. Thank you for that information. I'm afraid I have something to give you now."
The man smiled hopefully. "A quick death?"
Marie shook her head. "No. Remember, I'm all about an eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth, a concussion for a concussion."
The man's smiled left his face and he began to beg her to just kill him. His pleas fell on ears that couldn't give a damn. Marie hefted the gun, then brought it slamming down onto his skull. He jerked, then fell backwards, still.
Nodded, Marie turned and left to go find Evie. She stopped, then turned back and unlaced the boots the man was wearing, slipping them on her own feet. Lacing up the worn boots, she admired the make of them. Strolling away, Marie smiled. "Hell, he won't need them anymore anyway."
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Marie finally found Evie huddled in one of the vehicles, desperately trying to figure out how to hotwire the car into action. Marie gently pulled Evie away and they once again journeyed through the camp.
They stopped when they heard whimpering and crying from one of the tents. Stepping through the flaps, Evie and Marie blinked in confusion. All the women that they had seen over the past few months were huddled in the tent, crying and trying to keep away from the door.
Marie shouldered her useless gun and readjusted her blanket dress, glaring down at the dozen or so women cringing on the floor. One woman stared up at them, tears running down her face.
Marie sighed. "So. You guys. Your camp is a wreck, Xenos have already started arriving, and your men will probably be dead soon. If you come with us, we'll do our best to keep you alive and get you to the point where you can take care of yourselves. All right?"
The women all stared at Marie as if she was completely insane. Then, one woman shook her head. "No. No, we'll just stay here."
Marie frowned. "Why? You're all just going to be killed if you don't do something. Do any of you even know how to use a gun?"
"No… That's why we have the men. They take care of us. They'll come and keep us safe. They care about us."
Marie shook her head. "No, they probably don't. You're good for cooking, cleaning, caretaking, and screwing. They'll be able to find more women. You're more useful in general if you can fight."
Another women, cradling a child in her arms, glared at Marie. "Men don't LIKE women that fight. Besides, if we fight, we'll get ugly like you two. Then no men will want us and we won't be safe!"
Sighing, Marie brushed her hair out of her face. "Look, you're going to get old and ugly anyway, and then they'll ditch you no matter what. Wouldn't you prefer knowing how to take care of yourselves when the time came?"
All the women just shook their heads, shut their eyes, or looked away. Marie felt fury building in her gut. "FINE. You broken down, useless hunks of humanity. I can't believe I wasted so much of my valuable time trying to help you. You wanna die? Be my guest. But first, someone had better find us some clothes."
One of the braver women stepped forward, standing toe to toe with Marie and staring down haughtily. "Or you'll do what, scarface? You can't do anything to us! There's more of us than you!"
In a flash, Marie had the woman pinned, the blade to the woman's throat. "If you don't, I'll grant your wish quickly. More of you? HA! You're all spineless cowards. You're nothing. No matter how much nothing there is, I'll win. Now, you, over there. Go find Evie and I some goddamn pants."
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Marie and Evie ran through the trees, panting heavily. They stopped, leaning against some trees, and bent over, trying to catch their breath. Evie glanced about, trying to figure out where they were.
"So. We made it. Now what?"
Marie looked around, then jumped as screams resounded in the distance. Looking pale, Marie began moving again. "Maybe we should get a bit further away and find some shelter. I mean, these shirts, while shirts, aren't exactly warm. And damn it, we need to find a Walmart and get some bras."
Evie nodded and began following close behind Marie. She winced, hopping on one foot. "Goddamn pinecones! I need to find some shoes."
Marie stopped and stared mildly at Evie. "Well. At least YOU have PANTS ON."
Evie held up her hands. "Okay, okay! I get your point, I'm sorry I laughed at you. Can we keep going now?"
Marie nodded, turned back to take the lead, and came face to face with a Xenomorph. Not blinking, Marie began backing away as Evie cowered behind her. The Xeno hissed and followed the two women carefully.
An acorn suddenly arced from the trees, hitting the beast in the head. It turned, screaming at the trees and then Marie and Evie noticed that this particular alien was missing the end of its tail. Their eyes widened.
Marie kept her useless gun up. "Evie. Is that who I think it is? Is that the same one? It's been forever!"
Evie nodded. "Yeah. That's him. But, is he bigger?"
"Eating well. Maybe he found some miracle gro."
Their conversation was cut short as their old opponent turned to stare at them again. It seemed to eye Marie warily, watching the gun in her hands. Marie smiled.
"Hey, Evie? It's scared of my gun. It remembers that I shot it with this before. I think we have an out."
Evie blinked. "But, you don't have any ammo."
"But HE doesn't know that."
Marie began backing up again, keeping herself between the alien and Evie. The creature followed slowly, then stopped. It appeared to scent the air, then turned and ran.
Marie blinked, lowering her gun. "Well. That was… different?"
Evie nodded. Then, more noises came from behind them. Marie again placed herself in between Evie and whatever was coming towards them. Evie clutched at Marie's shirt, silent.
Then, a familiar recording resounded in the trees. "Friends!"
The two women stopped and stared at the figure coming through the trees. Martello came and stood in front of them, Ninja right beside him. Martello quirked his head, then played another recording.
"How YOU doin?"
Marie blinked, then started to laugh and dropped her gun, quickly closing the distance between her and the red giant. She looked up at him, craning her neck, then she hiccupped and began to sob, wrapping her arms around his torso as much as she could.
Martello quirked his head the other way, then patted the sobbing woman on her head. Evie came forward and Martello looked at her.
Tears slipped down Evie's face and she tried to smile. "Friends?"
Martello lifted up an arm and Evie wrapped her arms around him. Martello patted her head as well. Then, he played two recordings. "Friends! Snuggles!"
Evie looked over and saw Ninja close at hand, watching them both intensely. She extricated herself from Martello, who went back to playing with Marie's hair. He'd never seen it down before.
Evie walked up to Ninja and stared at him. He stared back. Then, she wrapped her arms around his torso.
He chittered at her, seemingly confused. Then, hesitantly, he repeated Martello's action and patted her on the head. She sniffled, then began sobbing again. Ninja busied himself with fussing with her now much longer hair. Evie almost hummed at the attention.
Suddenly, Martello spoke to Ninja and they seemed to come to an agreement. Ninja scooped up Evie as Martello grabbed Marie and the two warriors set off through the woods.
Marie had begun to fall asleep, lulled by the sound of Martello's steady breathing. The warriors brought the women to a cave and settled them in there, nested on some dead leaves. The girls clung to the aliens, tears slowly stopping.
Marie and Evie fell asleep, resting against the warm bodies of their rescuers. Some time later, the girls woke to see Martello and Ninja leaving the cave. Martello turned, waved at them, and made a motion that they interpreted as "Stay here".
The women scooched together, cuddling, staring out the cave entrance into the dark night. A short while later, they began to hear horrible screams. Marie looked over at Evie, and Evie gazed back at Marie.
They both looked out the cave again, hearing a particularly loud scream that was swiftly silenced. Marie smiled, eyes narrowing sharply. Evie smiled angelically, with just a hint of vicious glee in her eyes.
They stayed awake until dawn, listening to the cacophony of screams. Soon after that, the warrior aliens returned.
Ninja came to Evie and crouched in front of her and gently held out the necklace she had been missing for months. The tiny animal skulls were splattered with blood.
Evie smiled at him and took the necklace, doing her best to rub most of the fresh blood off, before slipping it over her head. Ninja nodded, then stood, waving her up.
Evie and Marie stood, looked at each other, then followed the aliens into the early morning.