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TonyLB · Joined: 09 Jun 2008 Posts: 494

April screams in pain and frustration, the sound echoing up and down the bell-shaped cave. She flips her body over and outward, pulling Shark away from her gripping points, and forcing him to dangle beneath her.

"Stop!" she shouts right in his face, tears streaming out of her eyes as he gnashes at her shoulder. "Please God, STOP! Don't make me do this!"

She wraps her free, bloodied, arm around his head, fingers searching for eyes and flesh to dig into. If he doesn't immediately relent at her words, she does her best to gouge herself fingerholds in his face, and peel him off of her by main force.

Nihilistic Mind · Posted: Wed Aug 20, 2008 2:02 am Post subject:

April's shouts are heard by all and the cheers from outside continue, detached from the group still below the bell's well. Claw hesitates for only a moment, slides across the cable, cutting her palms deeply and she jumps at Shark, beginning to rip his throat out.

April has a firm grip in spite of both elders hanging onto her. Shark gargles and yells something into her shoulder. He screams when April's fingers dig into his eye sockets and she can feel the teeth begin to retract.
Claw is ripping the skin and sinew of Shark's throat with disgusting noises and soon Shark is flailing, struggling to get off. "Get off of her, you hopeless freak!" Claw growls through gritted teeth.

April has a good hold of Shark's head and his mouth is about to come up. Claw is hanging onto Shark directly though, intent on killing him for his grave mistake.
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TonyLB · Joined: 09 Jun 2008 Posts: 494

"Claw!-Get-a-grip-get-hold-of-somethingohSHIT!" April shouts, as Shark starts to fall away. She swings her savaged right arm desperately, trying to get any kind of grip on Claw.

Nihilistic Mind · Posted: Wed Aug 20, 2008 5:36 am Post subject:

She catches Claw under her right shoulder and they both swing as Shark slips away, bloodied and flailing, unable to catch Claw's legs. He falls into the darkness below. More people are coming. Pumpkin begins to make his way back to them. Claw tries to turn around to grab onto April's legs and avoid falling. April catches a glimpse of her face: the blank, yet frightened look of a woman facing death.

The swing has caused April's grip with her left hand to loosen a bit and she knows she'll slip down too if she doesn't get Claw up and gripping the rock rather than her damn legs! She digs in her deeper than either of them would like.

Pumpkin's thin limbs make him look strangely menacing as he swings quickly over to them. His round head and his eyes, too far apart, help the grotesque, almost sinister look.
Finally, he grabs a hold of April's left shoulder and tries to pull her up, or at least offer a steady anchor. Claw begins to slip and looks up at April and Pumpkin. April knows Claw is about to take a dive down as well... The only way April can be saved.

With her right arm weakened and her left hand slipping, her left foot no longer wedged against a fissure in the rock... It's only a matter of time before both of them fall. If she pulls her up, she runs the risk of falling as well.

Meanwhile, Shark's body makes a thud, then another, as he falls, hitting a couple of slanted rock walls on his way down. Finally, a splash can be heard, as he falls into a pool of torrent water.
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TonyLB · Joined: 09 Jun 2008 Posts: 494

"Claw!" April snaps, "Hold on! Just HOLD ON!"

"Pumpkin," she says, turning her head slightly, "undo the catch on this boot!" She wiggles her dangling left leg as much as she can with Claw's weight hanging on it. "Hurry!"

Nihilistic Mind · Posted: Wed Aug 20, 2008 1:33 pm Post subject:

Claw's grip goes a bit deeper into April's flesh and she winces, empathetic. The pain is truly excruciating.
Pumpkin lets go of April's shoulder and hurries with the boot. Luckily, it had been somewhat damaged before and it comes off in a hurry, falling into the depths below.

April's fingers on her left hand continue to slip under the pressure.
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TonyLB · Joined: 09 Jun 2008 Posts: 494

As the boot falls away, April gives a tiny sigh of relief. She presses experimentally with her barefooted left leg, loading Claw up as completely as she can on just that limb, then with a pained grunt she swings her out and over, like a waiter passing a tray of drinks, all but slamming her into the rock ceiling and the handholds near Pumpkin. "Get her, get her," she snarls through a grimace of pain and exertion. Her shoulder muscles quiver, and tendons stand out in stark relief from the curve of her neck. Blood and sweat mingle in swirling rivulets down her skin as every muscle strains to keep her grip long enough for Claw to get hold.

Nihilistic Mind · Posted: Wed Aug 20, 2008 7:05 pm Post subject:

Pumpkin grabs onto Claw and Claw gets a hold of the rock. Claw makes her way back to the well, her clawed hands bloody.

Pumpkin resumes helping April up, or in the least, keeping her stabilized, giving her time to rest. Pumpkin says, "What happened? Why did he do that?" April realizes the question isn't meant for her.

Below, three silhouettes are making their way up the path they created. More elders?
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TonyLB · Joined: 09 Jun 2008 Posts: 494

"I don't ..." April gasps. She squeezes her eyes tightly, and her face is wet and glistening. "I don't know. How could I ... how could any of us predicted that? He just ... aw gawd, why would he DO that?"

She squeezes her eyes again, tightly, clinging to the rock.

"Let's get out of here," she says after a long quiet moment.

Nihilistic Mind · Posted: Thu Aug 21, 2008 2:19 pm Post subject:

Pumpkin nods and heads first, staying close to April in case she needs assistance.

April manages fine, but the blood from her right shoulder continues to spill and drip out of the open wound.
Once at the well, it gets easier, pushing against the closest rock walls. There are also lots of easy holds here.

Pumpkin looks down to check on April from time to time.

Eventually, she can smell the fresh air from outside and the end is near. The mist surprises her a bit, but the amount of light filtering through it is almost as surprising.

They are all there, except for Shark, of course, resting, out of the well, and onto the black rocky mountain.
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TonyLB · Joined: 09 Jun 2008 Posts: 494

April raises a weary hand to forestall questions about her condition and Sharks absence. She staggers over to a rock somewhat away from the crowd, and leaves Pumpkin and Claw to bring the rest up to date.

While they talk in low tones, April hunches on the rock, facing away from the others. She tears strips off of the bottom of her shirt, and starts fashioning a rudimentary bandage for her savaged shoulder. The work goes slowly. She often pauses to drag the back of her hand across her eyes.

Finally, with a wince, she cinches down the strap around the bandage. She leans her head over and starts trying to tie the fiddly ends of the bandage with her one good hand and her teeth. A low stream of inaudible obscenity murmurs like a hidden creek from behind her clenched teeth as the cloth pulls free of her awkward manipulations time and again.

Nihilistic Mind · Posted: Thu Aug 21, 2008 7:26 pm Post subject:

Horns comes over to help, singing a nursery rhyme to April to soothe her. She ties the rudimentary bandage over and squeezes hard on it to stop the bleeding.

Then she hugs April. Behind Horns, the other elders are approaching April as a group. They begin to gather all around April, surrounding her.
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TonyLB · Joined: 09 Jun 2008 Posts: 494

April bites her lip and struggles against tears for a moment, then collapses in Horns arms, sobbing.

"I failed him," she insists. "He was humming. I should have noticed. I should have known what it meant. There were signs, there are always signs, and I just ... " she gasps for breath, "... I wasn't smart enough, I didn't notice, I wasn't good enough."

"I'll never be good enough," April says darkly.

Nihilistic Mind · Posted: Fri Aug 22, 2008 2:17 am Post subject:

Horns holds her like an over-sized child and comforts her. In turn, each of them approaches to hold April and add to the group. They eventually all begin to emote, crying, laughing, lamenting and realizing they have left the pit where many had probably been stuck for years, if not decades.

Harp is the first to pull away from the group, extricating himself out of the hold of others. He wipes tears from his face. A smile appears and stretches across it. He looks at April and says to her, "We've escaped the cycle. Though we may not ever rest, I am thankful for what you have done for us." He bows his head. "I pledge my terrestrial life to helping you in your endeavors and travels, whatever they may be."

"As I," says Hair, standing up. "I am thankful and I will follow you in your travels if you wish it."
"Me too," says another, and soon they have all agreed in their thanking her and their pledge to help April in her travels.

Harp moves over to the edge of the well they have all climbed out of and looks in for a moment, spits in it and shouts, "May the one we now know as Shark be stricken from our group! He was maddened by the darkness of the Pit and wished to remain there... Let it be so!"
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TonyLB · Joined: 09 Jun 2008 Posts: 494

April smiles sadly. "You are all so good to me," she says. "I don't ... I don't know that anyone can deserve what you're offering, but I thank you."

"I know so little of you all," she say with a sigh, "and I've underestimated you so badly." She laughs weakly. "To be fair, you didn't exactly show to best advantage when I first saw you. Still, you are each more than I ever would have expected. I am very curious ... do you remember anything of your lives before the Pit?"