𝙎𝘼𝙉𝙄𝙏𝙔 || 𝙘𝙝𝙞𝙨𝙝𝙞𝙮𝙖 𝙨𝙝𝙪𝙣𝙩𝙖𝙧𝙤𝙪

three of hearts |

                                 [ ❝man is condemned to be free❞ ]

       

the night zephyr suddenly turned too sour to draw in , the smoke from the burners above whirling patters in their midst and filling the valve with the air needed to float. their nerves were on edge and it was too suffocating to be of yui's liking. she mentally sighed to the announcement of the rules. abominable , whoever had decided it would be funny to pit people against each other. there were plenty of repulsive television shows with unnecessary back home in tokyo that those around her watched as a form of 'guilty pleasure' , and yui could not find meaning in being transported to the 'borderlands' just to be a part of such a set up ── albeit , more deadly.

this time , the overhead voice sounded foul to their ears , despite being only robotic and being controlled by those who constructed the game.

"please use the paper cards provided to write down who you want to vote out. the name is not necessary , any characteristic feature will do. choose one such person every round. one round lasts for three minutes."

a dragging silence etched between the five of them , uncomfortable and sharp as a double-edged sword.  seconds were ticking on , but even those who had previously experienced such games hesitated. spectacles next to her gulped harshly , clutching the card with trembling hands. three minutes was not much but they were all strangers and if this was indeed a game of survival , not one would hold back to choose the death of others over themselves.

"w-what should we do ?", one of the girls stammered , the one dressed in a green shirt ── dark hair brushing against her shoulders.

"follow the rules , as usual", gold tooth replied , side-eyeing yui and the nervous boy next to her ── baring his teeth in a smile , as though he were the predator in the game. yui wanted to laugh at his stupidity. being underestimated already because she was a newcomer.

"we have only a minute left for this round to end. should we wait and see who gets vote out ? maybe if we do not write anything on the card , nobody will be voted out ?", the other girl , sporting a black beret worn with dust , suggested while glancing at the timer on the phone she held. an idea worth trying , but even if they all survived , there was only parachute before the balloon exploded. yui sighed , tilting her head away , gaze lingering upon the terrace of the building they had left behind ── the silhouette of the city slowly reducing to mere blurs under the constricted moonlight.

"thirty seconds left", the robotic voice whirred. yui crouched down , knees folding upon the fibre of the wicker basket beneath the soles of her shoes , examining the fabric of the parachutes between her fingers to see if they could rig something. but if a 'hearts' game was as brutal as the experienced players made it out to be , there would emerge only one victor.

"ten seconds left", a voice called over her , drenched in sanguine and almost everything she despised even if it had only been a day since she had washed ashore into this hellhole. and just as yui straightened , an almost blinding flare of red lit up her peripheral vision. the air seemed to slow down , as she turned her head towards the bespectacled boy next to her had stood ── and she could see the life flush through his eyes as he slumped to the ground next to her feet. dark liquid spilled from beneath him , rivers of fire as they stained his neck in seconds ── the sides of his glasses cracked and his mouth hanging open. gulping , yui reached out to turn his head upwards ── eyes narrowing at the sight of the hole burned through his skull , eyes rolled to the back of his head , the rim of his glasses cracked. the timer on the phone beeped as a way of signalling the forthcoming round , the unholy voice speaking again.