"Every time you fall asleep, pray the Lord your soul to keep - you've got problems now, my friend.
You can run.
… truth gonna come out someday, it's gonna wipe that smile right off your face, but you can run."
-- "You Can Run," by Adam Jones
~~~~~
Blue
Green sat next to her as their new mission took off.
On the outside, Blue looked perfectly calm.
Internally, she was panicking.
… how do I get out of this??
She felt the knife in her suit that Green had given her.
"This is what we use to kill," he had said. "Now, don't make me do all the hard work, okay?"
Last time she had gotten on a ship like this, she had been unaware and blissfully ignorant.
Now, she was all too aware of what was going on.
Maelstrom knows about the others, and I bet he thinks Green was in on it too.
It sent chills down her spine to think of why Maelstrom had sent them out, despite knowing that information.
And Green expects me to help him kill everyone, even though I've never actually killed.
I can't mess this up.
She remembered what Maelstrom had said: "if things go awry on an assignment, you can always throw him under the bus - or, if he has any sense, HE'LL throw YOU under the bus."
One mistake, one bit of hesitation… and I'm dead, either way.
Either Green will kill me, or Maelstrom will.
Trust no one.
A small part of her wanted to trust Green, but the bigger part got the better of her.
He feels no remorse, and he'd kill you without a second thought. He only brought you here because he needs you.
… unfortunately for him, you only made his situation worse, but he doesn't have to know that.
He doesn't deserve to know.
Looking to her left, she saw a bright pink colored suit - Fuchsia.
Not pink like Pink, but the kind of pink that made your eyes hurt if you stared too long.
As Fuchsia shyly waved at Blue, she only had one thought:
I'll have to kill her eventually.
Across from Blue was a pastel-ish orange colored suit - Sunset.
He seemed to be trying to bore holes into her skull simply by staring at her.
Well, isn't he just a friendly soul? She thought sarcastically.
Finally, the ship rested on Mira HQ - a space station that was currently orbiting the Earth.
In one week, Blue and Green would either be leaving together, or they'd both be dead.
One week. Seven days to kill 10 other people.
She tried not to think about it too much.
Just focus on acting innocent for now.
They exited the ship after everyone else, letting the people clear out.
Once everyone had gone out of earshot, Green started speaking.
"There are 10 others - we can easily do it in a week if we double a couple times, and if we sufficiently frame some people."
Blue simply nodded, not trusting herself to say anything.
"You okay, Blue? I know this is quick, but the sooner you get the hang of it, the better."
"Right, right. I'm fine, it's just happening a bit too fast."
Green nodded. "Understandable. You can just leave the planning to me for now, so all you have to do right now is follow my lead."
He started to leave the ship, and Blue had no choice but to follow.
Just follow his lead. Simple.
… wait a minute-
"Wait, won't people think it's weird if we stick together?"
He mused over the question for a long moment. "If that becomes the case, we'll simply let them believe we're a couple."
"... seriously??"
"Well, would you rather be thrown out of the space station or act reasonably like a couple with me?"
"Personally, I'd prefer being thrown out."
"Well, I don't. I mean, I'm not asking you to do anything drastic - and it's only a card we'll pull if absolutely necessary. Chill."
… I guess that's fine.
With that, they left for the main section of the space station.
The both of them found their way to the cafeteria, where 8 out of the 10 other people were already gathered.
After Blue and Green joined the group, they all waited for a long moment.
Suddenly, the doors of the balcony flew open.
"Ah, there we go!" A friendly, feminine voice said, coming from a crewmate by the name of Aureolin.
Behind Aure was a darker figure - Rufous. He seemed a lot quieter, and definitely gave Blue the impression that he was Aure's bodyguard or something.
Another duo.
Looking at Green, Blue saw it in his gray eyes: he was sizing them up.
He's considering going for them?
Is he mad??
After Aure and Rufous had joined the group, someone clapped their hands - Malachite.
She seemed to be the one in charge.
Blue tuned herself out for the announcements, knowing they wouldn't deviate from the norm.
So, there's Fuchsia, Sunset, Aureolin, Rufous, Malachite…
Blue tried not to look at the other five.
Don't put names to the targets. If they're nameless, they're easier to kill.
Still, she couldn't help herself from glancing over.
Gold. Ciel. Solferino. Feldgrau. Cobalt.
NO, D**N IT, ESTELLE-
Blur the names.
It'll be easier that way.
But, somehow, she couldn't remove them from her mind.
They had been ingrained into her brain.
These were the people she would kill and frame.
And she would never forget them.
… what would Talon think?
~~~~~
After announcements, Blue had gone to do tasks - Green had told her that imposters were never taught how to do tasks very well. But, since Blue had been a crewmate, she knew exactly how to do them.
It felt wrong, doing tasks without Talon, Black, or Red by her side.
Honestly, I'd even accept Pink or Purple's company right now.
I never really knew them, but… they'd be much better than Green.
Speaking of Green, he had gone off by himself somewhere - most likely sizing up targets.
But, while sorting the samples in the Laboratory, she felt a hand grab her ankle.
"Blue - come with me."
Turning around, Blue saw Green halfway into a vent. What the f**k? Already??
He evidently read her facial expression, since he followed up with, "we have a week to take out ten people - we can't waste any time."
~~~~~
Pink
She was starting up the reactor.
Purple, on the other hand, was to the side, fixing wires.
"You know, you've been acting off."
Pink grimaced.
Of course she'd know.
"Well, after everything that happened yesterday, can you blame me?" Pink replied.
"Is it about Green?"
"... yeah."
"Well… we were all fooled by him, Autumn. It wasn't your fault."
But I, of all people, shouldn't have been fooled, her mind whispered.
Purple had finished with the wires, and was closing up the box.
Thinking fast, Pink pressed the wrong button on the reactor.
"Shoot, I messed it up," she sighed.
"I can stay here and wait for you," Purple offered.
"You don't have to - just go on ahead with your tasks, and I'll catch you later, okay?"
Purple blinked at her, and Pink knew she saw right through it.
But, being the understanding person she was, Purple nodded with a sympathetic smile.
She left the room, and Pink exhaled.
She just couldn't shake the feeling that something wasn't right aboard the ship.
Maybe I'm paranoid.
But when have I ever been wrong? She instinctively thought - but then she stopped herself.
She recalled when she had been correct in saying that Brown hadn't been the killer, back when Blue and Green were still around.
A wave of guilt washed over her.
I should have tried harder. I should have saved Brown.
He's dead because I gave up.
That loss was her biggest failure. I accomplished so many things - but right when my talents were most needed, I failed.
She sighed, knowing this reminiscence wouldn't get her anywhere.
She hadn't even told Purple about her secrets. My best friend.
She couldn't handle any of this.
Looking down, Pink half expected herself to wake up from the nightmare. All she wanted was for the ache in her chest to go away.
She took a deep breath and began to start up the reactor again.
All Purple really knows is that I deal with a lot - I wanna keep it that way. The less she knows, the better.
And she would never dream of telling Black, or even Red.
If anyone knows I'm a qualified detective, and there really is an imposter here… I'm dead.
And if they knew, they'd only question why I didn't catch Green.
She pressed the last button to start the reactor.
Once, she had been a prodigy.
But after that?
No one has to know-
No one has to know I'm a failure.
She opened the doors to go back into the hallway, and thought about checking security, just in case.
And that's when the lights went down - way down.
Her stomach churned.
Purple.
~~~~~
Red
When the lights went down, he was in MedBay with Black.
Oh no. His blood ran cold, and he quickly grabbed Black's arm, keeping her close.
There's a vent in here- we have to leave-
Moving quickly, he dragged Black out of MedBay. On the way out, they bumped into someone, but Red paid no heed to whoever it was.
WE HAVE TO GO-
He hoped that this was just some simple light malfunction, and that they were just being paranoid - but, deep down, he felt that wasn't the case.
There are other imposters out there - but what exactly are the odds that one will be on this particular ship?? Unless…
A chilling notion came to him, but he didn't address it right away. Besides, he didn't have any evidence to support it.
Maybe I'll mention it to Pink later - speaking of Pink, where are the others?
Shaking his head, he kept ahold of Black and rushed them both into the security room.
There was silence in the room, save for Red and Black's panicked breathing.
The doors opened again, revealing another person.
Red prepared to fight whoever it was, but then the lights came back on, revealing that it was Peach.
"What the h**l are you two running from?" He asked.
Well, long story-
Before Red could answer, a horrified scream came from another section of the ship.
Peach promptly forgot about the two of them and rushed in the direction of the scream.
Black looked at Red, but Red couldn't move.
The scream had come from the direction of MedBay.
His suspicions suddenly became a whole lot more real.
After following Peach, they found Maroon and a few of the others standing over a body in MedBay.
Indigo was dead.
His eyes widened, and his stomach flipped.
That's who brushed past us in the dark.
That was all the proof Red needed.
Red heard footsteps behind him, and he turned to see both Pink and Purple there.
Pink took one look at the body, and her eyes flashed with fear before returning to their normal, focused state.
Purple inhaled sharply, and she subconsciously reached for Pink.
Black simply averted her eyes from the body and stared at the floor, trying to calm herself.
Peach was ushering people away from the crime scene. In the commotion and confusion, Red grabbed Pink and Purple and pulled them in the direction of the security room, knowing Black would follow.
"You have a theory, don't you?" Pink stated once the doors were closed.
Red sighed. "I wasn't sure before, but I certainly am now - okay, Pink, what do you think the statistical odds are that there is an imposter on this specific ship?"
She thought for a moment. "Well, considering the degree of inconspicuousness that these imposters have from the public - it's a very, very low chance."
Red nodded. "Black and I were just in MedBay before the lights went out."
Within a second, Pink had connected the dots. "So, that kill was supposed to be you."
"Exactly - I think we're being targeted, and this imposter is going for me first."
~~~~~
A/N: so, I ended up finishing some of my major deadlines earlier than expected - so here's another chapter. :)
And, as for my mental health, I'm glad to say that I am doing quite well, considering my recent life events. I'm even a bit ahead on my work!
Also, you may have noticed that I'm beginning to use song quotes at the beginning of a few of my chapters (two, so far - and there will be more).
When those appear, expect them to match the events of the chapter in some way. Why am I doing this? Because it makes things more ominous and dramatic (and it helps to give Part II more of a different feel than Part I).
This chapter, for instance, has a quote from "You Can Run" - one of my favorite songs - and it's hinting at the facts that 1) someone is hunting the characters (hence "you've got problems now, my friend"), 2) and that someone knows about their lies ("truth gonna come out someday, it's gonna wipe that smile right off your face").
Which set of characters are the lyrics referring to? Both, in a way.
So, when you see quotes… just know that they give hints and foreshadowing.
I hope to see you again soon!