Mel stood in silence thoughtfully staring into space. The broken bodies around her still twitched in the throes of death but that didn't really matter.
After all, this was just a game.
She straightened turning her gaze up to the distant sky.
All across the Dominion, people wildly cheered.
Nick Frost stared at the screen with an expression of genuine bewilderment and shock.
He stuttered for a brief moment before finding his voice again.
[Ladies and gentlemen, what did we just witness?! Unbelievable! Simply unbelievable!]
Mel's biometric wristband flared to life.
[KILL STREAK:8]
[Entry: Mel ]
[Estimated Threat Index: Tier 2]
[Threat Index stats]
[Combat Ability: 9]
[Anomaly Factor:5]
[Influence Potential:4]
[Observation:7]
[Kill Count: 8]
[Audience Support:locked]
[Audience perks: locked]
[Innate skill:Calibrating]
Blood slowly dripped down from the metallic rod in her hand. She brandished it, staring down at it curiously.
"That was surprisingly...disappointing."
She'd expected a lot more from this confrontation.
After all, the four dead men and the two women had gone through the trouble of attacking her at the same time.
She let out a sigh replaying the battle in her mind.
***Ten minutes earlier***
The large island they were on had many suitable hiding spots but then where was the fun in that?
Mel slowly strolled through the dense forest casually observing her surroundings.
She stopped, staring into the distance.
With her uncanny heightened senses, she could vaguely hear the sounds of life all around her.
The rhythmic chirping of crickets, small animals crawling in the undergrowth, and the faint rustle of leaves in the breeze.
Mel slowly took in these sensations, savoring the realness of the simulation.
"To think they'd go so far..."
Most of the wildlife had been destroyed in the Apocalypse and what was left of it had been captured and placed in several reserves within Elysium.
The Arena simulation was truly exceptional.
Soon enough, she'd run out of entries.
She heard them before she saw them.
The sound of voices and feet, slowly shuffling through the undergrowth.
She stayed completely still, silently determining which direction they were coming from and where they were likely headed.
"This way then..."
The safest option would be to avoid conflict early on and simply survive up to the very end. It was also the least exciting but most efficient way.
Simply take out one isolated person and then stick it out to the end.
"But that would be too boring...Besides, I need to stretch for a bit..."
With that, Mel decisively stepped forward appearing directly in the path of the group.
At her appearance, the group momentarily came to a stop.
"Well, what happens now..." she pensively thought while simultaneously making a silent head count.
The man at the leader shone a flashlight directly at her.
" Hey there sweetheart," a raspy voice said.
Despite the darkness, she could clearly see the man's outline at least enough to make a rough profile of him.
"He's...definitely not the leader."
He slowly walked up to her then leaned in, sniffing her loudly.
"Hmmmm, smells really gooooooddd!!! What do you think darlin, how about I warm you up really quick?"
A second man joined the first.
" Now don't go hoarding all the fun for yourself, Frank. Look at her, she's positively shook. She's frozen still, like a deer in headlights. What's your name, honey? Jane Doe? "
The man chuckled gleefully.
" Hey Gary, that actually rhymes. You get it, deer, doe..."
The man cackled wildly, shaking his head mirthfully.
"Finish this up quickly," a deep voice said from the darkness.
"Are you really going to allow those perverts to..." a feminine voice echoed from the darkness in indignation.
" She's going to die anyway...how they do it is none of my concern," the one known as Gary said.
The woman scoffed, then turned away.
Mel silently watched, carefully scanning their surroundings.
"There are no others in hiding...this makes things a lot easier than...
The second thug, was behind her groping her with abandon.
" The pretty thing is so scared she's frozen stiff. Well, it can't be helped. We'll take what we can."
The first thug, Frank, was slowly feeling her up and breathing heavily.
When he leaned in once more, she let out a sigh.
"Enough of this."
Her hand shot out faster than he could react pulling him closer.
The man gasped in surprise.
"Whoa there babe, there's no rush, we're just getting started..."
In the next momebt he recoiled from her with a gurgled scream.
"This bitch! She bit me!"
He staggered back, frantically clutching at his throat, and dropped the flashlight.
Blood wildly splurged from the ruptured artery on his neck.
Mel casually spat out the man's pulsating carotid then stepped on the sputtering flashlight completely obliterating it, and then spun.
She'd long grown used to the metallic taste of iron.
She immediately closed the distance between her and the second thug.
"Stupid bitch!"
He wildly swung his fist but she calmly reached out grabbing his hand, fluidly bending it back just enough.
A sharp crack and a scream rang out through the woods.
"Aaahh, fuck! Gary, help me! This..."
A series of sickening crunches quickly brought the frenzied screams to a stop.
The easiest way to silence a screaming man was to simply break their neck and so that's what she'd done.
"Two down...six to go..."
By the time the group realized what was happening the two men were already down.
Mel quietly melted into the darkness of the trees.
It was a starless night and the darkness was the perfect cover.
"Where is she?"
" Get her!"
Two more men charged into the darkness.
" No you idiots! Stick together "
The warning came a split second too late.
Mel promptly snuck up on her third victim, grabbing him in an iron sleeper hold.
The man hefted the large object he was wielding swinging it violently at her.
From the awkward angle, he failed to make any impact.
The man struggled wildly, his feet shuffling through the undergrowth.
" Over there!"
With a calm breath, she flexed her arms then violently wrenched the man's head to the side ending his frantic struggle.
She grabbed the man's weapon then slipped away into the darkness once more.
"Herbert! Shit, she got Herbert! Gary, we..."
A sharp slap rang out through the darkness.
" Calm yourself you idiot, she can't attack us if we stick together," the deep voice said.
"We're a pack, we stick together, stray and you'll be singled out...."
In the darkness, Mel's eyes narrowed.
" That's the leader then, he's a smart one... He thinks he's a wolf then..."
A random thought fleeted through her mind.
"A deer in headlights...and a pack of wolves...funnily enough, it makes sense..."