Lindsey Marking
#7

Taking Lillian out was easy, a little fire. I didn't even mess with her a bit. Such a shame. I wanted to have a little game, but no one here is good competition. The only person who is any competition is Jess. Too bad she's soft.

          "Lincoln Stone is being pulled out. Taken out by Andrew Picket,"  a speaker informs us. Lincoln Stone?  Darn, he was good competition.

My red hair curls down from the top of my head to below my waist.  I gave in to the temptation of turning because it gives me an extra edge over everyone else. Not that I need it of course.

"Samuel, I know you're there," I call out.

"I'm sure you do, but I want you to tell me how you do," Samuel walks with a sly, cocky aura floating around him.

"I have set some of the leaves on fire around here. Everywhere in this forest. So, I can see through the fire. I know where everyone is, and they have no clue why. You, on the other hand, know.  You knew I knew because of your amazing eyesight that you can finally use."

          Sam slowly claps. "Bravo.  You finally thought outside of the box.  Now, it's your turn to get out of the arena."

          "What are you going to do?  Punch me?  Honey, I think you know you're out already."  I snap.

          "Lindsey, you know better than that.  You know that I wouldn't come at you if I didn't already have a plan."

          "What are you going to do, then?  I'm unbeatable."

          "I'm going to turn you back into your human self. I'm going to beat you then."

          I laugh slowly. "I'd like to see you try."

          Samuel walks up to me.  He slowly takes each step. I can take him out at any second, but I wanted a competition. So, let's see him try.

          "Lindsey, remember your mom?  Remember your dad?  Remember the life you left?  They thought you were happy. They thought you loved them."

          I gasp.  "How do you know these things?"

          "It doesn't take a smartass to figure it out. It's doesn't take a genius to figure out that the people you trusted, those friends you ran away with, abandoned you. Left you to fend for a yourself on the streets. The man that took you in?  That infamous scientist?  Remember how you killed him?  Remember all those thousand of people you murdered?  Think about how disappointed your parents would be if they found out you ran away from them just to murder thousands of people. And they thought you were happy with them."

          "Enough!"  I shriek. My voice is rough and tears line my eyelids.  I hate him. I hate him so very much. He made me so vulnerable that he won. He made me transform back. My hair goes back to the white blonde with red strands. My eyes transform back to the ocean blue color. I glare him down.

          "See?  I can do it. I can beat you."

          "Not if I can beat you without her."  I growl at him. I make the fire pulse on my skin.

          The fire reflects in my eyes as I charge at him. He sidesteps so I run past him. I mold the fire into daggers. I hurl them at him. He smiles and does these flips and weird side spins. He dodges them all but one.

          Samuel smiles, but waits for my attack. I roll my eyes at his decision. I make the fire explode at him. It burns him. He made the wrong choice.

          "Samuel Johnson is being pulled out. Taken out by Lindsey Marking,"  the announcers shouts. I smile towards his body. The rope comes to pull him out.

           "Good bye, Samuel. Hope you enjoy the loser's lounge."  Only response I get is a slight growl.  It's probably the only thing he can do.

I walk along my way with a perky jump in my step. I glance inside myself, for my fire, and I see that Andrew is far, but Eliza is on the way to Andrew, so I'll take them both out. Anilia could head towards me, so I'll be ready if she does.

          I start to walk in Eliza's direction. Since I have plenty time on my hands, I can take a second to look at the beautiful forest. The trees glisten in the sunlight, and their color shines bright. Their leaves rustle in the wind. Their gorgeous colors liven the whole forest up.

About three fourths of the way there. Yay. I think I see Anilia coming my way. Anilia will meet up with me when I reach Eliza. Two on one. I can't wait! I can take two birds out with one stone. I think of strategies as I walk slowly.

First off, I let into the temptation, again. It's not that I despise my little devil, but it has its downsides. Turning takes away all self control and of any self preservation I have. I have no control, only the vile rage fills me. The devil, when I'm myself, sits on my shoulder and persuades me. She talks to me often, reminding me of all the bad and purely evil things I have done. She fills me with rage and hate, only to be used as fuel when she takes over.

With this advantage over the others, I feel unbeatable. I will win. I can only win. My fire ability represents my personality completely. The fire represents defiance, stubbornness, attitude, sassiness. I am all of those things, and more. I am the fire, and the fire is me.

"Eliza, so nice of you to join me," I say when I reach her "Anilia should be joining us very soon." Eliza stays hidden in her tree trunk for a minute or two before hurling out of the trunk, electricity in hand. Before I could utter a word, electricity shoots from her finger gun, pointed at my chest. I move on quick reflexes, instinct, and adrenaline. I twirl out of the way; then, run half up a tree to flip back down right in front of her. I have my fireball in hand. Eliza stays frozen for the time being because she knows she's beat. She knows her clock is running down to its last second.

"Eliza, Eliza. So predictable. I wish you weren't because you would be such good competition." I taunt, a sly smile awakening from my lips.

"Lindsey. Lindsey. Congrats on beating an insecure, emotionally unstable child, who doesn't deserve your devil's wrath," a voice from behind me shouts.

I don't even have to turn my head around to see who it is. "Anilia. It took you long enough. You're a little slow of a walker. I planned to meet up with you ages ago."

"I tend to take my time when we have such freedom as this," she declares, through out her arms to gesture to the forest around her. She gestures to the forest emptied of guards and scientists. The forest where we can run in any direction for hours on end. But, this forest is man made, by the scientists. The scientists whom have caged us our whole lives.

"Beautiful freedom it is. A caged freedom more like it, but freedom none the less."

"Lindsey, why do you always have to spin something so beautiful into such a negative notion?"

"I'm not putting a spin on anything, just placing reality into focus. I am making the real world clearer for those who do not wish to see it."

Anilia stops to think for a proper comeback to such an amazing ideal. "Ignorance is bliss." That was the best she could come up with? Gosh.

"Not that you would know, spending all that time in our heads."

"You got me there, Lindsey. But, you never answered my question."

"I choose reality over a kaleidoscope version of your world." With saying those words, I snake a fire bullet to her neck. Anilia knows it's coming, so she ducks it. However, she got nailed with another bullet that landed in her stomach. "Take some time to think about what I said. I'm pretty sure Samuel will be fond of you joining the loser's lounge with him."

"Anilia Richard is being pulled out. Taken out by Lindsey Marking."

"Eliza, goodbye," I say, slamming her with one of my fireballs.

"Eliza Gething is being pulled out. Taken out by Lindsey Marking." The rope descends down, pulling both Eliza and Anilia out of the arena. Yay! I can continue on my merry little way to Andrew. Revenge will be sweet. Sweet like the candies my parents would give me.

No! No! I can't think of that. I have a battle to travel to and a competition to win. I don't have time to be dwelling on the past. The past is the past and it should stay in the past until the right time comes along.

"Jacob Meyers is being pulled out. Taken out by Jess Thompson."

Jess, an interesting person. I wish we could have gotten to know each other better. I have a feeling that we could have become great friends.

"Katherine Collins is being pulled out. Taken out by Andrew Picket," a speaker announces.

Good, Andrew is right around the tree in front of me. He doesn't know I'm here, but I know he's there. I think about the type of sneak attack I should do. Cocky and arrogant, sly and mischievous, or sweet and innocent. I am such a good actor, my parents taught me that. They made me into too good of an actor. I shake my head to throw the thought away.

Suddenly, my feet lift up from off of the ground. Darn, and I was just thinking of good sneak attacks.

"Lindsey, Lindsey. Such a shame to give yourself away.  I thought you would have already planned ahead for an amazing sneak attack,"  Andrew taunts, keeping me in the air.

"You're just a speed bump on my way to beating Jess. So, if you have huge hope on your survival, bring it all the way down. Wait, didn't you want me to beat Jess? You're in my way."

"I was just saying that to make sure you have hope. I was saying that so you'll get really cocky and forget that I haven't had my revenge yet,"  Andrew says with a sly smile.

          Forget having bigger competition, I need to win. I curl my fingers to create fire, but nothing happens.

          "Andrew!  What the hell did you do?"  I scream.

          "The gravity on you is quite interesting. I'm pushing up and down on your hands and skin, so no fire will be created. I lifted you up in the air by your hair and feet, so you'll be floating. Hey, I thought everything through. Andrew Picket does not get beat twice."

          I scream against my restrictions. I try looking through my fire to see if I can find anybody, but I can't. I can't use my ability. He rendered me helpless.

          "I win,"  Andrew taunts with a smirk.  He thrusts my body down into the ground. I can't move. So, this'll be the way I get out. Taken out by helpless, stupid little Andrew Picket. He gravity pressure pulls on my arms and muscle. I feel like I'm drowning, but it's worse because I'm still breathing. My breathing pushes up against the force of the gravity and it hurts.  Really bad.

          "Lindsey Marking is being pulled out. Taken out by Andrew Picket," a speaker blares. A tear streaks down the side of my face.

           Before the rope could pull me out, Andrew steps forward and wipes the tear off my face. He smiles and waves at me as the pull me out.

          Cupping his hands around his mouth, Andrew shouts up at me, "Sorry sweetheart. It's all in the game of love and war!"  I roll my eyes. Must be his little catchphrase.

         "This way, Miss,"  a guard says, placing a hand in the middle of my back. I shrug his hand off quickly, a sensitive spot. He leads me to door, which I make sure to open myself. I find that everyone is inside except Andrew and Jess. Once I pulled that door open, they all look up with wide eyes and open mouths. 

          I walk over to an open corner and sit down. I avoid all eyes. Everyone talks in hushed whispers, talking about me. Yay.  I hope that Jess finishes him quick because I don't know how much longer I can last this room.