Hours had passed when Ethan finally found the energy to move again. Slowly and mechanically, he extracted himself from under the table, feet shuffling as he made his way to the door. He kept his eyes downcast, resolutely refusing to look at the bloody depiction of the human anatomy in the center of the room. Ethan exited the room, firmly closing the door behind him. Taking in a deep breath, he savored the odourless, if slightly stale, air, a stark contrast to the air which had been filled with nothing but the smell of blood, innards and excretion.

I have to find Grey. I need to tell her about this.

The first clear idea struggled to make its way through Ethan's dulled and sluggish mind, taking him a few seconds to process these thoughts and decide on his next course of action. In an almost trance like state, Ethan slowly made his way down the staircase, his mind slowly recovering from the shock it had received. As it did so, Ethan was unfortunately forced to recall the events that took place hours prior.

The sounds of flesh being cut and bones breaking were the first to assault Ethan's psyche. Next came the whimpers and desperate pleas that had escaped Red's lips, occasionally mixed with the twisted laughter and taunting that came from Purple. "Should have treated me better", "This is what arses like you get!"

It did not take long for his mind to turn against himself, twisting his memories. Somehow, Red's please started directing itself towards Ethan, the despair filled voice blaming Ethan for its demise. Purple's taunts too were directed towards Ethan, laughing at him for being so weak and cowardly, unable to do anything and then even if he tried, his actions would've meant nothing. Tortured by his own imagination and a mounting headache, Ethan managed to get himself halfway down the stairs before he involuntarily stopped. Dropping into a sitting position, he clutched his head with both hands and squeezed his eyes shut, hoping to somehow shut off the torturous imagery his own mind was conjuring up.

It took awhile for Ethan to calm himself down. Although he could continue on his search for Grey, the torturous imagery conjured from his imagination were not completely quelled. Forcefully pushing these thoughts to a small corner of his mind, and leaving it to suffer in his stead.

...

Time passed, and eventually Ethan managed to find Grey, or rather, he happened to wander pass her completely oblivious to her presence. It was not until Grey reached out for him that he took notice, giving him a slight scare in the process.

"Whao calm down White. You look like shit, everything alright?"

Numbly, Ethan recounted what he had bore witness to. With each detail that escaped Ethan's lips, Grey's expression grew graver. Towards the end, Ethan found himself half-crying, but mysteriously his mind and body felt lighter, as if an invisible weight had just been lifted off him.

"That's... Its unfortunate you had to see that White... But if its any comfort, at least we know who the culprit is. So um, thanks for the help.." Wincing at her own words, Grey realised that the teen boy very likely was not looking to be thanked in anyway. "A-anyway, I found out where Orange is, so I'm on the way to find him. Do you want to come along? Things may, uh, get ugly."

Ethan agreed without much hesitation. Right now, his wish to not be alone did not stem from the sense of danger he felt on the first day, and if anything, the word of thanks from Grey did help to ease his guilty conscious slightly. Even if I didn't save the man, at least I can help avenge him.

Following Grey, Ethan realised that they had entered the kitchen. Confused, Ethan looked around the area, unsure of where one could hide in here. Anyone entering the door would have the full unobstructed view of the area immediately. Unless.. In the oven? I guess I could squeeze myself in if I tried, but I don't think I would be able to stay in there for long... The kitchen did make sense though, if someone wanted to hide for days straight, they would still need access to food and water at least.

However, Grey did not hesitate, making a beeline towards the back area of the kitchen, grabbing a stool on the way. Upon reaching the wall, Grey sat the chair down, climbed onto it, and yanked the ventilation cover off the wall in one smooth motion. Orange was revealed to be lying in the ventilation shaft, in his hand a half eaten banana. Perplexed at what had just happened, his mind and emotions were in disarray, unsure of how to feel about his sudden reveal, and what his next course of action should be. After all, he had not expected to be found only after 2 days.

Grey, on the other hand, had a clear purpose in mind. With precision, she grabbed onto Orange's hand and pulled him out fluidly, not giving him any chance to resist. It was only when Orange was mid-air did he manage to react, flailing and screaming as he watched the floor get closer to him. Scrabbling off the floor, Orange wasted no time in trying to escape, but a solid kick from Grey on his legs immediately discouraged him. Laying on the floor and clutching his leg, Orange groaned in pain and cursed at them.

Watching the poor guy in pain, Ethan realised that the mysterious poisoner was not much older than him, at best a year or 2 older. The boy had a mysterious oriental charm about him, and his tight fitting clothes revealed a slim and alluring build. Recalling the details of Gold's death, Ethan could hazard a guess as to the boy's "occupation" outside of the game, causing him to fidget about uncomfortably.

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"What in the actual fuck, what was that for?! You're lucky you didn't break anything, but I'm definitely bruised all over damn it!"

"Please, you were asking for it. Now stop whining and tell me, you're the one who poisoned Gold didn't you?"

Orange went silent, his face turned weary and grim as his full concentration fell onto Grey and her question, contemplating on how he should answer. The silence grew and eventually Grey's patience ran thin. "I'll take that silence as a 'yes' then."

"Why do you care who killed who? You should know what sort of place this is now! It would be better for you to just get your task done and over with, then go hide like I did. This way you get to survive and whatever deal you made fulfilled. Anyone with brains would figure this out immediately!"

Listening to Orange's words, Ethan felt sick in the stomach, instantly recalled Blue's and Purple's actions. Four days into the game and the gravity of the situation finally started to sink into him, he was completely surrounded by murderers and psychopaths, caring only for themselves, not a shred of thought put into the pain or suffering others may have to go through. Some part of him midly surprised that he had managed to stay out of the crosshairs of these people for so long.

“– Congratulations. Task completed. –”

"See! Everyone here is either a murderer, or turns into one anyway. Kill or be killed you know?"

As if to put emphasis on Orange's declaration, the announcement rang throughout the compound. Who died this time? Ethan's mind was reeling, the pitable image of Brown surfacing in his mind. No,Yellow is with her, nothing should happen. However, the idea that anyone would turn murderous plagued his thoughts.

"So if you're just here to ask me that, then the answer is yes. Now leave me alone, I still want to live!"

The whole time, Orange had been slowly and conspicuously inching backwards to the kitchen counter top. When he got close enough, he swiftly stood up and reached for a knife, all pretense of injury and pain evapourating instantly. However, Orange's suspiscious actions did not escape the watchful eye of Grey, who swiftly reacted, grabbing his right arm before he could reach the knife, she placed him in an arm lock and pushed his head onto the counter top.

"Move and I break your arm." Came a threatening growl from Grey. Ethan, on the other hand had been completely oblivious, and was taken aback by the sudden chain of events.

"White, I'm going to do my task... You should probably not see this."

Of course, she also has to... complete her own task... Ethan silently left the room, trying his best to ignore Orange who had just realised his predicament.

"No, wait! Come back! Please! Nononono!" Orange struggled to break free, watching from the corner of his eyes as Ethan's figure exited the room. As if watching the embodiment of hope leaving, this caused Orange to struggle even harder, however Grey's grip was firm and despite her numerous warnings, a clear sharp crack was heard followed by a wail of anguish. Grey promptly released Orange, who collapsed onto the floor, heaving and in tears. His left hand hovering over his right, unsure if he should hold onto it or not.

This time, it was Grey's turn to reach for the knife. Slowly, but with determination, her fingers curled around the handle, her gaze lingering on the sharp edge of the knife before shifting towards Orange. Sensing her gaze, Orange turn to look at her, his eyes snapping to the knife in her hands. His face distorted, poisoned by a mixture of fear and fury, he wasn't suppose to die! His freedom was so close! Spouting whatever came to his mouth, Orange pleaded for his life while trying to distance himself from Grey.

"Why me? You have that boy on your tail, go kill him instead! Why choose me?! I did everything right, I'm not suppose to die!"

The boy's pleading fell on deaf ears, for every inch he tried to distance himself, Grey easily covered for it with a slow, heavy step. All the while her gaze remained on the boy's face, as if trying to etch him into her memory. Taking a deep breath, Grey finally bent over and stabbed the knife into Orange's chest, letting his ribcage guide the knife to his heart. A heartbeat later, she swiftly pulled it out and took several step backs, her eyes still remained on his face.

Orange froze in shock upon getting stabbed, his mind struggling to process the situation. The sensation was surreal, maybe due to the adrenaline, he did not feel the pain as the knife entered or exited, but instead just a strange sensation. The pain only came afterwards, after his shirt started pooling with blood, after his punctured left lung had started flooding with blood. Instinctively, he started coughing, attempting to expel the liquid to make room for air, but this quickly became futile. Each cough only served to wreck him body with pain, his body spasming as it drowned in itself.

Grey watched in muted horror, leaving only when the light finally left the poor boy's eyes.

"– The vigilante has made a move. –"

...

Ethan stood outside the door. Grey's task never mentioned killing, right? Ethan had troubles recalling the exact content of Grey's task, suddenly unsure if he had made the right choice in leaving. He paced about in contemplation, occasionally glancing at the door which leaked the screams and shouts of desperation. The decision was soon made for him. The room fell silent, and Ethan stopped in his tracks in response.

"– The vigilante has made a move. –"

The announcement rang, and soon after a haggard looking Grey exited the room. Facing Ethan, Grey let out a small sigh.

"Its done. Didn't expect that the announcement, but doesn't matter. It doesn't change what I need to do."

"But... Do you need to kill them? I mean, you just need to catch them right?" Hesitating, Ethan voiced his doubts.

"No, my task is to make sure no one in the 'Outlaw' group leaves, and anyone who completes their task gets to leave. So yes, I have to unfortunately... Anyway, people like Orange commited a crime anyway, and even if this isn't 'proper procedure'. As much as I hate this, I have to leave this place and inform the captain. I can only hope that they keep their end of the deal..."

Grey's tone was firm and resolute, hiding in it was a trace of resignation as well.

Ethan said nothing, Grey's words did not alleviate the sense of unease he was feeling. His own task did not require him to end a life, not directly anyway. But if it is self-defense, its acceptable, right?