Day Three

[Erza Scarlet]

Well at least Samus and Pazo aren't dead yet. And Gildarts. WOW, that was morbid.

Erza tried to hide her pain and disillusionment behind the convenient facade of simplistic contentment as she cuddled the Caterpie and did her best to make small talk with Samus. It wasn't that she wasn't super relieved to see Gildarts, it was just that she didn't quite want him to see the state she was in - For the sake of her own pride, but mostly his mental state. Optimism, at least some degree of it, would likely be necessary to get through this event successfully, and the lack of it that Erza felt at that moment, after running into two back-to-back enemies while separated from her only friends in this place, was something that she didn't want to spread to the rest of these similarly downtrodden folk. Well, it was good to see Samus and Gildarts no more injured than the last time she'd seen them, at least.

That brought her attention back to her own new wounds. Those burns she had wiped away with the medpack? Back, and stinging more than ever. That cut on her face? Replicated on her leg, now an actual threat to her survival. She'd almost forgotten about her newfound injuries in the momentary joy of reuniting with lost allies, but they'd have to be treated soon.

Erza grimaced as she tore off yet another strip of cloth from her skirt. You're welcome, viewers. Not that you didn't already see more earlier in the night. She wouldn't be able to rely on this any longer; any shorter and even college cheerleaders in the audience would begin to look at her with scorn. She brushed it off - Survival, and preventing infections, was more important. A sense of deja vu swept across her as Samus leaned over and wrapped the strip around her leg, barricading the blood flow of the most intimidating injury in her arsenal. The burns would have to wait; they hurt like a bitch, but they weren't the worst this party had to offer.

"Mickey?" Samus, visor now even more dented up than before, shook her head.

"No sign of Harry either. Looks like it's just us for now. Well, and those two, I suppose, but I honestly don't know how the little one is still moving after the beating she's taken." She was right - The girl, who had been introduced shortly in the barracks as Guu, certainly seemed worse for wear. Erza hadn't noticed when they'd first run across eachother, as the lack of a full moon and the cover of the trees had somewhat obscured her figure, but she seemed to be mostly naked and covered in deep, bloody burns that put Erza's own to shame. Luckily, it seemed Gildarts was beginning to try and treat them as much as he could, and Erza's own experience told her he wouldn't screw it up, but there was only so much to be done in the middle of a forest.

The two were discussing something in private, voices hushed and body language uninviting, as the girl unflinchingly allowed Gildarts to patch her up. It was just as well, she supposed; Erza and Samus had their own matters to attend to, and the Ambrosians had theirs. There were certainly things she would say to Samus after their short stint as mutual protectors that she would have difficulty revealing to Guu, though her friendship with Gildarts in their home world would certainly transcend such barriers. However, they'd need as much help as they could get, were they ever to find the other three members of the group. Mickey could hold his own for a while - in fact, he was friendly enough that he likely had another ally by now - and Harry was probably experienced enough at going it alone for the time being, but Pepsiman...

Erza cursed herself silently. They'd never given him a weapon. Which wouldn't have been a problem if they could have stayed around to protect him, but that was apparently not to be the case. He'd managed to injure himself pretty badly even before they'd met, and the previously-shaky alliance had been able to save and bond over him. But now, he hadn't had any means to protect himself, and had been slaughtered no more than six hours after being thrown back into the wild, alone and defenseless. Fuck the Furbie, fuck Karl and fuck whoever killed the Pepsi guy.

A bitter bile began collecting in the back of Erza's throat. Had she been considering revenge? She realized she'd been mumbling to herself, face contorted into a hard, angry scowl. This was more than irritation; this was pure rage. But rage was not an emotion that had ever fit Erza. She took a deep breath before noticing Samus staring at her in concern. "Uhm, are you alright there?"

This game would not be won by rage. It seemed it wouldn't be won by friendship and happiness, either, loathe as she was to admit it. It would be won by cold, hard martial precision and ignorance of the emotions. By killing when it was convenient, not when it felt good. It was not a mindset that Erza wanted to be a part of, or even that she was truly prepared for. But it was better than raging at every event she could not control, and right now, it seemed an easier option than grief.

"I'm fine, Samus. I've just come to a... Realization, of sorts." She glanced back over to the less-familiar pair as Samus's concern did nothing but grow. "Gildarts! Tell me when you're done with the girl. If we're going to come out of this without getting killed, we've got to get moving."