Elimination Exit

[Erza Scarlet]

Erza jolted awake, upper body flailing forwards and snapping a number of now-tangled cords that had been loosely attached to her stomach, chest and shoulders under a flimsy blue plastic robe that stuck uncomfortably to her sweaty, bare skin. It crinkled loudly as her arms made her way around her body, to her burns, cuts, scrapes, and finally the gash in her midsection that had eventually been her undoing.

All gone.

A wave of relief flowed over her. That means Harry and Pepsiman are okay. And Mickey will be, and Samus too. And all the others who'd been killed on the island. It was hard to remind herself that it was all supposed to just be a game, a contest, albeit quite a painful and heartrending one. She wasn't sure what was, or was to be, the fate of that caterpillar that had cemented the well-meaning crew together, but at the very least those people she herself had attacked, like the one with the explosives and that poor boy by the medpacks, were equally safe.

Her breathing slowed, and her hands returned to the bed, propping her up as she sat for a moment, allowing herself to acclimate to her new surroundings. Stark white room, stark white bedsheets. An IV bag at the bedside was dribbling its contents to the ground, its target having forcefully removed it only moments ago, and a black-and-silver boxlike apparatus of an unfamiliar nature sat dejectedly at the other end. A few stray cords and tools still seemed to be attached to Erza, and she took it upon herself to find and remove them posthaste, leaving a smattering of tubes, electrodes and other prickly thingies on the edges of the bed and the floor. In the corner laid a scorched blue skirt, torn to shreds but still somehow managing to be folded quite neatly, and a pile of scraps that looked vaguely like it might have been the armor she wore on the island.

Apart from that though, the room was bare and empty. Stripping free of the bedsheets and that awful sticky robe, Erza flung herself to her feet, stretching her limbs and neck. It certainly felt good to be not ripped in half.

That wasn't the only thing that felt good, though. A hand reached up to her neck and felt skin. She could feel her innate magic flowing once again through her veins, and it felt good. Well, it felt normal, but that was a solid step up even from wielding Mjolnir or the Master Sword. Those weapons felt nice to hold, but even then, it was nothing compared to what she usually had.

It was good to be back.

It was at this moment that Erza realized she was standing in the middle of a highly-supervised hospital room butt naked.

In a panic, she spun, enveloping herself in a blinding yellow light before emerging in the same outfit she'd come here in - Blue skirt, steel armor with a cross on the front, and a nondescript broadsword. She smirked and opened her eyes, confident again now that her safety blanket had returned. Let them have their show. I can take all comers.

With that, a newly invigorated Erza kicked open the door to the hospital proper, leaving behind the rags she'd died in as she marched down the hall towards the viewing lobby. It was time to go find her friends.