Kitty Korlac's Survival Island

[Blink]

"Is it a good idea to keep them all in the same room?" Dave Tucker looked a bit nervous as he looked through a large gymnasium-sized space alongside a confident blonde network executive. His eyes kept scanning around at the dozens of people occupying this large area. He knew that he wasn't in any immediate danger, but knowing exactly what kind of people he was sharing this room with made him think of the possibilities. He wanted to look like he was perfectly calm on his exterior, but he knew the tension was very clear. "What if they start the fighting early?"

"Don't worry, they all know the rules," Kitty Korlac responded. She smiled up at Dave, who was taller then her even when she was in heels. He had to struggle to look down straight at her face, and now beyond at the cleavage she was showing off through her low cut shirt. "Nobody here wants to lose a game before it even starts. Besides," she put her arm out to put emphasis on the crowd. "This is a great first introduction to the cast. Showing the different cliques. Showing who is studying, who is working out...who is afraid." She smiled big, despite the coldness of her words. "This is where people put on their first impressions. It'll matter."

"It also gives them a chance to strategize," Dave noted. An avid gamer himself, he had already thought about the possible gameplans someone would take in this situation.

Kitty gave him a smile and nodded in agreement. "Some of these people entered together. We've got squads, duos, single players. This is the perfect time to figure out how they're going to play."

Dave took a look out at the room in front of them. Both he and Kitty were situated near an entrance-way on one of the large walls, flanked on either side by her private military goons and some suck-ups in suits. There was also a single woman with a large camera (much larger then her) propped up on her shoulder, waiting to begin recording. In front of him was the 'crowd' she was referring to. These were to be the contestants on her show - the show he was going to be the on-screen host of. They had all voluntarily signed up, one way or another, to land on some mysterious battleground and fight it out on the live Dataverse. Some of them were conversing and being friendly around the many tables set up. Some were off to the side, alone and watching the room. A few were training, either physically or mentally. A couple were staring at Dave and Kitty curiously, waiting to see what they did.

Kitty began to walk forward, signalling Dave to follow. "We're going to start the shot in the center and then follow you as you talk," she told him. She was directing the scene he was about to do for the camera. "Talk about the event, what its about, and then put emphasis on the cast. Don't single anyone out, just try to talk about the group as a whole. Talk about them being volunteers, or them being in groups. Things like that."

The radio personality nodded his head along. He was more familiar with using his voice, but he wasn't new to camera-work, either. The nerves starting to fade as he got more into a business-minded mode. "How many people are in this thing?"

"About fifty," she answered as they walked. "Just say 'several dozen.' Keep it vague. We may or may not have exactly 50."

Tucker promised to himself not to say 'several dozen.' It sounded too formal, but he wasn't going to tell this scary blonde chick that. She wasn't going to be able to stop him mid-scene, anyway. He just nodded along and continued the conversation.  "When this thing start?"

"The website and commentary launches tonight, the game tomorrow night."

He chewed on the inside of his cheek as he thought of another question. "What's the prize?"

"Whatever they want." Kitty was very matter-of-fact.

"O...kay." Dave said in response. That was a strange answer. But he quickly thought of a way to spin it.

"You ready?" Kitty asked. Her host nodded and adjusted his t-shirt so the collar rode up his neck a bit, showing only a little bit of chest hair underneath. He adjusted the brim of his fisherman's hat, which was very unnecessary in this closed space. Kitty used her finger to signal her assistants to move out of the way, which Dave noted was surprisingly quick to happen. The camera-woman moved in place as she chewed her gun, clearly happy to get moving and working. "Alright, here we go."

"Recording in five, four, three..." the tiny female began to count with her fingers, showing a 'two' and then 'one' before pointing at Dave.

Dave Tucker suddenly transformed. His hands moved forward and pointed at the camera as he smiled excitedly. In his head, there was nobody around anymore. Kitty wasn't staring, and the cast members of Survival Island weren't pretending not to notice him. It was just him and the camera. He was in the zone. "Yo! What's up, guys? This is D-Tuck here! You got any idea where I am? No? Let me tell you! I'm in the secret lair of the one, the only..." he leaned in to whisper, trying to give an air of mystery before speaking. "Kitty Korlac!" He hissed the words out and then clapped happily. "She don't know me and the camera-guy are here, but I just had to give you guys a sneak peek at this new big thing hitting the Dataverse! They're calling it...wait for it, wait for it...Survival Island! And these people? These people right here? They're gonna be duking it out on that island, no holds barred!"

He put his hands out on either side and directed his attention to the room. For the first time since he walked in, he finally addressed the cast.

"Whose ready to fuck shit up, ladies and gentleman?" He got a half-heated response from some of the fighters there, mostly in the form of claps. "I can't hear you, folks!" This time he didn't just get claps from the crowd, but he got some people banging their boots on the floor, of their hands on a table. It was enough noise that he was satisfied and turned back to the camera. "You hear that? This is a room filled with killers, y'all! We got trained death squads lookin' for glory! We got sibling psychos lookin' for blood! We got criminals tryin' to earn their freedom! Some of these people are partners! Some of 'em hate each other! But you know what? None of that matters! Cause only one person will win!" He turned back to the crowd, throwing his hands back up. "Whose it gonna be?"

This time, he got his best response yet. Almost everyone in the crowd made some sort of noise, most of them cheering. There were very few people who remained completely quiet, staring intently at the scene in front of them. Kitty was smiling ear to ear. "D-Tuck" didn't notice any of this.

He pointed at the camera. "If you aren't subscribed to Kitty's Kontent, you better get there now. We got behind the scenes coming tonight, and in just a little of 24 hours..." he gave a big, wiry smile. "The games will begin. See. You. There! Peace!" He put two fingers up in a peace sign and held it there. The camera woman held her fingers up again, this time starting with three, and then gave a thumbs-up when she finished recording.

"Whew, good job!" Kitty clapped excitedly. She was worried she had made a mistake in choosing Mr. Tucker as a host, but he was surprisingly excellent in only one take in front of the camera. "Let's get out of here, we've got a show to get ready for."

D-Tuck was now gone, replaced once again with the mild-mannered, baggily dressed man known as Dave Tucker. He adjusted his shirt to fit correctly and pushed his hat back a bit on his head. He shrugged at her. "Sounds good." Outwardly, he was calm, but inwardly he was feeling nervous again. Too many eyes on him. Especially after that crowd involvement. Even still, he couldn't help but put that peace sign in the air one more time and say "Good luck, y'all!"

Kitty Korlac guided him towards the door, once again surrounded by her assistants yammering out compliments to her. The camera-woman hung back behind him, following quietly while lugging that heavy equipment like it was nothing. Dave just kept his eyes forward, ignoring any calling or comments from the cast. They would get their time later...he didn't want to know them now. He wanted to learn about that on the show, with everyone else.

Dave looked over his shoulder one last time at the crowd of participants, and then the door shut behind him. The next time he saw them, the game would be on.