Maddie grasped at Jackie’s arm, and tellingly dug her fingers into the skin. One false move, and her wrist could turn into string or scratched it open. She was worried about the latter.

“Are you double dipping, Jackson?” Maddie couldn’t hold the contempt in her voice.

“Double what?” Jackie tried to relax and keep her cool under the façade. “I’m just getting ready.”

Maddie’s eyes were sharp despite unmoving.

“You can bullshit all you want, but I don’t need to smell it in order to see it.”

Jackie sucked her teeth. Too observant for her own good.

“I thought we were just going to cage her, Jackson. That we’re not killers. That we’re just going to leave things alone and just take this as a ‘win’. Your words, not mine-“

“I love how you’re such a stickler for rules only when it benefits your shitty view on things,” Jackie growled. All pretenses dropped then.

“Guys…” Aiko whined. “You’ve argued for, what, the millionth time today. We can only deal with just the million, the millionth and one fight is already too much. Can we not? Can we just do this…?”

The duo just stared at each other. Waiting for each other to budge when they knew the other wasn’t.

“Okay. I have a… Thing to throw out.”

Everyone turned to River. Who, as always, had her head slightly down—looking at the floor.

“It’s interesting how. There’s clear remorse, here…” River brought up, raising a hand, before putting it down quickly. “It’s not only clear—it’s weighing her down physically. In what world, especially since we were on the other side of those claws—does N’atural Savage struggle with a rubber band?”

As the silence brewed after she spoke, River squirmed a bit, raising her arms and putting them down, shrugging.

“I’m not like, covering her but—”

“It sounds like you are,” Jackie said point blank. “That’s enough.”

“Okay—” Maddie spat. “Now I’m willing to just activate the power right now and just throw you into her and run with the others.”

“It’s fine Maddie, I don’t have any honor to defend,” River spoke up.

“I don’t get it,” Jackie continued. “You’re smart, you’re proven… You saved our asses from her! You just did it!”

“Really--?” Tracy chirped, still sounding out of breath. “Good for you, River--!”

“I know you’re a fan of fiction, and it’s fine as escape and relaxation and fantasy… But we can’t ‘good guy’ her. She’s made horrible decisions that lead to unspeakable pain and suffering.”

“Again,” River said flatly. “I’m not giving her excuses. I think it’s important to note that. We have to keep things in mind as we do things, because everything dealing with this… Runs on a sort of logic, a flow. We rush in again, we’ll get horribly hurt time and time again. You’re the one that bemoans about why our chances are so low—you. You’re always ignoring the numbers.”

“This isn’t numbers, River. Guys. She had her chance. She bled her heart, and then turned around ripping it out. She had the choice. We’ve watched her do it. And I’m surprised that all of you forgot all of that.”

“We didn’t. We’re not obsessed with it like you,” Maddie bluntly stated.

Jackie just squinted at the small girl.

“So again. Are we sticking to this fucking plan or not? Because you might as well send us home so you can do your homemade revenge plot.”

“…I’ll tell you what we’re doing when I review the stuff,” Jackie answered.

Maddie sighed, and let go of the tall girl’s wrist. She practically snatched her arm away in frustration, looking into the bucket.

“…Aiko,” Jackie sounded concerned. “Did you, uh… Scoop up bubblegum from the streets or--?”

“oh okay we’re done with the rambling—” Aiko perked up. “Nah! It’s some sticky stuff that gets worse as you touch it!”

“Wonderful,” Jackie kept looking, carefully pulling out a brambling as it slowly curled up around her fingers. “So they respond toward the nearest living thing. Hopefully.”

“The trash-bags and the bands…” Tracy thrusted her hands forward.

“I thought I put the bands in the bucket--?” Aiko tilted her head.

“You dropped them as you ran,” Tracy looked at her, glaring.

Aiko blinked, before putting her palm on her forehead meekly.

“Just hold onto those—” Jackie nodded, causing Tracy to scramble a bit but ultimately held the items tight. “That’s another phase of the plan…”

Jackie nodded to herself, pulling out the staple-boomerang carefully out of the bucket. “Okay. I think we can do this.”

“…And that is--?” Maddie was impatient.

Jackie rose up the boomerang, and made an uneven smirk.

***

N’atural slept on the rubble she’s created, looking up at the massive hole she’s created, practically a grave all but in name.

She felt the droplets of water, constantly hitting her cheekbone. Even with that, her eyes couldn’t shut themselves.

“I don’t get it…” N’atural whispered to herself. “It should’ve happened… It should’ve happened… But you know why it didn’t happen…? You’re so wishy-washy. Even as a monster with a human costume—still, you’re wishy-washy…”

She wiped her face in anger.

“—It’s fine—it’s funny—You know exactly why you’re doing this… You can’t commit. It’s all talk. All they think—it’s you acting out, having some cosmic temper tantrum. They’re waiting for you to stop, to get over it. Your little plan… It’s about becoming zeitgeist. To be something that they’ll never forget. Letting it end on your terms, to finally be freeeee… And do something that could benefit a people, at least. Make them face the problem—work harder as a result due to the fear of creating another you. And yet, here you are… Covered in dirt…”

Her hands, that found themselves balling the rough, messy dress up.

“… But you never learned, did you?” she found her eyes starting to water. “You never knew… How to stand? How to be? Of course you didn’t… You never had the chance. It’s the very reason why you’re here…”

She closed her eyes, letting the beads fall down the sides of her head. She lifted it, as she sighed out.

As a result, N’atural didn’t see the incoming danger that was going to befall her.

She heard the bouncing of something, causing her to open her eyes, darting her eyes towards a green ball that was seconds before her face.

It nailed her in the face, exploding with a disgusting vicker that burned, causing her to wince. And then it happened again, a direct hit on her face as she know roared--

She choked the second later—a metal band hit her neck at harsh speeds, causing her eyes to practically shoot out of her head briefly. Whatever did this to her loomed over her, and then darted away before she could get a good look at it.

She instinctively tried to reach up to her bounded neck, using siVis on her arms to aid in both the speed and strength. But even that was too late.

She felt a splash against her body, she scrambled to look at her hands as she raised them.

They were covered in a quick-acting, malicious red slime. As it coated her arms, it forced them to fall onto her heaving chest, somehow both too heavy and too sticky to lift.

Her eyes stung, she couldn’t get up, she couldn’t speak. She gagged, she couldn’t smell, in so much pain as she wiggled around.

She moved her legs, trying to keep her feet flat so she could use her lower body strength to free herself.

She then felt the tickling—then scratching—at her legs.

With her open, still burning eye, glanced down as she watched the brambles circle around her and then fasten her legs tight.

N’atural was completely bound. Caged.

She tried to roar. She tried to scream. She tried to even talk. But she couldn’t.

She was forced to watch, forced to see this looming shadow become focused. Become this person.

They were tall, sporting a tattered tracksuit that was baby blue, with white strips that intersected into a “Y”. It was covered in the green liquid that’s torturing her right now. Her blonde hair was a mess. Her skin was flushed with pink. And was covered in siVis-infused wounds.

But it was her eyes. Her eyes were devoted in rage. Blue, piercing.

“… So I guess you have forgotten about me,” the angry girl looked her up and down. “I can see those red eyes of yours that you have no idea who I am. Sorry-not-sorry about that.”

She crouched down. Mock pity on her face. Her expression so far was unable to convey nothing but distain.

“You deserve what happening right now. Every single bit of it. You don’t remember, but I—we met you before. Before you became the big bad monster. When you were crying, when you were alone and when you acted all tortured. We listened to your plight. We cried with you. We bonded over the fact that the universe fucked us like it did. And what did you do? Flush all of that away with siVis.”

She pointed, thrusting her finger forward over and over, to illustrate her vitriol.

“You avoided your weakness—you take everything out on innocent people, trying to live their lives! You could’ve had sympathy—and you threw it all away! And look at yourself—whining pathetically in the dark! You’re a fucking fool—and I’m going to stop whatever you want right here! Right now!”

She was breathing heavily. Her body moving with the panting. She got up, looking down at N’atural.

“But I know you’re going to break out of this. I’m not stupid, unlike you. So. Come as you are. Because we will be waiting for you.”

She walked away, shaking her head as her long, disheveled ponytail following the motion.

N’atural just laid there.

Everything that girl said was completely right. Even the part she honestly could not remember.

But she did remember… This feeling. This terrible feeling that existed before siVis. Was possibly the very emotion that surged and triggered the awakening in the first place.

She closed her eyes. To stew in it.