Young Writers Society

Coral | At camp.

Everyone looked at me with eyes that were half sad due to Francie's death and half upset. Or is it ignored? I don't know... I didn't want to argue over it anyway. If I have another chance to kill Red-Eyes, it will be a better kill than anyone can do. Even better than a fight between Blue.

As I slept, I soon woke up with a fright after awhile. I was sweating and looking around if everyone was there. Sure enough, they were. After that, I couldn't sleep. It was too windy and cold. I got out from my sleeping bag and walked to get my coat. I wore it and then watched everyone doing their things. Most of them were sitting around the campfire due to the wind and Tom had a paper and pen on his hands. He was thinking hard about something. Somehow, I didn't know what. Anyway, I wasn't really curious about it.

What I was curious about was Hayden and Trina. I always saw them together. Well, most of the time. I saw Alia sitting next to them too.

Oh, crap! I have to apologize to her! I hurried over to Alia, Hayden and Trina.

"Any space for me?" I asked them.

"Sure. Make yourself comfortable." said Trina.

They all moved back leaving a tiny space for me to sit which was way enough for me. Arian was back at my sleeping bag, snoring out loud. Alia scowled at me but didn't say much. I looked at her with swolen eyes and began to talk. But, was interrupted by herself.

"So... You like - you know like-like. You call that love, I think?- each other, huh?" Alia asked.

It was very amusing. I sort of felt the same too. Was Hayden and Trina really in love? Well, I knew ways to get that answer. Trina choked on her water she was drinking where Hayden patted her back.

"Oh! Skinship! What does it feel like?" she went on and then she smiled. Her smile is worth a million dollars.

Hayden and Trina exchanged looks. Awww... They're a perfect couple! Hayden began to say something when Hayden:

"Excuse me." he said. "But, is this sort of a girl talk group or something? Because I'm the only guy here." he walked out of our "girl-talk-group" and went and stood next to a corner looking at the trees.

"So, Trina. Are you guys in a relationship, or something?" I asked.

"What? NO! No..." said Trina fake shocking herself.

"Then? " asked Alia. "A crush, maybe?"

Alia and I giggled to it. Trina frowned at us and fixed her glasses. It seemed she was about to speak something. She was thinking about it, I could tell.

"Well... To tell you the truth, I have sort of felt this connection with him." Trina said finally finding the courage to tell us.

This time, it was Alia and my chance to exchange looks. We stared at Trina with big wide eyes. We squeaked so much that everyone (including Tom) looked at us like we were insane.

"OH MY GOD! I KNEW IT!" Alia screamed out loud with happiness.

I couldn't speak up. Hayden looked at Trina and I looked at him trying to find an answer. He smiled like he was happy that Trina did like him and got me looking at him. I smiled back. He quickly removed the smile from his face.

After all then huge news, I saw Hayden walking back to Trina. I saw them talking together. Trina was blushing so much. A couple! Finally!

I went to them and spoke, "You guys really match. And Hayden. I know you like Trina. Its okay to tell us."

"I do. I didn't want to say it because... Well, I thought it would be embarrassing. I still find it embarrassing."

We all laughed together. Well, its jolly well is fun. Its too sad that Francie isn't here to see this. But I know she's around here somewhere.

Trina | Camp

Trina looked up when she heard a slight thud and watched as Hayden sat down next to her. She looked at him for a minute and then returned to staring at the sky. "Water?" She turned again and saw him holding out a bottle of water. "Aren't you going to drink that?" she asked. "Nope. I'm not that thirsty anyway. And besides, you look like you need it." Trina took the bottle of water, muttered "Thanks," and opened it to drink some. "Are you... feeling alright?" Hayden was looking at her with... concern? "Well, sort of. I mean, I do feel upset and all, but there's no point moping about it. She's dead. Crying won't bring her back. But I can't deny that it hurts. She was a good friend, afterall," replied Trina. Hayden tilted his head the side and looked at her. "At least you have friends. I don't think anyone has talked to me yet. Except you, of course. Not that I'm complaining. I'm fine with people leaving me alone." "Someone should give you a badge, you know? A badge that says "Forever a Loner" or something like that." Trina chuckled at her own stupid joke and continued, "If you say you don't have friends, what am I? An alien? Or an octopus?" Hayden looked at her, confused, and she said, slowly, "I'm a friend of yours." He blinked and looked like he was about to say something when Alia came and sat down next to them, along with Coral, who asked "Any space for me?" "Sure. Make yourself comfortable," replied Trina and then she, Hayden and Alia moved aside a little to give Coral some space.

Trina returned to drinking the water, since Hayden didn't say what he had wanted to. "So... You like - you know like-like. You call that love, I think?- each other, huh?" Alia asked, after a few minutes of silence. Trina, surprised by this sudden question, choked on her water and spit it out. Hayden patted her on the back and Alia, who seemed to have misunderstood, said, "Oh! Skinship! What does it feel like?" Trina looked at Hayden, expecting him to reply and sure enough, he did. "Excuse me." he said. "But, is this sort of a girl talk group or something? Because I'm the guy here," and went and stood next to a tree.

Oh sure! Leave me to deal with the awkwardness, why don't you? Trina looked at the two dolls, and was about to say something when she was interrupted by Coral. "So, Trina. Are you guys in a relationship, or something?" she asked.

"What? NO! No..." replied Trina, clearly trying to tell them there was nothing like that. Obviously, they didn't understand.

"Then? " asked Alia. "A crush, maybe?"

Alia and Coral giggled, and Trina glared at them. Annoying. So. Freakin'. Annoying!

Trina began to say, "Well... To tell you the truth, I have sort of felt this connection with him, but-" but was interrupted by Alia's and Coral's squeaks and shouts and didn't have the time to finish the sentence. She did say somehing, but they didn't hear her. "But it's more of a brother-sister thing!" she yelled. They, ignoring her, continued yelling and squealing, so Trina walked over to Hayden. "Ugh. Nonsense. Honestly. I do like you, but it's a sister love kind of thing. Clearly, they don't understand that," she said, and could feel her cheeks turning red as she felt anger flowing through her veins. Francie had just died, and they wanted to talk about relationships?

"Sisterly love? You don't show your emotions a lot, do you? Well, should I try explaining it to them?" said Hayden. Trina snorted. "I'd be surprised if you could convince them. Although, I'd like to see you try. Now, that would be funny," she said and walked back towards the squeaky little "mice" with him.

Before Hayden could begin, however, Coral said, "You guys really match. And Hayden. I know you like Trina. Its okay to tell us." Trina rolled her eyes and was about to say something but stopped short when she heard Hayden's reply. "I do. I didn't want to say it because... Well, I thought it would be embarrassing. I still find it embarrassing." Trina stared at him with her eyes wide open. He, ignoring this, continued, "But, it's not that kind of love. It's more of a brotherly love." Trina, relieved looked at the two dolls who now stood, looking disappointed. "But- But you guys make such a cute couple!" said Coral, with such a hopeful look on her face that one would've thought Hayden and Trina would declare undying love for each other and start dating at that very minute. Trina simply laughed and said, "Don't look so hopeful. We'll probably only get together when apples talk. Basically, we'll never get together."

She walked back to the tree, chuckling to herself and sat down under the tree. She was glad. At least the atmosphere around camp was lighter now, and not filled with so much sadness.

Hayden | Camp

Francie was dead.

Francie was dead. Francy was dead. Fraciey dead was. Dead Francey was. Was Francie dead. Was Francie dead?

What?

What was going on? Hayden didn't know. All he knew was that he was staring at her dead body that lay smeared with blood. Wasn't he supposed to die? She wasn't him. But she'd been trampled by an elephant that had a red-eyed doll on its back. But wasn't that supposed to be him?

Maybe that was a ghost. He was looking down at himself. He felt light headed and almost feather-light.

But he didn't look like her. Wait. What? He pinched himself and knew he was alive when he winced at the pain. But it didn't make sense.

He wondered around aimlessly, doing nothing. Thinking of nothing. Trying to make sense of it all.

He didn't pay attention during Francie's funeral, until Coral came to sit next to him, Trina and Alia.


"Any space for me?" she asked.

"Sure. Make yourself comfortable." said Trina, shuffling to make space.

Alia continued with her conversation. Alia was the emotionless one. "So... You like - you know like-like. You call that love, I think?- each other, huh?"

Trina spluttered. Hayden patted her back.

"Oh! Skinship! What does it feel like?" she continued. She smiled. It was strange, seeing her smile. Strangely... good. But Hayden knew where this would be leading to, and frankly, no one could be trusted. No one.

He exchanged glances with Trina before saying, "Excuse me. But, is this sort of a girl talk group or something? Because I'm the only guy here." Hayden stalked away to a nearby tree and crouched, wanting to listen while remaining hidden.

"So, Trina. Are you guys in a relationship, or something?" said Coral.

"What? NO! No..." said Trina, sounding fake.

"Then? " replied Alia. "A crush, maybe?"

Coral and Alia - or so it sounded, giggled. Hayden peered through a gap between the leaved. Trina frowned at them and adjusted her glasses. She appeared to be waiting for the right word to come to her mough.

"Well... To tell you the truth, I have sort of felt this connection with him," Trina said, eventually. She seemed hesitantly.

Alia and Coral swapped expressions. They stared at Trina with shock and squeaked loudly.

What connection? Hayden didn't know. But it was all explained when Trina explained something about sibling connections, which Hayden shared. The others didn't seem to have noticed what she said though.

"OH MY GOD! I KNEW IT!" Alia squealed.

Hayden stepped out of the bushes and stood in front of the group. He couldn't help smile. So there were people in the world that liked him.

No. They're trying to trick you/

Hayden looked at Trina. Coral looked at him. He couldn't help smile under the spotlight. She smiled back. He removed the smile off his face, hoping that she didn't get the wrong idea.

Hayden and Trina quickly walked away. Hayden was planning to talk about what'd just happened, but Trina held a note in her hand, written in red. The ink was dry, but it seemed ... fluid. Before she could explain, Coral walked to them.

Coral walked up to them. "You guys really match. And Hayden. I know you like Trina. Its okay to tell us."

"I do. I didn't want to say it because... Well, I thought it would be embarrassing. I still find it embarrassing."

Hayden faked a laugh. But when Coral turned around, Hayden snatched the note and smelled it. It smelled of... metal.

Suddenly he knew what it was. It was a note. Written in Blood.

Eleanor | The Woods

Eleanor slipped away towards the end of the funeral, feeling oddly disconnected and shaky. Compared to most of the others, she had managed to keep a fairly calm manner, but that didn’t change the fact that she felt as if something had been unhinged inside of her, leaving a space she couldn’t work out how to fill.
It was nothing like a feeling which made her want to weep, or scream; more an intense, mind-numbing wondering. She couldn’t stop thinking about where Francie was now – surely, nowhere? She had heard humans talking once about life after death, but it was always assumed that there was nothing of the sort for dolls. After all, they were not truly alive. They didn’t feel, as humans did.

Wandering away from the funeral unnoticed (she had taken a solitary stance by the side-lines to watch, and although she doubted Francie could hear her, whispered a soft goodbye to her as she disappeared under the ground) she realised that her thoughts were beginning to darken and stir more than was normal. She felt an odd feeling coursing through her, and identified it eventually although it took her a few moments: anger. It was something she rarely felt, keeping a quiet, calm, dreamy and thoughtful air about her.

She didn’t know how to deal with anger, so she simply kept walking on, feeling the climax of her thoughts approaching, like a kettle in which the water is due to boil. She could only hope that the steam of thoughts would disperse and not condense once they reached that point.

In the woods, the light barely visible through the spaces interrupting the continuous canopy of trees, she slid down against the trunk of one tree and sat there, the dirt dry but cold beneath her hands, the air cold, punctuated by sudden gusts of a brisk wind. Humans, dolls – we’re all the same, she thought. We live, we feel, we die.

We are all made of stardust.

It was with little surprise that she saw Red-Eyes watching her from a few metres or so away from her, standing in a tensed stance, half-concealed behind the trunk of an old, majestic tree like a cat preparing to pounce.

She drew her violin bow, but held it behind her back. She stood up and stared at Red-Eyes, taking care to look immeasurably afraid.

He approached her, a steady sort of gloating in his stride.

She waited until he was near, blinking like a startled rabbit, feet glued to the ground, her mouth slightly open as if she was too afraid to scream, her body falsely tensed.

Although Eleanor kept expecting Red-Eyes to break into a run and attack her, he kept a steady pace until he was a metre or so away from her.

She revealed her violin bow, the sharp edge pointing directly at Red-Eyes’ humanity chip, and prepared to attack him. But that was not before she heard a rustling sound behind her. She hesitated. It was the smallest of hesitations, and then the fear that Red-Eyes would take advantage of it and use it to attack her drew it out, made it long enough to hear the faint, childish whisper behind her:
“Eleanor. It’s me, Francie. I’m not dead.”

Despite herself, she turned.

There stood a childlike doll with porcelain skin, big dark eyes and black hair. She tilted her head at Eleanor and smiled at her. Eleanor turned around swiftly, remembering Red-Eyes – but it was too late. Before she knew it, a sharp, piercing pain was spreading through her arm, and a dull, almost lulling pain spreading through her head.

She lost consciousness.



When she woke up, the strong, coppery smell of blood twisting around her, she knew immediately what had happened. She was a hostage – Red Eyes had taken her to try and gain information from her, as he had already done with the others. Only he would get no information from her. She didn’t want to die – she wanted more than these stupid games. She wanted sensation. But death would come sooner or later, and therefore she wasn’t adverse to it. She would fight until she no longer could, but she would never let others die for her. Although she was not exactly brave and did not make a stoic act of heroicness, she was not weak, either. Simply distant.

She could have sworn she heard a cauldron bubbling nearby.

When the girl-doll with long black hair advanced on her, smiling that gentle smile, a knife in her hand, she shook her head. “You’re not going to get any information out of me,” she said. “You can think again. You can kill me if you like – I’m not afraid. Not anywhere near as afraid as the others.”

The knife pierced her right thigh, and though she tried not to, Eleanor screamed.

Trina | Camp

Trina turned away from Hayden, Coral and Alia and walked back to the tree under which she had left her bag. She opened it to keep the bottle of water inside, and found a piece of paper sticking out from underneath the frying pan. She picked it up. It was a note. She sniffed it and immediately realised what it was written in. Blood. She read the note to herself:

Foolish doll. You and your team should have known better than to challenge me. If you want to see your precious teammate "Eleanor" again, come to the cave near the three banyan trees on the edge of the island. Alone. Otherwise, I'd hate to waste any more of such a pretty doll's blood.

Trina's mind began to twist and writhe. She couldn't tell anyone about this. Not now, after Francie's death. They were all too upset and would be even more so when they found out Eleanor had been kidnapped and tortured. But there was one person who seemed calm. Hayden might be able to tell her what to do. But the note had told her to come alone. Upon debating it in her mind, she decided telling Hayden would be a better option.

She walked up to him, grabbed him by the arm and dragged him to a tree where no one would be able to hear them. "Hayden. This." She shoved the note under his nose and watched as he too, realised what it was written in and read it. After he had finished she looked at him closely, trying to find some emotion in his face. "Well?" she asked, after a few minutes of silence. "We've got to do something," he replied. "I thought so too, but what?"
"First, we need to tell the team-"
"We can't do that!"
"Why not?"
"Have you seen them? They're in no fit state to fight! They're all moping all over the place! We can't tell them about this!"
Hayden kept quiet. Then he said, "I have a plan."



Trina walked towards the cave, a little afraid, but still determined to rescue Eleanor. She reached the mouth of cave and peeked inside. The first thing she spotted was Eleanor, sitting with her back against the wall of the cave, tied up. Red-Eyes was looming over her, and another doll with a porcelain face, black hair and big eyes stood in the corner, holding a knife covered in blood. Trina looked carefully and saw Eleanor's right palm bleeding. She moved her foot a step back, unsure if Hayden's plan would work.

Crack. The noise cut through the air so loudly, it would have been a miracle if Red-Eyes had not heard it. He jerked his head up and looked straight at Trina.

"Ah. I was expecting you. Been spying a little, have we?" he said, and chuckled as Trina hoped with all her might that Hayden's plan would work.

Angeline

"Where's Hayden?" Angeline asked.
"Where's Trina?" Coral asked. Everyone looked around, but they weren't anymwhere. Blue sighed, rubbing his forehead.
"We'll have to find them," he sighed.
"Let's fan out in groups of two, everyone," Coral said. Angeline and Coral were paired together. Everyone was stiff from injuries and exhausted, but they loyally started hiking through the thick wooded area to find their friends.
"Trina!" Angeline called.
"Hayden!" Coral yelled as they stomped along.

After all the excitement, I turned and went back to Arian who was still sleeping peacefully. After I had felt from the elephant while attacking Red-Eyes, it seemed that Arian was injured too. I left him to sleep there all by himself.

I approached Alia and I seriously wanted to talk to her this time. Without any more interuptions, I started off...

"Hey. Could you give me a second?" I asked Alia who was busy sucking her lemon in a corner.

"Its awesome how they go along together. Trina's blushing so much!" Alia said still looking very happy about it.

Phew! At least she's in a good mood.

"Yeah. They're a great couple aren't they?" I said and sat next to Alia.

Alia nodded. "The last time I really talked to you weren't a few minutes back. It was a few days back. The day we fought. The day you didn't believe me. Don't think I forgot about it. "

"Well... That's the reason why I came to talk to you. I'm sorry for what I said that day. You know, when I don't get along with someone, I'm disturbed from then on. The reason to why I didn't believe you is-"

"Because such a thing is won't happen to any doll." she said completing my sentence.

"Yes. Exactly. "

"Well, that's okay now. I don't think about it nowadays. I try my best to avoid the thoughts."

"Where's Hayden?" Angeline asked.

I looked around for Trina. "Where's Trina?" I asked too.


Blue rubbed his forehead and sighed. "We'll have to find them."

"Let's fan out in groups of two, everyone," Coral said.
Angeline and Coral were paired together. Everyone was stiff from injuries and exhausted, but they loyally started hiking through the thick wooded area to find their friends.



"Trina!" Angeline called.

"Hayden!" Coral yelled as they stomped along.

"Where did they run off too?" Angeline asked me.

"Maybe for their honeymoon." I joked.

"Their dating?" She asked me wide-eyed.

"Yep." I said, smiling wide. "That's why me and Alia for squeaking so much back there."

"Oh. That's so sweet. They're the perfect match. "

"I know right?"

We talked for a while and kept looking on for them. Suddenly Angeline stopped me. She pointed towards the ground. It was Blood. It looked like someone was dragged all the way to a small place, covered with thick grass and bushes.

I started to become nervous. Blood just freaks me out.

I have to do it. For Francie.

"Should we follow it?" Angeline asked me.

"No. It might even be a trap." I replied.

Angeline was surprised to hear that Trina and Hayden were dating, but there was another emotion other than surprised that she couldn't quite name. It just didn't seem right for them to be dating; it didn't make any sense. Of course, it made even less sense for her to be worrying about things like this whie they were missing.
"That's so sweet, they're a perfect match," Angeline said to Coral, feeling like the pit of her stomach had dropped to her toes. Coral didn't seem to notice Angeline's tone.
"I know, right?" she answered happily. Her enthusiasm over the couple made it easier for Angeline to smile back and nod her head.
But then they found the blood and everything seemed to start spinning out of control.
"Should we follow it?" Angeline asked, trying to fight down a rising sense of panic.
"No. It might even be a trap," Coral said.
"It probably is," Angeline said, "but we can't leave them here!" Angeline stopped herself from saying anymore, knowing she wasn't thinking objectively.
"We should get others and formulate a plan," she said in a more level tone, "maybe we could attack from a different direction, that way we'd have surprise on our side. It might not even be Hayden and Trina; it might be some other group on the island."
"Yeah," Coral agreed, "maybe some of the other dolls have already found them." Angeine nodded. Neither of the dolls believed it though.

Alia

Alia wondered off on her own, with no particular path in mind. She need too. The past few minutes have been the weirdest for Alia. She... laughed, smiled, giggled. And she felt it. She enjoyed it. She felt light, and a sudden out burst of energy filled her. She felt accepted.

But that was no good.

Alia fingered the Tra'qaz, which hung by her belt. It was useless to her now, since she couldn't use it. She took it out, and threw it at a tree some feet away, on her left. Like she expected, it just left a scratch. Sighing, she went to get it, when she heard some muffled voices.

Squinting through the bushes to get a better look, a pair of bright red eyes stood out. Red-eyes! Alia quickly crouched down, and covered her skin and hair with mud. Her bright hair was bound to get her noticed.

Alia looked around Red-eyes to see who he was talking to, and, to her surprise, it was Eleanor. Blood oozed out of her right cheek, and scars covered her head to toe.

Alia's chest tightened with anger. That - "Okay, got it?" A faint voice broke her concentration. A male voice. Alia crawled towards the voice, with a couple of lemons in her hands. Whoever they were, they could cause enough distraction for Alia to help Eleanor. Two pair of shoes came to her vision. Definitely, a male and a female.

Alia quickly grabbed the smaller pair of shoes- the female- and held her victim from the back, with a spike close to her Chip. The shocked male, grabbed his gun, at the same time, and pointed it at Alia.

It took a minute for the scene to settle. Her victim was Trina, and the gun-holder was Hayden. "Alia!" Trina hissed.
Alia let go of Trina, and Hayden was slightly hesitant to put his gun down. Suddenly, Alia broke off into a big grin, and her eyes twinkled mischievously.

"So the two of you just happened to be here, while you both were walking together, huh?"
"Yeah." Hayden replied. Then sighed as he got what Alia was suggesting. Trina shook her head, as Alia giggled uncontrollably. She felt that same feeling again. She felt... happy.

She suddenly stopped, as something forced all of them to look towards Red-eyes, and his captive. He held a whip in his hand, and now he was laughing uncontrollably.

Eleanor | Captured

Eleanor saw the small group of dolls clustered behind the bushes, but she looked away immediately. She didn’t focus for too long, or look away too fast; she didn’t even try to signal to them that she knew they were there. Any indication that her teammates were there, however small, could have cost all of them their lives.

Be careful, she thought to herself. She could not see them clearly, could not make out who they were. For all she knew, they could have been no more than a hallucination, brought about by her pain and desperation. She took a deep, painful breath and looked towards Red Eyes. He was conversing with the porcelain, large-eyed doll, and a small smile was beginning to play upon his face.

So she looked up towards the sky, which, although still dark, was beginning to gradually lighten. Trees rustled, as if trying to whisper the news of some deathly omen to her. A light drizzle even began to fall down from the sky, the slightly acidic raindrops making the cuts all over her sting and ache. She felt oddly warm, oddly stretched, as if someone or something was trying to pull her apart and her limbs would all snap off at any moment, leaving her a lifeless doll torso.
She was beginning to grow impatient. She could still see the dolls, standing there. What were they doing?

That was when she saw Red-Eyes shifting in her peripheral vision. She turned quickly to see what he was doing and immediately regretted it as hot, rough pain crawled along the surface of her skin and tried to bury itself within her cuts. She closed her eyes, opened them. Red-Eyes was standing there, firmly holding a whip within her hand.

He leaned close and whispered something in her ear. Then he stood upright again and turned to look at the porcelain doll. She gave him a small, wry smile. Red-Eyes began to laugh manically, turning at the same instant to face Eleanor. He brought the whip down on her and she let out a small, defeated exclamation as it struck her wound-covered skin.

She could only tense her muscles and scream. Her eyes watered. She was in too much pain to think clearly or to take in much around her. Her thoughts were a muddled of pleas and random names which seemed to have no connection to the current situation whatsoever.

She did, however, see her teammates running forward. Hayden was there, clutching Trina’s hand as he ran towards her. Beside them and slightly in front of them was Alia. There was something fierce and determined in her eyes; something which surprised Eleanor, considering how vacant and nonplussed Alia’s expression had seemed when she first met her during the journey to the games.

Red-Eyes turned to them, his expression gloating. “Got you, little ones,” he said. “Rosa here was under the impressions that you wouldn’t be stupid enough to fall for a trap such as this one again, but I knew she was wrong,” he looked at the porcelain doll.

Alia’s lips were a hard, tight line. As she charged towards Red-Eyes, Eleanor noted the lemons clutched in her right hand, ready to cause some distraction; her Tra’qaz in the other hand, but held with very little determination, almost as if she didn’t intend to use it. She cheered for her silently, trying to pull herself up but struggling against the chains, her heart in her throat, almost excited but immeasurably afraid.

She realised in that moment that she was adverse to death. It was a simple fact that changed everything.

Trina and Hayden were behind Alia, but hesitating slightly. Alia was the one rushing forward. She reached Red-Eyes, holding out the lemons. He turned as she tried to squirt them into his eyes, and then turned back, laughing, unscathed. His rough, callused doll hands reached for her throat.

Something terrible flickered within Alia’s eyes. She reached forward to stab him straight in the humanity chip with her Tra-Qaz, and in one brief, fleeting moment, Eleanor knew that she was going to kill him.

But that brief, fleeting moment soon passed and Eleanor gasped when Alia pulled the Tra-Qaz away. It had gone straight through Red-Eyes and had no effect. It suddenly looked weak and flimsy in Alia’s hands, and Alia looked increasingly helpless.

“No,” Eleanor breathed. “Please don’t let him hurt her.”

Alia took a small step back. Then she took in a deep breath and looked straight at Red-Eyes. “Go on, then,” she said. “Kill me.” Red-Eyes, a nasty smile plastered across his face, stepped forward, whip in hand.

Alia kneed him in the groin and he groaned and swore under his breath. Good for you, Alia, Eleanor thought, but even that did not diminish the fear. Red-Eyes was advancing on her. Eleanor saw the final blow a thousand times before she actually heard it.

But the sound was not quite right. It was the sound of a metallic, hollow clang.
When Eleanor finally gathered the courage to look, Red-Eyes was lying limply on the floor. She tried to see the area of his humanity chip but it was concealed by shadows. Trina stood next to him, her frying pan outstretched in her hand, looking shocked at herself.

There was a slight release of pressure on Eleanor’s chains, and she turned around to thank Alia, her heart leaping with joy, before she realised it was not Alia standing there. It was Rose, the enemy doll. She pulled away quickly and tried to ignore the pain as she tensed to fight or flee – which she would actually do she was not sure of.

But Rose held a finger to her lips, and her eyes were full of sadness. “I’m not going to hurt you,” she said, her voice still somewhat of a childish sing-song. “I know there’s going to be a point when one of us will have to kill each other, but it’s not now. I don’t want to kill another doll if I don’t have to.”

Eleanor stared at her.

“Go,” said Rose. “Quickly, before the others realise.” Then she slipped away, silently, like a graceful cat padding the forest floors as dawn approached. Soon it would be time to fight again.

Eleanor turned towards her teammates. Alia was sitting on the floor, looking shaken and staring again at the lemons and the Tra’qaz in her hands. Hayden and Trina were …

They were standing in each other’s arms. They stood half in a patch of moonlight, half in shadow. The shapes of their bodies seemed to fit perfectly together, Hayden’s arms around Trina’s waist, Trina’s head nestled on his shoulder.

Eleanor saw them kiss and she felt a leap of something wonderful surging up inside of her. Joy, such as she never knew it was even possible for a doll to feel. Joy for her teammates – for they had found something she knew she never would.

She looked at Alia and she knew that she felt it, too.

Me and Angeline soon moved out of the blood trap [If it was ever a trap.] and kept walking on till we reached at the other side of the island.

"The day you attacked Red-Eyes, is that your real strength?" Angeline asked me curiously.

Oh Shit.

"No. Not really." I said lying not lying this time.

"Woah. Really? But that day. That was full-on. "

"Uhh... Yeah. I sort of get hyper-active when I get angry. Something I cannot control. Let's not talk about it. Makes me remind me of Francie's death." I said and closed my eyes remembering her with me.

We walked on...

"So, Trina and Hayden. Wonder what happened to them." Angeline said.

I giggled to this. "They're so perfect. The other's must have found them already."

"Let's run. Maybe we can find who's faster!"

We ran as if it was a race. Almost like we were kids. Angeline was fun to be around with. And finally we reached the other side of the island panting & puffing.

"Wow. You're fast." I said, winking at her.

"Yeah. Its a talent." she replied, smiling at me.

Of course, she had won. We looked around to see if anyone was there. Far away, I could see a bright hair. Just the tip of it. It had become mid-night so fast. Were we walking that long? Phew. Sparks fly.

"I think that's Trina. Let's go!" Angeline said leading the way. I walked behind her trying to catch up and did so. We reached a place that was so peaceful and when the air smelled so nice. A cold shrill passed through me, making me freeze.

We saw Trina resting her shoulders on Hayden's neck, holding her hands. I just wish they would... You know... Normally what happens during love. Kiss.

Just a moment after, like my wishes were granted for the first time, they kissed. I could feel they loved themselves so much and that Hayden would guard her for his entire life.

I looked at Angeline. She smiled to be wide-faced. We all were very happy for them. Trina saw us looking at her, and pushed herself away. She blushed and continues resting her head on his neck.

Suddenly, out of nowhere, a hand grabbed my mouth and I backed away from them, so fast. I turned and kicked the person right on to the stomach. He felt down, aching so badly.

"Oh, you dog! Wait till Red-Eyes, captures you." she said, smirking a little. I tried to figure why.

"Correction. If he does." I said.
But again, someone sprayed something on to my face and there, I had fainted.

"And I guess, I did." I heard an evil voice saying.

Trina | Somewhere on the island...

Just as Hayden finished telling Trina his plan, she felt something on her ankle, and she fell down. The next thing she knew, she had a knife pressed to the back of her neck. Again? Really? She looked up and saw Hayden pull out his gun and point it at her attacker, and then frown and lower the gun slightly. "Alia?" he murmured. This one again?! "Alia!" Trina hissed.

Alia let go of Trina, but Hayden kept pointing his gun at her, a little hesitant to put it down, but looking very determined all the same, his amazing bright green eyes twinkling- Wait, what was she thinking? Trina, a little surprised at herself, turned her gaze away from Hayden and looked at Alia, who was smirking.

"So the two of you just happened to be here, while you both were walking together, huh?" she asked. Trina, catching on immediately, glared at Alia and shook her head. It seemed to take Hayden a moment longer to realize, though. "Yeah." he replied. A sudden look of realization dawned upon his face, and he sighed, while Alia began giggling again.

Hayden nudged Trina's elbow, and she looked up. Her elbow suddenly felt very hot, but she ignored it and looked at what Hayden was pointing at. It was Red Eyes, standing over Eleanor with a whip in his hands. Oh, no he doesn't. Trina watched silently along with Hayden and Alia too, who had stopped giggling and was now looking at Red Eyes with a slightly amused expression on her face.

As soon as she heard the loud Crack, Trina felt anger boiling inside her. She didn't quite understand what had come over her, but she crawled out of the bushes, got up and began sprinting towards Red Eyes. That evil little- I'm going to kill him with my bare hands.

Feeling rage such as she had never felt before, Trina sped up and ran faster, but suddenly, she felt someone grab her hand and hold her back. She turned and saw Hayden, holding her hand. "Don't. You'll get hurt." Was this really the time? Trina felt her hand and her face becoming hotter, but she didn't think it was from rage. "Let me go! I'm going to kill him! I'll kill that horrible, evil, crazy-" Trina stopped and saw Alia rush past her. She tried to shake Hayden off, but he had a firm grip. She started running again, half-dragging Hayden along with her.

Red Eyes turned and looked at them. “Got you, little ones,” he said. “Rosa here was under the impressions that you wouldn’t be stupid enough to fall for a trap such as this one again, but I knew she was wrong,” he looked at the porcelain doll, with a gloating expression on his face.

Alia tried to squirt lemon juice into his eyes, using the lemons in her hand, but in vain. Then she plunged her Tra'qaz into his neck, but it didn't have any effect. Trina looked at her, bewildered. What was wrong? Why didn't her Tra'qaz work? Trina stopped running, and watched as Red Eyes cornered Alia, ready to kill her.

Suddenly something flickered inside her brain, and Trina knew what to do. She grabbed her frying pan from her bag that she had been carrying, and crept up behind Red Eyes who was too busy talking to Alia to notice. Trina raised her frying pan and brought it crashing down onto Red Eyes' head. He looked dazed for a moment, then fell down.

Trina heard Alia say something, but not understanding it, she looked at Hayden who was standing there, looking a little shocked. He walked towards her and, stopping a few steps before her, he said, "Pretty brave for a girl doll, aren't you?" Was that supposed to be a compliment? Trina looked into his bright green eyes that were twinkling with happiness, which Trina found a little odd, considering that they had just been in a life threatening situation. What she found even odder, though, was how his merry eyes made her feel warm inside, and how his smile made her feel happy, like she wanted to jump and dance with delight. "Why thank you," she said, smiling. "You're not that bad yourself." He continued smiling and held her hand gently and she knew that she had found something that would be worth keeping; something she would never want to lose. As she continued to gaze into his eyes, she found herself being kissed by him.

When they broke apart, she saw Coral, who seemed to have appeared out of nowhere, staring at her, and she felt herself turn red. She buried her face into Hayden's shoulder, feeling a little embarrassed.

Meanwhile, it seemed like Eleanor had managed to untie herself, for she was now standing up, arms folded, smiling at the couple. Trina lifted her head off of Hayden's shoulder and ran towards Eleanor. "Eleanor! Are you alright? I saw what he did to you, you must be hurt really badly. You need some healing at once. Coral? Where's Coral?" Trina looked up just in time to see Red Eyes hit Coral and watched as Coral fainted. Not again. He's not getting away with it this time. Trina ran to where Red Eyes stood, ready to fight him with her hands.

But she was too late. He punched her. But surprisingly, she didn't feel the blow. She looked up to see Hayden standing with his back to her, shielding her from the blow. "Don't you dare hurt her!" She felt her heart skip a beat, and grabbing a poison dart from her bag, she aimed beneath Hayden's arm at Red Eyes' knee, and threw the arrow. It hit its mark, and Red Eyes limped away quickly, before anyone could stop him.

Hayden turned and Trina gasped, horrified. He'd taken the blow right to his nose, and it was bleeding profusely. "Coral!" Coral, who had been healing Eleanor, looked up as Trina pulled Hayden towards her. "Can you fix this too?" she asked. "Of course I can! Nothing easier." She waved her wand, said some magical words, and Hayden's nose stopped bleeding.

Trina sighed a huge sigh of relief and all of them walked back towards the camp.

And I guess, I did...

Those words kept twirling inside my mind, echoing every time. Fainting was a bad experience. I tried to get out of it. I needed all the strength inside me. I knew I had it somewhere. Things were different. It was like, I was standing in a whole white place. No one was there. So peaceful. It looked like heaven but I'm sure, I'm not dead.

As I wake up in my "Imaginary World", a flash hits me, making me remember the story of my life from the beginning on wards. That last part where I fainted. It hit me bad and soon I came back to reality taking a huge breath back, I woke up.

I opened my eyes slightly and I saw, Trina targeting Red-Eyes and I closed it back. I forced myself to wake up from the ground. I was weak. Coral was never weak. Not now, when I am just a few more steps away from killing Red-Eyes.

Eleanor was a little hurt, and before she could speak, I reached out for my Wand and, started healing her with the snowflake I plucked. But, my mind couldn't think properly.

I will be back... I'll never spare any one of you! The voice into my head. Who was this jerk?

Don't let it control. Concentrate on healing. Get yourself together, Coral!

Trina looked at Hayden, horrified. Those eyes were sure worried for him. True love. "Coral!" she called out to me.

I turned back and smiled.

"Can you fix this?" Trina said to me, almost loosing her voice, pointing towards Hayden's nose. Her voice was all tangled up. I knew she was so worried for Hayden.

"How did this happen?" I asked Trina. Just as I asked, Trina started crying all of a sudden. I looked at Alia for an explanation. She looked away from me.

"Alia, could you speak up?" I asked her, sternly.

Alia explained what had happened. Each time she did, my expressions grew bigger. Did that really happen to brave-little- Hayden? Well, he wasn't that type of guy at all. He was usually the angry, fit and brave times. More like Blue. Oh well, dangers can happen. I looked at Hayden wondering what herbs I could use for him. But it was bleeding so much. To avoid the tension, I lied.

"Of course I can! Nothing easier." I said, delighted and took my Wand. I enchanted a few spells and stopped the bleeding. I heard Trina sighing heavily. Everyone was happy with what I did, but that was just a small spell.

I went to a corner and looked at my herbs. What more herbs could I make out of it? I had made almost whatever ideas I could. But this was serious. What a crash he had. I decided to tell Trina the truth. After all, Trina was Hayden's girlfriend and she has to know the truth.

"Trina!" I yelled out to her. "Can you please come over here?"

Trina hopped up where she was sitting and happily came towards me. Darn it! Her hair was so attracting.

"What's up?" she asked me.

I turned over to the sky. I showed her my herbs but she didn't get any idea of what I was about to say. She noticed my glum expression on my face.

"Hey, is there anything wrong?" she said, resting a hand on my shoulder.

"Trina... I don't know how to say this... But... Back there... When I was healing Hayden," I stammered.

Trina's eyes went wide. Apparently, she got the wrong idea.

"Oh, the "thank you" thing? I'm so sorry! Thanks a lot for the heal!" she said, delighted.

I giggled. "No, Trina. That's not the thing.When I was healing him, his wound looked a little serious. Something I cannot heal. Maybe I can, I just need the correct ingredients. But I can't think of anything." I spit it all out.

"What do you mean, serious?" Trina scowled and folded her arms.

"Like, sort of, maybe... I don't know how to explain it. He's been wounded badly. "

"But you just healed him! He looks perfectly alright."

"Yes, I know, Trina! But tomorrow, it'll start paining like someone just stabbed him on his nose! I have to fix it. Its a pain that no one can bear."

I saw Trina's eyes getting fully wet. Tiny tears started trickling down her cheeks. I shouldn't have said it to her. But its good she knows the truth.

"He won't die, right?" she asked, her voice so low and squeaky.

"Of course, not! I just need to fix the pain. Tonight." I said to her.

Trina started crying a bit more and soon wiped off her tears. She looked at me. What does she want me to do?

I think this SB is dead. X.X