The Great Belligerency [Round 4: Static]

Originally posted on MSPA by Pick Yer Poison.

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Phil blinked confusedly and wrenched his arm out of Julia's grip. "What? Julia? But weren't you Amy before?"

Julia winced slightly as Phil butchered her name's pronounciation. "Certainly not!" she exclaimed, pouting. "I should think I would know my own name, unlike that horrid man." She ran a finger across his chest plate. "Surely you believe me? You seem like such a good man...he must have made a mistake in selecting you too." But Phil reached up a gloved hand and gently pushed her finger away.

"There's something very wrong with this. Something doesn't make any sense." Phil backed away slightly and gripped his gun in both his hands, a subtle movement communicating that he was ready to defend himself if attacked. "The Executor had Cole and I pegged; why should you be any different? I doubt that a man that can manipulate reality to his own ends is prone to making mistakes as simple as a wrong name."

Julia looked up at him pleadingly. "La, that's what makes it so terrible! I'm not supposed to be here. I'm not a fighter, I'm just a dancer!" She stepped forward hesitantly. "Please, you have to believe me. Those other people, they're...they're monsters! They'll kill me!"

Phil shifted uneasily, torn between wanting to help Julia and thinking there was something fishy with her story. He settled on the former, at least for now. If she does turn out to be pulling a fast one, well, I don't think she can fool my bullets. Phil patted her on the shoulder. "Alright, I'll go along with what you say. You definitely don't look capable of defending yourself."

Julia fluttered her eyelashes at Phil, and he was once again glad his helmet kept her from seeing him blush. "Oh, thank you so much! I know everything will just fine now that you're watching out for me." She grabbed Phil's arm and hung on tight, as if she was in danger of flying away.

Phil coughed nervously. “Well! We’d better get moving. Who knows what’s…wait…where the hell ARE we?” He glanced around at their surroundings, taking a few minutes to actually pay attention to the bizarre, warped scenery. A long, winding gravel path presented itself to his eyes, bordered on the sides by small pebbles painstakingly arranged to form two continuous lines. It reminded him of national parks, but instead of trees, there were only uncountable numbers of disturbingly pale hands on long, thin arms of varying heights. They waved slightly in the…no, there was no breeze here. It was a dead place, and Phil and Julia were the only life to be seen.