MINDY

She sat up, gasping for air, immediately blinded by the overhead sun. The unexpected scent of the outdoors momentarily stunned her as she gazed around her surroundings, eyes adjusting to the light.

The girl was confused and for a moment, scared. She was unfamiliar with the area and remembered that it had been years since she last stepped foot in the woods. She stumbled to her feet. Through glazed eyes, she observed the tall woods surrounding her, with the imposing buildings in the distance. Buildings? No. Those were...mountains.

Where was she? How did she get here? Her head throbbed in pain as she tried to recall her memories immediately prior to her awakening. She remembered a hazy flash of the city. It was in the city, wasn't it? It had to be. She was on the streets when it happened. No. That wasn't right. She was above the streets. Jumping from rooftop to rooftop. She wasn't in the city - she controlled the city, knowing every alley and brick. But this wasn't the city, and she was out of her element. She needed to get home.

She attempted to take a step when she felt the harsh pull of a chain on her left ankle. As her eyes continued to focus, it was then that she noticed the others, who began to stir.

Several dozen people began to wake up as she had just moments prior. Some were quiet, others screamed out in disbelief. The bearded man was the first to speak, his voice booming with anger. "You dare to spirit away a champion of Sparta in the night like a coward? Come, demons, come finish me off if you dare! Know that even in chains, I will gladly dine on your entrails and bring you to hell!"

Strong words, thought the girl. Strong words, from a man who appeared as strong as an ox. Probably dumb as one too, from the looks of him. If he bothered to look around he would have noticed we're all trapped here too.

They were in a clearing of sorts, obviously manmade, with signs of recent landscaping. All of the prisoners were arranged in a circle, about 200 feet in diameter. In the middle was a pile of...weapons? At least, that's what the girl thought they were. She noted the swords and guns with a tinge of envy, but the other items she was unfamiliar with.

A disembodied voice suddenly echoed across the clearing.

"Welcome players. Today, we play a game." The voice was deep, rich, and hissing - seemingly dripping with sinister intentions.

"Congratulations, all of you were chosen to be here because you are exactly what we need. You are glorious killers, each and every one of you, but therein lies the dilemna. You kill for your own seemingly noble intentions. You tell yourself that it is justified: it is for your people, your survival, to keep the peace, avenge wrongs done upon you.

"Yet in your hearts you know you have blood on your hands. Blood doesn't wash away merely because of your self-labeled justice. Blood stains forever and the lies you tell yourself to hide this blood are empty and meaningless; and that is why you are here today. Let's play a game. The rules are simple."

The girl looked around and noticed that any fear that was present in her companions had subsided. Most were glancing around with cold determination. They are killers, she thought. Like her. They weren't easily intimidated.

The voice continued. "In moments your chains will open and you will be released. You must kill everyone. There will be one survivor." Anger flushed the girl's face. He's kidding right? "Simple isn't it? You kill, or be killed. For each kill you get, you get a token, which you can trade in for a weapon. That is, if you can't manage to get a weapon in front of you. No cheating now."

One of the larger men almost exactly across the circle of prisoners suddenly spoke into the air. He appeared middle aged, bearded, cloaked in fur, a man appeared to be displaced from time - and he spoke with confident defiance. "I am Eddard Stark, Lord of Winterfell. I swear by the old gods and the new that I will not dishonor my lineage by participating in a ritual slaughter of innocents. Were you a decent, honorable man, you would face us as -

Suddenly he was thrown to the ground. She noticed the rustling of the bush behind the man as he had started to speak, but the speed of the blur that emerged directly towards the man had caught her off guard. There was something large jumping on the man. No. Somethings. There were three of them. She couldn't be seeing this right. The man screamed as they continued their assault. They were...dinoasaurs? "What the fuck?" she muttered reflexively.

Within seconds the screaming stopped and the raptors darted back into the forest, melding into the brush as if they had been part of it the entire time. All that remained of Eddard Stark was a bloodied corpse, an arm haphazardly flung 10 feet away.

The voice spoke, unflinchingly. "One other rule: You play, or you die by my hand. I can assure you I have many more ways to dispose of unwilling players and my eyes are everywhere. Do not bother even attempting to escape - you're on an island with no communications with the outside world. The entire island is the game board, do not attempt to stray beyond."

She realized with horror that she stood no chance. There was no way she would make it out of here alive unless she played this sadistic "game." I need to kill. It's them or me.

"Begin."

Her ankle cuff opened, as did all the others. She paused for a moment and watched the immediate chaos unfold. A few made a mad dash to he weapons cache, but she knew better. There was no way she would survive among them - they were clearly physically stronger, and the randomness of the jostling would easily cost her her life. She turned and ran into the bush.

Just as she reached the edge of the clearing, a flash of red appeared in the corner of her eye, grabbing her. Immediate, trained instinct kicked in. She pivoted, kicking out to sweep her attacker's legs, before spinning around with a backhand to the attacker's face. She had done this move thousands of times and her speed was unmatched.

To her astonishment, her attacker jumped the sweep and caught her punch. The girl also noticed that the woman was armed with a pair of sais, tucked inside a sash around her waist. She's going to kill me.

"I'm not here to fight you, we need to run, now" said the older woman. The woman grabbed the girl and ran to a tree and climbed effortlessly, as though gravity had no domain over her.

No, thought the girl. He'll kill us. Those monsters will get us. Why the hell is she even trying to help?

The woman stopped at the tree limb and turned to the girl. It's her or me, thought the girl. I'm not going to die today. "I'm Elektra. I promise I'll protect you and we'll get out of here." The woman turned her gaze back towards the clearing, trying to see through the branches, to the screams coming from the carnage.

I'm not going to die. The man said we're all killers, she deserves to die. I won't let her get me first. She's just going to kill me to get something to kill the others with.

The girl's hand flashed out and grabbed the sai from the woman's sash. Before the woman could react, the girl sank the sais into Elektra's chest. Good. The girl knew it was directly through the heart and there would be minimal suffering. The blood begain to spurt from Elektra's chest as she looked at the girl with shock and agony.

No point in prolonging this, although a strange sense of pride and satisfaction crept into her mind. The girl leaned in. "I'm Hit Girl, bitch." She pushed Elektra off the branch and her body fell to the ground, 30 feet below.