Arena One: Slaverunners tst-1 Read online

  Sumo begins to turn towards me, and I can see the shock on his face. I don’t wait.

  I swing around and plant a roundhouse kick perfectly on the back of his neck. He goes down, face first, hitting the floor hard, shaking it with his weight. The crowd roars.

  Again, I don’t wait. I jump up high and do a dropkick, digging the heel of my boot, right into the small of his back. Then, without pausing, I wind up and kick him hard in the side of the face my steel tip, aiming for his temple. The soft spot. I kick it again and again and again. Soon, he’s covered in blood, and he’s reaching up to protect his head.

  The crowd goes insane. They jump to their feet, screaming.

  “KILL HIM!” they scream. “FINISH HIM!”

  But I hesitate. The sight of him lying there, limp like that, makes me feel bad. I know that I shouldn’t, that he’s a merciless killer, but still, I can’t quite bring myself to finish him off.

  And that is my big mistake.

  Sumo takes advantage of my hesitation. Before I know it, he reaches out and grabs my ankle. His hand is huge, impossibly huge, wrapping around my leg as if it were a twig. With one easy motion, he pulls me by the leg, spins me, and sends me flying across the ring.

  I slam into the metal cage, missing one of the sharp spikes by an inch, and fall to the floor.

  The crowd cheers. I look up, stunned, my head spinning. Sumo is already getting to his feet and charging. Blood trickles down his face. I can’t believe I did that. I can’t believe he’s even vulnerable. And now, he must be really pissed.

  I’m shocked by how fast he is. In the flash of an eye he’s almost on top of me, leaping into the air, preparing to land on top of me. If I don’t get out of the way fast, I’ll be crushed.

  At the last second I roll and just barely manage to evade him as he lands hard beside me, shaking the floor so hard that it actually bounces and sends me up into the air.

  I roll away, and keep rolling until I’m on the far side of the ring. I hurry to my feet, and he gets up, too. We stand there on opposite sides of the ring, facing each other, each breathing hard. The crowd is going crazy. I can’t believe I’ve managed to live this long.

  He’s gearing up to charge, and I realize I’m out of options. There aren’t many places to go in this ring, especially with a man this size. One wrong move, and I’m finished. I got lucky with the element of surprise. But now I actually have to fight.

  Suddenly, something falls through the air. I look up and see that something is being dropped down through the open roof of the cage. It lands with a crash on the floor between us. It is a weapon. A huge battle axe. I never expected this. I guess this is their way of keeping the games even, prolonging their entertainment. The axe lands in the center, equidistant between us, about ten feet away.

  I don’t hesitate. I race for it, and am relieved to see I am faster than he is: I get there and grab it first.

  But he is quicker than I’d imagined, and just as I bend over and pick it up, I feel his huge hands around my rib cage, and he is picking me up, hoisting me from behind in a huge bear hug. He hoists me higher, effortlessly, as if I were an insect. The crowd roars.

  He squeezes harder and harder, and I feel all the air crushed out of me, feel as if each one of my ribs is going to crack. I manage to hold onto the axe-but that does little good. I can’t even maneuver my shoulders.

  He spins me before the crowd, having fun with me. The crowd reacts, screaming in delight. If I can just get my arms free, I can use the axe.

  But I can’t. I feel all the air leaving my body, and realize that in another moment or two, I’ll be suffocated.

  Finally, I realize, my luck has run out.

  SEVENTEEN

  Sumo doesn’t seem to want to kill me yet. Instead, it seems as if he’s enjoying our fight-and that he wants to toy with me.

  So instead of crushing me to death, he spins me around fast, several times, then throws me. The axe goes flying from my hands and the world goes rushing by as I fly through the air. I smash, head first, into the metal wall of the cage.

  I bounce off it, and land hard on the ground. The crowd roars. Again I manage to miss one of the cage’s protruding spikes, but barely. I look up and see the body of his last victim, still impaled on the cage wall, and realize I am lucky. The axe hits the ground with a clang several feet away from me.

  My head is ringing, and I’m disoriented as I lay there, face first on the ground. Out of the corner my eye, I see him charging. But I’m too beat to move.

  Move, soldier! MOVE!

  Somehow, I force myself into motion. I scramble to my knees, crawl over to the axe as fast as I can, grab it with both hands, and spin around with it.

  My timing is perfect. As Sumo is gearing up to stomp me, the axe comes flying around and connects with his calf. I feel the blade entering his flesh. Blood squirts all over me.

  There is a tremendous roar from the crowd. I realize I must’ve done some serious damage.

  He falls over, like a log, and lands with a crash. He is screaming and reaching up for where his foot once was, and I am shocked to see that my axe has chopped it off. Blood gushes everywhere, and he lies there, screaming, grabbing at his stump.

  “KILL HIM! KILL HIM!” the crowd chants.

  I know that this is my chance, that I should finish him off. But still, as I stand over him, holding the axe, I just can’t bring myself to.

  Instead, I just want to get far away from him. But I am stuck in one corner, and his body is blocking my path. So I run and jump over him, trying to get to the opposite side.

  Another mistake. Once again, I have underestimated him. He reaches up and grabs my ankle in mid-air and I fall to the ground, face first, hitting it hard. The crowd screams.

  He grabs my ankle and drags me towards him, one hand at a time. I feel like I’m being pulled into a conveyor belt, as I slide on my stomach, inevitably towards him. I realize that in another second I’ll be on top of him, and he’ll crush me to death with his upper body.

  I am still clutching the axe handle, and with my final bit of energy, I manage to lift my upper body, spin around, and with both hands, bring the blade down hard, aiming right for his head. There is a sickening noise as the blade lodges into his forehead.

  For a moment, I freeze, as does the crowd. I can still feel his hand gripping my ankle, and wonder if the blade went deep enough. Then, finally, his hand releases and his eyes open wide. I am stunned to realize that he is dead. I have killed him.

  The crowd is completely silent. I scramble away from him, not trusting that anyone his size could actually be dead, that I could have actually killed him. I stand at the far end of the ring, breathing hard, warily looking down, waiting for him to resurrect. But he does not. He is dead. Really dead.

  Suddenly, the crowd roars, jumps to its feet, erupts in a huge cheer. They whistle and clap and stomp, and it never ends.

  And that is when I realize: I have won. I can really do it. I can survive.

  I sense motion, and look up.

  The leader sits up there, high on his own pedestal, watching over all of us. Slowly, he stands, and as he does, the crowd begins to quiet. Even from here, I can see the look of surprise on his face. Clearly, he had not expected this.

  He nods, and the cage door opens. In march a half dozen slaverunners, holding guns. Two of them march right for me, holding out their guns, and for a moment, I wonder if they’re going to kill me. But then I see the other four going to drag out the bodies of the last two victims. I realize these two are just standing guard, in case I make any rash moves. They aren’t taking any chances.

  The other four each grab hold of Sumo, and with a supreme effort they drag his immense weight across the ring. It must be a real struggle for them, because they go slowly, and I can hear them straining. After about a minute, they finally managed to drag him off, trailing blood. One of them comes back and grabs the small man’s impaled body off the cage, as if an afterthought. The other two slaverunners march
out and slam the cage door behind them.

  I now stand alone, wondering what might come next. I wait for a few moments, wondering if maybe they will release me now, although I know, even as I think it, that it’s a silly idea. I know that there are no survivors in Arena One. Ever.

  Sure enough, moments later, the crowd erupts into an enormous cheer, and I look down and see another contestant being marched towards the ring. I’m surprised to see that this one is a woman. She marches right to the metal ladder, looking confident and defiant, and as they open the door she ascends the ladder in three quick steps and jumps in.

  “Shi-ra! Shi-ra! Shi-ra!” the crowd roars.

  With long black hair and black eyes, Shira looks to be in her 30s; she is incredibly well-built, her muscles bulging, with large breasts. She wears just a tight elastic top and tight black shorts, and her toned, muscular legs and arms ripple. She looks like a curvy, female action model. Curiously, she wears a small backpack on her back, and I wonder if it’s part of her outfit, or if she wears it for a reason.

  She stares at me coolly from the opposite side of the ring. Unlike Sumo, she doesn’t seem to take me for granted, studies me as if I’m a serious contender. And that worries me. She seems much craftier. Oddly, I feel more on-edge facing her than I did him. I sense she has tricks up her sleeve.

  She slowly begins to circle the perimeter of the ring, and I circle, too, keeping my distance. We circle each other, two wary opponents, each waiting for the other to make the first move. After a few seconds of this, she suddenly shrieks and charges, her hands held out before her like claws, aimed right for my face.

  I wait until the last second, then sidestep her, holding out my foot as I do. It works: she charges right past me, trips, and falls on her face. The crowd screams in approval.

  But she spins around in the same motion and with one hand grabs the back of my leg and with the other, grabs my hair from behind. It is a dirty trick, and she pulls me down, backwards, and I fall flat on my back, hitting the floor with a painful thud. In the same motion, she rolls over, on top of me, and grabs me tight in a bear hug, like a wrestler. She holds me tight and won’t let go, rolling over with me again and again.

  She has my arms in a vice, and I can’t wiggle free. I feel her slowly squeezing the life out of me, and my breathing becomes more shallow.

  “BITE HER! BITE HER! BITE HER!” the crowd chants.

  I don’t understand why they’re chanting this, until suddenly, Shira leans back ahead and opens her mouth wide. She’s sharpened her teeth with a file, and they are pointy, like fangs. She lowers her head, aiming right for my shoulder.

  I struggle to get free, but she’s deceptively strong, and she has me in a lock I just can’t get out of. She lowers her head, and next thing I know I’m in horrific pain, as her two teeth sink into my shoulder blade. I feel them puncturing my skin, feel hot blood pouring out of it, and I scream out in pain.

  The intense pain gives me a newfound rush of adrenaline, though, and in a sudden burst of strength I manage to get my hands down into her solo plexus and push for all I can. This time, it works. She goes flying off of me.

  I roll over quickly, my face red with exertion, my shoulder burning from the pain; I reach over and feel it, and my hand comes back red, covered in blood. Now I’m pissed.

  I charge her, and before she can gain her knees I wind up and kick her hard, connecting in her ribs. There is a sound of cracking ribs, and the crowd ooohs. Without waiting, I wind up again and kick her again, hard in the face.

  She collapses, blood pouring from her face. She is confused, squarely on the ground, and now I have the advantage.

  I know that I should kick her in the head repeatedly, finish her off. But still, somehow, I can’t bring myself to. I still feel bad killing this woman, lying there, defenseless. I stand there, hesitating, as the crowd erupts into a chant.

  “KILL HER! KILL HER! KILL HER!”

  Still, I can’t bring myself to. I hesitate. And it is another stupid mistake.

  I don’t see her hand reaching slowly behind her back, unlatching her backpack. And by the time I realize what she’s doing, it’s too late.

  Her pack opens and suddenly, out comes a bright, multi-colored snake.

  It slithers right for me.

  EIGHTEEN

  The snake hits the ground and darts at me in a flash. I’m so shocked, I don’t even know how to react. The snake doesn’t hesitate, though. It retracts its fangs and sinks them into my calf.

  The pain is excruciating. I drop to one knee as the three-inch fangs sink into my flesh. It feels like my skin is on fire, as if it is going to burn off in pain.

  My reflexes take over, and without thinking, I reach over, grab the snake by its head, yank it off, and hold it out in front of me. It hisses back as I hold it, and I pull back my arm and throw it across the ring. It slams into the metal cage and drops to the ground. The crowd cheers.

  The snake immediately darts across the floor, coming right back at me. Now my calf is on fire, hurting so bad that it makes me forget the pain in my shoulder. Making matters worse, Shira is beginning to get up again.

  Suddenly, something falls through the air. I hear a clang, and look down to see another weapon has been dropped: this time, it’s a spear.

  I run over and grab it. And as the snake slithers back towards me, I hurl the spear down at it. I miss.

  The snake lunges at me, and I sidestep just in time. But the snake slithers around, coming back. I raise the spear again, spin around, and bring it down. This time, it’s a perfect strike.

  The spear lodges right into the snake’s head, pinning it into the ground. It goes limp.

  The crowd roars.

  Just when I think I can relax, suddenly, I feel myself slammed from behind, feel an elbow hit me hard, right on my spine. I go flying forward, head smashing into the metal railing, barely missing a protruding spike. My head spins from the pain.

  I turn around and see Shira charging, her face contorted with fury. She jumps high in the air, feet flying forward, to kick me in the chest. I notice that her toes have sharpened metal blades protruding from them: if she kicks me, it will be fatal.

  I spin away at the last second, and she kicks the gate instead, bouncing off it and falling hard on her back. The crowd roars.

  I try to run across the ring, to go for the spear, but as I run past her, she reaches out and grabs my foot with her hand, tripping me. I land hard, face first, on the ground. A second later, I feel her on top of me, bear hugging me from behind, wrapping her arms and legs around my body. The crowd roars.

  I roll over, and now she is on her back on the floor, grabbing me from behind. She wraps her muscular legs around mine, and then reaches up with her forearm, which is solid muscle, and wraps it over my throat. She is going to choke me to death. I have no leverage to maneuver. Once again, I’m losing.

  With my free hand, I try to reach back over my shoulder. Just a foot behind me, out of reach, is the spear, still lodged in the snake. I stretch as much as I can, reaching with my fingertips, and they just graze the spear shaft. I am so close. But I am losing air.

  I bend my leg, still in excruciating pain from the snake bite, dig my heel into the floor and push, sliding us both back. I manage to move us an inch. Just enough to grab hold of the spear.

  Finally, I have it. But the world is getting dizzy, and I am seeing stars as I am losing oxygen fast. I know I only have a few seconds left to live.

  With one last, supreme effort, I lift the spear and bring it down towards me, and at the last second dodge my head out of the way. I bring it down hard, with both hands.

  The spear barely misses my face and instead lodges into Shira’s throat. I pull down harder and harder, hearing the awful sound of metal penetrating flesh, until finally, her grip around my throat loosens.

  I feel her go limp beneath me, feel her hands and legs slowly letting go. I feel her hot blood pouring out of her neck, onto my own. Finally, I am able to break free,
and I roll away and jump to my feet.

  I stand over her and look down, rubbing my throat, gasping for breath. Her eyes are open wide, staring off to the side.

  After a moment of stunned silence, the crowd again jumps to its feet, roaring with approval, even more thunderous than before. Now, they love me.

  As I stand there, looking down at Shira’s corpse, I don’t feel a sense of pride; rather, I think only of the snakebite, the burning pain in my calf, and I wonder if it’s poisonous. I look down and see that my calf is already red and swollen. Each step I take brings a fresh stab of pain. I am guessing that if it was poisonous I’d already be dead, or at least paralyzed. Still, the pain is incredible, and walking is difficult. I don’t know how I’ll be able to continue fighting like this.

  Not to mention the rest of me: my cracked ribs, the wound on my arm from the shrapnel, the new bite wound on my shoulder, my swollen face…. I stand there, clinging to the fence and catching my breath. I really don’t know how I’ll be able to fight one more person. Now I understand why Arena One has no survivors.

  I sense motion and look way up high, and see the leader scowling down at me. He does not look pleased. The crowd continues to cheer, and I can’t help wondering if maybe I’ve embarrassed the leader in some way. Clearly, the arena bouts are designed to be quick, meant to be basically a glorified execution. They don’t seem to be meant to last more than one round. Clearly, he had expected me to die sooner.

  Making matters worse, I see people trading money furiously in the crowd. I wonder if the leader and his people had placed bets against me-and if my winning has cost the house money. I wonder what the odds were. If I were betting, I’d guess it would be 500 to 1 against me.

  His advisors huddle around him, looking flustered, whispering in his ear, as if devising a plan. Slowly, he nods in response.

  As he does, the door to the cage opens, and in march two slaverunners. They hurry to Shira’s corpse and drag her dead body across the ring. One of them reaches down and grabs the spear and the limp carcass of the snake, and carries it, too. More blood stains the floor, which is now red and slick. I stand there, taking it all in, still catching my breath, when suddenly I hear a faint rumbling. This is followed by something more distinct, and I feel the ground beneath me tremor, then shake. Soon, it becomes a deafening roar.