Beyond the Walls

I Will Live

Kiko was left alone in a ward, with no lights and only a fan. He is crying because of the pain both physically and mentally.

The cost of staying alive, he can’t afford it.

He can longer take it. He did his best to stay alive but if this means being alive, he would rather give up. He only wishes to die quickly but it seems like that too was far from his reach. He knows that infection will kill him slowly and painfully.

On his second day, he lost his will even if had peed himself, or the pain was unbearable, he longer cared, that's when a man came to see him that night. He is wearing a white mask with only engraved squinted eyes and a polished unwrinkled suit.

The man has other people with him, they too are wearing a mask. The people who are with this man helped him to adjust the bed so they can talk properly.

Kiko noticed the perfect posture of this man and the way he carries himself is full of dignity and poise.

“Good Evening Sir Kiko Parker.”

He had a mechanical voice that sounded like a robot.

“Do you wish to live more?” It continued to talk.

“W,what? W,who are you?” Kiko weakly asked.

“If you wish to live more, then, read the contract before you.”

“I, I don’t know h,how to read.” Kiko clenched the handed paper to him.

“We will read the contract to you.”

That night, in exchange for his participation, all his medical expenses, medicines, food and other things he needed were provided as his participation payment.

It was the most blissful moment in his entire life. Even if he was unable to get out of his bed, he never felt peaceful. He never had to wonder what to eat later or the next day. His feet soles and muscles didn’t ache because of excessive going around selling random things and the best of all is he felt free, from all worries and beatings.

He shed a tear after the nurse had asked him if there was anything he wanted to eat.

When was the last time someone asked him that?

If the price for peace of mind is to sell his insides, he will gladly offer it all.

On the day of his release, he had recovered fully, the wound had closed fully and he could go back to his normal days.

The sun that day was so beautiful that even if it hurt his eyes, he couldn’t stop looking at it.

With a smile on his face, he walks out and takes a look around the city of Wall 60. It had been a long time since he had been in mid-walls districts. They look more like a city and liveable than the outer walls.

He knew that once he got out of the city walls, he can’t come in here again easily, so with money left to him, he treated himself to a good meal and when the night fell, he checked in in an inn.

The next thing he knows, he becomes a player in a deathly game.

“Hey. Are you okay?” Aaron snapped out Kiko in his reminiscing.

“Ah! Yeah… anyway, what is wrong with him and he suddenly went into this i***t state?”

Lucas is still mumbling inaudible things while hugging his knees and staring blankly at Kiko’s empty side.

“I’ve seen him once like this but Athena… said he was like that when he wakes up from a nightmare… but it’s getting longer and longer for him to snap out of it.”

“That b***h… I mean.” Kiko retracted his words after receiving glares from Aaron.

*Cough

He cleared his throat. “...That girl, aren’t you guys close? Why did she change group?”

“Who knows. She always had her own way of things. Did you think it was because of her that’s why you were kicked out?”

Bullseye.

“It wasn’t her decision to kick you out. It was Liam’s.”

Kiko remained silent. It was easier to blame Athena than Liam. They stayed that way for a moment before Kiko stopped frowning and exhaled.

“You’re right. It wasn’t her fault. I would’ve picked her too over me. It’s just that… I wanted to survive. I want to live and it would be easier if I am with Liam. Do you know how smart that bastard is? He can start his own religion if wants to. I know that if I stick with him, I could live… I don’t have to worry as long as I follow him.”

Kiko was not like this from the start. He was clueless just like everyone else when round 1 had started. He screamed and cried. Take the first chance he finds and escape.

‘I want to live… I want to live!’ That's all that was running in his head that’s why he stuck to the strongest looking guy he found in the group of survivors, Michael but it didn’t take long for him to notice that the center of the group was really Liam. He was strong, dependable and smart. Seeing that the strongest was not necessarily mean survival, he adapted faster among the group of survivors.

“I want to live. I want to experience that again.” The beautiful sun, the soundful sleep…

That’s all that was going through his mind. He adapted habits from other players by listening to them and mimicking their behavior.

The strong prey on the weak.

He learned to swear and glare by the end of Round 1.

Skills are important but so is dependability.

Though far from Michael’s big and one kills. Kiko didn’t show hesitation in swinging his weapon.

Never Question.

At the end of Round 2, he placed himself in the inner circle of Liam with just those traits. No matter how much he hates what he is seeing, no matter how much he wants to puke he swallows it all and maintains his facade of loyalty to Liam.

‘I will live this time. I.Will. Live.’ Again and again he kept thinking of it even after the video of his brothers showing how his liver and kidney money was being wasted on bars, women, drugs and alcohol, that’s all he can think of.

‘I will live and kill them myself.’ He gritted his molars.

The games had changed him. He is now capable of killing even his blood relatives, that is sure of.

Time has changed. Blood is not everything.

“I will live.” He muttered as he laid his head back tiredly.

Aaron who heard it agreed. “Yeah, let's see the end of this shitty game.”

Somewhere inside the huge amusement park is someone who is panting hard. Elijah got cornered by a big mountain slide in front of him and mutants chasing him at the back. Before trying to turn to another corner, he sees shadows of incoming mutants in that direction.

“Haa. Crap. Really.”

Dripping wet on his sweat, he continued to run forward and as soon as he was a few meters away from the railings, he ran faster and faster before launching himself up and jumped to the railings. He leaped again and prayed he would land in the fake mountain with something to grab on or step on.

*CLing cling

The railings he stepped on were slightly shaking then got destroyed as ghouls did the same thing as he did, extending their long arms to reach the mid air Elijah.

*Thud

Elijah was able to grab onto something but his chin grazed on the fake mountain. He struggled for a bit to land a footing but when he did. It was easier for him to climb up. Looking down, he was puzzled.

“I jumped that far? AHHHH!” He quickly moved his feet away from the jumping ghoul with an open mouth with razor teeth.

“I will never play the hero again.” He complained as he moved up in a professional manner. Climbing, crawling, running, leap, jump, anything on that range, he had done it before but he wondered, he had been running away for two hours now but his fatigue is not that severe. He felt his body is lightweight despite climbing up.

Having no time to think, he quickly reached the top and he was greeted by a half harpy.

“Wahh!” He dropped his head low as it tried to bite it off.

He then pulled his body to the side as the harpy tried diving to him.

“Seriously! I’m scared!” He continued to complain then picked himself up to the peak of the mountain slide.

“...!”

Standing on top, he can see that ghouls are climbing up and harpies are circling in.

“Ah, s**t. I still want to live.”

His plans are screwed by his reality.

The harpies dive in his spot, thanking that they are blind and with nimble steps of Elijah, he was able to jump down on the other side that had some landing space.

He continued to jump down and grabbed. He is looking at the top of the slide. Basing on the tarpaulin hanging on the other fake mountain. It was originally a slide with water and waterfalls.

The ride is built circular and has a way down like a waterfall.

Landing in between the two mountains. The messed up ride and inside were shown and

*Click

Elijah raised his hands instinctively as a gun was pointed at the back his head.