Game Of Survival

Chapter 24

JAMES

"James…" The overly familiar voice called.

"James!" His voice rose and my eyes awoke instantly. But I wasn't at the shore, rather I was back at the cave. The same place Jason had taken us to. I sat up immediately and I looked around realizing no one was around except Jason. He was standing above me with a devilish look in his eyes.

"Look at you." He said and I frowned. "You murderer." He growled and I gasped. My eyes started twitching uncontrollably.

"Didn't you promise not to kill anyone? Didn't you vow not to entertain these people? Didn't you say you were not going to be their plaything?" He bellowed while he took gradual steps towards me. He pulled out a knife, the same knife he had used that night. I wriggled my head and I took steps backwards in fear until the wall stopped me. He started laughing devilishly and that tone alone grounded fear in my heart.

"No…no!" I tried to yell but my voice came out broken.

"Remember this?" He referenced the knife in his hand. "This same knife was what you used to end me in cold blood." He growled as he further closed the gap between us. But that wasn't how I remembered it.

"No…" I wriggled my head again. "I didn't mean to do it, I didn't do it on purpose! I did it to protect my brother!"

"Shut up you liar!" He yelled and I trembled.

"You murderer, don't you remember the passion you felt? The lust glowering in your eyes as you struck me. Not once, not twice, but multiple times till you were satisfied." He said and I wriggled again, tears gradually hinting in my eyes. "Don't you remember this?…" He pointed to his blood coated shirt.

"I-i didn't mean to." I stammered in a whispery voice.

"You and I know that's a lie, you very much know the truth." He suddenly pressed his left arm against my neck. I struggled against his hold but his strength was just as terrifying as that night. I was losing my breaths by the second, it felt like the veins in my head were going to explode anytime soon.

"S-stop it…"I grunted but he chuckled. His head popped closer to mine. And his gaze was strangely imposing.

"You're a murderer James, you're no saint. You are no different from the other contestants. You can tell yourself you did it in defence but we both know that's a lie. Even if you escape from this place, it won't change the fact that blood has stained your hands." He stated and I tried to deny it.

"Let me show you what I experienced in your gruesome hands." He placed the tip of his knife against my cheek and then he slowly slid it down across my neck to my shoulder and then he stopped at my stomach area. That look in his eyes, that grin, he was going to stab me.

"No! No!" I tried to kick against him, my fading strength came back stronger more than ever but he laughed a crazy laugh.

"Let me show you what it felt like…" He raised his knife and then he struck!

"No!!!" I screamed my lungs out and I jolted awake from my nightmare. My body was covered in sweats and my breaths came out heavy and unsteady. Even though it was only a dream, it felt so real. I thought I was going to die back then. I gripped my chest, hitting it gently hoping it would stop the pain. It was futile, it was as if my racing heart was the source of the pain. And so, I remained in that position, trying to get myself back.

Several minutes had passed and I had finally come back to my senses. Only then was I fully aware of my surroundings. I was in a room! A small rectangular one. I looked around and all I could see was a bed at the left side of the wall, a small LCD screen fixed at the top right corner of the wall, three cameras fixed at the other corners of the room, bright lights illuminating from the center of the ceilings and a metallic door before me. I arose abruptly, how did I get here? And where was my brother and the rest?!

I looked around the room in confusion rubbing through my hair frantically. No doubt these people had pulled a fast one on us again. The last thing I remembered was arriving at the shore with the others, we were looking in awe when the usual alarm blared and after that, everything suddenly went black. Which meant one thing, they made us unconscious just like how they did it when we arrived here.

I began to wonder why they did such a thing, was it because we arrived at the shore again? But that couldn't possibly be the reason. Then again, what about the others? I wasn't even sure if the other contestants were currently in a place like this. I wasn't even certain if my brother and my friends were safe. I heaved a sigh in fear and I stared at the screen that refused to lit up. Regardless of whatever questions that kept springing up, staying Idle wasn't going to be the answer. I needed to think of a way out before things got more dangerous. I walked about the room and no doubt, the floors were made of metal, I ran my fingers across the wall and it's material wasn't any different either. I tried to reach the screen but it was way above me. I thought of using the bed but it seemed rooted to the ground. And so, I focused on the door. It had no handle except a white Omega symbol imprinted on it's center. The wall on the left side of the door had two buttons and something like a fingerprint scanner. One was red and the other green. The red one was the only one glowing and It probably indicated the door was locked, I tried the scanner but it was hopeless. It didn't take me long to realize that there was no way out of this place. The door could only be opened from outside.

"Darn it!" I kicked the door with my right and I was the one who felt the backlash. I held my foot trying not to wince as much. I looked at the cameras again, they were definitely watching me and probably laughing at the foolish antics I just pulled. Whatever reason I was trapped in here for was definitely up to no good but my fears were the others. I could only hope they were safe.

"Hello!! Is anybody there?!" I yelled the loudest my vocal cords could offer but it felt like my voice reflected back at me.

I exhaled deeply and I sauntered to the bed. I slept with my face facing the ceilings. As comforting as it was, my eyes couldn't resign to sleep. Sure my body needed to rest a bit but how could I rest in a situation like this. I was completely cut out from the rest and I have no means or whatsoever to reach the others. Right now, I could only wait for the damned screen to turn up and Mr. E give another of his dangerous rules.

The screen suddenly came up with it's accustomed Omega sign. Just as I expected, Mr. E was going to give his speech.

"Congratulations to you all on passing the second stage. Our viewers thoroughly enjoyed the show and I'm sure you guys did too." He mentioned in his deep baritone. I hissed, feeling the urge to smash that screen but that would only put me at a disadvantage.

"Here are our top three contestants of the second stage." He said and the screen immediately displayed the image of Miguel, Mira and lastly, Dawn. Another new lady.

"As promised, the three of them will be our special guest for the third stage and they are automatically promoted to the fourth stage. With the conclusion of the second stage, we now have a total of sixty five contestants left. Congratulations once again for making it to this level." He paused.

"Before we begin the third stage, I want to formally welcome you all to the third Arena. And I hope you all find your rooms very comforting." He paused again and I hissed. Like anyone would be happy to be trapped in this place.

"In this stage, we're going to have a wrestling contest. The contestant wins by killing his or her opponent. Every day, a match will be held and all the other contestants get to watch the exciting match from the comfort of their rooms. The goal of this Arena is for only thirty contestants to survive. Hence, if any of you wishes to progress to the fourth stage, if you think you've got what it takes to win the grand prize of hundred million dollars, then you have to win all the way.

Without further Ado, let the third stage begin!" He muttered in a grand mannerism and my heart began to thump like crazy. I dearly hoped I wasn't going to be the one or any of my friends called out for the first round.

"Today's match is between, Contestant nine and Contestant two hundred and seventy." He mentioned while the screen displayed their details. Showing how many people they've killed so far, their weight and some other details I found irrelevant. I could hear a crowd cheering from the screen, perhaps it was just automated voices or the voices of excitement of our viewers. Either way, I didn't care. What bothered me was this new stage, a one on one battle. If anything this was my core weakness. Daniel was at least better than me. As for Dave, with his injury I doubt he could make it and Eve, I could only hope she wasn't matched with a deadly opponent.

My thoughts tousled when the screen showed the battle stage. Both contestants had already reached the stage. It was between two sturdy men. One had a fearful expression and the other seemed to be confident in victory. Either way, I wasn't going to watch this nonsense. I should be using the little time I had left finding a way out.

Now that I confirmed we were all in the third Arena and in similar rooms like this, I was rest assured the others were safe but it also gave me another advantage. My hypothesis was confirmed. When this show started, they wanted to eliminate as many numbers as possible and by the end of the first stage, only half of the contestants remained. The second stage still had the same goal but on a more tactical basis. They wanted to cautiously reduce the numbers, not so large and not so small. But this third stage was different, it's goal was to satisfy and entertain the viewers. The first two stages were just to wipe out the unnecessary numbers but this third stage and the forthcoming ones were the real show. It would give viewers the chance to know the contestants more, to bet on their favorite contestant that they think will win the grand prize. Hence, the next stages to come would be deadlier but the death rates will be greatly reduced. It would now be a strong battle for survival of the fittest.

It also confirmed another theory of mine. I glanced at the cameras. We, the contestants, weren't the only ones on this Island. Some of the organizers of this show were definitely with us. If not, how else would we have landed in these rooms in the first place. No doubt, this third Arena was large and much more complex than the last two. My anxiety began growing, at the same time, a sinister smile crept to my lips as the realization dawned. I found a weakness and a plan wasn't farfetched.

**

MR E.

"Welcome back, Mr. E." Grace said as I entered the control room. I shot her a brief smile before threading to the large screen info front of us.

"How's the show progressing?" I asked while I focused on the screen showing several footage of the contestants in their room.

"Everything is going well as planned." She answered and I nodded. My eyes darted to contestant Three hundred, James Hendrix. There he was, seated on his bed, staring straight into one of the cameras. I wondered what this man was thinking. Whatever it was, it was certainly going to be interesting.

"Such a shame I didn't get to see my favorite contestant break." I heaved a light sigh and I felt Grace's gaze on me.

"Was it worth it Sir? Saving him and his friends from Gabriel." She asked and I looked at her.

"Of course, if he had died back then it would have been a shame. He was lucky in the second stage but this time, I'm going to slowly break him." I grinned devilishly while she returned to the screen.

"And how do you plan on doing that Mr. E?" She asked.

"His brother, Daniel Hendrix."