Game Of Survival

Chapter 28

DANIEL

"Arghh!!" I yelled in agony as his axe grazed my left leg. My breaths came out like a storm and I collapsed to the ground while blood poured out of my injury. My leg stung like brimstone fire, my throat was burning from thirst. Sweat poured out of my body like fine wine. My opponent was a monster. The look in his eyes had shown it all. He had already made his resolve to kill me. I barely had any strength left and my katana was much heavier than I anticipated. Apart from the injury he inflicted on my leg, I had several bruises across my arm and back. If I didn't attack back I was either going to faint from exhaustion or finally die by his hands.

I inhaled deeply while I used my sword to stand back. My legs were shaking and a smile painted his face. I held the sword in a vertical manner, posing in between my view. Even though the sword was shaking and the muscles in my arms were going numb, I had to make my resolve too. For the sake of my brother and my sister, I had to kill this man. Hence, I was going to fight back with the strength I had left. I wasn't going to hold back anymore.

He came at me, he swung his axe high, ready to land a death blow on my head. But he was slow and I dodged. He too was already getting tired. He carried it again and swung it in the same mannerism and I dodged it again. I couldn't keep on dodging at this rate, It cost me the injuries I had in the first place. But I also couldn't attack with my sword. Blocking his axe with my sword was only going to be pure foolishness. It would simply break into two from the force.

He carried and he swung, I dodged once again. He kept on with the same tactic and I stuck to mine too. And then came my lucky moment, he was about to swing his axe again but it slipped from his hands.

That was my chance! My eyes widened, my grip tightened on the sword. He glanced at me and then to his axe. He tried to pick it up but I roared even though my throat burned. I raised my sword high and I made a deep cut across his right arm. He groaned, instinctively retreating as blood gently toured out. I roared again and this time, my sword deeply slashed his chest. He fell to the ground and I stood above him, glaring at him with so much anger and pain.

"Wait! Please--" He begged as I raised my sword high. His eyes that once glowered now melted into that of fear, begging for mercy. But I already promised myself I wasn't going to hold back. I inhaled deeply and I struck my sword deep into his chest.

"Ple--" he gasped while blood spluttered across my face. His hands dropped and his chest stopped moving. His eyes gradually rolled to the back of his head and in them, I could see it fading into lifelessness. The next second came and he was already dead.

The crowd cheered but I cried. I couldn't let go of the sword, I couldn't look at the dead man. My tongue tasted blood that had trickled on my lips and it felt like my heart was ripped to shreds. My insides were burning like wildfire like I was going to melt inside out. So this was what he felt. These ugly feelings of regrets, pain, anger and horror coming at you all at once. This was what my brother felt like when he killed Jason. I wept more and I felt like stabbing myself so these feelings would go away. No matter what I tried to do, It wasn't going to change the fact that I was a murderer. I had finally stained my hands with blood, I was no different from the other contestants.

I was oblivious to my environment that I didn't even know when the guards came on the stage. Two of them dragged me away, handcuffing me back as they led me out of the stage. But amidst my sadness, I was happy for one thing. At least my brother would be relieved that I made it out alive.

**

MR E.

"So he won…" I commented with a tiny smile gracing my face.

"Didn't you want him to die Mr. E?" Grace asked as she stared at me. I squinted my eyes at the screen for a brief moment.

"It was a fifty-fifty percent chance for him. I knew he could either survive or die. Either way, my goal was achieved. Breaking James." I answered.

"Such a shame though. James is probably unconscious from the gas and doesn't know his brother made it out alive." She commented.

"He'll know when he wakes. But this is only the beginning for him. I'm going to slowly torture him till he loses his mind completely." I grinned at the screen.

"Excuse me Mr. E." A Lady chirped behind us. "We have a problem." She said with a slightly worried countenance.

I frowned while she arose from her desk with an iPad in hand as she approached me.

"Contestant three hundred, James Hendrix has escaped." She muttered.

"What?!" Grace and I exclaimed together.

"How did this happen?!" I queried.

"He knocked out the engineer and guard in his room and right now he's disguised as one of the guards and we don't know where he is." She answered.

*What do you mean you don't know where he is?!" I growled and her eyes twitched.

"According to the cameras, his last sighting was at hallway 1E." She smiled on her iPad and the large screen immediately displayed the footage.

"And so?!" I barked from the anger surging in me. "Can't they track him down already?!" I gestured and she flinched.

"That's the problem, Mr. E." She paused. "They can't seem to track him."

"What do you mean they can't track him? Every contestant has a tracker implanted at the back of their heads!" I replied.

"Exactly, but it seems his tracker has gone defective." She answered and I glanced between Grace and her. Grace too was just as confused as I was.

"That's not possible." Grace said and I couldn't help but agree.

"I can't seem to explain this incident too, Mr. E." The lady interjected and my palms curled into a fist. I knew James was an interesting target but I didn't think he would outsmart us this easily. This was the first time someone was ever letting loose under my reign. Rather than feel scared or anxious, I was actually excited. I wanted to see just how far James could go. No doubt he broke out to save his brother but little does he know, his brother is probably back in his room by now.

"What should we do Mr. E?" The lady asked.

I frowned. "Are you seriously asking me this question? Tell the supervisor in charge of the Arena to treat this issue with utmost urgency. Deploy all guard units, I want that man caught alive and back in his room before the day ends! If that fails to happen, then consider the consequences of your actions dire!" I yelled and she flinched again before nodding.

I returned to the screen, looking at the footage of his room that had lost connection.

"But how did he do it? Not once I've I seen him tamper with the tracker in his head." Grace mumbled.

"That man is quite the smart one. If we don't tame him now, it would be bad for us." I remarked.

"I doubt he's going to go that far. Within an hour, he should have been caught."

"Don't underestimate him Grace. He's the first person to ever break out of the Arena, you think he doesn't have a full fledged plan?"

She went mute and I kept my gaze on the screen.

"Let's see how far you will go, James Hendrix." I smiled at the screen. Even if the worst case scenario occurs, we still have the upper hand. I was thoroughly going to enjoy this show.

**

JAMES

"Oh my god." I mumbled in shock as I sauntered into the room.

What was this place I landed myself into? I stared in confusion as my eyes darted around aimlessly. The room was brightly lit and spacious, there weren't any cameras around but that wasn't what terrified me. There were several dead bodies arranged on wheelers. I recognized some of their faces. They were the losers from the wrestling match that has been going on recently. The horrid smell and the sight of it alone made me want to puke. I felt a new wave of fear and anger dawn in me. Tears started gracing my eyes but didn't wasn't the time to start letting my emotions rule me. I wiped the tears off, right now I should be focusing on escaping. And then save my brother before thinking of a way out of this damned place.

I looked around the room again, I definitely couldn't leave this room at this point. I was certain the moment I step out, I'll be caught almost instantly. But that didn't mean I could stay here for that long too. They were going to check this room in a few minutes or so.

I kept looking till my eyes found the air vent at the end of the room. Bingo! I ran towards it like a squirrel, but it was high up. First I was going to break it and enter the vent but my height was currently not in tune with that plan. I looked around again, and then my eyes fell on one of the wheelers.

I gulped down my saliva at the ugly thought that dawned in me. But I had to do it regardless. And so, I dragged one of the wheelers towards the wall and I climbed it all. I didn't dare look at the dead body that was standing in between me. I had the sudden fear that he could just awake like a zombie and grab me. I wriggled my head so those thoughts tousled. I smashed the vent open and I struggled to climb into it. I wished I could cover the vents back but there was no space for me to even turn. I could only press forward even if it meant leaving my tracks. I could still hear the emergency alarm and the alarming footsteps. Either way, I had to be extra careful. They were clearly still at advantage here. In the worst case scenario, I could have my head blown up.

I paused as the vent parted into two. I didn't even think twice, I took the left path and. I continued treading carefully. I didn't even know where this vent was leading me to or where I was currently at. But that wasn't what bothered me the most, I was worried for my brother. The fact that I didn't know whether he survived or not was nerving.

I inhaled deeply. Regardless, I needed to be as logical as possible and not let my emotions cloud my judgement. I kept crawling for about half an hour now. I was gradually losing my breath and I was also sweaty. At this point, I might collapse in this place. All I've been doing is taking either a left or right, there was no end to it.

I paused, taking another deep breath. For the sake of my brother, my sister, Eve and Dave, I shouldn't give up yet. This was my only opportunity. The moment it fails, only death awaits me. And as I took the next step, the floor of the vent opened and I fell to the ground.

"s**t!" I groaned as I thudded heavily to the cold floor. I quickly arose, looking up where I fell from. Apparently I was lost in my thoughts that I didn't know there was a vent hole below me. I looked around the room where I landed. It was medium sized and dimly lit, from the looks of it, this was an office.

The door knob suddenly moved and I turned sharply to the door as it slowly opened. Someone was coming in, I was going to get caught!

"s**t!"