GAMBLE: Rule of Cards

LUCKY SEVEN

“I wasn’t actually helping her because she was a woman, I was helping her because she was a good friend to me,” Denton alibied. The girl just flashed a smile with doubt. Denton just smiled to reduce the awkwardness between the two of them. “Just so you know, I would honestly help you in case you are in a dangerous situation, because I consider you a friend.”

The girl just had a smirk left her mouth. “And, for sure, because I am a woman.”

“Think whatever you want to think, Jannah. I still would want to ask you to become my teammate, though. I hope you are, at least, considering my proposal,” Denton remarked. “Anyway, about that main match where we were before we were here, I was actually hoping you to come to my kind, which you did. I am thankful you considered coming to my kind. You did such a good job.”

“Stop praising me using your sweet, sugar-coated words. We all know that only the kings are the one who did the job in that game, the rest are just pieces. If you compare us to a chess piece, we are just the pawns, while you two are the black and white queens. Why queens? Because kings are just weak pieces of s**t, who want their queen or their pieces to protect them,” Jannah remarked. Denton just smiled with all the rude remarks she left out her mouth about males and kinds. “Anyway, I must consider congratulating you since you did a good job. I just want to know how did you know that it was the meat that was carrying the poison?”

Denton shrugged his shoulders. “I studied chemical engineering but was not able to finish it. We studied a lot of things about poison, too. I noticed that there is a similarity between the characteristics of the zombies and how usually people who took poison move. The only difference is that, the poison was made for slow effect, meaning it is effective but is slow, and is even more deadly.”

Jannah nodded. “So, right now, I still have poison inside me? Amazing.”

“Did you burp or fart while we are still on the battlefield?” Denton asked. Jannah looked at him like he was a pervert asking a girl a very TMI-like question. “Don’t look at me that weirdly, I was not meaning what you are thinking now. I asked you because that is an effect of the antidote, which was the poison. You, by any chance, burped the poison which was now a gas. If you did, then you are clean from the poison.”

Jannah diverted her gaze somewhere but Denton. “I did.”

“Then, you are free from the poison already. Don’t worry, as long as you drink the antidote, the poison will never effect.” Denton smiled for assurance. “You should rest already. We still have another match tomorrow. You should rest, because who knows, it might be a physical game.”

There was a sudden silence before Jannah started to talk again. “I am in.”

Denton looked at her with raised eyebrows. He looks confused. “You are in, what?”

“I said I am in,” Jannah’s remorse. “About your proposal for me to be one of your teammates, I am in. I came to consider that when you started leading the whole human kind, and your clever and weird ways just to save your whole members. I see the determination on you. I have decided to enter your team. Just do not be weird sometimes.”

“Oh,” Denton’s short remark. “Is that true? You want to join my team already?” Jannah never replied but he looked at Denton with assurance. “Thank you for trusting us. We will do our job to make you escape this hell. We will do our best to help each other in times we need the help the most. I really wanted to tell Paul that I successfully recruited you but, in this case, I really can’t. You should sleep already. We will talk furthermore tomorrow.”

They stopped talking as the light went off, signaling the start of their supposed-to-be sleeping time. Hours later, as the light started lighting, all of them started waking up and forming groups by themselves. It was six ante-meridian already when they woke up but they didn’t know since they did not have the clock and they can’t even see the sun. Now, it is twelve-thirty noon, just minutes after they finished eating. “What sorcery did Denton do to you to make you consider joining our group?”

Denton nudged Paul on the side. “She considered joining my group since she noticed how good was I in leading the human kind. You should know that, since you are one of my first members,” Denton replied. Who are they talking to and about? It was Jannah, sitting down with Paul and Denton, looking so done with both the older guys in front of her. “Don’t mind him. He looks so friendly, so just adjust to him. He is one of my first friends – no, I mean, he is my first friend here. You should know each other better.”

Jannah raised her brows. “Why should we know better about each other?”

“I mean, we are a team here. We must know each other better. There are times that knowing each other will help us boost our cooperation. At least, we know what each other’s strengths and weaknesses are. Do not worry, we will keep it as a secret and will stay inside our circle,” Denton muttered. “Care to tell us what are your strengths, weaknesses, fears, hobbies, likes, dislikes, etc.?”

“That is too much to ask from someone you just recruited,” Jannah complained. She, for sure, is a hard-headed girl. If only did not Denton pursued her in joining her team, she will not join the group. “I really don’t know myself. The only thing I know is that I am a college student. As someone who is a lot younger than anyone here, you must have asked why am I here? The only answer is that I am an orphan, and I work to pursue my studies and needs. You don’t need to know about all that you told me, just observe me, because as I said, I don’t know myself. I need you to discover what these things are for me.”

Denton nodded. “As you said,” his only response. Only Jannah can make Denton lose his words.

“Hi, Denton and Paul,” a woman’s greetings from the back. Denton looked back and struck a smile upon seeing the other woman who he actually tried to recruit. It was Sandra. “And, hello to this girl. Who is she, Denton?”

Denton looked at Jannah. “It’s Jannah, the newest recruit in the group.”

“Well, no more,” Sandra replied. “I am the newest recruit now. I am accepting your proposal, Denton.”

“Really?” Denton asked her, which was responded to by Sandra with a nod. “That’s a good thing. In just a day, we successfully recruited two ladies on our team. Should we still recruit more or nah? I actually think this number is already okay. The more the members, the more people we think while trying to make ourself escape too. It is just too chaotic.”

“I actually think this is already good, in some aspects. But if we are going to stand against Hector and his team, we can’t. We are too weak to fight against them,” Paul muttered as he looked sideways and heaved a deep sigh. “Speaking of the fat, big devil. He is here, Denton.”

A big hand suddenly landed on Denton’s shoulder. “Hi, friends and camaraderie. Most especially to my best friend, Denton, greetings to you.” Paul and the other two ladies see how awkward it is for Denton, being teased by his own archenemy. “Just chill, brother. I just want to talk with you. I wanted to make some proposal to you.”

Denton raised his brows, confused of what the guy is saying. “What proposal are you saying?”

“I noticed how good you are on the game, and that is a big complement from me. Sometimes, luck is really trying its best to help you. You are lucky enough and maybe good enough to be one of my pawns,” Hector muttered. “Now, my proposal is for you to enter my team, be my pawn and serve me right. Good thing you can get through this is you have an instant backup whenever someone does something bad to you. You will accept it, right?”

Denton furiously removed the hand from his shoulder. “No, I don’t want to be your pawn. I don’t want to serve you and most especially, I don’t want to seek for help from you.” Denton’s remarks made Hector crazily mad. “Why would I let someone boss me when I can just lead a group whom I can trust. You think you can live with just letting your pawns serve you? Well, you’re wrong. Whenever all of them are dead and it’s you who is only one alive, you are weak.”

Hector flashed a smile and went near Denton. The whole Denton’s group was in shock and was unmoved after seeing how feisty the two could get. “You really are a different kind of breed, Denton. Just don’t be surprised whenever something bad happens to you inside this hell. In my entire life, no one has rejected me this way, and no one will do after you know how hard you will get after rejecting my proposal.”

The guy went away after flashing a death gaze on Denton and his group. “That guy, really,” Paul said. “His anger to you is really unreasonable, just because you defeated him many times in that little game? He is really vicious.”

The monitor flashed the speaker and as he was flashed on the screen, he started on making the announcement all over the arena. “The fifth main match will now commence. Players will now make their way towards the battlefield. They were lead and guided by the guards toward the battlefield. What greeted them is the silent and spacious battlefield, filled with no equipment. “Welcome to the fifth main match, players. The fifth main match is called ‘Lucky Seven’.”