Story Write Compilations Volume I Stories 10

 Cherish your life.

 

Author's Note:

This a contest based on a book series titled the Hunger Games. I did not read any but I could visualize what it meant to do. Each year, the cities involved send two representatives to fight for their city in-game called the Hunger Games. They are given one or two items use in the game. Sometimes they get rewarded by the audience with an extra item or items. As usual, the last surviving one will be the champion.

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He is coming.

 

He will be here soon.

 

I know his weapon well; it's a bow and arrow. My favorite in my hunts back at home, but here they gave me is a fishing wire. But at least it's a long one which I am going to use on him.

 

Yes, come on in said the spider. See my web and get stuck on it. Watch me drain your life watched by your audience. They will vote for me when I am done. Or I don’t care if they do as I am not here for their fun. I am here in my city. And for my city friend; dead by the hands of this fiend. Three arrows into her chest before he shot the final one to end her life. 

Well, I got you marked. 

 

We are the remaining five and with you down, I am into the semis.  It's been a crazy three days and nights when I was brought here and asked to do battle with twenty-two others.  Initially, there was just the running to hide and avoid; that was our strategy until the numbers dwindled to ten. We were lucky till then, with me and Karnish. She drew the stone and me a fishing wire; poor choice in a game of survival, but we did till then. She called the moves and I followed on ever her follower. There was one attempt in which I almost died if not for my friend’s help.  I was trapped in the net thrown at me. I was fast but not fast enough to avoid the net he set there. It's not we have zero-G in our city to practice on.  I stumbled and Trident was there with her spear coming down onto me. At zero-G, nothing weighs at all; you can float and you can twist without any need for your muscles. Just as you can dive in with a slight push which is what Trident is doing now. Her momentum is not slowing down and she is going impaled to me soon.

 

It was then, the floating table came to hit Trident from the right side; throwing the spear-wielding killer. If she had killed me, I would have to be her third kill on the tally. But the table knocked her off course and she is floating away. During that time, Karnish came out to assist me in pulling the net off me. It's easier to do so than untangling it in zero-G.

 

Wait, my prey is coming around. I need the diversion now. I push with my left leg on the floating piece and it went out with free spins on it.  Its trajectory is swinging out to the left on my push and it caught the arrow killer’s attention. He is going for it, pushing out with his legs to catch up. It was then I pull the wire taut across the space he is coming.

 

You don’t see many of these in life but the scene is the same. It's gory as the wire cut into his neck like a knife into the butter. It did not sever his neck but it killed him. I reached with my right leg and kicked his body away. The blood flowed out of his body pumped by the dying heart adds a splutter of red to the place.

 

That’s for Karnish.

 

So we are down to four. I can feel the audience’s reaction. These sick people are absorbed in the details; some with fright, some in joy, and few in relief. I am not their favorite and will never be.  It's my first kill after three days of action, and I did one of their best off the grid.

 

Blink!

 

Someone gave me a metal ball the size of a tennis ball with a notch for me to string the wire onto it. I got my first contribution after running for cover for three days. 

 

Three days of floating makes your body weak so we need to constantly move those muscles. And the food is bare as I get none since I came in. But I know how to steal when it's needed. Like now, I am hungry.  I floated down to catch hold of the archer man. He has some food on him and that what I will be taking.

 

So the odds are down to four; I have seen them all in my run. The swordsman, the slingshot, the boomerang girl. And this ugly Dome City on the surface of Moon. It has been abandoned for years and the gravity machine has stopped functioning since then. But nothing gets corroded on Moon or in space. Just like someone once said; no one hears you scream in space.

 

It's time to move and to hunt now. I looked up the holographic displays; there is my name at number four and only one fan. But one fan is enough to give me hope.

 

Wait! Swordsman went from the screen in number two. Someone dunk the swordsman off and there are three of us. I had to think now; wait and see or hunt and fight. But the choice was made for me. Maybe it's my instinct that I learned from hunting as I moved my head every slightly, as the iron pellet flew by me burning my left cheek with its velocity.

 

“Aargh....” I am hit and I am running now. I pushed myself down in a spiral dive downwards. It's a dangerous move as I don’t know what I will hit next.  And I am traveling too fast and steep. I inclined my body so I can leverage on my dive and I spot the passage below the structure. It will be my escape, and I moved my shoulder to propel myself there. I can sense the pellets passing just at where I was earlier, but now I am floating towards the passage.

 

I am in and I pushed myself forward. It's another reckless move as I am not sure what is ahead.  Then I saw the side passage and I somersault my body to kick with my legs at the side passage surface to stop my momentum. It worked and I floated in there to rest.

 

Slinger will be coming for sure and this time, I am doing the attack. I strung the wire onto the iron ball and await my chance. He came floating by with the slingshot ready but his reaction was slower than mine. I swung the iron ball out with the wire attached to it and hitting him right on his right eye, causing him to cry out in pain. It was then he released the pellet and sling. I propel out and grabbed the pellet. I flicked it at him with my thumb towards his opened mouth. The pellet hit in the back of his throat and went down it. He reached out with his hands to grabbed his throat as he struggled to breathe.

 

I am without sympathy now. I lashed out with my legs to knock him diving down. He did a free fall onto a sharp edge and he is out.

 

The display showed two names now. Mine and the boomerang girl.

 

Blink! I got another gift. It a short rod to which I can attach my steel wire. Maybe things are getting better now.  Or maybe she has got more as she is the favorite now.

 

She did and I almost lost my head for it. Her boomerang came at me from the right and I ducked just barely. She took part in my ponytail which took months to grow. That is more than a fight now; it's a personal battle now.  I stared at her and she threw her second boomerang at me.

 

Shucks! She has become Mistress Boomerang. I counted like four on her and they are all razor-sharp.

 

This calls for Plan R; run for my life.

 

It was about twenty minutes and three more dead close misses before I lost her. I need to think. I never played with boomerangs before.  I know it's supposed to swing back to its thrower.  Wait! Throwing needs space and more space to swing back. I need to trap her in an enclosed area. Somewhere tight and narrow.  I saw the place I need.

 

I peeked out and I saw her at the other end floating on the zero-G environment like a banshee on the loose. I picked up a floating piece and pushed it towards her. Then I swam the other way towards the area I intend to fight her. She got my message and her reply was a boomerang that hit the wall next to me. I pushed on and entered the area I wanted to hold her. It's a rectangle hollow structure of about fifty paces long.  She came in with a rush and did not realize her mistake until she in there.

 

I lashed out with my iron ball attached to the steel wire. It hit her hard on the right shoulder rendering her throwing arm useless.  She was focused on my iron ball that she did not see my rod that I also pushed out later. It jabbed into her left ribs causing her to cry out, but I was already coming at her with my live wire. I swung the wire onto her neck and I swam over her head to somersault behind her. I kicked out with my legs on her back and pulled the wire taut.

 

It was over, and I won.

 

Me, Cherish of the 11th City and winner of this game.  I got to thank mum and dad for the gifts. Maybe this time, they won’t stop me from going hunting with the boys.