Survivor Planet Series 2-Book Box Set (6 page)

The look on the alien's face really freaked me out. He suddenly reached out and grabbed the woman by her throat with one hand. He then proceeded to pick her up off the ground until she was eye level with him. Horrible choking noises came from her mouth. Her eyes bulged in terror. When I would have leaped forward to help her, Ayres threw a restraining arm in front of me.

“Do not interfere,” he snapped, his voice devoid of emotion.

“But...”

He glared down at me and stood firm.

In helpless anger I watched as the poor woman became blue in the face. Her body twitched a few times and then went slack. The alien dropped her to the ground where she lay at his feet like a piece of baggage. He pushed at her still form with his boot and when she failed to stir he actually shrugged his shoulders. Then he looked around at the other contestants. “There is always next year,” he said. He tapped on a black button in the center of a silver band wrapped around his wrist. “I withdraw,” he said. “Return me.” A moment later he and the woman dissolved into a cluster of throbbing lights—beamed away—back to the ship I presume.

Mouth hanging open, I stared at the spot where they had been, before my eyes snapped back to Ayres. “I thought we were stuck here if we didn't win.” I don't know why that was my first reaction to the scene I'd just witnessed.

“The game has not officially begun. There is time to forfeit.”

Looking at the same band Ayres sported on his wrist, I said, “Maybe we should as well.” None of us women got to have a band.

“No,” Ayres determined. “We will win or we will die.”

Those were some choices. Looking around at the shocked and defeated faces of the other women—except poor delusional Lissa—I had the feeling I had no other choice but to go on. Or else...

So now the moment was upon us. We were set to begin. A loud horn sounded—coming from God knows where—making the aliens leap to attention and begin to guide their females to the appointed starting position. There was an actual line drawn in the sand. My gaze swept the vast landscape as I took my first serious look at Planet Taleon. If I weren't scared shitless I would describe the scene before me as beautiful. Definitely alien, but beautiful all the same. Three giant moons crested the deep blue sky, while fluffy white clouds floated gently about. Miles of reddish sand stretched out before us. Throughout the desert, colossal, haphazard piles of stones jutted upward. Beyond the sand was a mammoth jungle resembling pictures I'd seen of tropical rainforests. Enormous green velvet mountains soared as far as the eye could see. The air was fresh and sweet smelling, untainted by pollution, making my lungs expand greedily with each breath I took. I felt Ayres' eyes upon me. Looking up at his grim face I sensed that despite the calm scenery surrounding us, we would face a world of threats.

“Stay by my side,” he told me. As if I had a choice. I was no fool. The other females remained close to their partners, eyeing the other aliens with wary, watchful eyes. The couples around us were soon to become our combatants, and I too looked upon them with a calculated, assessing gaze. Who would be the first to fall, I wondered? Who would be victorious and who would be left here to rot?

From the corner of my eye I caught a flash of movement to my left. Fearfully I watched as a four-legged spider-like robot crept toward the line, its pointy legs stabbing at the sand with each step it took. Atop the metal frame sat an upright screen about two feet wide by two feet high. The robot came to rest at the center of our group, and suddenly the screen switched on and a man became visible—Baynar. His voice crackled for a moment and then became clear.

“Challengers,” he addressed us. “Your odds have increased as Daleon has forfeited. I trust the four remaining teams will prevail and do Calixtus proud. Show us your strength and skills as noble warriors as you strive to reach the end. As you know, there can be only one victorious pair. The winner will be granted his boon. The losers will remain on Taleon to live out the rest of their days. Beware warriors. Those former players left to the mercy of this planet are now your enemies.” The screen zoomed back to give a full view of the room Baynar was in. Behind him were the other members of the council I'd seen on the deck of the ship. Baynar raised his hand. “Remember. We will be with you every step of your journey.” Whether that was meant as an implied threat or friendly encouragement, I had no idea. I knew all eyes of Calixtus would be watching the event unfold.

“Each of you have already selected your preferred weapon,” Baynar continued. “Be careful with it. You will not be given another.” With a nod of his head, weapons suddenly materialized in front of us in a neat line. The warriors stepped forward and picked them up. Ayres held a deadly looking long metal staff resembling a double-sided scythe that glimmered as the sun struck it. The other three warriors had chosen metal medieval-like weapons; each of them would be lethal in the right hands.

I noticed the females hadn't been given any weapons. When I remarked on this, Ayres smiled tolerantly as though I were a dolt. “You would have difficulty lifting any of the weapons here, and you would not know how to wield them.”

“Give me a .45 automatic, buddy, and ask me where your balls are.” Not an idle threat, I rationalized. Uncle Mick had been a marksman and had taught me how to shoot.

Ayres wasn't impressed.

The speaker crackled and all eyes snapped to the screen. “Once again, good luck to you all. And may Tanit watch over you.” The screen went blank and the spider-robot crept away.

“Who's Tanit?” I asked, figuring it was perhaps a god or goddess of Calixtus.

He gave me another ‘you're a dolt' look, and didn't bother to respond to my question. All his attention now seemed focused intently on the tournament. He appeared drawn as tight as a bowstring, his hands holding the metal scythe in a death grip. My sweeping glance took in the other contestants. The alien-warriors all stood alert and eager.

“Get ready,” Ayres said. His weapon fit nicely onto his back in a harness-like contraption he strapped on, leaving his hands free. He reached out and laced his fingers through mine, then bent down and shifted his stance as though about to start a race.

“Oh, shit.”

The loud horn sounded once more and everyone took off. Ayres moved so fast he practically dragged me behind him. Instead of slowing down he swept me up over his shoulder in one fluid motion. My head jostled against his back beside his weapon, which he wore diagonally across his other shoulder. At least I had no worries of the sharp blades cutting into me. Lifting my head I saw that along with Ayres and I, one other couple had also darted off and continued to barrel toward the sanctuary of the jungle. The other two couples had stopped soon after take-off. Now they appeared to be battling. From my precarious position I saw flashing white and red lights that looked to be coming from the aliens' weapons. I could hear screaming too, growing fainter and fainter with every stride Ayres took. I was glad to see Oro and Lissa were the other couple that had run off like we had. A glimpse of bouncing black curls over Oro's back confirmed it. I guess Lissa's alien thought she ran too slow as well.

Ayres didn't slow down until we reached the jungle. Even then he dodged, leaped, and ducked the many obstacles he encountered while still maintaining a swift jog. Finally he slowed enough to swing me to my feet. He kept hold of my hand and tugged me along, keeping to his pace. I knew this was mainly a race to the finish line. Ayres had said we'd be here for a week and I hoped he didn't plan on running the entire time.

A few minutes later he finally slowed right down and then stopped. I noticed he'd barely broken a sweat and his breath was steady. I was puffing like a locomotive and had to lean against a tree for support. Ayres began grabbing at vines and fastening the ends together.

“What're you doing?”

“Slowing down the others,” he answered. “We must all keep to the same route. Not the same trails exactly, but the way is laid out. They will be close.” He cocked his head and listened. “We must hurry.”

He'd fashioned the vines into a crude rope across the trail we were on. The ends still hung high from the treetops. It was clear anyone coming this way would see the barrier and simply go under or over it. Ayres pulled the scythe off his back and aimed it up high at one end of the vine. I jumped when a dart of green light flashed out of the end of it and hit a heavy limb dead center leaving a black scorch mark. I'd seen marks like that before—on the cottage door. The limb cracked and fell slightly but remained where it was.

“Come,” he said. I realized that if anyone touched the vine even slightly, the branch would swing down in a deadly arc and land right in the pathway—and into anyone unfortunate enough to be standing there. I suppose I should have been impressed, but I shivered and felt slightly sick instead. The reality of the game had set in. Here we were going to have to do things—uncomfortable things—and make life and death decisions. It was clear Ayres played to win, and if anyone got in his way he would fight and possibly kill. I didn't relish the idea. The cruel Ayres of my Episodes was but a pale shade in comparison to the machine that marched me through the jungle. I shivered again and hurried to catch up. Machine or not, he was the only thing standing between me and death.

We marched for hours it seemed, pausing only when Ayres deemed it safe to rest for a moment or two. We'd been given no provisions, but along our journey I could see the trail was ripe with an abundance of fresh fruits—weird looking, but tasty—and several small running streams to provide drinking water. Ayres seemed knowledgeable about what was good to eat and drink and what was not. When I snagged a purple plum-like piece of fruit off a tangle of short wiry bushes he smacked it from my hand before I could pop it in my mouth.

“You will writhe like a snake, foam at the mouth, and die within five Earth minutes if you eat that,” he informed me.

“Well, thanks,” I said sarcastically.

The jungle went on forever. I'd never actually been in a real jungle before, but this one was similar in many ways from pictures and movies I'd seen to what I'd expect to find on Earth. Except for those giant ever-present moons in the sky I almost felt I
was
on Earth. Where were all the dangers we'd been warned about? There'd been no sign of dangerous wildlife or Varlings anywhere. In fact, everything was unnaturally silent. There were some strange looking birds squawking and chirping, but those were the only living things I'd laid eyes upon up to this point.

Ayres stopped suddenly, and since I was looking up, I ran right into his back. He didn't seem to notice. His head was cocked at an angle again so I figured he was listening to something. Whatever it was I had no idea—I couldn't hear anything unusual.

He reached back suddenly and pulled me off the trail several yards and then stopped to lean against the trunk of a thick tree. Strong arms wrapped around me and held me so that my back rested against a mass of chest muscles. I became acutely aware of the heat of the body I was pressed against. I stayed still and silent, part of me enjoying the contact.

A rustling sound came from the trail, followed by heavy footsteps and a great sigh. “How much further?” asked a female with a whiny voice.

“Silence,” her companion warned her. It was several minutes later before the footsteps faded away and Ayres deemed it safe to return to the trail. I guess they'd managed to avoid Ayres' swinging limb of death.

To keep the tedium at bay, I began to badger Ayres with questions. He indulged my curiosity with cryptic answers as long as I spoke to him in whispers. Conversing like this I had to keep close beside him.

“Do you know what happened to those guys at the cottage?” He'd supplied all the answers to various questions about Taleon and the tournament. This question, however, was a tough one. Part of me wanted to know while another part of me didn't. When Ayres didn't answer right away I elaborated. “You know, the ones in white coats I was with? There was this beam of light coming out of the bedroom and Danny got sucked right in. I dunno where Jack...”

“They're on the ship.”

“Come again?”

“They are on the ship,” he said with slow pronunciation.

Relief flooded me. “So, they're alive?”

He smirked. “We do not make a habit of transporting the dead.”

“What are you going to do with them?”

“If you had refused to participate in the tournament I would have used them to coerce your assent.”

Since I'd thought this entire affair was a coma-induced nightmare, it hadn't been necessary. No. I'd strolled down this path to hell all on my own.

“What will you do with them now?” I asked.

“Depends,” Ayres replied.

He was exasperating. “Depends on what?”

“If we lose and must remain here, their fate will not be ours to decide.”

“And if we win?”

He pondered for a moment. “Then I shall grant you a boon. If you wish them returned to Earth then I shall have it arranged.”

“How generous.” Considering he'd taken them in the first place I didn't bother to hide my sarcasm. “Just how long have you been planning for me to be in this tournament?” Since we were laying our cards on the table I wanted to know if he and his kind were responsible for things that had happened to me and my family. Could it be possible he'd had his eye on me ever since I was a child? My parents had died under mysterious circumstances, making my aunt and uncle my guardians before I'd even turned three. Then they had been killed. I remembered that Event. Weird things had occurred, such as tremors and bright lights.

Ayres stopped suddenly and faced me. “There are things you do not know. Those people you called family—they're not what they seemed to be.”