If You Die in the Game, You Die In Real Life

Prologue

When one acts upon their selfish thoughts, their life shifts. The more you sympathize, the worse you become. Immunity is what is needed. Human beings need to know how to endure every emotional stronghold. This is what created the Arena. A place where 12 participants over 12 days would have to learn to kill. No matter what their past was, they had to complete an impossible task to kill one another in order for the final participant to win. Their prize was freedom. Not the fake freedom that the government provided to every citizen. The real freedom of leaving everything behind and having a taste of everything you’ve ever wanted. All you have to do is kill to win, but if you die in the game, you’ll die in real life. There’s no going back.

I.

Day one • 11 days remaining • the beginning of the end

Kai didn't see the gun until it was pressed against his forehead, its barrel held by a weak young man. His hands shook as he held the gun in its place. He was scared, they all were. Kai stood still, not willing to move in fear of what would happen if he did. He saw the weak man’s eyes flicker behind him for a moment and took that chance to say a few words. “Don’t do it,” Kai said softly. These were his last words as the gun clicked, and a single bullet shot through his head.

Twelve days, twelve people, and one victor. The task was to kill the others before they killed you. No exceptions or else the chip in your heart would trigger, and you would stop breathing forever. Adam had just killed a man, and he couldn’t even feel remorse for his actions. Even a single stray thought about peace could trigger the chip, so he just kept on going. He traversed through the woods, coming upon a deserted building. He could no longer feel the lingering of the cameras’ steely gaze around every corner. He had ignored it, knowing that the only true game was to play it and not screw up. Adam threw open the door, holding his loaded gun in position as he entered the empty living room. He knew something was wrong the moment he stepped inside. It was looted already. Everything in the room was thrown about. He took a hesitant step. Then another. And another. After the fifth step, he heard a noise of a mechanism clicking in place. He stood still, which was a mistake. The floor panel he had stepped on triggered arrows to shoot out from every crevice in the room. He tried to dodge, but the arrows were too fast and too plentiful. They pierced every inch of his body, causing his blood to trickle down to the floor. He winced, falling to the ground to lay in his own blood. The entourage of arrows stopped, and so did his breath.

II.

Day two • 10 days remaining • lost girl

June had set traps in every building she came across. She was an inventor, not a killer, but that wasn’t the game. The game was to kill, so she did it in the only way she could—by inventing. Her traps were intricate yet undetectable, dangerous for anyone unfortunate enough to encounter them. She didn’t want to deal with seeing the death of a person, but she knew it would happen if someone encountered one of her traps. She had blood on her hands, her record smeared though with devious black ink. She was no longer that carefree loving girl. She was a killer. An indirect killer, but still a killer. Yet she moved on.

June was also smart. She knew she had a better chance of staying sane during this horrible ordeal if she had a friend, yet she knew if she saw someone she would be pressured to kill. She had met Penny three hours earlier after she had set the traps during her quick exploration of the territory. Penny had been lying down in the grass with a katana in her hand, seeping deep into her thoughts when June found her. June’s first instinct was to talk to her, but based on her knowledge, forms of peace were against the rules. Then the idea of an alliance formed in her mind. What if she technically waited to kill… except she wouldn't kill her in the end?

“Penny-”

Penny opened her eyes. She saw a girl, unarmed, reaching her hand out to her. There was no threat, and she didn't come with anyone else. Penny should have felt safe, but she wasn't. Nothing about this situation was safe. She could die at any second. She was here against her will. She would never see her brother again, and would probably end up rotting at the bottom of a ditch for all eternity. Part of her wanted to grab her katana, which was so easily in reach, and thrust it through the girl’s heart, taking out all of her pent-up rage on her, but the other part of her wanted a sliver of peace. Peace- she had to be careful with that word, in her thoughts or otherwise. She wanted this to be over, but not like that. She was tired of people and things telling her what she could and couldn't do. She decided to take a risk in that moment, a risk that she would never forget.

June had made a friend that day, and she was surprised she didn't feel that telltale stinging tingle in her heart from the chip, instead she felt a different tingle. The feeling of finding unknown happiness within the grayest of times. Penny was a good person who went through a lot. June learned of her family that she was taken away from. June felt empathy towards her, and she did the same.

As the sun set, June and Penny found shelter for the night. The air, humid, still, and artificial was disrupted by the girls’ laughter as they settled down for the night. The danger felt far away, distant, as they prepared to rest. June wasn't thinking of death, or the fact that by the twelfth day, there would only be one of them left. June was fine at the moment, and that was all that mattered. She rested and never woke up the next day.

III.

Day three • 9 days remaining • 404 error

Winston came across a shed with two girls sleeping in it. He did as he was told and took out his gun, loaded it, and pressed it against the first girl’s forehead. He pulled the trigger, the gunshot echoing across the canyon. June didn’t even flinch—she was already deep asleep. He felt absolutely nothing except excitement when he got his first kill. He smirked, loading the gun again for the other girl. He would win this. This is when he felt movement in the dark room. He turned his head around every which way, looking for the source. A second later, he felt the cold blade of a katana pressed against his throat. Just by luck, his perfectly loaded gun was raised against his assailant’s shoulder.

“You just made a big mistake,” Penny sneered.

“No U”

Winston pulled the trigger, causing the second gunshot to go off that early morning…but it didn't hit Penny. She had dodged just in time and managed to keep her grip on the katana.

“FUUU-”

Winston lay dead on the ground at the hands of Penny, his blood slowly pooling around his body, as June’s still pulseless figure rested in the dark.

Penny had messed up. She had let her guard down and gotten someone she loved killed, and then she had gotten her revenge. The revenge didn’t feel as sweet as she would've liked. After all, June was still dead. Penny could see her shoe peeking out from where the shed’s shadow met the daylight, her lifeless form still lingering in the darkness. Winston’s blood covered Penny’s hands. Penny felt… mad. Mad at the world who put here here. Angry at the people who took them away from her. Mad at Winston. Mad at herself. This girl had dealt with enough loss to last many lifetimes. She had always been forced to endure, adapt, and keep going because that’s what a strong person would do. They would pick themselves up after every failure and move on. Penny couldn’t do that anymore. She can't just stand there and see people die, over and over and over again. Penny needed a break. She couldn’t pick up her feet and take another step. She couldn’t bear to look into June’s lifeless eyes. She couldn’t even save her. Whether she died from the chip or the gun, it was still Penny’s fault.

She broke down, falling to the weak wooden floor soaked with blood.

“I’m done playing this stupid game!” she screamed into the forest, tears streaming down her face.

Her knuckles dug into the splintering wood.

“YOU TOOK AWAY EVERYONE I LOVED,” she wept, as the silence of the woods encompassed her.

“All of you are stupid selfish bastards, I hope you know that! I-... I wish I’d-”

[404 ERROR]

Penny fell onto the ground, clutching her heart.

[Participant Terminated // Reason: Targeted hate against the Government-Stage3 sympathy towards another participant]

Three people were killed that day.

IV.

Day four • 8 days remaining • cascade

Ezra had been at this for four days and still hadn’t seen anyone else. People had surely died by now, and Ezra was pretty happy that he wasn’t there to see it. He had been in a wonderful boreal forest and had met all kinds of wonderful animals. Ezra had just woken up from his blanket of leaves and said hello to the local frogs in the pond. He skipped around the familiar trees singing his jolly little tune, until something caused him to stop. he had run right into a deer. This deer was an unsettling color of steel, but he still reached his hand out, smiling, to pet its back. The deer, terribly aggravated, turned around, pulling two large chainsaws out of its back with its collapsible metal tentacles and threateningly held them in front of the boy’s face.

“...”

“Uh… you okay buddy?” he hesitantly puts his hand back into his pockets and takes a step back. The deer's eyes flicker with code, dropping the chainsaws and laying down on its side, violently shaking around. [TBC]

VII.

Day seven • 5 days remaining • fool’s folly

Katie couldn’t run. Her left leg was sprained for 3 days now, and she had been hobbling around the terrain ever since then. She wanted help. She wanted the stinging pain in her leg to go away, but she had to keep moving. Katie wanted to avoid her inevitable death as long as she could. She would spend her last moments under a big tree, she decided. She would take a breath and be gone forever. There would be no more pain after her last sacrifice—if you could even call it that. She knew her death would be unjust. It wouldn’t be okay, because every one of them had been brought here against their will. They all tried to fight back when the officers took them, even the most innocent of them all. They bit and screamed and kicked to no avail. And then they were here.

Katie lived. She lived through all of it. All of the death and failure in the world. The voices of reason shut out. The politics getting to people’s heads. She had been there through it all. And now she was here at a shed with three bodies around it. The blood that pooled around them was undisturbed other than by the fragile sunlight that dried it, making it turn into a disturbing brown color. It smelled terrible. Katie stopped, staring at the bodies. It was scary to see the quiet remains of a previous disaster. That was probably how she would end up. Dead and alone in the chaos of bloodshed. She slowly turned around, wincing in pain.

Levi was running. He had run for 30 minutes, trying to lose the trail of his assailant, until he literally crashed into Katie. Her first exclamation was “OW! My leg!” and then she realized that a distressed, tired boy was standing beside her. He just stared at the girl, not knowing if she was out to get her, or if she was safe to be around. Everyone is out to get me, he decided. Levi started to walk away. She wasn't an immediate threat, but he needed to get away. If he wanted to play this game (which he didn’t) he would at least tolerate its stupid rules for as long as he could and keep himself safe for the time being. The girl cried out again, and he impulsively looked behind him. She reminded him of the real world. A world where we have devolved into pain and suffering after it all. Seeing Katie curled up on the forest floor crying did a number on him. It reminded him of how his grandfather and only guardian died when he was little. He was just trying to do good in his horrible world, and he ended up dead. Levi’s grandfather didn’t have a choice except to go with the officers that late night in July. Levi was only 12 years old, only just getting a grasp on the world’s basics when the slip of paper arrived at his doorstep the next morning, conveying that his grandfather was no longer living with him. Levi had kept this paper, believing, hoping, wishing, praying, that he was out there somewhere. He had to hope because no one was doing the hoping for him. Being alone all his life had taught him to never trust anybody. Not the kind lady who had lived down the street. Not the little boy who had innocently ridden his bike around the town center every morning, asking for spare change. Levi believed that unnatural death could strike anyone at any time. After all, why were government officers patrolling the streets if not to micromanage and supervise our little decisions? He once saw a young woman get pushed into an alley by an officer. Only the officer exited, alive and well, unlike the poor woman who was left on a pile of boxes with a knife stabbed through her heart. Levi wanted to stop feeling his feelings. He didn’t want to feel compassion towards those who were hurt. He didn’t want to help, because that is exactly what caused his grandfather to die. He wouldn’t go out the way he did. Not to the stupid selfish government. Yet he looked back at the injured girl for a second too long. His eyes lingered on her. He felt her pain. She was hurt and she needed help, and it would be selfish of him to idly pass by without doing something. Levi avoided every alarm going off in his head telling him not to do it. He ignored the light stinging in his heart that he had been afraid to think about as he walked towards her and bent down to her level. He knew he would regret this, but it felt right to help, even if the world would say otherwise.

Katie just wanted to go home. She wanted to sit on her big couch with a cup of cocoa and read. Instead, she was here. In this dreaded wasteland, wounded by the atrocities of this harsh world. Her leg hurt like all hell, it was probably broken. She couldn’t stand anymore, because that stupid boy made her trip and fall, making the tear in her leg increase. She was okay with dying at that moment. Who was she to protest? That is what they want right? They want the weak to die, the ones who don't have enough wit to shoot a bullet through someone’s head, or slit their throat open. They wanted brave people to prevail, but Katie was not brave. She was weak, tired, and so done with this stupid hateful world. She had had a job when she was back in her normal life. Although it was technically illegal, she loved it. It was the one thing that kept her going. Giving kids books, toys, and all the things that they can’t get anymore gave her a purpose. She had the chance to give, through every purge and disease that swept the land, she still passed out goods in that sewer, providing hope to families. Being taken away from that killed her on the inside. The very thing she tried to protect the kids from, she became a part of. She didn’t want to condone something so wrong as killing another human being. She didn’t want to keep going. No one could force her to do anything. She would live in her own misery until she inevitably died. After all, the cave, along with everything the underground organization had collected, had been destroyed, and she had been taken from the ruins. They didn’t speak of what she had done, and the unwavering steely gaze of the officers told her nothing as they hauled her away, enrolled into the Arena like every other terribly unlucky innocent citizen. Forced to kill, forced to die. Katie couldn’t handle any of this. She let her tears flow down her face. She hurt. Everything hurt. She didn’t feel alive anymore… until she felt someone’s hand in hers. It was gentle, but still rough and sturdy. The grip tightened. Her tears stopped. She was surprised to see the same boy who had bumped into her leaning down to her level. His grasp grounded her. He helped her stand on her good leg, wrapping his arm under her shoulder for support.