seas.
Green had no fear. He laughed, aimed his gun, and shot out my belly, dug my toes in, and pressed my palms flat on the floor. It was the only thing I could think of to get some kind of traction to stop from slipping toward the edge. But the angle was too steep and I started to slide. Gravity was winning. Green tried to run up to the opposite side, but this time even he lost his balance. He pinwheeled his arms and fell on his back. When he hit, he scrambled for something to grab on to but found nothing. His luck had finally run out. We were both moments from going over.
Something caught my eye. It was rolling toward me, picking up speed on its way down. It was the tang knife. It was about to roll past me when I lunged out and grabbed it. I was seconds from going over the edge. This was my only chance. I grabbed the handle of the sharp knife and stabbed it into the soft foam padding of the platform. It held! I felt like one of those guys who climb frozen waterfalls with an ice ax. The only thing keeping me from sliding to the edge was this knife made of claws that was barely stuck into the padding. The platform had stopped tilting, but it was at an incredibly steep angle. A few more degrees and it would be fully perpendicular to the ground. I heard the knife tear through the padding. It wasn’t going to last. I had to get a better grip. I did something dangerous, but it was the only chance I had. I pulled myself up farther, grabbed the handle with both hands, and yanked it out. Instantly I started sliding down. Using the power of both of my arms, I jammed the three-pronged knife as hard as I could back into the padding.
I felt the tip hit something hard underneath. It held firm. I stopped sliding. I had embedded the point into something more solid than just the pad. I was secure. Or at least more secure than before. I had no idea how long it would last. I stole a cautious look down. With the platform nearly on its side, I could see down to the ground. I have to tell you, we were way high. I could barely make out the figures of Veego and LaBerge on the ground. They looked like tiny toys. My feet were only a few feet from the end of the platform. If the knife pulled out, there was nothing else to grab on to. My hands started to shake. Looking down wasn’t a good thing, so I turned my face back to the platform.
I didn’t know what had happened to Challenger Green. Had he fallen? No, that couldn’t be or the competition would be over. I cautiously turned my head to the left. He wasn’t there. I slowly turned my head the other way and saw him.
Challenger Green was hanging on to the rim of a shattered dome, just as he had when he killed Remudi. But this time the platform was at a much steeper angle. He was hanging there with his feet dangling in space. His hands were bloody from grabbing on to the sharp edges of the shattered dome. For the first time, I saw fear in his eyes. He had never been in this position. He was terrified. I realized it was only a matter of time. Either he was going to lose his grip, or my knife was going to pull out.
“Tell me. Red. Do you like it?” he shouted up at me, spittle flying from his mouth. His eyes were wild. “Do you like killing?”
“Give up,” I shouted. “I’m not going anywhere. Tell them you give up, and it’ll be over. They won’t let you die if you give up!”
Challenger Green moved his hands around to get a better grip. The sharp edges dug into his flesh. He was only hanging on by his fingers. I knew there was no way he could last much longer. He looked down, then back up at me.
“Only one problem with that,” he shouted.
“What?” I shouted back.
“I don’t like to lose!”
And he fell. I didn’t hold on any longer, or he gave up. It didn’t matter. He fell. He would rather die than live with defeat. I couldn’t watch. I turned my face to the platform and closed my eyes. The guy didn’t even scream. Challenger Green was gone. Beaten at last. Though he went to his death silently, his final question kept playing in my head. He wanted to know if I liked killing. Was that true? Had I become a killer? As I hung there on that knife, the only thing I could do was press my forehead into the platform, and cry.
A moment later I felt the platform lurch. The knife slipped. What was happening? Was Veego was so angry I’d won that she was going to kill me anyway? Why not? She didn’t have anything to lose. I got a tighter grip on the knife, though I didn’t know what good that would do. I felt an odd sensation. It was like the platform was pressing into my body. At first I didn’t understand what was happening, but soon realized the machinery had kicked in and the platform was being returned to level. In moments I was no longer hanging, I was lying on my stomach. I didn’t let go of the knife though. I couldn’t.
I felt the platform descend. It was over. I had survived. My crying turned to laughter. There was absolutely nothing funny about what had happened, but I was so full of emotion, I didn’t know what I was doing. It just flew out of me. I didn’t have a say in the matter. I felt the final jolt that told me the platform was back on the ground. I was still flat on my stomach, clutching the knife. I sensed that somebody had stepped up on the platform next to me. I didn’t want to deal with Veego and LaBerge. I was too drained. When I looked up, I had to laugh again. This time it was genuine. Standing there was the only person I cared about seeing. Mostly because I think he was the only person who cared about me.
It was Fourteen.
“Congratulations, Pendragon,” he said. “Look.” He pointed up. I looked to see one of those big screens in the trees. Flashing brightly were the words: grand x champion-challenger red.
I looked back to Fourteen and, I swear, the robot smiled.
(CONTINUED)
QUILLAN
There was no sign of Challenger Green’s body. I assumed some security dados had removed it. They never showed the true result of a game to the people. They kept it all sanitized. Neat and clean. No bodies, no blood. Also missing were Veego and LaBerge. I figured they had run back to the castle and were packing for a quick getaway. I had a brief worry that they would try to jump into the flume on their own to get away from the wrath of the trustees. If what Veego told me was correct, the only safe way for non-Travelers to use the flumes was with a Traveler. I couldn’t imagine that Saint Dane would be willing to escort them back home. If Veego and LaBerge jumped into a flume, well, I didn’t want to think about what might happen. The idea of being trapped on Quillan was beyond horrible. There was nothing I could do about it just then anyway, so I tried not to stress about it.
Fourteen and I headed back to the castle. My plan was to get out of there, find Nevva, and get back with the revivers. After going through the hell of the Grand X, I wasn’t in any shape to fight my way out of there through some security dados. But if I had to, I would.
When we arrived back at the castle, we stepped into something I never expected.
The whole time I had been competing in the Grand X, the only clues I had as to what was happening outside in the city were the few angry comments that Veego had made. She told me that people were storming Blok stores and had trashed their gaming arcades. She told me that wagering on the competition was nonexistent. That was definitely good news, but I hadn’t seen it for myself. I had to take her word for it. What I found in the next few hours was that it was all true. In fact, Veego had underestimated the impact of the Grand X.
First we were greeted at the castle by the rest of the challengers. They treated me like a conquering hero. They enthusiastically clapped me on the back and congratulated me and said how I’d saved their lives. Unlike the false friendliness of the parties I had been to, this felt sincere. They were genuinely happy that I had won. Better still, there wasn’t a security dado in sight. I was told that before the Tato game had even begun, the security dados left the castle. They took every last vehicle, piled in, and took off. The challengers showed me that their loops were no longer active. Sure enough, I was able to pull mine off. This happy reunion wasn’t only about my victory over Challenger Green, it was a celebration of our new freedom. They were all itching to get out of there and back to their homes and their loved ones. But they stayed long enough to thank me.
Amid the celebration Fourteen approached me, put a gentle hand on my shoulder, and said, “Pendragon, you should come with me.”
“Why? What’s up?” I asked. I didn’t want to leave the party.
“You should see for yourself” was his answer.
