A young man with a quiver slung over his shoulder and an arrow ready in his bow is slinking around the rubble, looking for his opponent. I can barely catch a glimpse of the other person; they’re moving too fast. The man with the bow winces as a gash appears along his ribcage. The points next to the name “Lok” decrease ten, while the ones next to the name “Drake” increase ten.
I wonder if that’s the Drake from the Outer Limits.
Lok is struck again, this time in the arm holding the bow. His points decrease another ten, bringing his total down to five thousand seventy. He steps on top of the rubble he had been hiding behind, looks intensely off in the distance, and fires his arrow. Drake is struck in the chest. He drops, as does his points. The minutes slowly pass before Drake touches a spot on his wristband, which seems to end the battle. Lok is declared the winner. He is awarded one hundred points for the strike on Drake, but since he had already taken a loss of twenty, he only gains eighty.
The rubble, debris, and metal structures disappear leaving a large open area. The walls and floor are covered in gray tiles with light blue illumination between them. Drake disappears, the battle clock resets to two hours, and the final points tallied. I look at my wristband, paying close attention to the one thousand points that flash in my face. My eyes find their way back to the screen, staring at Drake’s points: 230.
If we start out with one thousand, what happens if we hit zero?
Five
I stay up most of the night trying to get caught up on how The Litarian Battles work. No one appears to be seriously injured by their opponents, so I wonder if the outfit they all wear provides some kind of protection. Many use shields that are generated by the wristband, but as Matron Kaniz said, they don’t protect against all weapons. All the matches I watch end with someone surrendering. Drake has the least amount of points. I still can’t figure out where the actual positions of the players come into play. Maybe that’s what Rem will explain to me. I finally go to bed just after two in the morning, according to a small clock on my wristband.
I don’t bother changing my clothes, I just get under my blankets and try to bury myself. I feel like I’ve been given a death sentence. There isn’t any escaping this, bargaining my way out, or hoping for some sort of miracle. I wish I knew why I was chosen. How was it determined who would be sent? Were the names selected at random, or purposefully? I wonder if there’s a way to get out of this. Could I just leave through the emergency door? Where would it take me? Does the wristband have a tracking device?
The lights automatically come on just before six. I keep my head covered while everyone else makes their way to the bathrooms or out to the common room. Addie pokes her head into my space, our noses almost bumping. She drags me from the comfort of my mattress and into one of the bathrooms. She grabs a change of clothes from one of the cupboards, hangs it outside a shower stall, shoves me inside, and orders me to wash. I don’t argue, but I do try to avoid getting the wristband wet for fear it’ll electrocute me.
Once I’m clean and dressed, we go to the common room and eat breakfast. There’s enough food this morning to get second helpings, which I do. Just after nine, everyone begins lining up in front of the lift except Addie, who nudges me to follow her. We pass through the common room, and towards the side of the floor where the Progression Room is. I fear she’s taking me back there, especially since Matron Kaniz is standing in the hallway apparently waiting for us.
“Hello, Max,” she says to me, hands behind her back. “Addie, Rem is waiting for you in the training room. I’ll bring Max along shortly.”
Addie heads back the way we came and enters a room on her left before she reaches the common room. Matron Kaniz gestures towards a door next to her. I open it and a room the size of a walk-in closet sits just beyond. Secured against the walls are labels, flashing the names of everyone on the floor. Behind the labels are empty sheaths, except for one. I recognize the handle sticking out of the leather case. My name bounces underneath the weapon. I have to step far into the room to retrieve it. The Kopis practically sings in my hand. I feel like it’s always been a part of me, an old friend I’m finally reunited with.
“The weapons can only be used in the training room and the battle floor. If you attempt to use it outside of these areas, the weapon becomes non-operational and is immediately returned to the storage room you’re now in. This will be the one and only time you can carry your weapon out of this room. All other times, your weapon will be brought to you.”
“I thought I was the only one who could handle my weapon? How can you bring it to me if no one else can touch it?”
“There are ways to transport items without physical contact.” She steps out of the doorway, locks the door behind me, and escorts me a few feet to another door. “Rem and Addie
