“I sure do, sir.” Lefty beamed. “My name is Lefty. I’m not scared of nothin’.”
“I can see that.” He smiled down at Lefty like an adult would look at an amusing child. Humored. Patronizing.
“I want to work the front lines with you guys.” Lefty said. “I want to be out there scouting the old world for good places to build cities. Fighting Remnants.”
Hawk laughed. “You’re kind of small for a scout, don’t ya think?”
“I’m small outside, but big inside.” He pounded his chest with his fist.
“Yeah? We’ll see about that.” Hawk stared him in the eye for a moment, sizing him up.
“So, why are you guys bringing these Remnants into the city?” Lefty asked.
Brawn grinned. “We’re always looking for a few more people who could be frontline scouts. We’re here to watch people fight inside the cages.”
Zero’s heart stopped when he realized what the scout was saying.
“Yeah, but why did you bring the—” Lefty apparently realized what this meant also and his face flushed with embarrassment that he even began to repeat his question—that it took him this long to put the pieces together. He looked up at the fighting cage, and then at the smaller cage containing the three Remnants next to it. “If I want to prove I’ve got what it takes to be a frontline scout, I have to fight one of these guys?”
Brawn shook his head and grinned. “No. You have to fight all three of them.”
It was a rare thing to see Lefty nervous and intimidated by anything. He stared at the cages, contemplating the implications of what he was getting himself into. “Makes sense. What happens if I win, but get bitten during the fight? I’ll be infected too.”
“Nah. These guys have been neutralized. They’ve been given an injection to kill the virus, which makes it so they’re not contagious. Their brains are still fried, though. They act the same as any other Remnant—fighting and biting just like them. They still may kill you in there,” Brawn smiled, “but they won’t infect you.”
“Oh. Okay,” Lefty breathed a sigh of relief.
“We’re sick of people putting up a good fight against one of their peers during the tryouts,” Hawk said, “but then they cower in fear when they see their first Remnant in the woods.”
Lefty felt a sudden rush of excitement. He looked down at the sleeping Remnant. He’d seen them now and had been up close and personal with them. Not only that, but two of the three were even smaller than him. “Count me in,” he said with a smile.
“Really? You realize you’ll have to win two fights in the same day. Win your fight against one of the other students, and then win your fight against the Remnants.”
“Absolutely.” Lefty held out his right hand to shake again.
Hawk shook it, and then looked down at it. “Are you sure you want to do this, kid? You look a little banged up already.”
“My hand is just fine. There’s no way I’ll lose.”
Chapter 10
ZERO STOOD BY AND WATCHED inside the locker room as Brawn wrapped Lefty’s hands with white sports tape in preparation for his big fight. After finishing with the tape, Lefty pulled on a pair of thin black leather gloves that covered his knuckles but left his fingers exposed.
Zero sighed and shook his head when Lefty stood in front of the mirror to admire his fists, pounding them together. Lefty then bounced around the locker room, warming up.
“I’ve got to visualize my victory,” Lefty said. He stood again in front of the mirror and boxed at his own reflection.
“Alright. So what’s that look like?” Zero asked.
“Well, the referee is holding up my hand. Preferably my left. That’s my good hand.”
“No. I mean, what’s your plan of attack?”
“I should probably stick to my strengths.”
“Which are?”
“You know. You’ve seen me fight loads of times.”
“So what are they?”
Lefty stopped. Casting a telltale glance Zero’s way, he said, “I don’t know. I was sort of hoping you’d be able to tell me.”
“Just try to stay away from the business end of his fist.” Zero began rubbing his shoulders from behind to loosen up Lefty’s muscles. He looked up at their reflection in the mirror.
“What kind of advice is that?”
“I don’t know. You told me to give you advice. I don’t know anything about fighting. I’ve never been in a fight.”
“Tell me what you think about this: When he swings at me, I charge him. I wrap my arms around him, and no matter what he does, I don’t ever let go. I’ll have to keep the fight in close. If I try to stand and trade punches with him, I don’t stand a chance. He’s probably got eight inches longer on his reach than I do. If I stay in close, he won’t be able to hit very hard. And if I can move around to his back—which would probably be easiest if I can figure out how to get him to the ground—then I can use the chokehold move I saw one of the frontline scouts use today on a Remnant.”
“That’s good. Try to get to his back.” Zero considered this, now that he’d said it. “You think that’ll work?”
“It has to,” Lefty said. He again began swinging his fists against his reflection.
The crowd outside roared, and Lefty stiffened. Something big had just happened during one of the other fights. By the sound of things—the way everyone yelled, applauded, and then went silent—it sounded like the fight was over. This was it. “It’s my time to shine.”
“Stay in close,” Zero reminded him. “You nervous?”
“I’m only fighting for my life here. But there’s no time to be nervous. I’m pumped. I’m pumped. I’m pumped.” Lefty smashed his fists together.
A tall man in a purple Elite robe poked his head into the locker room, waving Lefty after him. Lefty took a few more jabs at his reflection, and then they walked together down a long hallway. Just before opening the door outside, the Elite looked Lefty over from top to bottom. “You sure you wanna do this? Your opponent is twice your size.”
Lefty nodded. “Get ready to be amazed.”
“Fine. When you hear your name, go out to the cage and stand in the middle. Follow the referee’s lead and obey his commands at all times. Good luck.”
The Elite handed a flashlight to both Lefty and Zero before opening the door. Cheering, booing, and music blared down on them. At first Zero didn’t know why they would need a flashlight, but once they stepped outside they realized how hard it was to see the ground as they made their way through the dense crowd. Zero shined his light on the ground to illuminate their pathway as Lefty continued to punch the air and high-five people in the crowd. They stopped at the side of the cage and waited for the announcer to call his name.
“In the blue corner, we have a fighter weighing in at 162 pounds. Let’s give it up for J-12, also known as Lllllleftyyyyyy.”
As they entered the ring, Zero watched him wink at the Elites sitting in the rows closest to the cage.
“This is it, Lefty. This is your chance.” Zero gave him one last pat on the shoulder for good luck, and then took his seat in the front row. He looked to his left and to his right. He was surrounded by a sea of purple. Even those he knew were frontline scouts were dressed in purple robes. The only people wearing standard issue clothing were the students from his year, but they were all at the back of the crowd, out of sight. He had never felt so out of place, even when surrounded by Flea and his gang.
He looked back up at his friend, who was shadowboxing in his corner.
“And in the red corner, we have a fighter weighing in at 251 pounds. Let’s hear it for M-4, also known as Caiiiiiiiimannnnnnnnnnnn.”
Darkness fell over the crowd, leaving only the cage illuminated. The crowd roared even louder. Although he was surrounded by thousands of people, the whole world disappeared in Zero�
�s mind except for Caiman and Lefty. “Come on, Lefty,” Zero said out loud. “Keep the fight in tight. Don’t try to trade punches with him.”
The referee leaned in and said something to the boys, and then instructed them to back up into their corner. The bell sounded. Zero felt like he was going to vomit.
Lefty and Caiman came out of their corners and circled each other for a moment. Caiman threw the first punch—an enormous right hand, which Lefty easily ducked. He lunged inside, wrapping his arms around Caiman’s middle.
“Yes! Yes! Yes!” Zero yelled. “Don’t let go. Whatever you do, don’t let go!”
Lefty attempted to lift Caiman to bring him down, but Caiman was simply too heavy. He tried to pull Caiman to the ground, but that attempt was just as futile.
With Lefty latched tightly around his midsection, Caiman pulled his right hand in, put his palm on Lefty’s forehead, and pushed his head out. With sweat already dripping off Lefty’s face, Caiman’s hand slipped and Lefty’s face butted right into Caiman’s chest.
Caiman repeated the move, pushing Lefty’s forehead away from his body, except that this time when Lefty’s forehead slipped, Caiman’s left elbow whipped in to meet Lefty just under his right eye. Dazed, Lefty’s grip loosened just enough for Caiman to throw a right uppercut. Lefty never saw it coming, and he crumbled to the floor—motionless. The referee stepped in to keep Caiman from throwing another punch. The bell sounded over and over. Ding. Ding. Ding.
The fight was over.
Zero rushed into the cage and knelt next to his best friend. The ringside doctor cradled Lefty’s head in his hands until his eyes slowly blinked open.
His lids flickered for a moment—a confused look on his face. “What happened?”
“Are you able to sit up?” the doctor asked.
“Zero, what happened?” Lefty asked again, frantic this time. “Did I win?”
Zero bit his bottom lip and said nothing.
“No. No. Let’s go again.” Lefty tried to stand, but the doctor held him down. “I gotta go again. I can’t lose. Come on. Let me go.”
Lefty twisted away and got to his feet. He ran to the corner, looking straight into the faces of some of the Elites. He started chanting, “One more round. One more round,” clapping his hands as he chanted, encouraging the crowd to join in, but the louder Lefty yelled, the quieter everyone became.
“It’s over,” Zero said into his ear, wrapping his arm around him from behind. “Let’s go. It’s over.”
“No! This wasn’t supposed to happen.” Lefty shoved Zero and sprinted out of the cage. Before Zero had a chance to stop him, he was gone. With the arena lights blinding his night vision, he couldn’t see which direction Lefty ran.
Zero hurried to the locker room, but the only ones inside were those preparing for the next fight. He then realized where Lefty had gone. There was only one place he would want to go at a time like this.
***
Zero turned on his flashlight before running between the buildings and across the lawn to the corner of the fence where they had sat earlier in the day.
There he was, staring out into the darkness. He was on the other side of the fence this time, sitting in the tall grass next to a crocodile, petting it like it was a Labrador.
Zero knew the answer to his question without having to ask it, but silence made the situation seem much worse than any words could. “You all right, man?” he asked through the fence.
Lefty said nothing, continuing to stare forward blankly.
“Come on. Talk to me. You okay?”
“I probably have a concussion, and I might need stitches under my eye.”
“That’s not what I mean, and you know it.”
Lefty continued to stroke the crocodile’s back for a while before snapping out of his reverie. He turned his head, stood up and linked his fingers into the fence. “What am I supposed to do now? My life is over.”
“You don’t know that for sure. Maybe you’ll pass the written test.”
“Do you really believe that?”
Zero didn’t answer.
Lefty pulled the leather fighting glove off his right hand, threw it into the river, and then did the same with the glove from his left hand. “Me neither.” He slowly unwound the white tape from his hands, throwing the bits of tape into the water as he tore them loose.
“So that’s it, then? You’re giving up?”
“Giving up?” Lefty’s head snapped up, and Zero could see the fire in his eyes even in the darkness. “I just faced off with Caiman in front of thousands of people, and the only thing I got out of it was a concussion. You think I’m giving up? I didn’t choose to get knocked out. I did everything in my power to prevent it. And I’m not giving up on my life, either. I’ve done everything I can think of, but there’s no hope. This written test is going to knock me out worse than Caiman did, and that has nothing to do with whether or not I’m giving up.”
“You’re right. I shouldn’t have said that. Sorry.”
Lefty stepped over the crocodile, standing inches away from the water. “Director Keys said he and his friends used to dare each other to swim across the river. He made it sound like they did it often. I only need to do it once to get out of here.”
“Lefty—”
Lefty kept his back to his friend, his eyes fixed on the water. “Did you ever wonder about why so many people got infected with the virus when it first broke out? Not everyone did, though. Isn’t that odd?”
Zero stood and said nothing.
“I think all the people who survived the original outbreak of the virus are immune. I think it’s genetic.” He slapped the inside of his forearm. “I think there’s something in our blood that keeps us safe from ever getting infected.”
“You don’t know that. Maybe our ancestors were immune, but that was, what? Hundreds of years ago? What if you get infected the first time you have to fight one of them?”
Lefty shook his head.
“You pretend to have all this confidence, but you don’t fool me,” Zero said. “I’m not stupid. You have a death wish because of—what? You’re scared of failing that test? Maybe Director Keys was just trying to scare you so you’d stop screwing around.” Zero linked his fingers through the fence and pressed his face into it. “Wake up, Lefty. You saw those Remnants today, frothing at the mouth. There’s nothing left to them. Their heads are empty. Do you really want to risk it?”
Lefty said nothing.
Zero knew his friend was teetering on the edge of making an insane decision, which was pushing him to do something he thought he’d never do. Zero reached up, grabbed the top of the fence and hoisted himself up. He swung one leg over to the point where he was straddling it, and then dropped to the other side—the forbidden side of the fence. He suddenly felt very scared and exposed.
Lefty spun around and stared. “I can’t believe this. Congratulations, Zero. You’re no longer a complete coward.”
“This has nothing to do with being a coward. This has to do with whether or not you’re going to do something stupid.”
Lefty wrapped his arms around him. “Thanks for always being there for me, man.”
“Now you’re getting sentimental again. That’s twice in two days. You must be losing your mind.”
Lefty grinned and slapped him on the shoulder.
He was on the other side of the fence, the first barrier that separated them from the outside—the old world. His heart pounded as he looked down at the crocodile and then out into a world of questions. For the first time he shared Lefty’s curiosity. He wondered what was out there.
“You’re crawling out of your skin right now, aren’t you?” Lefty grinned. “This is a little too much for you.”
“I’m pretty anxious to get back to our side of the fence. I admit it.”
“All right, then.” Lefty gr
abbed him by the shoulders and spun him toward the fence. “You’re a good friend. You always have been.”
Relieved, Zero interpreted that as his cue to climb back over. He did so with ease, anxious to be back where they belonged. But just as he reached the top, just before swinging his second leg over, he heard a splash. He dropped to the ground, grabbed his flashlight, and spun around to see Lefty dog-paddling his way through the river—splashing more than actually swimming.
Zero gasped. Any thoughts of following Lefty disappeared when the large crocodile that had been next to the fence slipped into the water behind him. Zero held up his flashlight and scanned the area. Half a dozen sets of eyes glowed back at him from just above the water’s surface.
“Lefty! Get back here. What’s wrong with you?”
Chapter 11
Zero couldn’t believe what had just happened. He shined the light on Lefty as he kicked and grabbed at the water, moving so slowly that he knew every crocodile in the area could easily chase him down if they wanted to. He gasped as he paddled, sounding like he was about to drown every time his head popped above the water.
“I’m doing … I’m … I’m … doing it.” Lefty yelled, swallowing so much water that he was barely understandable.
“You fool! Get back here!” Zero didn’t know what to do. He hurried along the fence, keeping pace with Lefty as he floated downstream. “The river is taking you away. You’ll never make it.”
He was easily able to keep up with Lefty at first, but the closer he came to the center of the river, the faster it carried him away. When he reached the middle, Zero was forced to run in order to match his speed. It became increasingly more difficult to keep the light shining on him. Every time he lost track of him with the flashlight, he saw the leathery spines of another crocodile floating nearby—keeping tabs on him. How long would they keep their distance before grabbing hold of him and pulling him under?
The sound of the crowd cheering on the fighters grew louder as Zero ran along the fence, coming closer to center of the testing grounds where the fights were taking place. Zero realized that the flashlight in his hand would draw the attention and curiosity of anyone who might glance his way, so he clicked it off. He squinted his eyes toward the water, but it was no use. He saw little more than the outlines of bushes and reeds along the water’s edge. He could still hear splashing, however, and as long as he could hear that, he knew Lefty was still progressing toward the opposite bank.
Testing Zero: a dystopian post-apocalyptic young adult novella series (Remnants of Zone Four Chronicles Book 1) Page 7
