by Devin Hunter
“Not enough,” Hazel replied. “I have hand grenades. Finn has clingers.”
If only they had C4 or a rocket launcher. Grey would even take a grenade launcher at this point. But this would have to do. “Break some walls down. Maybe we’ll find someone before we have to go in.”
While Finn and Hazel used their explosives, Grey used his tommy gun to break down some walls in the nearest building. There was still no sign of Lam’s squad.
“No!” Kiri yelled. “No, no, no! They’re up here!”
Lam knocked down Kiri.
Lam eliminated Kiri.
Before Grey had time to react, he got hit with a sniper shot for almost all his health. He tried to take cover, but he was stuck in the crater. Lam had baited them down there, and Grey had fallen for it. He, Finn, and Hazel had been sitting ducks.
It wasn’t hard for Lam to take the Victory Royale from there.
When they appeared back in the battle warehouse at the end of the day, Lam said, “And that is how you play the decoy game, Grey. Looks like I can beat you when you try a decoy and when I do it. I’m clearly the better leader, the one who can get players out of this game.”
Grey pursed his lips. He wouldn’t reply. Lam had gotten him, and it felt like all his efforts to prove himself that day meant nothing.
CHAPTER 7
After the Admin finished the day, there was no stopping Lam from taking Hazel aside to offer her a spot on the squad. Hazel seemed completely on the fence as she looked between Grey and Lam. He wanted to believe Hazel would stay, but more and more it felt like wishful thinking.
“She’s not really going to switch squads, is she?” Kiri asked.
“I don’t know, dude,” Finn said. “My bet is she will.”
“But we did so well today. Look at our ranks.” Kiri pointed to the list on the battle warehouse’s wall. They had all moved up into the top ten now, since Ben, Tristan, and Tae Min had moved down. There were only six people ahead of them. If they kept putting up that many victories in a day, they had a fighting chance.
If Hazel left … it’d all be gone.
“Hazel,” Grey said. “Please stay with us. We’re already close.”
“Close isn’t enough,” Lam said. “One good day won’t get you there. My squad has the higher average, and we will keep it that way. Hazel has a better chance to up her rank with us than with you.”
“Your ranks won’t last if she stays with us and you know it,” Grey shot back. “That’s why you’re doing this to begin with!”
“Ugh!” Hazel yelled so loudly everyone could hear her. “Will you leave me alone for one second so I can think? You’re both so obnoxious right now I’d rather join up with Zach and Hui Yin instead!”
“Sounds good to me!” Zach called from the table where he and Hui Yin sat, watching the drama unfold.
Hazel rolled her eyes and stomped off.
Grey sighed as he watched her go. How did drama always filter down from one squad to another? And at the worst times? He looked at Finn and Kiri. “You want to practice your way, Finn? I don’t want to sit around waiting for how this will go.”
“Sure,” Finn said with a wary smile. “You and Kiri are the ones who need the most practice in close combat anyway.”
“You’re not wrong,” Kiri said as she began the too-familiar walk to the practice warehouse. “It’s crazy to think I’d be gutted over Hazel leaving after she was so awful at first … but here we are. I’m not even complaining over close-combat practice, and I hate it.”
“That’s pretty serious,” a surprising voice said from behind.
Grey turned to find Ben. He couldn’t help but be shocked, and before he could think, he said, “What’re you doing here? Gaming for a possible spot on my squad if Hazel leaves?”
Ben cringed. “No …”
“Then what?” Grey was being too harsh, but this game had changed him for better or worse. He hardly trusted anyone to say what they meant when so much was on the line.
Ben looked back at Tristan, who was leaning on a tree trunk a few yards back. Tristan was hard to read, but even so, he looked like he was too afraid to talk to Grey himself. “We know you won’t take us back—and we’re not looking to split up—but you three and us two makes five players. You think there’s any way to form an alliance to get us all to the top five?”
Grey’s brow furrowed as he thought about the proposition.
“Sorry, I shouldn’t have asked …” Ben said as he backed up. “I know you don’t like those kind of games. It’s just that Tris—”
“No, that wasn’t a glare,” Grey interrupted. “I was thinking. It’s an interesting idea. I’m just not sure how it would work.”
Kiri stepped forward. “Can we think about it? It’s not exactly easy to agree to something like that after you betrayed us, and it seems like every alliance has already fallen apart. I’m not sure any of us have enough trust left for something like that.”
“That’s completely fair,” Ben said. “I know it’s a lot more than I should ask after …”
“You left them high and dry?” Finn filled in. “Gotta be honest, I don’t like you guys at all. Grey’s my best friend, and all you did was use him because he’s a nice person.”
Ben nodded. “Yeah, well, I said what I came to say. Hazel might stick with you anyway. But it’s not like any of us have the time to sit on stuff. Gotta try and help our ranks if we have the chance.”
It was true, though Grey wasn’t sure if this was the way to do it. “We’ll let you know after we find out what Hazel decides.”
“Okay.” Ben walked back to Tristan to relay the news.
“Can we do the fun practicing now?” Finn said.
“Yeah, dude, let’s do this.” Grey put his arm around Finn’s shoulders, even more glad for a distraction now. “Teach us the ways of an aggressive player.”
Finn laughed. “Will do.”
After loading up on loot, they went down to the river to practice. It was strange for Grey not to be in charge, but it was nice, too. He didn’t have to come up with the practices. All he had to do was listen to Finn and try to execute what his best friend requested.
“Nice hit!” Finn said as Grey flew through the air and landed on the ground several yards away. “See? You can do it when you’re focused.”
They had been practicing flying shots. Finn had placed several bouncers at different heights, directing Grey and Kiri to hit him in his tower while flying. It was something they practiced occasionally, but Grey was never very good at it. Especially if his target was also moving.
“I feel like it’s all luck,” Grey said. “No one can actually hit these shots consistently.”
Finn raised an eyebrow. “You’re only saying that because you’re bad at it. I can hit them a lot, and it’s not luck. It’s about timing, getting used to the fall speed, and knowing how to aim. You just don’t like this kind of practice because you don’t like risky plays.”
Grey pursed his lips. “Yeah, I guess I don’t see the point.”
“The point is you can bounce in on people who like to hole up, and they usually aren’t ready for it.” Finn jumped down from his tower. “Think about it—our biggest enemies are turtles. We gotta get under their shells if we’re gonna win.”
“He has a point,” Kiri said. “It does seem like Lam folds under aggression. Maybe it’s not about breaking down the defense, but bypassing it altogether.”
Grey folded his arms, thinking. “But sometimes I don’t know how to bypass their defense.”
“That’s why we’re doing this!” Finn said. “There are probably other ways too, but this works. Sometimes you gotta get that damage down before you even land. And you can also get behind them.”
“Okay, okay,” Grey said. “Let’s keep doing this then. But can I try to counter you guys as you attempt to hit me? Because I think there are plenty of ways the enemy could protect from jump shots.”
“Challenge accepted!” Finn replied.
“I’ll give it my best,” Kiri said.
Grey bounced into Finn’s tower this time and prepared himself for the onslaught. He tried not to smile, but he already had the perfect plan for this.
Finn and Kiri began to jump on the various bouncers, and as they flew, they shot. Grey built walls to block the shots. Finn switched to a tommy gun, which burned down Grey’s walls faster. He took a few hits, but it was nothing he wouldn’t be able to withstand.
Grey knew Finn would get impatient if he couldn’t hit Grey from a distance. So he waited for his friend to jump right at him.
Sure enough, it only took two more bounces for Finn to come flying at Grey. Grey built a ceiling onto his tower, and Finn shot at it to break it down. As he did, Grey placed a trap inside and then edited the ceiling so that Finn would fall through.
The trap spikes sprung out the moment Finn’s feet hit the floor. He would have taken nearly fatal damage from that alone, and Grey held up his shotgun. “Gotcha.”
Finn shook his head. “Well played. But let’s do it again. I have a plan.”
The next time, Finn didn’t land right on top of Grey but instead built a floor on top of Grey as he flew. He landed on Grey’s box, but this time Finn was in control of the floor he made. While Grey tried to shoot it down, Finn edited a corner open and got Grey.
“Smart change,” Grey replied.
Kiri landed on the tower, too. “You could drop a trap in there even.”
“True,” Finn said.
“Can I try that? I won’t be that fast, but it’s a cool move,” Kiri said.
“Sure!” Finn gave her a wide grin. “I’m happy to let you steal my moves if it makes us better.”
“Borrow. Not steal,” Kiri said.
“We can all share,” Grey said with a smile. “Thanks for leading practice today, Finn. You should do it more often. We could use some fresh ideas—some more offensive ones.”
“Really?” Finn sounded like he didn’t quite believe Grey, and it made Grey feel bad. Maybe he’d been suppressing Finn’s talents.
Grey nodded. “If my ideas can’t beat Lam, maybe yours will. Lam and I are too similar. You see the game differently.”
“True, but if they get Hazel …” Finn usually tried to play it cool, but even he looked worried by the prospect. “They’ll have a good offensive player then. And she’ll teach them stuff like this, too, if they let her.”
Kiri let out a long sigh. “I wish she would just stay.”
“Me too,” Grey said. But the longer it took Hazel to let them know, the more it felt like she wasn’t coming back. He tried to tell himself that at least they knew what was going on this time, but it didn’t help.
“Looks like we’re about to find out one way or the other.” Finn pointed to the south.
Hazel was walking toward them. She was still a little far off, but by the slow way she walked, Grey had a feeling he knew what she was going to say.
CHAPTER 8
Grey, Kiri, and Finn jumped down from the tower to meet Hazel and learn their fate. They met her on the riverbank, and she wouldn’t look Grey in the eyes. He knew his worries were coming true. He took a deep breath and said, “You’re going with Lam, right?”
Hazel nodded. “I’m sorry, but I need that spot home. I already told you why. If your ranks drop a bit and mine goes up because of Lam, then I have it. I can’t pass up this chance even if I do feel bad about leaving you guys. I hate to say it, but you really grew on me, Pip-squeak.”
By the way she said, “Pip-squeak,” Grey knew it wasn’t meant to be mean. Hazel said it the way a big sister would, and it almost made Grey tear up. He was mad that she wouldn’t see it through with them, but he couldn’t force anyone to stay in the squad. And he didn’t want more drama than had already come their way. Grey needed to focus on what to do next, not how to change something he couldn’t.
So he said, “Good luck, Hazel.”
Hazel nodded. “You too, guys.”
They watched Hazel walk away, and Grey felt like their chances at the top five were going with her. But he wasn’t about to say that. He moved on to another topic. “Well, I guess we gotta talk about Ben and Tristan now.”
Finn groaned. “Can we not? I’m done with drama tonight.”
“Maybe tomorrow?” Kiri offered. “We can’t hold off long on discussing it, unfortunately. There’s only a week and a half left until the end of the season.”
“First thing tomorrow morning,” Grey said. “We can all think about what we can do and offer suggestions. I don’t really know what is best at this point.”
Finn and Kiri agreed, and they headed back to the cabins since it was nearly time for their mandatory rest period. When Grey stepped inside his cabin, Ben and Tristan were already in there. They were clearly waiting for him.
Ben stood up from where he sat on his bed. “Word has it that Hazel went with Lam.”
Grey nodded.
“Have you … decided if you want to ally with us?” Ben asked.
Grey shook his head. “We’re sleeping on it. We’ll find you tomorrow before battles.”
“Okay, cool,” Ben said.
Grey laid down on his bed and closed his eyes, though he wouldn’t fall asleep until the game made him. But it would send a message that he didn’t want to talk. He needed to think about whether or not an alliance with Ben and Tristan would help. If they couldn’t be in the same squad, what could they really do to help each other?
The next day, Grey’s squad met in the forest. Grey leaned on the barrier, folding his arms as he said, “I know Finn won’t like it, but I’m not opposed to being allies with Ben and Tristan. They left us, and they did it in a mean way, but I know how badly they want to get home. If I had to pick any veterans to go home this season, it would be them.”
“I agree,” Kiri said. “I wish they hadn’t betrayed us, but I’m not gutted over it anymore.”
Finn sighed. “I guess I’m cool with it as long as they don’t get in our way. Honestly, it doesn’t seem like they’re that good.”
“They take directions well,” Grey said. “And they practice hard. So I was thinking that as part of being allies, they could practice with us.”
Kiri nodded. “We can’t talk to them in battles, so what else can we do?”
“If we know what skins they’re wearing, we can avoid them,” Finn suggested. “Or they can start on one side of the map and us on the other.”
Grey thought about that for a moment. “Do you think that would be considered cheating?”
Finn shrugged.
“Maybe Ben and Tristan would know,” Kiri offered.
“Or they would tell us what benefitted them,” Finn said.
“I think knowing their skins might be pushing it,” Grey said. “But if we agreed to land with one of our teams at the start of the bus’s path and the other at the end … then we’d at least avoid each other for a little bit of time. That wouldn’t be so bad, would it? It’s not like we’d be teaming up on others. And we wouldn’t be able to fully avoid eliminating each other. It would be delayed is all.”
Finn pursed his lips as he thought about it. “As long as we get to leave the bus first, I’m okay with that.”
Grey nodded. “Let’s see what they think. I told them to wait in the battle warehouse.”
Grey’s squad headed over to meet Ben and Tristan. The two boys waited at a table, looking like they were about to take a hard test at school. Their demeanors didn’t improve when they spotted Grey.
“So?” Ben asked when Grey, Finn, and Kiri sat at the table with them. “What’s the verdict?”
“We were thinking of letting you come to our practices,” Grey started. “And then in game … it’s tricky, but what if we agree to start at opposite ends of whatever path the bus takes each battle? We’d take the early launch, and you the later one. We could avoid each other for a while at least, but any more than that and I worry we’d be accused of cheating.”
Tr
istan nodded. “You did report Zach—anyone would be waiting for you to slip up so they could report you back.”
“I’m not interested in cheating anyway,” Grey said. “But I do want to help you guys get home if I can.”
“Thanks, man,” Ben said with a small smile. “I think that’s a pretty fair alliance … though maybe it favors us more than you.”
Grey shrugged. “Maybe, but knowing one good duo isn’t close doesn’t hurt. And we need practice partners who aren’t going to sabotage us.”
“You better not.” Finn leaned forward, glaring at both of them. “We’re your only hope at getting a better rank after all this. There’s only ten days left. You both know you’re out of time to make more drama, right?”
“We know,” Tristan said. “I’d offer to give you Zach’s strategies to prove we’re not going back, but I know you won’t want them.”
“You’re right.” Grey held his hand out to Ben. “So we got a deal?”
Ben glanced at Tristan for confirmation. Tristan gave a quick nod, and then Ben took Grey’s hand. “It’s a deal.”
Grey put his hand in front of Tristan next. “You shake, too.”
Tristan looked hesitant.
“You don’t have to be like this,” Grey said. “I’m not mad at you. I really do get it. Maybe it won’t be the same as before, but we can still be friends, can’t we?”
“Yeah.” Tristan took Grey’s hand and for the first time really looked him in the eye. “Thank you, Grey.”
“Thank you for teaching me all the good loot routes,” Grey replied. “I wouldn’t have gotten this far without either of you, and I’m not about to forget that. I hope you’re the last two we eliminate in every battle after this.”
Tristan grinned. “We’ll get you a couple times at least.”
“We’ll be lucky to even get top ten without Hazel,” Finn grumbled.
“Since when were you the insecure one?” Kiri asked. “What happened to overly confident Finn?”
