by Marcus Sloss
Copyright © 2020 Marcus Sloss.
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods, without the prior written permission of the publisher, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical reviews and certain other noncommercial uses permitted by copyright law.
ASIN: TBD
Any references to historical events, real people, or real places are used fictitiously. Names, characters, and places are products of the author’s imagination.
CHAPTER 1
It all started when Daniel Smarts came to practice eating a chocolate bar.
“Hey Dan, you know that is not allowed. Why would you bring it to practice and eat it in front of everyone here who is on strict diets?” I asked. It was only after the words were out that I noticed he had red eyes and tears coming down his face.
“Fuck you Red! You bullying homophobic bigot!” Dan screamed at me as he stormed out of the building. An eerie silence fell among the dozen of us training for the 2779 Olympic qualifiers.
For most of us, this had been what our entire adolescence lives had been devoted to. Going to Alpha Prime to compete in the Olympic events. Millions of people across colonized human space were pushing their limits to win entry for this year. For Daniel, me, and all the others on planet Swan the training was rigorous and extremely demanding. Which obviously had gotten to Dan. Or maybe it was a relationship thing.
“Someone should go check on him,” I said to the others who had paused their routine practice during his outburst. Of course, no one did, that would mean missing vital training time. I shrugged it off and went back to my rings to focus on what mattered most to me. Being the best.
∞∞∞
Three days later I was summoned to a meeting with the president of the Swan Olympic Committee. I was curious as to what was going on when I took my seat across from the normally jolly Olympic boss.
“Gryff Redland, I have unfortunate news...” he paused for a moment. Lenard Mcduff was a former shot put competitor that never quite made it to the big stage. The best way to describe him was calm, friendly, and easy to be around. I could tell he was struggling with what he needed to tell me which made me nervous. “I guess there is no easy way to say this. Daniel Smarts hung himself in the woods. He was discovered today with this note in his pocket.”
Lenard slid a paper across the desk. I reached for it and began reading.
“No... Unreal... Well space monkeys, what does this mean for me?” I asked. The note was a confession from Daniel. His boyfriend had dumped him. That part was fine. The real issue was what he had said about me. I was his tormentor bully. Never approving of his gay lifestyle, always one upping him in practice, and never being understanding of his issues. Some of that was true, well most of it was beside me disapproving of his love choices. I never commented on that ever. I did decline a few after practice hangouts after the first time because he made me feel uncomfortable. All this was insane. I was painted the villain for sure.
“The committee voted unanimously this morning. You are off the planetary Olympic team as of right now. I am sorry. There is no win for you or us here. If you medal or even do well the news will drag it up about how you are a bully and anti-LGBTQ. Which for us is losing. Optics matter, and to be fair, the last recording we have of Daniel is you telling him what he shouldn't eat. I wish you the best of luck in the future Gryff. You are young, in your prime, and have a full life ahead of you. Just not with us or the Swan Olympic team. Best of luck,” he stood and stuck a hand out.
I promptly slammed the copied note onto his desk, left his hand empty and vacated the room.
∞∞∞
Being eighteen I was on summer break before college. The college sent me a certified facial scan digimail. The one that canceled my scholarship due to recent events. Apparently not only had Daniel ruined my athletic career but he was haunting me with school too.
To say I was down on my luck and feeling shitty was an understatement. My entire life had been upended and changed. I didn't know what to do with myself. My parents were gone. Dad died when I was young from an accident while mining an asteroid. Mom died a few years later from a drug overdose. I had bounced foster homes until I lived in the Olympic billeting. They ejected me five days ago and now I was in a cheap motel looking for work and low on coins.
An ad hit my Digibox on my wrist display.
“Do you have what it takes?! Do you want riches and glory?! Compete in the Ten K death race. Ten thousand enter nine thousand leave, top prize is three billion Prime coins.” Cut scenes of thousands of people snowboarding, biking, running, swimming, and climbing sprawled across my display with vibrant text. I stared at the ad dumbly as the gears turned in my brain.
Why not? I was an insanely fit athlete in peak health. My incredible agility paired with amazing hand, body, and eye coordination would excel in a challenging fitness race. Got nowhere to go, nothing to lose. Down on my luck. What could go worse? No way would I finish in the bottom ten percent!
I hit accept on the prompt not knowing what would come next but damn it I was in. The Ten K race was a big event, once every ten years. No one knew who hosted it, where it was hosted or how. Yet it was insanely popular. Even I had watched the past three races and would certainly be watching them again.
Ping. My wrist display notified me of a personal encrypted message.
--Spaceport Feather... Tomorrow at noon... Follow the Prompts... Tell no one else, we will know if you do...--
∞∞∞
I did exactly what it told me to. I went to the local spaceport, then was guided into a private spaceship. After leaving orbit a gas hissed out of the walls and I fell asleep.
∞∞∞
I awoke on the freezing ground covered in a light snow. On my home planet Swan, it never snowed so it was a new experience that was bitterly cold and frustrating.
Where was I? What had happened?
Looking around I noticed I was not alone. All around me ten thousand people were waking on the frozen tundra. Most were as disoriented as I was, others yelled for people they knew. It dawned on me then that it was possible people had talked with others to join as a team before hitting the accept button. Some small groups formed but for the most part, it was thousands of individuals on the ice.
A bell tinkled and then a voice boomed.
“Welcome to the fourth Ten K death race!!! This year we have something special planned for the beginning leg. Ice themed running with jumping between drifting glaciers. Watch as those who finish first crush their competition. After this is the sand dunes of blistering heat. The early finishers from this event get a head start on the next leg. The top nine thousand to finish the race get to live... Assuming that many survive to the end. Place your bets now! Make sure you buy a ticket to watch each leg! Enjoy the show!!!” Fireworks went off as the announcer finished.
On the outsides of the ice shelf, green arrows became visible as the fireworks spelled go. It was clear which way we need to go. As I looked around I saw another young man about my age give me a dirty glance. I thought I recognized him but knew the odds were slim to none that I would actually know him.
I pumped my legs to get the blood flowing as others dashed forward. A light jog in place followed by some stretching. You didn't get to be in the shape I was by rushing physical exertion. Sure it was a match to the death where time counted but the last thing I needed was a pulled hamstring. Out of the ten thousand racers, only a few had decided to wait like me and warm up.
Feeling confident and limber I took off to catch the main group. When I did catch
them what I saw was beyond disturbing. The race track had narrowed down to a thin peninsula. At the end of the track, the icebergs drifted by. It looked easy enough to jump onto them but competing people were tossing each other into the slow moving ice filled water. I was certain anyone going into the dark churning depths would meet a quick death.
Not only were people dying by being shoved, kicked, or thrown into the water. They were being brutally murdered on the land. One of the few groups that had formed was huddled together picking off people. This group of goons forced the main throng of racers to flow around them as they desperately tried to get by. I watched as someone got grabbed and pulled away from the masses. Once inside the group's circle, they were beaten to death with rocks. It was savage and made my stomach turn. I knew the vast majority of people were not dying but I was horrified.
I immediately looked around for a way to defend myself in case I got pulled out of the masses. The tundra was barren based off the snow cover so I decided to look for mounds and dig. As people screamed not too far off I found what I needed. I uncovered some snow and discovered an animal skeleton of an unknown cat-like massive predator. I quickly dug to find something to use as a weapon.
Jackpot, maybe my luck had changed.
A thick hip bone for keeping people away in one hand and a six inch tooth in the other. I sprinted to catch up to the masses before they were all past the group of goons. The last thing I needed was to be caught alone. About two thirds of the racers had made it onto the drifting icebergs and were already making progress across the next ice shelf.
When I reached the clumped racers others noticed my weapons and gave me space. I was hoping to blend in with them but they perceived me as a threat.
“Fuck off scum!” one lithe small man shouted at me.
“Get away from us or we will swarm you.” This was said by a monster of a man in a cool and level tone. It was insanely intimidating. He was almost eight feet tall and probably weighed twice what I did. I was almost seven feet tall and in incredible shape but this man was all power where I was conditioned for endurance.
“Easy now, I mean no harm. I am like most of you, alone and worried about that group.” I replied with frosted breath. My words had little effect as the back of the group continued to zone me out.
“We got one for you here! Take this one!” the mouthy small man who had called me scum said to the goon group.
Stuck in a bad position I had to think fast. I stuffed the hip bone down my pant leg before the goons could see me. I pretended to have a leg injury and pressed the tooth tight against my leg with my right hand.
“This one?” The hostile man asked.
I spoke up in a pleading tone. “Help I pulled a muscle,” I said feigning an injury.
“Alright we will drag you like the others, only the strong need survive.” The man was a head shorter than me with dark eyes and black hair. It shocked me how casually he discussed my impending doom. He kept approaching me with two lackeys in tow as I pretended to hobble away.
As soon as he reached for me I made my move. My right hand with the tooth firmly gripped thrust for his neck. He instantly jerked his head back, but it was too little too late. The tooth slid into his neck smoothly. I yanked it back out quickly, rewarded with a spurt of blood. His two buddies stood flat footed in dismay.
Perfect. That gave me time to fish the hip bone out of my pants. It was at this moment I knew I had lost control. Standing there with a weapon in each hand, a man dying at my feet, I had reached that flight or fight moment. I choose to fight.
I raced forward toward my two unarmed targets. The main threat they posed was the group that they had gotten too far from. They both turned and ran for it. Funny how bullies act until they are threatened. I closed the gap with lighting speed. The one on the left slipped and fell face first. I caught up to him as he got onto his knees trying to get back up.
Crack... The sound reverberated through the air. The hip bone of some dead predator had easily caved in the back of his skull. This was a very efficient cudgel, it split that man's skull and didn't even have a mark on it. There was no cry of pain or pleading of mercy from my victim. He was dead and I kept going. The goon gang in front of me had soaked the snow in blood with a pile of discarded bodies behind them. They stopped their gruesome work to turn and face me. The best weapons they had were numbers and rocks. Out of the dozen, I only noticed a few had rocks and those were overly large rocks great for smashing skulls, not brawling.
Without fear or care, I charged towards them screaming at the top of my lungs. I cut right at the last second as a rock was thrown at me. It wasn't even close but my move had placed me on the right edge of the group with a single target in front of me. It was a girl covered in the blood of others. Her eyes grew huge as she realized I was coming to kill her. Her head swiveled as she looked to her friends for help. She screamed in terror and tried to dive away from me.
I timed my strike well and drove the tooth into her chest. I felt something snap and heard a blood curdling scream. I removed the tooth with a sucking sound. I sprinted toward my next target. Some panicked and began to run for the main group of racers. That left me with only five to deal with of the original dozen.
“Kill him you spineless fools!” The tallest of the group shouted at his friends.
I charged right for him as he backed up. His friends went to encircle me when I planted my right foot hard and shoved off to the left. The woman there was holding a large rock that dripped with the blood of prior victims. I swung at her exposed arms with the four foot long hip bone. She adjusted the rock to block the swing. I shifted the swing to hit her head. The fat end of the bone produced a crunching noise as it caved in her face. Her body failed to realize she had died as she kept standing. I ran away from the remaining four to get more room.
Her body crumpled on itself and twitched. Maybe I hadn't fully killed her. Oh well.
“Who is next?!” I shouted triumphantly.
“Gregg, no fucking way we are dying here. Our plan worked for now. Let us avoid this psycho and get to the finish. Let's go join the others babe.” Two of the remaining four left.
“Gregg, time to dance, you should’ve never been murdering people when all you had to do was simply race better than the others,” I shouted and charged. The last Gregg holdout dropped and cowered into a ball. My charge sent Gregg back as he flung his rock at me hitting my shoulder.
“Arggghhh.” I cried out.
My left arm hung limply from my body. I had dislocated it before and knew this is what was wrong with it now. Well, that and it was swelling from the impact. As I collected my pain to renew my charge I saw the last friend going for the downed rock. That wouldn't do, no, not at all.
I lunged in his direction and smashed the back of his skull with my cudgel. A thunk echoed across the ice shelf. As he sputtered in pain I shoved the tooth into his back twice, killing him.
It was only Gregg and me now. He turned and ran for the mass of people. He kept looking over his shoulder at me as I gained. It was too late when he ran into a fist. The mountain of a man I had seen earlier smashed him on his back in the snow.
Gregg was trying to get up when he started pleading.
“Please don't, I got kids. I will help you finish in the top ninety. I can guarantee it! We are a big group. When we get out I can give you all sorts of money!”
No longer running I walked up to him with a purpose. I ignored his words. The first hit went to his right leg. Crack. Then his left leg. Snap. The screams made my ears ring but I didn't care. With his legs broken, I looked him dead into the eyes.
“I am going to kill your friends too.” It came out so calm it even scared me a little. Never knew I could be so cold blooded. All it took was having my future ripped away, and then attacked on a frozen wasteland.
With a great overhead swing, the man named Gregg died. His brains splattered, melting the snow covered ice with a slight steam. He was unrecognizable now.
“T
hanks for knocking him down. Do you know where his friends ran off too?” I asked the mountain of a man.
“We let them in the group then I threw them in the ice water. Seemed fair. I am Alvard, you safe with us now. Man who told them to grab you also drowning in ice water. Here I fix shoulder.” His accent and English were rough. Maybe he was from a Russian Federation planet.
“Here take this. Please don't hit me with it, I have had a really bad few days.” I said as I handed Alvard my hip bone cudgel. I was putting my trust in this man but I felt he wasn't my enemy. He set the weapon to the side and proceeded to yank my shoulder back in its socket.
We walked toward the end of the peninsula as the people with the slowest start. Survivors at the back of this deadly race.
I saw the flowing water and the large glacial platforms drift by. I watched others easily transition from the fixed land to the floating massed platforms and then to the next section of fixed land. The pushing, kicking, and murdering, in general, had stopped and calm had settled. That is when I noticed the man I thought I recognized from earlier beside me.
“Do I know you?” I asked him. He tilted his head at the question.
“No we never met,” he replied.
That is when it dawned on me. He was in the pictures with Daniel in his locker. This was Daniel's former lover.
What kind of crazy odds was this? Was he here because of me or was he here because he had lost everything too?
The second I let it show I knew who he was he charged me. His arms wrapped around me and drove us both toward the water. We made a large splash as the two of us sunk into the icy depths.
I wish I could ask him why, or about anything, but my body was in shock from the cold and I was sinking fast. This was it. Fuck, this week sucked. With that final thought, I died.
∞∞∞
I awoke with a gasp. Clear slimy fluid flew from my mouth as I coughed.
I was so tired of waking up in unknown places. Wait... I had died.
“Easy now. Take your time sitting up. You are still wired into the cryo pod.” A smooth woman's voice said.
