Have you ever thought about how long 90 seconds really is? A minute and a half. A minute and a half stood between me and impending death.

“You have 90 seconds to hide” the masked man said as he paced before all us kneeling figures that at one point could have been people. Men. “If you are found, you die where you stand. Last one discovered will be released.”

And that’s the ultimate goal, isn’t it? Freedom. But freedom always comes at a steep price.

The cull happened every year and everyone in the prison knew what it could mean. 12 men from the death camp were always chosen. 12 men to hunt. One man to be saved.

The choices were always random, a fucked up lottery meant to give all of us a false hope. 12 white balls in a sack of hundreds of red ones. 11 death sentences carried out. One man free. That’s the hope, really. To be that one man when odds are stacked so high against you you might as well just off yourself with a rusty nail if you were lucky enough to find one. That would be to much of a mercy in this place. But it’s there. That slim possibility that you will be the chosen one among 12 who will die in increasingly gruesome ways.

Unfortunately, at this years cull, I drew the last white ball. It was a sinking feeling in the pit of my stomach when I held it in my dirty hand. Stark white contrasted in the dingy light of the prison. They give you no time to think, no time to prepare. A shove to your knees and the ominous warning.

Only one of us will survive this.

I can only hope it’s me.

"What are you doing here!" Avery hissed.

"I was here to-"

"Mija?" A demanding voice came from downstairs.

"Quick!" Avery hissed, her eyes widened, "You have ninety seconds to hide. If you are found, you die!"

Alex gave a playful grin, not sharing the same urgency as Avery's, "I didn't know I was dealing with criminals!"

"Alex!"

"Alright! Alright!"

He darted for the closet and was greeted by an ultimate fashion fiasco. Clothes slid off the hangers, landing on him like a fabric Avalanche. Boxes tumbled in an excellent attempt to recreate Jumanji. The hangers clashed against each other as if to applaud the chaotic show. Hang on a sec- WERE THOSE POCKET KNIVES?

"Mija are you up there?" The footsteps grew closer with every second, loud and ominous.

There was no way he could squeeze in there without being skewered.

"Below the bed, hurry!" Avery bit her lip.

He dove for the bed like he had never before... and an army of dust bunnies awaited his arrival, prepared to charge. He stifled a sneeze and held his breath, praying his dusty companions didn't betray him.

"If I survive this, I am so gonna teach you decluttering!"

The door opened revealing a tall figure. Playing Hide and Seek was never scarier.

“Ah, mama!” Avery’s voice was filled with mock surprise, “Didn’t hear you… hehe…”

Mrs. Fernandez stood at the door. Despite the chill running up his spine, he felt warmth in her deep eyes. A warmth almost welcoming.

“I called for you many times.” Mrs. Fernandez’s voice was firm, but not unkind. “Were you on those headphones again?”

“Sorry Mama…”

Alex cautiously slid back, he heart pounding. He doubted the warmth in her eyes would remain the moment she laid eyes on him. Also, there were good chances he’d be toasted alive if the gaze turned hot.

Something hit his elbow. He froze. Slowly, he turned to his side, careful not to make a sound in his cave of unknown horrors. The carpet rubbed against him, sending another generous wave of dust. He wrinkled his nose, and held back another sneeze.

Something poked him in his ribs. It took all the power of them universe to stifle his yelp.

He wondered how many more artifacts he’d find if he lead an excavation team under Avery’s bed.

“Okay, but don’t stay up too late.” Mrs. Fernandez instructed. “Good night”

“Good night, mama…”

The door closed. Avery’s feet neared the bed and the mattress above him creaked faintly. She let out a huge sigh before calling out to him.

“Come out now, you idiot_. _I swear, you almost gave me a heart-attack" she grumbled, her voice still recovering from the close call.

Alex wriggled out, covered in a generous amount of dust."Had I been down there any longer, I would've witness a dust bunnie propose somebody!"

He looked up at Avery sending a heated glare in his direction. The bandage over her nose crinkled.

"What?"

"What What?" Avery got off the bed, dangerously tall over him, "You just sneaked into my room!"

Alex scrambled up to his feet. He wasn't looking forward to his funeral under Avery's bed, his grave laden with dust, instead of flowers of course.

"Relax..." Alex walked to her desk, "forgot to take my earpods from our last night's movie"

"Where did you leave them?" Avery said in a low voice, with an edge of annoyance.

"I remember leaving them at the table..." He pulled open a drawer runmaging through the items.

"Could've just texted me, ya know?"

"C'mon, where's the fun in that?" Alex grinned. "And what's with those pocket knives in your closet?"

"Those are my dad's. He let me have them." Avery glared, "Wanna see how they work?"

Alex gulped, picturing the words YEAH! carved on his tombstone under her bed. "Yeah, no. I'm good."

Her lips cracked into a grin, her facade falling off.

"Aha!" Alex raised his EarPods like a WorldCup Trophy.

"Alright, now get outta here before my mom decides to check up on me again."

"Aye aye, Captain!" He slipped his EarPods in his pockets and gave Avery a mock salute before retreating back to her window.

"You seriously took the ladder?" Avery shook her head in disbelief as Alex flung his one leg over the window. The cold air outside whooshed last them.

"It was laying around in the backyard."

And with that, Avery watched him disappear into the night before collapsing onto her bed, letting out a relieved sigh.

,

[Viewer Reading Discretion Advised]

(Due to Sexual Themes, Adult Language, Drug usage, Adult themes, Violence,and Trigger warning)

Nessa (Venessa Jones) 21

Lily (Lana Jones) 19

Cole (Collin Smith) 21

Zaz (Zavier Roberts) 20

Nicky ( Nicole Peterson) 22

Esme (Ethan Peterson) 18

Max (Markus Salomon) 23

Izzy (Isabella Salomon) 18

Harley (Quinzel Myers) 19

Chase (Chase Wetzel) 20

Chad (Chad Wetzel) 20

Madie (Madaline Rodriguez) 19

Kar (Karsyn Rodriguez) 17

Aaron (Aaron Ortiz) 28

Ships -

Max / Lily -

Cole / Nicky -

Zaz / Madie -

Esme / Harley -

Nessa / Izzy -

• Cole -

“Nessa and Izzy have been in there so long” Lily grumbled.

“Guess they found some things they liked” Nicky giggled.

“Or they not just changing” Cole laughed.

“Ok, enough. I don’t need to be privy to my younger sisters sex life.” Max grumbled, standing up and stretching a bit. “Didn’t you want to check out the book store?”

Lily nearly leaped off the benches following after Max. Who just waved as they started into the crowd. Cole just sighed and gave Nicky’s neck a cocky glance.

“Yeah, Casanova” She laughed. “Did all that and I didn’t even get to enjoy the best part” She whispered.

“Ohhh really. What’s that?” He played dumb and wrapped his arm around her.

“Gawd. Why is all this couple crap so cute with you?” She groaned. “This is totally not me anymore. You’ve turned me into some horny highschool love sick teenage girl.”

“I don’t hear any complaints” Cole snickered, and kissed her cheek.

“Enough of the cuteness” She growled at him in nothing more then a whisper. “If your not planning on dicking me down just say that”

“Ohhh is somebody upset” Cole laughed.

“Yessss I am upset. You did something nobodies ever done and then just haven’t touched me since” Nicky gave him a glare.

“Dear that was litterally yesterday” Cole mused, sliding his hand over to her back. “But if you need a release that bad”

“Ohhh now it’s only because I want it” Nicky grumbled. “Fine. Let’s go do something to get my mind off it then”

Without another word she was off the bench and heading into the crowd. It took Cole a few seconds before he even jumped up off the bench. “This girl.” He scowled chasing after her.

• Lily -

Max and Lily bumped elbows with so many people trying to fight through to the book store. Something about a new book going on sale. Of course it was another romance story so the line was mostly women. Once inside they just shuffled through the long line, dodging the few security people trying to keep the line intact and seperate from the normal traffic. Which they were failing miserably at.

“Lord. Do this many people need to be in line?” Max groaned, pushing out into the open with Lily holding his arm behind.

“Yes, actually” A sassy male voice called from where they’d just slipped past. “We’ve been waiting forever for this book.”

“What book?” Lily asked with a curious glance. “I’m looking for a few new books?”

“A few” Max chuckled. “You’ll probably end up with at least ten new ones”

“It’s a vampire love story between two girls. One is a vampire and the other is a human girl.” The sassy guy added.

“It’s better then twilight!!” A few of the girls behind him shouted.

“Well, thanks.” Lily gave them a quick wave and huddled back into Max’s arms. “Must be a good book. They seem to be a cult following.”

“For sure” Max grumbled holding her tight, headed toward the dark romance section.

• Cole -

“Do you really need to pee that bad?” Nicky just giggled pulling him straight towards the family bathroom.

“Yes. You can just turn around while I go” Nicky kept pulling him.

“I’ve literally had it in my mouth? And you want me to turn around”

“Shush. I don’t wanna be watched” Nicky stopped him just before the door. As a mother and two toddlers came bursting out. “But I also don’t want nobody trying to steal my man”

Cole giggled a bit rubbing his face. “So I’m your man now?”

“Just get in here” Nicky pulled him by the arm and closed the door. “Now face the door!”

With a grumble he just turned around and watched the grey door. Listening as she quickly undressed and sat down.

“Cover your ears!” She groaned and he did as she asked, shaking his head.

A few minutes went by and she had to have finished he thought. But he didn’t move until he felt an arm on his back. Going to turn around her hands pushed him to the door.

“I’m in charge now” She whispered into his ear, licking the edges.

“Is that right?” He questioned but didn’t turn around.

“Yes” She groaned, biting the top of his ear. Before he could react she had her hand into his shorts fishing around.

“Nicky come on” He tried to be mad but she’d gripped her mark.

“You sound mad” She coed. “You can’t be mad. Not when I’m servicing you like this” She continued to stroke it, freeing it completely as Cole groaned.

“People are gonna want to use this” He grumbled.

“Don’t you want to use this?” She giggled slyly pulling him around to unveil her nakedness. All her clothes were pilled on top of the changing table. There she stood, fully nude for the first time.

The stripes of darker colors running right to left across her body against her white milky skin made Cole grin. “My little tigress” He coed. She just turned around giving him a full view of her backside.

Which he quickly gripped up first across her hips. Then tracing a few of the marks up her back. Grabbing her neck and pulling her mouth to his. Searching every surface of her body for what made it tick. Looking at her naked form in the mirror that hung above the sink.

“I’m a big scary tiger” Nicky gave a trying roar and made her fingers into claw like paws.

“Then I’m a trainer” Cole growled into her ear pinning her body against the sink. Grabbing her breasts roughly and rolling them in his hands, tweaking a nipple at a time. Causing a few gasping breathes to escape.

“I want you so much” She coed. “Just take me”

“I don’t have to take what’s already mine” He chuckled, dropping down behind her. Spreading her knee up onto the sink and diving in from behind.

“No don’t” She groaned, moaning as his lips met hers.

Licking and sucking around her love tunnel, smacking her back side two or three times. Hard enough to leave his hand print and make her grunt. Her face contorted completely into the pleasure. Yet he just laughed a little bit, not giving in. Still licking her as she blasted the sink with her juices.

“Just please….” Nicky groaned, her hair a mess. “Fuck me”

“Fine” Cole grinned, standing up after slapping her backside hard. “Maybe. I’ll wait to you beg?” Another hard slap came down onto her red butt.

“Please…. I beg you to fuck me..” Before the word “fuck” came out of her mouth, Cole was buried in her from point to hilt. “Wait!”

“What babe?” Cole questioned, stopping his thrusts instantly.

“Did you bring a condom?” She questioned and he sighed.

“I didn’t expect you to wanna fuck in a mall bathroom” He laughed a little thinking about how crazy his summer was becoming.

“Well I’m not on the pill… The guys always brought condoms….” Nicky answered honestly and Cole tried not to imagine it.

“I’ll pull out” He grumbled, reaching around her body and rubbing her nub. At the same time her started to push back into her.

A few moans, another huge body quaking squirt into the sink. Now he was actually balls deep in her, pounding her with all his strength. Trying hard not to cum. Lost completely to the sheer enjoyment of the whole experience it came without warning. His pace had quickened, she’d gotten a better grip on the sink. So he was going much deeper now.

“Fuck” She groaned out, but nothing but a few convulsions followed.

“I can’t take it anymore” He growled into her ear.

“Fuck it. Cum for me” She moaned and like a gun preset to the sound of her voice it went off. Deep inside her instead of pulling out. “Oh shit”.

• Madie -

Zaz reached her just as his two boys took point at his side. Both of them blocking the girls from being able to retreat anywhere except to Zaz. Madie couldn’t believe this. There’s no way for them to get out of this.

“Kar it’s been a while pretty. Heard you two found a nice little spot.” Aaron chuckled a bit, and stuck out his hand in a finger gun stance. Aiming it straight at Zaz chest as he stopped.

“Get away from them!” Zaz huffed, quickly motioning for the girls to get behind him.

“I wouldn’t cause a scene. Especially not in this day and age. Phones come out so quickly.” The man to the right chuckled.

“What do you want?” Madie questioned standing next to Zaz now, clearly out of breathe.

“I hadn’t realized how much I missed that voluptuous body of yours” Aaron stared at her, past undressing her with his eyes. He was Superman looking through her clothes, knowing what was underneath.

“Well keep missing it” Zaz growled, eyes completely locked in a death stare with the man who’d hardly glanced at him since the finger guns.

“Touch guy eh” The guy to the left laughed. “Probably a cool football player out of a small town”

“Your drowning and don’t even know it yet boy” Aaron spoke but didn’t take his eyes off Madie. “Madeline. I have thought about you every single day since your departure”

“You traded her away” Kar hissed. “For money. After you beat and abused her”

“Your not quite at the age where you should butt into grown folks business” The man to his right mumbled. “Maybe you should mind your tongue”

“I despise you Aaron….” Madie said hardly able to get the words out.

“Well that maybe the case. Yet here we are” Away with the finger gun and now spreading his arms wide in a yawn. “I tire of these games. Let’s go girls”

“They aren’t going anywhere with you” Zaz was nearly a pit bull foaming at the mouth, ready to strike at any second.

“That’s where your wrong” The left guy laughed. “You might have muscles and be able to fight in your pond back home boy. But this here is our part of the ocean and the sharks are ready to frenzie”

“What’s going on?” Cole’s voice called behind them but nobody turned.

The standoff was already set. Yet these three guys didn’t budge at all. Each of them nonchalantly standing there as if they controlled the world.

“You guys ok?” Nicky chimed in but seeing how startled Esme and Harley looked this wasn’t a good situation.

“Oh look. More of the merry bunch of popular kids” The guy on the right teased and did a little prissy prance.

“I know you don’t have anything. So just come with use and let these nice people go back to their lives” Aaron put his hand over his head for a second. “This is starting to bore me”

“Who are they” Zaz hissed under his breathe.

“Technically her ex and his goons” Kar answered from behind them. “They are trouble”

“Fight me then” Zaz challenged.

Aaron just sighed. “Your a wet behind the ears college boy. Get on with your vacation and act like you never seen the rift raft” The left guy warned.

“Zaz?” Max and Lily stepped out of the bookstore behind the goons.

“Oh great. More of them” The left one hissed.

“It matters not. People go missing all the time” The right guy added in but Max was stalking towards them, tossing the two bags at Lilly.

“Fighting would draw a crowd kid. Cops. Your pretty little friends here would be sent back southward” A gleaming smile crossed his features. “Your up this time though. Way to many people here to witness the events.” Aaron raised his right hand again, pointing a single finger gun at him.

“See we aren’t without mercy” The right man laughed and his black rotten teeth showed.

“You have ninety seconds to run and hide. A head start. When we find you though” He just made a shooting noise with his mouth like a cap gun, cocking his fingers back for each shot. “I’d get going if I were you. Madie. I’ll have you face down soon enough” An evil chuckled sent chills across her body.

“Tick, tick” The right guy said looking at his skin like a watch was present.

Esme; Harley, and Kar started to head towards Max when the guy on the right took three big steps between them. Reaching into his armless jean jacket, suggestively grasping at something.

“I told you that you two may leave” Aaron shook his head, starting over towards the three girls. “I never said I’d let them go”

“No, you can’t…” Nicky started but took a step forward and Cole quickly shielded her.

“I want you all to know I don’t make idle threats. So you should start moving” Aaron was standing in front of his new girls, as he reached out and slid his hand across Esme’s cheek. Thumb lightly grazing her lips. “Your the cutest of them all”

“Get your hands off my sister!” Nicky was fighting hard to get past Cole.

“This isn’t the place…” Cole was trying hard to reason with her. “We don’t know there’s guys…”

“I’d get going” The guy on the left shows them all away with a wave of their hands.

“Nice meeting you all” Aaron gave them a sly grin, walking the girls away.

“Your just going to let them go” Nicky was slamming her fists against Cole’s chest, as hard as she could.

“We don’t have a choice” Max’s head dropped as he looked at Zaz and Madie. “I told you this was a bad idea”

“We will get them back” Zaz started, but Nicky was now free. The slap echoed through the mall floors like a gunshot.

Madie didn’t even wince at the pain of it. Every part of her knowing it was her fault. And now two other innocent girls have been thrown into the fire with the lions.

• Nessa -

Izzy and her were retreating out of the store with the newly acquired goods when the noise of a slap echoed across the floor above them. Across the middle gap they could see three sketchy looking men pushing the three girls away from everyone else. While the boys stood by and did nothing.

Nicky had just open palmed slapped Madie in the middle of the mall. Without even a wince from her.

“What is going on?” Izzy shouted as her and Nessa started around the bend. Pushing through the large pockets of people. Nearly knocking over a few groups that had been moving to slow.

“This is all your fault!” Nicky sobbed into Cole’s arms as he held her tightly. Trying not to cause to much more of a scene.

“I know….” Madie just looked over at Zaz. “We didn’t belong here…. You should have let us be…. Now he’s got Kar”

“And Harley” Lily added in, tucked away in Max’s arms.

“Don’t forget Esme” Nicky sobbed.

“What the hell just happened?” Nessa asked crazy eyed as her and Izzy leaped up the last flight of steps.

“We need to get out of here” Zaz interjected, starting to motion everyone near the entrance they had used.

“I’m not leaving without them” Nicky hissed straight at Madie.

“He won’t hurt them…. Not yet….” Madie couldn’t even look at anyone.

“How do you know that asshole!” Nessa howled, grabbing Madie by her arms and getting into her face. “We need to know all of it now”

“Nessa your gonna make it worse” Max was behind her now.

“What if it was Izzy….. What if it where Lily….” Nessa was turned around and squared up to Max. “If those girls get hurt….. if even a hair is out of place…. It’s on you two” She pointed at Zaz and Madie. Right before she stormed off towards the rv grabbing Nicky by her arm.

“This isn’t gonna end well” Zaz sighed.

“Maybe next time you’ll listen….” Max huffed and followed Izzy and Lily behind Nessa.

“What were we supposed to do?” Zaz was in Max’s face now. “We don’t know for sure but we aren’t stupid…. We seen the way they get used…. Seen what those kinds of people do to pretty girls….”

“Zaz” Cole started to step in but Max pushed him back.

“I can’t just stand around and do nothing” Zaz yelled into his face and right after, Max’s fist connected to the side of Zaz’s face. Yet he hardly even moved an inch, just shook it off and spit a bit of blood to the ground. “I’m not you….”

“Fine…. Don’t be me…” Max huffed but the second punch hit him square in the chest, but Zaz still didn’t faulter.

“Max!” Izzy had turned around now and was rushing back.

“You got something to say Zaz! Spit it out!” Max raised his arms, muscles hardly able to contain themselves as his shirt stretched to the max.

“If you did something…. She’d still be here…. I wasn’t going to do nothing” Now a few tears had started to fall down his face. “You could’ve done something…. Anything…. At least I’m trying…”

“By getting three other girls put into the same kind of positions?” Max yelled but stopped when he started to see the crowd forming, a few people were already recording.

“We need to go” Madie grabbed Zaz by his arm and started to carry him away.

“That was fucked up….” Cole just shook his head.

You have ninety seconds to hide if you are found you die good luck the man in all black said oh my where did I come from ow where are we wait one minute what sister where did you go sissy sissy help omg sister there you are I was worried about you yeah same with me and did you hear the scary man come on let’s go hide ok uhm behind the table oh and one more thing the scary man said you get 3 lives come on the timer is almost up sissy just hide here ok fine then the man looked around one two three four I see someone and one more he lifted the table cloth you were found you now have 2 lives ok next round now you can only hide in high places uh come on sissy in the tree look ok since I choose last time you can we can do that they went in the tree clearly obvious five six seven eight I see 2 people hiding not great you were found 1 life left if I find you you and your sister will die ok last round hide anywhere ok I’m going to hide best place here in this secret door they hid and nine ten I see you again haha they were found a guard showed up no please my name is April Kenner and I was born on December 17th please don’t kill me the guard took her sister first and took me last ahhhhhhhh April come hereee what mom I’m playing a video game it’s dinner

“You have ninety seconds to hide. If you are found you will surely die. Good luck.”

Whispers echo through the Great Hall of Odyssey Castle.

“It’s just a game.”

“What if they’re serious?”

“What do we do?”

Eros grabs my hand and we run.

“We’ve already wasted thirty seconds. We need to move.”

‘Eros…”

I start, fear starting to crawl into my mind. He looks at me sadly and kisses me swiftly. Tears start to run down my face.

“Don’t dwell on on it, Cassiopeia. Come on.”

We run harder and faster. Thirty seconds.

‘We need to get out of here. We need to get back to the village.

“To do what? What are we going to do? They have our names in a record. They’ll find us either way. There’s nothing for us to do but die!”

Eros whirls on me and I slam into him.

“Listen to me. You’re not going to die. I’m going to get you out of here.”

Confusion swirls in my head like a dense fog. Something about his words don’t make sense but I can’t figure them out. The only thing functioning in my mind is the time. Fifteen seconds, time is running out. We start to run again. We zig and zag around the castle. Slowly making our way up. Five seconds. Panting we open a door and enter a bedroom. Four seconds. Eros looks wildly around. Three.

“Darn. They said they would be here already!”

What? What does he mean. He look desperate and I can’t understand it. Two seconds, one. Then the screams begin. High, bloodcurdling screams of doomed kids. I look at Eros, expecting him to have a plan. But for the first time ever, I see that Eros is scared.

“Jump.”

“What?”

“Jump out of the window, Cassiopeia!” He screams.

“I’m not doing that.”

“The moat is directly below the window. They’re almost here.”

“Who’s almost here? What is going on? Why are you scared? Why won’t you talk to me?”

He looks at me and kisses me again.

“Just know that I truly loved you, Cass.”

The door to the room bangs open.

“Well, well. The two rebel lovebirds. Eros it was a mistake to drag her into this.”

Eros straightens his shoulders.

“What I do or don’t do is none of your business”

“How about I kill the girl first. That way you can watch her bleed to death but you can’t do anything. Maybe I’lleven make you live. That’s ay you can remember her pain, her screams, her crys for you.”

“Don’t you touch her.”

The man laughs cruelly.

“Not much you can do about it, champ.”

Eros turns to me and I stare at him in fear.

“I love you.”

Then he shoves me out the window. I scream as I freefall towards the moat. I stare at the window and the last thing I see before I hit the water is Eros falling after me. I emerge from the water, coughing and spitting. Eros climbs out after me.

“That was close. Let’s go.”

We run towards the forest but seconds after we hear shouts.

“There they are!”

“After them!”

“Come on! A victory for King Theron!”

We run but they catch up to us easily.

“Run. RUN!”

Eros shoves me away from him and I start to run away. After a few yards I turn and look. I see Eros’s face and then one of the men spears him in the stomach. The they all start laughing.

“NO!”

They turn towards me and treat thundering after me. I stand in the clearing, anger clouding my vision, all I can see is Eros’s lifeless face. They surround me and regard me curiously.

“Why isn’t she running?”

“She’s too scared.”

I calll out in a voice not my own.

“My name is Cassiopeia, queen of the ancients. You have displeased me.”

“You have ninety seconds to hide. If you are found, you die. Good luck.”

—

The person stands in the room, hands clenched and ready…. To absolutely cry.

“NINETY SECONDSSSSS!!!! WHERE AM I SUPPOSED TO HIDE WITH THAT TIME!”

They look around, “IM IN A BLANK ROOM! THERES LITERALLY NOTHING HERE!”

They just run around in circles, “AHGDGAHGAHHAH IM GONNA DIEEEE!”

Then something grabs their ankles. “HA WHAT THE FACK- HAHEHRVSKFNEKS- BE GONE! BE GONE!”

Someone pops out from the walls, “Hide here.”

“AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH.”

The poor guy gets snatched and pulled into the walls. Then the timer ends and all goes silent…

—— No clue what this is hehehe What are yall doing for yalls holidays!!!! I am driving to New York right now and then we are going to Connecticut!

A sunburst of pain radiated across Myrtle’s right temple. There was a sound like an announcement maybe barking overhead but her ears were too clogged to make out the words she cracked one eyelid open and the dark world spun. Then she heard the voice again.

“Wake up whore. You have 90 seconds to run and hide. I find you, you die,” the voice from up above said.

Drawing a deep steadying breath, Myrtle closed her eyes. The voice had been digitally altered like something from a bad horror movie. The unsub was attempting to racthet up her fear but he was also hiding himself. The profiler said the suspect was insecure. Good, she thought, let him suffer.

Starting from the top of her head and moving to the cold soles of her feet, she checked her body for injuries. There was a hematoma on her right temple but no broken skin. Her nose had bled heavily and the trail of snot and blood on her right cheek was still tacky. Her sluggish brain did some quick calculations. The weapon was as they had predicted from the previous three cases was a bolt gun at low speed, hard enough to render a victim unconscious but not fatal. She had only been on her right side for twenty minutes. but there was some blood in her hair so she had been carried as well. So carried, placed in a hover, dumped here. But where?

The last thing she remembered was walking up Rooster. Most sex work was regulated and the workers, mostly Androids owned by their brothels, procured in licensed heavily taxed sex shops in the Eros District. But there were always freaks who wanted a cheap good time or something outside the law. Barn work, the illegal human prostitution, flourished on the edges of Eros and most recently so did a serial killer. It started when one of the night duty cops changed her monitor wake screen to a missing person flyer image as a joke. The victim, Tabitha Dominga, was my dead ringer. She didn’t laugh and it really didn’t sit well with my partner Benj.

During his charging hours he started investigating missing person cases and complaints of physical attacks in the red light district. The attacks, shots from a bolt gun and thrown rocks, were on dark-skinned brunettes. After hacking into Universal Health, Benj found an uptick in visits to urgent care facilities near St. Jude’s Mission in Eros. He must have done something because a few days later Det. Charles Chalmers of Vice showed up in Robbery/Homicide asking to borrow Myrtle for hooker bait. Myrtle insisted on adding Benj to the team.

“I said get up whore. You have 90 seconds to run or else!”

The voice was closer now and unaltered. Creep was hiding nearby. Myrtle did a languid stretch. Bright and green, blades of grass scratched her arms. She was laying on hard packed soil and grass, real grass. Think stupid brain, she thought. There was no real grass in all of West Martian City. She had to be kilometers from Eros. Slowly Myrtle sat up. Her ribs screamed in pain. Bastard must have kicked her. From the corner of her eye she spyed a suspicious shadow among the synth-trees. Myrtle wiggled her toes into the dirt. Damn fucker lost my stilettos.

A shadow disentangled from the plastic forest. Clad in hunter garb with chameleon face paint, the unsub walked towards her holding an old school boxcutter. He was approximately 170 centimeters tall and soft in the middle with large outraged blue eyes. He reminded Myrtle of a kid playing soldier or cowboy, a twisted kid at dressup. Sucking her teeth in disgust, Myrtle her back on him to scan the forest. The killer waved his blade at her. She could feel Benj’s eyes on her. The suspect stepped closer. The air moved from the flailing blade. A furious grey blur, Benj crashing out of the trees to get to her, broke the tree line to her left. Spinning despite the pain, Myrtle kicked the killer in his chest. He tumbled backwards and Benj was on him. There was a crunch of bone and the killer’s scream.

“Or else, asshole."

The Hunger Games: The Game of Shadows

The sun had barely crested over the horizon, casting a golden glow over the arena. The trees loomed tall, their branches reaching out like skeletal hands, their leaves rustling in a wind that whispered warnings. The sound of distant birds was drowned out by the booming voice of Claudius Templesmith, the Capitol's voice of the Games.

"Welcome, tributes," he intoned, his voice smooth and controlled. "The Games are about to begin, but first, a new challenge. This time, survival depends not on your strength or skill with weapons, but on your ability to vanish, to blend into the shadows. You have ninety seconds to hide. If you are found, you perish. Good luck."

A sickening silence fell over the arena. The tributes stood frozen, some wide-eyed, others with clenched fists, knowing the odds were not in their favor. This was no ordinary day in the Games. This was the Capitol’s twisted version of a hunt, and the prey were them.

In the distance, the blaring noise of the countdown began. It echoed through the arena, a constant reminder of the inevitability of what was to come.

Ninety seconds.

The tributes scattered, their feet crunching against the dry leaves as they darted for cover. The forest was dense, the ground uneven, but they didn’t have time to worry about anything but survival. The sound of hurried breathing filled the air as some tributes sought shelter in hollowed trees, others crawled under thick shrubs, and a few dashed toward rocks or the barely visible cliffside.

Finnick Odair, the victor from District 4, moved with the grace of someone who had mastered the art of stealth in the arena. He dove behind a cluster of bushes, slipping into a crouch and trying to steady his breathing. His mind raced. Ninety seconds didn’t seem long enough, yet it felt like a lifetime. Would they hear his heartbeat thundering against his ribs? He forced himself to remain perfectly still.

Sixty seconds.

A few tributes had already begun to panic. They were running, desperate, looking for any place to hide. One girl, a tribute from District 7, dove behind a rock—only to be caught by the hovering hovercraft that had already begun scanning for movement. A single spotlight illuminated her, and the unmistakable sound of an electric shot rang out.

"One down," Claudius Templesmith's voice echoed, a cruel laugh following the announcement.

The clock continued to tick. The tributes, too afraid to speak, held their breath. Some glanced over at their competitors, searching for any signs of movement. Their senses heightened, every small noise seemed to reverberate through the trees, and the fear of being hunted grew with every passing second.

Thirty seconds.

Katniss Everdeen, the girl on fire, moved quickly, slipping behind a thick oak. Her heart pounded in her chest, but she knew she had to remain calm. The Games had taught her many things, but most of all, she had learned that the Capitol’s true power wasn’t in the weapons they gave the tributes, but in their ability to control everything—including the fear.

She didn’t think about Peeta, or Gale, or anything other than the fact that she had to survive. The Capitol was watching. She had to play their game, but on her terms.

Ten seconds.

Her eyes darted from side to side. She could hear a tribute, maybe from District 10, breathing heavily in the bushes nearby. Then the voice of Claudius Templesmith once more.

"Time’s up."

The silence that followed was deafening. Then the sound of the hovercrafts was unmistakable as they zoomed across the sky. The Capitol's games were only just beginning.

The tributes knew they wouldn’t have long before the next part of the hunt would begin. And whoever wasn’t prepared would become prey.

snows voice rings out in an eerily calm way "May the odds be ever in your favor"

Gary laughed awkwardly, looking around at the strange collection of people from all walks of life. He did not recognize anyone, nor did he remember how he got there. An Asian man nearby spoke to him in a launguage Gary didn’t recognize. He heard a dark skinned woman call out in Spanish, but he couldn’t understand what she said.

Then, a platform raised from the ground with a lone figure standing on it. This figure carried several large knifes, an oversized hunting rifle and a few pistols with ammunition scattered around the platform. It wore a mask that was made of metal with two slits for eyes that were too narrow to see into.

The announcement was made in English, but Gary could see everyone in the crowds eyes widen when the platform raised. There was a moment of silence before chaos broke out. People ran from the city square screaming and ducking into alleys along the deserted city streets that Gary didn’t recognize.

Taking off in a random direction, he darted around a few corners and put the most distance between himself and the armed figure as possible. When he figured roughly forty-five seconds had elapsed, Gary ducked into a building along the street and ran up a flight of stairs. Ducking into an office that had the door slightly ajar, Gary heard the distant crack of gunshots and knew the ninety seconds was up.

When the gunshots died down, Gary could hear his heart beat as if a drum were being playing behind his ears. His breath was ragged and heavy, but it was otherwise silent. Until the screaming started.

It sounded uncomfortably close, as if the terrified people screaming we’re all around Gary. Panic gripped him as he covered his ears and closed his eyes, then the gunshots shook the building. The large rifle fired rapidly and the screams grew louder. Groans of agony filled the air, and then several voices fell silent.

Gary muttered to himself incoherently, unable to move or think. He gasped and ducked under a desk that completely ubstructed him from view as the door to the office creaked open. Shaking, Gary managed to lay on the floor and peek under the side of the desk to see the entire room ahead of him.

The Asian man and Hispanic woman Gary had seen earlier crept into the room. Their eyes were wide as they scanned the room and tip-toed across the floor. Suddenly, a blood curdling horrific cry escaped their lips as they turned around.

Several gunshots shook the room and pierced Gary’s ears. Holding his hands to his head, Gary managed to muffled a groan by biting his own arm. Moments later, he saw a pair of combat boots March across the room from the opposite direction from where he was facing. They stopped briefly over the two people that now laid motionless on the cold marble floor, fired one more shot into each of them, and continued through the open door the pair had entered through.

Choking back a scream, Gary started sobbing. He stared at the pile of splayed limbed and wide eyes that sat on the floor in front of him. “Who could do that to someone?” he thought to himself as he lay shaking on the hard floor motionless. Unable to move or look away, Gary just laid there sobbing until he drifted into an uneasy slumber.

Waking with a jolt, Gary cried out in alarm. He held his hands up in protection, but there was no one with him. He was no longer on the floor of the office building either. He looked around, hoping that everything that he rememebered was a terrible dream. Promising to never play Call of Duty again, he scanned his surroundings.

He was in a bed, but it was not his own. Rather, it appeared to be in an underground room with a single lightbulb hanging from the carved rock ceiling over a dirt floor. However, Gary couldn’t see the entire room, only a narrow band in front of himself as if he were wearing blinders.

As Gary turned to look around the room more, pain shot through his head, which felt heavy and stiff. Reaching up to his face, Gary felt a cold metallic mask that was secured to his head with a lightweight helmet. He couldn’t see it, but he imagined that he knew exactly what it looked like and gasped as his mind processed what he was seeing.

Stumbling out of the bed, he shuffled across the room to a metal platform that resembled an industrial elevator. It was littered with guns, stacks of ammunition, knives, swords, axes and armor. There was even a set of combat boots that triggered horrific memories of before Gary fell asleep.

“You have 90 seconds to prepare, seeker. If you do not kill 50 people, you die. Good luck,” a robotic voice blared out of a metal speaker on the platform. Gary’s shoulders slumped as he stared at the platform.

However, he jumped on the platform and began to strap on the boots and armor as a digital clock began to count down. He managed to pick up a large hunting rifle, shove two pistols into holsters in the armor and strap a few knives to himself before the platform started to raise slowly to ground level.

Staring at a crowd people from all walks of life, He did not recognize anyone. Several people shouted all at once in languages he couldn’t recognize. Then the screaming started as people ran and ducked into alleys in the same city he didn’t recognize. Gary’s heart dropped as he watched them scramble away from him through the metallic slits in his mask, realizing how easy it would be to start slaughtering them in their panicked state in 3… 2… 1…

Every twenty years the city of Stork held a tournament they have so named _Founed or Crowned. _It’s a moment set in time where Stork City held their breath and crossed fingers. Mothers prayed to their saints, fathers did what they could to aid contestants. Most people volunteered themselves for the prize—riches beyond anyone’s comprehension. One person in the 567 years of the wicked tournaments history, had actually won—an old fellow who goes by the name Arrow. Funny to think there were still those who believed they had any sort of chance at winning. However, as most stories went, there happened to always be that one person amongst many who did things for a more nobler reason.

Ebony Kelly did not sign up to die, though it felt much like it. She signed up for her family. Poor, they were, and the lack of _macs _provided a sense of boldness and desperation. If they were well sustained, the young lady wouldn’t feel the need to risk everything. But times had never been harsher on her family. Her youngest sister, Vivienne had passed a few months ago of a new sickness. Mother and father hadn’t possessed enough _mac _to pay for any sort of medicinal aid. Now, Ebony’s twin, Coreny, had just come down with the same illness.

It shouldn’t have been up to Ebony. She shouldn’t have had to take things into her own hands, but who else would have signed up? The eldest, her brother, Killian, had been drafted out last winter to join the resistance, to fight off enemy’s from the rival Ketrez City.

Once boys reached the age of seventeen, they had no choice. None of them even knew if he was stilling living—there was no way of knowing, only hoping the wings of Odealius, the saint of protection and strength, would carry him back to us, once his two years of service were paid.

Her parents wouldn’t do it. Mother had to provide food, and tend to her sister. Father was too much of a coward to enter. He had a job, but once one signs up, the Eyes—what the Storks called their government—sent the contestants family money every two weeks until the year of Found or Crowned_ _was over. Ebonys best guess was that father had heard great grandpas gruesome tales of when he had been in the tournament, and got scared away from being the man he was supposed to be. Yes, great grandpa Kelly had been the only victor reccorded in history. He was a legend, and maybe the fact father could never live up to him, made him the frightened man he was.

Sadly, great grandfather had foolishly spent all his _mac _dry on drink and other such things. He had been a young, sickly boy with a head full of death, blood, and merciless cruelty, because of the tournament, or at least, that was what mother had always said. Grandfather was better now, though it took losing great grandmother to set him back to his senses.

All of that to say, there had been no other option but Ebony. She hid it well, but she was so very afraid. She had nightmares every night about what it could be. Yes, she was prepared for anything and everthying to be against her, she was used to such things. But this was different. Ebony didnt know what Killian was dealing with in the lands between the two city’s, but everyone knew Found or Crowned was much worse, no mater how selfish it sounded.

Killian and the other men fought to keep citizens safe, to end years of violence between two city’s not so different from the other. Found or Crowned had no noble reason for existing, even if everyone got to choose whether or not they wanted to try their hand at victory. It was an environment set, supposedly for entertainment. It was the worst nigthmare imaginable, where people killed other people for the soul purpose of satisfying their greed.

And the whole thing was absolutely preposterous, as well. Sure, one might gain wealth, more _mac _than they could’ve gotten they’re hands on before. but not only were those very palms coated with gold, but also the blood and horror they bestowed on others. Fingers forever stained with the heartless, crimson fate thoughtlessly given to, at least, _some _innocent people that could’ve joined for the same reason as her. Fifteen-year-old Ebony didn’t see how such a thing could ever be considered _good. _

She dreaded the day when Miss Rosie Poursers voice would ring out through the whole city, her pinked lips and ashy white hair would appear on every single screen of Stork to speak such damned words. The one moment in time where the whole world seemed to pause, where the crystal clear air grew thicker and more deadly, as harmless individuals watched and listened. Rules would be explained, and then the Announcer, Rosie, would turn her attention to the contestants and utter the beginning of mosts ends, and only one persons glory:

“You have ninety seconds to hide. If you are found, you die. Good luck.”

Such poisonous words easily given with a sweet smile and bright expression. No amount of counterfeit pleasure or happiness would keep Ebony at ease. She wanted so badly to back out.

But she’d already written her name down as one of the thirty-seven players, willingly, stepping into a place not even her family attempted to persuade her from—Coreny would’ve, but she was too sickly to know what was going on around her.

In the end, it all came down to one thing—_me or them, _Ebony told herself.

And it surely wasn’t going to be them.