The Ring

Part 2: ....And again!

Luke sat comfortably in the victor's chair.

"So," Garret said enthusiastically. "That was incredible!"

Luke turned to the crowd and smiled. "Well, what'd you think?"

The audience went wild. A few booed, but Luke ignored them.

Garret grinned brightly at Luke. "What was your original plan at the start, Luke?"

"I had no plan," Luke laughed. "I was sure I'd die first."

Garret forced a friendly chuckle. "That somehow worked well for you!"

Luke nodded.

"So how does it feel to be sitting here, not a single scar, while your opponents are in the hospital?"

"Uhm," Luke glanced at the audience. "I feel extremely healthy and lucky."

Garret's expression became more serious as he nodded. "So there's some terrible news, it seems the doctors weren't able to bring back one of the contestants."

Luke's face grew pale. Silently he prayed it wasn't Raven. "W-who?"

"Colton Ross."

Luke swallowed. "That's terrible."

"Did you know him?"

"Not very well..." Luke fidgeted with his pant leg. "But he seemed like a nice guy."

"Well, death has to be expected in The Ring." Garret's face grew very sorrowful. Luke wondered what he was thinking about. "On a happier note, you will not be participating in another round of The Ring."

Luke raised his eyebrows. "That's wonderful."

"Instead," Garret continued. "Your classmates will be in round two."

Charlie's eyes flickered open. She was in a white hospital room, comfortably tucked into a bed. There was a quiet beeping, and the rustle of nurses moving around.

"She's awake," One nurse spoke.

They all rushed over to her and peered at her face. Charlie felt very uncomfortable.

"So uh, what are my permanent injuries?"

One nurse shook her head. "None. Though most of the blood in your body isn't yours now."

Charlie found this a bit disturbing, but she knew she was lucky. "Thank you."

None of the nurses seemed relieved or happy for her recovery. They all looked at her with worried and mournful expressions. Charlie was about to ask what was wrong when they all dispersed and got back to work.

1 week later

Kirk was the first to show up backstage. People were moving around onstage, setting up chairs for everyone. Kirk sat in a small, wooden seat and stared at his hands. His skin was still raw and pink, but better than when he first woke. There were quiet footsteps and Kirk jolted up out of his chair. Charlie stood, looking surprisingly healthy. She seemed to read Kirk's mind for she lifted her sleeve to show an ugly scar on her shoulder. Kirk frowned and sat back down.

Soon everyone filed in, all looking beaten and bruised. When Kirk's eyes found Taylor, he saw he was glaring at him. Taylor lifted a robotic arm and Kirk felt a pang of guilt. He had caused that wound. Kirk looked away before Taylor could do a rude hand gesture.

Kirk peered through the curtains and saw Mr. Ross stride onto the stage and stop in front of a camera. "Hello America! Welcome back to your favorite show," He then winked at the camera, making Kirk shudder with disgust. "As you all know, we recently had The Ring for pure entertainment. Because you loved the contestants so much, we brought them back so you can see them here today! Now America, please welcome your favorite Ring tributes!" Mr. Ross walked off the stage, and the high schoolers walked on; the crowd went crazy.