The DEATHMATCH

CHATER FOUR

Chapter 4

Elijah

I woke up in a purplish bed in a cramped room with only one small window on the side. I sat up, shaking the feelings of drowsiness that still lingered. I didn't know how long I was asleep, or even where I was.

Unlike any Maze Runner-like scenarios, I had more memories than just my first name. In fact, my full memory seemed to be intact, which was a delightful find.

I paced around the room, deciding what to do next. The view from the window was a wonderful sight of a crumbling brick wall across from me, and the door to exit the room had a strong metal lock on it. I stepped closer to examine it. It had a small slip of paper attached, and I bent down to read it.

BE CAREFUL. ONCE YOU EXIT THIS DOOR YOUR DECISIONS ARE FINALIZED. PREPARE FOR WHAT LIES AHEAD. – THE OPERATOR

My eyes widened. Now I had to break the door. I found a dresser in the corner, and I rummaged through its drawers. Nothing but dust. Same for the nightstand. The only thing in the entire room I could use was me. And so that I did, slamming my whole body weight of barely 105 LBs. into the wall. Not much was accomplished by that. I tried again. Still no luck. I sighed. My shoulders hurt already, and my head, even worse. I groaned, longing to escape but no clue how. But then I realized I had a dresser, and while it was empty, I still had a dresser.

"Ugh." I chided myself under my breath. How could I have been so stupid? I had more luck trying to drag it over there than smashing my puny body to pieces.

I hauled the giant thing over to the door, tipping it back so that it rested on its back feet. Then I pushed it with all my strength, and watched in amazement as the door splintered to pieces, allowing me to exit the room. I let out a hoot for joy as I ran out, fully unaware of what lie ahead.

The moment I exited, a tingling sensation ran through my body, starting at my feet and ending at my head, followed by a bright white flash of light that temporarily blinded me. I grimaced, opening my eyes. I instantly felt different, a lot heavier than I was earlier. I looked down and realized I had changed from my raggedy blue top into a black uniform with deep purple sleeves, a long wristband that went up to my forearm, and black boots with leggings. I wore a black backpack, similar to my last one but heavier. I was intrigued at what was inside. I brushed a stray piece of light brown hair behind my ear, stopping suddenly when I realized there was something behind it, a sort of gadget. I tapped it, and instantly a full dashboard of information and statistics popped up in my field of view. Could anyone else see it? At the top, it read Elijah , Lead Grappling Instructor. Below that, it had a list of other teammates that were registered, apparently out of their rooms already. It had several other options on the other side, a menu, pretty much. Schedule, Leaderboard, Messages, Private Messages, Announcements, Stats, Maps, Teammates Bio, and Instructions. I deactivated it, deciding to explore the facility I was in. But first, backpack. I took it off, sliding it over my shoulder. It must weigh about ten pounds or more. Inside was a pistol, a small knife, a retractable bow and several arrows, a flare, and a granola bar that expired two years ago. No wonder it was so difficult to lift, with all those weapons inside. I realized I didn't know how to use any of them, and that that might be an issue. A sudden blinging noise and vibration interrupted my train of thought. A little icon appeared on my wrist device, and I tapped its screen to view it. It displayed the same information as my headset, but had a tracker as well. I didn't know for what. Or who. There was one new announcement. All group members active. I guess that means everyone had come out.

There was a long and narrow hallway in front of my door, and as I walked through it I thought of how weird this situation was. I mean, I was at my tournament getting my butt kicked, then we went to get boba and... we wound up at the conference center? I realized I completely forgot whatever happened at the boba place. An empty slot. Like Maze Runner.