New: Worlds

New: Worlds (Chapter 5)

Chapter 5: The start of the maze

The referee had allowed us to sleep in a larger version of a hotel room. It was much like a hotel room, except there were five beds. There was a green screen behind the large glass window, and a remote that changed what it was. One second it was a tranquil rainforest, and the next it was New York City on a Friday night. The closets were filled with silk sleepwear that were the same color as our uniforms that we were given. We assumed that the one with our color on it was ours. There even was a mini refrigerator that was fully stocked with food. We chose our beds, and crashed right in. "Do you think this is a trap?" Ellie asked out loud. Every stopped what they were doing. "Definitely," I admitted. "I mean, some crazy guy in a suit asks us to play a game show just to get where we want to go? I bet he's the reason most people don't come back."

"I agree. It doesn't sound very good. And I know that most humans don't come back. But guys, we aren't humans. We're superhumans. We have qualities that the rest of the world doesn't. Connor and I have super strength. Ellie has the ability to control water with her bare hands, and Clay and Allison have fire powers. I'm not sure we can come back alive. But I'm positive that we can go at least 10% farther than anyone else has. So let's just get some sleep, and we'll see what comes tomorrow." And on that final note from Bri, everyone fell asleep.

When I had woken up, I had found that I was once again in my uniform from yesterday. I was the first to wake up, I noticed, since my sister and my three friends were asleep in recliners next to me. I got up and walked around a bit. There was an old-fashioned chandelier hanging from the ceiling, which was quite low. It was dimly lit, so that my friends could sleep. I looked around the room, hoping to find some sort of exit. If this was the challenge, then where was the man in the suit? Finally, I had managed o find the wall. The light wasn't bright enough to illuminate the walls, so I had to feel my way towards it. I found a round small object attached to the wall, which I assumed was a doorknob. I turned it and the light pierced my eyes. I was temporarily blinded. When my vision had cleared, I discovered that there was an arena. It was a combat arena; the kind they use in gladiator movies, where they put warriors in an arena and let loose monsters that are hiding behind metal gates for them to fight. But there was no noise. No growling or eerie monster noises. I closed the door of the room behind me as quietly as I could. I approached one of the gates cautiously. It was basically a round arena with two gigantic cages. The insides were too dark to identify if there was even anything living in there. "What are you doing?" I heard a voice say behind me. Connor almost scared the crap out of me. "I don't really know. I was just checking things out before we got started, to see if I could get any information about the next test.. What about you? Why are you up?"

"I heard you get up, and I followed you. I don't know if it's obvious or not but-"

"You don't trust me." I finished for him.

"Basically, yeah. Look man, I know you're my girlfriend's brother and all, but I can't help but think that you're still with the enemy."

"I won't blame you for thinking that. If I were you, I wouldn't trust me either. But I just want you to know that deep inside my darkened heart, there is a little light. And plus, the Skull man taught me something. If there's one thing I value, it's my life. I'm not going to kill myself just so he can be happy. A free rider like me rides alone. He doesn't lean on anyone for help."

"You were a free rider?" he asked me, quite surprised.

"Well, before I met Allison, I was left at an orphanage. I remember that it was so awful; I would run away every single day to random places, just so I could get away from there. I didn't have a family, so I used girls to fill the hole that I didn't even know I felt. It didn't work though. It just wasn't the same. But now that I have something to protect, and someone who will protect me back, I'm a new Clay. So you can thank Allison for that. I'm just glad she'll be in good hands when I'm not around."

"Wow. I'm sorry, I didn't know. And thanks. I'll take care of her. I would never do anything or let anything hurt her," Connor assured me. He patted me on the back and turned away. "I'll go wake up the girls."

"The last challenge is a maze. If you can survive this, you are free and clear to do what you want in the fortress in the middle. But just so you know, if you go down in that maze, you stay down. You can't come back. There are two different paths to take. There will be some times where the paths will actually cross. If this happens, you guys can complete the maze together that's up to you."

"What are you saying? The fact that we CAN complete the maze together," Ellie asked.

"You'll be divided into two groups: boys vs. girls. One of those paths has 3 obstacles in it. The other has 5 obstacles. The girls can pick their tunnel first. The boys have to take whatever's left. The two paths will eventually cross and then split once more. At that point, both teams can decide whether to combine or not. You are allowed to turn around and reroute, but you are not allowed back at the starting line. Once you enter, the gates will close and you are stuck in there. The only hope of you leaving alive is finding the fortress in the maze. I hardly think that you'll survive five minutes of this challenge."

I took advantage of that. "Well, then. Since you're so confident we won't live, I guess you won't mind telling us where our friend is being held prisoner."

"Oh, I don't mind. The prisoners are usually on sub-level 50. Good luck finding her though. I've heard rumors that he only thing worse than this maze is the prison hall."

"Thanks," I said half-heartedly. We stood with perfect posture in front of the two gates. The gates creaked open, and we were staring at two holes of darkness. This could quite possibly be our last glimpse of the sun. I took a deep breath. "We'll take the right path," Ellie decided after a while. "Then I guess Clay and I will go to the left. Good luck, Allison," he said, swallowing hard. My sister ran into his arms. I gave Bri and Ellie a hug, and then it was Allison's turn. "Please don't die on me. Please," she whispered in my ear. "I'll try. We're invincible remember?" I whispered back.

Despite the fact that the man knew we were entering a dark cave of despair, he didn't provide us with a single flashlight. Much less, a match kit. So, obviously, I was the human torch of the boys' team. According to my phone, it was only five minutes into the game, and it felt like we had been walking for five years. "Connor," I said, breaking the silence between us. "This is a trap, isn't it?"

"Definitely. Didn't that guy say this was a maze? If this was a maze and our path is just a straight line, shouldn't the girls have crossed our path by now? We've been walking for a while. Keep your eyes out."

"I have an idea. Stand back," I warned him as I hurled a fireball down the tunnel. There was nothing there. There wasn't even a turn or a split in the path. It was just one long dark hallway.

"Can we stop for a second, Connor? I didn't fully recharge before we got here, and I'm running a little low on fire energy. Do you mind?"

"Not really. Besides, I didn't sleep that well last night. I could use a break too."

As soon as I put myself out, there was a slight breeze in the tunnel. I heard weird noises from Connor. It was like he was suffocating, and he couldn't breathe. I flashed back on and he was doubled over on his knees. He was clutching the back of his neck. When he removed his hand, it was stained with blood. He looked up, and his eyes started changing colors rapidly. "Clay! Run!" he gasped. I didn't need to be told twice. I ran down the tunnels as fast as my legs could take me. I skidded to a halt when I saw someone in front of me. It was a guy with extremely dark skin, but then again, it could just be the lighting. I tried running in the opposite direction, but he had a strong grip on my shoulders. He didn't do anything though. He just made me stand there, facing the direction we had come from, with his hands squeezing my arms to death. There was a blur, and all of a sudden, Connor was in front of me. "Connor? What the HELL are you doing? Why are you so fast?" His eyes were shut tight, like they were hurting. When he opened them, they were red. It was like blood had infiltrated his irises, and caused them to change color. His eyes looked more sunken in. I could tell he was struggling. It looked as if he was being forced to do something that he really didn't want to do. But then he stopped struggling. He looked at me like I was a treasure. There was a flurry of punches and I was slammed onto the wall of the tunnel. "Connor, stop it okay? This isn't funny anymore. You can take off the contacts," I said, hoping that it was all some sort of practical joke. He was breathing heavily now. His hand was on my chest, pressing me against the wall. There was a sharp pain on my neck, and the venom spread.