The Playground (Book #1)

thirteen

When I awake, I am still in The Safehouse, lying next to my team. They all lay awake, looking groggily at their surroundings. "What are we still doing here?" Raveena says. "I guess our next game starts right here," Opal replies. "Good morning testers." The computer voice booms. "You may be confused as to why you are not in a new location. That is because we have reached the final game: Recess is over. The goal fo this game is to simply reach your assigned package in the center square by the clock bear." I remember seeing the giant golden stuffed bear when we first arrived in The Playground. A large clock was attached to its belly. "During this time, all of the game's opponents will be unleashed as this final analysis of your perfect behavior. You have an hour to collect yourselves before the game begins, so use this time wisely. Remember no matter where you are when the game begins, you must be in your Safehouses once the time ends or be immediately eliminated, as this is where every tester will begin his or her game. We will alert you when the gameplay is near." "So, we have an hour!"Raveena says. "Does that mean you'll be ghost hunting, Laelia?"She disappears into the kitchen.  It was clear that she hadn't come around since last night and would be absolutely no help to retrieving the body. I know Oliver and Opal were on board. But as for Basil... I look over at him. He has gotten up from the bed and now is leaning against the wall, his golden hair hitting his eyelashes. He knows I'm looking at him and he knows what I'm gonna ask. I walk over to him, my palms sweaty. I can feel him getting tenser as I approach. When I stop walking, I am just inches away from his face. "Basil," I whisper. Very slowly, his eyes meet mine. They say a million things at once. I hear Raveena coming back and his eyes flicker upward to look at her and then back at me. "I can't Laelia." He says. "I'm sorry." Then he walks away. "Guess, we better get going then," Oliver says loudly, walking over to me. He puts a hand on my shoulder. "Opal and I are ready." 

We pack up our bags, bringing our water bottles, some leftover food, and our weapons. We tell Raveena and Basil we'll be back as soon as we can. They don't listen to us. We venture out of the grassy field, going further and further away from the Safehouse. Opal leads the way looking at her map, having for the shortest way to the icy forest. "The beach isn't even on the map." She says to Oliver and I. "In fact, it says there's nothing beyond the forest according. It's the borderline of The Playground."  "It must be hidden," I say. "And Ruby is the only one able to find it." "And how do we find her?" Opal asks. "Don't worry about that Opal," I say. "You don't find Ruby, she comes to you." We start our trek up the grassy hills, filled with rainbows. Unusually, the walk is pleasant. There is something about not having Basil or Raveena around that lifts so much edge. "It's sort of cool" Oliver says to me. "Hmm?" I say. "The Playground." I furrow my brow. "I don't think I'd use that word to describe it," I say. He laughs. "It sounds bad but just look. Look around you. I mean, the multi-colored sky, the cotton candy trees, the castles, those giant toys! It's like an entirely different planet. I mean it's horrible. Definitely horrible. But, if Dolls are just humans in disguise, it's interesting to see the types of things humans can create. It's awesome actually. I mean think of the technology they had to come up with. I mean they have bad intentions, but boy people intelligent!" "You're interesting you know, Mr.Oliver Lake," I say. "Oh? How so?" He replies amused, a smirk appearing on his face. "You're quite the chatterbox," I say laughing. He laughs back. "Oh really?" He says. "Yes. But also, you're not like the rest of them. Basil, Raveena," and then I add quietly, "even Opal." "You say what you feel and you don't feel like you need to answer to anyone." "Is that a good thing?" He asks shyly. "I like to believe it is," I say looking away from him. "I think it's a very good thing," I say. "I'm very flattered." He says doing a slight bow. I laugh again. We continue up the hill. 

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The forest is pure ice. It's colder than it was just a day ago. There is more frost, more flurries, more bareness. It is as if it has anticipated our return and that we know what secrets lay beyond its thick brush. It's as if it heightened its security added more snow. "We're here alright," Opal says. "But where's Ruby?" We stand huddled, looking around for any signs of life. I remember this forest was completely dead of animals or anything Playground-like for that matter. "Should we call out to her?" Oliver asks. "No, don't," I say. "She's here. I can feel it." The breeze begins to pick up and we lower our heads and shield our eyes away, listening to the howl of the wind. Ruby, please. I think. Ruby, we need you. Suddenly, I feel Oliver shake my shoulders. "Laelia! Laelia look!" He says. I open and my eyes and there she stands right in the center of all of us. We jump back stunned. "Laelia!" Ruby says happily. She reaches her arms out and hugs me tight. "You came for me." She says. I detach from her and kneel down, just as I did with Pleoine before I left for the train. "Ruby. We need your help." I say. "I know what you're here for." She replies. "But you must act quickly." I nod. "This way." She takes my hand. Oliver and Opal trail behind. The trees slowly become less thick and the cold slowly fades away and before I know it, all four of us are standing right back on that grassy cliff overlooking the beach. The Grave. The stench is even stronger than before. "Ruby, how did all these get here?" I ask. "The Enchantment brings them after an execution," Ruby says.  "They bury them within the essence and use them to feed the monsters." "You mean there are more graves at other facilities?" Opal says. "Yes." Rubys replies. "How did you find this place?" Oliver asks. "I can do a lot of things humans can't do." "What are you if you aren't human?" I ask her. "I don't know. When I was created, they only told me my mission and gave me my abilities. I report back to them every day." "Wait, wait, wait. Creators? Are you some sort of robot?" Oliver asks. Ruby shakes her head. "I've said too much." She says. "Here's your corpse." It takes everything in me not to vomit again. Fortunately, there is still enough of Peter left to tell it is him. "How do we salvage the body?" Oliver asks. "I have something!" Ruby says excitedly. She pulls out something from her pocket. It's a silver disk. "It's like a small, magic backpack!" The child says excitedly. "It can download anything in real life and preserve it through code. And once you push this button," She says pointing to the darker gray circle in the middle, "it reconstructs itself and appears out of thin air." "That's not possible," Opal says. "My creators made it," Ruby says shrugging. "They can make anything." "Alright, let's use it!" I say. Ruby nods and hands me the disc. "It's called a transport. We use it all the time back at--" She stops herself. "Too much." She says. I hold the transport over Peter's body and press the button. Immediately the body transports into the disc. "Amazing," Opal says. "Easier than I thought," Oliver says. "Yeah," I say. "Ruby that was---" But then I look around and realize that Ruby is gone.