A Game Of Pawns

Chapter 23

For a short time, a part of me was angry. Angry at the game for forcing us to do this to each other. But also angry at Saris and at Demi. I felt like they hadn't prepared me for this. I had been with them for what felt like a long time, even if it had only been a few days. It wasn't that they hadn't told me that I would have to kill to survive here, it was that they never told me how much it would affect me. It was that they never made me get it over with. They killed others for me, so I wouldn't have to. Selfishly, I silently scolded them for it. But after my head cleared and my tears slowed, I realized the truth. What they did had been a blessing for me. They saved me for as long as they could. They tried to keep me as innocent as possible for as long as possible. I still couldn't bring myself to speak, but I silently thanked them for it and hoped that they would know how much it meant to me.

I don't know how long I was there, crying on a desk with Demi's arms around me. When the tears stopped coming, I just sat there, my chest and face tingling and my head pounding. Demi was saying something but I couldn't hear her. My brain refused to process what she said. She gently poked my arm and I pulled myself out of my stupor, turning to meet her blue eyes, which were wide with concern. She repeated what she had said and this time I heard it clearly. The counter had gone down. I could sense it too. The game was somehow telling us that we were one of two teams remaining. It was a strong feeling of finality. A single thought latched to the back of my mind; it was us and them. No one else stood in our way. They were the last team.

"We have to go," Demi said urgently, standing and gently pulling my arm to get me to my feet. "I'm sorry, but we can't stay here."

She was right. We were sure that Zack's team had put Anne here. Even if Zack didn't know about it, the archer would and they would come here. It was just a matter of time. I nodded, took a deep breath and allowed her to pull me to my feet. We exited the small office, then we peered outside from the main lobby area. No one was there yet, so we ran.

I was surprised how close to the graveyard we were. I could see it from the first cross-street we passed. Demi must have ran in circles to try and get out of sight. I suppose Zack would have caught us if Demi hadn't been able to give him the runaround, especially in the condition I had been in.

We needed somewhere safe to go to formulate a plan. I also wanted a safe place to finish processing what I did to Anne; I still wasn't ready to just move on after what had happened. I was doing better, but my mind still raced and latched onto everything that wasn't what I had done; what I never thought I'd do. I kept coming back to the training house that Saris and I stayed at. Things were simpler back then and I missed the talks and advice Saris gave me. Then I remembered something that I thought was strange about the game.

"Demi," my voice was scratchy and it was hard to speak. I cleared my throat and continued, "where are the borders?" Saris once told me that the game had borders and if you go past them, you end up on the opposite side of the game, like a Pacman map; or at least, that's how I envisioned it.

Demi thought for a moment. "I think it's just past the graveyard, why?"

I didn't offer an explanation, I just said, "Let's go," and grabbed her hand, leading her towards the graveyard and glancing in all directions for a sign of the other team. She followed me without another word. We passed the graveyard and continued to run, finding the edge of the downtown area, where the streets became wider and there were fewer buildings and more grass and trees. However, the further we went, the less we saw the trees and grass and it began to change. It felt like my eyes were playing tricks on me. Several times, I had wondered if one building or another had been there all along until I realized where we were. We were at Bingo's Pizza. I looked behind me and saw the familiar roads that I had walked past every week. It was strange how everything looked so familiar after seeming so alien, but now that I knew where I was, I knew where to go.