Morgan Rice: Arena Two

I think that maybe he lost his grip and I can get away. I immediately plunge out of the water, reaching up and grabbing the rope again. But before I can go far, I once again feel his tentacles, wrapping like ice around my calves. It is then that I realize that he never let me go – that this is just the evil nature of this creature. It likes to play with its prey before killing it, like a shark playing with a seal.

As I feel it yanking me, I have a feeling that this time I will go down for good.

Before I go down, I look straight up, and as I do, I see Ben standing there, on the edge of the cave, arrow pointed down, seemingly right at me. Is he going to kill me? Is he going to spare me from a painful death? I almost wish he would. I’d rather die by his arrow than by the creature’s awful teeth.

Yes , I will him silently. Do it. Please.

He releases, and I watch the arrow sail through the air. I brace myself.

But it doesn’t hit me.

Instead, I hear a horrific screech, and turn to see it lodge inside the creature’s open mouth.

It is a perfect hit. The creature momentarily lets its tentacles go, and I quickly scurry up the rope, faster than ever; I’m soon dozens of feet high, away from the water.

The monster reaches up again, his tentacles reaching up – but they fall just a few inches short of me. It screeches out in agony and frustration.

I continue to climb, and in moments I reach the cave, Ben and Bree and Charlie standing there, waiting to greet me, to pull me to safety. I am a good fifty feet high, above the water. The creature flails below, but can’t get near us. I can’t believe it. I made it.

I bend over and breathe hard, my legs burning from where the creature touched them. I feel like I can’t catch my breath.

“Are you okay?” Ben asked.

I am. And I’ve never been so grateful to my life. He saved my life.

I hear the crowd booing, jeering, heckling. I look up and see the disapproval on the leader’s face, on all of their faces. We have outwitted them. We have found safe harbor inside an arena where we were not supposed to. This is not how they wanted it to turn out. They are not happy.

We’ve lost Logan, and Flo, but there are still four of us left. And these sick people are still not satisfied. They want us all dead.

But none of us are stupid enough to climb that rope again. They would only cut it, and send us dropping back into the water. So we stay here, in our little cave, safe, out of harm’s way.

The leader suddenly steps forward and the crowd silences.

“Raise the waters!” he screams.

The crowd cheers, and my heart drops as I see the water level begin to rise again. The sea monster surfaces, eager to get its new food, as it rises closer and closer to us.

My heart fills with panic, and I can see the panic on Bree and Charlie’s and Ben’s faces, too. Soon, the monster will be at our level, and will kill us all. We are out of options.

Then, I get an idea. It is risky, but so is being alive. If I’m going to save the others, and myself, it is now or never.

So without thinking, I step forward, pull out the spear mounted to my back, hold it out in front of me with both hands, and step out onto the edge of the cliff. I look down: the monster rises slowly, getting closer and closer. It shrieks.

“What are you doing?” Ben screams out. Then he must realize. “That’s suicide!”

“Brooke,” Bree screams. “Don’t!”

But it is too late. There’s no more time for thinking. Only for action.

I leap off the edge of the cliff, holding the spear out before me, pointed down, with both hands. I hurl through the air, to the wild cheers of the crowd.

I raise my spear high, with both hands, over my head, and aim right for the monster’s one eye. As I get closer, the monster rises, right for me, its tentacles squirming, its mouth open, its large one eye looking right at me.

And that is what I aim for. That single eye.

As I go hurling down full speed, I am the spear perfectly. It lodges right in the center and I drive it down, all the way to the hilt, deep into the monster’s eye.

It shrieks an unearthly shriek, and the world shakes.

I plunge into the water, and the creature plunges down on top of me, its weight pulling me down. I can’t tell if it’s alive, or if it’s just its weight dragging me down, and as I plunge deeper into the blackness, I still don’t know if I am dead or alive.

I slowly open my eyes, wondering if I’m dead or alive. My head is killing me, feels like it weighs a million pounds, and as I look all around, blinking, I struggle to figure out where I am.

I spot Bree sitting beside me, Charlie by her side, and Ben beside him. We are in some sort of cell, but it is different than the cave. It is a small metal cell, protected by metal bars, leading to an outside tunnel. It is just the four of us in here.

I wonder if I’m awake or dreaming, until Bree suddenly sits up and looks at me.

“Brooke?” she asks.

She leans over and gives me a huge hug. My head is splitting, but I still try to hug her back. Charlie runs over and hugs me, too. Ben kneels down, looks at me, and places a gentle hand on my face.

“You’re alive,” he says with relief.

He leans in and kisses me on the forehead, and despite everything, I am electrified by the feel of his lips on my skin.

He looks at me with such love, as do the others, and I realize, finally, that I’m alive. We made it.

“What happened?” I ask.

“You killed the monster,” Charlie says.

“And then you passed out, under the water, and Ben dove down and saved you.”

“When the monster died, they called the game,” Ben says. “They ushered us all away, to this new cell. I think no one’s ever killed it before. I think they’re trying to figure out what to do with us. I don’t think they could’ve killed us right there, in front of everyone. I think the crowd wanted more.”

I sit up, rubbing my head, trying to remember. I remember jumping off the cave, stabbing the monster, plunging underwater…but then nothing.

“You’re very brave,” Ben says.

“How long have I been here?” I ask.

“You’ve been out for hours. It’s nighttime now. They brought us to this new cell. I think something different is happening. I don’t know what. But I think we really pissed some people off.”

I hear the distant sound of a metal door opening, then slamming. There’s the sound of dozens of marching boots, and we all sit up and look.

Several slaverunners appear. They open our cell door, and standing in the center is their leader. He’s taller and bigger up close, a shoulder length above all the others, and wears a long green cape. He is holding something, and I am amazed to see what it is.

“Penelope!” Bree screams.

She squirms and barks in his hands, trying to get away; but the leader holds her tight against his chest with an iron grip, practically suffocating her.

“This is your dog,” he says to her, in a deep, twisted voice. “Or should I say, was . It’s our property now.”

Penelope whines, and I can see the disappointment on Bree’s face.

The leader turns to me, and his smile drops to a frown.

“You have defied me,” he says. “I’ve never seen anyone do what you have done. You have made a fool of me in front of all my people.”

I swallow, wondering what’s in store for us. I pray there are no more arenas. My body can’t take another day.

“But vengeance will be mine,” he continues. “Tomorrow, I will have the four of you publicly executed, on top of our highest knoll, for everyone to see. We will send a message to all the others who try to defy our rules.”