The Game Warden's Mate

by A. M. Griffin

  “It was a risk Osazo was willing to take.”

  But was it a risk Xrez wanted to bet his father’s legacy on?

  His father had died just before the new hunt commenced. Even as he and Chaeya were guiding Osazo’s spirit to the afterworld, the hunt went on as planned. His father’s presence wasn’t needed. Everyone who worked in The Hunt had a job to do, even if they were in mourning.

  The trackers delivered the potential prey, and the medical examiners conducted the necessary tests to determine if they were healthy enough to participate in the grueling physical requirements. If they were accepted, the trackers were paid their finder’s fee and sent on their way. If the prey wasn’t accepted, the trackers left with their prey in tow. None of this required Osazo’s presence or affirmation although he’d made sure to be there. He’d trusted the medical examiners to do the job they were paid exceedingly high to perform. He’d trusted the trackers to bring him the most viable prey they could find.

  Usually, there would be a mixed species of prey, providing a variety for the hunters. Some species were better adept to the rigors that lay ahead. All, even those species who didn’t make it to Level Two, were worthy of The Hunt. But humans? Xrez shook his head. What had Osazo been thinking to hedge an entire hunt on one species just because of one outlier?

  Humans came from a distant planet in the galaxy. They were backward and ignorant. As a Class ii species, they were still bound to their world and hadn’t the capacity for interstellar travel yet. They were so infantile that even traveling to their moon was a great feat. No wonder their planet was dangerously overpopulated. They were so primitive that they used genocide and fear to cull their population.

  Humans, they came in all different shapes and sizes. Some found this intriguing and appealing. They were so young in their evolution that they still divided themselves by looks and regions. They had not yet learned that everyone who lived on their planet belonged to one species, despite different appearances that were the result of nothing more than local anomalies.

  Advanced cultures learned that inherently there were no real differences between any one race within a species and began to interbreed. Over time it resulted in a homogenous race.

  The Okuthyu, a species that had three seats on the Vela CE-182 Galactic Federation of Planets, took great interest in the humans and their world. They protected them fearlessly, enacting rules with punishment of death if broken. Acquiring one human every twenty years or so wasn’t enough to raise suspicion or set the Okuthyu on The Hunt’s radar, but an entire hunt?

  The stakes were high.

  Xrez had to not only make sure that no one besides the most dedicated hunters knew the species of the prey, but he had to keep them all satisfied so they wouldn’t complain. Complaints usually made it back to the bureaucrats one-way or another. They were happy to turn a blind eye when the kickback benefited their accounts, but they wouldn’t shield Xrez if the Okuthyu or the Galactic Federation of Planets got involved.

  If this hunt failed, it wouldn’t be the first time. Osazo, as well as many game wardens before him, had often experimented with the games, trying to find new arenas and species that would entice the hunters to spend more credits and make The Hunt more profitable. But it was always assumed and proven that if a game warden made a mistake, by the next hunt, it was corrected.

  If this hunt failed, everyone would either believe it was because Osazo hadn’t been making sound decisions while battling his sickness or Xrez was not the game warden his father had been. The latter would leave everyone thinking Xrez would soon run the business into disrepair.

  Xrez couldn’t let his father’s reputation be ruined, and he couldn’t give a reason for the bureaucrats to abandon him. If that happened, it would ultimately result in the business that had been in his family for several thousand years to fail.

  No. This hunt wasn’t like any other. Xrez had to make sure that it was successful and the hunt thrived. The waiting list was filled for the next fourteen hunts. He couldn’t think of a better way to prove a success.

  Now all he had to do was keep the hunters happy, and there was one way to do that. Provide them with a stimulating hunt. One they would talk about for years to come. One they would tell their friends about.

  “Bradliix, has a game warden ever gone into the compound to assess the state of the game?”

  Bradliix tilted his head to the side in thought. “Your father did once. After he’d installed the new pumping system in one of the invertebrate arenas, we’d lost a few hunters and many prey in that section. He’d gone in to assess where the issues were and how to fix it.”

  Turolois was divided into gaming compounds specific to different species and within each were a multitude of arenas that kept both hunters and prey engaged. The four main compounds were segregated according to species types and oxygen requirements. There was a compound devoted to the invertebrates. They required either water or a moist atmosphere conducive to their gelatinous bodies.

  The vertebrate compound was for those who needed oxygen to breathe. It housed carbon-based life-forms, mostly bi-pedal species with backbones. The arthropods, those species with exoskeletons, segmented bodies or jointed limbs had a complex compound to cater to a wide range of species.

  Then there was the other compound for species who were ruthless and couldn’t be housed with the less aggressive lifeforms. The rules in that compound were almost non-existent. Both hunter and prey were allowed to kill and consume at will. That was also the only compound where prey participation was voluntary.

  “Really? I wasn’t aware he’d ever gone inside an arena before.”

  Bradliix straightened. “Oh, he was very involved in the day-to-day operations. But he only went in during an active hunt once. There’s a good reason why staff never go into The Hunt during active games. None of the prey had volunteered to be where they were and coming face-to-face with any of them would be a nice way for staff and especially a game warden to end up dead.”

  “Did he experience any difficulties?”

  “No. Osazo was in and out, but to hear him speak about it, Osazo had gone in for days and had encountered many different life-forms.”

  Xrez smiled. The only time his father was truly happy was when he talked about The Hunt. He could only imagine how excited Osazo had been. He wished he could’ve been there to witness it.

  “Did he find the problem?”

  Bradliix nodded. His jewelry made clinking noises again. “Oh, yes. It turned out the pumping system had been infected with gigamil parasites. Nasty things. We had to evacuate and treat all involved.”

  “And no one questioned why he’d gone into an active hunt?”

  “No. It was a life or death situation and quite necessary. I wanted to send in an engineer, but Osazo had wanted so badly to visit. We made him wear a water suit and gave him a headset and monitored him the entire time. The suit was for his protection, and the monitoring was so that we could have a record if his actions ever came into question. It was a way to maintain the integrity of The Hunt.”

  Xrez intertwined his fingers and placed them on the desk as he leaned forward. “But what if he had interfered by either helping a hunter acquire prey or helped a prey to escape? What then?”

  Bradliix, clearly growing uncomfortable, fidgeted with the jewelry around his wrist. His face held a pained expression. Bradliix was as devoted to The Hunt as Osazo had been.

  “It’s against the rules for anyone associated with the business to interfere. We could be accused of guiding The Hunt to benefit either the hunters or the prey. Either way, we would lose the trust we’ve built.”

  “I understand, Bradliix, but too much is riding on this hunt. If it fails…” Xrez shook his head.

  Bradliix slumped back in his seat. “I had worried about it as well, but every solution brought me back to the outcome. We lose our integrity.”

  Xrez watched the live feed again. His eyes instantly locked on the dark-haired female, studying, observing
her, and wondering why she’d caught his attention. Then he watched the others. They still meandered around, talking to one another. If it had been any other species, he wouldn’t be concerned. But they were human, and his worry ran deep.

  History had proven that humans didn’t fare well in the game. One successful female wouldn’t change that so easily. When humans were thrust into The Hunt, they shut down mentally and remained in a constant state of denial about where they were and what was expected of them. And even if they did decide to participate, they were often too weak and naïve to survive for any meaningful period.

  It took considerable amount of survival skills, ingenuity, cunning and wit to progress to either Level Two or Level Three. Prey captured in those levels were worth more as they could go on to become personal guards or mercenaries, they served in security details or even mated with dignitaries. Humans, well, they were often captured in Level One and used as pets.

  “I can’t leave this to chance, Bradliix.”

  “What will you do? Break the rules? What if it is found out? How would we explain your involvement?” Bradliix fired one question after the other as he wrung his hands together.

  “I’ve just taken over the business from my deceased father. It’s only expected that I’d want to go into The Hunt to make sure everything is running as it should.”

  Bradliix stopped wringing his hands. “And they will ask why you aren’t doing this between hunts.”

  Xrez tapped a claw against the armrest. “And I would tell them because my father did not wait between hunts to die.”

  “They will still talk.”

  “I know. That’s why I won’t announce this decision. I’ll enter the arena as a regular hunter. None of the other hunters should recognize me. It’s been a while since I’ve been in this sector and even longer since I’ve had any dealings with The Hunt’s business matters. I’ll leave it up to you to decide which staff should be made aware—if any, but only you will know the true reason for my participation.”

  Bradliix lowered his head and shook it. “Sir, I fear that you’ll sway the hunt in some way.”

  “My only purpose for going into the compound is to ensure this hunt isn’t a complete failure. If anything, my actions will provide a more satisfying game for the hunters.”

  Bradliix quirked an eyebrow. “And the humans?”

  “I’ll give them direction on how to progress forward. Whether the humans heed my advice will be up to them.”

  Chapter Five

  Esme slapped at the bright red bug that landed on her wrist then flicked it from her skin. “My luck and it was probably poisonous.”

  If she wanted to keep the bugs off her, she probably shouldn’t be sitting on the ground where she was more accessible. But there was only so much walking around that could be done under the bright as heck sun and blistering heat.

  Miranda sat next to Esme, with Lexi, Miranda’s daughter, sitting on the ground, banging her toys together. At hearing Esme’s mutterings, Miranda lifted Lexi from the ground and cradled her. “Poisonous? You think there are poisonous bugs out here?”

  Esme lifted her head to glance around. They hadn’t figured out where they were, but one thing was for sure, they were in some type of jungle. The sun beat down on them relentlessly during the day and the night didn’t bring much relief.

  The bugs were the worst. Creepy crawlies dropped from the trees, squirmed from the ground, buzzed all around them, and the things that slithered around gave her the willies. She was used to bugs and wildlife, but this was different. She didn’t recognize any of these animals or insects.

  “I can’t lie. I don’t doubt it. Just try to stay away from anything bright. That’s usually nature’s way of warning you off from messing with it.”

  Miranda opened her eyes wide with alarm. “Oh, Jesus. A little bright orange bug bit Adam this morning. Do you think he’s poisoned?”

  “Stay still,” Danny said.

  He was putting two French braids in Miranda’s hair. Who knew that a rock star knew how to braid, and braid well? He’d explained that he was the oldest and only boy in a family of six. Esme herself had one fat braid down the center of her head thanks to Danny.

  Both Esme and Miranda glanced to where Adam stood. Bless his little heart. He didn’t have a clue about the dangers around him. Miranda had explained they were on a camping trip with new friends and the four-year-old was having the time of his life helping Ben gather sticks to set animal traps.

  “Well, he’s not acting lethargic or sick, so he should be fine. Just keep an eye on him.”

  “How do you know about these things? I heard you telling Danny to stay away from those bushes over there earlier.”

  With no privacy and bathrooms, they’d all taken to handling their business as far away from camp as they could without getting shocked. Danny had taken to a bush with indigo and lilac leaves. It appeared pretty and inviting, but Esme didn’t like the look of the leaves and told him to pick another spot to wave his penis around.

  “I’m a biochemist,” Esme said. “I study how plants and animals interact with the human body. I work, well, used to work, for a pharmaceutical company helping to find new drugs. I doubt if I have a job to go back to now.” She was officially a no call, no show. Esme sighed. “If poison enters the bloodstream, it’ll act pretty fast to make you sick. A bug bite, if it doesn’t go too deep, will most likely result in some localized reaction such as swelling or itching.”

  “And the bushes?”

  “Oh, my dad taught me never to get too close to bushes or weeds where each stalk had three leaflets. It might be poison ivy.”

  “Thanks for looking out,” Danny said. “I want to keep anything that’ll make me break out in hives and blisters away from my wiener if at all possible.”

  “Thanks, Esme,” Miranda added. “I’ll have to keep Adam from touching anything like that.”

  “I don’t know if the same logic applies to this place, but it doesn’t hurt to be cautious.”

  Esme spit on the spot where she’d killed the bug and wiped away the last bit of guts with her shirt sleeve. When she finally got home, she was going to burn the caked in grime, wet from sweat blouse that had once been one of her favorites.

  Her eyes caught her wristband. Something was different. Hmm.

  She pulled her eyebrows together as she studied it. Instead of three solid lines next to the ever-changing characters, there were now only two. “Um, hey guys. Did anyone else notice that we’re missing a line on our wrist thingies?”

  The hustle and bustle of their make-shift camp ceased as everyone glanced down at the wristbands.

  “So what does it mean?” Esme’s stomach tightened. She’d already guessed the answer but wanted a second opinion.

  “I think the solid lines are counting down the days or something,” Danny said.

  “So not only are we counting down the minutes but days too?” Payton swore under her breath, and Jack whined.

  Miranda tapped her wristband. “The minutes here are a little longer than our standard minute on Earth though. It takes two minutes and thirty-six seconds for this wrist thing to cycle through all the characters and start over.” She lifted a shoulder and looked around the group with uncertainty. “I dunno. I mean, I could be wrong.”

  “Thanks for figuring this out, Miranda,” Ben said.

  Miranda acknowledged Ben with a nod.

  “So we have two days until…” Ben crossed his arms and widened his stance. Esme had begun to recognize that as his “I have bad news” stand.

  Esme looked up at Ben, shielding her eyes with her hand. The sun felt like it was scorching her retinas. “Until?”

  “Until we find out who brought us here and why.”

  Min hiccupped, then slapped a hand over her mouth, trying to stifle her whimper. Everyone had made a pact that no matter what, they wouldn’t alarm the kids.

  Ben held up both hands. “Right now we have to keep working. We have to be ready for whateve
r happens when there aren’t any more solid lines.”

  There were a few murmurings and muffled conversations. Esme’s mind swirled. Every lousy scenario she could think of popped into it. Her jaw tightened and her chest constricted. This was all surreal. One day she’d been sitting at work thinking how boring her life was and the next she was on an alien planet.

  Were they about to be attacked?

  Would they be eaten?

  Maybe forced to fight each other?

  Each new thought made her head pound harder.

  Miranda covered her eyes with the palm of her hands and whispered to herself. “Keep it together.”

  “That’s the spirit,” Danny said. He finished the last braid and secured it with one of the extra rubber bands Miranda had at the bottom of her purse.

  Esme pushed her fear aside and whispered to Miranda, “It’s going to be alright.”

  “Stop saying that, Esme. It’s not. At least not for me.”

  Miranda used her shoulder to wipe a tear off her cheek. She then glanced over to where Adam was trying to pick up another stick to put in his already full arms. He beamed when he finally got it and trotted to deliver them to Spencer. Spencer laughed when the sticks hit the ground in front of him.

  With time seeming to tick down, bringing them closer to an unknown fate, they’d resigned themselves to preparing for whatever was coming their way. As soon as they woke, Ben had assigned everyone a job, and no matter how much her stomach twisted at what might happen next, Esme had to sharpen the short sticks Adam gave her into make-shift daggers. Not everyone had a knife like Ben and Payton or pepper spray like Kaylin.

  “I’m the only one here with kids. Payton has a dog, but he’ll be able to fend for himself and protect her. Me? I’m alone with two kids. I couldn’t catch a break on Earth, and now I can’t catch one…” She glanced around then slumped. “Here.”

  Esme put a hand over Miranda’s shaking one. “We’re in this together. We’ll make sure you and the kids are alright.”