by A. Anders
When I hit the ground, the worst pain was the one that shot up my leg. It jolted me like a crack of lightning, but it passed just as quickly as it came.
I sat up immediately, making sure that I could. I looked through the fence. I had landed on the correct side. On the other, the panther’s yellow eyes were focused on me. Its tail swung intermittently like a cat did when annoyed. It wanted another shot at me.
“Not today,” I told the panther. It gave me one last glance before turning around and disappearing into the trees.
I took stock of my wounds. The blood from my right calf was soaking into my jeans. I tried to move my leg. It hurt, but I could.
My hands were another story. No matter what I did, I couldn’t move the thumb on my right hand. That was never a good sign. It usually meant that tendon had been severed.
I tried to make a grip with either hand. I couldn’t. That meant that I couldn’t wrap any of my bleeding wounds. The only thing I could do was press my hands to my shirt and hope I didn’t bleed to death.
Well, wasn’t I glad I went hiking today?
I struggled to stand and then walk. Most people would be surprised how quickly a person could get used to blinding pain. It was one of life’s little miracles.
When I first got up, my blinding pain was centered in my shredded calf. I found a tree branch that I could use as a crutch, and the pain shifted to hands. Variety is the spice of life or something, right?
On the very long walk back to camp, I can admit to having a few indecent fantasies about Pete. They involved me retrieving his magic dust in unorthodox ways. When I finally saw him waiting at the edge of the camp, scanning the darkness looking for me, I wondered if society could learn to accept our human/robot love, because it would have to.
After Pete gave me a few shots of magic dust, I collapsed onto the grass. The worse your injury, the more feel good juice you got. So, needless to say, I was very high. I could have lay there all night. It wasn’t long, though, before enough of my mental fog cleared for me to remember my plan.
I looked around, trying to figure out the time. It had to be dinner by now. Since there was a group date today, a cocktail party and an elimination would follow. I knew that missing the cocktail party could mean an immediate elimination, but I was starved. I had to get something to eat first.
It took about thirty minutes for all of my wounds to heal and for me to be able to walk again. Heading to my room, I changed out of the blood-soaked clothes and dressed for the party. I then hurried to the food line and dished up everything that the bots hadn’t cleared. I had never really enjoyed 3D printed food before now, but damn if it didn’t hit the spot tonight.
Already dressed, I headed past the pool to the cocktail party. When I got there, Rose was the first to notice me. I joined the group gathered around her, and when I did, none of the guys acknowledged me. Rose was the only one who even looked at me, and her body language told me that I needed to invite her for alone time immediately.
“Rose, can I steal you away for a little bit?” I asked.
“Man, didn’t you just get here?” Gray asked possessively.
“That’s okay,” Rose interjected. “I’d love to, Ford.”
I took Rose by the hand and led her to the largest waterfall. I was still hoping it would give us a little privacy.
Rose spoke first, “Where have you been?” she asked, concerned.
“I had a fight with a panther. No big deal.”
Rose looked at me, confused. “Is that slang for something?”
“No. There’s a fence that separates us from the jungle. Apparently, panthers can be territorial.”
“Are you okay?”
“Oh yeah. That wasn’t the first cat that wanted my throat, believe me.”
“So, you’re saying that your last relationship didn’t end well?” Rose asked with a wicked smile.
I paused to make sure that I heard her correctly. Playing it back in my mind, I was sure that I did. She was making a dirty joke. Damn did I like this girl. And man, did I want to kiss her for it.
I stared into her eyes about to lean in when her mood suddenly changed.
“The guys have been telling me stuff about you,” Rose said.
I shifted onto my heels. “What’s that?”
“That you’re bad news.”
“That I’m bad news? When did they tell you this? In the 1940s?”
Rose laughed. “You know what I’m saying. They’re telling me that you’re an asshole and that I shouldn’t trust you.”
“Let me guess, Gray’s telling you this?”
“It’s not just Gray. All of them are.”
I paused. I knew this could happen, but with a few other things on my mind, I hadn’t come up with a response.
“Am I missing something about you?” Rose asked with a forced smile.
I thought for a moment and realized that she was serious. She was considering eliminating me. I had to say whatever it took to save my life.
“No. I think it’s them that’s missing something. I think they’re jealous,” I said, grabbing at straws.
“Of what?”
“The connection we have.”
“Our connection? Are you saying that you like me?” Rose asked with a playful smile.
I felt the conversation shift, but I didn’t have time to think about how. I just had to say something to keep it going. But what?
“I think I’m falling for you,” I said.
And as soon as I said it, my heart raced. I started to panic. It was way too much, and it was way too close to the truth. I felt brutally exposed, worse than when the panther had ripped apart my leg. Everything in me screamed that something bad was about to happen.
I was wrong, though. Rose just looked at me with a hint of a smile that expanded until her eyes twinkled.
“I think I’m falling for you, too,” she replied.
When her gaze dipped from my eyes to my lips, I acted on instinct. I slipped my hand onto the small of her back, pulled her body to mine, and kissed her.
As soon as our lips touched, my racing heartbeat slowed down. My panic was gone. It was replaced by a warm pulse that rolled through me. It was then that I realized how easy it would be to fall in love with Rose. I could really love her.
When someone behind Rose cleared his throat, we slowly pulled away. Still lost in each other’s eyes, neither of us looked at Brad.
“Can I steal you way for a few moments?” he asked Rose.
Was his timing intentional? Had he seen us kissing and come to break us up? Rose had said that everyone had been bad mouthing me. Had Brad been one of them? Was he going to do the same now?
“Sure,” Rose said turning to Brad with a welcoming smile.
It was amazing to watch Rose shift her attention to Brad. Rose had the ability to make the person she was looking at feel like the most important person in the world. But when her attention left you, if left you wondering if the connection you felt with her was real.
I watched as Rose took Brad’s hand and walked away. I knew that that would be the last time I would speak to her before the rose ceremony. So I left and got a drink.
On my long hike back to camp, I had come up with a plan. As long as I wasn’t eliminated, by the end of the night, we would all find out what was going on, one way or another.
As we lined up for the ceremony, I tried to make eye contact with Rose. She was avoiding my gaze. That wasn’t good. As she started handing out roses, I began to believe that my time was finally up.
Brad was again the first to get a rose. Gray got one, and Bob, too. Even Buck-Naked Billy got one.
I counted the roses remaining. Only one person was being eliminated tonight, and the last two men without a rose were Spiritual Sam and me. I didn’t know how things had gone on his group date, but I had won mine.
Even so, my heart raced. With one rose in her hand, the silence dragged on. It was torturous. I was sweating, and then she finally said it.
“Ford, would you consider spending the rest of your life with me?”
Her words made me high with relief. I could have bent her over and kissed her right there. I didn’t, though. Instead, I walked up, graciously collected my rose, and then changed the direction of the game.
“I know what everyone here is thinking,” I said, turning to the guys with my rose in hand. “What’s gonna happen to Sam? Is that nut job, Ford, right? Is Sam gonna disappear and die?”
“I wasn’t wondering that,” Gray volunteered.
“I was,” Brad admitted to my surprise.
Rose touched me on the shoulder. “What are you doing?”
I softened my voice and turned to Rose. “I’m sorry, but Brad and I watched Freddy die. I know Thorin’s back. I’m not sure how, but clearly there’s no denying that. But I watched three people die after elimination. And I don’t think that Sam should go to the dock.”
“You think it’s the dock?” Brad asked behind me.
“What else could it be?” I replied.
Sam’s pawn pushed through, wanting to escort him away.
“I don’t think you should go,” I told Sam.
“Neither do I,” Brad added as he stepped forward and stood next to me.
I was touched. I didn’t think Brad had it in him. Wasn’t he all about self-interest? Or, did he sense a shift in power coming, and this was his way of ensuring that he was on the right side? Yeah, that sounded more like Brad.
“This is the biggest bunch of crap I ever heard,” Gray announced. “What more do you two want? You said that everyone who gets eliminated dies and then less than a minute later, Thorin walks up. Obviously, we don’t. This is a game show. Nothing more.”
With Brad behind me, I felt calm. “Are you gonna force Sam to do something that might kill him?”
Gray’s fire dimmed. “I’m not forcing him anywhere.”
“Good, then it’s up to him,” I concluded. I turned to Sam. “You know what I think. I think you should stay here. We’ll all stay in eyesight of each other and wait. If in two hours nothing has happened, then do what you want.”
“What if there is a boat coming for me?” Sam asked hesitantly.
“Then they’ll wait. If they leave, then you stay here for another day,” Brad said, finding his voice again.
“Can I do that?”
“Did you all get a set of rules that I didn’t?” I asked. “Because as far as I can tell, there are no rules.”
“What’s it going to be, Sam?” Brad pressed.
All eyes focused on Sam. His eyes dipped, searching for an answer. “Rose, what do you think?”
That was a good question. What did Rose think? Sam and I weren’t the only ones wondering. Everyone turned to see what she would say.
“I don’t know what’s going on,” she admitted.
“It’s what I told you,” I said, suddenly wondering if tonight had guaranteed that I would be eliminated next.
“I’ve watched three people who have been eliminated die. If you send him out there,” I said pointing toward the dock, “he might not come back.”
“But, I don’t get it,” she continued. “Wasn’t Thorin eliminated?”
“I can’t explain it. I just know what I saw,” I paused. “I really don’t think you should send him out there.”
Rose remained quiet. Her eyes darted around, worried about something beyond what was going on here. “No. Don’t go anywhere. You should stay here.” Rose took a deep breath and looked at me. “For a couple of hours, right?”
I nodded, yes.
“Yeah. You don’t have to leave right away,” Rose confirmed.
Sam’s pawn nudged him to follow it. We were all familiar with that nudge. It was like ignoring a dog that wanted to go for a walk. It was hard to not think about the consequences.
Sam’s movement became stilted. He was nervous. “No. I’ll stay here.” Sam left his pawn and stood next to Brad.
The three of us and Rose stared at the other guys. Only one of them had a firm opinion about what was going on, and he hissed at me like a snake.
“Whatever,” Gray concluded before heading to the closest lounge chair.
No one else commented. They all just stared at the four of us, expressing different levels of confusion. Eventually, everyone found a chair and got comfortable.
“I’m sorry,” I told Rose in a hushed tone.
“For what?”
“Putting you in that position. I know how you feel about my theory,” I admitted, offering an apologetic smile.
“No. You’re doing what you think is right. That’s just you being you, right?”
Rose had tried to sound casual about it, but she didn’t make eye contact with me after that. It was obvious that she didn’t like what I had done. The question was, why not? It seemed like such a small compromise considering that a man’s life was at stake, even if it was just Spiritual Sam’s.
It didn’t take long before the pawn’s persistence became annoying.
“Stop it,” Sam said trying to push it off of his leg. “It won’t leave me alone.”
“They’re programmed to keep trying until they get what they want,” I told him.
Thorin injected himself into the conversation. “How do you know how they’re programmed?”
“I worked with a model similar to it.”
“As a corporate recruiter?” Brad added.
“No. It was…” I considered how much I wanted to tell them about my life. “…before that.”
“What were you before you were a corporate recruiter?” Thorin persisted.
My jaw bounced searching for words. I couldn’t help it. I had a problem evading direct questions. Luckily, Sam’s pawn did something unexpected.
“Please follow me,” the pawn said in its robotic voice. It was so rare to hear a pawn speak that it grabbed everyone’s attention.
“Please follow me,” it said again, just as measured and politely as it had before.
The pawn kept repeating its request in shorter and shorter increments. It was getting impatient. This type of speech wasn’t a part of its default programming. Either someone was controlling it live, or these pawns had been reprogrammed.
“Please follow me. Please follow me,” it said, increasing the tension in the room.
“Maybe you should do what it says,” Thorin suggested.
“No. Stay right here,” I ordered.
“I don’t know what’s happening,” Sam proclaimed.
“We’re not giving it what it wants, and it doesn’t like that,” I explained.
“The question is, what will it do to get it?” Brad added.
We didn’t have to wait long find out. It began making a loud noise. It sounded like a fire alarm with the voice request still playing underneath.
“Maybe I should go,” Sam said with his hand over his ears.
“Don’t move,” I commanded as I also covered my own. “This is it. This is the most it can do.”
When Sam backed off, trying to get away, I stepped between him and the pawn. Looking down into the shiny dark display, I knew it was all coming to a head. “So, we’re all right here. We’re all watching. What are you gonna do now, huh?”
The noise persisted, getting louder and louder. We all squeezed on our ears trying to block the sound. The pawn was no longer pursuing Sam. Now it felt more like a general warning. Something was going to happen. But what?
When it seemed that we couldn’t take anymore, that we would all go deaf if it kept it up a moment more, the noise stopped. Unsure if we should, we all slowly removed our hands and straightened up.
Sam let out a nervous chuckle. “It stopped. We won.” Sam smiled and looked at me. The relief in his face was inescapable but also premature.
Sam coughed. It could have been like any other cough in his life if it hadn’t been so familiar.
I immediately looked at Brad. The expression on Brad’s face said it all. We both knew what would happen next: Sam�
�s cough would persist until he fell onto his knees. His eyes would become bloodshot, and his face would display the terror that comes as a man realizes that he’s suffocating to death.
As everyone watched, that’s exactly what happened next. No one rushed to help Sam. It was like they were scared to catch whatever he had.
I couldn’t blame them. I didn’t move either. Why should I? Hadn’t I been through this horrible scene before? Hadn’t I already tried everything?
Without the comfort of a warm hand or a friendly touch, Spiritual Sam died on the pool deck of our makeshift resort. It was not the way for anyone to go, but at least they would all believe me now. Maybe it would save their lives.
As everyone stared down at Sam’s body in shock, I felt like I should have said something comforting. Anything at all, really. I couldn’t, though.
Something was gnawing at me. It was Thorin. He had come back. But how? And why just him?
Or, maybe it wasn’t just him. Maybe they would all come back. Maybe there was a new kind of resurrection that I didn’t know about. It could happen. I had been away from that world for five years. Had I condemned this man to die by insisting that he stay here?
Panic set in as I had an idea about what could be happening. First they kill us. Why? I wasn’t sure. But then a boat comes, and they revive us. I needed to get Sam to the dock!
“Move. Look out!”
I swooped in scooping Sam into my arms. He wasn’t a small man, but I could handle him.
“What are you doing?” Rose asked jolted from her silence.
“Getting him to the dock. I think they’re coming for him.”
All I heard was a din of voices after that. I wasn’t sure what they were saying. I was focused. I had to get him to the spot where all of the other guys fell. He was dead otherwise. It was his only hope.
It wasn’t that far from the resort to the dock. By the time I got there, I was exhausted. I carried Sam’s limp body to the far end and dropped him under the light. And then with him down and everyone crowding me, I leaned over to catch my breath.
“What now?” Brad asked.
“I don’t know,” I replied.
“I thought you said you saw this before,” Gray badgered.
“No.”
It was all I could say in reply. How could I explain to him that I was shooting from the hip?