Island Girls
Page 15
We woke up in our beds the next morning. I could feel a cool breeze blowing through the windows. Perhaps the seasons were changing after all. Stepping outside I was surprised to see cloud cover. It didn't look like rain, but it was the first non-sunny day since I had arrived. We had clouds yesterday, but not like this.
Inspecting the grounds before breakfast I found a few new fruit trees planted close to our quarters. I doubted that the fruit was real at first. After tasting the orange, the lime and the plum, I knew otherwise. We now had fresh fruit.
As I headed back inside to inform the others, something bobbing up and down on the small waves caught my attention. There was a small orange boat that could seat two people. Beside it on the pier were two oars and a variety of items that I took as fishing gear. There was a small net with a pole on each end, and a long metal rod with a large hook and tiny needle.
It wasn't long after sharing my findings with the others that an announcement came from above. Maybe the speakers where mounted on top of the high walls. We would have a new arena challenge in one hour. After that, we would no longer be supplied complete meals in the refrigerator except for breakfast. Potatoes, rice and the like would need to be combined with fish and fruit to supply us a complete diet.
Once the arena opened, I hurried inside to get a peek at our new challenge. Sadly, it was very similar to the previous ones. There were ropes to swing on, climbing walls, shifting platforms and the like. The first half of the challenge we needed to pair up again. Nancy stepped to my side during that announcement. The last half the four of us would need to work together to move platforms through the air using only our own weight and balance. Once to the end, we would have to assemble a long pole by putting the pieces in the appropriate order. Then use that pole to trigger a fire switch up high to signal victory.
Glancing through the center divider I saw the other team ready for action. They had a new girl that was only slightly larger than Lin. She had fair skin and blonde hair, but I couldn't tell much else about her physical appearance from distance. However, she was moving around a lot more than anyone else. Swaying her hips, squatting and stretching. She evidently knew what she was in for, but did she understand the consequences for failure?
After the instructions something new happened. Our faces appeared one at a time on the center screen followed by a video of us in action in previous obstacle courses. Our name would appear on the screen in large print as well. It made me feel like the experience had elevated to a level at which we had a massive audience. I found it highly unlikely that we were just performing for the entertainment of just our captors. But who would watch this shit without putting a stop to it? Or, did they think that we were here of our own accord? If so, how would they explain the executions?
The last person to appear onscreen was Trixie, the new girl. Instead of an action video they just showed her stretching, then eventually waving in all directions trying to find the camera. I could already tell that she was a rare personality. And very pretty, too. Without a doubt, they had only chosen attractive people for this prison-like exhibition.
Everyone on our team worked well together and we won by a decent margin. As we watched the other team later fight for their lives in the individual challenge, I found myself rooting for Trixie instead of against her. The unofficial plan was to keep killing off the new people before we could get attached to them, but I couldn't help it. Not only was she the underdog, which I naturally had a tendency to cheer for, but she was trying so hard to keep up. And, she was damn pretty, in a low-class kind of way.
Despite her tremendous effort, things were not going well enough for her. Zach, Lin and Amir were just so physically fit that it would be a challenge for anyone to beat them, including any of us. It wasn't until Amir took a big fall from one of the platforms that she moved out of last place.
The annoying man fought desperately to get back ahead of the new girl. The screen showed him repeatedly pressing his adrenaline button on his arm to no avail. Each player only got one boost per competition. He reached the finish line mere seconds behind Trixie and shouted at the top of his lungs in aggravation. Before he could even catch his breath, a red lightning bolt came from the sky to strike him dead. He went limp immediately, but his body continued to burn while we were ushered out of the area.
Like we all said last night, no one is safe. These events were unpredictable. Anyone could have a bad day and lose, costing them their lives. It just happened to Amir as we all watched. Who would be next?
Trixie managed enough remaining energy to jump into the air and pump her fist. She was delighted that she had not lost. I assumed that she had been watching videos of the competitions before she had been inserted into the game, just like Drexel. If this were a television show, I could see her quickly becoming a fan favorite. Her spicy personality was a nice addition to the mix.
We lamented Amir's death when we returned to our section of the island. Though none of us had gotten that close to him, he was still someone that we knew. And he had been killed, exterminated, right in front of us.
Amir had a strong, athletic and wiry body. His determination in competition was at a very high level. The fact that he lost only reiterated that any of us could lose our lives on any given day. Though we mourned Amir, we grieved over our dire circumstances even more.
Once I regained my energy, I tried hard to disassemble the cabinets in our quarters. The things were incredibly durable, though. They had been designed to withstand anything that we could do to them. The same was true with the shower stall, the toilet room, etc. There was no way to access the space below our ground level. I had no doubt that our jailers were observing my bad behavior, but it would be worth a little pain if I could find a clue as to how to get out of here.
The girls were getting hungry and only rice appeared in the refrigerator, so Drexel and I took the boat out. We focused on catching fish first, in case we were being watched. But we were always being watched. Surely our captors already knew that we tried to bust open shit in our quarters. What was the difference?
The fishing net was easy enough to operate. We each held a pole, dipped the net under the water for a few seconds, then pulled it back up with several fish in it. They were small and nearly identical in appearance. I figured two fish would be more than enough to appease the appetite of each of the women, while us guys would want three or four. We could catch as many as we wanted, though, with space in the frig to store them.
The metal pole confused me at first. Then I noticed a symbol on it that matched one of the circles on my left arm. I soon discovered that holding the pole with my left arm and dipping it into the water near a fish, I could then press that circle to send an electrical pulse out of the needle. The fish would then be stunned long enough for me to get them with the accompanied hook. Since the fish were larger in the deeper water, it was worth using.
Once we had enough fish to last us two or three days, we paddled over toward the barrier wall on the left. There was nothing visible to prevent us from paddling away from our prison into the deep blue sea. But that did not seem like a good plan to me. Where the hell would we go? It was nothing but open sea out there.
We were able to reach the wall without any interference from the authorities, but somehow unable to paddle past it. There must be a force field blocking us from leaving our assigned space. That sounded difficult to do in the sea, but we had seen them in use in the recreation center, so it made some sense. We were, however, able to look around the wall. The section to our left was identical to our own. Another barracks, trees, hammocks, the whole deal. It was meant for another team.
We found the same thing when we went all the way to the right. I had the feeling all along that the arena was designed with four teams in mind. This justifies that assumption.
Drexel was indeed a nice guy. Though Nancy and Shira were higher on my list of people to protect, I decidedly did not want the guy to die. Once I got him talking, he began to grow on me quickly.
Since Drexel and I had caught the fish Nancy and Shira decided that they would handle the cooking. They basically spread the fillets out on the rack above the fire pit, then lowered the rack until it was nearly in contact with the flames. Shira grabbed some plates from the kitchen area, I had no idea when they had appeared, and placed a piece of fish on each one. She handed us each a plate and took hers last. Microwaved rice was our only side dish. I got the impression that Shira was used to serving people. Or, maybe she had a more self-sacrificing personality than I had previously given her credit for.
"Shira, did you date after the death of your husband?" I asked, hoping that it would not be considered inappropriate.
"No," she replied. "Some friends tried to set me up a few times, but I wasn't ready."
"How about now?" Nancy asked.
"It's funny that you should ask that. I was just thinking today while the guys were fishing how precious life is. I mean, I still miss my husband, but I might not be far behind him. Except that I am. What I mean to say is that my husband has likely been dead for decades. I have no way of knowing. Now my entire world is right here. It might take me some time to adjust, but I need to be open to a new relationship. If anyone will have me."
"What?" Nancy said. "You are a smart and beautiful woman. And caring, too. I know you don't always show it, but you have a good heart. Any guy in here would be lucky to have you."
"Thanks," Shira blushed. "I don't know. I feel like my body is getting old. It's hard to compete."
"Are you shitting me?" I blurted out. "I saw you in that swimsuit. You are as hot as any woman on Miami Beach. And you blaze through these obstacle courses."
Shira was obviously embarrassed by my statement. Perhaps in her culture it was inappropriate to discuss the attractiveness of her body. I don't know. I just sensed that she needed a compliment and I came in strong. I considered apologizing, though. She seemed overwhelmed by my statement.
Finally, she said softly, "Thank you, Joah. That means a lot coming from you."
The rest of the afternoon Shira treated me differently. In a good way. I had been trying to get on her good side ever since she had arrived. But there was always some sort of barrier there that I couldn't figure out. Since my over-the-top compliment, though, she was as friendly to me as Nancy.
CHAPTER SIXTEEN:
Once again, we were encouraged to eat and shower before the recreation center reopened for the night. New clothes had been provided in our dressers, very similar to the previous nights. I personally was delighted to see the same four quadrants as the night before. Not only were they all enjoyable and well suited to us, it was good to not have to deal with any more changes. Mental stability depended on a certain level of consistency.
Since six of the seven of us survivors had already experienced the impressive and extensive fun zone, a tour was not necessary. Trixie had already been briefed by Lin and Zach on what to expect. She also had caught glimpses of us in action on a video before falling to sleep wherever they prepped new team members.
I had assumed that Zach and Drexel would ignore the rest of us and head straight to the virtual reality game. But Trixie had already done a number on blue team's lone remaining male. Zach was eager to join her for a drink in the club to start off the night. I could see right away that the new girl had a bubbly personality that would draw men in. She looked like one of those small-town strippers that would chew gum while they were on stage and talk about how they might know your cousin or uncle. I once saw an exotic dancer like her lift my beer bottle with her ass cheeks. I was impressed but didn’t drink the rest of that beer.
When Nancy asked Drexel to accompany her there as well, he declined politely. I could sense that he was still embarrassed by his premature ejaculation the night before. Shira enthusiastically encouraged him to join her in the spa instead. He stared at her for a moment, perhaps trying to determine if she had heard about the incident from Nancy. Apparently, he decided that she hadn't based on her expression and followed her to Shira's favorite quadrant.
That left me with Lin and Nancy again, my two favorite females in the whole wide world. It could not have worked out any better for me. Lin was as smoking hot as she had been the night before. And we had made some serious progress on starting a relationship. I was looking forward to picking up where we left off, when the time and setting were right.
Nancy's easygoing attitude made her the perfect side girl, even though she was my first lover here on the island. Plus, she was just fun to be around. Additionally, the three of us were the most focused on finding a way out of this paradise turn nightmare game.
"Are we starting off with drinks?" I asked my girls.
"Maybe not tonight," Lin replied. "Getting a buzz on limits my options after that. Plus, I could use a break from those two. Let them have the club to themselves for a while."
"The spa then?" I asked.
"I'd rather give Drexel some space. What happened last night is still making him uncomfortable around me," Nancy answered.
"What happened last night?" Lin asked.
"We'll talk about it later," said Nancy.
"I guess it is bikinis and speedos at the pool then. Unless you ladies want to try the game. Now would actually be the best time, since Zach and Drexel are preoccupied."
"I heard that it was really fun," Lin said. "Zach and Amir wouldn't stop talking about it the next morning."
"Is it like a video game?" Nancy asked. "Because I don't much care for those. I mean, I'll try my best if that's what you two want to do. I'm with you guys regardless."
"It's more like being a character in a sci-fi action movie," I told her. "I think you'll both like it. But if you don't, we can come right back out. There is no time commitment."
Lin nodded. "Okay, I'm in. What do we do?"
"We just go into that quadrant and the game will put us in the action by itself. We just follow cues and make decisions."
I was thrown off a bit when we first entered the game zone. The announcement just as we began rec time had claimed that the quadrants were the same. But we did not step onto the bridge of a starship. Instead, we walked out onto an elaborate stone floor in an open-air meeting facility. It reminded me of an old Roman senate amphitheater.
The view of the world around us was alien with unusual land formations and flying craft. Tall black and blue buildings reached upward tapering as they went like stalagmites in a cave. Jutted red mountains could be seen in the distance before a dark green sky on the horizon. We appeared to be elevated high above a populated city below.
"Wow, this place is absolutely beautiful," Lin stated as a character in a uniform approached. I assumed that it was the android host for this quadrant. They were usually our first contact.
"Welcome, Commander Teriyung," the guy said to Lin. "I'm glad that you like our city."
"Terry who?" Nancy asked.
"Teriyung," Lin replied to her quietly. "That's my last name. And apparently, I am a commander, so show some respect." Our chuckle at her response was short lived as the character continued.
"Commander Sheridan," he greeted Nancy. "And Admiral Maroon. We are so very glad to have you here. Our local meeting has just finished up. Allow me a moment to announce your presence to the queen. She has been looking forward to meeting all of you."
The man walked away into a small crowd, most of which were humanoid aliens of three different species. I saw some that resembled the starship intruders that I had killed yesterday. These were not remotely hostile. Some were even sipping drinks. Some of the others looked like the super thin black woman from my last mission.
"This was not what I was expecting at all," Nancy announced.
"Me either," Lin said. "But I like it so far. I was anticipating a terminator movie sce
ne, but this is more like a fancy dinner party. And we are highly esteemed guests, evidently."
While we were distracted with our conversation the man that greeted us returned with the queen. Unless this species all looked alike, it was the same exact woman that we rescued yesterday. Only today her dress was pink, as were her huge eyes. Same super slender sexy body, every inch hugged tightly by the shimmering fabric.
"Well, hello," Nancy said. Only not like a proper greeting. It was more like she had just spotted a piece of delicious dessert. "How dark do you like them?" she whispered to me, totally inappropriately. She was not getting into character very well, but I was okay with that for the most part. As long as it didn't fuck up the game something terrible.
"Admiral Maroon," the dark woman's voice sung to me. "It is a pleasure to see you again," she said as she slowly leaned forward and kissed my chest.