“Switzer!”
Switzer shot through the air, dragged by some sort of propulsion system that he held with one hand.
“Want to give me a little help here?” he yelled, and flung a weapon at me with his free hand.
The weapon was a Zinovian Grand Talon, a light device that fired poisoned blades. Switzer dove back into the water, skimming the surface while three creatures in the water chased him. Our opponent was pacing on her platform now, searching the water. She must be looking for her tracker, I thought. I aimed the talon at the water, and the crowd above me cheered.
“I’m sorry, Ketheria,” I said, and fired into the water as the last creature passed. The creature recoiled when the talon struck and sank out of sight. There were still two creatures chasing Switzer.
Switzer broke the water again. “You might want to go a little faster,” he yelled, and dove back in, close to the platform. I fired two more times, taking out both creatures, and Switzer surfaced at my feet.
“Finally!”
“Where’s the other tracker?” I asked him.
“Don’t worry about him; just get on.”
“On your back?”
“I don’t think you can swim, now, can you?”
“I can swim,” I said, cringing at the whiny sound of my voice.
“Fine, see you back there.”
“Wait!” Before Switzer could leave, I jumped into the water and landed on Switzer. Switzer passed me a breathing tube from the propulsion device and took one himself. When he dove into the water, I could see our opponent still on her platform.
The ride back was quick and uneventful. The bottom of the underwater maze was littered with the creatures like the ones I had killed from the platform. When we had almost reached the winners’ circle, I spotted the lifeless body of the other tracker slumped on the floor, a talon sticking out of his back. Switzer had killed him.
Inside the winners’ circle, Switzer basked in the glory while I tried to figure out what to tell Ketheria. Maybe I just wouldn’t tell her anything. That was the easiest. In reality, if Switzer hadn’t done what he did, that could have been me lying on the maze floor. Because of Switzer’s ruthlessness, I just might make it out of here alive.
I followed Switzer back on a small catwalk. The water from our match still filled most of the playing area, even up to our ready room. Switzer sat down outside our door to ring out some of his wet clothes.
“You’re really good at this,” I told him.
“Don’t get so comfortable, Dumbwire.”
“What do you mean?”
“I told you that you were going to watch your friends die. That wasn’t an idle threat.”
“I don’t get it. We’re doing great, Switzer. I mean, it’s been all you. You’re really good. Let’s keep going. I really think we can win it. If we can control the sort, you know, so we don’t get stuck with LIQUID, like we just did . . .”
“I chose LIQUID in the sort.”
“What?”
Switzer shook his head. “You always were an idiot,” he scoffed. “You never think for yourself, do you? That’s how you can live here. It’s the only thing I can figure. Why else would you put up it? With them? Is that what you want, though? To be their little dog for the rest of your life?”
“What, and have your life instead?
“Well, at least it’s my life.”
“But . . .” I really couldn’t say anything. He was right. Switzer did have his own life. He did only what he chose, not what others made him do. I stared at him. Underneath all those scars and contraptions bolted to his face, I found the kid I once knew, rummaging around Orbis 2, simply trying to survive.
“You could come with me,” he said. “Everyone, if you want.”
“What?”
“I’m not going to beg you. There is a better life out there, you know.”
“But . . .” Could I leave with Switzer? What would that be like?
“Forget it, split-screen. Stay here and rot.”
Then Switzer took his helmet and smashed it against the floor. The helmet cracked.
“Wait! What are you doing?”
“Can’t have anyone along for the ride, know what I mean?”
He put his helmet on, took off his boot, and pulled a small knife from his pant leg.
“Put your helmet on.”
“Why, what are you doing, Switzer?”
“PUT IT ON! Hurry! The water is receding.”
Before I put my helmet on, Switzer swiped the blade along his foot, slicing his skin just enough to make it bleed, but not very deep. He squeezed the blood out and smeared it everywhere.
“Now, look at me.”
I was already looking, but once I had the helmet on, Switzer began screaming and flailing about.
“Ah! The poison. Ah! The pain!”
Switzer’s acting skills were no match for his Quest-Nest skills. I took the helmet off.
“Switzer, what the hell are you doing?” I cried.
“I had to make sure everyone saw I was hurt,” he said, pointing at my helmet. “Whoever’s riding you will see that.” He stood up.
“Where are you going?”
“That water drains out underneath the Labyrinth. Those tunnels will take me straight to the treasure. Well, close enough, anyway.”
Switzer had planned this the whole time. He wanted a water event to get underneath the Labyrinth.
“Switzer, don’t. Please. Let’s finish this. I need you,” I pleaded.
He looked at me for a second and then said, “Too late for that. Have fun dying.”
Switzer dove into the water.
I thrust my helmet over my head to record him leaving, but it was too late. Switzer was gone. And I had to choose between Theodore and Ketheria to fight with me in the next round.
“Why didn’t you go after him?” Theodore cried.
“And do what? I don’t care about the treasure. Let him have it. Besides, that would have left you two to fight in the match,” I reminded him. I did not mention Switzer’s offer to leave. I don’t know why. I guess I sort of felt guilty that I had turned down a way out of here.
Theodore glanced over at Ketheria and moved under the O-dat.
“There are eight teams left,” he mumbled, reading off the screen. “Riis is still playing. We could get her next, you know.”
I stared at my sister. What was she now, eleven years old? This wasn’t what eleven-year-olds were supposed to be doing. She should be playing or going to school, anything else but this. How could I make her go into the labyrinth? How could I force her to take the life of another living creature merely for the sport of it? It’s not that she couldn’t stomach it; she just wouldn’t do it, even if it meant letting them take her life.
“You’re not much older,” Vairocina whispered inside my head.
“That’s different,” I replied, forgetting that Vairocina could read my thoughts.
But was it different? How come I could kill so easily? Why wasn’t I repulsed when I shot the talon at a creature I didn’t even know? Or when I blew up those rattle baskets with the Garins still inside? I felt nothing. Zero. Had I become some sort of monster? Is this what the Rings of Orbis had turned me into?
The room pulsed green.
“Oh, no!” Theodore cried, still staring at the O-dat.
“What is it?” I said.
“We’re fighting Banar!”
“So?”
“If survival is our goal, I’d much rather be fighting Riis,” Theodore replied.
“He’s just another opponent.”
“JT, you don’t understand. I’ve scoped this guy. He doesn’t just play the field. He plays the opponent. He’ll kill you just because he can. This is bad.”
I thought of the opponent slumped at the bottom of the waterway. Switzer had played his opponent. I would have to do the same.
Ketheria stood up and put her helmet on.
“No, Ketheria,” Theodore said. “I’m going to do th
is.”
“Theodore, no offense, but I play better than you,” she told him.
“Yeah, but I’ve scoped this guy. I know Banar’s weaknesses. I know how to beat him.”
Ketheria took her helmet off as the room pulsed once more.
“Then let’s go,” I said.
We headed down the hall with Ketheria trailing.
“How did they beat him last time?” I whispered to Theodore.
Theodore glanced back at Ketheria and murmured, “They didn’t. Banar has never lost.”
“Never?”
“Ever.”
I hesitated before stepping into the sort. Despite the fact that I felt more comfortable playing as the tracker, Theodore’s ominous warning made it hard to concentrate.
“Push those thoughts away,” Vairocina whispered.
“I’m trying,” I said.
“You must try harder.”
I stepped onto the crystal embedded in the floor and I was instantly encased in an energy shield.
“Play to your strengths; don’t try to play your opponent,” she said, but it was more of an order.
What if I don’t get to choose first in the sort? What would Banar choose? Why didn’t I ask Theodore? I was doing a very poor job of concentrating when the sort flashed in front of me. I would choose first!
I immediately stabbed my finger at the SOLID triangle floating in front of me. I wasn’t taking any chances. I was good at any of the selections in stage two of the sort. While I waited for Banar to choose, my confidence was beginning to flow back. I was relieved that I wouldn’t have to face LIQUID or GAS in the match.
Banar was taking his time choosing the second stage. That was odd, I thought. Then the sort flashed red with the information: YOUR OPPONENT HAS PASSED.
Passed?
Why would Banar pass? I was instantly worried. What sort of strategy was he using? Did he want to pick in the third stage? Why? What was so important in the third stage?
“You’re panicking,” Vairocina whispered.
“Of course I am!”
“This is good. You are in complete control now.”
“But why did Banar pass? Who passes?”
The words PLEASE CHOOSE THE 2ND STAGE flashed in front of me.
“You’re assuming he did this on purpose. Maybe he’s just as upset that he missed his choice.”
I doubted that. Banar was up to something, and it was freaking me out. I reached out to choose MECHANIC.
“I wouldn’t do that,” Vairocina warned.
I withdrew my hand. “Why?” I cried.
“Banar has been playing Quest-Nest for quite some time, and his conquests are legendary. I’m sure he’s proficient in every weapon imaginable, and some more than others. If he’s aware of your playing habits, he will know that you choose MECHANIC 90 percent of the time. He’s assuming you will do it now and therefore he’ll choose a style of weapon in the third stage that he is extremely skilled with. Remember, Banar plays his opponents.”
“I thought you said it might have been an accident that he passed!” I reminded her.
“It might have been that, too, but I still wouldn’t choose MECHANIC. I would choose something that allows you some sort of stealth advantage. You might make it through the match without ever confronting Banar.”
The sort flashed again, and I selected PSIONIC.
Almost instantly, the fourth stage selection came back to me.
“He knows you will choose PHYSICAL,” Vairocina warned me.
“And he’s right. You said play to my strengths, and this is my strength,” I told her, holding up my right arm, and then punched the PHYSICAL diamond floating in front of me.
“Here we go,” I mumbled.
“Good luck.”
“They used that expression on your planet?”
“No. They don’t believe in luck.”
“Neither do I.”
The force field dropped away and left me standing in a shining round chamber. Some sort of metallic-colored force field wound around the floor. All around me, thick chrome support beams reflected the cobalt-colored floor. The beams angled outward and were placed close enough together to lock me in. The only visible exit was a black hole placed at thecenter of the chamber.
Standing over that hole was my opponent, Banar.
He hesitated, as if he was just as shocked to find me standing there as I was to see him. His upper body spun toward me, and he lunged over the hole. Two huge pieces of his shoulder armor clicked into place as he readied to attack me.
Only one thought entered my mind. Survive!
I lunged at Banar. I had no intentions of engaging him. I simply wanted to make it into that hole before he crushed me. Hoping for the best (or at least a soft landing), I dove headfirst into the darkness. Banar howled in anger. His acrid breath stung the back of my neck as I dropped underneath him.
I curled into a ball, ready for the impact, but there was none. Some sort of invisible gravity field had caught hold of me and was slowing my descent. After a moment, I found myself floating, suspended in another, larger room. A dim golden light streaked the glossy walls.
“The room you just left may be the first of the fourteen chambers of the labyrinth,” Vairocina said. “If you can simply make your way through each chamber ahead of Banar, you might have a chance to leave this match unscathed.”
“I like that plan,” I whispered in reply.
I looked up, expecting to see Banar drifting down the cylindrical chamber behind me, but he wasn’t. That’s when I realized, though, that I was drifting downward.
“The exit might be on the wall,” I cried. “If we pass it, we may have no way of reaching it again.”
“Maybe that’s a good thing,” Vairocina said. “You would be out of the match and Banar could go on to win. No one would get hurt.”
“What if they put in Ketheria to take my place? I can’t take that chance. We have to find the way out of here.”
I flailed my arms, forcing my body to spin around, and searched the walls for some evidence of a door or a lock, anything.
Below me I saw some sort of marking — four circles that protruded from the wall, each with an iris made of three triangular sheaths of etched metal. One of the circles was quite large — large enough for someone to slip through. I began flailing my arms again to try to move toward the shapes, but I was dropping too fast.
Then I heard Banar. The chamber echoed with his roar, and I looked up to find him diving headfirst toward me.
“You have to get out of his way!” Vairocina cried.
“I’m trying!”
Banar reached toward me with both arms — thick battering rams of jointed black metal. I was directly across from the circles on the wall now. That must be the way out of here, I thought, and flailed my arms once more.
“I’m not gonna reach it!”
I looked up at Banar. He swept the air with his right arm, as if testing it. If he hits me . . . I thought. That’s it! If he hits me, I might just make it to the wall!
“This is going to hurt,” I said.
“JT . . .” Vairocina asked.
“Turn off the pain sensors in my arm, please.”
I reached up, trying to get closer to Banar. He was moving quickly now, grinning wildly and swinging his right arm faster and harder. I needed him to knock me toward the hatch.
“This isn’t going to work,” Vairocina cried. “What if he crushes you?”
“He won’t!”
I raised my right arm to protect myself.
“Prepare to die, Softwire,” Banar growled.
I made myself as tall as possible, and Banar reached back with his right arm. He grunted as he swung at me.
“Now, JT!”
I curled into a ball, and Banar’s metal-plated arm swished over my head.
“Stay still, coward!” Banar cried as I stretched out again. He was so close now that I could see his large steely eyes and fiery red pupils. Banar bit down and swung a
t me with his backhand. I held my arm out and prepared for impact.
Banar’s crushing blow split the skin along my arm on contact. My fingers flexed backward in a grotesque and unnatural position. I’m certain real bones would have snapped off from the convulsion that ravaged my arm. I slammed into the wall almost instantly. The air gushed from my flattened lungs, and my helmet slammed against the bottom of the metal hatch. I pawed at my throat, trying to breathe. Every bone in my body cried out in anguish, but I flipped over and scrambled for the hatch. It was now about two meters above me. As the air seeped back into my lungs, I looked over my shoulder and tried to focus my eyes on Banar. He scrambled frantically, trying to swim back up the chamber, but he was only descending faster.
“JT, you’re slipping!” Vairocina warned. The impact with the wall had ignited a siren in my head that blurred my vision. The circular opening was nearly three meters above me now. I tried to flex my fingers, but my arm refused to obey.
“My arm! Can you fix my arm? Something’s wrong!”
“Try now!”
My arm surged with a tingling sensation. I adjusted the settings for maximum force and drove my fist into the metal wall. A bolt of pain struck my brain, and the wall buckled, not a lot, but enough for my fingers to grip on to the edge of each indentation. I pulled myself up and smashed my fist into the wall again, and then again, until I had built a ladder of holes back up to the escape hatch.
“You did it!” Vairocina cried.
“It’s not over yet,” I breathed. “This is just the beginning.”
Each level of the labyrinth presented a different obstacle course for me to negotiate. Vairocina worked on my arm as I raced through each task. On one level, I stumbled upon three Neewalkers sleeping near the entrance to the next level. A dimension cube that I had found in the previous level allowed me to move unencumbered past the fetid beasts.
I reached Theodore without ever spying Banar again. I couldn’t help but wonder if he was stuck at the bottom of the second level of the labyrinth. Theodore cried out when he saw me. The crowd, however, reacted with a mixture of cheers and hisses. I guess they wanted to see their hero more than a human softwire.
Banar’s bait was still locked behind the energy field waiting for his famous tracker to release him.
The Softwire: Wormhole Pirates on Orbis 3 Page 25