“No joke. It feels horrible,” Ziana agreed.
“I know. But I guess this is how we survive. I mean, the alternative sounded like pretty certain death, so all things considered, I suppose this isn’t too bad. We just have to play in some sort of game. Really, how bad could it be?”
The guard chuckled softly. Maria turned to look at their until-now-silent escort.
“What?”
“Oh, nothing.”
“You’ve clearly got something to say.”
“Just that you both seem to be under the very mistaken assumption that the Husken Games are easy.”
“So, they’re challenging? Fine. We’ll manage as best we can then.”
The guard shook her head, still amused. “And you also assume you will survive them.”
That got both the women’s attention.
“Hang on,” Ziana blurted, her heart racing a bit faster. “What do you mean,survive? They’re games, right?”
“Yes. And many of the events are anything but safe. Fatalities occur during the games, though some years more than others. As you both seem to be utterly unfamiliar with both the games themselves as well as the rules, tactics, and historicallysuccessful strategies, well, let’s just say these games will be anything but easy.”
Ziana and Maria shared a very concerned look as they processed this new information.
“You’ll be staying in the competitors’ suites up ahead,” the guard informed them after they passed the T-intersection in the tunnel they’d previously taken.
This route was different. This time they were headed upwards, following the other branch. They walked a short while, the overall illumination growing brighter and not from artificial lights but rather natural sources as they approached what appeared to be a large pavilion of sorts. As it turned out, that initial assessment wasn’t so far off.
The tunnel ended in daylight, and they stepped out into an enclosed courtyard area surrounded by a few dozen individual bungalow-looking structures along the perimeter, fanned out like spokes on a massive wheel. All of them were freestanding and shared no common walls. There was a high topiary hedge acting as a barrier between them to help keep the inner space completely sequestered from the outside world.
Ziana squinted and noted what appeared to be a solid wall hidden behind the decorative foliage. No one would be busting in through the shrubbery, nor breaking out.
“You. Your quarters are that one,” the guard said, giving Maria a gentle nudge. “Your teammate is called Borkus. And you. You are partnered with Dorrin. Those quarters over there. You may both take a few minutes to get your bearings and settle in. Use the restroom if you need, bathe, then get changed and meet me back here. I’ll take you to meet your teammates.”
Ziana and Maria didn’t argue. After all they’d been through, the thought of a shower and clean clothes alone was enough to make them more than happy to comply. And a modicum ofprivacy for the first time in longer than they cared to admit? It would be pure heaven.
Maria gave a little nod and headed off to her lodging. Ziana followed suit, stepping into what would, apparently, be home for as long as she was in the games. The air inside was actually a delight, clean and fresh, ever so slightly scented with a pleasant woodsy aroma. There were skylights galore providing ample ambient light, and the whole place had a very clean and Scandinavian look to it. Functional, minimal, but comfortable.
“Not bad,” Ziana commented to the air. “Not bad at all. Now, let’s find that shower.”
She located the bathing area easily enough. It was quite spacious with multiple nozzles coming from both above as well as all around. She stripped, dumping her dirty clothes in what looked like a hamper, then stepped into the jets. The water was perfect, the temperature and flow soothing her aching muscles and tender skin, which, surprisingly, didn’t seem to mind the impact of the water. In fact, if anything, it seemed to be helping the irritation subside.
Little did she know that there were traces of healing elements fed into the water supply for the entire competitor’s compound. Not that she’d have cared. All that mattered right now was that this feltgood.
Finally, she stepped out, finding an invisible force energy gently blowing across her body and removing the excess water but without drying her skin to the point of discomfort. There were also towels on a little rack that emerged from the wall when the water stopped for her to use if she wanted, but she opted to let the fascinating device do its work.
“Wow. That’s a neat trick. About time there was some actual cool alien tech.”
She moved to the hamper to see about washing her clothes, but all she found were traces of ash.
“Are you fucking kidding me?Really?” Ziana looked around. The towels had returned to their hidden nook in the wall, and she didn’t know how to open it, leaving her nothing with which to wrap herself.
“Well, shit. I guess I need to find the closet sooner than later.”
She hurried through the climate-controlled bungalow, marveling at the layout and feel of the space as she explored utterly nude. It was almost thrilling, passing in front of the windows at the rear of the structure like that, on display should anyone be outside. But there were no prying eyes. At least, not that she could see. Apparently, they were situated in a wooded area that appeared to be off-limits to all but the authorized participants and representatives of the games. There was one window, however, that had bars on it. That one was currently shuttered to the outside, but the bars made her wonder who might eventually wind up on the other side of them.
There was no sense worrying about that now. Now she needed to get dressed, and as she rounded a corner she saw neatly folded clothing sitting on the edge of a bed.
