The Quillan Games (53 page)

The platform stopped with a lurch. This was it. The final stage of the Grand X, the last chapter of my mission here on Quillan, and maybe my last act as a Traveler.

I heard LaBerge's amplified voice shouting, “Four . . . three . . . two . . . one . . . TATO!”

And it was on.

(CONTINUED)

C
hallenger Green moved instantly. He had a plan. He dropped to one knee and used his metal weapon to smash open one of the glass domes. I could instantly feel the platform wobble. He knew he was at a disadvantage with his bad foot, so he had to pull out every possible trick to beat me. That was good, I thought. He was already desperate. He reached into the dome and pulled out a weapon that looked familiar. It was a three-pronged knife. I knew I had seen it someplace before, but couldn't remember where.

Challenger Green held it up and said, “They call this a tang. I use it for fights in close. Are you ready for a fight in close?”

A tang, of course. It was a weapon made from the three claws of a tang beast on Eelong. Seeing it didn't even bother me. It wasn't the time to be worrying about mixing the territories. Challenger Green held the knife low. It looked like he knew how to use it. He started to circle to his right. I knew why. He had a bad left eye. If he was going to attack, it would
be to his right. I circled away. I wanted to keep on his left side. The platform wobbled, but not dangerously. That wasn't a factor. At least not yet.

“You knew we would end up here, didn't you, Red?” he growled. “This is what I wanted, you know. I could have won all those games, but I wanted us here, on the Tato.”

“Yeah, sure you could have,” I said. “That's why I had to save your life.”

Green jumped up and slammed down hard on the platform, making it tilt. It wasn't much, but it surprised me, and my arms flew out to get my balance.

Green laughed. “Wait until we start to rock! It's all about balance,” he said, shifting weight from one foot to the other. “I know everything about this platform. I know where it's tight and where it dips. When you hit the wrong spot, look out. You'll go down.”

I was surprised to see that his foot didn't seem to bother him. Either he had an incredible tolerance for pain, or he had it strapped up tight in a cast under his pants. Or took painkillers. Or something. Whatever it was, I realized that it wasn't going to be a factor in this fight. Unfortunately. Green continued circling.

I circled away and said, “You know that either way, the games are done.”

“Then I'll retire as the only undefeated challenger,” he said proudly. “You think that bothers me?”

Green had a temper. I wanted him to fight angry. If he lost control, it would take away the advantage he had of knowing this game and the platform.

“No,” I said. “I think it bothers you that nobody cares about you anymore. I'm the favorite now.”

“Until you lose,” he said. “People like winners.”

“Yeah,” I said. “And people like to win. This is way bigger
than two fools in bright shirts trying to kill each other. The people know that now. They're looking for something better, and after I beat you, they'll get it.”

Green frowned. I hoped I was throwing him off, if only a little. I didn't think he cared at all about the future of Quillan. He had a huge ego and wanted to be the champion. His concerns began and ended there.

“I
am
going to beat you,” I added. “Sorry.”

“Let's see about that,” he snarled, and came after me.

He didn't charge; he was still in control. He had the tang-claw knife in one hand and the metal rod in the other. I only had the metal rod. He led with the rod, making short, tight swings, testing me out. But he had the tang claw in his other hand, cocked tight to his hip, ready to lash out. That's what I had to look out for. I ducked his swings easily. I was more worried that he would try to steer me close to the edge of the platform. When I ducked, I made sure to reset myself near the center.

Nevva was right. He was clumsy. He was an amateur, too. I knew that he'd soon get frustrated and attack. That's when I would make my move.

“Tired yet?” I taunted. “This fight has already gone longer than what you're used to. You gonna make it?”

That got him. He lunged at me with the metal rod, but I knew it was a fake. I ducked it, ready for the tang claw to come. It did. He lashed out with it and I was ready. I blocked it with both my arms and brought my knee up hard, crushing his wrist between my arms and my knee.

“Ahhh!” Green shouted and dropped the tang.

I quickly kicked it away. I wanted to knock it off the platform, but it skittered across the soft floor and stopped just beyond one of the glass domes. Green recovered quickly and rammed his metal weapon into my ribs. He caught me hard
and I doubled over. He followed with a punch that sent me sprawling backward. As I fell, all I could think of was how close I was to the edge. I landed hard on my back, but it was a relief. At least I landed.

Green charged and leaped at me. I rolled out of the way and jumped back to my feet. We were both closer to the edge of the platform, and I could feel it dip slightly. Without thinking, I ran back toward the center. I didn't want to be anywhere near that edge. Green spun back to me and laughed. He was still on his knees.

“You're more afraid of falling than you are of me!” he shouted. “All right, then let's play that way!”

He smashed another dome. The platform dipped. I'll admit it. I was scared. I scrambled closer to center. With every move I made, I could feel the platform change subtly. Green was totally confident. He jumped up and started running around to try to scare me. He was doing a good job.

“Look out!” he taunted. “Whoa! It's going over!”

He was all about trying to make it tilt. I tried to stay opposite him to balance us out. What else could I do? Charge at the guy? Wrestle him down, and then what? Try to push him over? He was in charge. This was his show. All I could do was react.

“Not scary enough for you?” Green shouted. “Let's try another!”

“No!” I screamed. “This is crazy! “We'll both fall!”

“Is that so?” he laughed. “Let's see!”

He knelt down and smashed the third dome. I knew what was going to happen and quickly knelt down too. The platform became totally unstable.

This was as far as it got with Remudi. With that match, Challenger Green deliberately threw off the balance of the platform by throwing his legs over the side. He then grabbed
on to the rim of the smashed dome for safety. Remudi wasn't ready. The platform tilted over and he fell to his death. I had to be prepared if Green tried that same move. If he did, I was going to make the exact opposite move and keep us balanced . . . or fall trying.

He must have known I was ready, because Green didn't go for it. We held steady, balanced on opposite sides of the platform. It was like being on a seesaw. It felt like every breath I took threw the balance off a hair. I was on my knees, just inside one of the domes that was still intact. I put my foot on the glass to try to get a little more stability. It seemed hopeless. I didn't see how this could end well, for either of us.

It got worse. Green looked into the dome he had just smashed and let out a jubilant, “Yes!” He reached inside and pulled out the ultimate prize of a weapon. It was a golden dado gun. He held it up triumphantly, shouting, “This is too easy!”

He took aim at me. I was history. One shot and I'd be out. I had no doubt that once I was unconscious, he'd find a way to tip the platform so that he'd be safe and I'd roll off. At least I wouldn't know I was falling.

Green put me in his sights and said, “Now let's see who the real champion is.”

He pulled the trigger.

Fum!

I rolled to my right. The shot missed me, but it hit the dome I had been pushing against.
Smash!
The dome exploded. The platform was now totally loose and tipped down toward me. I scrambled to get back to the center, digging my fingernails into the soft floor, desperate to get a grip. It was like being on the deck of a boat in rolling seas.

Green had no fear. He laughed, aimed his gun, and shot out the last dome! The platform was free-floating. I fell flat on
my belly, dug my toes in, and pressed my palms flat on the floor. It was the only thing I could think of to get some kind of traction to stop from slipping toward the edge. But the angle was too steep and I started to slide. Gravity was winning. Green tried to run up to the opposite side, but this time even he lost his balance. He pinwheeled his arms and fell on his back. When he hit, he scrambled for something to grab on to but found nothing. His luck had finally run out. We were both moments from going over.

Something caught my eye. It was rolling toward me, picking up speed on its way down. It was the tang knife. It was about to roll past me when I lunged out and grabbed it. I was seconds from going over the edge. This was my only chance. I grabbed the handle of the sharp knife and stabbed it into the soft foam padding of the platform. It held! I felt like one of those guys who climb frozen waterfalls with an ice ax. The only thing keeping me from sliding to the edge was this knife made of claws that was barely stuck into the padding. The platform had stopped tilting, but it was at an incredibly steep angle. A few more degrees and it would be fully perpendicular to the ground. I heard the knife tear through the padding. It wasn't going to last. I had to get a better grip. I did something dangerous, but it was the only chance I had. I pulled myself up farther, grabbed the handle with both hands, and yanked it out. Instantly I started sliding down. Using the power of both of my arms, I jammed the three-pronged knife as hard as I could back into the padding.

I felt the tip hit something hard underneath. It held firm. I stopped sliding. I had embedded the point into something more solid than just the pad. I was secure. Or at least more secure than before. I had no idea how long it would last. I stole a cautious look down. With the platform nearly on its side, I could see down to the ground. I have to tell you, we
were way high. I could barely make out the figures of Veego and LaBerge on the ground. They looked like tiny toys. My feet were only a few feet from the end of the platform. If the knife pulled out, there was nothing else to grab on to. My hands started to shake. Looking down wasn't a good thing, so I turned my face back to the platform.

I didn't know what had happened to Challenger Green. Had he fallen? No, that couldn't be or the competition would be over. I cautiously turned my head to the left. He wasn't there. I slowly turned my head the other way and saw him.

Challenger Green was hanging on to the rim of a shattered dome, just as he had when he killed Remudi. But this time the platform was at a much steeper angle. He was hanging there with his feet dangling in space. His hands were bloody from grabbing on to the sharp edges of the shattered dome. For the first time, I saw fear in his eyes. He had never been in this position. He was terrified. I realized it was only a matter of time. Either he was going to lose his grip, or my knife was going to pull out.

“Tell me, Red. Do you like it?” he shouted up at me, spittle flying from his mouth. His eyes were wild. “Do you like killing?”

“Give up,” I shouted. “I'm not going anywhere. Tell them you give up, and it'll be over. They won't let you die if you give up!”

Challenger Green moved his hands around to get a better grip. The sharp edges dug into his flesh. He was only hanging on by his fingers. I knew there was no way he could last much longer. He looked down, then back up at me.

“Only one problem with that,” he shouted.

“What?” I shouted back.

“I don't like to lose!”

And he fell. I didn't know if it was because he couldn't
hold on any longer, or he gave up. It didn't matter. He fell. He would rather die than live with defeat. I couldn't watch. I turned my face to the platform and closed my eyes. The guy didn't even scream. Challenger Green was gone. Beaten at last. Though he went to his death silently, his final question kept playing in my head. He wanted to know if I liked killing. Was that true? Had I become a killer? As I hung there on that knife, the only thing I could do was press my forehead into the platform, and cry.

A moment later I felt the platform lurch. The knife slipped. What was happening? Was Veego was so angry I'd won that she was going to kill me anyway? Why not? She didn't have anything to lose. I got a tighter grip on the knife, though I didn't know what good that would do. I felt an odd sensation. It was like the platform was pressing into my body. At first I didn't understand what was happening, but soon realized the machinery had kicked in and the platform was being returned to level. In moments I was no longer hanging, I was lying on my stomach. I didn't let go of the knife though. I couldn't.

I felt the platform descend. It was over. I had survived. My crying turned to laughter. There was absolutely nothing funny about what had happened, but I was so full of emotion, I didn't know what I was doing. It just flew out of me. I didn't have a say in the matter. I felt the final jolt that told me the platform was back on the ground. I was still flat on my stomach, clutching the knife. I sensed that somebody had stepped up on the platform next to me. I didn't want to deal with Veego and LaBerge. I was too drained. When I looked up, I had to laugh again. This time it was genuine. Standing there was the only person I cared about seeing. Mostly because I think he was the only person who cared about me.

It was Fourteen.

“Congratulations, Pendragon,” he said. “Look.”

He pointed up. I looked to see one of those big screens in the trees. Flashing brightly were the words:
GRAND X CHAMPION—CHALLENGER RED!

I looked back to Fourteen and, I swear, the robot smiled.