Clap.
The lights in the stadium cut out.
Darkness swallowed everything.
The endless roars of the crowd died instantly, replaced by an eerie, suffocating silence.
My heart beat faster, drumming against my ribs like a warning bell.
"Isaac? Rona? Are you guys still here?" I whispered, waving my arms blindly to avoid bumping into anyone.
Then—light. A single spotlight appeared at the bottom of the arena.
A man with slick blond hair and a pristine monocle stood on a floating platform. He rose slowly, dramatically, as if this was all part of an over-rehearsed stage play.
With a flick of his fingers, the stadium lights snapped back on.
The man flashed a devilish grin, bowed, and adjusted the mic attached to his ear.
"Welcome, you sick wackos, to our main event of the year: The Blood Bathe." His voice boomed with flair. "I am your host once again, the dashing and still-very-single Mr. James—ladies, take note. Ahem. Ahem."
Laughter exploded from the crowd.
"Just like last year, we've gathered some adorable little contestants straight from Eden."
"Eden?" I asked quietly.
Isaac replied, "It's what they call the surface. Where we used to live. Above ground."
"Above ground?" I blinked.
"We're in their domain now. This place—they call it The Valley. It's an entire civilization built underground, hidden from the world. They've been living down here for generations, away from prying eyes."
"Ouish… Imagine building an entire society underground without anyone knowing. That's insane!"
Mr. James raised a finger. "But this year, we've made a few delightful changes. Instead of cramming everything into one bloody mess of a day, we're spreading it across several. Why, you ask? I don't know. Not my business. I'm just the poor little emcee." He winked. "But not too poor. Ladies."
The audience chuckled again.
"There will be three games in total. First up, our cute little bunnies will hop around a maze of obstacles—like potholes. By the end of it, we'll have our champion jumpers!"
"Potholes?" I scanned the floor.
Mr. James smiled nastily.
Click.
He pressed something on a floating blue screen.
A trapdoor snapped open, and a child fell straight down into a pit of darkness.
"What the—? Huh?" I blinked. I couldn't even form a sentence.
"Oopsie~ I'm such a klutz." Mr. James giggled. "Gotta be careful with these silly fingers of mine."
A boy near us shouted, "What happened to him?!"
Isaac muttered, "Isn't it obvious? He's dead. Either that, or he's a super idiot who jumped in willingly."
"I don't like him. I prefer Isaac!" Rona announced as she hugged Isaac tightly.
Isaac shoved her off. "What is wrong with her brain?! No, wait. Does she have one?!"
Mr. James leaned in with exaggerated drama. "What happened to the boy, you ask? Why, he was eaten—by Monica!"
"Monica?" The same boy asked.
"Our dearest mascot! The cute and very lovable Monica! Isn't that right, everyone?!"
The crowd roared.
Rona's eyes sparkled. "I wonder what Monica looks like. I bet she's gorgeous!"
Mr. James pointed down.
We followed his finger—and saw it.
Yellow-red eyes glinted from the darkness below. A massive mouth stretched wide inside the pit. It didn't look like a mouth.
It was the pit.
A black void with gnashing teeth and a hunger that radiated even from a distance.
"Cute? Lovable? Where?! Who?!" Isaac was trembling.
"Monica, duh. Her eyes sparkle like stars~" Rona squealed.
"That's not sparkling. That's predatory glow. You need to get your eyes and brain checked." Isaac scooted further away from her.
I gulped. "She just has… a unique taste."
Somewhere in the crowd, a banner waved: MONICA, PLEASE EAT ME!
Isaac glanced at it. "Then why doesn't he jump down? No one's stopping him."
Mr. James pouted. "Alright, alright. Let's not steal my spotlight, folks."
The crowd quieted immediately.
"Thank you," he said. "Now, the rules. There are none."
The kids around us went rigid.
"But there is a time limit—60 minutes. All these bunnies need to do is hop. Sounds simple, doesn't it?" He gave a wide grin. "We wouldn't want the event to drag too long. Wouldn't want to run out of bunnies before the main course!"
The crowd exploded in laughter.
A massive countdown screen slid into place above us.
BIG SCREEN:
3
2
1
BEGIN!
The ground shook.
Everyone fell.
Buzz. Beep. Whirr. Clang. Hiss...
The box trembled as unseen machinery whirred to life around us.
Then—silence.
A boy scoffed. "Is that all?"
Thump. Clang. Ring. Ring.
The sound echoed. Something was coming.
I whispered, "Rona. Isaac. Let's team up. We might have a better shot at surviving."
Isaac leaned in. "Do you know what's coming?"
"I have a hunch. I think it's… a giant metal ball."
"Ballzy!" Rona giggled, clearly excited.
"You didn't hear it? The rolling?" I asked.
Isaac shook his head. "My hearing's not that sharp. How do you know?"
"I'm sensitive to screeches. Metal-on-metal… it's a sound I can't ignore."
"Then stay sharp."
THUD.
A massive ball—gleaming and metallic—slammed into the center of the box.
My breath caught. "Oui. This ain't good…"
The moment it started rolling, chaos erupted.
Everyone ran.
I turned to grab Rona, but she was gone.
"Rona?! Where are you?!" I screamed.
Isaac grabbed my arm. "We need to run! Now!"
I turned—the ball was already on us.
We bolted. At the last second, we dove to the side.
WHAM!
The ball passed us with a hair's width.
I gasped, "Wait—wasn't it going the other direction?!"
Isaac was breathing heavily. "It changes direction. Unpredictable. And it's getting faster."
"Ouuiii…" I bent down, catching my breath. Then I looked up.
"Behind you!"
I yanked Isaac away just in time.
"Thanks."
"No probs. Got a plan?"
Isaac pointed. "The corners. A ball this big can't roll into sharp corners. If we stay in one, we might be safe."
"You're a genius."
"Thanks. But let's save the praise for later. We might not make it before the ball catches up."
"Of course… there's always Monica if you prefer getting eaten instead of squished."
We looked over the edge.
Monica stared back at us.
"Ugh…" we both groaned.
Just as we moved, our ankles locked.
CLINK.
We crashed to the ground, face-first.
"…"
Isaac lay still. "There better be a good reason for this."
"Ouuii… my poor face."
Isaac scowled. "Forget your face. Think of all the filthy shoes that have touched this floor!"
"You look fine."
"Do you even know how many germs are down here?!"
"Mic test—1, 2, 3~" Mr. James chimed in. "Looks like the mic's still working! Tick-tock! It's already been 20 minutes!"
"Only 20?!" I collapsed again.
Mr. James smiled. "So many bunnies still hopping. Why don't we heat things up a little?"
Click. Clack. Weeee…
Tubes slid out from the box walls.
My head spun. "I have a bad feeling about those."
FWOOM.
Fire blasted from them. Children turned to ash in an instant.
"The heat… must be insane," I whispered.
"Flamethrowers?" Isaac guessed. "No… worse."
He looked at the ball.
The giant orb was on fire.
"Now it burns and squishes?!" I stared at it, stunned.
"There goes our corner plan…"
Across the arena, we spotted Rona—skipping around and humming like a happy kid in a playground.
My stomach dropped.
The ball was heading straight for her.
"Rona! Rona, come here!" I screamed.
"LalalalaDoDoHaHa~" she sang, lost in her own world.
Isaac yelled, "Come here, you dimwit!"
She finally looked up—
Just as the flaming ball bore down on her.
"RONA!" We both screamed.