Numb

Jack was all scratched up by now. His pants had been some combat pants he had scavenged while on earth, and were surprisingly durable in this situation. However, running around shirtless in this jungle had unsurprisingly caused a few nicks and bruises here and there.

This was a major concern to Jack, since he had seen first hand how easily he could be tracked by his scent. With his blood in the air, it was bound to be even easier. Now, he could barely see his surroundings, as he was hidden deep within tall grasses. If he sought the high ground to fend off the insectoids, he'd be exposed to gladiators. But waiting in the grass was just asking to get jumped by surprise. What could he possibly do?

Jack knew he had to survive by any means necessary. He was lacking too much information about the Cosmic Arena and how these unfair circumstances came to be. While wracking his brain, he heard the clear sound of a plasma rifle in front of him. Not too far from him, there had been a flash of light in the canopy. He could see a humanoid body with large chunk of their upper body missing. It was too close for comfort, and likely not a coincidence. Jack didn't move, as there was nowhere to run. He might have thought he was hidden before, but clearly he was out in the open to the experienced gladiators. Silence hung in the air as Jack held his breath. As the moments passed, he calmed down and began to think this through.

Someone had clearly killed this person hunting him, but hadn't come after him. Either he wasn't worth chasing according to some unknown rule in the Arena, or he was being used at bait. But if he wasn't worth chasing, then why did someone come after him in the first place? He had no grudges or special relationship, and Dersk hadn't mentioned any special targeting rules, which would definitely be a relevant detail he wouldn't forget. So chances are, he was bait.

If that was so, then exposing him position to other gladiators might not work out so badly. He wasn't able to hide from them right now anyway. His best option might in fact be to go straight at them, in the canopy layer. Jack would have to take advantage of any hesitation, and he would also have to be able to flee at a moment's notice.

But so long as he could survive the battle long enough, anyone gunning for him would either have to flee or be killed just like the last gladiator.

His mind didn't stop there though. He was at a disadvantage none of the others were at. He lacked supplies and weapons, which he could only assume everyone else already had. The only supplies he knew about were on the dead gladiator. Would someone be coming to pick up those supplies? Maybe, but it would be a risk to them. Jack was already mired in risk.

As Jack slowly and silently made his way toward a giant vine that curled around a tree, he looked toward where he saw the last victim. He only had a vague idea of how to get up there, to the canopy. Jack would probably have to spend searching around for the right path, and he needed something to go right if he had any chance of getting out of there.

-----

Richard and Debbie Cho were just settling into their new lives. They had come to Relta XII about a month ago as slaves for the Challor. Relta XII was a space station that existed to mine materials in the outer edges of a galaxy. It was strategically placed to sustain itself on weak solar energy, just enough to survive. This was what allowed it to be as far as possible from the centre of the galaxy, and what made it a good waypoint for mining ships that would periodically drop their product here. But that meant that Relta XII was not a place for luxuries. Everything was drab and simple.

For Richard and Debbie, there was a lot to take in, and they were just beginning to grasp Common. It was an extremely intelligently designed language. Everything made sense, and it had no variations. A language that was meant to hold to a single standard, purely for the sake of communication. Their orientation leaders, other slaves from other races, had learned various human languages in preparation for this day, and they described Common as a lifeless, cold language with no room for beauty or ambiguity. No one could say it wasn't great at what it was supposed to do though.

They spent their time learning Common, and processing garbage. Relta XII would waste nothing, and so everything would be recycled in some shape or form. That required sorting and identification, which was something robots weren't as good at as sentient creatures, not when there was a billion different types of products and items produced by this advanced civilization. Honestly, Richard was a little overwhelmed with everything he had to learn, though Debbie seemed to be adjusting just fine. As an older couple, they initially worried it would be too difficult to get used to, but the expectations that were placed on them were very reasonable. This allowed them to settle into a pattern, and really start adapting to a life in space.

"Darling, did you ever think we'd be living in space?" Richard remarked to his wife. The enormity of his situation still awed him at times.

"Of course not. But it doesn't matter now." Debbie was going over her Common language exercises, as she ate with Richard in the worker cafeteria. They had just finished a 6-hour shift in the waste plant, and were fueling up before heading to their night school. Debbie was determined to learn Common and make some sort of marginal improvement to their lives. Right now, they were class 1 slaves, which meant they weren't given any leisure time, or access to the internet. That last part was particularly worrisome to Debbie, as she currently had no way to find out what had happened to her son.

Jack had been living in a different city from then when the Challor came, studying general sciences in his first year of university. 'Where was he now?' Debbie would ask herself as she fell asleep.

Richard realized how focused Debbie was, and was slightly embarrassed to have interrupted her. She was always able to stay on task much better than he was. Finishing his gruel, some sort of nutritional mix created by the cafeteria machines, he popped their plates into machine's slot, that immediately washed and dried their tableware. It was quite slick, and Richard was constantly fascinated by how this place worked.

"Let's go, honey, the good seats fill up fast." Debbie pulled on Richard's sleeve, smiling. Considering all the turmoil, it was great they had been able to stay together. They even were with some of their old friends and community. They lost a few friends, but they at least had something.

The couple went to the night class and sat in their seats. It wasn't a big room, but before class would start it would be packed full, some people even standing on the sides. Considering how important it was to learn Common, there wasn't anyone willing to try to learn it on their own. Debbie saw some young men studying intently, and her thoughts began to wander to her own son.

"Do you think Jack is okay?" Debbie whispered to Richard.

"I'm sure he's fine. He's a smart boy, and too stubborn to let any problem hold him down. He got that from you, you know!" Richard said, a smirk appearing on his face.

Debbie smiled back, Richard's mood was always infectious. "But he's also got such a delicate and pretty face! I'm sure he'll be chased after by everyone with that thing. He got that from YOU, you know!"

"Of course, but being chased after isn't so bad you know?"

-----

Jack wasn't being slow and methodical any more. He was running. And running FAST. A reptile of some sort was after him, and it was LARGE. It must have been the size of large truck, and about as fast too. It was bulldozing through the jungle, barely being slowed down by overgrown vegetation all around them. He had never run so hard in his life!

This was the worst. Just the worst. Everyone else was able to avoid these creatures, with advanced scouting and reconnaissance tech, and here he was just bumbling around. Luckily, this reptile wasn't so great at sharp turns, so Jack was able to zig-zag his way to a vine he was able to climb, out of reach of this lizard. He collapsed with exhaustion, though he suspected he had attracted the attention of another hunter.

Lying down on some mossy surface on the root of a tree, he gazed upwards toward the canopy layer he needed to get to. It was so far. Jack reasoned that it was impossible to survive, but screw it he was going to try anyway.