Ch 19: Ghostfang Chronicles Pt II- Ambush

Instructions:

Urgent, Read Immediately

1. Obey all instructions the first time without question

2. Enter or exit rooms only when instructed

3. Destruction of The Complex property not allowed

4. Communicate only when instructed

5. Fight only when instructed

Any and all infractions of the rules will be met with dire consequences. Disobey at your own peril.

The last rule stands out to me the most. It sounds like this gathering is going to get a little violent. When I say a little, I really mean a lot.

The itinerary is even shorter than the instructions:

The first event will begin at???

I stare at both of these messages for some time. This has all been very mysterious so far. Do they really need to be so dramatic? I guess only time will tell.

I go to my window and look down to the street far below. There are bars on the windows so I can't escape. Do they really think someone is going to try and get out from here? Or is it that they have something so harrowing planned that someone might try to plummet to their death to avoid going through with whatever is going on?

The questions keep coming. I'm starting to wonder exactly what kind of gathering this really is. It can't just be a normal convention of the underworld. I have infiltrated those before. This is something entirely new.

The technology they have in their possession is worrying as well. The humans are becoming more technologically advanced, but they could never do that alone. Is the Blood Angel behind this?

I shake my head. That seems like a far leap. The nests can't be connected. Or at least I can't see it yet.

Minutes become hours and the day turns into night. The city comes to brilliant life, and I am still waiting, staying on my toes in case something happens.

Then, at almost 0300h, I notice a change. It is barely perceptible, but after years and years of living with heightened senses, I have learned to trust my instincts.

I turn off my lights and get into the bathroom, crouching by the doorway. I watch the sliver of light underneath the apartment door. Then the hallway lights turn off, bathing the whole building in darkness.

My eyes adjust quickly and pierce the shadows better than any modern human. My ears listen and I hear something. Careful footsteps approaching. There are dozens of them, maybe even more.

Men are posting outside all the apartment doors. I brace myself. The so-called first event is about to begin.

Silence rings out in the darkness. If I dropped a pin, I'm sure the men outside would hear it.

There is no order or warning of any kind. The door is suddenly kicked in. I hear the others being broken down at the exact same time.

As soon as the first boot stomps inside I burst into action. Before the raider even knows what is happening, I grab him and smash my elbow into his face, smashing it against the door frame. The man is instantly knocked unconscious. I drop him to the ground, facing a group of others who wait just outside.

They only hesitate for a moment, then they attack. Each of them is wielding black batons, which they swing with bone-cracking force.

I easily dodge their strikes. I block the ones I can't dodge. Then, when they present openings, I retaliate. I don't prolong any confrontation. I manipulate joints and pressure points to incapacitate each man in seconds.

I take five of them down one after the other until there are only three left. They circle me, seeking to come at me from my blind spot.

They don't speak. The only time they make noise is when they feel pain. The ones on the ground aren't dead, but they feel plenty of pain.

I stand absolutely still in a relaxed stance, not appearing threatening at all. This causes them to grow impatient and overconfident. The man behind me does the obvious and tries to strike me down by bringing his baton down on my head.

I sidestep, crack him in the ribs and then swing him over my shoulder, smashing him right over my coffee table which smashes to pieces.

The other two attack me simultaneously, each one going to one of my arms. I move between them, take their heads in my hands and bring their skulls crashing together. They collapse on the floor and are still.

A figure moves into the doorway. I turn to face them. It is another suit like Mr. Kurz. He's obviously not here to fight, so I let my fists unclench.

He looks around at his men, a pleased smile on his face. "Good." He says. His voice is thin and raspy. "You will be moved to the top tier."

He snaps his fingers, and more men march into the room. These ones are armed with tasers. They aim at me, four green dots appearing on my chest.

"I am Edward Prescott. Just follow us, Mr. Wolfe. It will be unwise to resist." He says.

There is that word again. Wise. Do all these off-putting suits use this word the same way?

I say nothing and step forward. The men all jerk their guns up, ready to let who knows how many thousands of volts to put me down. I raise my hands slowly and put them on my head. Satisfied, they let me by.

In the hallway, I see other inmates being led out. We are all backed up into the wall and the suits each step-in front of us, something in their hands.

Mr. Prescott holds his up and I see it is some kind of gold pin. "Here is your rank in the event, Mr. Wolfe. Your job is to collect as many of these as possible of the highest rank. The more you collect and the higher the rank, the more points you will have. The top 100 will move on to the next event. Do you understand?"

I look at the pin. It has a zero on it. I look back at Mr. Prescott and nod.

"Good." He says. "I knew you were wise from the moment I saw you in person, Mr. Wolfe." He places the pin on my breast. It's not very big and has a flat design so the pin won't damage the wearer during the fighting.

Everyone else got their pins too, but not everyone is as unscathed as I am. Most of the other inmates are bloodied in some way or the other. Some aren't even standing, having taken a pretty bad beating.

Since it is so early in the morning, my guess is that some of them had fallen asleep. I figure this particular hour was chosen on purpose to test our combat readiness and discipline.

I feel the effects as well. Since I don't have Grace constantly renewing my body, I feel the fatigue creeping on me. Even this enhanced body can't go on forever. I will need time to rest and heal from any sustained injuries or exertion.

"This completes the first stage of the first event, now to the next." Mr. Prescott says. He snaps his fingers again and we are marching towards the elevators again.

We descend back to the sub levels and exit into a huge open space. In front of us is a circular room with door going all around. We go to the doors, and I am led inside the room.

Another, even larger space is revealed. It is a huge arena made of concrete and metal. Stands surround the hollowed-out bowl and they are filled with cloaked spectators. There is no cheering or any rowdiness. The spectators watch in silence as we are herded into the arena and gathered into the middle.

I do a quick sweep of the inmates. There are at least a thousand of us. I also notice that whatever lingering questions anyone might have had are now of little importance. We all understand that a fight is coming and from the hard looks in everyone's eyes, they are all ready to brawl.

"Welcome contestants, generous benefactors and esteemed clients!" a voice booms out. A face appears on a huge screen. A suit takes to a podium high above us. "I am head conductor, Percival Archibald, and welcome to the Grand Melee Games!"

There is no applause, but he doesn't seem to mind. He has a winning smile and is very animated with his hands.

"In your possession is a pin with your current rank. This was determined by how well you performed during the 'ambush' part of my first game. With the exception of a spectacular few, you each received a number ranging from 1-10. These numbers were calculated by how many of your opponents were left standing."

"Now, as you can see, the arena as 10 sections. When your number is called, go to the section that corresponds with your number."

I look around. Big letters are painted on the walls of the fighting area. The ground of the arena is sectioned off as well. 10 has the biggest surface area and each other area gets smaller, like sections of a pie chart. There is a circle in the middle and written in the middle of that circle is zero. I know where this is going.

"Ten!" Mr. Archibald says.

The ones with number ten look around, surely and with hurt pride. When they don't move fast enough, the guards step in.

"Get moving!" they say. "Move!"

"Hey, man, get off!" one guys says, resisting. "I was caught off guard! I deserve to be at least a six! Look at all these other p**sies! I can take any one of them!"

"Have no fear." Mr. Archibald says. "This is precisely why I designed the next stage of the game this way. You may have dozed off or been caught with your hand down your pants, thinking of your favorite whore. We can't really fault you for that, can we?"

A lot of the lower numbers not their heads, agreeing with his reasoning. These idiots can't tell when they are being insulted. How sad.

"You just need another chance. You're all so big and tough. Now you get the chance to show the higher ranks what you can really do! Just please get to your assigned sections when I call your number and we can begin!" the conductor says.

I have to say, this man sure knows how to motivate. Well, more like manipulate. The lower ranks all eat it up, too. They act like failing was no big deal. They still have a chance. I can say that, yes, many of them will climb up the ranks, but they will have to fight for it. I don't see anyone looking to give their pins away that easily.

"Nine!" the nines move.

"Eight!" the eights, too.

All the numbers move until there are none left. Mr. Archibald spreads his arms and looks directly at us zeros. There aren't that many of us. Only seven, in fact.

"At last, we get to what we can only describe as legends in the art of combat. The zeros!" he says. Still, no cheers from the crowd, though he acts as if there is a giant uproar after his every phrase.

"In this first Grand Melee Games event, we have the all-time favorite, battle royale! It's every man for himself, but with a twist." He says, a self-pleased smile on his face. "With the exception of the zeros, your rank can change."

He pauses for effect. "You can even rise to the rank of zero. To advance a rank, you need a certain number of points. Each rank has a point value. So, except for rank 10, each rank has a cost. Let me explain."

"A rank ten pin equals zero points. A rank nine pin equals two points and each consecutive rank equals two more points from the last. The entry fee of each rank is equal to one pin from the respective rank." He smiles. "I trust you can do the math from there."

So, no matter how many rank ten pins anyone collects, they can't advance. That's interesting. The rank to point order goes like this: 9=2/8=4/7=6/6=8/5=10/4=12/3=14/2=16/1=18/0=20.

So, technically speaking, you can advance to rank zero by simply having two pins from rank five. At the end, everyone should end up with at least one pin because who would even bother trying to go for a rank ten pin?

Actually, I find that to be the strangest part. Why not make rank ten at least 1 point? It seems they have a further use of those who end up at the bottom. I don't know why but I get an ominous feeling about that.

"Listen closely to these instructions!" Mr. Archibald says. "There will be four rounds of three minutes each. During each round, the numbers will compete amongst themselves for advancement. At the end of each round, fighters will be eliminated from participation depending on the level advanced to."

"Each round requires a minimum of two-level advancements by those who start at the lowest tier in the respective round. At the end of the fourth round, only contestants who rank 3 or higher can participate in the grand finale of the first game of the Grand Melee Games."

What a psychopath, calling this a mere game. He sickens me with how easily he wears his smile and sends men to their gruesome deaths. He is pure evil.

"Once the round starts, anything goes. Once the rounds end, there will be a cease to all combat. Anyone in violation of these rules will be immediately eliminated. Permanently." He says, still with the same shining smile. "Are you ready, numbers?"

I look around. The men in the numbers murmur and look at each other. Some are terrified, some appear confident. I see some banding together with others, creating groups. The conductor said it was a free-for-all battle royale but banding together is the smart thing to do.

"Countdown!" Mr. Archibald shouts. He disappears from the screen and is replaced by numbers blinking in a descending order.

10. 9. 8. 7. 6.

The numbers brace themselves, ready for the chaos to ensue. The air is tense.

5. 4. 3. 2. 1…