Joe's heartbeat was beating fast as Maya led him through the horror streets of the Dark Lands. The red light from above cast long shadows above the pavement, and the stench of rot and decay grew stronger.
"Where are we going….how..how do you even know my name?" Joe asked, his voice hoarse.
"Which of your questions do you want me to answer?"
Maya faced him suddenly.
"Both." Joe shivered slightly, feeling a little bit scared.
"We're going to the arena and I knew your name from the passengers list."
"The arena, the passengers list," Joe mumbled the words slowly, feeling very confused.
"I'm Maya..Maya Chen by the way." She said suddenly and kept moving, not slowing down, Joe following her with fright.
"Your first game starts in ten minutes."
"Game? What game?"
She stopped again and turned to face him, her brown eyes hard as metal. "Listen carefully, Joe. In the Dark Lands, survival isn't guaranteed. Every new passenger plays the games. You win, and you get to stay alive another day. You lose…" She paused, letting the weight of the word hang in the air. "Well, you don't have to worry about anything anymore."
Joe's stomach turned. "By saying game, what kind of game do you mean?"
"The kind that separates the clever from the dead."
They came to a corner of the street and the Arena came into view. It was a massive building made of large stones that stretched high into the dark red sky. Strange symbols glowed along the walls, displaying signs of the underworld that made Joe's skin crawl. Two tall figures dressed like knights stood at the entrance, each holding a laser gun with red trackers.
Dozens of people stood outside the entrance, all of them looked confused and terrified just like Joe. Some were young, some old. Some wore normal clothes like him, others dressed in strange outfits from different times and periods. A man in a brown suit stood next to a woman dressed in clothes like the nineties.
Another man dressed like warriors of the pre-apocalyptic era, some dressed like the prehistoric age humans. All these made Joe get more scared and confused.
Where was this place really?
"Stay close," Maya said, pushing through the crowd.
They entered through a massive iron gate that screeched the ground as they swung open. Rows of arranged stone seats rose up on all sides, packed with the shadowy figures that Joe couldn't identify. In the center was a circular pearl shining with red energy.
At the upper parts of the arena were five massive screens, each one was blank and waiting.
A loud deafening siren blared around the entire arena. Joe covered his ears but he could notice Maya was unmoved, she was used to it.
"Welcome to the games, all participants take your positions!"
A gothic voice boomed out of everywhere and nowhere at once.
Joe could feel something pushing him from behind like an unseen energy grabbing him forward. Other people in the arena too were pushed as they stumbled onto a platform in the center of the arena. A red barrier sealed behind them with a sharp crackle like electricity.
Joe couldn't see Maya during the push.
"What's happening?" A young woman next to Joe whispered. Her hands were trembling.
Before anyone could answer, more figures in knights armor like the ones Joe sighted at the entrance of the arena came around the platform edge. Their faces were hidden beneath the knights mask. They held weapons like guns that hummed with deadly energy, laser rifles that could penetrate through the hardest metal.
"Sentinels," Maya's voice came from somewhere in the crowd. "Don't even dare to run."
The gothic voice boomed again. "Welcome to the first game. THE GAME OF RIDDLES! The rules are simple. You will be given five riddles. You have five minutes to solve them all. Once you answer correctly you will advance. Any passenger who fails will be eliminated."
Joe's heart banged loudly in his chest. Riddles? He was terrible at riddles. He could barely pass his English quiz back in Chicago. The first screen flickered and he stared at it. He could see his picture and name boldly written amongst the pictures and list of names of other candidates.
Five dots were indicated beside each name and he could see "passengers list" boldly written above the names.
So this was what Maya meant by the passengers list. Everyone here was a passenger.
The second screen flickered to life, displaying strange symbols that formed into words.
"Riddle one: I have four eyes and I cannot see but I run around a continent. What am I?"
Joe's mind went blank. Cold shivers ran down his spine. A timer clock appeared on all five screens simultaneously, counting down from five minutes.
4:59…. 4:58…. 4:57…..
Around him, people were already panicking. A man in the brown business suit was muttering to himself and rubbing his hair roughly. The woman dressed in the nineties had dropped to her knees and was praying slowly in a language Joe didn't understand.
"Think, Joe," he whispered to himself. "Think!"
Then he heard it. A soft voice, barely loud. "I think it might be the name of a river or sea, since it runs around a continent."
Joe turned around and saw her. A girl, maybe sixteen, with short hair and glasses that reflected the light. She was standing still, slightly panicked but still calm.
"Yeah, I suppose, that's a nice guess by the way but we're gonna die if we don't find the answers," Joe said, facing her.
"Then have you seen a river with eyes, how is that even possible?" The girl said again, racking her head.
Then an idea lit up in Joe's head, he never even expected it.
"Since it's a river I suggest the eyes is not a physical eye, but rather the name of a letter in the spelling of the river name," Joe said and faced the girl again.
"Yeah, four i's not eyes, then that must be Mississippi, the Mississippi river!"
"Are you sure of that?" Joe asked.
"I'm dead sure, trust me."
Joe looked at the answer panel that had appeared in front of him, a hologram-like keyboard appeared waiting for his input. He was hesitant for a brief moment, but time isn't on his side. He then typed "MISSISSIPPI."
The word flashed green. Correct.
Relief ran through him, but there was no time to celebrate yet. The second riddle appeared almost immediately.
RIDDLE TWO: A man shot his pregnant wife and placed her in the water, she then gave birth the next day. How is that possible?
Ripples ran down Joe's spine, why the hell does this keep getting difficult?
"Because she was shot with a camera not with a gun," the girl said suddenly.
"What, how do you even know that?"
"No time to ask questions, just do as I say."
Around them, they could hear people screaming. A man in torn clothes had not answered the first riddle. A sentinel moved in a flash, its laser rifle aimed at his head. The weapon fired a sound like tearing through metal and the man fell flat to the ground and vanished into tiny ashes as if he never existed before.
"Passenger eliminated." A robotic sound echoed around the entire arena.
Joe's hand shook and he typed the second answer into the holographic keyboard. The answer buzzed green, it was correct.
The third question appeared almost immediately.
RIDDLE THREE: In the morning I walk on four legs, in the afternoon I walk on two legs and in the night I walk on three legs. What am I?
Joe froze for a moment.
"Human being," The girl said, her voice was steady even as another passenger was eliminated behind them.
Joe typed without hesitation. Green again.
3:13… 3:12….3:11...
The clock was still ticking.
The fourth riddle came up and it was harder.
RIDDLE FOUR: What comes out in the middle of nowhere?
The girl felt moved for the first time. Joe stared at her, he could see her thinking, her lips were moving silently.
Joe racked his head for answers, he couldn't figure out anything. He was not good at solving riddles.
Boom! Another sound of laser shot rang in the arena. Joe shivered, he took a look at the timer.
2:45…2:44...
Time is not on their side, and one single wrong answer will cost their life.
"Map..Yes a map," she finally said.
Joe believed her, he quickly typed the answer on the screen and it buzzed green again.
One last question, one last question and this will come to an end, Joe prayed silently.
RIDDLE FIVE: How do you beat a man without your hands?
Joe was silent for a while, he faced the girl, but this time he noticed a darkened expression on her face.
"Mine was different this time, I guess they caught us helping each other..I'm sorry," her face was almost teary.
Joe scratched his head, and he prayed silently for answers to come.
1:20….1:19….1:18
The clock is ticking and he had no idea of the answer.
He glanced behind him and he could see one of the sentinels standing rigidly behind him, his laser rifle buzzing ready to shoot.
He just realized he was in hell. But would he be able to survive the first game?