Howie didn’t say anything, but could only stare at what caused the young girl’s collapse. AJ followed Howie’s gaze to a small pebble that lay near the bars. It shined with the fresh blood and his stomach flip-flopped.

“What the fuck?! Answer me!” AJ bellowed.

The native ignored AJ and spoke to another native that had appeared by his side. “Dispose of the body.” He said coldly.

“No.” AJ gasped, feeling like he had been punched.

“She’s dead?!” Howie cried, disbelieving.

The native smiled and walked up the bars that imprisoned the two young men. “Women are nothing, but objects to do with what we please. If one displeases a man, he may take her life. This slave was too free with her tongue and paid for it with her life.” He said simply before walking off.

Howie couldn’t help but think of how easily Lizz could land herself the same fate if she wasn’t more careful. They had made her a slave and had made it pretty clear they weren’t too fond of her. On top of it all, she had a smart mouth. He glanced at AJ and his heart dropped. AJ looked stricken.

“It wasn’t your fault man.” Howie said softly.

“Yes it was. If I hadn’t tried to get her to talk to me, she wouldn’t have gotten into trouble. God, they-they...” He choked up, unable to finish the sentence.

Howie couldn’t say anything to comfort his friend, only put an arm around his shoulder in a half hug.

The first thing I noticed when we reached the camp was that everyone seemed to be in really good spirits. It almost mocked my despair. There was almost an excited buzz about the place and I wanted to ask what was going on, but I didn’t dare. Brian and Kevin were taken to the infirmary and I was led to a different hut. My stomach was in knots. The natives that were escorting me tapped on the flap of the hut. Seconds later an older woman slid stuck her head through. They exchanged some words and then the native glared down at me.

“You obey or die.”

I nodded, my heart fluttering. What the hell was going on?? The older woman ushered me into the hut. Inside were several more women. Two of them were old enough to be my mother and three more couldn’t have been much older than me. I was shocked to see that one of them had light skin like me. Her hair was a little redder than mine used to be. She gave me a sympathetic smile. I tried to return it, but I was getting more and more nervous.

“Tonight is the night of the games!” One of the women told me, smiling broadly. She looked like she was in charge.

“You and your friends almost guarantee an interesting show.” Another added. They started talking in their native tongues and I glanced at the white girl, my face questioning.

“Your friends will fight.” She said quietly.

I narrowed my eyes. “What do you mean?”

“Great beasts.” She leaned forward. “It is very dangerous. Everyone will gather in a great circle. Your friends will be inside a big ring of torches. They will have to fight for their lives.” She said quietly.

I gasped. “Oh my god. No...”

“They will tell you to distract the beasts, you must not. You will die as well.” She whispered.

I shook my head in disbelief. “What can I do? You have to help me!”

“I’m sorry, I can’t do anything.” She said sorrowfully. “They could hurt me or my sister, Sasha.”

I nodded, understanding.

“Your bath.” One of the older woman interrupted. I glanced at the large metal tub, steam rising from it. It almost looked like something you would see out of a western movie. “It is heated.”

I wanted to run screaming from the hut, but that would only get me and possibly the others in trouble. I would have to come up with something. I had to do what I could to keep whatever these “beasts” were away from the guys. Even if that meant I would die.

Self-consciously I peeled my clothes off and sat down in the tub. I had to admit, the hot water felt really good on my sore and aching body. Two of the young natives started to bathe me and I protested. They ignored me so I just sat there until they were done. They gave me a large cloth to dry off with. The woman in charge smiled as she held she gestured to the small table behind me. My eyes grew wide.

“Ohhh no, you aren’t getting me in that!” I balked, drawing my makeshift towel closer around my body. I couldn’t believe this little “outfit” that was laid out for me. I didn’t even own a skirt that was as tiny as the piece of fabric that was as tiny as this one. The shirt was beautiful, I had to admit. The material had to have come from some animal and had been dyed a deep turquoise. Although, it too, was a little skimpy for my tastes. “What the heck?!” I demanded.

“Distraction.” The woman said as if that were an explanation.

“What, these beasts are supposed to see me in this and suddenly stop attacking my friends?!” I cried indignantly.

“No, that is for the men to admire.” She explained, smiling. My heart dropped and I felt even more uneasy. “The cape is to distract the beasts.” She pulled a folded cape from a cupboard and my jaw nearly hit the floor. It was even prettier than the shirt-thing. Like the shirt, it was made out of the skin on some animal. It was almost like soft leather and dyed in a swirl of bright bold colors. I supposed, to be able to get the attention of whatever animals were going to be in this ring. As quickly as I could, I put the clothes on and one of the natives put the cape around me. Next, to my surprise, they sat me down and took out a bunch of tiny little pots filled with more colors. They started expertly putting it on my face while another started to mess with my hair. Not but ten minutes later they put a piece of a broken mirror in front of my face. I gasped. I figured whatever they were doing to me was going to make me look like a freak show, but it actually looked really neat. Like make up, only more ornate. My smile was short lived when the head woman ushered me out of door of the hut. I looked around, shocked that the place was totally deserted.

“Where is everyone?” I asked her.

“Waiting.” She smiled at me.

My stomach tensed back up as I was led a different direction than I had ever been. The closer we got to our destination, the louder it got. I almost felt like I was going to be sick. The other natives that accompanied us were chattering excitedly in their native tongue. The only one that was quiet was the light-skinned girl I had talked to. Finally we reached the entrance of a cave and I looked questioningly at the old woman. This wasn’t what I had expected.

“You are to follow the path of the cave. It will go in a steep slope downhill and go back up. You will be at the side of the ring. They will release the beasts and you are free to try to save yourself or your friends. I will tell you a secret, you will want to please your crowd.” The woman stared deep into my eyes as she said this.

I nodded, my heart pounding. I started to walk towards the cave entrance, but stopped when I heard a soft “wait.” It was the red-haired girl. “Here.” She said softly, before turning and rushing to catch up with the rest of the women. I looked down at what she pressed into my hand.

A slingshot.

I said a quick prayer of thanks, putting it in my waistband and hoping this small weapon could give me a little bit of an edge. The cave was lit by torches along the walls and I hurried through it. The sun was just starting to go down and the sky was a splash of reds, oranges, and purples. It made the cave full of shadows. When I reached the end, a huge piece of cloth covered the opening. I said a quick prayer again before stepping through the curtain. I could almost see Nick shaking his head at me.

I was greeted with a large roar of approval and I instinctively stepped back, stunned by what I saw. I had come up through the side of the ring and it was freakin huge. A tight circle of torches made sure that no one could get out, animals included. All around the ring, it was almost like an arena. Cleary it was something that slaves had built. There were about six giant steps all on top of each other completely surrounding the ring. They were huge and the natives were packed like sardines to watch their entertainment. The noise grew louder and I unconsciously pulled the cape tighter around my body. My gaze traveled to the rest of the ring and on the opposite side, all five guys stood. I could make out a white bandage around Kevin’s head and Brian had a different shirt on. It looked like one a native would wear so I hoped that meant they fixed him up too. Then I noticed something else and my heart sank.

They had no weapons.

I wanted to run to them, but I had a feeling that the heavy piece of black cloth that was stretched across the ground was something significant. It was almost directly between us and I was surprised that I didn’t hear the noises that were coming from it before. The crowd must have drowned it out. A rope stretched across the ground, one end on the cloth, the other in the hands of a native. He yelled something out and the crowed roared back in approval. The man yanked the rope and the cloth gave way to a huge pit. The growling grew louder and my knees started to feel weak. Under the cape, I rested my hand on my small weapon and took a shaky step forward. A bunch of cheers followed and I took a deep breath. My whole body was trembling, but I was going to do everything in my power to keep these beasts from hurting my friends. Even if that meant I was going to become dinner for one of them. Any moment now they were going to come out of that pit and unleash their hell.