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Fanian made his way to his cot and used his thumbprint to open the safe under his bed. He took out extra clothing, a cross-bow, and knives—the weapons allowed in the next Level.
“Off to Level Two?” a hunter asked with a chuckle. “You might want to stay away from the mother. She’s been on a killing spree. We thought you were one of her victims.”
“Why spend the credits for two females when all the other humans remain in Level One?” Another questioned.
Fanian didn’t answer. He had no plans to make friends with any of the other hunters. They were forced in close proximity by circumstances only. There was no camaraderie between them. Leaving the communal living area, he stepped over the accumulated garbage that no one had bothered to pick up. Cleaning staff wasn’t a perk in this section.
He stalked through the halls, making his way to the executive suites again. As usual the high end differences were discernable. The air was cleaner. No visible sign of dirt or grime on the walls. No stench of unclean bodies and trash didn’t litter the floor.
Fanian didn’t encounter any guards on his way and no one stopped him to question his presence. He made it to his destination and stood outside the Dar’E’s door and knocked.
No answer.
He knocked again
No answer.
“Xrez!” he yelled at the door. “Open and talk to me, or every hunter here will know who you really are!”
Still no answer.
“Fine! Have it your way!” He turned.
“Fanian Uldri, why are you in the executive suites and not in the communal living area that you paid for?”
Fanian vaguely recognized the voice coming from his comlink. “I’ve come to see the Game Warden.”
There was a pause.
“The Game Warden doesn’t communicate with the hunters. If something is wrong with your accommodations, you can speak with me.”
“Funny. The Game Warden and I had a conversation the other night. Not too far from where I’m standing now.”
“You’re mistaken. It’s against The Hunt rules for the Game Warden to communicate with the hunters.”
Fanian snort laughed. “Then it really must be against the rules to communicate with and stalk prey.”
“It is,” the voice said slowly. “But why are you so sure that you’ve seen and spoken to the Game Warden?”
Patience running thin, Fanian snapped, “I overheard him talking to someone in his suite. Now that I think about it, I believe that person was you. His assistant, Bradliix.”
There was an indignant sniff. “You were eavesdropping outside his door? Even so, the doors to the rooms are soundproof. You didn’t hear what you thought you did.”
Fanian growled under his breath. “My hearing is exceptional.”
“Your species is new to us. I admit that we’re still learning about you and updating our files as we observe you.”
Fanian was too stunned to respond right away. The species name he’d used on his application matched the biomarker he’d added to his blood to mask what he really was. “The Khet are very familiar in this galaxy. You should know all about me already.”
“But you aren’t really a Khet, are you?” There was a hint of knowing in Bradliix’s voice. “Despite what you registered as when we scan you.”
“Then what am I since you know so much?” There was no mistaking the challenge in his voice. He’d paid a lot for the biomarker. An expense he was happy to part with if it meant he would remain anonymous and wouldn’t be hunted in this galaxy.
“You’re a Givvek. We do background checks on the species of every hunter here. Your biomarker, as a Khet, would fool any other medical team. Rest assured, our technology is better than most, and you almost fooled us. Your identity stays a secret. But the fact is noted in our non-disclosure contract.”
Could he trust this person not to broadcast what he was, alerting the Thruul that a Givvek had been found? Could he also trust this person not to try to capture him for his own purposes?
“So, you know about my species?” Fanian asked through gritted teeth.
“Your kind was driven from your homeworld by genocide. The Thruul have used your species’ unique healing abilities to win a war, and even after the war, they continue to hunt your kind to help them remain in power. Sadly, there is no accurate number of how many Givveks survived. The Thruul keep how many they’ve enslaved a secret, but approximately ten thousand escaped and fled to the far reaches of the universe. There are less than two hundred Givveks, including yourself in this galaxy, and you are the only Givvek in this sector.”
“Thank you for the very painful history lesson,” Fanian ground out. He hadn’t known the numbers. He’d hoped there were more who’d escaped. He fought past the pain of what had been done to his people and focused on how much the assistant really knew. “What can you tell me about our special abilities? Besides that of fast healing?”
“The cadence of your voice affects the brain waves of most species. Your voice, or your zvodny, makes people calm when you speak. It’s the weapon the Thruul used to convince their enemies to surrender. I must point out that your zvodny does not work on me. My brain is set up differently.”
This would’ve been a lot easier if he could convince Bradliix to give him everything he’d come here to get from the Game Warden.
“You also cannot work your zvodny on Xrez. Since learning of your species we’ve added the mind blocker to his food.”
Fanian scowled.
“You’re stronger and faster than most,” Bradliix continued. “Able to cross short spans of ground in record time. You have an excellent sense of smell and because of your unique digestive system, you require nutritional substance from amino acids which are only found in the blood of certain species.”
“And my hearing?”
“Exceptional.”
Which brought him back to his point. “Then you understand how I was able to hear the happenings beyond these walls?”
It was also how he’d finally found Miranda again. He’d smelled her and her kids, but couldn’t pinpoint where they were. It wasn’t until he’d heard her murmurings coming from across the lake that he’d honed in on her position. It was hard to believe he’d missed the small cave opening in the side of the mountain.
“I understand that now. I’ll update your file.” Bradliix didn’t sound too happy.
“I want to talk to Xrez. Now.”
“It’s impossible at the moment.”
Fanian clenched his fists at his sides. “If he doesn’t present himself, I’ll return to the communal living area. I think the other hunters would be interested in hearing the information I have, like how the fabled Game Warden has helped the humans manipulate the game. He’s told the humans they can return home if they complete Level Three. Although we all know this to be untrue, it has motivated the humans to fight and survive, making The Hunt much harder for the rest of us.”
“The meeting you seek is impossible because Xrez is off-planet attending to business at the moment,” Bradliix was quick to respond.
How fortunate but not Fanian’s problem. “I guess you’ll have to help me then?”
“I know you hunt the mother. If you capture her, you will do it on your own. Xrez’s actions may have compromised The Hunt, but I will not.”
“Oh, I’m not asking you to hand her to me. I like tracking her on my own, and when I finally get her, it’ll be because I’m an exceptional hunter,” Fanian growled.
“Then what do you want?”
“I want to advance to Level Two.”
“Of course. In the morning, a pod will be waiting to take you to the Level Two gaming arena. The necessary credits will be deducted from your account.”
Fanian threw his head back and laughed. “No more credits will be deducted from my account, Game Warden’s assistant. In fact, you will return any credits that you’ve already taken. That includes the entrance fee and the credits for any amenities I’ve used to date.”
“Impossible!”
“Should I remind you of the information I have and the riot that’ll occur if I go back to the hunters and inform them of the truth? Think about it, Bradliix. Do you really want me to go back to the communal living area?”
“I could have guards remove you.”
“That may be true, but that would only motivate me to plead my case to the Galactic Council and inform every news outlet of what’s happening here and with this particular hunt.”
“May I remind you that you’ve signed a confidentiality agreement?”
“You could. But then I would remind you that the contract I signed clearly states, The Game Warden, nor any of The Hunt attendants can interfere in an active game.”
A pause, then, “As I’ve said, a pod will be waiting for you outside the lodge doors in the morning to take you to Level Two. At no charge to you, of course.”
Triumph filled Fanian. “Oh, and I’m not returning to the communal living area tonight. I’ll stay in one of the empty executive suites.”
He could finally have a proper shower. Read a news file. Maybe watch a program on the hologram broadcast or maybe just rest and sleep in peace. Ah, glorious, peaceful, uninterrupted sleep.
A door clicked open at the end of the hall and Fanian made his way toward it, already unzipping his skinsuit. He couldn’t wait to get out of these clothes.
“Does this conclude our business, Fanian?”
“I also expect to have all the upgrades available to an executive status member when I reach Level Two.”
“Certainly,” Bradliix ground out.
Victory and the mother would soon be his.
* * *
THE POD WAS WAITING for him the next morning as Bradliix promised. When it launched him out onto a blanket of snow, Fanian immediately rolled to his feet. Not because it was cold. As the heat didn’t bothered him, neither did the cold. Even so, he used one of the new icons on his comlink to call for the clothes now available to him. He stripped out of his old ones.
When he was dressed, he touched another icon, and a holographic map appeared. It displayed the underground pod network. He wouldn’t find exactly where in Level Two Miranda was, but the map would give him an idea of her general vicinity. He swiped his hand through the air, moving the map back to the Level One arena and found the area where he thought she’d taken a pod to Level Two.
He couldn’t be certain that she’d stayed in the same area where he’d last seen her, but it was the only information he had to go on. He then followed the track she’d most likely taken into Level Two. The labeling on the map read, “Ruins.” She’d come to this cold land and would look for shelter immediately. If she entered this arena by the ruins, she might still be there.
“I’ll see you soon, my prey.”
Fanian took off in that direction. Revenge steeped in each step he took.