Chapter 19: Are You In, or Are You Out?

Not trusting a thing he says, my gaze sharpens.

A game? No chance. No game this man presents will benefit us in any manner. However, he’s now given us a little bit of leverage…

The man points the end of the dagger at me, "How 'bout it? Are you in…?"

He points the blade toward Blue, "Or are you out?"

I demand, "Will you let her go if we say yes?"

The dagger suddenly plunges down, stabbing Grace in the arm. As she shrieks in pain, the man kneels down and pushes her face into the ground, “Damn, you’re annoying. And kid, I thought I told you, I'm asking the questions. Now answer. And think carefully before you respond... are you in…"

The man swiftly yanks the dagger out of Grace’s arm. A muffled plea cries out from a defenseless Grace as he points the bloody dagger in our direction, "Or are you out?"

Grace then somehow manages to lift her head, blood oozing down her forehead, her face grimed with dirt, and her hair frazzled, unrecognizable from what it was before. She briefly ceases her crying only to plead.

"Help... me…"

Letting go of her and standing back up, the man says, "Oh, shut up. It's only a dagger…"

Before he had the chance to look back at us, I’d already closed the distance, my sword just inches away from the man’s mask. My face contorted with rage, and my glowing eyes narrowed as tattoos started to wrap around my upper body. Behind me, Blue is stunned by this sudden development, but he thinks that if this power of mine will help us survive, he isn’t going to question it.

"If you hurt her again, I'll kill you. Now answer the damn question. Will you let her go?"

The man and I stare at one another for a couple of seconds until he surprises me with a kick to the stomach. Taking a somersault backward, I stand back up beside Blue. The throbbing of his ankle became more severe, and Blue kneeled to let it rest.

"Ace, you good?!"

"Yeah… I'm good. The bastard just keeps playing dirty…"

My tattoos shine with ferocity, and the man smirks under his mask as we all exchange gazes.

"No, I won't let her go. Not until I'm convinced."

"What the hell is this game you spoke of? Is it just another sick method of torturing us?!"

"The game is quite simple."

Throwing the dagger between me and Blue, the two of us stand frozen, neither of us able to react to the speed of the dagger’s flight. Glancing over my shoulder, I notice the dagger sternly implanted into a tree trunk behind us.

"You two… listen here and listen closely,” says the man.

I meet his gaze once more, "The both of you... will fight to the death. Whoever uses that dagger to kill the other person… wins, and they'll be granted the freedom to live for today.

He lightly taps his foot against Grace, “Along with this filthy thing since you both seem to care about her so much."

Placing his sword against her neck again, the man resumes, "But if you don't feel like entertaining me... I'll kill all three of you. In this world, only the strong can survive. Good luck."

Blue nervously asks, "Is there any way all three of us can survive?"

The man frowns, "Say one more thing to me, and she's dead."

Blue glances over toward me, hoping I have a plan, but… the one I have in mind isn’t one he’d be particularly happy about.

"Blue... I'm sorry,” I solemnly say, staring at Grace.

Hearing those words, Blue’s body freezes. Unable to move, he watches as I walk over and grab the dagger.

"I can't die just yet. I have a goal… and failure…"

I yank the dagger out of the tree trunk and inspect it, my reflection broken into two parts.

 "Isn’t an option."

Shifting my attention toward Blue, I clutch the dagger's handle.

"Ace… don't do this man. I don't want to fight. I don't want to fight you."

"Do you not want to fight because you're scared? Or do you not want to fight because you know you will lose?"

At a loss for words, Blue goes silent as I draw closer.

"I hate this. Every second of this, I hate it,” I say. “This man deserves the worst for doing this to us, and I wish to see that day… the day of his death. So, if only one of us can survive, it's going to be me."

Meeting Blue’s terrified gaze, my eyes glow as my chest and arms boast bright white tattoos.

"I'm sorry, but this is just how it is. If the strong are the ones who will survive, then I'll make sure… that I'm the last one standing."

As Blue trembles, intimidated by my overwhelming size as I tower over him, he can’t help but feel like this is his end. However, I suddenly turned back and tossed the dagger behind me.

As the dagger clunks and rattles for a few bounces before laying motionless, I say, "Blue, if you can get past me and land a hit on me with this dagger, I'll admit you're the stronger one between the two of us and I'll let you kill me."

I shift my gaze toward the man, "I know you said no more questions, but this is for the sake of your precious entertainment, so I feel like it's only fair that you have the final say. What do you say? Can we settle this our way first?"

The man starts chuckling as he drags his fingers back and forth across his forehead. A few seconds later, he walks over and picks something up. The sword Blue brought that should’ve been stuck under the rubble.

"Sure, I'll bite. Go ahead. Do whatever the hell you want. As long as one of you dies, I don't give a damn what you do beforehand. But if you want to put on a show, it’s only fair if you make it as interesting as possible.”

He tosses the sword to Blue, “Have at it, kids. Let’s see those feet dance.”

Enclosing his fingers around the sword handle, Blue stands guard, "Let this be a reminder..." 

Suddenly lunging toward me, Blue swung the sword at my torso. Blocking its path enough to discourse it away from my vital organs, I sustain a cut on my torso. Grimacing as I stumble back, Blue holds the sword over my head.

"That your life's meaning isn't any more important than mine.”

I grasp at the side of my stomach as it begins to bleed, "You little… damn it, Blue…"

Attempting to sweep out his legs by targeting my hurt ankle, Blue shifts his weight to his other leg and jumps back, slashing his sword at my leg. Detecting his plan, I pull back my leg mid-swing and push myself backward with my hands to dodge the attack.

As Blue lands on the ground, he quickly struggles back to his feet, adrenaline pumping through every vein in his body. Steadying myself mid-dodge, I shift my momentum by pivoting onto my in-motion foot. Using this momentum to push myself back toward Blue, I slash at his chest.

As Blue leans back just enough to dodge, my sword flies over his face. Leaning back upright, Blue also targets my injured wound and punches me right in the torso.

Grimacing with pain, I stumble over, my torso starting to pour out blood, soaking into my white t-shirt. Gazing at the blood dripping off his fist and then at my shirt, Blue turns around and starts limping toward the dagger.

That son of a bitch, I rendered his next attack impossible, so he adjusted and used his bare hand and delivered a punch where it’d hurt most.

Hearing his steps growing quieter, I rise again, quiet enough to where he doesn’t pick up on it. Placing my hand on my injury, I wince in pain as I eye the man.

Damn it. I have to end this quickly…

As Blue stands above the dagger, he frowns as he picks it up. However, before he can do anything with it, Blue hears a faint scuffle behind him. Swiveling around, he sees me lunging toward him, my sword fully extended. With no time to think, Blue ducks in the nick of time, some of his hair strands getting cut off. His body moving on its own, he turns around and swings the dagger.

Still mid-air, I rotate my body sideways, dodge his attack, and lash my sword out at him, aiming for his sword. Unable to brace himself in time, Blue loses his grip on his sword, and it gets knocked away.

Now’s my chance!

As Blue falls to the ground, watching his sword skip away, I jump on top of him, stripping him of the dagger. As he tumbles over, I stand over him, fixing my grip on the dagger.

"Blue… I’m sorry, but it’s over for you."

As I prepare to slit his throat, a hazy image flashes in my mind, and a single tear trickles down my cheek.