The Overworld - The Last Shadowshifter

Chapter 38

Hunter's POV

The following morning, I woke up to a different cell; a smaller one that I could probably only extend my arms and stand up. That's it. No pacing, no extra room. No jumping.

Other than that, it was made out of stone, like a temporary holding cell. Another thing that was different from my previous one was that this one had one barred door that served as an entrance and a window. It was still dark outside - the telltale signs of early dawn.

But what could I be doing outside?

Anxious yet curious at the same time, I leaned towards the bars, and nearly choked on my own throat. I muttered a violent curse under my breath.

The two words came flooding back to me.

The Slayings.

And judging by the large blaring horn that woke up all the other Imperials in the cells, my guess was that the Slayings had begun. I peered out of the bars again, coming eye-to-eye with another prisoner from across.

Piercing red eyes found mine. Looks like there's another vampire with a Gift.

He was taller than me, yet stocky and thickset. My only guess for his Gift was brute strength. He snarled and bared his fangs at me, two long, large and pearly white canines. I narrowed my eyes and returned the gesture.

The tension in the air was almost palpable, but a sudden voice rang out - it seemed to come from the ground itself.

"As you have been so kindly informed," this was the voice of Dark Blaze, "you will know that today is the day we start the Slayings." I could almost hear his cruel, sadistic smirk. "This is a fight to the death. Those of you who win get freedom; those of you who don't... well, you know the consequences."

Wait a minute. Did the other prisoners not get informed about the part where Skyla kills everyone?

In a way, it is freedom from this diabolical world.

The voice kept talking.

"Today, we start with the werewolves. Since they are overpopulated, we will sort them into four different groups. Females below age sixteen, females above age sixteen, males below age sixteen, and males above age sixteen. Simple as that."

My blood turned cold. Parker had a disadvantage for age on this one; he would be sorted as the last group, which means it would probably be in the evening. Dark Blaze's voice was almost sing-song as he kept on explaining.

"The rules are simple. You get to choose whichever weapons you like from the two different weapon stashes on either side. They're both the same. Werewolves are also allowed to shift, and those that have special abilities, you may use them to your advantage. Once the winner is determined, please return all weapons to the stash again. Including the fallen's."

What kind of sick game was this?

"After you have won, please wait until all five judges have given you your score. You will automatically be transported to a different station where you can rest, shower, clean, and be fed.

"First up, it will be the youngest two competitors... Laura and Claire!"

Dark Blaze was announcing this so casually, so carelessly, that I would've mistook this for some kind of cooking competition.

All of a sudden, the floor of all the cells turned transparent; we were hovering above the stadium. And from what Dark Blaze just said, there were different terrains for us to compete on. What is this?