Page 28 of The Bonding Games: Part 1

“YES, ALBY! GO ON!” I pump my gloved fist in the air, the other clenched tightly around the emerald-coloured left handlebar of my tribike as I watch my bestie’s one form over my shoulder before he zips after me. I’m so proud of him.

Alby lets out a short, breathless laugh that’s caught somewhere between fright at our current situation and joy at what he’s just accomplished yet again this week, pulling my own laugh up and out of my throat, my grin splitting my face wide open as he comes up beside me.

“Keep up, you two!”

My focus shifts back ahead of me, right hand joining the other on my bike as my chest connects with the hardened energy beneath me, the subtle vibrations of the vehicle travelling into my body. “You got it, boss!”

“On our left! Player 59!”

Sharpened gaze darting in that direction, I take in the boy a few years younger than me and Alby spearing through the arena with a clear goal in mind to maim the poor Evot a handful of feet in front of him. I’m pretty sure her name’s Jodine; my bestie has mentioned that she came from his Evot Training School.

“Box him in?” I double-check.

A confirmatory nod. “You and Alby take either side—I’ll go front.”

“Got it.” Alby’s voice is shaky but strong with his determination to get this right for both us and himself.

Gaining speed, we move in a V-formation, racing after the younger teenager. My brother begins to inch ahead while me and Alby part further and further, readying to surround him.

But of course it wouldn’t be that easy.

Player 59 snaps his head around at the sound of our bikes, and the hostility in his expression almost makes me second-guess myself. But I forge ahead . . . even as his lips curl wickedly.

Speeding up, he hunts Jodine down, clearly intending to finish the job whether we’re hot on his heels or not.

“Fuck,” I mutter, then raise my voice, “Scotty?!”

“Just keep going!” he shouts back.

Right then, a robotic female voice sounds through the speakers.

“Player 15: Eliminated.”

My eyes pop wide. Already?

Swallowing back bile, I turn my neck Alby’s way to find his face beneath his visor like paper.

Shit. We’re not ready for this. No one should have to compete in these sick fucking Games.

“Focus!”

My brother’s bark snaps me back to reality, and I shake my head hard, willing myself to do as he says. I can’t get distracted every time someone dies.

It happens far too often in these Games.

“NO!”

Alby’s cry has my attention shooting to the right, where a blur of green comes hurtling for Player 59.

Player 28 is too far away to stop before he rams his tribike into the boy’s.

BANG!

They both go flying.

In an instant, their bikes are sucked back into the Avri pads on the bottom of their shoes, the two Players slamming to the ground and rolling a handful of feet away from each other.

“DEX!” Jodine cries out. Spinning around, she belts in his direction as both he and Player 59 struggle to their feet—before Dex launches himself at him, tackling the boy back to the ground.