The Demonic Games (Disgardium Book #7): LitRPG Series, Dan Sugralinov [the read aloud family TXT] 📗

Games? Bullshit! They failed and you’re still in the game, so now they’re just looking for other approaches. Be careful! They’re all like spiders in a jar here! They’ll eat you!”

Kerry kept ranting on, reminding me that my friends already stabbed me in the back, and that was nothing compared with what the people who were already my enemies would do. In the end, when Malik shouted my name at the exit from the hall, the hair on the back of my neck stood on end.

“Don’t turn around,” Kerry advised. “We have a tight schedule: dinner, interview, then to your room!”

“Hey, Sheppard!” Malik shouted again.

I never liked his whiny voice, but I could always accept it when I thought I was talking to a friend. Now it grated on my nerves. I stopped sharply, turned, clenched my fists and stared at the smirking traitor:

“What?” I said, moving toward him.

“Alex!” Kerry hurried after me. “Mr. Sheppard!”

She tried unsuccessfully to stop me. I grabbed my former friend by the collar of his stylish shirt and pulled his face close to mine. That wiped the smile off it. Raising a fist, I said again:

“What were you going to say?!”

“Let go!” Malik said, struggling to free himself. When he failed, he grabbed my own shirt and scowled. “Are you crazy? I was just talking! I just wanted to ask how your first day went!”

“Malik!” Tissa shouted, breaking off from talking to someone off to one side. “Get a hold of yourself!”

“No fighting, Alex!” Kerry squawked, trying to pull us apart. “They’ll disqualify you! Stop it right now!”

But I saw nothing, heard nobody. The hateful face of the jealous crybaby traitor blotted out everything else.

“How was my first day?” My blood boiled and all the pain, anger and insult concentrated into my fist. “Here’s how it was!”

Crunch! My former friend had no time to dodge. My fist made an imprint in his thin, crooked nose. As if in slow motion, I saw Malik’s head fly back, hitting the wall. My second hit with my left slid across his teeth and pain flared up in my hand.

I looked with surprise at the bleeding wound Malik’s teeth had left. Then time sped up and the world crashed down on me: Tissa’s screams as she held the boy up, her hate-filled stare, Kerry’s cries… Under the buzz of camera drones flying in, a security droid shot me with a tranquilizer round.

I started to fall backwards, my legs giving out, and someone caught me and slowly lowered me to the floor.

“What have you done, Alex?” Kerry said, shaking me by the shoulders.

The world blurred as if I’d been wrapped in a semi-transparent cocoon. Colors bled into each other, lost their clarity, but I could make out, or at least surmise, that it was Tissa helping Malik to get up and shouting:

“Idiot..!”

The adrenaline faded. My shoulders dropped, my eyes closed and I switched off.

When I saw the world again, I realized that Kerry and I were walking through the hall.

“Alex!” Malik shouted at my back.

Kerry took my hand and interlocked our fingers like we were a couple.

“Ignore him,” she said quietly. “You’re going to have dinner, answer the journalists’ questions, then go rest in your room! Got it?”

I gently freed my hand and looked at my fingers. They were unharmed! Malik was fine too. Smirking, he nodded questioningly:

“How was your first day of the Games?”

Tissa continued her conversation, glancing sidelong at me, but I already had a grip on myself and just ignored my former friend. My hatred for him had flared up and burned out back in the Divine Revelation, or whatever that prophetic flash was. Obviously something was going wrong with my brain. Unlike in Dis, here the visions weren’t identical to what happened in real life, but the gist… Of course, I could predict the consequences of my actions without any revelations by using my head, but this wasn’t just that — I had lived seconds and minutes of a future that hadn’t happened yet!

Kerry brought me back to reality. Stopping, she lifted my chin and looked into my eyes, concerned:

“Is everything alright?”

“I don’t know. I have no idea! But one thing I know for sure — I’m starving! Any longer and I’ll eat your brains! Don’t forget, I have a lot of experience with that!”

I reached out my arms, groaned and started staggering toward my assistant. Kerry jumped back, making as if afraid, laughed and took me to dinner, which was in the same hall as the opening ceremony the night before. Of course, I could have ordered food in my room or withdrawn to one of the twelve restaurants, but Kerry told me it was better not to hide — the viewers wouldn’t like it.

The hall of ceremonies had undergone some changes. The amphitheater had been lowered, combining the two levels and expanding the space. All along the walls stood endless tables of trays, huge pots and casks. Above them span holograms of the delicacies themselves, with their names and helpful information: the dish’s history, ingredients and nutritional values.

My comm vibrated and offered to construct a balanced meal for me based on my body’s requirements. Dozens of different dishes beckoned tenderly to my eyes and nose, making my mouth water. I wanted to try it all, but I accepted my comm’s suggestion, not wanting to decide for myself. I was starving and didn’t care; I’d be shoveling it down either way, so why not make it a balanced diet?

A tray-carrying droid whirred its way over to me, beeped for me to follow it, then rolled along the walls, filling its tray with food.

People noticed me. The hubbub subsided and I heard a whistle, then the whole hall erupted:

“Boooooo!”

Dozens of spoons clattered against on tables, some contestants started stamping