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I nodded gravely. “As the games progress, the environment gets increasingly challenging. The platform we’re on shrinks, forcing the participants to confront each other more frequently. It’s a design to heighten the drama for the viewers.”
“Drama?”Aurora said, clutching her arms around her knees and rocking back and forth.
Then a realization dawned in her eyes. “Wait, you’re one of them, aren’t you? One of the creatures from the pods.”
“Yes,” I admitted, unable to meet her eyes.
“And youchoseto be here?”
I shook my head. “With all my heart, no. I was sold just as you were. I’m as much a victim as you are.”
She looked at me, a mix of anger and disbelief. “Then why not let one of the others… win?” Her voice broke, but she forged on, determination evident. “Then this can all end, and I can go home, right?”
I gritted my teeth, anger flaring for the Malquarans and the cruel game they had designed. “That’s not how it works. The male who wins…ownsyou. You become his possession.”
Her face drained of color. “O-owns me?”
“Yes. It means that even when the show ends, your ordeal doesn’t. You become a trophy, a prize possession for whichever creature wins you, to be treated however he pleases.”
The weight of the situation seemed to crash down on her then.
She got to her feet and staggered slightly, looking at me with horror. “So, if one of the others…. wins, I’d be their slave?”
“Essentially, yes.”
She took a shaky breath. “And if you win me?”
I looked at her, my golden eyes trying to convey my sincerity. “If I win, I will set you free.”
For a moment, we simply stared at each other, two beings caught in an unthinkable situation, trying to find a way out.
Finally, Aurora whispered. “I can’t believe this is happening.”
“I know,” I murmured, reaching out to offer comfort.
But she flinched slightly, reminding me of the inherent mistrust that existed between us.
She swallowed hard. “I’m not ready… not ready to mate with you or any of those creatures.”
“I understand,” I said softly. “And unlike the others, I won’t force you.”
She nodded, tears shimmering in her eyes.
She gathered her composure, her silver jumpsuit reflecting the dim light inside the cave.
The desperation in her eyes was palpable as she stared directly at me.
“You have to help me escape, Jayas,” she pleaded, her voice shaky yet firm. “There has to be a way out. I mean,anotherway out. We can’t be trapped in this… this perverse game.”
I hesitated.
Every fiber of my being wanted to provide her with a sense of safety and assurance.
But the hard truth was unrelenting. “Aurora,” I began, choosing my words carefully, “no mate has ever escaped the Mating Games. Ever.”
She looked deflated, her hope dissipating like mist in the sun. “But surely there’s something, some loophole, some way…”
I shook my head slowly. “The Malquarans have designed these games with ruthless precision. There’s no escape, no way out until it… concludes.”
