The Game Poll: Checkers

[Velox]

Vote here for your favorite "The Game" story; entries have been randomized. Please MAKE SURE YOU READ ALL ENTRIES BEFORE VOTING.Voting begins now and will end on June 3rd at 11:59 PM EST. Entries that do well will move on to the The Game Final Poll, which will be posted at the conclusion of the 12th round preliminary poll.

• [*]

Catch on the Couch

Their bodies were settled into the couch, the long day finally over. The cushions seemed to hug them, comforting their weariness as they reclined. They didn’t cuddle, but their legs were tangled together as they relaxed. With the television off, the music paused, and the cell phones away, the air around them was filled with quiet. Their calm exhales didn’t interrupt the peace, but seemed to add to it, as they let their thoughts of the day give way to the nothingness that lingered.

She leaned back on the armrest, while her eyes looked forward into book on her lap. He sat opposite, gazing out the window behind her to the backyard, where the late October sunset shown on the pine trees lined next to the fence. It was no longer being caught in the rush of summer that tired them, he realized, but the idleness they now felt now since everything had simply ceased. With the disappearance of summer, something else had vanished as well, though he couldn’t figure what it was. The traffic that had frequented the street next to the house had stopped, yet they still listened for the stream of cars that used to shoot by.

His eyes shifted to her, still contently buried in her book. The sunset surrounded them with shadows, the twilight approaching. His body shifted, sinking deeper into the couch. Feeling something under the cushion, and his hand emerged with a miniature Styrofoam ball. Palming it a few times, he rolled it in his hands before tossing it to her. As it dropped in between the pages, rustling the book, her eyes looked to see him smiling. Conversation had never been necessary, actions were what mattered. He nodded at her, insisting she throw the ball back. She did. The shadows were growing, she could see, and soon it would be too dark to read.

The game of catch continued, small smiles on each of their faces forming. A giggle periodically escaped either of them as they passed the ball like children. The football flew from one end of the couch to the other, coming to rest for a moment before becoming airborne again. The pace remained steady, adrenaline not their motivator. Each time they cradled the ball, their smooth hands snagged on its bumpy texture, feeling the minute trace of the other’s last touch.

When the ball was thrown to her again, he came with it, drawn to her like a fish on a hook. His body lay on top of hers, cuddling her soft sweater. Their eyes closed as their lips met, not breathing as they kissed. Where the shadows of the evening were cool, together they were warm. Rolling next to her, he was lost in her kiss, obsessed not about the sexual side, but the affection of it. He hugged her closer, his eyes tightly shut, hoping that the sight of her in the final rays of sunlight would be burnt into his memory.

Their rolling around eventually ceased, as they lay atop one another on the couch. The ball had gone missing again, disappeared to somewhere they wouldn’t look for a while. He was her cushion now, as their arms wrapped around each other, their heads tilting toward the window so together they could see in the black sky the emergence of the stars. -------

[*]Initiation Lusio watched through a dozen screens as the initiate ran through the maze. The cameras had night vision, but Lusio was sure that he couldn’t see. Tre. That was his name. A human of exceptional skill. Tre, with sword in hand, was holding off a chimera. He pushed it off him and flames suddenly erupted from his sword, sending the beast away. “Impressive,” Lusio said into a microphone. Tre turned in response to this. “Thanks.” “So you’re enjoying the game?” “Heck yeah.” Lusio let a smile pass his lips. Good, he thought, I like a challenge. “So, you’re a cerebreon, right?” Lusio dropped his smile. “How did you know that?” “I didn’t,” Tre replied. “I just thought that I felt you probing my mind before.” Lusio looked to the board in front of him. There was a marker that represented Tre, along with another dozen different shaped makers representing Lusio’s assets. The Guild had requested that Lusio test this one; they saw something different in him. Lusio shifted one of the pieces towards Tre. On the screens, Lusio watched as a dire wolf charged toward Tre. Just before the impact, Tre ducked. The dire wolf sailed over his head, and he made a strike at the wolf’s right flank, downing it. “Come on,” Tre taunted. “You’ll have to do better than that.” “How did you see that coming?” Lusio saw Tre turn and look directly at the camera. He tapped the side of his head three times, before the camera cut out. Lusio nearly panicked. One camera was down, but he still had eleven. Same with his assets. “You might think you have something,” Lusio began, “but no one beats me at my own game.” He moved three more pieces toward Tre’s marker, now on the move. He saw Tre enter another corridor, sword ablaze. Lusio tapped the space beneath Tre’s marker, activating the traps. The floor dropped from beneath the area, but not before Tre jumped backwards. From the ceiling, giant spiders descended. Tre struck at one, his sword flaring up even brighter. The spider caught fire and hissed in pain as it retreated, exoskeleton popping as it did. The other spiders backed away as he waved the sword around him. Lusio couldn’t understand how this man was predicting his every move. But it didn’t matter. Everyone struggled with this next asset. Thunderous footsteps rang thoughout, as a steel golem stormed down the passage. Tre sheathed his sword and pulled out a gun. The golem was advancing on him as he lined up a shot. It was mere meters away when he pulled the trigger. Runes flared up along the length of the gun and the bullet was released with tremendous force, landing dead centre of the golem, sending it flying back down the path and crashing into the wall. Now, Lusio was impressed. This was proving to be a challenge. He tried to extend his consciousness and reach into Tre’s mind. What he received was mental backlash. He grasped his temples in pain, and after it subsided, he switched on the microphone. “… Tell me,” he began, “how have you been doing this?” “Aw, are we feeling a little overwhelmed?” Lusio smiled as he moved the rest of his assets towards Tre. “No one has ever beaten my game. What’s your secret?” He watched as beasts of all kinds raced towards Tre. “Well,” Tre began, “no one can beat your game fairly. Sometimes…” The cameras blacked out and Tre’s marker disappeared. Lusio felt a blade against his neck. “You have to cheat.” Lusio smiled. “Welcome to the Guild.” -------[*]The Dog Days This was not fun, though that was what they called it. This was not enjoyable, though that was what it was yclept. It certainly was not easy, no matter what they said. It wasn't even his choice to make, no matter what they had promised. Jason Joyce slid feet-first down another hill. Ahead was a dark tunnel, no doubt lined with booby traps, exactly as all the other ones had been. The walls on each side of the path were unscalable. He could not pause for breath, though he would have liked to. The ravenous dogs that they had set out behind him hadn't gained any distance; even though they could run faster than he could, they couldn't scale the obstacles and avoid the traps as much as he could. Still, for every dog that was killed by the traps, another would be released. Annoyingly, a voice emanated from the speakers that were perched from the walls. It announced Joyce's run through the course as if it were a game. That was how he referred to it - "The Game." This maddening obstacle course was someone's sick, twisted idea of fun. He doubted it had any end to it; it probably looped back around and in upon itself to ensure that, in the end, he would die, his corpse consumed by the mutts that hounded him. However, he was resourceful. He never considered himself to be a MacGyver type, but he enjoyed fashioning makeshift items things out of what essentially amounted to junk. If he could just have a moment or two of time, he could end this game. Before he could do anything with this inchoate idea, he turned a corner and saw nothing but a straightaway. Hoping against hope that this might be it, that this might actually be the end of the game, he turned around. The fastest of the remaining dogs had just turned the corner, so he might have about ten seconds before they got to him. But a yawning chasm lay before him, and he could only barely skid to a halt. The dogs were nearly on him now, and that insistent voice kept ringing in his ears, reminding him - as if he required constant reminding! - that the dogs were nearly to him and that he would be torn to bits and that it would be excruciating and-- Unthinkingly, he dove to the right, willing his body to move as it never had before, through the air which felt think and restrictive to movement, as if oxygen had been gelatinized. The dogs rushed past and into the chasm, but one got a hold of his foot ... *** "Stella! Get offa there, girl!" The black dog obliged, not finding the shoe very tasty. "Hey, Jason! You with me? Eaaaaarth to Jason, come in, Jason." "Wait ... what? Sorry, I was just ... I was zoned out there for a second. My move?" "Yup. You must be a real brain wussy." "Yeah, I know ... didn't get much sleep last night. Anyway ..." Jason Joyce looked down at the chess board, surveying his pieces' positions. Thoughtfully, he moved his remaining rook forward, angling it in for the kill. If his opponent did not see his next moves, he'd have checkmate here in a few more moments ... "Check." "Aah ... gosh, Jason, you're really dogging me ..." Jason smiled. "More than you know." ------[*]The Mind Game At my school, you can play all sorts of games. There are 'game' games, like basketball and soccer that are the only real expression of school spirit, since our seasonal pep rallies have made it a habit of failing to do so this past decade or so. There are the corny games in class invented by teachers. Prime examples of these games are 'Vocabulary Bingo' and 'European History Jeopardy!' ...Thrilling. Another class of games is reserved for the more daring and witty of us students. These are the foolhardy games. They usually involve contests to see who can send the most text messages in class without the teacher noticing, or who can get the most paper wads into some unfortunate's open book-bag, or sometimes the trash can. But the best game, by far, and my personal favorite, is The Mind Game. It sounds deceivingly simple at first, and you probably have heard of it. But anyone can tell you, it is one of the most difficult, enthralling and captivating games you could ever play. The Mind Game starts out with two people. It can start anywhere. In a convenient study hall, a rowdy cafeteria, opposite sides of a debate class, anywhere. The Mind Game is all about strategy. You can keep the game a secret in order to win, or you can spread it around like a wildfire and make things exciting. The two initial players start out on opposite sides, and the goal of the Mind Game is to trick them into coming to your side. One of the best things about the Mind Game is that there are endless possibilities of ways you could win. The one trick to winning, though, is to know. You have to know yourself, your field of play, your opponent's teammates, and most of all, your opponent. There's never been a playbook for the Mind Game, simply because of the amount of detail and diversities involved. To help you visualize: Her eyes flit around the classroom, making sure nobody saw her pencil top eraser fly off the end of her pencil. Satisfied that her little secret is safe, she leans over sideways and grabs for the eraser, continually scanning the room. There! A flash of green catches her attention, and she zeroes in on it, finding herself returning the gaze of a boy across the room of her last period study hall who she doesn't know. Sitting up, she breaks the uncomfortable moment, eraser forsaken. A sudden rush of embarrassment, and something else, colors her cheeks as she straightens the folder on her desk unnecessarily. Only three minutes left in the study hall, she focuses with all her intensity on her open textbook, pretending to read. As the last minute of the school day comes, she hears the rustle of movement as all the other students packing up and getting to their feet. It is distracting, and she tries her best to drown it all out, despite the fact that there are only thirty seconds left until the bell. Unexpectedly, her eraser bounces down on her desk, and she is startled into looking up. The boy with the green eyes smiles and tells her that she dropped that, and without another word, follows the rest of the students out the door as the bell rings its farewell for the day. Getting to her feet and shoving the eraser in her pocket, the girl glances up again just in time to see the muted glass bottle green eyes snap away and disappear around a corner. The Game is on. -------[*]You'll never get away... “You’ll never get away, you’ll never get away, you’ll never get away, you’ll never get away...” the verses repeat over and over in my head. I can’t stop, I can’t get enough. I open my eyes; darkness. What day is it? Which month? I have to stop, this can’t go on. “You’ll never get away, you’ll never get away...” Will I ever get away? I sit up, pulling off my headset and eyepiece. “You’re wrong, I will get away.” The words just slip out. Of course I’ll get away. I am blinded by the sunlight filtering in through the blinds. My eyes slowly adjust as I turn on my computer. June eighth, 4:37 PM: twenty seven hours since I started the Game, of those, at least three hours spent completely unconscious. Shaky with hunger, stiff from lack of movement, I make my way toward the kitchen. Fumbling with a box of cereal, almost spilling the milk, I am barely able to keep my first bite down. I must stop, it's killing me. I can't keep my mind focussed; it keeps wandering off, obsessing over little things. I can’t eat, the sound of the spoon hitting the bowl drives me crazy. My mind prances off in another direction...is this what it feels like to be insane? The day I first played the Game, I had stood in line for five straight hours and oh, how rewarding to put on that headset for the first time, to feel myself drifting off, and to suddenly open my eyes in another universe, filled with adventure. I could control myself then, I had no trouble removing my headset after an hour to care for my worldly needs: to work, sleep, and eat. I started playing in my free hours, skipping meals, eventually losing my job. Then I heard the news. The government had outlawed the Game, and were searching houses for the console, giving a full refund in exchange for the Game. Anyone who refused was sent to rehab. I couldn’t give mine away, it had become part of my life. It had become my life. When the man arrived at my door, I was ready. I lied through my teeth, said that I threw it away the moment I heard; when he asked to come in, the Game wasn't there. The moment he left, I removed it from the oven and slipped my headset on. My mental and physical state has degenerated. I cannot go a single moment without obsessing over the Game, I haven’t seen daylight for weeks, except through the closed blinds in my bedroom. Can I turn my life around? “You’ll never get away, you’ll never get away...” the song pushes its way into my head. I step outside onto the balcony. Cool air caresses my cheeks, the sun is shining; I haven’t felt this good since I was young, when I had real friends, when I walked in the real world. I peer down from my ninth story apartment, watching people go about their daily lives, oblivious to my dilemma. It almost makes me resent them. I could jump, end it all, never again have to wear that headset. No. I go to my room, picking up the headset, returning to the balcony. The padding on the earphones has almost worn out, and I have developed rashes around my eyes from constant contact with the eyepiece. I will get away. I force my arm over the railing. Before I can change my mind, I drop it, watch it shatter on the ground. I have gotten away. -------[*]

A Kind Of Magic

Bruna stood on a ridge, overlooking a battlefield; it was a blank slate, a vast field. Beside her stood Robarren, the grand Planeswalker who led this crusade, and on Robarren's other side was Venser, a lesser Planeswalker who, much like Bruna, had decided to lend his aid to the battle. Across the battlefield stood a more terrifying duo; Garritike, a once grand and noble Planeswalker who had fallen to the demonic, and his aid; Griselbrand; the terror of Innistrad.

Bruna would have liked nothing more than to leap into the fray and drive her spear into Robarren's throat, but caution stopped her hand; Robarren and Venser would not be able to help her if she did that. They needed power. Robarren took the initiative, flexing his hands and seeming to fling a ball of light down at the battlefield; soon, a section of the field began to shine as razorgrass took root and a glimmering Plain formed. A moment afterward, a hawk the size of a man, with four legs and two wings, flew out of the plain and hovered. Across the field, Garritike responded by turning a section of the field into a swamp, and out crawled a zombified half of a man.

This continued, back and forth, for a short time as the two great Planeswalkers amassed their armies. On the fourth exchange, Raborren seemed to draw power from the two islands and two plains he had conjured, and combine the power into a single great ball. From this ball, Raborren formed a vessel that Bruna had come to appreciate the sight of, lately; the Skyship Weatherlight. Aboard, Bruna knew, were sure to be a set of Raborren's favored allies. At this point, Garritike responded first with a black knife of energy which tore through and annihilated the hawk Robarren had created, followed by a short attack with the zombified half corpse, which gave Robarren a small slash on his arm with its obscene, long fingernails. At that, Robarren responded by conjuring a grand meeting hall that Bruna knew as the Azorius Chancery, copied out of the city-realm of Ravnica; it built itself on top of one of the islands Robarren had conjured. This was followed by an insubstantial fighter that Robarren had dubbed the Phantom Warrior. The moment afterward, Garritike brought forth a pack of five zombified corpses of men, their flesh having been wreaked with disease. Robarren responded by finally giving the order for Bruna to join the fray. She made no ceremony of it, leaping down from the precipice and going straight for Garritike, dealing him a telling blow before the black mage's magic forced her off. She felt stronger than usual, somehow, and knew that Robarren had taken advantage of her talent with enchantments. A moment later, Griselbrand joined the fray, staring into Bruna's eyes. Bruna wasn't afraid and, feeling Robarren's magic empower her yet more, smote Griselbrand with a spear to the neck. Soon afterward, she drove for Garritike, crushing him under the twin points of her spear.

---

"Good game." Gerrit said, picking up his copy of Griselbrand and shuffling the rest of his cards back into his deck.

"Yeah. Interesting, wasn't it?" Robert replied.

"I still say Bruna's overpowered." Gerrit replied, glaring at the blue and white angel card still on the table, and the stack of Auras attached to her. Robert flipped over the card and set it on top of his deck, revealing the decorated back, showing five colors and a title

"Magic: The Gathering"

[Ballom Nom Nom]

Voted for number one. However, I find that the line "Rolling next to her, he was lost in her kiss, obsessed not about the sexual side, but the affection of it" to not match the overall tone. The story certainly seems implicitly sexual, just not in a vulgar or obvious way. But that's a bit of a subjective interpretation anyway.~B~

[Sumiki]

Shameless self-voter up in this.

[fishers64]

I voted for 5, somewhat by accident. However, it does have the hidden warning about modern games - focus on real life...I also liked Sumiki's, who I was trying to vote for when I botched the numbers, and 4, for its humorous tone at the beginning. That's not to say that the other entries weren't good, just what stood out to me.

[Nick Silverpen]

Shameless self-voter up in this.

I second this.Ballom, I wrote that line with that intention, the story was originally for an old girlfriend, and i was trying to project a message of wanting nothing but just herself to her. Edited June 2, 2012 by Nick Silverpen

[Excelsior]

I voted for 5.2 was cool, but I didn't really get what was happening.May the best story win!-Excelsior

[Velox]

Polling period over; poll closed.

Edited June 4, 2012 by Velox