In Search of Home

Chapter 9

There were times when the ringmaster wanted him to lose his fights. It wasn't often for Viktor to be put in that position. He was the crowd's favorite human to see fight. More often, the other humans were forced to lose their fights. Losing wasn't common for Viktor, but as the third month on this alien planet finally rolled over (the marks on the wall were getting fainter and fainter as Nikolas's zipper on his jacket kept getting smaller and smaller - the others were worried they wouldn't be able to keep track of the oncoming days very well), he experienced his first loss. 

He was shoved into the arena like usual: thrown mercilessly in after the leash had unclipped from his collar, with the added bonus of a sharp kick right on his spine. He hissed in pain but knew there was no time to waste by turning around and cursing at the aliens. It wasn't like they would know what he was saying, anyway. 

His eyes automatically flickered over to the area where the ringmaster usually supervised the fights. His face was hard, angry, seeming to promise pain if Viktor failed. It was normally like that, though, so Viktor hadn't given it much thought. 

He was left alone in the arena for a while, far longer than usual. He couldn't see any animal on the other side of the arena, or behind the bars of the holding cell. He paced the arena along the edges, making sure to not wander across the halfway mark. Unpleasant shocks of electricity had taught him to keep to his side until the fight had begun a long time ago. 

The thrum of the crowd buzzed at the back of his skull like an annoying gnat. He just wished that they would shut up for one second. Where was this animal? 

His patience awarded him eventually when the bars across the arena slid open with a slow, clunky hiss, and his opponent approached. 

Warily, Viktor realized he had never fought this creature before. He had seen it in the back room where all the animals were kept, but he had never had to fight it. He was kept mainly to smaller animals. This creature was much larger than Oorah, not so much in height but thicker and wider instead. It was also really hairy. 

Most of the animals here were all skin. Some had scales, others had short, coarse fur. This one, though, had long, shaggy fur. It was going to be hard to pinpoint its weak spots, but Viktor was sure he could manage. He hoped. 

It looked like some sort of weird anteater. Its snout was unnaturally long, and it lumbered about with the gait of a bear. Its feet were hooven, which made Viktor wonder if it was a prey animal. Most of the creatures they fought here were carnivores, after all. 

However, as he scrambled to find purchase against the gritty sand of the arena to make a break for it when the creature lunged at him quicker than he'd ever seen any animal move, they were on a different planet. It would make sense that their 'prey' animals were also scary as fuck. 

He dodged, hearing its jaws snap where his shoulder would have been. The sand seemed to pull at his feet more than usual. His heartbeat thudded in his ears, frantic and purposeful. 

Its size, like any large animal, made it difficult for it to do sharp turns. Viktor used this to his advantage. He ran over to the edge of the arena, knowing that pain awaited him if he slipped up. As soon as he could hear the beast's hooves thumping right behind him, he changed paths, making a sharp turn in the other direction. 

As expected, the beast slammed into the wall with a loud bang! Viktor didn't give himself any time to breathe, he was already moving away. 

Or at least, he tried to move away. His body seized as electricity pumped through it. He let out a strangled noise of pain as he fell to the ground. To any alien, he was sure it just looked like he had tripped. His shock collar deactivated as soon as he hit the ground, but by then, it was too late.