The Curse of the Versati

Chapter 7

"That's more or less what he said" Leo finished informing Mika.

"I see"

"What do you mean by 'see'? That was the same prediction you made. Except he also noticed the missing food packs " Leo was excited.

"Hmph, it doesn't change much, he wasted two rounds to come to the same conclusion" Mika seemed unimpressed. "Do you trust him?"

"I like him" Leo's smile disappeared "We don't trust"

"Good. If he stays content with his current arrangements don't bother with him"

"And if he makes a new plan? Should we support him?"

"Keep approaching the rich kids. If he suggests something interesting, we'll discuss it then"

"I don't want to become an underling" Leo seemed adamant but Mika shook her head.

"We'll do what is necessary"

"We can always go with the team plan"

"Prepare the groundwork, but make sure we won't have to join the fight"

"I'll check how things are with the other kids, I'll be back in a bit" Leo said and glimpsed at her hands. She was scratching the side of her fingers with her thump. As he turned around the bright expression had returned to his face, like the serious one never happened.

*

After finishing the food pack he got from the morning lap, the boy laid back and stared at the sky. He had secured around a week of safety and, if he could keep up with the payment, he would be safe and full for the time being. But that was only as long as the conditions remained the same. It wasn't a permanent solution.

"Daydreaming?" Leo leaned over him startling the boy.

"Calculating. In a few days the food will run out for almost half the people here. After that it will become a mess"

"Well, the test, or whatever this is, should be done by then, right?" Leo asked and raised his shoulders without much caring.

"And what if it isn't"

"We'll figure it out when it happens, I guess" Leo said after contemplating for a moment.

"That isn't an answer" the boy sat up "It should concern you too, if the Keepers don't eat, your protectors will become your enemies"

"Keepers?" Leo asked and the boy nodded towards the group around the bulky kid. "Oh, not a bad name. How did you name us?"

"Grabbers" the boy said with a smirk.

"Not as good but fitting, i guess." Leo laid back and looked at the clouds "What do you propose we do?"

"Either risk leaving things as they are or risk by changing them."

"What would you change?"

"The current situation. But there are at least two things we need for even a chance in succeeding" the boy sighed.

"I'm not good at organising and making plans, I usually leave it to Mika but I can give you some feedback. What are your thoughts?"

"Well, first is making use of your extra food packs. Are you willing to give them up?"

"Food packs are like money here. What am I buying?"

"It's rather more like investing than buying. They might be wasted"

"Let's say I give them up, what's next?" Leo seemed in deep contemplation but his eyes were shining.

"We feed them" the boy nodded towards the starving children sitting around the area, some of them had bruises and dried blood on their faces.

"Why them?"

"They had barely anything to eat for the last couple of days but they still compete in the runs keeping up with the Keepers in speed. They managed to get food many times but it was stolen"

"So? Let's say we feed them, then what? We are just increasing the competition"

"The Keepers will not stay united for much longer, so we need to create our own group. Since we cannot count on individual strength, we need to do so in numbers, fast enough to get food and willing to keep running. The problem is if they will keep supporting us after getting it"

"How many do we need?"

"We will need at least 8 to even stand a chance against the Bullies. More if we go against the Keepers"

"And how do we feed eight of them everyday?"

"That's the second part. I need to join the Grabbers and secure the extra food packs but I doubt, even if I catch up to you, that they will let me keep them. It would also affect the remaining days, since the food will decrease sooner than expected by me taking more packs. Even the big guy I made the deal with, might turn on me"

"And even if we manage to get the food and the people, they might just leave us when the time comes. I see the risk" Leo smiled "But you think small, you count only on me and hope that you will do your part, while we have more choices. I'll be right back" he got up and disappeared for about an hour. At some point the child saw him talking to a kid with a bruised eye. After the kid listened to what he had to say, her face brightened. Then Leo took a small stroll around the pen and talked to a dozen more leaving them with the same excited expressions.

Afterwards he left again and, when he finally returned, he was holding three packs of food. Looks of hunger, jealousy and even hope immediately appeared in the eyes of the children, but there were also many glares full of bad intentions. It didn't take long for the group of Bullies to make their move.

"Give it, or I'll break your legs" the leader threatened him. The previous day four kids were following him, now he had twice that.

He extended his arm trying to forcefully take the food packs but didn't notice what was happening behind him. A small figure passed by his distracted followers and crashed onto him, forcing him to the ground despite the difference in size. It was one of the kids that already had his food stolen more than once. His small fists landed on his face and, before he had the chance to react, another malnourished kid kicked him on the head.