Short Stories

Recruits of Death (ENG)

Whatever you do, do it well.

- Walt Disney

I follow the path with the big arrow on it. At the end of it, there is a chair with my name on it. I sit down. There are endless rows of people all around me. Some are old, some are young. There are skinny people, where others are a bit larger. Well, a bit. It's a bit more than just a bit. You have muscular people. And people who look like they would have a hard time picking up an apple. I look in front of me. A big stage with a lot of lights on it. There is one person with a microphone. He starts talking:

'Welcome everyone to the 33rd annual Recruits of Death! I'm Lucas, your supervisor for this year. You have been classified in the second sector. Congratulations! The sorting system is simple: the more your parents have won, the higher you end.'

I look around me. There are so many people. It's unreal. I start to wonder how long everyone has trained. I'm not sure. I just know that I really want to win.

'Now what exactly is Recruits of Death? 33 years ago, the government decided that there should be a man-made 'survival of the fittest'-like competition to avoid overpopulation and speed up evolution. To give everyone a fair chance, you have to be at least 18 years old to compete. Now the concept is fairly simple. You have to be one of the first 1000 people to reach the top of the mountain. If you succeed, you will have everything that your heart desires since, after succeeding, you will be an exclusive. The only rule is that you can't kill other people without a confirmed reason. Oh, and you have to have at least two kids in those five years as only exclusives are allowed to have kids. This is to make sure that we only have the best of the best in our society.

That's the dream. Not only my dream, but everyone's dream. Until you are 18 the only thing you are doing, is preparing for this. Everyone wants to be a part of the exclusives. It's the only thing that matters. It's the only thing that you live for.

'When you win, you will be an exclusive for 5 years. After those 5 years, you have to compete again to stay an exclusive. Everyone still following this? Great. Now what if you lose? Well, then you get two options. Option 1: you will have 10 years of hard work in either a mine, factory or you will serve the exclusives. Your house will be the next best thing to a box and you will struggle to get your food. When your 10 years are up, you have to compete again. So, you have to have enough strength, don't forget that. Now what's the other option? Well, you can choose to become a recruit. Recruits have 5 years to kill 2.500 people in the game. If they succeed, they will become an exclusive for 50 years. But if they fail, they get killed for entertainment for the people.'

If I lose, I will be a recruit. There is no way that I am going to work 10 years for the exclusives. No freaking way. I've been told that the smart choice is to be a worker. But I'm not going to listen to the advice. That's what they want. For us to obey them. But I'm not going to do that.

'If a person was an exclusive, it will have gold clothing. If it's their first time, they will be green. If they have been a worker, they will be blue, and the recruits are red. Watch out for the reds. They are the most dangerous as they got nothing left to lose. Now there is a third way that you can get out of this game: death. You can get killed not only by recruits, but also by other players. So, watch out.'

I'm somewhat excited. I don't know if I have been brainwashed for 18 years but it seems like fun. When you're a kid, you live in a big house where they teach you about the Recruits of Death. I lived in Winterfall, one of the most popular houses. Winners come from there. And that's what I'm going to do. Win this.

But don't underestimate this journey. People not only die because they are killed but also because of hypothermia, or they starve. You will need a set of skills to complete survival this competition. You will have to tackle some of the hardest environments to win.

Since your parents were at least once exclusives, you guys will start with an advantage. A backpack with food, water, and a knife in it. Good luck. You guys have a week left here. Enjoy it. It might be your last.'