DaveKuzminski

"Sword U. sure has a lot of alumni," Dagota remarked.

"Don’t worry about it, they won’t interfere with the game," Mimute replied.

"Game? You think this is a game? Most of us are going to get killed in this so-called game! You might be one of the dead!"

"So? Should I cry or try to hide?"

"Hide? No, I guess not. There’s not really any place to hide."

"Then quit taking it personally. They’re all up in the stands out of reach and we’re protected from them interfering by the glass partitions. Anyway, they’re not going to use their weapons since our alumni are also present. Just try to be a survivor so you can become a citizen. Just think of the benefits we’ll get if we survive."

Dagota couldn’t help but remember what the survivors on each side would gain besides citizenship. Every survivor would be given clothing for the first time ever. They’d even have the right to marry and reproduce. Still, Dagota couldn’t help but hate the alumni since the earlier generations were responsible for the over-population crisis the world faced. One world war had been enough to convince the people of his world that unrestricted warfare accomplished nothing since it destroyed resources their world couldn’t spare. Consequently, his world had developed its own new society with its own ways of handling the population crisis. However, the crisis had existed for more centuries than anyone could have predicted.

It was still difficult for Dagota to recall how he had come to enroll in Slash College, if one could call it enrolling. After all, he didn’t have much choice after failing to pass his finals in lower school with a high enough score to assure him of a technical education without the dangers inherent in the rest of the higher education system. Only one crummy point had separated him from going to one of the finer schools instead of to combat education. His first day had been shock enough when he was issued his sword and instructed never to go anywhere without it since he was old enough to be killed. Those who forgot never forgot again. They rarely got the chance. Still, his chances were fifty-fifty. He merely had to be one of the survivors still standing when graduation was complete.

"Anyone sick?" the squad leader asked.

Dagota wished he could claim to be sick. If he actually was, it was a ticket to a life of luxury. Then medical researchers would do their best to make him comfortable while studying his illness in the hopes of isolating the cause and ensuring its spread. They would prolong his life as long as possible without curing him, though.

After all, had it not been for a medical researcher whose efforts had resulted in a vaccine that effectively prevented every known sickness and many that were unknown, his society wouldn’t have been pushed to the brink of condoning the games so enthusiastically. Unfortunately, no one had yet suffered any life-threatening illness in centuries. Even aging was delayed by the vaccine. Survivors of the games would live to see at least two centuries of living. That was something their world could scarcely afford, but it was both tradition and law that survivors of five years of combat education couldn’t be forced to go through such matters again. Then again, the people of Dagota’s world weren’t trying to commit genocide upon themselves. They merely wanted to create enough room for the living and to continue their race.

Mimute whispered, "Too bad neither of us are party boys. I guess it wouldn’t be so bad losing my jewels just to insure that I remain a party boy. How about you?"

"No thanks. I’ve gone this far, I might as well see it through. Besides, my father is counting on me to survive and continue the family line."

"All right. By the way, whatever came of the fact that your eyes are still blue?"

Dagota answered, "More bad news for me and others like me. We’re the first of a new generation that ages even slower. The researchers stated they believe my eyes won’t turn green until I’m thirty instead of changing at the usual twenty."

"Hmm, that could be bad if the laws are changed to reflect what you might represent. At least I’ll be allowed to have a woman when I graduate. But if the next generation is like you, the laws might change so that marriage is banned until age thirty. I think it’s bad enough now being segregated from the girls when we’re ten until we graduate at twenty-five. Just imagine how it would be to be separated for twenty years."

"So? There’s already talk about prohibiting marriage until thirty with a mandatory five-year courtship."

Mimute said, "Uh-oh, the squad leaders are signaling for our formation. There go the blindies."

"Seems a shame that they get it first and always get wiped out."

"Yeah? Would you rather be in front instead of them?"

"No, I’m not that eager to fight. I’ll wait my turn. It’s just too bad we haven’t found another planet we can live on or another race who might have a biology we can use to restore our balance more naturally."

"Are you still hoping for the gods from heaven to hand us a cure?"

"No, but there’s got to be other life forms in the universe than just us. Maybe they can help."

"Yeah? Well, even if there are, they won’t arrive soon enough to liberate us from this madness. They could arrive right this minute, but it won’t stop this game."

"No, I don’t suppose an arrival right now would. Still, it would be nice to think we’re not alone."

"Personally, I’ll bet if they’re as advanced as ourselves, they've got the same problems."

"You mean?"

Mimute replied, "Yeah, they might be looking to us to furnish them with the answers."

"Then they’ll be in for a shock."


"The blindies have reached each other’s line formation in the combat scoring zone, not that they’ll stop to score since they’ll have problems enough just finding each other. Whoa! One of Slash College’s blindies just decapitated one of his fellow students. Must be those long arms of his. He’s really swinging his sword around and... Whoa! Now that’s something! He managed to decapitate two students from Sword U."

"Rajak, am I seeing things? Are the blindies from SC getting the upper hand over SU?"

Rajak stated, "Kemal, it does appear that there are more SC blindies standing than from SU."

"I wonder if we’re seeing the beginnings of a collegiate upset in the making?"

"No, I have to disagree with you. After all, SC came into this game with a 100 point betting margin disadvantage even though the fielded teams number the same."

"Folks at home, this is turning out to be a fantastic game even though SU will probably win."


Mimute said, "First the blindies, then the cripies, then two more squads, and finally us. Scared?"

"Yes, some. Why did you ask?"

"Your school colors are streaking."

Dagota glanced down at his body to see that his skin was streaked with rivulets of amber coloring where his perspiration had been heaviest. Looking around, he saw he wasn’t alone. Almost everyone had streaks on their bodies running down from their heads to the belts they wore. The belts were solely for the purpose of giving the students a place to carry combat trophies until the battle was over. Below the belts, more streaks ran to their feet. "So are yours."

Mimute replied, "Yeah, I’m scared as well. I just hope if I get killed that my death will be quick and not lingering."

"Commercial break! Squads halt!" the school’s student leader ordered. Squad leaders echoed his command. Mimute swore briefly.

Dagota said, "Nothing we can do about it but form up again after we display the logo. There’s no use in swearing."

For several long minutes, both sides’ uncommitted forces within the school arena performed precision drills to form their sponsors’ logos. On the field of battle, the surviving blindies from SC took advantage of the commercial break to reform as a force and pass along instructions to each other. Then the commercial break was over and the uncommitted squads reformed into battle formation.

Mimute said, "I wonder if my folks are here or watching on television."

"Mine said they’d watch on television. They said they knew it would make me more nervous if I knew they were in the stands watching me kill and take trophies."

"I’m hoping to collect at least four trophies so I can father four children before I have to part with my jewels."

"I’ll settle for surviving and having one trophy to turn in," Dagota remarked.

"What? You don’t want to father more than one child?"

"Well, of course I do. However, survival is my main concern right now. Anyway, I’m sure to get at least one trophy."

"Sure, but the only way to insure that one of your children has a chance to get into technical school or survive combat is to have more than one."

"It’s that kind of thinking that keeps us in this predicament. Right?"

"Not at all. It’s something we’ll have earned the right to do. Believe me, I intend to use what I’m not allowed to use now as much as possible once I graduate. If I’m unlucky enough to get a woman pregnant before proposing to anyone I really like, then I guess I’ll marry her."

"I intend to look around first. I don’t see any need in rushing to get married and have kids. Before you know it, the allotted number of kids are born and then there goes all your enjoyment."

"Why aren’t the two of you shouting encouragement to our fellow students?" the squad leader suddenly demanded after striding over to stand in front of Mimute and Dagota.

Both men began shouting. Neither let on that he was watching the squad leader leave. They continued shouting until they felt sure he was too far to distinguish their voices from the other students.

Mimute said, "We should have elected you as a squad leader."

"No thanks. Squad leaders barely last longer than cripies. I’d rather be back here deep in the ranks."

"You’re smarter than I first thought."

"Thanks, I guess."


"Rajak, I don’t think I’ve ever seen anything like this. SC’s blindies are advancing upon the SU ranks. They’re not waiting for the SU cripies to reach them. Have you ever seen anything like this before?"

"Nothing this organized. Maybe SC’s students have a real battle plan for this game. Well, there go SC’s cripies since SU’s cripies are taking the field now."

"Looks like we’re going to have bodies all over the field today."


"That’s the last of our blindies," Mimute said.

Dagota had noticed something. "I’m going to hate myself for this, but I’ve got to try."

"What?" Mimute asked.

"Back me up, please?"

"About what?"

"I just had a radical idea and I’m going to take command as overall leader."

"What! That’s suicide! You’ll be right out in front of all of us!"

Dagota said, "I just spotted something that can give our team the game. Even so, I’m going to need everyone’s cooperation and someone has to support me when I ask for followers. Just say you will when I ask upon taking over and urge the others to agree with my decision. I really think my idea will work and we’ll all have more children."


"Something’s going on within the SC ranks. One of their students has stepped out of the ranks and demanded the command. I wish we could hear what he has to say."

"I do too, Rajak. However, I’ve got a feeling this could ruin any chance SC has of engineering an upset since their cripies are doing just as well as their blindies did earlier."

"Well, it must have SU concerned. They’re calling for a sponsor’s timeout."


"Follow my plan and more of you will survive. Not only that, you’ll all be guaranteed the right to have children. Now who will endorse my plan?"

Mimute stood in shock at hearing Dagota’s plan even though Dagota’s blue eyes were directed at him and he knew it. He finished considering what Dagota had proposed, then swallowed hard and raised his sword. "I will follow! Come on, everyone, Dagota’s right!" he found himself shouting even though he felt positive Dagota’s plan would fail.


Rajak said, "Well, the sponsor’s timeout is over. SU is returning to their battle formation and just in time, too."

"Yes, it’s amazing that SC’s cripies have done just as well as their blindies. SU is just barely into position and the SC cripies are already reaching the front of the SU ranks... Whoa! The main SC ranks are moving out! All of them! They’re not committing their forces by squads!"

Rajak exclaimed, "I see it. What kind of mass suicide are they planning? That tactic never works."

"Maybe not, but it’s legal for them to move now since the main SU ranks are in combat. Man! Look at those SC students run to their death!"


"Charge! Remember! Don’t pick up any trophies! Keep swinging until they’re wiped out!" Dagota shouted as he led the SC main force.

Then there was no time left to shout encouragement to the troops as Dagota and his force encountered the first ranks of the SU force just as the last of the SC cripies were being dispatched. Hack and slash, swinging their blades, the SC force hit the front SU ranks with more force than anyone expected. The front SU ranks collapsed under the overwhelming numbers as some of the front SU students were busy collecting their trophies and unable to respond to the charge. The force of the charge carried the SC force deep enough that it penetrated through the second SU squad and into contact with the third SU squad.


"Rajak! The SC students aren’t collecting trophies! Have you ever seen anything like this before?"

"I don’t believe it. They’re attacking as if they were blindies who don’t expect to survive and never bother collecting trophies to prove their kills. I’m not sure, but we might be seeing a new innovation in student combat. Who knows? Maybe SC is going to replace SU as the premier combat education unit."

"Wow! Then we’re seeing history made since that hasn’t happened in over a century!"

"You’re absolutely right, Kemal. I think we’re seeing history in the making. Little SC is taking apart big SU and they’re doing it grandly. This truly appears to be an upset in the making."


Dagota shouted, "No! Leave that one alive! Tradition demands that the losing side have at least one survivor if either side goes beyond killing half the other side in establishing their win!"

"But you said we’d kill them all!"

"Enough have already died. If you’re not personally satisfied with how many children you’ll be permitted to father, then I’ll give you one of my trophies as soon as we gather and divide those."

"You would give up one of your trophies?"

Dagota replied, "I promised you a victory. I have delivered. I promised you would all share in having children. That will come as well. For now, it is enough that we have won. Now let us form up and retire to our side to collect our graduation rewards."


"Wow! What a game! From my vantage point, it looks like well over half of SC’s students are still standing."

"You can say that again, Rajak. This was one game for the records that I’ll never forget."


Dagota accepted the suit of clothes as he prepared for the final graduation exercise. Carefully, as did all the other survivors, he put on the first clothes he had ever worn in his life after removing his belt. Only after he was dressed did he replace his belt as a symbol of alumni status and citizenship. As well, he was given attachments to add to his belt so that he could finally sheathe his sword after five years of carrying it in one hand or the other. His sword would be largely ornamental from then on while the firearm he was given and attached to his belt would be his primary defense should anyone see fit to ever attempt to deprive him of his rights as a citizen. "Satisfied, Mimute?"

"With three trophies instead of four?"

"Yes, that’s what I’m asking."

"I guess so. To tell the truth, I didn’t think I’d survive anyway. Anyway, what gave you the idea for our game plan?"

"Our blindies. I couldn’t help but notice some of them were surviving longer than others when they fought the SU cripies. Some of the SU cripies were collecting trophies as if they expected to survive after all somehow. Those were the ones falling to the last of our blindies. That was when it occurred to me that if we didn’t stop to collect trophies we could actually come out on top. I don’t know why no one ever thought of that before."

"Yeah, it seems kind of obvious now. Hey! They’re handing out jobs now. Let’s go find out what we’re getting."

"Go ahead if you want. I don’t see any need to rush at the moment. From now on, I’m going to take my time and enjoy life."

"Yeah, I guess you’re right. We’ll get the same jobs whether we rush over now or not. What do you think you’ll be doing?"

"Truthfully, I don’t know. I really hadn’t given any thought to anything beyond just surviving. Maybe I’ll get lucky and be assigned to a space mission."

"Still thinking that some other race holds the answer to our problems?"

"Whether they do or not, I still think we owe it to ourselves to find out."