My piece for @trafficzine !
Thank you so much for letting me be a part of it. Go check out everyone else's contributions, too!
You open your eyes to a new world. It's not unlike any other world you've explored before. Only, this one holds a short-lived purpose. In the earth below your feet you feel the echoes of worlds past. You've played this game before, and now, you have another chance to win.
It starts as it has three lifetimes before: in a ring around the heart of your first spawn. Now, sixteen people stand before you, a blur of smiles and vigor. You know these people. You stood beside these people before, a partner in any way that mattered. Across from you stand your closest friends. Allies that took you arm-in-arm while you rushed headfirst into danger. A soulmate whose life is held in your hands. An enemy whose home burns to cinder underboot. A friend whose blood has dried under your fingernails. You remember the bloodbaths and lives taken several times over. You remember gambling lives away like coins in your back pocket. Most importantly though, you remember love. The love you hold for your closest friends, the love between a haphazard family, the love cast by heartbreak as you carry on alone.
But this isn’t those now distant times. This is here and now. Before the first bonds of alliances doomed to shatter. Before the promises and betrayals. Before the blood that stains your skin and dries beneath your nails. Before the glory and devastation of a lonely win. This is a new time, and this new time, like all the many times before, promises to be no different. There are differences, though. A missing friend you haven’t played beside in months. A towering statue that casts a deep shadow on the earth. More health than you’ve ever had before. A portal to a dimension you’ve never seen in these games before. You try not to humor the idea too much. Not yet.
It is, however, a familiar voice that rises above the clamor of the crowd. The same voice that welcomes you every time.
“Hello, friends! Welcome to Secret Life. In this series we have thirty hearts per life, but no regeneration. The only way to regain hearts is from the Secret Keeper. At the start of each session, we'll be given a secret task. When you've completed your task, you can visit the Secret Keeper who will reward you with ten new hearts. If you fail your task, you get nothing. Remember, the whole time, you must keep it a secret!”
The sun is high and bright in the sky, a spotlight on the group around you. The shadow cast from the Secret Keeper is deep and long, but it leaves your small campfire alone to warm you. Anticipation of the unknown sends thrills down your spine, and you see mirrors of the same feeling on the rest of the group, too. You join in with the soft, excited cheers that ring out from the group while others around you call out friendly hellos.
Not yet finished, Grian motions towards a new face in the group, “As you can see, Gem has joined us this series,” you turn your head without a trace of subtlety, “She kinda didn't leave, and no one wanted to say anything.”
Giggles ripple around the circle and Tango nods,“it was awkward, yeah.”
Impulse shoots Tango a sharp glare, “you mean we love that she's here,” he defends at the same time Gem says: “you can't get rid of me!”
Jimmy steps forward, taking all the attention of the crowd, “surely for a newbie, everyone gets one free punch on Gem, right?” Interspersed agreements from the circle drown out anything else he wants to say, leaving Gem to vehemently deny the idea without help.
The friendly banter and sharp quips last only a moment. It quickly changes to shocked ohs as, instead of Gem, Martyn punches Jimmy and first blood is drawn. An uproar of booming accusations and bewildered laughter make the once friendly climate into something chaotic. Jimmy, the first to die every game since the beginning, was already half a heart down.
Martyn, eyes wide, puts his palms up guiltily, “my bad! My bad!” Apologies on his lips, he does the only thing left that makes sense, “let me give you this back!”
It takes only a moment for the heart transfer feature to do its job. In moments, you all bear witness to one of the new gimmicks of the season as it shines on full display, and the once disadvantaged Jimmy is half a heart ahead of the game.
The crowd, still unnerved, backs up, making their circle thinner. Unlike before, the noise does not dissipate, but rather, grows more discordant than ever. “With that,” Grian says, whipping around and breaking free of the meeting, “I'm getting outta here!”
Mumbo follows his lead, Scar casts long glances at the ominous statue, and you notice the players scatter in all directions. You retreat, letting the world take you as it always does.
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