Ch4
The tang of the salty sea air, the slight breeze rustling the palm leaves, and the dull roar of the surf. Gordon was so busy on his home island that he really didn't get the opportunity to appreciate the natural beauty of the beach, and here, lazing in the mid afternoon sun on the verandah of the hut, the young aquanaut was grateful for these few days to completely relax and recharge.
The last few weeks of work had been fairly gruelling. Gordon and his brothers handled the pressure of work differently, his eldest brother Scott thrived on the adrenalin of hard work and long hours, second eldest John sought solace in his intellectual pursuits, likewise middle brother Virgil escaped any work pressure through his music and art, youngest brother Alan, Gordon's so called 'partner in crime' was the one person he could turn to relieve any stress levels, the brother's sharing a love of sport and practical jokes. Unfortunately, Alan had only returned from duty on Thunderbird 5 a few hours prior to Gordon leaving, so this holiday was a much needed stress buster.
Now soaking in the glorious rays of the sun, with a cool drink in his hand, and muscles tingling from two great surfs in one day, Gordon knew it would be an effort to walk to the resort's bar to meet and greet Mia's friends. The opportunity to get to know Mia more was the only thing that propelled Gordon into the shower and to scrounge in his luggage for something decent to wear.
Not bringing dressy clothes on a surfing holiday, Gordon threw on his only collared shirt, tugged on his jeans, and slipped into a pair of leather boating shoes. A splash of lotion, and a quick brush of the hair, he was ready to go. Before leaving, Gordon strapped his communicator onto his wrist. Brains, IR's resident genius, had developed an advanced telecommunications device in the guise of an ordinary wrist watch. On holiday, Gordon was loathe to wear it but the consequences of not wearing it far outweighed any annoying interruptions he might receive from his family. With five minutes to spare, Gordon left his hut and headed for the resort.
When the game first began, players' points were tallied on reams of paper in the library of Hugo de Beaumanoir's home. Over twenty years later, Hugo's library had been turned into a high-tech control room. Computers and monitors dominated the large room. Hugo sat at his 18th Century black walnut desk in the midst of the technology, his focus on the enormous TV monitor covering the wall opposite. At a touch of a button on his keyboard, Hugo could bring up details of every player's progress, which were then displayed on the monitor.
There were seven players in the international game. As the game's controller, Hugo knew every player, yet the players did not know the identities of each other. The players themselves didn't physically score points yet relied on teams of people working for them. The teams were known as 'hunter and gatherers', and worked under the direction of their particular player. The game had its origins in University scavenger hunts but had evolved into something much more. The influx of money and the power of the individual and highly secretive players enabled the game to have almost no boundaries as to what could be 'scavenged'.
For each game, Hugo gave the players the options of many categories to earn points. The level of difficulty in acquiring an item within each particular category determined how many points the player received.
The wide range of categories included authentic memorabilia from the Titanic, to what had given Hugo's friend Luc the horrors, the adult son of a billionaire. There was a time limit in gathering the items and the winner, of course, was the one with the most points. There were no actual prizes, only the recognition from other players of winning the game.
It was getting late, and Hugo longed to turn in yet he waited. Soon for one of the players, the points would have a dramatic change. This player was new to the game yet played it with particular zeal. He managed to play within the rules of the game – just. Like the other players, this man had, on applying to be in the game, professed to feeling jaded with life, and needed something to inject some adventure into his otherwise humdrum existence. Hugo, however, saw something in the man's hard stare that was almost maniacal and very nearly rejected him outright. The offer of a ludicrous amount of money soon changed Hugo's mind. The man was accepted, and the player wasted no time in suggesting another category. Hunting and gathering humans. Again, money was offered, and the category was set.
It was with some irritation, that Hugo also had to deal with the man's minions turning up at his residence and offering another incentive. Hugo had yet to agree to that particular offer.
Hugo watched the clock on his monitor and continued to wait.