Zak always felt a little queasy after realm-hopping. He imagined this is probably what a sock felt like in a dryer. Once his head cleared he checked his surroundings. Yup. He was lost. In the woods. His clothes were no longer the aviator jacket and slightly torn jeans he normally wore, but a white shirt and blue jeans. And if he angled his arm just right his skin color shifted from his normal pale-ish white (another side effect of his 25 years trapped in that Cube) to a brown tint.

Zak groaned as he stood. "Now how do I get out of here and to that party?" Zak checked his watch. He had half an hour to get out of the woods and to the Protagonist's friend's birthday party before the cake was served. If he didn't make it, he'd fail the mission and this world would be one step closer to falling into the Void. No pressure.

Zak scanned the area, stalling for time till some kind of survival training kicked in. He smiled once he saw a beacon. It looked somewhat like a flashlight sticking out of the ground but a strong beam emmited from it and into the sky. Zak didn't know where it came from or why it was here, but he wasn't about to look a gift beaon in the battery box.

Once he approached it, he could feel warmth. It seemed inviting. Almost like the light of a bug zapper drawing in a moth. That should have been a clue to a trained Zapper like Zak, but it wasn't. He stuck his hand into the path of the beacon's light. Next thing he knew, he was strapped to an operating table. Two Lizard Men moved around him making some kind of noise. Whatever it meant, it wasn't good for Zak.

After a few more seconds of incoherent chatter, the omni-language translator in his watch finally finished anaylizing the Lizard Men's language. 

"This one seems fit enough for the Games," said one.

Games? thought Zak. Oh no. They're Hunters.

Hunters go around from realm to realm looking for people to become avatars in the Games. These avatars become the characters in the video games people play. Impants take away their free will and they are then controlled by the Players. Hunters don't stop at people either; they take animals and objects. So think of that the next time you kill a cow in that sandbox-survival game of yours.

Some game studios have banned the use of involuntary avatars and begun hiring some, but there is always those who've got to mess things up for everybody.

Zak struggled against the bonds, but they held tight. How could he escape? The clock was literally ticking down. During his struggle, Zak stole a look at his watch. Only a few minutes remained until the cake would be served and he would fail. 

Zak surveyed the room. One of the Lizard Hunters laughed. He was busy watching some kind of Internet video. Another Hunter smacked the watcher's arm. "Knock that off and watch the product."

The Watcher grumbled as the other continued to work on what Zak assumed to be paperwork. Once the "boss" had his back turned, the Watcher went back to his video. He chuckled as a three-eyed cat with two tails tried to play a keyboard. 

"Psst," said Zak. Lizard Man turned. "I got some great mobile games on my phone. Since I'm a prisioner, they probably won't let me keep it. You might as well have it. It's in my back pocket."

"Hmm...but I'd have to unstrap you to get it," said the Watcher. 

Zak made his eyes widen in an innocent stare. "I'm only a defenseless human. What could I possibly do to a big, bad alien like you?"

The Lizard Man's phone, if you can call it that, beeped and chimed. "You have a point." The Watcher Lizard moved to the side of the table and pressed a button. The straps disappeared and he helped Zak up so that he could get his phone out. 

Zak reached behind him, but instead of handing over a phone, Zak head-butted the alien. The Watcher staggered and Zak delivered a right hook to finish the job. The other Hunter heard the noise and turned, but Zak had already retrieved the Watcher's weapon. Zak fired the weapon and the Lizard convulsed as electricity filled his body.

As the Lizard collapsed, Zak went to the control pannel. For once, he was thankful he hadn't fallen asleep during the mandatory transporter lecture back at the office. Zak used the transmatter scope to locate the party. "One cake coming up," he said before pushing the big, red button.

Whoop-whoop-whoop.

Zak reappeared a few feet from the party. It only took him a couple steps before the friend spotted him. "Randy!" said the friend running up to him. "So glad you could make it! You're just in time!"

Zak smiled. "Alien lizards couldn't keep me away."

"Huh?" said the friend.

Zak's watch then beeped signaling that his time in this realm was up. With a zzz-zap Zak returned to the Company. 

______

This is an entry for the @ScienceFiction April 2018 challenge "The Beacon."

Deadline: April 20

https://www.wattpad.com/554076063-scifi-competitions-and-challenges-april-2018