Lethal Combat Read Online Free PDF Page B

through the air and bounced off his head.
    ‘Ow! If the Xion coward who threw that comes down here, I’ll push his pointy teeth down his throat!’
    The spectators gasped.
    ‘I’ve just remembered something!’ Prince Onix called out. ‘It was him – he was the one who kidnapped me.’
    A hail of pebbles descended on Otto.
     

     
    ‘No further proof is needed of this prisoner’s hatred for Xion!’ screamed the chief judge.
    ‘Hold on!’ Peri said, fighting to make himself heard above the roar. ‘If we’d meant any harm to the prince, we wouldn’t have brought him back –’
    ‘Silence!’ shouted the chief judge. ‘No more of your lies. Time for the vote!’ He surveyed the spectators. The other two judges stood up beside him. ‘Ladies and gentlemen of Xion. You have heard evidence which proves that these criminals are guilty of kidnapping our beloved prince. He cannot even remember his own people now. Please touch the panel in front of you to deliver your verdict. Remember: green means they’ve got away with it, and red means they are guilty .’
    Peri looked hopelessly at the other crew members. They looked hopelessly back.
    The whole arena was lit up in a blaze of red.
    Except, in the middle of the sea of red, Peri saw one solitary green light.
    It was kind of comforting that one person in Xion didn’t believe them to be guilty.
    Not that it did them much good.

 
    Chapter 8
     
     
    ‘Miserable wretches – choose your punishment!’ the chief judge said. ‘You may toil in the sludge mines for fifty years. Or you may fight to the death with . . . the Xio-Bot!’
    There were oohs and aahs from the crowd.
    ‘You may confer!’ the judge said.
    Peri and the other crew members formed a huddle in the centre of the arena.
    ‘What are we going to do?’ Peri asked. He couldn’t believe this was happening.
    ‘If we go down the sludge mines, at least we stay alive,’ Selene paused and lowered her voice. ‘And have a better chance of escaping.’
    ‘I say we face the Xio-Bot!’ Diesel said. ‘We have a fighting chance of winning and getting off this horrible planet straight away.’
    Otto spoke through gritted teeth. ‘I . . . I . . . I agree with Diesel!’
    ‘But we don’t even know what the Xio-Bot is!’ Selene said.
    ‘We don’t know what the sludge mines are, either,’ Peri said. He turned to the lawyer. ‘What’s it like down the sludge mines?’
    Their lawyer smiled. ‘Hell.’
    ‘So you’d choose the Xio-Bot?’
    ‘That would make you more popular with the crowd,’ the lawyer said.
    ‘Come on!’ Diesel said. ‘It’s our only chance!’
    ‘Yeah!’ Otto said. ‘Let’s do it!’
    ‘Ladies and gentlemen, the evil aliens have chosen to fight the Xio-Bot!’ said the chief judge. ‘Give them a round of applause for being such good sports!’
    There was cheering and laughter from the crowd. Hooters blared. Fireworks exploded in the sky.
    ‘How many people have defeated the Xio-Bot?’ Peri asked the lawyer.
    ‘None,’ the lawyer said, taking his seat.
    A short, squat Xion man came pedalling into the arena on a golden tricycle. He wore a sparkly red jacket and a mirrored top hat. He must be the master of ceremonies.
    ‘Ladies and gentlemen,’ he bellowed, ‘what a wonderful spectacle we have for you this afternoon. Four criminals versus the Xio-Bot! How long will they last?’
    The noise of the crowd was deafening as everyone answered at once.
     

     
    The Xion on the trike smiled. ‘Place your bets on how long the criminals can stay alive in the ring with the terrifying Xio-Bot. We’re offering one minute at evens, two minutes at odds of five to one. Or there’s five minutes at a hundred to one. If you fancy a really long shot, we’re offering odds of fifty-three billion, four hundred and ninety-two million, six hundred and seventeen thousand, six hundred and twenty-eight to one on them actually beating the Xio-Bot! You’ll find official bookmakers to take bets