Game on: Science Fiction

from http://www.artsmia.org/

The game was on. And it was over, the same instant that it started. You could see the realization in the players faces as they jogged out onto the field, the death of hope and the settling in of grim acceptance. They were human. They had signed up and joined the league because that's one of the things that civilized nations did--though few would think this bloodsport civilized, any more than rooster-fighting or bear-baiting. But they joined, because you had to, because it was supposed to give a safe outlet to the speciesist aggressions. And so the players signed up because they had dreams of glory, despite the orientation, or because they really hated aliens, despite the PR, or because they really needed the money desperately, despite the new world government's work on poverty.


Inspiration: See photo.
Story Potential: Lowish.
Notes: Gladiatorial sports are not exactly an uncommon theme.