The Game Chapter 1: The Gang's All Here
No, not that The Game, which was one of the first stories I read on Nifty.
This set of stories is not quite a fan fiction but it's close. It's based off a fantasy I concocted years ago, updated as the passage of time has required. I had a slate of faces I imagined while writing this version, and I list them at the end of the story. Use your own imagination if you don't like my choices. This story should not be taken as a true representation of the sexuality of any of the men in question.
The story depicts males in modern world fantasy sexual situations with other males. If this offends you, if you are underage, or if reading such is illegal where you are please stop reading now. Thank you.
If you enjoy this story, or even if you hate it, please contribute to keeping Nifty going at http://donate.nifty.org/donate.html
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From Webopedia:
"The Game" is a televised athletic elimination competition in the style of Survivor and The Challenge. Twenty participants form teams of two, man and woman, which face two challenges every episode. The first is the "Suck Challenge" in which the players battle for the right to lay a "Suck" (a disadvantage) on one of the other teams during the subsequent "Elimination Challenge." Sucks vary according to the specific Elimination Challenge. The Elimination Challenge determines the two bottom teams, which are then sent to the Trial. At the Trial, the bottom teams engage in a variation of Rock Paper Scissors (in this case Fire, Wood, and Water). The losing team leaves the game.
The girls were cheering, and muscle-model Josh was eating up the attention with a spoon. Meanwhile, the show's host, Thor Oldman, was leaning on his podium-- six foot plus of sardonic Black man with long braided hair. Thor had on a pair of stubbies, which showed off his impressive thighs, and an unbuttoned Hawaiian shirt left no aspect of his abdominal or pectoral development in doubt. Josh had heard rumors about the host's ecumenical sexual appetite which had frightened lesser players away from the show, but Josh wasn't worried. If he had to sleep his way to the top, well, you played the game if you wanted to get ahead.
Josh, for his part, had come into this first Elimination Challenge in short yellow nylon shorts and a string shouldered tank top of the same color. (Not everybody could wear yellow, but Josh could wear it and wear it well.) Josh was a prize stud, and he knew it. Tall and well-groomed, boasting broad shoulders and pecs to match, and a true washboard stomach, he flaunted his body shamelessly. "Don't hate me because I'm gorgeous" was his motto, and that had taken him far. The Game, though, was about social connections just as much as it was about physical prowess, so Josh knew he was probably making as many enemies as friends with his looks. Still, he figured, he might as well hit the ground running and play his strong cards early. In this case, that was going to mean holding onto a pole for dear life.
"Guys," Thor said, "As I told the girls earlier, this game is Hold Tight. Each of you will grab onto the post in front of you and hold on for all you're worth. And you should definitely hold tight, because the first two of you to lose their grip and fall into the water are heading straight home."
Thor looked the guys over. "Are you ready?"
The dozen young men voiced an affirmative with bravado and jogged over to an array of two-foot diameter posts that were hanging from a beam, ready to be lifted by a crane out over the water.
Josh peeled off his shirt (what little there was of it) and grabbed hold of the post. Stipples and grooves in a tribal pattern decorated the surface, and that would give the contestants their only traction. The crane went into action and the posts rose into the air taking twelve determined men with them. Josh took a deep breath and settled himself in for a long hang. This was really going to be a grueling test of the guys' endurance, both physical and mental.
Glancing around, the Brit cataloged and evaluated the eleven men that constituted his competition. Wally was Chinese All-American, with shoulder-length black hair and lean muscle. Saul was Mexican, pale skin wrapping his muscles and incongruous red hair cut short. Leo, black with a wrestler's body, sported short dreds and was a picture book of tattoos; he also had the biggest bulge in his mma shorts. Kumar, an Indian traditional wrestler, had dark South Asian skin and short midnight-black hair. Mando, Mexican American with a keen eye and ready smile, was also the shortest of the men. Charlie had long blond hair and a farmer's physique. Lee, short brown hair and beard, flashed a ready smile; he also wore an unbuttoned plaid shirt and a cowboy hat. Ben had long lean muscles under his dark skin and long wavy black hair. Leland's dark brown hair was pulled into a ponytail, and his arms had been tattooed into solid sleeves. Sal, Mexican American again, had a luchador's muscular body and a wicked goatee. Jase, the Hawaiian beach boy with short black hair and dark golden skin, had a smile that made you think he knew things about you that you didn't know. And there they all were, hanging on for their lives, waiting to find out who had the stuff and who was about to wash out. Literally.
On the shore, the girls were a sight for sore eyes, too, at least in Josh's (and his cock's) opinion. Especially when they were jumping around in their bikini tops. Plumping up, his dick was not helping him in the holding on for your life game. The only other observer (outside of Thor and the crew) was an older islander, their mentor, who had been introduced in passing as the Kahuna. Josh supposed he was here to add local color.
All in all, Josh was pretty sure he'd make it past this challenge. Hang On was the traditional first challenge, and Josh had prepared for it. Some of the other guys, however, were finding out how hard it was to maintain a sure grip on the pole, and every time Josh checked they were a few inches lower on the post. One of them, Mando, lost his grip all of a sudden and almost fell (loud gasp from the shore), but he caught himself just in time and shinned back up post like a monkey.
"That was close, Mando," Thor observed. "Guys, don't let yourselves get distracted. The only thing you should be paying attention is holding onto that post."
`Sure, yeah, right. Play favorites, why don't you?' Josh thought. He'd already caught Thor checking out the little Mexican-American out already.
As the challenge gruelled on the guys with good upper body strength and long arms (Like me, Josh thought) were doing the best. But of course they would. For them (and for me) it was pretty much a given they'd ace this trial. And the moment Josh thought that, he himself slipped. Another gasp went up from the shore, but Josh caught himself before he fell off entirely and then, with grit and determination, inched his way back up to a comfortable place on the pole.
Josh looked then and caught Mando all but laughing at him.
"Good recovery, Superman!" the little Mexican taunted, but Josh ignored him.
Clumsy,' Josh thought to himself, This is no time to get cocky and complacent.'
But his arms were aching in earnest now. The holding on, followed by the shinning up to reposition himself, was taking its toll. Lactic acid was building up, and Josh could feel the shivers setting into his muscles.
Come on,' he thought, One of you lose it. I don't care who. Just somebody drop.'
As if in answer to a prayer, Jase immediately slid off the post and plunged into the water.
"One down," Thor said loudly as the beach boy flailed in the water. "Which of you is going to join Jase on his flight home?"
The now eleven men doubled down, but they were all fighting a losing battle and knew it. Inch by inch, the young men, no matter how fit they were, started slipping, inching closer and closer to elimination.
Then it happened. Another guy fell; wait, no, two guys fell. Leland and Sal both lost their grip at much the same time and hit the water with huge all-but-simultaneous splashes.
"That's it," Thor announced over the cheers of the girls, "The rest of you can drop, you're in."
Splash!
As Thor and the producers had a quick confab, the guys swam to shore and stood in a line, water running down their bodies and dripping from their now form-fitting clothing. They were all giving the audience at home a good show, Josh thought as he checked out his opposition again.
`Crap, I hope they edit out my chub,' he thought.
"Okay, you two, Leland and Sal," Thor said, "I've been over the footage with the producers and as far as we can tell you both hit at the same time."
He turned to the rest of the contestants.
"You all know the philosophy of the Game: Body against body, brain against brain, nerve against nerve. To resolve this predicament, we are going to have to turn to wit and luck. Leland and Sal will now proceed to the Trial, and the valley gods will decide which one of them will enter the game as player number ten and which is heading home. Meanwhile, the rest of you have earned some downtime. You'll find a traditional island luau waiting at the Meeting Place. Eat, drink—but especially get to know each other. One of these people is going to be your partner; the rest your opponents."
The players found the spread at the luau—well, opulent was the only word. The food was excellent, and drinks lubricated tongues. The players mingled and took advantage of this their first chance to really talk. Some personalities obviously clicked, but others just as clearly clashed. Josh was getting on famously with everybody (even cocky little Mando), until he found himself face to face (and seriously at odds) with Zaynab. For some reason that she didn't bother to share with him, she didn't trust his easy masculine charisma (and she bluntly said as much). Josh considered pressing the issue, but instead he backed off. This was not a fight he was going to win, and if he pushed it he might lose some other potential allies.
Fine,' Josh thought, There're nine other girls that didn't hate me on sight. Odds are I'll get paired with one of them.'
Later, Thor joined the gang-- all alone.
"People," he called, "Leland and Sal had met at the Trial, and we have a winner."
The nineteen contestants looked up in anticipation.
"Come on, Thor," Saul said, "Who?"
"I'm going to leave who as a surprise. Guys, you'll find out when you get to your hut, and, girls, you'll find out tomorrow at the first Suck Challenge. Right now we're going to draw buffs to decide teams."
Two large pots were brought in: one holding the men's buffs, the other the women's.
"As I call your name, reach into your pot and pull a buff. Matching colors will be partners, and the odd buff out will be paired with our tenth guy. Let's start with Bridget."
"Who do you want to draw?" Saul asked Josh.
"Anybody, so long as it's not Zaynab. We don't click."
"Interesting," the redhead said, "Because that's exactly who I am hoping to draw."
Josh raised his eyebrows but only said, "Best of luck to you them."
Blond Bridget pulled a sky blue buff, and then it was Mando's turn. The little Mexican pulled green, and the drawing went on. Michi pulled orange, and then Josh pulled a navy blue in his turn, which no girl had yet pulled. That made hm nervous. The number of girls was dropping. Then Zaynab was called up and, of course, she pulled the matching navy buff.
Fuck,' Josh thought, Well, maybe we can find some way to work together.'
But that didn't look promising. Zaynab's reaction to drawing Josh as her partner was extreme, even for a reality game show. After running through a gauntlet of emotions she finally chose a place as far away from Josh as possible and glowered at him.
Josh shrugged a `hey, I didn't do it' shrug, but that did nothing but make her even angrier.
After all the girls and all the boys but one had drawn, Thor reached into the pot and pulled out the final buff.
"Black," he said, holding up the piece of cloth. "Who has the matching buff?"
By now everyone knew that Vanessa had the girls' black.
"Vanessa, you'll find out who your partner is tomorrow. Until then, this luau is over. Head off to your huts and get some sleep. You're going to need it."
"Sucks, dude," Wally commiserated with Josh as the guys wandered into the jungle towards their hut on the opposite side of the camp from the girls.' The producers, although they were clearly willing to titillate, did not want any explicit hook-ups taking place on their oh-so-family show.
"Yeah," Mando chimed in, "But maybe tomorrow..."
"Right," Josh said, "Guys, face it. Tomorrow she'll not only hate me twice as much, but I bet you she'll have found some way that it's all my fault, too."
At the same time, Josh felt Saul's eyes on him. And, wow, if looks could have killed... But, fuck, did the boxer really think he'd arranged this goat rodeo? As if.
Torches lit the path through the valley, and at length they reached a clearing. The hut was solid and airy, a cross between summer camp and Gilligan's Island. Due to the valley's heavy rains it was raised off the ground on pilings and had a proper roof that overhung the veranda. Leland sat on the stoop waiting for them.
The young men congratulated him and rushed inside to claim beds and unpack. Or that had been the plan. Instead of finding a glamping experience and their stuff, however, the guys were confronted by five sets of bunk beds and not a single bag of their luggage. Jude, one of the producers, was standing by to explain it all to them
"Guys, we're holding onto your luggage tor the time being. You'll get it back if and when you leave the Game."
"Uh, I'm gonna look pretty silly running around in my all-together," Lee drawled.
"Then we can't let that happen. While you're competing, the show will provide you with competition clothing in place of what you brought. There are running-style vented shorts (to show off as much leg as possible) and muscle shirts (to show off arms and chests). These clothes will be all color-coded by your buff color."
The PAs brought in the color-coded kits Jude had just described. In addition to what he'd mentioned there were sports briefs (that would hug the guy's asses and showcase their junk) that they were to wear under their shorts.
"No jocks?" Charlie joked.
"Jocks had failed the network's `showing off too much' test," Jude said.
"What about water challenges?" Ben asked.
"We've thought of that," Jude said, and the PAs produced pairs of budgie smugglers. Clearly the network's `showing off too much test' came down to a matter of a few square inches.
Sneakers and athletic socks appeared, and duds for socializing—hibiscus-print jams in their buff colors, and white peasant shirts with embroidery in the same tones. Finally there was their sleepwear—abbreviated white boxers striped, again, with their buff color—no shirts. The guys looked expectantly at the producer.
"Try them on," Jude said simply.
Josh laughed as he pulled off his yellow clothes and tossed them to the PA with his navy kit. His canary shorts had had a sewn-in pouch, and stripping left Josh totally naked. The PA blushed at the muscle stud's casual nudity and looked away as he handed the fit young man his kit for the competition, taking his street shoes and socks in exchange.
Josh pulled on the competition shorts (nothing underneath, of course) and said to nobody in particular, "Yep, I look damned good in navy blue, too."
Lee laughed and adjusted himself in his purple shorts.
The PAs withdrew, and Jude favored the boys with a few more words of instruction.
"Okay," the producer said, "Some ground rules. You are, as you know, on the island of Hau'a'o and in a very remote valley. There's no place to go, so don't even think of sneaking off the set. If we catch you doing that, or having done that, you go home. Period. No right of appeal."
The guys nodded. They knew the penalty for breaking rules from watching previous seasons. There as always one egomaniac who thought he could get away with shit.
"Ditto trying to get it on with any of the girls. We catch you at that, you go home. Period. No right of appeal. The show has a reputation to maintain and a network to keep happy."
"Oh, and if you go home, so does your partner. Think about that before you contemplate pulling some bonehead stunt."
"The days here are warm and the nights temperate, but the valley lies in a rainy zone. You won't freeze, but you will be wet, and the wet will make you feel like you're freezing. Get used to it."
"You'll have heard the rumor that the valley is haunted. According to the Kahuna a huge battle took place here back in mythological times. The gods proclaimed that only the bravest would celebrate the victory. `Those that shine, if only for a moment, we shall take to ourselves.' So, the warring kings had themselves a merry slaughter, and if you've seen the traditional local weapons, you'll agree slaughter is the only word for it. Just in case you're of the worrying sort, there is no record of anyone ever actually disappearing while they were in the valley. The colonial government laughed the story off; the locals, on the other hand, take this legend seriously and avoid the place, especially after dark. If you want more gory details, the Kahuna can give them to you."
"Finally, the lights will go out in an hour. (We're strict about our curfew.) Choose your bunks, settle in, and get ready to grab a few hours' sleep. Reveille is at 0700 sharp."
With little fanfare (unlike the brouhaha in the girls' cabin) the guys ended up:
Bunk 1: top Mando, bottom Leo Bunk 2: top Kumar, bottom Saul Bunk 3: top Wally, bottom Josh Bunk 4: top Charlie, bottom Lee Bunk 5: top Ben, bottom Leland
They changed into their sleeping shorts and crawled into bed.
"Good night, John-Boy," Josh said to snickers as the hut went black.
Outside a nightbird cried.
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Possible faces for the characters:
Players (kit colors)
Ben (grey) Benson Henderson, mma fighter; Charlie (sky blue) Charlie Hunnam, actor; Josh (navy) Joss Mooney, reality star; Kumar (Yellow) Amit Kumar, amateur wrestler; Lee (purple) Cohutta Lee Grindstaff, reality star; Leland (black) Leland Chapman (Dog days), reality star; Leo (Orange) Lio Rush, professional wrestler; Mando (green) Armond Rizzo, porn star; Saul (Red) Canelo Alvarez, boxer; and Wally (Brown) Yung Woo Hwang, reality star.
Eliminated players
Jase, Jason Momoa (Baywatch days), actor; Sal, Chavo Guerrero Jr. (WCW days), professional wrestler.
Crew
Thor the MC, Keith Hamilton Cobb (Andromeda days), actor; The Kahuna, Gerry Lopez, surfer.