“What?” I splutter, rounding on him indignantly. “How is that fair? Reed and Aidan both have the Power of Three!”
“Yes, but Archer has no skills,” Reed drawls, “not without his bow. No offence,” he adds, and Archer grins. Kwan hands out scraps of fabric – blue for my team and red for the other team.
“Tie them around your wrists,” he prompts as we all stand there, holding our coloured rags in confusion.
“Have you been researching this in the library?” Reed narrows his eyes suspiciously.
“Take up your positions,” Kwan barks.
As we line up at one end of the field my heartbeat quickens in anticipation of the thrill of competition.
“You are going down, Tiny,” Reed taunts.
“Way down,” Aidan echoes, winking at me over Reed’s shoulder. I ignore them both, bending my knees and waiting for Kwan’s signal.
As his hand drops, I accelerate forward, flying towards a vertical ladder. I reach it only a second before Reed, but it’s enough. I scuttle up the rungs like a crab, my smaller frame making it easier for me to manoeuvre. I am only a few rungs up when I hear someone else hit the base, and I don’t need to look down to know that it is Aidan. No one else would have caught up so quickly. As I feel Reed’s hands grab the rung near my knee, I deliberately put my boot down on his fingers.
“Sorry,” I croon sweetly, beginning to enjoy myself. As I vault over the top and start scrambling down, I come face to face with Reed.
“Do try to keep up.” His reply is anything but chivalrous. Not wanting to waste any time, I let go of the rung only about a third of the way down, and land nimbly twelve feet below. I turn immediately towards the next obstacle, which consists of a balancing beam with a set of rudely crafted steps on either side. Hurtling towards it, I hear Kwan bellowing across the field.
“If you fall, you go back!”
“I hope you’re listening, boys!” I scream gleefully over my shoulder. I daren’t risk looking back, knowing the others will be right behind me. I stampede up the steps and place one foot on the balancing beam. It is about twenty feet long and consists of a single circular wooden post, barely six inches wide. I start to make my way across, teetering dangerously to the left. There is no advantage to the Gifted in this exercise and I start to sway, my arms out at my sides as I move as quickly as I can. About halfway across, I feel the pole shift beneath my feet.
“Don’t slip,” Reed’s low voice calls tauntingly. Trying to increase my pace is my undoing, and for a heart-stopping moment I flail desperately, and then I topple off the pole and land in a heap on the ground. Reed’s guffaw of laughter is cut short as he, too, tumbles to the ground. I rush past as he is getting back to his feet, climbing the steps just behind Jethro. Aidan is already halfway across.
“Why did I get all the slowpokes?” I yell, and then, spotting Matt screeching to a halt at the base of the stairs, “Oh thank God . . . it’s about time!” Matt is the only other member of my team who is speed-Gifted.
One by one we slip and slide, none of us able to make it across the beam. Reed’s language is deteriorating. Archer, Morgan and Rory have all reached the steps, and I file in behind them.
“Pile up on the highway!” my dad calls, as Heath and Quinn join the end of the line. Nobody is more shocked than Reed when Archer is the first person to make it across the balance beam.
“You want to knock my skills now, McCoy?” he whoops, running towards the barbed wire mud pond.
“I always told you he’s like a freaking cat!” Reed grins up at me. He and Aidan are in line right behind me.
Galvanised by Archer’s success, Morgan makes it across on her first attempt, and to my relieved surprise, so does Rory. Determined not to embarrass myself again, I take my time, moving slowly and cautiously, and I give a triumphant whoop of joy when my foot touches the first step on the opposite end. I don’t turn to monitor Reed’s progress, but sprint towards the mud pool instead. Archer is already scrambling out the opposite side, completely covered in mud, and I can see Morgan and Rory leopard crawling beneath the knotted mass of barbed wire.
“Here goes nothing,” I murmur, dropping to my knees and then down onto my belly. I slither forward, keeping a wary eye on the barbed wire canopy above my head.
The cold wet mud seeps in everywhere, saturating my clothing. It smells vile, and I keep my head as high as I can, breathing through my mouth. I am almost through the canopy and my right hand is actually touching the firmer ground at the edge of the pit when I feel a firm hand grab hold of my ankle and I am yanked backwards.
“Reed!” I scream in frustration and then my face is submerged in mud. I lift my head, frantically wiping the filth from my face as Reed wriggles forward beside me.
I make it out of the canopy just after he does and we both run hell for leather towards the next obstacle. The point of this next challenge is much like the monkey bars I have seen in Alex’s playground, except double the height and at least ten times the distance. While the balance beam required agility, the monkey bars test upper body strength. The objective is to move from bar to bar so that your hands are carrying your entire body weight. The stronger soldiers have an advantage, and suddenly my strength-heavy team doesn’t seem like such a disadvantage, although I know that Reed, with his staggering strength, will probably beat me. The bars are wide enough apart that two people at a time can pass under them. Morgan and Archer are moving along, but Archer is struggling, falling behind Morgan. I race after Reed, overtaking him just feet from the bars, and I swiftly sidestep, positioning myself behind Morgan. Reed gives a groan of frustration, knowing he will be hindered by Archer.
I grab hold of the bars and swing my legs, working up a rhythm as I monkey from one bar to the next. Reed gets ahead of me, but soon enough he is impeded by Archer and I move ahead, my eyes still smarting from the mud caking my face.
I drop lithely to the ground at the last rung and turn for the second to last obstacle. The rope net bridge is simple enough, and I clamber up the side, climbing over the vertical bar and moving on all fours towards the opposite end. The rope sags heavily towards the centre, and I proceed with caution. Morgan, sensing that I am gaining on her, uses this to her advantage, and she lets go of the rope, throwing herself forward and rolling down to the middle, before snatching up the rope again and moving like a spider up the other side. I contemplate imitating her actions, but I am already nearing the centre, so I figure it’s best just to keep going as I am. The net leaps in my hands as someone else climbs onto it, and I turn to find Reed clambering over the vertical beam, Aidan right behind him. Of course, Reed is heavier than Morgan and the net bounces with every move he makes, threatening to unhinge me and making it far harder to move across. Relieved, my hand finds the beam on the opposite end, and I vault over it, slithering down the net.
My relief is short lived. Running at the final obstacle, I realise too late that the only way over the fifteen foot sheer wooden wall is to take it at a run. As I stand in its shadow, Morgan scrabbling futilely at the smooth surface beside me, I curse my mistake. I sprint back towards the net bridge and then take the wall again at a run, leaping into the air and flying towards it. My fingers close over the top at exactly the same moment that I hear Reed’s Tarzan yell and he slams into the wall beside me, his grip far more secure than mine. Because he was behind me, he had seen my mistake and known exactly how to make it over the wall. No doubt Aidan would be right behind us.
I pull myself up, my fingers cramping with the effort. Reed gets his left leg over before I do, and I am furious that he is going to beat me, but the instant before he drops over the other side, I hear Morgan’s cry of “Reed!” We both glance down to where she is standing at the base of the wall, her fingers still trying to find purchase on the wooden wall. Morgan is too short to make the jump, and without speed to use as a run-up, she has no chance of making it over. Reed hesitates, and
I press my feet firmly into the wood, pushing up with my legs. As I get my arms over, Reed leans back down towards Morgan, offering her his hand.
“See ya!” I call as I swing my legs over and drop down the other side. I race across the finish line, exhilarated, and fist-punch the air. Reed scowls at me from atop the wall where he is helping Morgan. Seeing no reason to rush now that I have won, he helps Aidan up too, as Matt appears beside them, sitting astride the wall and waiting for the balance of our team mates.
“What took you so long?” I ask, as Morgan and Aidan jog up beside me, Quinn right behind them.
Archer is the last of Reed’s team to reach the wall, and the two lope dejectedly towards us, Archer uncharacteristically red-faced.
“Well done,” Morgan concedes, noticing his dejected expression.
While Matt is helping Heath and Rory, Kwan breaks away from the cheering crowd. I smile expectantly, but he walks right past me, coming to stand beside Reed.
“Congratulations,” he grins, stretching out his hand. Reed takes it automatically, but his brow is narrowed in confusion.
“In case you didn’t notice, I got here first,” I point out wryly.
“Yes,” Kwan faces me, “but the rules were that whichever team crossed the line first would win. That would be the red team.”
“But . . .” I gape at him, as Reed lets out a whoop of delight.
“You didn’t even know that!” I snap at the smug expression on his face.
“Doesn’t change the fact that I won,” he retorts.
chapter 34
“You’re pouting,” Reed remarks pointedly as we take a break before the next exercise, and Aidan chuckles beside him. Oh, so now they’re best friends, I think petulantly. Another two teams are out on the field, going through the same obstacle course. Fiona’s team consists of four women, including Abby, and only one man – a strength-Gifted soldier named Clint. It is the same team she has selected for our mission into the States. I had questioned her choice of a team almost exclusively comprising women, who are generally naturally weaker than their male counterparts, but her explanation had made sense. All her people used to work alongside NUSA’s soldiers, but the women in particular would draw sympathy from the predominantly male NUSA army. No man likes to hit a girl, particularly one they have known and trusted.
Fiona’s counsel over the past few days has enlightened me. I have always thought of the NUSA army as the enemy – each and every nameless soldier an extension of Kenneth, and Eric before him. Now I have come to understand that the NUSA army is made up of people. People with families and friends and opinions of their own. Both Heath’s and Fiona’s groups are testament to the fact that not all of NUSA’s people are convinced, and that change is occurring within the boundaries, even without our interference. The Presidents of NUSA have made one fatal mistake – they believed that ruling by force would ensure loyalty. I am hoping that this mistake will be Kenneth’s undoing.
Turning my attention back to the field I see that despite the Legion team’s best efforts, Fiona’s team has pulled ahead of them easily, their superior teamwork and persistence paying off. Both teams are taking extra care that all their members make it through each obstacle, shouting words of encouragement as they move through the challenges.
“See what a good example I set?” Reed ribs.
“Put a sock in it,” I reply. My own team is sitting slumped on the grass behind me.
“Has she always been such a sore loser?” Reed asks Aidan.
“She used to be worse.”
As frustrated as I am, I understand Kwan’s lesson. He is trying to unite the teams, to bring us together with a common goal, while at the same time making us aware of one another’s strengths and weaknesses. My team in particular will have to learn to work as a unit if we are going to access the States and destroy Kenneth.
I take full responsibility for my group’s loss, but I am determined to make it up to them. I rally us into a huddle as Kwan leads the crowd onto the empty adjacent field.
“I’m sorry, you guys. I behaved like an idiot. We’re in this together, so let’s get our heads in the game.”
“They have Reed and Aidan,” Matt points out, “not to mention Morgan, who’s practically as good. They’re going to annihilate us.”
I feel a surge of pride that these men have so much respect for Morgan, and make a mental note to tell her so, but only after the competition.
“No, they’re not,” I argue, “because I have a plan.”
Despite our apparent shortcomings, there is one advantage I have over the other team. I know them – I know how they think, and how they fight. They don’t have the same insight into my men.
We gather on opposite ends of the empty field, our blue and red rags so caked with mud that they are barely visible. The aim of this task is simple. One member of each team is handed a wooden baton. The instant the first baton crosses the line at the opposite end of the field, the challenge is over and that team is declared the winner.
“Don’t forget,” I nod at Matt and Rory, “harass the hell out of Morgan. Archer won’t be able to help himself – he’ll come to her aid.” Archer’s lack of abilities may not have hindered him much in the first challenge but it would certainly count against him in this one, going head to head with Gifted soldiers. “You two,” I turn to Quinn and Heath, “I want you to stick to Reed like a rash. He’ll take the baton. Peg him in.”
“What about Aidan and Jethro?” Rory asks.
“I’ll deal with them,” I grin.
Kwan drops his hand and, as expected, the red team swarms onto the field – Reed holding the baton and the others forming a protective circle around him. Midway across the field, our teams collide and, as instructed, Matt and Rory separate Morgan from the fold, pegging her in and annoying her until she screams in frustration. Quinn and Heath manage to get to Reed, and they hang on to him for all they are worth. Despite their efforts he is still moving, dragging them reluctantly across the grass. His progress is slow but I know he will deal with them soon when his patience runs out.
As I slip through the melee, Aidan and Jethro advance towards me. I dart left and right, trying to find an opening, but they stand directly in my path, their arms outstretched, blocking my way forward. I can’t allow them to get too close and I start to retreat, moving farther away from them, in the wrong direction. Archer is not engaging, which I expected. Reed, as team leader, would not ask him to confront anyone, given that he has no Gifted abilities. Reed is betting on the fact that the combination of his and Aidan’s advanced abilities will even the odds of five against four.
I cast an anxious glance at Quinn and Heath, who are having a hard time controlling Reed. They are trying to wrest the baton from his hand, which is helping in that in order to keep hold of it he is limited to warding them off with only his left hand. Even so, I know that I have just a few seconds before he breaks free.
Aidan smiles as he and Jethro take another step towards me. Without hesitation, I burst into a sprint, heading straight for them. Momentarily stunned, they hold their positions, shock dawning on their faces. They didn’t expect me to try to break right through their defence. Which, of course, I don’t. A few yards away, I launch off the ground, using the same impulsion I used to scale the wall in the obstacle course. They are too stunned even to reach for me as I coast over their heads, my legs pumping even in mid-air before I land on the grass behind them. As my feet hit the ground, I hear Quinn’s yell of “Run!” and I know that Reed has finally broken free. I sprint towards the line, as the crowd screams in excitement. It is a race to the finish and my adrenalin skyrockets. I am moving so fast that it takes me at least ten yards to skid to a standstill, and I whirl around to see Reed cruise to a stop on the opposite side. All heads on the sidelines are swivelling left and right, not sure who crossed the line first. As one, we all turn to face Kwan, who is standing
on the sideline, midfield. He raises his left hand and I give a whoop of pure, unadulterated glee. We won!
“How the hell did you do that?” Aidan asks good-humouredly as we all converge in the middle of the field to shake hands. “Nobody told me jumping was one of our hidden talents. You guys have been holding out on me.”
“That was the whole point of the exercise,” Kwan interjects. “The first course was to teach you to work as a team. The second was so evenly matched that the only way to win was to think outside the box and test the limits of your capabilities. Well done, Rebecca,” he adds, squeezing my shoulder proudly.
My team is in such good spirits that I am sure nothing could temper my good mood. As it turns out, I am wrong. We are watching Fiona’s team compete in the same exercise when Morgan interrupts.
“Rebecca,” I turn at the sound of her solemn voice to find her holding a squirming Alex by the sleeve. Brooke is hiding her face in Morgan’s legs. “I found them in the trees over there.” She jerks her head towards a copse of trees adjacent to the fields, near the Academy’s border.
“Alex!” I roar furiously, attracting Aidan’s attention. As he lays eyes on Alex, he heads straight over.
“Aw, Mom!” Alex’s eyes widen in fear as he catches sight of his father’s grim expression.
“What are you doing here, Alex?” Aidan demands as soon as he draws up beside me.
“We just wanted to watch . . . Jenna was telling Uncle Norman all about the ‘stopicle’ course at breakfast and we wanted to see.”
“Alex,” I glance up as Reed appears behind the children, his expression unreadable. “I told you,” I glance up and catch Reed’s eye and he gives an imperceptible nod of his head, “both of you,” I add, turning on Brooke, “that you are not allowed here unless your father or I bring you. You’re not allowed out of town. You know that!”
“I know, but . . .”
“No buts, Alex!” I yell, losing my temper. The thought of Alex and Brooke travelling alone after my implicit instruction to the contrary, makes my hair stand on end, particularly given that we are setting explosive charges around the grounds in anticipation of a NUSA attack. Every person inside the Academy has been warned not to venture near the “red” zones, as Crackerjack calls them. The whole purpose of the children being in town is to keep them safe.
The Legend Page 24