by Jason Letts
***
Vern watched Kurt, Sophie, and Dot enter the competition. He kept expecting the defeated to trickle out of the forest, crying and wailing, but each moment brought him disappointment. It became clear after Dennis went in that entering last would not be the free ride he thought it would. A battle raged inside that forest, and there was no way he could avoid it.
Vern heard the sound of his name ripple through the crisp morning air, and he took a few steps in before turning to address the crowd.
“I’ll show you all what a champion is.”
He jogged into the forest, leaving the crowd with nothing to do but sit and wait. He began peeking around trees and sneaking from behind them. He heard Aoi thrashing through the woods off to the right, but he didn’t want to pursue her yet in case someone else could knock her out for him. Instead, he positioned himself along the edge of a raging battle.
Dot and Will dueled in a meadow with overhanging tree branches. Will kept trying to approach her, but she kept forcing him back. She pitched a stone at his kneecap, and watched him blow it down to the ground. She launched one high in the air, through the branches, that disappeared from sight. She then threw one at his stomach, but when he blew it down it hit his kneecap, causing him to fall onto one knee. Just then, a stone fell from the sky and struck his head. He yelped in pain and leaned onto one arm.
Dot wound up for the knockout blow, a shot to the chest that would knock him over. She swung her arm as hard as she could and released the stone. It sailed at him through the air, and then veered right, just missing his shoulder. She gasped out of surprise, and then fled into the trees before Vern could get a lock on her.
“Thanks,” Will said, trying to get up. “But I can barely walk.”
“Well you better do something,” Vern said as he ran by.
***
Kurt quietly crept among the trees, trying to stay low and out of sight. There were only a few of his classmates he felt comfortable approaching one on one, so he bided his time until he saw an opening. Peeking through a fern, he saw Sophie kneeling down to tie her shoe. As long as he approached her from behind, he would have no problem eliminating her.
He prepared to run at her, but with his first step he heard a rustling to his left. Aoi burst from behind a tree, and Kurt changed course and began to sprint away.
“Ha ha, sucker,” Sophie said as Kurt ran by her. He sprinted as fast as he could with Aoi on his tail. “Get tired, get tired,” he kept saying to her. He hurdled over roots and weaved in between trees, hoping to lose her and buy himself more time. She gained on him though, rapidly pumping her legs against the ground.
Hearing some noise in the distance, he swerved to meet it, thinking that anything could happen if other people were involved. They came upon Dennis and Andrew, who circled each other in the hopes of wrestling their other opponent to the ground. Kurt cut right through them, with Aoi just behind. Without slowing her pace, Aoi lowered her shoulder and plowed right into Andrew, sending him flying. He smacked into the ground with a thud, beating his fist against the ground.
Kurt, flying at full pace, looked over his shoulder to check his lead. He didn’t see her, but he felt her when she jumped onto his back. Her weight knocked him forward, and she reached under his arms to pull them back. He fell forward, sliding onto the ground with his face against the dirt.
“Thanks for the ride,” she said, climbing off of him.
Sophie sidled away from the clearing and hid behind a few trees while she waited for Aoi to return. Peeking around the side, she looked to see if anyone would follow Kurt into her trap. The sound of twigs snapping under foot came from across the clearing, and then she heard ferns swaying just behind her.
“Ok, so same thing? I think I hear someone coming,” she said to Aoi.
“You’re right about that,” a deep, burly voice said.
Petrified, Sophie turned to see Dennis right behind her. His massive body shut out the forest. He snatched her up in an instant, putting one arm around her waist and the other over her mouth.
“Shhh. Just relax. It’s almost over,” he whispered, slowly lowering her down to the ground.
“Sorry, Soph. That’s the end for you,” he said after he set her down. She looked at him angrily, getting up to return to the start. She walked out into the clearing, and Rowland jumped out to meet her. He started to come at her, but she snapped at him.
“I’m already out,” she said, gesturing behind the trees with her eyes. Rowland nodded silently and turned his sights to the cluster of trees. He swept around to the opposite side and got in close, ready to surprise his foe and use overwhelming force. Sensing someone nearby, Rowland clutched his shield in front of him and jumped out with a loud yell.
His yell went weak when Dennis stood up, ready to face him. He hammered his fists against the shield and knocked Rowland back into the clearing. Rowland steadied himself and pushed hard from behind his shield into Dennis’s next blow. The two clashed again and again, but Dennis’s greater size and weight gave him the advantage. He forced Rowland back against a tree, searching for a way around the shield to send him to the ground.
***
Creeping through the woods, Mira saw Dennis’s thrashing assault. She caught eyes with Rowland. Beads of sweat rolled down around his flushed cheeks. She tensed up, weighing the risk of entering the clearing and getting involved with the deal she had made to help Rowland.
Swallowing hard, she ran into the clearing. While Dennis banged away on the shield Rowland clung helplessly to, Mira snuck up behind him and lowered herself sideways on her hands and knees. Setting the remote controls down, she reached her left arm out to a bare spot on his leg. A tiny blue bolt of electricity shot between them.
“Ouch!” Dennis yelped. He looked back behind him, and in that instant Rowland surged forward. He pushed Dennis back, knocking him against Mira’s side, and causing him to fall on his back. Mira quickly got to her feet and started to run off. She turned back to look at Rowland.
“Even,” she said, and he nodded back. They both disappeared into the forest, heading in separate directions. Mira hustled around the trees and through the leaves, catching a bug in her hand. She stopped cold and began to turn back when a voice startled her.
“I’m surprised you made it this far. At least you can say you weren’t last this time,” Vern said, stepping around from behind a tree in front of her. Mira kept strolling toward him.
“But now it’s all over. I knew I’d find you if I just waited long enough.”
“Well you waited too long, because I’m already out,” she snapped back. Vern cleared his throat and wiped his nose.
“Of course you are. We both knew those showy speeches and clever facts would never get you to the end. It was never a question,” he said, sticking his nose up at her.
“I guess the only question left is if you make it to the end,” she said, sticking her finger out and zapping him in the chest as she walked by. “It might help if you have a fly swatter.”
She held out the dead fly to him, strolling into the brush while Vern listened for buzzing. Careful not to arouse his suspicion, Mira tiptoed away and then broke into a full run. She wiped her brow out of relief. Vern swatted with his hands at a fly in front of him. He ran away at full speed as the buzzing swarm moved toward him.
***
Jeremy swept into the area with his army of flying beasts. Unable to get them to quiet down, everyone was able to steer clear of him. Still, he took comfort in knowing that sooner or later they would have to come to him. He moved close to a tree and let the circling hordes seal him off from the outside.
He picked at the bark on the tree and waited, watching the shifting wall around him spin by. Humming along with the buzzing, he leaned against the tree and began to relax a little. The flies spun round and round to the same tune, and he tried to see if they went faster or slower along with the sound, but it was impossible to tell.
A smile came to his face, and that smile grew as the wall of fl
ies thinned and parted. Jeremy saw a beautiful face through it, and his eyes glossed over because of it. Blonde curls that hung down around her ears became visible, making his heart ache. The flies dispersed completely, but Jeremy didn’t move or change his dazed expression. He just kept his eyes on Roselyn’s lips and the simple melody that his ears guzzled.
“I love you,” he said.
“I know,” she replied. “If you want me to love you back, there’s just one thing you need to do. Lie down on the ground.”
Jeremy nodded his head. His heart felt so full that it pulled him down to the earth. Never taking his eyes off of her, he sank down and sprawled out onto his back, but Roselyn had already started to walk away. She paused briefly when Jeremy let out a painful scream, but she didn’t wait long.
***
Elsewhere, Vern made it to a clearing surrounded by a ring of young trees. He kept his eyes peeled on one in particular, waiting to see thin strands of black hair peeking out of one side. Aoi leapt from one tree to another, and Vern tried to suck her in so he could drop her on her stomach. He extended his hand, but she was too fast. She rotated from one to the next, and Vern and the tree would momentarily pull toward each other, a sudden jerk as if in a dance.
He listened to her angry taunts and heavy breathing. She shouted at him as she skipped back and forth, looking for an opening.
“Can’t catch me! You’re going to eat dirt!”
He tried to ignore her, but the irritation swelled up inside of him.
“Just come out into the open already! We know how this is going to end, Aoi, the same way it has since we were little.”
His words infuriated her. Holding the tree, she looked at him with the kind of mindless, throbbing wrath that can only be found in nightmares.
“You can’t take this from me!” she wailed at the top of her lungs as the tree gave way and she pushed it over. Vern saw the leaves and branches topple over and grow large above him. He took a few startled steps back and then jumped to the side. It crashed to the ground, just missing him.
Running for the trees on the other side, Vern saw Will in the distance. He still hobbled as he made it to the edge of the clearing.
“We can take her out together!” he shouted at Vern.
“Ok,” Vern said, but he didn’t stop running. He cruised right past Will and into the woods. Will’s heart skipped a beat and he turned his head back to see Aoi swooping around the fallen tree. It all came down to this, sink or swim. He took a deep breath and spouted his wind against his attacker.
Aoi’s hair waved in all directions. She closed her eyes and leaned into the massive gust of air. Her progress slowed and she took tiny steps that dug into the ground. Her clothing rippled, and for a moment she stopped moving completely. But she ducked down and inched closer through the hurricane-force wind. Will’s face grew red as he blew with all of the air in his lungs. Suddenly, he stopped.
Aoi fell onto her hands a few feet away, and Will leapt at her. She regained her bearings quickly and gripped him by the waist. Snatching his sides in her arms, she tossed him up and behind her. He smacked into the ground, sighed with disgust, and then got up to return to Corey.
***
Rowland snuck through the forest with stealth and style. He had a good idea that only a handful remained, and so he had to be extra careful to maintain an advantage. Passing underneath tree branches with flowers and new leaves, the sun trickled down on him. His shield reflected some of the sunlight, and Vern saw the unusual light flitting around the trees. Soon he knew where it came from, and he started sneaking closer.
Staying low to the ground, Rowland felt a sudden tug on his shield. It wanted to drift away, and he flexed his arm to keep hold of it. Though he didn’t need to look to know the reason why, he did.
“Come on, Vern, do you really want to lose me this early? I could help you.”
“We’re almost at the end…for you at least.”
The shield dragged Rowland closer to Vern, but he wasn’t about to go down without a fight. He let go of the shield and ran behind it as it flew. Vern let it drop to the ground, readying himself to lock arms with Rowland, who was too close to pull in. Rowland grabbed hold of his hand and swung him around off of his feet. He let go, expecting to see Vern fall flat on the ground, but he instead used his gravitational force on a tree, which drew him in and gave him time to steady himself.
Vern landed on his feet and turned back to Rowland, now a good distance away. Rowland went for his shield, but Vern caught him first. Rowland lost touch with the ground, and he fell through the air toward Vern. A second later, when Rowland was upside down, Vern dropped him, but he held himself up by his hands, his feet straight up in the air. Vern dove forward to tackle him, grabbing his midsection and knocking him flat on the ground.
“You’re on your own now,” Rowland said, getting up.
Vern nodded, and he knew there could be no more running. The time for waiting had ended and the time to stand up and prove himself had begun. She heard shouting somewhere far off to the right, and this time he ran right for them
***.
Far to the left, Mira watched as the battle between Vern and Rowland unfolded. Concealed within a hanging branch, she peeked through the leaves and saw Vern drill his shoulder into Rowland’s stomach. The impact made her flinch. She tried to do a quick count of who was left on her fingers, but she couldn’t know exactly. There seemed to be so few, and yet she was somehow among them.
She came out from her hiding place to follow in Vern’s direction, but her ears caught something faint behind her. When she couldn’t hear it anymore, she turned around to see where it came from.
Slowly but surely, Roselyn became visible as she wound around the thick tree trunks. Her lips mouthed a beautiful song and the rest of her moved with a calm, relaxed air. Mira stood still, and Roselyn walked directly in front of her. They stood face to face and looked into each other’s eyes. A mesmerizing, enchanting sound emanated from her lungs.
“Aren’t you tired, Mira? Wouldn’t it be so nice to fall asleep right here on the ground?”
Mira watched her lips move, but she couldn’t hear anything. She responded by brushing her hair back over her ear, revealing an earplug that sat snuggly inside. The only surprise Roselyn displayed was a few rapid blinks, and then she understood completely. She nodded her head resolutely.
“You’ve been our leader all along,” she said.
Mira didn’t know what she would do next, if she would have to chase her, but Roselyn took a step back and settled herself down with her back to the ground. Mira took out her earplugs and put them back in her pocket. She wanted to say something to Roselyn, to apologize. She waited a moment for the right words to come, but she saw something in the forest and knew the opportunity had passed.
The smallest movement, maybe even just the swaying of a branch, startled her thoroughly. Without waiting another second, Mira took off running in a diagonal direction. While pumping the remote controls in her hands, she pressed one of the buttons. A second later, she heard rustling brush off to her right and saw Aoi running to intercept.
Cruising through the forest as fast as her legs could carry her, Mira begged and pleaded in her mind for a chance to make it. Chasing behind, Aoi seemed to cut through the forest like a knife. She reeled in her prey steadily.
They swept down a small hill. Mira turned to the left. They sprinted so fast that she couldn’t hear and could barely see. But Aoi still managed to gain on her. Mira knew looking back would only slow her down, so she kept her eyes forward, though she could feel Aoi closing in.
Aoi, moving closer with every step, prepared to make the catch. She reached out her hand for Mira, ready to pull her down in one move. She stared at her fingers as they inched nearer, her legs spinning underneath her. She stretched her arm out to grip her shoulder, and a blue bolt zapped her finger, shocking her into breaking her stride.
“Oww!” Aoi said.
“Actually, it’s pronounc
ed “Mira!” she laughed, pulling away.
Aoi growled and rushed to catch up, but Mira could already see her destination. They sprinted onward toward a clearing. Aoi pulled closer to Mira again, determined to let nothing stop her from taking her down.
They approached the clearing, and Mira could see what she was running for. She spun around a tree and then passed over her trip wire. A moment later, Aoi’s foot landed squarely on it, snapping it. Mira ran into the clearing, her heart pounding. Arms outstretched, she dove forward. The magnets on the feet she held connected with those on her hawk’s legs, pulling her up into the air.
Aoi jumped but Mira’s dangling legs were just out of reach. This spectacular escape angered her, but she quickly found another way. She sprinted to the edge of the clearing and hopped up into the branches of a tall pine tree. Despite the prickly bark and the sap, she raced up the tree to catch up with Mira, who did not ascend with great speed.
High above the ground, Aoi could see Mira through the branches. She followed a thick, sturdy looking one out from the trunk. Holding onto another branch for support, she saw Mira and her mechanical contraption out in front of her. She could safely grab hold of her feet and pull her down without coming close to the spinning blades. Mira looked over her shoulder to see Aoi on the ledge. The terror that rushed into her eyes made Aoi smile.
Aoi leapt from the branch, sailed through the air, and caught hold of Mira’s foot. The bird continued to rise, however, and the pair soon became visible to the masses assembled on the lawn. A roar of gasps and chatter rumbled through the crowd.
Aoi hung on just below with the ground far below them, forcing Mira to kick at her free rider, trying to knock her off.
“Let go of my shoe!”
“You’re coming down with me!”
Mira kicked at the hands around her ankle with the toe of her other shoe. Her fingers wouldn’t budge. She tried to lift Aoi up with the leg she held and began kicking at her arms. She swung back and forth as Aoi desperately tried to hold on. Mira stomped on the top of her head, and soon her hands came loose. She slipped down until she lost touch with the tip of her shoe. Gravity pulled her back down, while she spiraled and spun.