by Dayton Grey
Right turn. Hard left. Small jump. Then right again.
Geon’s entire body was tensed up so hard that he could feel himself on the verge of cramping. Still, he pushed harder and harder.
Left turn. Left again. Crouch down. Jump up.
He had no idea if his team even had a chance, and could see that Juke was nearly half a lap ahead of him. He continued to push as hard as he could, wanting to put forward his best performance.
Right turn. Quick left. Quick right. Small jump!
He was approaching the last turn in the race and could see out of the corner of his eye that Juke was about to cross the line.
“Sabien, it’s Geon. Do we have a chance?”
Geon took the last hard turn just as Juke crossed the finish line and the stands were filled with cries of grief with a few cheers mixed in.
“SABIEN! DO WE HAVE A CHANCE?”
Geon hurtled down the track on the final straight of the lap, gaining speed with each second. He felt his heartbeat slowing as he focused on the large ramp ahead.
“SABIEN ARE YOU THERE? DO WE HAVE A CHANCE?” Geon yelled into his microphone.
“Geon, I’m here. I was just calculating. Geon, I’m sorry. We’ve already lost. There’s nothing you can do to change it. I’m sorry. We’re just too far behind.”
Geon’s heart sank and his stomach turned.
I can’t believe it. I keep trying and trying, and still can’t seem to win this battle.
For a brief moment, as he approached the final jump, he felt himself giving up, but something strange happened. Images and memories began popping into his head, rapidly forming in front of his eyes as if they were really there. He saw his parents and Allea, he saw Mama V staring down at him with a smile the day he awoke from his coma, he saw Sabien and Kumuki, and everything that he had experienced in the last few weeks, from Enkia to Firewater. He felt Vaya’s hand in his own. He saw the creatures at Jungle Wars, the faces of the Dissenters, and the faces of the CARE members. He saw himself on his jetboard, flying off the same final jump, falling down into the deep dark water. Suddenly, the race didn’t matter anymore.
We’ve lost. But there’s still something to be accomplished. Face your fears, Geon. Face your fears.
Geon crouched down and clenched his body for the final jump. Give it everything you have, Geon. EVERYTHING!
He hit the ramp with a jarring impact and went sliding up it at a frantic pace. Still crouched, he tightened his body, and as the front of his board left the last edge of the ramp, he thrust his body into the air, leading with his head and spinning and flipping with ferocious velocity. He could feel the wind stinging his face as the world around him spun around him in a hazy sphere. He could hear the roar of the crowd go silent, as gasps of horror and panic filled the dead air.
Believe, Geon. Believe in yourself.
The spinning slowed and he felt his body right itself and the board regain its position under him. The smooth silky water connected with him with a soft splash. As he hit the water, he thrust himself forward again, keeping his board upright and crossing the line in a fury of cheers. Not knowing exactly what he had done, he stood smiling in the water as the other riders and even students from the stands jumped into the water and surrounded him, grabbing him and back-fiving him.
I did it, Geon thought. I overcame my fears and I did it!
Sabien came splashing over to him and embraced him and yelled, “Do you know you just pulled off a perfect flip-twist!? Do you realize that, G? You were incredible!”
Geon smiled, overcome with giddiness. “But we lost, Sabe. We lost!”
“Look around you, G,” Sabien said with a smile. “No one cares. You just put on a performance that no one will ever forget. I can’t believe you tried it again after what happened before!”
Geon looked around and saw that Sabien was right. Everyone was celebrating his victory as if it were their own. Geon realized that this was about more than just him overcoming his fears.
This is the power of inspiration. One person… one act… can give so much life, spirit, and hope to others. It was all worth it.
Chapter 17
The sound of Sabien’s voice boomed from the main room as Geon walked in for breakfast.
“STANDING FIVE-FEET-FIVE INCHES TALL… WEIGHING ONE HUNDRED AND TWENTY-FIVE POUNDS… HE FLIPS! HE TWISTS! IT’S GEON SHAY!”
“Yeaaaaaaaahhhhhhh!” Kumuki yelled as Mama V clapped enthusiastically.
“You guys,” Geon said bashfully. “Thanks but—”
“STANDING FIVE-FEET-THREE INCHES TALL…WEIGHING AN UNIDENTIFIED AMOUNT…SHE’S CLEVER! SHE INVENTS THINGS! SHE USES REALLY LONG WORDS THAT NO ONE UNDERSTANDS! SHE TAKES HOME HONORABLE MENTIONS AT TECHSCI CONCOURS EVENTS AND LOOKS GOOD DOING IT! IT’S ALLEA SHAY!”
“YEAAAAAAHHHHHHHH,” Kumuki loudly clapped his hands together as hard as he could as Allea walked into the room, looking shocked and shy. Geon and Mama V joined in, clapping and cheering.
“Thanks, guys,” she said quietly, pushing her hair out of her eyes. “That’s sweet. I still don’t understand what went wrong yesterday, though. I mean Shiv’s device was good, but even Maganto’s was better than his. Maybe they didn’t get what I was trying to do.”
“Doubtful,” Sabien mumbled, watching Kumuki test out the flavor-maker device that Stii had lent him.
“I don’t know which flavor I’m in the mood for!”
“CARE may be immoral and merciless, but they certainly aren’t ignorant,” Sabien said. “They knew exactly what they were doing. You deserved that trophy over Shiv, but they didn’t choose you for a specific reason. Same reason they didn’t choose Mag.”
Geon nodded in agreement and quietly added, “Don’t beat yourself up, Ally. What you made was incredible. As for Shiv, well, the only good thing about his device is that it did help us out, getting to you-know-where…”
“VAT’S DAT, BABY BOY? VAT YOU CHILDREN TALKING ABOUT? SPEAK UP! YOU KNOW MAMA V HEARING NOT SO GOOD ANYMORE!”
“Yes,” Sabien added with a smirk. “Speak up… baby boy!”
Geon’s face became flushed as Kumuki and Allea giggled together.
“Baby boy needs his diaper changed!”
Everyone laughed at Kumuki’s comment and eventually, Geon joined in the laughter with them. They finished up their breakfast and hugged Mama V on the way out.
After walking for some time toward the Glidewing station, Allea received a message on her LifeCuff and abruptly stopped, her demeanor suddenly becoming serious.
“Guys! It’s Aurora!”
“Oooohhhh!”
“What’d she say?”
“Here, look,” she replied, displaying the message in front of them.
“Oh my God,” Geon exclaimed, thinking about the ramifications of what she had just told them. “It really exists.”
“Where is it?” Kumuki screeched, looking up into the sky.
“This is amazing,” Allea added. “Can you believe it? All this time, no one knew. It was here, above us… the whole time.”
“I still don’t see it!”
“Not no one,” Sabien said, addressing Allea’s comments. “They knew. CARE knew. They know everything! WE DON’T KNOW ANYTHING!”
Kumuki looked frightened, stepping backward, as Sabien began working himself into a frenzy.
“Sabe, take it easy,” Geon said. “We need to have level heads here. You saw the message. We have to make a decision quickly if this is what we want to do. Otherwise she’ll be caught and then we won’t even have the option of going.”
Everyone stood quietly for a moment, thinking about the choice they had. For Geon, it was clear, but he needed to know if everyone was still with him.
“G, you know that I’m with you on this a hundred percent,” Sabien said with a back-five, regaining some of his composure.
“As am I,” Allea added.
They looked at Kumuki who stood staring back at them.
“Kuki? What do you say,” Sabien
asked.
“We have to do it, right?”
“We have to do it!” Geon said.
The ground below them shook furiously and low rumbling sound was heard. Instantly, the sound of a horn on their LifeCuffs interrupted them. Geon looked down in fear, recognizing the sound from the day they were nearly caught by the flash flood.
“What was dat?” Kumuki screamed.
“Oh my God,” Allea said, pulling up the alert information. “It was a quake. There’s a tsunami warning. It’s going to be a flash flood. We need to get back home to Mama V, NOW! RUN!”
Run, Geon. Run.
Without a moment of hesitation, Geon turned toward their home and pushed off the ground, running at full speed within seconds.
I have to get to Mama V. Run, Geon. FASTER!
He focused on each step, one in front of the other, dodging debris and rubble along the way with deft turns and graceful jumps. Sabien was only steps behind him, and he could hear Kumuki and Allea’s footsteps behind them as well.
“GUYS!” Allea yelled out to them. “When you get there, make sure Mama V is safe!”
I have to help her. I have to make sure she’s safe.
They ran furiously as Geon kept his eyes on the path ahead of him, carefully dodging and planning each step. He could see the ORBs in his peripheral vision, all of them changed from slow blinking yellow to rapidly blinking red. The few people who were out in this zone were all running for cover and the sound of someone screaming and a child crying could be heard in the distance. The sky was dark, overcast, and grey, and the air was cold and misty. The ground beneath them rumbled again.
“Aftershocks!” Sabien yelled. “Keep going!”
As they ran, Geon had a feeling it would be close. He could now see the home in front of them, but no sign of Mama V.
She must have felt the quake. But then again, when she sleeps, she doesn’t seem to hear a thing.
The deep sound of roaring water grew louder.
It’s coming.
Geon flashbacked to the feeling he had when they ran from the flash flood just weeks ago. That feeling of an imposing doom, larger and stronger than the mind could comprehend, closing in on him with immeasurable speeds, sent shivers through his body.
Separate the fear from your mind. Remember Sabien’s advice. Don’t look back. Run. Just run.
Step after step, he came closer and closer to home. He could hear the sounds of the water rushing through the city streets behind them.
“Sabe! Make sure they’re okay!”
“I got it, G! Keep going!” Sabien yelled, glancing back at Kumuki and Allea.
The water was getting closer and closer. Geon could feel it now, only seconds behind them, and it sounded louder and more ferocious than anything he had heard before, including the last flood. He took his last few steps toward the structure and leaped up the front stairs in one bound. The side of his body slammed into the door as it slid open and he yelled out before he had even stepped foot in the space.
“MAMA V! MAMA V! WHERE ARE YOU! ARE YOU OKAY? IT’S A TSUNAMI!”
Geon crashed around the inside of the home, making his way through the main room and down the hall to Mama V’s room, where he found her sitting next to her REMpod.
“GEON, BABY! ARE YOU OKAY? I felt the ground shake and so I sit down here and vait. Where are the others?”
“MAMA V, WE DON’T HAVE TIME! COME OUT TO THE MAIN ROOM! THEY’RE RIGHT OUTSIDE! THE WATER’S GOING TO HIT US!”
He grabbed Mama V’s broad body and heaved her up off the ground with all his might, pulling her quickly out of the room. Just then, Allea and Kumuki flew through the door and helped to grab Mama V and move her to the sitting area.
“G, GET OUTSIDE!” Allea yelled. The flood is a big one and we need to initiate emergency protocol! Help Sabien release the flood-cables!”
Oh my God. This is worse than I thought.
Geon rushed outside, swinging from the doorway and skipping the steps altogether.
“Sabe, where are you?!”
“Under here G! QUICK!”
Geon ducked his head and rushed under the structure, where he saw Sabien struggling to turn a handle sticking out from one of the foundation posts of the home.
“HELP, QUICK! WE NEED TO TURN ALL SIX OF THESE!”
As Geon grabbed the handle, he looked out from under the home and saw the wall of dark water hurtling toward them. Layers upon layers of water rose and fell and were gaining speed with each crash. Geon was so terrified he realized he wasn’t even breathing. He grabbed the handle and wrenched it with all his might, turning it upright with a loud snapping noise.
“QUICK! NEXT ONE!”
They quickly grabbed each handle one after another, turning it and releasing the posts. As they got to the last one, Geon knew it was only a matter of seconds before the water hit them. He pulled with all his might, snapping the handle into place, then grabbed Sabien and bolted for the door.
“INSIDE, NOW!”
As they flung themselves up the stairs, the first part of the wave hit them in the legs. Geon didn’t look back, but he could see the shadow of the menacing wave below his feet, looming high over them like some monstrous beast.
This could be it. This could be where it all ends.
They threw themselves into the house and onto the floor as the door slid behind them, scrambling to get up and get to Mama V. Kumuki and Allea were already huddled around her, both of them with their arms criss-crossed over her body. Geon and Sabien slid next to them and looked at each other, seeing the fear in everyone’s eyes. No one said a word for a moment, knowing the impact was coming. Geon took a deep breath, holding Allea with one arm and Sabien with his other. He squeezed tightly. They had formed an interlocking group, each of them connected to two others.
Mama V bowed her head and quietly whispered, “Give us courage. Give us strength. Be merciful,” over and over again.
There was a moment of silence just before the wave hit. The entire world around them went dead, the only sound, their deep breaths. Geon looked up, and though he could only see the ceiling, he knew the wave was above them. He felt like screaming, crying, anything, to try and express the outpour of fear and urgency leaving his body, but nothing came out. He was frozen with terror. He squeezed tightly once more just as the wave came down on them.
The sound of the wave hitting the structure was like an explosion. It was so loud that it deafened and disoriented Geon. The entire home was violently shaken and knocked completely off its base, turning nearly onto one of its sides as the foundation posts crumbled below them and crashed into the ground. The five of them were thrown into the wall, each of them losing their grips on one another. Plates and other items were flung in every direction, crashing in the floors and walls. The home was thrust into the other direction now and they were all forcibly thrown into the kitchen area. Geon watched as each of them slid across the floor, and he clenched his teeth and held his arms and legs out, trying to protect his head from hitting anything.
The house crashed again in the other direction, and again and again and again. Every part of Geon’s body, from his legs to his back to his arms to his head, was slammed against the hard surfaces in the house. Each collision sent a wave of shooting pain through him. He could hear Allea and the others cry out in distress. Everyone tried to grab something and hold on as tightly as they could. Each time a wave hit the structure, Geon clenched his entire body, half-expecting the force of the water to tear through the middle of the home, shredding it apart and sending them all into the flood.
Geon could feel the water rise below them, lifting the prefab completely off the hard ground. They floated higher and higher, and when the cables finally reached their limit, a jarring shock shook them as the structure was jerked to a stop. The entire home bobbed around nauseatingly, as if it were a boat in choppy waters. It rocked back and forth, sending them crashing around, but after a few minutes, slowed down to a steady lurching motion.
&nbs
p; Is it over? Are we safe? What happened? Allea? Mama V?
Geon struggled to find words, dizzy and nauseous from the motion. Every part of his body hurt and he could feel blood running down his arms and legs. The room was unrecognizable. It was dark, the lights were off, and the only light illuminating the space was through a set of small, thin frosted windows in the kitchen area. Geon could make out the shapes of the others around him, but couldn’t see who was who.
“Uggggghhhhhmnnnnnn,” Kumuki groaned from one of the corners.
“K-Kum-Kumuki,” Geon said. “Is that you? Ally? Where are you?”
He felt suddenly frantic and frightened, trying to regain himself, crawling toward the shapes of the others. He put his hand down on someone’s arm.
“G. It’s me. I’m… I’m okay.”
It was Sabien. He grabbed his arm and helped him up and onto his knees and they both sat and looked down, trying to figure out what happened.
“The others,” Geon mumbled. “Find them…”
Sabien crawled in one direction and Geon in another. Suddenly he heard the sound of Allea, moaning from the kitchen behind him.
“Ally! Are you okay?”
He crawled over to her and grabbed her body gently, propping her head up in his arms. He could see her face had some cuts and bruises and a flutter of fear shot through him.
“I’m okay, G. Mama V. Find Mama V.”
Just then Geon could hear Sabien and Kumuki talking in the corner. He sounded confused as well, but okay.
“Ohhhhhhhhhhhhh.”
The sound of Mama V was unmistakable. It was coming from the sitting area, but Geon couldn’t see her body.
“Sabe, help! It’s Mama V,” Geon cried out as he slid across the floor toward the sound.
Most of the debris from the room had collected in one corner of the room, and Mama V was buried under it. Geon and Sabien dug into the pile of junk and grabbed her large limbs, slowly pulling her out. Geon gasped at the sight of her, and even in the darkness could see there was blood on different parts of her body.
“MAMA V!” he yelled. “Are you okay? MAMA V!”