Zilferia
The First Challenge

I don’t get to sleep long. There’s a loud knock on the door a few hours before dawn and I hear Vlad shout, “Rise and shine! Make yourself some breakfast and then come down to the square. Be there in an hour and a half- no later!” He then walks away, chuckling to himself. I can tell he likes torturing us all. Rolling over in bed, I fall asleep again even though I know I really shouldn’t.

When I wake up again forty five minutes later, it’s to the smell of eggs, bacon, and blueberry muffins. My favorite breakfast growing up. My stomach growls at me, but before I go over to the kitchen, I get ready for the day. I change into my new black and purple outfit, and go to the bathroom to brush out my hair and re-braid it with a new elastic since the other one got… demolished.

Then I go down into the basement and replace Nathan dishing out scrambled eggs onto two plates. He looks up at me and smiles wearily. “Hey. I made us some breakfast. I figure we’ll need our strength for the First Challenge, right? Plus, who knows where we can replace food in there? So eat up, I made plenty.”

Feeling bad, I sit down across from him at the small round table. As we start to eat, I apologize for not waking up when I was supposed to and for making him prepare breakfast, but he interrupts me partway through.

“Stop. Don’t apologize. You don’t need to. I wanted to make breakfast for you, and I knew that you wouldn’t let me if you were awake. So it’s a good thing you slept a little longer. Besides, it’s better for one of us to be somewhat alert today, right? If we both woke up when Vlad came by, then we would both be as tired as I am. So don’t apologize, just shut up and eat.”

We laugh a little, but the nerves don’t let it last and cuts our laughter short. Soon we are just stuffing our faces with as much food as we can eat. We barely finish it all, but I sure do feel a lot better with some hot food in my stomach. Glancing at my watch, I see that we need to be down at the square soon. So we leave and start walking toward the square. We don’t see anyone else, but that’s alright. I really don’t feel like putting up with Jake’s flirting or any of the other contestants’ confidence. Wanting to fly again, I jump into the air and think myself forward, but for some reason I can no longer fly, so I fall back onto the ground, landing on my feet. Nathan looks at me, curious. I casually resume walking.

“I can’t fly anymore,” I casually announce. “And I don’t know why.”

“I think I do,” he responds. “Remember how we’re going through ‘Zilferian puberty?’ Well, that means that our bodies are just trying out the Gifts. So your body must have moved on to another Gift.” I nod, feeling stupid that I didn’t remember that. We continue to the square.

When we get there, I realize that something is wrong. Looking around, I don’t see anyone. I suddenly have a bad feeling. I’m just starting to tell Nathan that we should go back when I feel a sharp prick in my right arm and I am suddenly plunged into darkness.

When I come to, blinking my eyes open, the first thing I notice is the bright light. I quickly shut them again. Then I slowly open them and wait for them to adjust After that, I notice many things- so many at once that I am overwhelmed at first. We are in a forest. The purple light is a column that surrounds me and extends into the air. Nathan is right next to me, sitting up and looking around as well. We are on a raised circular platform about two feet from the ground. The sun is already out and over the mountains and it looks to be about 10 o’clock. The purple light is coming from little lights circling the platform, about two inches wide around us. We are alone.

That’s what I think at first, at least. There are noises coming from the woods surrounding us, indicating that there is life here. At first, that comforts me, but then I remember that nothing here is as it seems. Something that first appears to be harmless could be a savage killer- like the Sietta I ran into earlier. I jump up, instinctively getting into the defensive position that I was taught long ago. I slowly relax after realizing that none of the animals are near us.

“Do you think this is the First Challenge?” Nathan inquires. I’m about to respond when a voice comes booming out of the surrounding woods, seemingly out of nowhere and everywhere. I jump, again getting into a defensive position. The voice is familiar. I finally place it- the voice is Nehru’s. She’s apparently the announcer for our ‘Games.’

“Hello! Contestants! This is Nehru speaking! I know you may be a little confused and disoriented…”

“Yeah, maybe,” I growl sarcastically. Nathan laughs a little.

“…So I will let you know… you are in one of our largest arenas, competing in the First Challenge! You will be permitted to get off of your platform only once the gun goes off. After that, it’s basically a free-for-all- but killing other contestants is not allowed. I hope you each have at least one of your Gifts, or you will really have a fight on your hands! For the moment, just sit still and… ponder, plan, or just procrastinate!” With a giggle, Nehru’s voice disappears. Nathan and I just look at each other, eyebrows raised. I shrug, and we sit down again.

“We should spend this time coming up with a plan,” I suggest to Nathan.

He nods. “I think we should make our way toward the middle. They’re all about making everything fair, right? So the eggs should be the same distance away from everyone.”

“Um, yes that works great- in theory,” I reply. “The only problem with that is… where’s the middle?”

He looks thoughtful. “I know! How about once the gun goes off, one of us can climb a tree and look around for the other teams’ lights. Remember, Sierra and Ham are red. We can see if we can meet up and help each other.”

“Right,” I nod. I look around and notice something I overlooked before. There are two black and purple backpacks on a large, flat rock by our platform. Finally, the anxiously awaited and dreaded gun fires and Nathan and I sprint toward the backpacks, pulling them on without looking through them first. There’s probably just food in it anyway, I say to myself while racing toward a tall tree near me. Besides, a head start is probably the best thing for us right now. It is basically a race- just a challenge of who can survive as well…

I reach the top of my tree. Nathan is in one close by, but I’m higher up than he is. He yells up at me, asking what I can see. Scanning the treetops, I can’t see much. But on our right, barely within my sight, is a thin yellow strip erupting from the surrounding green. And on our left, exactly as far away, is a thin black strip. I tell this to Nathan. He sighs. Neither one is Ham and Sierra’s light. He then suggests that I use my dragon eyes to try and replace them. When I do and look straight ahead, I still have to zoom in with my eyes and I am finally able to see a protrusion of rock, and beyond that, a thin blood-red strip of light. Switching them back, I climb down the tree and replace Nathan there, waiting for my report. I tell him what I saw.

“What? They’re the furthest away?!” Nathan exclaims. We begin walking toward where I saw the rock, supposing that it must be the middle of this huge arena. Plus, the Zyloff lives on rocky outcroppings. “But that means we’re completely surrounded by enemies! And we don’t even know who the black or yellow team is! …Or do you remember?” he asks me hopefully.

“Nope, I don’t,” I answer. “But I think that yellow was being advised by Vlad.”

He groans. “Even better.”

As we walk, the only thing I can think of is that some teams are probably way ahead of us because they may have the Gift of speed, flying, or manipulating the weather so they can fly… wait a second… I have that Gift… or at least I did yesterday… Maybe I can get some wind to push us toward the rock so we can go faster…

“Hey, Nathan,” I say.

“What?”

“I just got an idea. I could manipulate the weather and carry us with some wind or something…” he nods thoughtfully.

“Well, it can’t hurt, right? Just… don’t accidentally strike us with lightning,” he laughs. I laugh too, then concentrate. I stop walking so as to better envision what I want to happen and will the weather to obey and make it happen. My first try isn’t so good. As soon as I will the wind to blow from behind us, it does, but so strong and sudden that it slams both of us into a tree, then stops.

“…Maybe I have to keep thinking about what I want to happen- and be more specific, I guess,” I gasp once I get my breath back. Still winded, Nathan just nods. We walk into a clearing and try again. This time I hold my thoughts and continue to concentrate. I will the wind to come a little slower than before and to push us up as well as forward. It works.

Soon we are in the open air and flying toward the rock. Our ride is a little sporadic as I want us to go faster and when I lose my concentration for a second. We fly for about an hour with the hot sun beating down on us and the rock doesn’t get much closer. I gently guide us down to a soft landing in a large clearing. My stomach is growling and I’m exhausted. Who knew concentrating so hard for so long was so draining? Or maybe that’s just how the Gifts work- they take a lot of energy. Either way, I need a break.

Nathan seems to hear the rumbling from my stomach. Telling me to rest, he guides me toward a shady tree while he goes and prepares lunch. I lay down on the soft green grass and feel a gentle breeze play with my loose bangs. I close my eyes and rest.

I don’t exactly sleep, but I do feel more rested when Nathan calls for me and I open my eyes. I just lay there for a moment longer and stare into the branches about me. I suddenly realize that I see a figure in the tree- a human-like shape. And it’s watching me. I don’t react, waiting to see what it will do first. The person looks at me a little longer, but flees once it hears Nathan walking over to me. It jumps to the next tree, barely rustling the leaves, and then the next and the next- and then it’s gone, not leaving the slightest trace of its presence.

Except for a feather that drifts down and lands next to me. Sitting up, I reach over and grab the feather. It’s beautiful. It looks blue at first, but when I move it and the light hits it, it shimmers and looks a little green as well. I quickly tuck it into my braid so I don’t lose it and so Nathan doesn’t ask about it. I don’t know why, I just don’t really want him to know about the person-like creature. After all, it didn’t seem to want Nathan to know it was there. But it left this feather on purpose. I can’t explain how I know this, but I do. It could have been just from the way it acted before it left. Either way, it’s easier not to tell Nathan about it.

We eat lunch silently. It’s a can of soup he warmed over a small fire, but it’s great and really helps restore my energy. Afterward, Nathan looks at me, pondering. I wonder what he’s thinking about. I don’t have to wonder for long.

“…I don’t think you should do that again,” he states calmly. When I start protesting, he stops me and continues. “Just look how drained you were after an hour- and we haven’t even gone as far as we would have hoped. I can’t let you do this without my help. So I will try different Gifts and see which one works and will get us there the fastest. And when I get tired, then you can take your turn. Then we’ll eat and restore our strength, and do it again. Me, you, eat.”

This makes sense to me, so I don’t argue. “Alright. We’ll take turns cooking, too.” Now he starts protesting. I stop him. “If you did all the cooking, it would make it so you do more work than me, and that’s not fair. And don’t say anything about me being a girl and not being able to do as much as you or something just as stupid. Just don’t even try. Don’t say anything about protecting me either. I could easily beat you in a fight, I’m stronger and faster than you are.” Shocked, he closes his mouth. Then he nods.

“Of… of course…” he stammers, thrown off track by my tirade. “I… wasn’t thinking any of that… I think of you as an equal.”

Now I’m surprised. “Oh. …Really?”

“Yes, really. I just like to cook, and would like to… I don’t know, treat you to something nice. My mom taught me to be a gentleman... although I don’t have much to work with out here so it wouldn’t be all that special anyway,” he explains. “…So I think I’ll try shape shifting first. I did pretty well at that with Vlad. In fact, he seemed pretty jealous…” he says, winking at me. I laugh.

Concentrating, his body shimmers and then he is a magnificent, white horse. His transformation was completely different from Vlad’s, that’s for sure. More quick and less gross. Nathan whinnies and shakes his head, sending his shimmering white mane rippling through the air. I gasp. He is the most beautiful horse I have ever seen, strong and majestic. I hear his voice in my head. “You’ll need to wear both backpacks- I, obviously, can no longer wear mine. Now hop on! Let’s go for a ride!”

I run over and grab his backpack, then jump straight onto his bare back. I’m used to riding horses without a saddle or reigns, so I’m comfortable with that, although it doesn’t really matter since I won’t need to guide Nathan. He’s not actually a dumb animal. He knows exactly where we’re going. So I just sit back and enjoy the ride, emptying my mind. It’s extremely peaceful, and after a while, I fall asleep.

And when I wake up, everything is different.

Opening my eyes, the first thing I notice is how dark and cold it is. The next is Nathan laying next to me, eyes closed and chest barely moving with each breath he takes. Crawling over to him, I replace that his face is caked with blood. Upon closer examination, I replace that it’s just a minor cut on his temple. Blood is leaking into his right eye. I lean forward, placing my ear on his chest. His heartbeat is normal, but his breath is coming out in rasps. I don’t know what to do.

Not only that, but I have no idea how we got here, where here is, or what on earth happened to Nathan while I was asleep. While searching through my backpack in the dark, I wonder how I didn’t wake up when any of this happened. I’m usually a pretty light sleeper. Then I realize that I have a headache- just like I did after I picked up the Sietta, but not nearly as severe.

Whatever happened, I must have been sedated somehow so I wouldn’t wake up… and then they attacked Nathan. …Whoever ‘they’ are.

Just then, I hear rustling in the distance and wild, rough laughter. There are lots of them, so I know it’s not any of the other contestants, but that doesn’t mean that they aren’t going to attack us. Swallowing my rising panic, I try desperately to rouse Nathan, but to no avail. He is deeply unconscious and completely oblivious to the world. And since he can’t escape, that means that I can’t either- and I can’t carry him very far.

But that doesn’t mean I can’t fight! The group gets closer. I hear one whisper loudly, “Hey, guys, shh….” I then hear sniffing, followed by the voice continuing with, “I smell someone… two humans… and one is hurt! I can smell the blood! We’re going to have a feast tonight!” He shouts, no longer trying to be quiet. This exclamation is followed by shouts of excitement, sounding strangely like wolves howling. “Of course, if there is a woman among them, then we will have to take them both to Wolf. But then we can eat!”

No! I think, finally replaceing something in my backpack that might help me. They… they’re… werewolves… real fear begins rising up in me and my hands are shaking so badly, I drop the thing I had just grabbed. Bending down, I scrabble around in the dirt until I grab it again, then stand back up, facing where the howls are coming from. No… not werewolves! Anything but them! Everything I know about werewolves rises in my mind. None of it is pretty or calming. I recall how they slowly torture their male victims and finally kill them and eat them. But what they do to the women is worse.

They usually make the girls watch the guy being tortured and eaten while being bound so she can’t help him. After that, they would all fight over the girl- sometimes to the death. The leader almost always wins. And that’s not a good thing for the girl. The leader is the nastiest and most vicious. He takes the girl and… well, uses her to do his work and lead others to them to kill or turn into werewolves themselves. If the girl fails to get at least one victim within a week, she will be eaten alive.

These are the things of my nightmares of late. And now my worst fears have come true. Finally paying attention to what’s in my hand, I inspect it as well as I can with my hands since I can barely see anything. It’s a small, cylindrical thing that fits nicely in my hand. Probing it with my fingers, I fumble across a button and I push it. A blade pops out, glowing a light blue. It lights up the surrounding forest about five yards in each direction. The blade is sharpened on both sides, like a sword, and is only about three feet long. I lightly touch one of the sides, drawing blood. It’s sharp as well as strong and sturdy. I grin, glad to have a way to defend myself against the approaching monsters.

If I’m going down, I’m bringing a few werewolves with me! And if I can kill enough… maybe they’ll leave, and Nathan and I will be safe!

The woods around me suddenly seem to erupt, spitting out more werewolves than I can count. We’re surrounded. Glaring, I slowly pace in a circle around Nathan, protecting him from the drooling beasts. Each one takes a turn trying to sneak past me, but they stop when I wound a good number of them. They stand and walk like men, but are mostly covered in hair, more like a wolf. None of them are wearing clothes- nothing but the fur hides their vulnerable bodies. They snarl angrily at me, displaying their fangs. I see that they have claws as well. Every single one is a male.

I stand there, fending them off for a while, but after an hour, I get too tired to continue and begin panting and shaking from exhaustion. My reflexes slowed by fatigue, I am too slow to intercept a werewolf that comes at me from the side. I turn but am too weak to raise my sword and am knocked to the ground with the beast on top of me. Struggling under the weight, the others begin attacking me while I’m preoccupied. My sword is knocked out of my hand. It spins away into the darkness, and I can no longer see anything.

As a result of this, a wolf gets through my defenses and nips the main artery in my arm. Blood squirts into the werewolves, but it doesn’t faze them. I manage to fend off the rest for a few more minutes, but I quickly lose too much blood and pass out, leaving my now limp body completely helpless to my foes.

When I come to, it’s still dark and I have a bandage wrapped around my left arm. When I try to move, I realize that I’m tied to a tree and the only thing I can move freely is my head. A few yards away, I can see my glowing mini-sword. Ha! Idiots! Now as soon as I get free, I will be able to kill them all… But as much as I wriggle, I can’t get loose from my bonds. In fact, they seem to get tighter. Growling in frustration, I suddenly hear someone- or something- laugh at me. It’s a rough werewolf’s voice. My heart jumps in fear as if trying to escape from my chest and run away.

“Ha ha! Yes, the lovely lady is awake now,” the voice growls. “Now we can have fun with the boy here!” I hear moaning and recognize it as Nathan’s. Suddenly a spark jumps to life and catches on a pile of wood and a bonfire erupts just a few yards in front of me. I can feel the heat washing over me, but the best part is the light. Now I can see. …Although that might not be a good thing.

Because of the light, I can now see the pack of werewolves around the fire, grinning wolfishly. Two of them are holding a now conscious Nathan between them. Standing next to them and looking at me is the biggest, toughest looking werewolf among them. I can only assume he’s the leader. He grins at me, excited. I almost throw up.

Looking around at his pack, the leader says, “Tonight, we feast! And we will have this woman to be with us. Our fortunes have turned for the better!” He pauses to let the happy howls of the pack die down. “So, since we are sportsman-like werewolves,” he chuckles, “we will let the boy choose his demise- to become one of us, or to die.”

Nathan finally catches my eye. His face is filled with even more terror than I myself feel. Swallowing, he says as loud as his rasping voice can choke out, “I would rather die than become so hideous and disgusting as you!” The leader laughs.

“Very well, then. Our pack is large enough as it is. Better for you to be food. But we will, of course, let you have a sporting chance before we feast.” The two werewolves drop Nathan and he falls to his knees in the dirt. Another one kicks my sword over to him. He looks at it, his eyes now finally gaining a spark of hope. “You will fight ten of my pack. If you can defeat them, you may leave. But you must fight them all at the same time- to the death.”

Nathan shakily rises to his feet, clutching the sword like his life depends on it. …Which it does. “…No. If I can fight twenty at the same time, then you will let both Crystal and I go.” The leader laughs. He figures it won’t matter- no one can take on twenty werewolves at one time. So, chuckling, he begins picking out the ones that will fight. As he does so, I catch the others calling him Wolf. So his name is Wolf… how fitting.

Once the twenty were picked- the best of the pack- the others back away and form a circle around them. Nathan wastes no time. Leaping forward, he cuts down eight with very precise and powerful swipes before the rest of them can react. But they then jump into action and attack him one at a time. I can see they are hoping to wear him out, and then they will attack at once. I shout this to Nathan, desperation clear in my voice. He doesn’t acknowledge me, although I’m pretty sure he heard me.

Suddenly, my view is blocked by a wall of fur-covered muscles. Craning back my neck, I see the leader of the werewolves, Wolf. He grins greedily at me, making me want to die rather than be here now. “No helping,” he growls at me. “Not that it will matter. Knowing our strategy is one thing, avoiding it is another. He will die, and you will be mine!” Laughing, he saunters away to a better spot to watch the fight.

There are only ten werewolves left, but I can see Nathan is about to drop. He’s lost a lot of blood. That’s when I notice that he’s backing away from them slowly, toward me. I swallow the fear rising in me and try just to trust him. I desperately hope he can win. While backing toward me, he stumbles and I scream as a werewolf leaps at him. Luckily, he kills it, but I can see that he’s exhausted. Then I look down and see a sword lying at my feet. What? How… oh. Nathan must have kicked it over to me while he was fighting… it must have been when he stumbled. But what does he expect me to be able to do? I’m tied up and I can’t get loose…

Nathan is now very close to me- bringing the ravenous werewolves with him. As I watch, Nathan suddenly spins on his heel and swings the sword. It severs the ropes around my arms, freeing them. He then continues to fight the werewolves. Wolf hasn’t noticed that anything happened yet. Leaning down, I scoop up the sword and slice through the ropes around my legs. I’m free! Jumping forward and using the element of surprise, I help Nathan kill the other nine. Swinging around, though, I unexpectedly come face-to-face with Wolf. Gasping, I back up a step and stand back to back with Nathan as the rest of the pack closes in on us, completely encircling us.

His voice calm and cool, Nathan says, “There. I killed them all. Now let us go, or we’ll be forced to kill the rest of you.”

Wolf growls angrily, taking a step toward us. I force myself not to move. “I don’t think so.” He smiles, a gruesome thing with yellow fangs. “You see, we never let our prisoners go, no matter what we tell them. Not to mention that you cheated. But we see that the girl is too much trouble, plus you alone will not be able to feed the rest of our pack tonight. So we will kill and eat you first, letting her watch, as we always do. But then we will eat her alive.”

I almost pass out from the overwhelming fear rising in me. I force it down and think. I wonder what Gifts may help me out here. I decide to try charming them- which, ironically enough, is easier than trying to charm Vlad.

Lowering my sword, I step forward and smile winningly, trying to be like Jake. Nathan notices. “What are you doing?” he whispers forcefully.

I ignore him. Batting my eyelashes, I whisper to Wolf charmingly, “Are you sure you want to eat me? Just think of what you would be doing. Don’t you want me to stay here, with you?” My soft, calming voice seems to cause Wolf to relax, the tension going out of his muscles. He grins like an idiot. One of the other werewolves steps up to him.

“Yeah, I want that girl! Let’s just eat the boy!” But this angers Wolf. He wants me for himself. The thought almost makes me throw up, but I hold it back. The jealous pack leader pounces on the other werewolf and cuts his throat with one swipe of his mighty claws.

Looking around at the rest of the pack, his claws and hand covered in blood, he growls, “Anyone else want her? She’s mine!” A huge fight then ensues and Nathan and I back away, trying to avoid attention. We grab our backpacks that the werewolves must have found, and begin running. We run for about a mile and a half until we feel we can stop. Once we stop panting, Nathan looks at me and starts laughing. I start to as well. I guess the sweet relief of not getting killed and eaten by those things has made us a little giddy.

“That was brilliant!” Nathan compliments me, sitting on a rock. I sit next to him, still laughing lightly. “I had no idea what you were doing at first, but holy cow it worked! You almost had me fighting for you! I didn’t even think of trying to use one of my Gifts- I was too panicked! I didn’t know you had the Charming Gift!”

“I don’t- well, it’s not my actual Gift,” I explain. “I just tried the first thing I thought of, and it worked! I almost threw up though, so I can’t believe they bought all that!” We laugh for a little longer, but the fear of the werewolves catching up to us is soon overpowering, so we start moving again. Both of us are too tired to try using a Gift, so we just walk until we collapse as the sun starts coming up.

I wake up around noon. Hungry, I decide to make some breakfast even though it’s past that time. Just as it’s finishing, Nathan wakes up. Seeing the food, he starts to protest and say that he should have made the food for me, but I stop him and he apologizes. We eat, and then continue to move toward the rock. We are quite a bit closer than when I fell asleep on Nathan’s back when he was a horse, plus we need to talk, so we walk for a while.

“What happened after I fell asleep yesterday?” I ask him. He grimaces.

“Well, about an hour or so later, as far as I could tell, there was suddenly this sweet smell carried on the wind. I didn’t think much of it at the time, but it made me drowsy. It affected you worse, though. You didn’t wake up, even after you fell off of my back onto a rock. Then I knew something was wrong. I tried getting you to wake up, to get on my back, anything. You didn’t respond and your breathing was shallow. I turned back into myself and tried to wake you up, but the only thing that happened is… your heart stopped.” He swallows, his voice cracking. “I… started it again, then looked around to try to replace someone to help me. All I found, though, was a rock flying at my head. I ducked under the first one, but another followed right behind it. Behind the flying rocks, I caught a glimpse of yellow, but that was all.”

I stare at him. He stops and looks at me. “What?” He asks, confused.

“It all makes sense now,” I murmur, continuing to walk. Nathan follows. “The yellow team- whoever they are- set us up. They knew the werewolves were nearby… they just made it so we couldn’t escape!” Anger fills my voice. “They tried to kill us!!” Nathan tries to calm me down, but I don’t cool down for another hour. It’s only then that I can finally get my thoughts together.

“Wait… the other teams! They could be almost to the Zyloff! We need to hurry!” And now it’s my turn to take us there. I decide to try and control the weather again since it worked last time. After warning Nathan, I do what I did before and tell the wind to pick us up and push us forward. Nothing happens.

Nathan looks at me. “I guess you’re done experimenting with that one. Here, I’ll do it.”

“No! I’ll just try something else.” Deciding on shape shifting, I try to think of the fastest traveling animal. Well, flying is faster than running… but what animal is large and powerful enough to carry Nathan too? The only thing that comes to mind is a dragon. I’ve only seen a picture of one, but I’m hoping it will be enough anyway. Concentrating, I feel my skin turning into scales and wings sprouting from my back. Next, a tail erupts from my tail bone, spikes grow from my spine, and claws from my fingers and toes. Next thing I know, I am a proud, powerful dragon.

I leap into the sky, reveling in the power of my new body… and getting lost to it. I only remember who I really am and what I’m supposed to be doing when I look down and spot Nathan, far below. I catch his words. “Crystal! Come back! You aren’t really a dragon- don’t lose yourself to it! We have to go!” It all comes back to me at once, and I am in complete control of myself. I suppress the draconic instincts and dive back to the clearing where I left him. I land next to him and crouch so he can climb on with the backpacks. I never realized how small people are compared to dragons, but from my point of view, Nathan is about the size of a one-year old.

He doesn’t seem to weigh much either. At least, I barely notice him on me with my new strength. Soaring through the air, we get rapidly closer to the jagged cliffs. It only takes about twenty minutes to fly there, although by walking it would have taken the rest of the day. I land about halfway up and turn back into myself since the dragon instincts were threatening to take back over. Looking around, I don’t see anyone.

However, when I switch my eyes into dragon eyes, I can vaguely see four teams gaining on us. Two are flying with their partner, like Nathan and I did. Another group is just a blur as they race towards us. I catch a glimpse of red between the trees as well. It’s Ham and Sierra. But one team is missing. I don’t stop to wonder what happened to them, concentrating on climbing after Nathan instead. When we get close to the top, I smell blood.

Finally climbing over the ridge at the top, my head is almost taken off by a gigantic tail flying by. Nathan is already flat against the rock, so he avoided it as well. My eyes follow the tail up the feathery body. Before I can stop myself, my eyes lock onto the Zyloff’s. I’m instantly paralyzed and I can barely even think. I vaguely remember Thaddeus saying to me, “When it’s full grown, it can paralyze and even kill you with a mere glance, and can also easily kill you with a single bite.

I wonder if I’m dying… I can barely finish the thought. I suddenly feel myself starting to… float out of my body. I still can’t move. I cast out with my thoughts, groping to replace something to hang onto. I latch myself onto the mind of the Zyloff, of all things. I then replace myself not in my own body, but in the Zyloff’s. I fight it, but it’s like being pulled into a whirlpool. I can’t resist it.

I realize then that I can control the Zyloff’s body- my will is stronger than its is. Looking down through its eyes, I see myself, slumped and lifeless on the rock. Nathan is kneeling next to me, shouting. I can’t hear his words through the Zyloff’s ears- they’re too weak, but it’s clear he’s devastated. While I’m distracted, the Zyloff takes back over itself and turns and attacks a person dressed in blue. I recognize Roxane Hernandez, the goth girl who is the partner of Lloyd Jewkes. The Zyloff bites her, one of its huge fangs piercing her right through her stomach. She doubles over, blood flowing over her hands. Horrified, I’m powerless to do anything. Luckily, an outraged Lloyd does do something. Rushing forward, he stabs the mother Zyloff right in the heart as it’s still bent over the dying Roxane.

I gasp, and replace myself back in my own body. I look up and see Nathan leaning over me, tears in his eyes. His look of utter loss is replaced with wonder and joy as he sees that I’m alive.

“How…” he stammers, confused. I sit up, wobbling and almost fall of the edge of the cliff. Luckily, Nathan catches me in time. He gently pulls me away from the edge. The dying screams of the Zyloff screech in my ears, immediately giving me a headache.

Looking back up at Nathan, I see the question and disbelief in his eyes and simply say, “I’ll tell you later.” Looking even more confused, he nods, accepting this.

We both look up as Lloyd shouts, “Hey! Look out!” and see a great wall of feathers bearing down on us. Nathan shoves me out of the way, but isn’t quite quick enough to escape the body of the Zyloff.

“Nathan!” I scream, lurching forward. Because of my weakened body, I fall, but I pick myself back up and keep moving regardless. It’s slow going, so Lloyd gets there first. He glances at the body, then looks at me and shakes his head, implying that Nathan’s dead.

“No… NO!!!” I shout, unable to believe it. Finally reaching the great feathery serpent, I crawl over its wings to the other side. I replace Nathan’s limp hand sticking out from under the body. “No…” I whisper, feeling as though my whole world just ended. I begin weakly trying to pry the beast off of him, but it barely budges. I look to Lloyd for aid.

He seems to see my pain and decides to help, though it’s obvious he thinks it’s futile. He transforms into a huge rhinoceros and strains against the gigantic body. He is finally able to push it off the cliff. I reach forward and, with trembling hands, I grasp one of Nathan’s hands in mine. It’s already beginning to get cold and stiff.

“No… Nathan…” I am then lost for words. My mind shuts down, and all I can do is look at his face and cry. My eyes turn into dragon eyes, as they sometimes do when I lose control of my emotions. My tears splash on his face. I close my eyes and change them back to my normal ones. I just can’t do it. He’s… dead.

But then I hear a rasping voice say my name. Opening my eyes, I fix them on Nathan’s face. His eyes flicker open and his hand grows warm and soft again. I watch, amazed, as he groans my name again. He then sees me and smiles painfully. I smile back, tears still in my eyes. I hear a disbelieving gasp behind me. “No… that’s not possible,” Lloyd stammers. He comes up and kneels beside me. I don’t even turn my head, soaking in Nathan’s face- his alive, smiling face- instead. “He… he was dead…”

“Really?” Nathan rasps. “Well then it’s good to be back. …Roxane?” He asks.

Looking at Lloyd, I see pain clearly in his eyes. “She’s… gone. For good.” His voice breaks and he looks away, hiding tears. It seems the two had grown fond of each other after all. I help Nathan to sit up. He looks at me.

“Now I know how you feel, coming back to life. It really takes it out of you, doesn’t it?” I nod, laughing a little. He laughs too.

Something large, round, and white is then placed in front of me. Looking up, I see Lloyd. His smile is more like a grimace. “Let’s finish this thing before the other teams come. I hate it here. We got what we came for- let’s go. …I’ll help you two get down and away from the other contestants, seeing as you were both dead. But beyond that, I have to help myself.”

“I understand,” I say to him gratefully. “Thank you. I don’t know how we’ll ever repay you…” but he just shakes his head. Transforming into a giant, black bird, he looks over at me and says with his thoughts, “You’d better get him on me, and climb on yourself. Please grab my egg as well. The others are almost here. Let’s avoid as much bloodshed as possible, shall we?”

I agree. After struggling to help Nathan get on his back, I climb on myself, an egg in each arm. Lloyd jumps off the cliff, soaring in the air just as the yellow team, Odette Hansen and Frazer Hill, arrive at the top. They stare at Nathan and I in disbelief. I guess they thought we’d be killed by the werewolves. I glare at them, although we have already moved out of their sight.

We fly through the night and get about halfway to our platform before Lloyd stops. He falls asleep almost immediately after he changes back, and Nathan does as well. It’s not so easy for me, since my mind was still racing too fast from what happened in the last forty eight hours or so. First werewolves, then I ‘die,’ I witness Roxane dying, Nathan dies… it’s a lot all at one time. All I know for sure is that I now hate these ‘Challenges’ more than ever, and can’t wait to go home.

Leaning back against a tree, I try to calm myself down. Reaching back, I pull the blue-green feather out of my braid and hold it in my hand. It’s miraculous that after all that commotion, it stayed intact and remained lodged in my hair. As I study it, I ponder what kind of bird it might have come from. It’s a very large feather, so I can only assume it came from a large bird. Almost without noticing, I slip into sleep. My dreams are filled with large blue-green birds and human-like creatures riding them.

I wake up before the other two do, so I make breakfast. After eating, we split up. Lloyd flies off toward his light and we go to ours. Nathan transforms into a giant bird himself, and off we go. We reach the place that we started from just as the sun is setting. Cradling the egg, I climb onto the platform with Nathan right behind me. The instant we are both on it, a gun goes off; probably the same one that got us started. About a minute later, it goes off again and I can only assume that means that Lloyd got back to his platform safely as well.

Half an hour later, it goes off one more time. I hope that it was for Sierra and Ham, not the jerks on the Yellow team, Odette and Frazer. I briefly wonder how long they will keep us here now that they have their winners. My question is answered by a sharp sting on my neck.