It was already noon.
Despite being blind, Ciara could easily tell what time of day it was because of
the heat caused by the ultra violet ray and the parched ground. The three of
them mounted the steep hilltops, cutting past the field where the deer had
died. Liam was extremely talkative, and Chase liked it. It seemed like the
Crude Brothers were getting along very well.
“I got a bad feeling
about getting back to Sputter Palace at this time of hour,” Liam groaned
uneasily. “It makes me edgy, you know.”
“You’re not alone...I also feel the same
thing, you know.” Chase said anxiously.
“Not you. Us,”
Liam corrected, “We’re brothers, so we have to face the punishment together
with Ciara.”
“I know, but I can’t
help thinking what punishment Kyra will give us when we get back. I mean,
there’s the Sparing Room and…”
Chase counted.
“It’s positively the
Sparring Room, I can feel it,”
Liam said sternly.
By the time they arrived
at the entrance grounds of Sputter Palace, Ciara could hear someone yelling
from behind them. She stopped and listened as the piping voice became distinct.
“There they are!
Call Kyra, now!” That voice belonged to Fatima, Liam’s nosy rival. “You guys
are so much in trouble!”
“Why it’s my dear old nemesis, Fatima,” Liam
cooed, “Did you miss me already?”
Fatima snorted,
“Miss you? Yeah, right. It’s a good thing you’re here. Kyra is already furious,
and you’re not going to like her punishment when she sees you guys showing up
in the afternoon. “
“Is it really that
bad?” Chase asked anxiously.
“Of course! Kyra
made a new punishment room a
few days ago—not the easy-going spars and heavy-lifts—but a real gory punishment!” Fatima made a shrilly
laugh. Ciara’s stomach twisted into a knot. “I hope you are beaten bloody,
Liam. I can’t wait to see you covered in bruises, along with your crippled brother.”
“Pray that you
will,” Liam said nonchalantly and turned around. “Come on, let’s ignore her.
She’s just wasting her time with us.”
“What did you say,
Liam!” Ciara heard the squeezing of cloth and the tapping of their footsteps.
Ciara’s brain began to calculate itself. The
grip is not too tight, which means Fatima is seizing Liam’s cloth. She must be
fisting Liam’s collar up.
“Hey, hey, stop it
you two,” Chase yelled, “Now’s not the time to fight.”
“Really, if you
wanted to see me bloody, you should reserve it for the punishment,” Liam taunted, “You can’t
even throw a strong punch at me. You’re just a girl who wanted my attention because
you wanted to surpass me," Liam cooed, "Sad to say, you will never
beat me in a million years, Fatima.”
“Shut u—”
Ciara wasn’t aware
of what she did. She threw herself against Liam’s rival and shoved Fatima to
the ground. A deep set of anger and hatred coursed through Ciara’s veins. “We’re
already tired, Fatima. Please stay away from Liam, if you don’t want to get
hurt.”
The Crude Brothers
were flabbergasted by Ciara’s marvelous act.
“Tsk,” Fatima
hissed, “Trying to act like a tough guy, huh, Blind Candidate?” There were
clamorous footsteps sweeping on the ground. Fatima
must be lunging toward me. “Do you want a piece of m—?”
Ciara braced for the
punch and shut her eyes.
Snap!
Ciara opened her
eyes and sensed a person in front of her. What happened? And then she
heard the clanging of metal and wood thumping on the ground. There was only one person who had that
wooden leg. It was Chase.
“If you want to hurt
Ciara, you have to get pass me.” Chase must have blocked Fatima’s attack and
was now shielding Ciara. Judging by the sound of squeezing of bones, small
pants, and the pressure circulating around the knuckles, Chase must be gripping
Fatima’s fist, stopping her punch.
“He’s right,” Liam
joined. Now there were two auras in front of her. The Crude brothers were
facing against Fatima. “If you lay one finger on my little brother, you’re
seriously going to die by my hand. Trust me.”
“Don’t threaten me,
Liam!” Fatima shouted, “I’m not afraid of you. I’m a Vixen, and Vixens are
warriors!”
“Well, start
thinking now because if lose myself, I won’t be able to spare your life,” Liam
said angrily. “Chase, Ciara. Get away from me, or else I’ll accidentally kill
you guys too.”
Accidentally kill? Ciara thought.
“No, Liam!” Ciara
heard the stretching of cloth and more shuffling sounds sweeping the ground. Chase must be blocking Liam. Ciara thought.
Or more like holding him off. Chase shouted, “Fatima, please do what I say.
Retreat now and don’t make Liam mad!”
“Bu—“
“GO!”
After a few moments,
Ciara heard Fatima retreating. “Fine! But don’t forget this, Blind Candidate,"
Fatima said, "Someday I’m going to test your strength and see if you’re
really the Candidate. Don’t forget that!”
Then Fatima was
gone.
“Let go of me
Chase!” Liam groaned and Ciara sensed Chase releasing his older brother. “Geez,
Don’t do that again, Chase, If you get hurt, I don’t know if I can…handle
myself.” Ciara sensed two bodies separating. The Crude brothers must be walking
across her opposite sides. Chase on her left, because of the wooden taps, and
Liam on her right.
“Sorry, but you
really need to get hold of yourself. What if you really killed Fatima?” Chase
said, “How should we tell everyone that?”
“I don’t know—just
forget it, okay? We have a punishment
to go through,” Liam said angrily.
“But what about the
turkey?” Chase asked.
Liam stopped. “Yeah,
I forgot about it. Chase, you go first. I’ll catch up with you later,” he
turned to Ciara, “Could you help me with this, Ciara?”
“Oh, okay…” Ciara’s
heart stopped a beat.
“I’ll just be in the
center of the hallway if you get lost. Beside the flower vase, okay?” Chase
muttered, his footsteps disappearing.
“Okay,” Liam said,
and waited until Chase was completely gone from his sight.
“Ciara,” Liam’s voice was sharp. He must be standing in front of me,
Ciara thought. She could feel his hot breath tickling her skin. He must be
really close to her. Her heart pounded louder in her chest. Then she felt his
long, slender fingers brushing the side of her cheek. What is he going to
do? Ciara thought.
“Thank
you,” That was the only thing Liam said. Slowly, Ciara felt his fingers sliding
off her cheek, disappearing, and heard his footsteps moving far away.
Liam was gone.
Ciara shook her
head, and slapped her cheeks to keep herself awake. She thought she was going
to get scolded by the arrogant Liam, but “thank you” was an odd thing to say.
Especially Liam hated her because she was disabled. But maybe that was going to
change now...
z
“What am I going to
do with you three, huh?” Kyra’s voice was the first thing Ciara heard when she
entered Kyra’s office. It wasn’t hard to reach her destination. She just had to
follow Liam’s body movement until he stopped in front of a wall, swinging the
door open.
Now the three of
them were inside Kyra’s office. Three auras were standing in front of her
vision. Ciara wondered why she could see the auras of a person. Her vision was
supposed to be pitch black, but now…she could see faint outlines of the objects
around her. Has my vision enhanced? Ciara thought.
“Sorry, Kyra.” Chase
muttered, and Ciara could sense him slightly trembling.
“Please forgive us,”
Liam said.
“Never ask for
forgiveness. That’s one lesson I’m going to teach you three, especially you,
Liam.” Kyra snapped. “The punishment
is for your own good. Learn how to accept your fault and the reason behind it.
Do you understand?”
“Yes,” the three of
them said together.
“Now, explain,” Kyra
commanded, “And why is the Blind Candidate with you?”
“I asked her to join
our hunt, so we could pay Ms. Stupey’s wreckage. Please don’t let her take the punishment.
I will take full responsibility for it.” Liam firmly said.
“I don’t take orders
from everyone, Liam!” Kyra shouted, “Like it or not, all three of you shall
take the punishment, but…” Kyra said, “I will start with Blind Candidate
first.”
Ciara’s heart
pounded. What is the punishment they are talking about?
“Kyr—” Liam began.
“That is my final
word! No excuses, you hear me?" Kyra snapped, “In this world, you must
think only for yourselves. Nothing more. Remember that.”
Silence.
“Now then, since
everything is clear, let us discuss this further in the new Arena Round.” Kyra said, and
Ciara heard her hushed footsteps pounding the pavement, the sound of her hair
waving. Kyra must be walking toward the
door because her outline is getting farther. Ciara analyzed. “I supposed
you know what the Arena Round is?”
“Yes,” Liam said.
“Good, let us move
on,” Kyra said and the three of them exited her office.
Liam whispered to
Chase, “Chase. Do you remember the time when Finnegan nearly died because of
the punishment he took
at the Arena Round?”
“I think so. That
was four years ago,” Chase kept his voice low, “But after that incident, Kyra
decided to close that room and move the punishment to sparing.”
“Unfortunately,
it seems like Kyra is changing her mind. With Ciara here, she’s going to open
the Arena Round again.” Liam
said distastefully, “Ugh, wish me luck.”
“I’m more worried
about Ciara,” Chase said anxiously. Ciara could sense Kyra walking ahead of
them. “And what’s worse is Shell. That’s the scary part. Shell doesn’t have
mercy to anyone, even to herself.”
“The Silent Dagger,
huh," Liam said, unsure, "Don’t worry about her, Chase. I’m sure
Ciara can handle it,”
“Why, what’s the Arena Round?” Ciara asked.
Liam grunted. “The Arena Round is a brutal match
between the Lower Ranks and the Higher Ranks. It is also known as the Punishment Room. Four years ago, Kyra
created the Punishment Room for
atrocious fights and crowd enjoyments. One of her favorite pick is Shell, also
known as the Silent Dagger," Liam continued, "Since many Vixens break
a lot of curfews, Kyra uses Shell to show the Vixens how ruthless her ruling
system is. Then after a certain incident, our friend, Finnigan nearly died from
the Punishment Room, and so to
Kyra’s embarrassment, she closed the Punishment
Room and avoided any beatings," Liam continued, "The
match could take a long time to finish, and it will not end until one of you
surrenders.”
“So why is she reopening
the Punishment Room?” Ciara asked.
“I don’t know,” Liam
said, “Kyra easily gets bored when there is no excitement going on inside
Sputter Palace. Maybe she wanted to show the Vixens the stringent regulations
around here?”
“Or…” Chase gulped,
“Maybe she wanted to show everyone what Ciara can do,”
Fear clutched her
heart with cold fingers.
“If that’s her
purpose, then here…” Something was poking her from behind. She clasped the long
rod on her hand. The fishing rod. Liam continued, “I sneaked past your
room before bumping into Kyra. Good luck and one advice: Don’t pity them.”
Ciara’s heart
throbbed. Don’t pity them. Ciara understood what Liam meant. My
enemies are egocentric people.
z
When Liam and Chase
stopped beside her, she already knew that they arrived at the Arena Round. She heard the
click of the doorknob, and the squeaking of the door. Here it goes.
They entered the Arena Round, and the first thing
Ciara smelled was dried blood filling the air, making her stomach churn in
disgust. Ciara hated blood, because it painfully reminded her of the tragic of
Metric. Relying on her hearing senses, Ciara heard the blast of voices, the
creaking of wood, and the wind circulating inside the room, as if she was
standing in a high place. For the first few minutes, she thought deeply, and
then she knew the answer. There are clamorous voices…thousands of people
sitting in some kind of chair...Ciara thought. It's like there's a thin
narrow row…with dusty curtains…and flickering lights. Ciara guessed. The
Arena Round is an amphitheater.
Sweat dripped from
her forehead. Now she understood what Liam meant about not pitying them.
“Welcome, my children,
to the Arena Round!” Kyra’s voice boomed. Everyone cheered. Ciara gulped. Why
was she the first one to fight?
Kyra said to them,
“Follow me.”
The three of them
followed Kyra, and Ciara paused when she heard their footsteps going down. Stairs.
Ciara carefully took one step at a time, ignoring the fear pounding in her
heart. Then she noticed a person standing beside her, since the air breezing
through her stopped.
“Don’t push
yourself. Here, hold my arm.” Liam scolded her, and Ciara blushed, slowly entangling
her right hand on his elbow. He continued, “How cute, you’re blushing. Well,
you can’t blame everyone for staring at us—I mean—you’re the Candidate for
Pete’s Sake!" Liam teased, "You're now a celebrity, and me? I’m the
handsome thief.”
Ciara smiled weakly,
trying to hide the fear in her expression.
“Liam, I appreciate you trying to
make Ciara feel better, but this is the Arena
Round we’re talking about,” Ciara felt Chase’s fingers slipping on her
free hand.
“I know. Just trying
to give a little fun, you know?” Liam said. As they climbed down the stairs,
Ciara could feel a heavy presence around her surroundings. She was passing a
room filled with people, which was a great advantage for her four senses.
“This is
serious," Chase said to Ciara, “We're sorry we dragged you into this,
Ciara.”
Ciara shook her
head. “Don’t worry about me. We’re a team, and teams stick together, right?”
Liam tensed beside
her. “Yeah…team…”
When Ciara’s foot
touched the lowest ground, she looked up and caught a glimpse of the faint
outline towering above her. A wall that is 45 centimeters, surrounded by
rings…A boxing round? Ciara analyzed. The Crude brothers carefully took
Ciara to the podium, while another figure joined them on stage.
“My children.
Welcome back to the Arena Round!”
It was Kyra, and judging by the loud echo of her voice, she must be using a
microphone. “The Arena Round has been opened because of a
very special occasion,” she continued, “And you know what that is?”
“Blind Candidate!
Blind Candidate!” Protests, screams, and shouts drummed inside Ciara’s ears.
Her mind hurt a lot. There were so many voices thundering around her head, as
if it was crushing the inside of her skull. Ciara let go of Liam’s hand and
gripped her fishing rod very tightly. Blind Candidate! Blind Candidate!
Liam! Chase! The voices inside her head couldn’t seem to stop
shouting.
“Silence!” Kyra’s
booming voice echoed. To Ciara’s relief, the noise died down. “I will speak
first. Four years ago, the Arena Round
has been closed because of a certain incident that nearly took a life of our
fellow comrade,” she continued, “Many Vixens seek protest to open the Arena Round for great enjoyment, but
unfortunately it did not continue. But today, I, Kyra Maurine, the leader of
the 67th propaganda revolution of the Vixens, has chosen Ciara, the
Blind Candidate, for the opening round," Kyra continued, "bringing
you extreme entertainment, and also…” her voice turned serious, “a great lesson
to you all.”
More cheers
exploded. Ciara! Ciara! Ciara!
Ciara couldn't take
it anymore. The noises were too much inside her head. A tear slipped down from her
cheek, and then, she felt a warm hand tucking the strands of her hair to her
ear. Ciara looked up.
“Don’t cry,” It was
none other than Liam, “See? Your eyes are swollen and puffy," Liam said,
"You're a brave girl, and crying won't help. It will just ruin your
beautiful face.” A ticklish sensation brushed across her eyes. Liam must be
wiping her tears away using his thumb. When Liam gave her a light peck on the
cheek, Ciara flinched.
“Before you go, bear
this in mind,” Liam breathed, “Don’t give up. Trust me, if you do, you’d
be dead the moment you wake up.”
Then Liam was gone,
replaced by Kyra’s voice booming around the amphitheater. “Now, who will be her
opponent?
“Shell! Shell!
Shell! Shell!” Everyone cheered.
“If you say so,”
Kyra said, “Then let’s call our best fighter in the Arena Round, Shell. The Silent
Dagger!”
“Damn it!” Liam
shouted.
“Blind
Candidate, Get up the stage. Now.” Somebody said.
“Here I’ll assist
you,” Chase said and held her hand, supporting her until Ciara’s foot touched a
small elevated staircase on her right side. She groped her hand forward and
grabbed the rope tied around the stage. Definitely a boxing ring, Ciara
thought. Chase let go of her hand and Ciara took slow steps, trying to imagine
herself inside the boxing ring. It's large...and very easy to move…
Then Ciara sensed someone entering the ring.
“Shell! Shell!
Shell!” Everyone repeated.
Using all her
hearing senses, Ciara tried to navigate her mind on her enemy’s features. A girl, Ciara thought, because of the feminine scent. The
girl—Shell, was moving awkwardly. The sounds were missing one beat. Normally a
person could produce two tapping sounds, but this girl had only one tap.
Shell’s faint outline was 10 meters away from her. Ciara moved closer, and then
she stopped. There were no sounds coming from Shell. Not even the sound of
Shell’s hair, the shuffling of her clothes, or even her footsteps. Maybe that
was why they called her the Silent Dagger.
“Hello…” Ciara said
to Shell, “Are you excited to beat me up?”
No sound. That was
odd.
Ciara pressed on
further. “I heard so much about you,” she lied, “They say you nearly killed
that Finnegan guy four years ago. Are you really that dangerous?”
No sound again.
Something snapped
inside Ciara's mind. In Ciara's theory, a normal person could produce even the
tiniest sound, while he or she wasn't speaking. Every person had a sound
vibrating in the vocal tone, or coming from the rough echo of the throat. Now
Ciara finally got the answer.
This girl is mute.
And there was more.
Every time Shell took one step forward, there was only one sound coming from
her feet. But where was the other one? Ciara waited until she heard a different
sound—more like the tap of a wooden foot, combined with the sound of feet
shuffling.
Shell had one wooden
leg, the same one as Chase, and one human leg.
Also there was
another thing that was bothering her. When a person walks, the arms produce a
silent swish motion caused by the air. But for Shell, there was only one
arm making swish sounds.
I get it, Ciara
thought. Shell is missing one arm, right arm to be precise...She has a
replacement leg, same as Chase’s wooden creation, and mute.
Why did the Vixens
let Shell, a disabled person, fight her?
“Mute versus Blind. Who will be
the one to win this fight?” Kyra’s voice interrupted Ciara’s thought. “Let’s
begin the punishment!
Ready, Get set and start!” The audience roared.
Don’t
pity them, Liam’s
voice echoed her mind, but Ciara couldn’t push that feeling away. Ciara raised
her fishing rod, and immediately something smashed her ribs, knocking her off
the ground.
Ciara gasped. What
happened? The thought came to her. Shell was mute, so she was silent as a
rat, but how could Ciara fight her without sensing her presence first?
The audience cheered
Shell’s name over and over again. Ciara struggled to get up, when another
splitting pain crushed her jaw—then her right cheek—and lastly her stomach.
Ciara cried in pain. She could feel one or two ribs broken, and blood dripping
from the sides of her tongue.
“Ciara!” She heard
the Crude brothers yelling from below. Ciara laid face-first on the ground,
smeared with her own blood. Then there was another hit on her stomach,
repeating the same process over and over again.
Don’t pity them. Liam's words echoed her mind.
Perhaps Liam was
right. Even if Shell was mute, Ciara shouldn’t pity her just because they were
both disabled. But that was the way of the Vixens, and Ciara wouldn’t fall for
a word like that. So instead, she thought of her own plan.
Ciara gripped her
fishing rod, and when she sensed Shell was fading away from the noise, she
blindly threw the string up, and felt a heavy tug on her hand, knowing that the
string had caught Shell.
This was her chance.
Ciara painfully staggered up and reeled the fishing rod. Another sound of
blood, and a silent scream vibrating through Shell’s throat, Ciara guessed. Shell
is screaming in pain.
“Yes! You made a
scratch on her wrist. Keep going!” Liam shouted.
“You’re doing great,
Ciara!” Chase joined Liam’s cheer.
With the strong
blood surrounding Shell, Ciara could finally sense her. But Ciara’s victory
didn’t last very long.
In a split second,
the scent of blood was getting sharper, and the moment Ciara realized it, the
ground exploded in front of her. Rocks and craters tumbled across her
direction. Ciara coughed. Shell did it on purpose to blurry her senses. Smart
move, Ciara thought. The scent of blood quickly disappeared. Where is
she now? Ciara's heart pounded louder in her chest. The voices were muffled
by the smoke, and the sounds were drowned by the cracking of earth and dust.
Suddenly coming from
behind, another pain jabbed her back, throwing her forward as Ciara skidded on
the ground and crashed against a hard object. Her mind screamed in pain from
the impact.
Ciara...Ciara!
Ciara was hearing
voices. It must be Chase and Liam.
If you give up, then you’d be dead in a
minute, Liam’s voice echoed her thoughts.
Ciara painfully used her elbows to stagger up,
but the moment she turned around—another hit smashed her forehead. Wet blood
dripped down her right eye. She tried to get up, but another kick in the
stomach knocked her off her senses.
More voices
exploded…too blurry…too noisy. Lifelessly, Ciara crashed on the ground,
panting. Ciara knew the fog had disappeared, and now she could detect Shell in
front of her. But it was too late. Shell’s hand was already squeezing her neck.
I’m going to die, Ciara muttered in her mind. I’m not match for her.
C…i…a…ra….com…e…back!
“S…orr…” Ciara
muttered the last words before everything began to disappear.
0 comments:
Post a Comment