Year E2996

Beck

The air ceased as black dots filled my vision, peppering to a blurry nothing. My throat thickened as I choked on the dried saliva.

"Beck?" Kat waved her hand in front of my face. "Are you okay?"

"Y-yeah," I whispered with fear.

I glanced at Princess Oryx while she made a slight wave my way. The wind blew around my hair while the buzzing of the dust mites filled my senses. Kat smacked at the air, tightening the leather straps on her wrists.

"Beck, you need to breathe. Everything will be okay." Kat grabbed the ends of her pants, ripping the material off so her knees were free.

"How am I supposed to breathe knowing you are fighting for me?" I felt dizzy. "What if you lose?"

Kat shrugged her shoulders. "Well, then she gets to have you."

"What?!" I yelled, glancing around at the surrounding audience. "But I don't want to."

Kat stretched her neck before setting her hands on my shoulders. "Again, don't worry." She walked in reverse from me. "Plus, it's not a fight," she said with a hop in her step. "It's a race."

The crowd loudly erupted while Kat danced around the fire with her hands above her head. Her purple flame blew from her palms into the bomb fire, painting it lavender. The dust mites blew into the fire, changing it to black while the smell of burnt bugs filled the air.

Kat giggled while stretching as a desert safforian explained the event to her. She made hand gestures, pointing at the forest while Kat bobbed her eyes between me and her.

"Come on, Mr. Dreamy," a male voice said over my shoulder.

His palms gripped my upper arms, tightening while his fingers dug into my skin. I glanced at his spiked black hair as he raised both brows with a cheeky smile. His black eyes reflected the fire.

"No," I replied, trying to step away, but he laughed and pushed me toward Princess Oryx.

In a panic, I glanced around, seeing Ada. "Hey, where is my sister Ray?" I asked through the crowd.

The desert safforian shoved harder, causing me to stumble to the ground. Ada straight-smiled at me while she shook her head no.

"I don't know!" she yelled while I crawled backward from the man.

He stalked toward me with his strong shoulders and tattooed arms. The crowd yelled louder as drums played to the rhythm of no escape.

"Come on, kid," the man said, grabbing my arm. "Get off the ground."

I pulled my arm away from him, standing up in a rush. With the intent to run, I turned around, hitting Princess Oryx. Her hands cupped my chest, balling the material into a fist. She leaned closer, bringing her lips near my ear.

"You will be mine," she whispered.

Oryx pulled away, biting her lower lip and stepping back. She cracked her neck, bringing her arms out wide. Two safforian men rushed over, putting leather straps on her wrists. They set a pair of shoes on the dirt, and she stepped into them.

"The race shall begin!" Princess Oryx yelled, causing the crowd to shout in excitement.

I spun around, looking for Kat, but something bumped me from behind, causing me to sit. I grabbed the wooden chair, and two desert safforians lifted me in the air, dancing around like I was a prize. Colossus woman danced around me to the rhythm of the drums before taking the chair from the safforians and placing me before the fire.

"Princess Oryx has challenged this purple safforian for the ownership of that human," a male safforian with a wood nose ring informed the crowd. "I, Jag, shall start the race."

I stood from the chair. "Nope," I said, just in time for a colossus woman to push me back into my unwanted seat.

Jag held his hand out while a wooden staff appeared in his palms. He hit the cane on the ground, and a second later, the crowd stomped. The man banged again, with everyone mirroring him.

"The task before us is the jungle race." He pointed toward the forest. "Mapped out by the colossus."

Kat stretched her legs while Oryx stood still with her arms crossed over her chest. She gestured her hand slightly, causing Jag to stumble as if she pulled on his nose ring.

"Jag is the prince of the Night Desert Kingdom," Ada's voice sounded beside me.

I glanced at her, then back at Prince Jag. His hair was black as night, with tattoos running up his arms. Jag readjusted his nose ring before waving his arm and staff in the air to get the crowd roaring again.

A group of desert safforians danced from the outer circle toward the fire. They shook the bracelets around their wrists, chiming bells into the air.

"Oryx had wanted him for years, but he won't budge." Ada sat at my feet, but her face was still level with mine.

"Wait," I said. "How can Jag say no, but I have Kat fighting for me?"

Ada giggled while pointing at Prince Jag. "He has authority over his well-being, and you do not."

I glared at her. "I don't?"

"Yeah, you are just a human." She eyed me. "Cute, but even for humans, I can tell you are lower level with them."

"Okay, you can stop," I said, leaning back into the chair with a huff.

Kat glanced my way as we made eye contact. She jumped up and down, waving. Her smile grew, stretching across her face. I leaned up, shaking my head, placing my cheek into my palm.

"Don't worry, Beck," Ada said, standing up and patting my back. "Kats got this."

I rolled my eyes while I watched Ada walk away. The dancing around the fire slowed until they stopped while Jag gestured for everyone to calm down. They silenced the bells while Jag stumbled slightly from dust mites flying around him.

Jag glared at Oryx. "No fire and dust mites allowed!" he yelled, causing Oryx to pout.

Jag banged the staff on the ground, prompting everyone to stomp. The drums lightly sounded, gaining volume slowly, the hollow rhythm tapping while waiting for Jag's command.

"Ready!" Jag hit the ground with his staff.

"Set!" The crowd stomped in unison while Jag drew a line in the dirt.

Kat and Oryx place their hands on the line, leaning their heads low. My breath hitched in my throat.

"Go!" Jag yelled, sending Kat and Oryx toward the forest.

Jag snapped two tiny bugs in his hands. One was purple, while the other was a deep orange. The little insects hovered from his palms, darting to the two girls.

Kat reached the tree line before Oryx while the violet bug attached to her clothes, glowing the night forest with her.

"The purple safforian reached the first obstacle before Princess Oryx," Jag announced the obvious as he walked beside me.

The orange bug attached to the Princess as she jumped into the trees, lighting the forest with her.

"Kat," I said to Jag, annoyed by his way of not knowing her name.

"What?" Jag asked quietly, keeping his eyes on the purple and orange lights.

I stood up , but hands grabbed my shoulders, pushing me back into the chair. "The purple girl." I glared at the colossus that forced me to sit, then back at Jag. "Her name is Kat."

Jag bobbed between me and the forest, letting out a light laugh. "Thank you," he said, stepping forward as Kat's purple light stopped.

"Looks like Kat has reached the first obstacle!" he yelled, waving his hands above his head. "Will she know how to defeat the slug king?"

The crowd roared as the dancers circled the flame again. Bells echoed in the air in a low chime until Kat continued to run, causing the bells to sing louder.

"Slug king defeated with no problem!" Jag yelled as a glowing symbol hovered in the forest in a darker purple. "Nearly a perfect score."

"Let's see how Princess Oryx does," Jag announced while the orange light stopped.

Jag stepped back, leaning closer to me. "Kat is doing fantastic," he whispered. "So, did you really come from the sky?"

I side-eyed him, seeing his muscular arms were twice as big as mine. "Yeah," I replied vaguely. "What does the floating symbol mean?" I asked.

"That's pretty cool." He leaned over, staring at my eyes and ignoring my question. "She is right about your blues."

"What?" I questioned, leaning away from him, feeling the chair ready to tip. "You have blue safforians. There isn't anything different."

Jag stepped back, glancing at the two lights. "Nah, yours are white with an outer circle of blue."

"So—" I tried to say.

"And Princess Oryx defeated the slug king, but Kat is gaining distance!" Jag yelled, causing the crowd to scream in anger while their Princess was losing.

A unique symbol in orange hovered next to the violet one, bobbing beside each other.

"They are safforian numbers," Jag said. "Kat has a ninety-eight, while Princess Oryx has a ninety-five."

I scooted to the edge of the seat, clapping my hands while I watched Kat's violet light run in the dark forest. The mystery quest of what she put herself through in the dim light helped us keep track. The orange light sped up, gaining more ground out of nowhere.

"No," I whispered while the purple one slowed down.

"Looks like Princess Oryx is coming on Kat fast!" Jag yelled, as he hit the staff on the ground. "Just in time for the log jumps."

Kat's light stopped and gained height in the trees. With a rush, the beautiful light jumped with the orange light behind. They leaped together from one area to the next, painting a sunset in the dark forest.

"Wow," I said, standing slowly and watching the lilac sunset form between them. "Beautiful."

A hand grabbed my shoulder, but I shoved it off as I saw the finish line with a tunnel of moving vines. A vine slithered to the side, snapping at a fly buzzing by.

"No," I said, walking closer to the tunnel. "This is dangerous."

Jag grabbed my arm. "And the rest of it wasn't?" he asked, raising an eyebrow. "The slug king is far more deadly."

Two new symbols hovered in the forest, showing the scores for the girls.

"What?" I replied in a panic, seeing the orange and purple light approach the other end of the tunnel.

I looked down at the dark vines and saw Kat's smiling face. She stopped at the end, making eye contact with me. Kat waved with a hop while Oryx shoved her to the side and raced into the tunnel.

Kat stood from the ground, sprinting behind Oryx. Her hands grabbed a vine, climbing the side wall. She glanced at Oryx. The vegetation tangled with the Princess as Kat jumped over her.

"Bocho!" Oryx yelled at Kat in safforian, grabbing her ankles and bringing her to the ground.

Oryx climbed over Kat, shoving her face into the tangled vines. Kat's light giggle echoed in the tunnel, prompting Oryx to smile with a laugh.

The Princess reached the end of the tunnel, standing with a stumble. She glanced back at Kat, mocking her, before racing to the finishing line. Kat crawled out of the tunnel, running after Oryx.

"The boy with crystal eyes will be—" Princess Oryx said as a hidden branch stuck out, tripping her onto the ground.

Kat ran by Oryx as she held her ankle, seeing me at the finishing line. I jumped in the air while Kat locked her eyes on me.

"Yay!" I yelled while Jag smiled with excitement.

Kat glanced over her shoulder, seeing Oryx lying in the dirt. A small tear escaped the Princess's eye while pain showed on her face.

"With a record-breaking score!" Jag yelled as Kat raced to us. "Three-zero-five!"

Kat stopped in her tracks, not touching the finish line Jag drew on the ground. She frowned at me, turning to look at Oryx.

"Wait, scratch the number," Jag said. "Kat, you need to cross the line, or your score will keep going up," Jag said, concerned.

Kat smiled slightly at Jag and then turned around, running up to Oryx as I raced after her. She crouched down, placing her hand on the Princess's back.

"Are you okay, Princess Oryx?" Kat asked.

I slowed my jog to a stop before them as the Princess glanced from the ground at me. She smiled and then met her gaze on Kat.

"You came back to see if I was okay?" Oryx held her ankle while the surrounding crowd watched in silence.

"Of course, you are a princess," Kat replied.

Jag ran up behind me. "She wasted a record of three-zero-five for you, too," he said, causing Oryx to look at Kat in shock.

I glanced at the hovering numbers, ticking to a new symbol every second.

"Wait," I replied, as my mind ran in circles. "I know what Dr. Coachman means."

"What?" Kat asked while Jag lifted Oryx from the dirt, holding her like he cared.

"I think I figured out the clue," I said in excitement.

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