Lavender & Ice

9. Exploration & Confrontation

Kietnan blew out a long, slow breath, preparing for today's trial to begin. Day six of the trials would be a grueling and especially dangerous event as it was specifically designed to weed out any of the weaker participants that remained. Today there were 37 participants, by nightfall there would likely be less than 25.

Afterward, they would be granted a three day respite before returning to complete three more days of trials, followed by two more days of respite and then the final trial would commence. There would likely be less than 15 participants making it to the final trial, and there was a decent possibility that only half would complete it successfully. He refused to not be in that final group. It would bring him and his family shame if he did not complete the entire round of trials.

The warning horn was blown, five minutes to begin. Like all of the other men, Kietnan shed his clothes and shoes. Only their small undergarments remained. They were also allowed one strap to hold tools. Many had belts around their waists but Kietnan was one of the few who chose to wrap it around his neck and shoulder, across his body. He felt it easier to retrieve his knives that way, and also easier to remove should he need to in a hurry.   

Today they were on the east side of the lake, several miles away from camp. On this side of the lake, several miles of shoreline gave way for water to flow into dozens of rivers where ice covered the top but underneath was fast rushing water. It would be easy to fall into one and it would not be surprising for the body to never be found.

He drew in a long slow breath, and released it very slowly, repeating this process several times to prepare his body for what was to come.

The final horn sounded and he drew in a long breath while diving straight into the freezing lake. He swam as far as he could before coming up for air and immediately going back under. He repeated the process until he reached the first checkpoint, three miles down the shoreline. With no time to waste, he sprinted forward while forcing his breathing to remain steady, despite the protest from his lung.

Running at full speed for about 100 yards, where there was a stretch of solid land, he dove back into the water and swam far enough away from shore so he wouldn't get sucked into the current of the upcoming rivers. It was a dangerous balance to get far enough from the currents but not so far that you wasted precious time and energy.

Two hours later, he had reached the third and final checkpoint. Here there were small, open vials of nutrients for participants to grab, drain, and toss into a bin as they continued on. Kietnan did as such and continued sprinting across the marshy field, away from the lake. It was here that brains came into play instead of only relying on physical strength and endurance. They had each been given the clues to what they specifically must seek, but many would never find their prize.

The terrain slowly changed from wet, squishy marsh to dry, rocky ground as Kietnan ascended toward the North Eastern mountain range. He focused on his current task, while running through his clues in his mind, not allowing himself to dwell on the dangerous rocky cliffs he must face ahead.

~~~~~~

Ashima was growing anxious again. A glance toward the skylight told her it was only mid day.

She drew in a deep breath and held her shoulders back, nodding her head. She could do this. She had no reason to believe anyone at camp would cause her harm, no one had so far. She would just have to wear thick skin against the gruff personalities the natives seemed to have.

She cracked open the door and peaked out. No one was immediately outside their tent. Good. Maybe they were all gone for the day, like Kietnan was. Pushing her luck, she opened the door and stepped out. She looked around again. The coast seemed clear, so she made her way down a path, picking a direction that she hadn't traveled previously when walking with Kietnan. She was good with directions, making it a point to memorize her path, so she can make her way back to the tent.

At first the only thing visible were rows and rows of tents, just like Kietnan's. But eventually she found some larger tents. She was feeling brave, but knew better than to enter somewhere she wasn't specifically invited into. So she stayed on the paths and simply got to know the area. When the tents became thicker, she decided to turn around and head back the direction she came. Circling around the tent she was currently calling home, so she could know what was around it in all directions. She had not seen a soul on her entire exploration, but that didn't mean they weren't inside or nearby. She decided to head back to the tent, maybe she could find some paper in Kietnan's desk and draw a map of the area she explored to occupy her time. She could add a little more each day. When she reached a fork, she turned left on the final stretch towards her tent, seeing it far ahead.    

A shout had her turning abruptly. An angry looking native was shouting and pointing at her. What should she do? Were they just curious? Or did they think she was some kind of intruder? And was everyone on this planet bald?  

She felt like running would make her seem suspicious, so she stood and offered the stranger a small smile. The female native stopped several paces away from her, looking at her curiously, but quickly the woman shook her head and began yelling at Ashima. She lowered her head slightly, hoping she would understand that Ashima was showing it as a sign of respect.

When the woman continued yelling, Ashima slowly backed away towards her tent. But the angry woman began to chase her. Ashima knew she would be no match for the large woman, who was probably just over six feet tall. If she caught her and decided to do Ashima harm she would be in big trouble. Not sure if it was the best course of action, her self defenses took the forefront of her mind and she ran. The woman was heavy, and Ashima realized that if she could keep up the pace long enough, she could likely outrun her. She ran right by Kietnan's tent, thinking that if she went inside, the woman would simply go in after her, possibly thinking she was some kind of thief.

Five tents down the row, she cut beside and around a tent very quickly and circled back. She looked behind her, and the woman was just turning the corner around the first tent while Ashima was already three tents down the new direction. Good, Ashima thought. She ran by the Kietnan's tent once more before turning swiftly at the next tent, going around it, and rushing to Kietnan's tent and going inside, making sure to close the door softly behind her. Not taking any chances, she opened the chest near his bed and hid inside of it.