Having Some Fun
"Alright guys, listen up! The first competition is a race. More precisely, you will race atop the trees. Anyone who touches the ground, will lose immediately. You can choose any route you wish, but you can only use the trees to travel. The starting point is right here, while the finishing line is located behind the statue of our ancestors. Whoever's first, will receive the Blood Purifying Medicine from me", uncle announced. He then asked all those who wanted to take part, to gather in one place. "When I count to three, you will climb the trees and make your way towards the finish line… Is everyone ready? One… Two… THREE", uncle shouted, and everyone including me rushed towards the nearest tree.
Although I was faster at the start compared to others, Atols were excellent climbers. Living in Apium had its perks after all. We jumped from one tree to another, but others were quickly gaining on me. A while later, I was passed by a few Atols about my age. I had a hard time keeping up, and that was taking under consideration my well trained balance. Besides, they knew the place inside out, it felt more like they were guiding me towards the finishing line. More Atols passed by me, and arrived at the finishing line. In the end, I was about twelfth. Either way, I had loads of fun during the race, and even tested out my balance a bit.
"The winner is Olim! Come here to receive your prize", one of the older Atols announced at the finishing line. Olim received a bottle filled with blood red liquid. We then made our way back to the gathering area, but no one raced anymore. "Uncle, what is that medicine for? You called it Blood Purifying Medicine, but what is it used for exactly?", I asked. "Just as the name suggests, it purifies one's blood. In other words, the medicine allows someone to kind of unlock their potential and reach higher grounds", he replied. "Heh? So Olim can get stronger after drinking this?", I asked just to make sure. "Pretty much. Of course drinking the medicine alone will do nothing for you. You still have to train yourself to become stronger", uncle replied with a nod.
'I guess there is no easy way out then. Although, something that makes it easier would be really appreciated', I thought. "Would you like some, Anna?", uncle asked very quietly. He surprised me with that question, but I shook my head, "That wouldn't be fair. I lost the competition, so me getting one would be unfair to others. Besides, mother wouldn't be happy about that". Uncle smiled and nodded his head, "I was just teasing you. Your mother told me not to give you anything like that, but to think you'd refuse... ". "That wasn't nice, uncle", I said feeling a bit betrayed and played. "Uncle apologizes, don't be mad. After all, you chose the right thing to do. Your mother raised you very well", uncle said while grabbing my cheek. I told him to just get on with the competition, instead of trying to tease me.
"With the first contest resolved, we shall move on to the next one right away!", uncle exclaimed. Uncle pointed towards one corner of the gathering area, where ten wooden poles stood erected. 'Balance?... No, these wooden poles are the same height really. Besides, they are very well spaced. I might' be able to make that jump, but others?', I thought. "The next contest is rather simple. Each contestant will receive ten wooden rings. You will then throw these rings over the wooden poles from a designated distance. The person with the highest score, will receive a hand crafted statue of their choosing. In case we have a draw, these contestants will play another round, until we have a clear winner. Those who wish to take part, line up in front of the ten wooden poles and await your turn", uncle explained.
'Oh, so it wasn't anything to do with balance, but with aim… I might have a chance though', I thought and followed others to take part. "Those with the wooden rings, can start as soon as they are ready!", uncle exclaimed. One contestant after the other took their turns. Some were good, some were really bad. The best result before I tried was nine rings out of ten. 'It's my turn now', I thought and grabbed the rings. They weren't that heavy, and the distance between me and the pole was at least eight metres. My first try was a disaster, 'It's not that easy, but what if I spin it?'. There was nothing for me to lose anymore, missing one more meant losing. I threw the ring while making it spin. Although that method was much better, I still missed in the end. 'Oh well', I thought and continued throwing.
Out of the ten tries, I got seven of them in. Not a winning score, but I had some fun. 'If I practiced a few times with them beforehand, I would probably do ten out...', my thoughts were disturbed by a loud cheering. Someone actually got a perfect score. 'Wow, that person must be good. Ten out of ten on their first try', i thought and checked the person out. 'Huh? She's so young… Maybe eight years old? She was either really lucky, or her aim is really that great', I thought looking at the contestant. The rest of the contestants had a go, but no one managed to get a perfect score. The young Atol won the competition in the end.
I didn't feel bad about losing. We had fun together, and the prizes didn't matter to me that much. "Alright, little Clier wins this round with a perfect score! I didn't expect for anyone to actually do that, but it's a pleasant surprise. Let's move on to the next competition, and I hope you guys are hungry!", uncle announced. I already didn't like that, and uncle quickly made it worse. "The third competition is an eating competition! This competition is very simple too, you just have to eat the most in order to win. Here's what you will be eating!", uncle announced and pointed at a few tables set up further away. Whatever it was, the faces of all the young Atols didn't spell anything good. "You will be eating Jagged Fruits, as you can see. The winner of this competition will receive a month supply of Poach Fruits, just for themselves. Those who are interested, please step forward", uncle added.
'I mean, how bad can it be? Fruits are fruits, right? They might not be sweet or something, but eating them shouldn't be a problem. That's my chance', I thought. The Poach Fruits were a mystery to me as well, but since uncle put them as a prize for winning, I figured they had to be really good. Me and a few other Atols stepped forward. The amount of people contesting was actually less than ten, which told me they really hated those fruits.
All of us received a plate with six round yellow fruits. The fruits themselves looked alright to me, and easily fitted in my hand. "Alright guys, are you ready? Then, START", uncle shouted. The moment I bit the first fruit, I regretted it. The fruit itself was soft and mushy. Moreover, there was a large seed in the middle, but that wasn't the problem. The problem was the taste. The moment my tongue touched the mushy part of the fruit, I got goosebumps. The fruit was so bitter and sour, I couldn't even force myself to push it down the throat. My saliva felt dry, my whole mouth felt dry from the sourness and bitterness. I struggled and struggled, until the bitten off piece slid down my throat. 'Why would they even grow such things… This is no fruit, this is a weapon', I thought and checked on others. They struggled, they struggled a lot.
"I can't eat this thing... ", I said to myself, but then an idea came to my mind. I didn't really have to chew it. The skin wasn't bitter and sour, the mushy part was. 'The fruit is not that big, but swallowing it whole is impossible for me… Although the whole fruit is too big, half of it might be possible though...', I thought. That became my plan. I ripped the fruit in half, removed the seed and swallowed one half at a time. Still wasn't easy, but it was doable. Two and a half fruits later, I checked on others. They ate only one at most, which meant I was in the lead. 'Alright! I can do this!', I exclaimed in my mind. In the end, I managed to eat four fruits, two and a half more than the next closest contestant.
"The winner is Anna! She will get a month's supply of Poach Fruits!", uncle exclaimed. "Hey uncle, what are those Poach Fruits by the way?", I asked just to make sure. "Don't worry, the Poach Fruits are really sweet and tasty. I'm sure you will like them", he replied. That was great, I had enough Jagged Fruits for my entire lifetime. "Alright guys, this wraps up the third competition. We are left with the last competition, which will be a race again! This time though, you will race on Tauruses", uncle announced. 'Oh! This is something I'm definitely taking part in', I thought.