The Race Begins

The evening arrived, and our races were about to begin. My friends joined the crowd on the stands, while me and Turry used another entrance. Curly couldn't stay with me during the race, therefore she remained with my friends instead. "Are you curious? We haven't seen the course yet, but the atmosphere around seems really heated. I wonder who our opponents are", "Moo! Mo, moo", Turry sounded as curious as me.

We were led toward a large area with more contestants. An area which had no overlook of the course we'd run. I could guess their intention, which was a bit pointless. From eavesdropping alone, I could tell that a few people in my group experienced the course already. They'd have an advantage over others, or so I assumed.

Once our group was completed, another representative led us outside. In my mind, the course would be littered with obstacles and pitfalls, but that simply wasn't the case. The course was an oval track with nothing in the way of our mounts. What mattered wasn't agility, but pure speed and perhaps endurance. On that soily track, we'd face each other for the title of the fastest.

Besides our group, there were two more groups who entered the course. One of them received much more attention than both combined, and the reason was popularity. They were the so called Speeds, the term coined for people who already achieved something on the track.

They were excluded from the first stage, and only joined in during the second stage. Though that might seem unfair, it wasn't a bad idea in overall. These people were tried and tested. They had achievements and ability to perform. Others, myself included, had to prove our skills or the skills of our mounts.

After a ceremony of sorts, people were given specific numbers. These determined the order in which we competed. My number was seven, therefore my turn was second. The first four contestants were asked to make their way towards the starting position, while others left towards the contestant's waiting area at the fringes of the course.

Other than meeting my Human opponents, I got to see some unique creatures. Raptors which were familiar to me from my childhood, as well as other mounts resembling horses, large wolves and even something akin to a plant animal. I wasn't sure what that was, but it apparently existed. There were none that looked like Turry, which was of course predictable.

Either way, the race began, and the crowd roared once the contestants left the starting position. We were required to do three laps around the course, and the first as well as the second to finish, would qualify to the next stage. From the first group, the person with a Raptor and a horse looking creature, managed to secure their place in the next stage. Though another guy with a horse-like creature got very close to snatching second place for himself.

Once they were done, the next group of contestants got called to the starting position. Me and three of my opponents made their way to the start. I was up against something akin to a horse, another Raptor and a weird looking wolf. Since we had wolves at home, I was fairly familiar with them. Yet my opponent's wolf seemed a bit different than the variants I was aware of.

Nonetheless, a man at the side of the starting point told us to get ready, then raised his hand. Once his hand fell, the race began. I ordered Turry to run at a normal pace, just to check out the opposition. They were quite fast, and easily matched Turry's normal pace. "Let's go a bit faster", I said to Turry's ear.

Turry's hoofs stomped firmly on the soil, as we edged forward bit by bit. Others were able to sort of keep up, but their mounts weren't fast enough in the end. We were able to easily get the win, without much of a problem. Turry didn't have to use his full speed in order to win, even less his energy. The second place belonged to the wolf-like creature and its owner.

After our win, which probably made Tara really happy, came the next group, then the next and so on until all groups had a winner. Then the real stage began, the second stage. The Speeds would be joining us that time, while the format stayed the same. We'd race in four contestant groups, but this time, each group would determine one winner who'd advance to the third stage.

The Speeds didn't compete against each other though. They were spread out as much as possible, just to maximise the chance of them qualifying, instead of taking each other out early. That was a bit more unfair, since a better contestant was supposed to win. If three Speeds competed in one group, that meant two of them weren't up to par, and would lose in the next stage as well.

I saw that as a pointless chance for people who'd end up eliminated anyway. 'I guess this does make a great spectacle, so who am I to judge', I figured in the end. My race was third in the queue, which meant time to see others perform.

The Speeds were indeed good, and their mounts rather unique. The first Speed had a sort of Raptor variant. The creature was bigger and much faster than normal Raptors, its claws seemed to be metallic, while its tail enforced with thick scales. These were great features for a mount that could battle, and there was a reason for such mounts.

No rules prohibited a fight against contestants' mounts. That Speed made those unaware realise what the second stage meant. During the first stage, people didn't attack each other, they were focussed on going fast. The second stage was a bit different. You had to go fast, or eliminate your opponents. Whichever worked for the individual, and that Raptor was equipped to do both. There were no prizes for guessing, the owner of that Raptor received an easy victory.

The second Speed wasn't any different. Though he had a horse-like creature, but much more distinguished. The creature seemed proud, and really unfriendly to other animals. Usual horses had bushy tails, but that one had a thin and rough tail, like a metal rod. Moreover, it was grey in colour and its eyes were green. Very distinctive and unique. Besides that, it's size was actually smaller than normal horses, yet its speed was nothing to scoff at.

That little horse creature could run for sure. Even the Raptor variants seemed to pale in comparison. I wasn't sure whether Turry's full speed would be enough to keep up, but of course Turry could use his energy. Whether that little horse could, the question wasn't answered at that stage.

Once that guy got an easy victory, it was turn for the third race of the second stage. Me, Turry and other contestants made their way toward the starting point. The Speed we were up against owned the plant like creature. The thing looked thin with long legs, a weirdly angular head and red eyes. The creature's walk seemed a bit awkwardly, as if it was trying to jump instead of walk. The creature restrained itself each time, which struck me as weird. Another weird feature was its 'hands'.

Usually creatures had four limbs, but that thing had six. I assumed four of them had to be 'hands', and not just any kind, razor sharp kind. That thing was a hunter for sure, and a unique one at that. No one else had anything similar to that creature, as if it was the only one in existence.

'We'll see what you can do', I thought before the official raised his hand. He asked everyone whether we were ready. Only after getting the confirmation from the Speed, his hand fell down indicating the beginning of the race.