Rewards

The ground behind me was shattering at a very fast pace, and I could only push myself to run as fast as I could. The screams of others pierced the air as they yelled for help while falling into the ground, but I needed to save myself first. I needed to get out of here alive before confronting my brother about this ridiculous kind of punishment.

"Let's make this more fun, shall we?" The man standing beside Ky inquired with a subtle smirk on his lips.

He watched in the direction of the race with heightened senses; he could listen to their breaths, hear their heartbeat thumping loudly in their chest, and the panic in their eyes as they tried to race forth to the finish line before the time went out. With a vicious smile on his lips, he tapped on a red button on the remote he held and watched the students racing for their lives in amusement.

"This year surely offers good treats" Ky muttered, running his tongue over his teeth as he kept his gaze fixated on the people racing. His eyes were particularly locked upon someone, a relative of an acquaintance and he couldn't help but be baffled at her survival instinct.

I kept my eyes locked upon the finish line; the time was already twenty seconds, and I needed to make it there. After two seconds, Valerie and the other guy crossed the line and into the finish line. They breathed heavily as they turned to look at those they left behind and continued to cheer for them not to give up. Amongst those who quickly finished the race were Theresa and her friends and some other people. The rest of us remained behind, running with everything we had in us, and some had fallen to the ground, trying to crawl their way out of the hole, but it seemed impossible.

<Eighteen seconds>

I breathed a sigh of relief when I almost neared the finish line and the time wasn't exhausted. However, a deep frown marred my face the next second when I felt the ground under where my leg was trembling; I was forced to stop abruptly; otherwise, I would have fallen to the ground. With panic in my eyes and trembling heart, I watched the ground split open ahead of me. I was going to fall to the ground. But I didn't; instead, the ground began to level up, raising me high into the air, and my eyes widened at the height difference from the base when the ground came to a halt. Holding me up in the air. My foot mistakenly stumbled to the front, and some rock particles fell from the carved ground I was standing on. I watched it fall deep into the ground, the echo that came along with it terrified me.

I looked around to see that I wasn't just the only one stuck in the air. There were plenty of others, too, that were in this unfavorable position with me. Fear gripped them as they looked below.

Even with this. The time was still going.

<Ten seconds>

"What are we going to do!?"

"They can't possibly tell us to jump from this height, we'll be killed if we drop to the ground"

<Nine>

"Jump Carol!" Someone called from the ground and I looked down to see that it was Theresa calling out to me. Was the idiot blind? Couldn't she see that a mere human like me wouldn't make it if I jumped from this height? I'll be dead.

"She can't jump. It's too high." I heard another person counter from below, and I frowned inwardly from where I stood. I anxiously glanced up at the time.

<Seven>

What was I going to do? This ground was stuck up here and wouldn't go down to its normal level. And I couldn't jump because I'll be dead, or even break a leg and it's worse than I can ever imagine. I needed these two legs. Suddenly the wind became more fierce, swiping away people from where they stood to fall from where they were stuck. My eyes widened as I saw some slipping off the edge and falling to the ground; I wasn't safe either because the wind had blown my fragile frame away, and I could only grab the sharp edge with my two hands. Oh God! What sort of horror was this place? I'd never come back here, I was sure about that.

I gripped hard on the edge, sweat broke from my head as I looked behind me before turning back my focus. Any little mistake from here, then I could kiss this life goodbye. I'd never see Mom, Axel, or Grandma again. I'd never get the chance to speak to him, my crush, and I'd miss lots of things if today happened to be my demise.

<Five>

But was this the end? The end of me. Here? in this place. I didn't even get a chance to graduate and just one fight had ruined my life entirely. I felt tears cloud my vision as I struggled to push myself up. Please, let me make it out of here. I don't want to die yet! I said inwardly, exerting my strength to lift myself only to slide back again, and this time I was holding on with just one hand.

A gasp erupted from my lips as my other hand slipped from the edge. At the same time, a tear slipped from the corner of my eyes, dropping slowly to the ground.

<Three>

<Two>

I closed my eyes, bracing myself for what was going to happen next. Was I going to fall to the ground and shatter?

Would my body not be properly buried, left to languish beneath the earth? Would I be ensnared in this cold, dark ground for eternity? The weight of despair pressed heavy upon me, but even amid my struggles, I clung to a flicker of hope. I longed for a miracle, anything to pull me from this abyss, for I desperately wanted to be alive again, to embrace my family and the ones I adored.

Suddenly, I heard a whirring sound, echoing from somewhere behind me, pulling my attention from my agony. My heart raced as I turned to see a remarkable sight: a sleek, mechanical robot hovering gracefully in the air, its metallic surface glinting in the dim light. To my astonishment, it spoke directly to me.

<My lady, if you would please step on me, I'll get you out of here.>

Its voice was calm and reassuring, a stark contrast to the panic that coursed through my veins. I watched in disbelief as it positioned itself beneath my leg, and with a shaky exhale, I released my grip from the edge, surrendering my weight to this peculiar creature.

<One>

In an instant, we shot forward, the world blurring around us as we dashed toward the distant finish line. The robotic entity was surprisingly swift, gliding effortlessly above the ground as if carried by the wind. Before I could even comprehend what was happening, we reached our destination in the blink of an eye. The robot hovered just above the earth before I gently disembarked, landing on solid ground with a mixture of relief and disbelief.

<You're welcome, my lady,> it chimed, its tone cheerful and proud, even before I found my voice to express my gratitude. The tape that signified the finish line fluttered in an invisible breeze, while the reality of my near demise played like a haunting echo in my mind. The robot whirled around and, with a swift whoosh, it soared away, leaving me shaken but alive.

"Carol!" Valerie's voice pierced through my thoughts, her figure rushing toward me like a beacon of safety. "I'm so glad you made it," she exclaimed, wrapping her arms around me in a tight, warm embrace.

"Me too. You're good at holding on," the other boy chimed in, a friendly smile lighting up his face. I returned his smile, gratitude swelling within me for his support as we stood united, side by side, bracing ourselves for what would come next.

<Zero>

<Shutdown>

The air that surrounded us crackled with an electric tension, an echo of uncertainty hanging heavy as the unfolding events awaited us. The timer had gone out and there were still some people above, stuck in the air, almost three of them. Like I had thought earlier, the ground began breaking around them, they screamed as they fell from the very tall height and to the ground. One of them, because of the wind, fell flat in front of us, head splattered on the ground, and we could see its content. I placed a hand over my mouth because I had a strong urge to puke. Valerie turned her head away, like some of the other students who cursed for having to watch that gory scene.

Then the ground leveled and the other two were buried along with it, dead.

But... those students we left behind during the race were brought back to the top before the ground level. I could see the smiles on their faces as they rushed to hug each other, relieved that they would make it out of there since they had been saved.

"Congratulations, players." The man began to address us after we had just run a race that determined our fate, whether we were going to live or not. "Congratulations to those who made it to the finish line. At the same time, congratulations to the losers, as you're not at all useless," He said with a cruel smile playing on his lips. Although he was far away from us, I could tell that what he was planning for us wasn't something good. I still had a feeling that something dark was being prepared for us. Just how much surprise do they have for us in this detention center?

"Now, for the reward. Pardon me, the losers will be rewarded first," He said, and after that, there was a long silence. I stood still, watching in their direction to see the wall folding again, and they had gone out of sight, every one of them, leaving us once again in this strange place, and we craved nothing else but to go home.

Everyone stood in silence. The survivors were at the finish line, and the losers were gathered at the center. Everyone wondered what was going to happen next; we all had our ears on alert, and eyes widened at the sight before us. We didn't dare to blink for fear that the unexpected would happen at that moment.

Then, there was a dark cloud gathering ahead of us; I looked up to see the ominous-looking sky. Was it about to rain? But what was going to rain this time? I hoped it wasn't bullets because anything could be possible here in this forbidden land of a school. I needed to get out of there and inquire if everything was indeed true, even though I had just witnessed it with my very own eyes. I just needed some type of confirmation.

What if I was slowly running mad? and needed to visit the infirmary just like Coco had suggested?

What if I was only dreaming and none of this was happening?

There's only one way to find out, either getting out of this place or waking up from the dream. Either way, I had to be alive.

I was yanked to the ground by someone as something was hovering above us. It stretched over us like a shadow, and I looked up to see large creatures flying above us, serpent-like only that it had huge talons and scales, spikes along its back, and huge wings that spread out. And it wasn't just one but three of them.

They headed in the direction of where the losers had gathered and halted before them; the students cowered back in fear; some even slumped to the ground due to a heart attack. Then the dragons began to blaze fire upon them, intense fire that caught their clothes and burned their bodies to ashes.

"Dear God" The boy beside me whispered. He hurriedly slipped his hand into his pocket to fish out his phone and started to take a video.

The dragons intended to leave nothing behind. The students began to scamper around, running for their lives but were only being caught by the dragons who either chose to burn their bodies or jerk their head off their shoulders like they were just dolls. They got rid of the students very quickly and flew back in the direction they came from while taking the bodies away.

"The losers have been rewarded, and now it's time for the survivors." There was an echo around the walls that enclosed us. Everyone held their breaths and anticipated the worst that could ever happen to them. "And your reward is that you're free to go"

"I hope you haven't learned enough lessons and will continue to disrupt the school so that we can meet again with even more terrifying events. Goodbye students"