Zahara's Gift Read online

  “You will be judged individually on each of the four events. The contestant who has the highest overall score wins. If you fail to complete any of the four events, you will be disqualified, showing a ‘no score.’ The other four judges and I will determine the points awarded during each event. In the case of a tie for first place, we’ll hold a sudden-death round, which will be explained if such an event occurs.

  “You’ll compete in six heats of ten. The last heat will only have eight, as there are fifty-eight of you competing today. Those are the rules. You’ll be starting with the strength portion first, which is located here on the beach. The first heat will begin now. Contestants with the numbers one through ten written on their arms and legs follow me to the starting area,” the judge said as he climbed down from the rock.

  Anders was number forty-three, which meant he would have to wait and watch the first four heats compete before he would get his chance. He made his way over to a central location where he could see the first event clearly. The strength event included three parts; the first required lifting heavy stones. The five large rocks lined up for each contestant on one end of the beach varied in size and weight. Contestants would have to pick them up, carry them across the sand and place them on their appropriate stands.

  Anders watched as the contestants in the first heat carried the heavy stones and struggled to place them on the stands. The tallest of the stands was just above head height, so it behooved them to place the lightest of the five rocks on the highest stand, and the heaviest on the lowest.

  Anders knew from his experience in the previous games that he couldn’t place the largest stone on the lowest platform if he tried to do the others first. He had figured that trick out two years ago when he did the lighter stones first and was too tired to pick up the heaviest one. He watched many other people make that same mistake. Those who couldn’t get all of the stones on the stands received lower scores.

  The second and third parts of the strength event required distance-throwing. One of them tested to see how far individuals could toss a heavy log. Each would have to toss the log in such a way that the log made at least one flip end-over-end. The person who threw the log the farthest would earn the highest score. If the log failed to flip at least once, the thrower received an automatic minus two points. The second throwing challenge was a spear toss. The longest toss earned the most points.

  Anders watched the four heats of contestants go before him. He knew that if he could put up all of the stones in the first challenge and make the log flip in the second, he would have a decent chance at placing in the top ten no matter how far he tossed the spear.

  When his heat was called to compete, all ten of them stood in a line on the beach. Anders was placed next to Max, the lad he’d met earlier outside the registration tent. On his other side stood a tall, burly-looking Rollo warrior. Anders recognized him as a second-time competitor from the last Grandwood Games, making him at least three years older than Anders. The warrior wore his clan’s markings on his caramel-toned skin. He had a nest of dark hair curling down from his head. A large, full beard matched his unkempt hair and concealed much of the warrior’s face. The Rollo Islander was intimidating, to say the least; Anders knew he had his work cut out for him if he wanted to beat the muscular man.

  When the starting signal was given, Anders flew through the lifting portion. He started with the heaviest stone, which he could barely place on the lowest stand, then swiftly worked his way through the rest. At the log throw, Anders hoisted the heavy log up by its base. He held the log firmly against his shoulder, careful not to let it tip over. For a moment, it wobbled. Using the log’s momentum, he leaned forward and began to run with it. After ten or twelve steps, Anders heaved the log up with all his might.

  He watched as the top of the log rose up into the air, turning at a downward angle as it began to fall. The log spun one-hundred-and-eighty degrees in rotation before landing and sliding across the ground. He was able to gain enough speed before releasing it to see it fly through one full rotation. He was very happy with himself and knew then that he could relax a bit for the third part of the event.

  When it was his turn, Anders picked up the spear, gripping it tightly. He raised it up behind his head and marched down the beach with increasing speed. Before reaching the throwing line marked in the sand, he planted his feet firmly and twisted his body, tossing the spear with everything he had. He watched as it flew through the air and bored head first into the beach.

  A judge ran out and measured the distance. Anders knew he’d done well, regardless of what the mark was. He threw his arms up in excitement and grinned as he saw his family cheering for him in the excited crowd.

  As the sixth heat gathered to take its turn, Anders went to check the scoreboard the judges posted for each event. He was tied with about half of the people for second place, with a score of twenty-eight-and-a-half points. The Rollo warrior in Anders’ heat took the lead with a score of twenty-nine-and-a-half.

  In the test of knowledge that followed, each contestant would face the same problem and have to use his or her intellect to get through it. Contestants were not allowed to watch one another during this event, so nobody would have an unfair advantage on completing the challenge. It was designed to put their minds to the test and weeded out those who were only physically adept.

  By the time it was Anders’ turn, a quarter of the contestants had been unable to complete the event, forcing them to drop out of the games. As he walked up to the event’s location, the large Rollo Islander nudged him aside, cursing him in broken Landish under his breath. Anders’ instinct was to push the large man back, but he forced himself to avoid the conflict. In that moment, he realized the man was just trying to get in his head and throw him off his game. He didn’t retaliate by engaging in a fight, but instead focused on beating him in this next event. If Anders could do that, he might be able to surpass the warrior’s lead in the competition.

  One by one the contestants were directed into their own private tents. The area around the tents had been walled off from the crowd, so they could concentrate without distractions. When Anders entered his assigned tent, he found a table in the center of the tent. Seated on the table was a large wooden tower about three feet tall. Anders instantly recognized the tower from a book of puzzles and riddles Theodor had in his library. The Lumbapi people of Southland created it, if he remembered correctly.

  The puzzle was designed to hold a centerpiece hidden within the tower. The challenge was to extract it without making the tower fall over. The puzzle was especially challenging, he remembered reading, because you weren’t allowed to completely remove any of the pieces. The pieces had to be arranged in a specific order to complete the task. Anders saw a piece of parchment next to the tower.

  Picking it up, he read:

  Before you sits the renowned Lumbapi Tower Puzzle. This impressive work holds a treasure within. Do the puzzle correctly and the treasure will reveal itself. Handle the puzzle incorrectly, and the tower will crumble. No piece of the tower is to be completely removed.

  Good luck.

  Anders began shifting the pieces of the tower around. Each one had to be moved a certain way to unlock the next layer inside. The tower puzzle in the book he read only had three layers and was much simpler than this one.

  Struggling for nearly an hour and passing through six layers, Anders was about to give up, when he figured out how to place the last piece. He rotated it and locked it into its correct position. The center of the tower revealed itself. When it opened, he saw there was a tiny scroll hidden inside. He picked it up and read the small script:

  For completing the puzzle you move on with a perfect score for this round. You are awarded ten points.

  Anders took the scroll from the puzzle and left the tent relieved that he had passed. He handed it to the judges who marked down his score with a perfect ten.

  He walked over to the rest of the members in his heat who had
also solved the puzzle. Max was among them talking with his brother, Bo, who joined him from the crowd.

  “That was quite a challenge,” Anders said as he approached them.

  Max agreed, “We had one of those in our house growing up. We messed around with it a bit, but ours was not that complex.”

  “I’ve only ever read about them. Having that out of the way is a huge relief,” Anders said, happy to be done with the second event.

  Anders went to check the scoreboard. To Anders’ surprise, the Rollo Island warrior had completed the puzzle as well. Anders had underestimated his intelligence. He was hoping to beat out the warrior, but since they both completed the challenge, the difference between their scores remained unchanged, so Anders went back to wait for the rest of the contestants to finish.

  Nearly half of the men and women competing failed the puzzle and had to forfeit. Anders remained tied with quite a few people, including his new friend Max.

  ***

  Now came the skills event. Each contestant had the option of choosing whatever skill he or she wished to perform to impress the judges. As Anders watched, his confidence grew that he could move ahead of some of the people with whom he was tied. During this event, other contestants were allowed to watch, so he sat in the crowd next to his family.

  Many people chose to show off their skills as archers; others threw spears, none of which were that impressive. One person chose to dance. To Anders’ surprise, the dancer was actually quite impressive. When it was Anders’ turn, he grabbed his throwing knives and butterfly axes.

  Anders had a routine that started with the knives, placing each one on three different targets, increasing the distance with each throw. Next, he would throw his axes. The first would hit the center of the target and the rest he stacked, sticking them into the handles of the previous axe. Then finally he would take three more knives and start from the farthest distance back. Running and spinning he would stick each knife into the handles of the first three knives he’d thrown.

  Anders stood in front of his targets, throwing his first three knives into the middle of each one, taking steps backward between each throw. Now, holding his three axes and standing a bit farther away, he whipped the first axe through the air toward the fourth target. It landed directly in the center with the handle pointing straight out. The next two he tossed in quick succession. They hit the same mark splitting into the handle of the axe in front of it. Then as fast as anyone could see, he began throwing his last three knives. As though it was effortless, he stacked the three knives in the same fashion, one in each of the handles of the first three he had thrown. In a blur of spins and throws, Anders had completed the third event. All of his knives and axes stacked on top of each other, protruding in a straight line out from the center of each target.

  The crowd erupted in cheers. Anders’ display amazed them. He faced them, took a bow, and returned to his family who stood together smiling proudly.

  “That was brilliant!” Thomas exclaimed, giving Anders a slap on the back.

  “I had no idea you were that accurate with your knives and axes,” Theodor said, astonished.

  He thanked them for their compliments, and together Anders and his family watched the remaining contestants’ performances. Anders paid special attention to the large Rollo man who he saw as one of his main competitors. The brute’s special skill was spear throwing for accuracy. While impressive, especially with the distance at which he could hit the targets, Anders was a bit underwhelmed by his performance. He thought his own accuracy was slightly superior, and if the judges saw it the way he did, Anders had a chance at closing the one-point gap between them.

  Shortly after their heat had finished, new scores were posted on the board. Anders walked up beside Max and Bo to read the results. He shouted with excitement upon seeing his new score, “Yes!” He had gained another ten points, making his score forty-eight-and-a-half. Max and Bo congratulated him while the large warrior scowled at him, clearly frustrated. The Islander had fallen short in his performance. The judges awarded him nine points; he was now tied with Anders for the lead. Max scored nine-and-a-half-points, which had him tied for second place with two others, one of whom was the dancer. The rest of the competitors had fallen further behind in the rankings after the specialty skills portion of the competition.

  The contestants were given a one-hour break before returning for the start of the mountain race. Anders took this time to sit alongside his family and quickly devour some of his uncle’s famous ‘gue’ sandwiches before he had to be back. The ‘gue’ recipe was a Southland tradition where peanut butter was mixed with honey; not only tasty, the gue provided an excellent boost of energy. Together they marveled at the possibility that Anders had a good chance of winning the competition this year. He could hardly believe he had done so well.

  When it was time for Anders to head back for the race, he heard someone call his name. Turning around, he saw Maija jogging toward him.

  “Hey,” she said, getting closer.

  “Maija,” Anders said, happy to see her.

  “I wanted to wish you luck in the final event. You’ve been doing so well. I’ve been cheering for you from the crowd,” she said blushing. “And…” she paused.

  “And what?” Anders asked, curious about what she would say next.

  “And this,” she said. Maija leaned in close to him and kissed him on the lips. It was soft, gentle, and at the same time contained an intense passion he had never experienced before. He kissed her back, and for a moment he forgot about everything else around him. Pulling away she smiled as she looked into his eyes.

  “I’ve been wanting to do that since yesterday,” she said.

  Anders stood there with a whimsical expression on his face. He couldn’t find words to tell her how he felt.

  “Good luck,” she said and ran back into the crowd.

  Anders could hardly believe what had just happened. His mind was no longer on the mountain race. It was on Maija. He stood there, adrenaline pumping through his body from having the unexpected and welcome kiss. Then he remembered he needed to be at the starting line soon.

  It was late in the evening and the sun hung low in the sky. Anders stood tall next to the others who’d also made it to the final event of the Grandwood Games. Fifteen people were left, which meant there would be only one heat for this final event. He tried to focus on how he needed to set a steady pace so he could outlast the others as they ran up the mountain.

  The judge at the starting line shouted in a loud voice so all could hear, “Runners, on your marks!” Each lowered into a running stance. “Get set!” Anders bent his knees and leaned forward. “Go!” the judge yelled.

  Taking off quickly, they dashed across the beach to the trail that wound up the mountainside. Anders, Max, and the Rollo warrior were in the front of the pack. Max pulled ahead of them, setting the pace. They slowed as the slope increased, creating more strain on their bodies and building fatigue. The contestants fought, pushing and pulling each other as they climbed higher up the mountain. At times Anders and the warrior swapped places back and forth behind Max, who kept up his steady pace.

  Exhausted, the three leading contestants fought their way up the mountain, putting more and more distance between them and the rest of the pack. Darkness surrounded them as they neared the top. Anders slowed and all three of them struggled to reach the peak. He forced himself to keep his burning legs moving.

  He passed Max for the lead and was the first to reach the top of the mountain. Relieved to be at the top, he stopped and took a moment to catch his breath before making the descent. He looked down at the little dots of light scattered across the beach where people huddled around their warming fires.

  Something in the distance caught his gaze. He strained to make sure he was really seeing what he thought it was. To his surprise, just off the coastline of Grandwood a fleet of ships sailed toward the shore. There were at least twenty of them altogether. E
ach one had black sails masking its approach at night. Instinctively, he knew what was about to happen. Just as the Rollo warrior and Max reached the top of the peak, their dark hair blending into the night sky, Anders heard the loud booming of the first round of cannon fire. Bright explosions followed, speckling the shoreline where the race had begun. Anders’ heart sank and he sprinted back down the mountain, forgetting the games as the fear for his family’s safety consumed him.

  Chapter Three

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  The Attack

  ANDERS’ LUNGS BURNED AS he ran back down the mountain. Many of the remaining contestants had already turned back after hearing the canon fire, never reaching the mountaintop. Max and the Rollo Island warrior were close behind Anders. All three had made it to the top of the mountain when Anders saw the masked ships launch the attack. Now all of the competitive thoughts that had driven them up the mountain were lost.

  Running, the three emerged near the edge of the forest. The expansive field where the race had started was unrecognizable, as cannon fire had torn the landscape apart. Explosions dotted the shoreline, leaving behind smoldering craters.

  Anders squinted through the darkness. Among the blazing tents and wreckage, he could see the silhouettes of armor-clad men wielding swords and axes running across the beach. The laughter of people who had been enjoying the festival had turned to blood-curdling screams and cries for help.

  The first to run out of the woods and into the field of debris, Anders moved quickly across the field and slid behind an overturned wagon, timing his move to stay hidden from the attacking soldiers.

  I have to find my family, he thought trying to stay focused.

  Poking his head around the edge of the wagon, he peered over to where he’d last seen Thomas, Kirsten and Theodor, hoping he might spot at least one of them hiding amidst the rubble. Several bodies lay scattered on the ground near where his uncle and cousins had been cheering for him before the race.