Ghost Rider

CHAPTER VI: Stealth

"Now, the idea behind this obstacle course, is to teach you to be aware of you surroundings, to be cautious about making noise, and to be as agile as your body will allow you." Raeth explained. Well there goes Antin's final grade I thought grimly. I really did want him to succeed. "Now, let the race begin!" She shouted as she raised her arms horizontal to the soft ground by the river. "Common Amber!" I coaxed my dragon as I ran through the forest. I looked around frantically, but couldn't spot Vivian anywhere. Maybe she's ahead I hoped. That thought made me push my legs faster than I had ever gone. I'm gonna win this thing i promised myself. I pumped my arms, and threw my legs forward, then backward. My feet barely touched the ground. My body screamed for relief. I skidded to a stop at the sight of a dried up riverbed that was once enveloped with delicious-tasting water. There were large boulders scattered everywhere, so I had to slow my pace down a little so I could jump from rock to rock on the course riverbed. This slowed my sprint a little, but not by much. I was determined to make it to the finish line without being heard by people that would try to catch me, getting caught up in one of the strategically placed booby traps (why they named it that I still have yet to find out), or get beaten to the finish line.
I finally found a place in the jagged riverbed where I could climb out of and return to the soft, cool earth. Although the level ground was more susceptible to booby traps, I could move much faster, quicker, and quieter. I would just have to watch out for disturbances in the forest where a trap might be hidden.
As I blazed through the serene forest, I saw some leaves in a queer place. "There are definitely not enough trees in this part of the forest to create so much leaf-fall" I quietly whispered to Amber. I was careful to step around the oddly fallen leaves knowing that it was most likely a trap. "Alright, common!" I told Amber, still whispering. Then as I was about to start running again, I saw another disturbed area, and another, and another! Amber started lowly growling, but I motioned for her to stop for fear that someone hiding in the forest would hear us. Then I had an idea. I looked up at the altitudinous pine trees and thought it would be inconceivable to place booby traps there. I cocked my head in the direction of the lofty pine tree, informing my loyal companion to follow me. I then began to scale the tree, gripping on to its corse bark until I was at a section where I could easily hop to the next branch. Amber had already climbed the tree, and was standing next to me on a thick branch. I motioned for her to go ahead. You see, my dragon, like most companions, is heavier than me. But she is also wiser than me. She has instincts that tell her which branches are safe, and which ones are rotten. So by following her, both of us are safe. After that, I did exactly as my Deathsong did.
We came to a point where the "tree bridge" ended and we had to climb down in order to continue. I was happy to do so because, although the tree route was safer than the ground route at the time, it certainly was not faster. And I desperately wanted to get to the finish line before anyone else did.
As I was just about to start my wild sprint again, I heard faint, quick feet behind me. I lurched around to see who my competitor was, but was met by a wave of relief. It was Vivian.
"Vivian!" I whispered "hey!" She whispered back. "I thought I lost you." "Yeah me too." I replied "how did you get past all the booby traps?" I inquired curiously. "Surely you must have seen them." "Yeah I did." She answered. "I ran around them." Duh! I should have totally done that instead of climbing all those stupid trees! I reprimanded myself for not doing the most reasonable thing instead of just plowing through the hard way. Oh well, I suppose it's good practice to take the unique way every now and then I shrugged. "Oh." Was all I could spit out. "Well enough chitchat." I stated, changing the subject "we've gotta go before the others beat us!" Vivian nodded and we dashed for the finish line.
The rest of the obstacle course was surprisingly uneventful. There were a few traps here and there that we had to dodge, but other than that it wasn't bad. I guess the main idea is stealth, so they're more focused on hearing you, not catching you. I told myself. We finally reached the finish line which was a visible arch with torches all around it so it was easily distinguishable. There was only one problem; it was on the other side of a cliff. I looked across the gaping canyon. Then I looked down at the raging river below me. "This could be problematic." I stated "wait." Vivian said hesitantly. "Look over there!" She shouted over the boisterous waters. We weren't afraid that anyone would hear us anymore. How could they over all that noise? I looked over at where Vivian was pointing, and, to my utter relief, I saw a sturdy vine hanging over the cliff. "If we run and jump we could catch it and swing over. But we also would have to jump as soon as we got close enough to the other side of the ravine." She uttered solemnly. "It's worth the shot. It's not like we can be stuck over here for forever." I shrugged "and I suppose our dragons could fly over." I surmised, looking down at Amber, then across to Nepi, which was the name that Vivian gave to her deadly nadar. "Alright lets do it." She said after taking a deep breath.
We arrived at the vine. "Ok, on three!" I shouted "one!" I started. "Two." She continued. "Three!" We chimed together as we made the deadly jump over the terrifying gulch, and the raging waters. Grasping for the vine which was the only thing that could keep us alive. The vine could be life if it was strongly attached, and death if it was weak. This all happened in nano seconds, but it seemed to last a life time. As if we were frozen in space. Our hands desperately outstretched for, basically, life itself. The only way that we were going to survive that jump, is if the vine held true. I touched it. I grasped it with all my might. It was secure. I was going to live. Again, nano seconds. Vivian wasn't so lucky. I looked down. I saw her falling into the mouth of the abyss. I screamed her name. I reached down with all my might, trying to grab my best friend's hand. Trying to just touch it. Trying to ensure that my only friend would see her seventh birthday. We touched fingers. We locked them. Vivian was in my grasp! I had just saved her life! She wasn't going to die! The force of our bodies lunging toward the vine, pushed us slowly over to the other side of the gulch. I swung my beloved friend forward and let go of her hand. She dropped to the sturdy ground. And I accidentally dropped on top of her. I've gotta work on my landings I told myself, putting it on my mental to-do list. We both let out a relieved, and much deserved, sigh. "I thought I was gonna die." Vivian uttered in a shaky voice. "I knew you were fine." I lied. She looked at me and raised her eyebrows, she didn't believe me. "Alright, I was worried sick!" I admitted, letting my prideful composure melt as I hugged my friend. We hugged for several seconds before shouting "the finish line!" We scrambled to our feet and ran towards the finish line.
As soon as we passed it we saw that no one was there except for our teacher, who was waiting for us. "Did we—did we win?" I stuttered, unsure if I really wanted to know the answer. She nodded. "Yes!" Vivian and I chimed together as we jumped up and gave each other high fives. My teacher chuckled. "Can we go home now?" Vivian enquired. "Yes." Raeth answered. "This will conclude our session for today. Just follow that path," she instructed, pointing to a well-paved trail, "And it will lead you to the village." After hearing this, Vivian and I held hands and ran off to tell our mothers what had happened on this eventful day. And yes, I was definitely gonna leave out the part of almost getting Gregor killed this morning.
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Author's note: so I hope you guys really enjoyed this chapter! Again, if you guys have any ideas for future chapters, or situations for Vivian and Tigly to go through, or even pranks you want them to pull off m. Just let me know in the comment section, or message me privately. If I do end up using your idea, I will give you a shout out at the beginning of the chapter if it's and idea for a chapter, at the beginning of the situation, if it was an idea about a situation, or at the beginning of the prank, if your idea was an idea about a prank. Anyway, it's late and I gtg to bed so, love you guys! Bye!