THE END

Chapter 10

We get outside and it amazes me. Someone was busy while we were inside practicing archery. The previously barren, red-brown land, is covered by a thick metal sheet, a training ground. There are targets set up everywhere just like with archery inside, although I notice actual guns instead of bows and arrows. The thought of shooting an actual gun is kind of scary, but I know the people here are trained and can show me what to do.

There's a rock wall set up that's probably 100 feet high. It looks impossible to climb. That must be the "Health and Fitness" activity for today. I also notice an obstacle course of sorts, with tires on the ground that we probably have to jump around, a rope that we probably have to swing from, a surface that looks like a slide, which we probably have to climb up, and then there's the river.

It's like they simulated an actual river, on Jupiter. They dug out a path in the ground, about twenty feet wide, by maybe a mile long. It's filled to the brim with water, I'm assuming it's around 50 feet deep. It's hard to tell though.

There are tiny canoes, just big enough for two people, lined up along the edge, and the water is clear and blue. How did they do all this while we were doing archery? These people are efficient. No one else seem to think it out of the normal.

Almost everyone is outside, all 2000 of us. We gather around by the rock wall where a man with a megaphone says, "Today we will be breaking into groups for our training. You can choose what activities you want to do, and instructors will be at each station to help you."

With that everyone scatters, and within a minute the area is clear. "What should we do?" I ask.

"Canoeing sounds fun. And then maybe rock climbing?" Neil says.

"I might try the obstacle course and then the shooting." Natalie says.

"I'll do the canoeing with you, Neil, but I think I'll join Natalie with the shooting afterward." After our experience with the ravine, I really don't want to climb anything and risk falling. My shoulders and lower back are still kind of sore.

"Okey doke." He says to me, seeming to understand. "See ya later." He says to his sister.

We head to the "river" and find an empty canoe. An instructor gives us some life vests and tells us we can't be in the water longer than an hour, so everyone gets a turn. He shows us how to correctly hold the oar, and then sends us off.

At first we struggle to paddle, unable to make the boat move more than a few inches. Neil flicks me with water and I splash him back. Soon it's a full on water fight, using the paddles to lift up water and dump it on each other. I let out a laugh as water rolls down Neil's face. "I got you!"

"Well I got you back!" He laughs, splashing more water on me. Eventually we stop splashing each other long enough to realize that we're soaked, and that about seven other boats are staring at us. We also moved less than ten feet from the shore. I blush as I pick up an oar and start to paddle like a normal person.

"Well that was fun." Neil says simply, not minding the stares. We paddle harder, until we actually get the hang of it, and begin to move across the 'river'. We do laps across it and back again, until my arms feel like they're going to fall off. We pass other canoers  who glance at us and smile at each other knowingly. "Ha, it looks like they ship it." I blush again and ignore his comment.

Eventually, figuring that our hour is up, we bring the canoe back to shore and return our life vests. I see Mark and Natalie trying out the obstacle course, Mark helping Natalie when she slips, Natalie holding out a hand when he falls. I notice that they don't let go after that. "I don't know about you, but I ship them." I say to Neil, nodding my head in their direction.