The Run

The Second Lap

I refused to talk to Sapphire and she refused to even look at me but we had other things to worry about. The second lap was coming up. I had prepared for it but you never know what the lap is going to contain so you just can't prepare enough. I became very jumpy and would constantly wake up with nightmares about Alice. Ethan helped me out by training with me and Tasha kept my spirits up with her jokes. Madame Morzette visited us all the night before the lap telling us that we had done well so far blah blah blah then we all went to sleep.
I tossed and turned in bed, my head full of questions. I groaned and longed for home. Why did the government like this? Who enjoys seeing kids being killed? Finally I fell into a restless sleep in which Alice darted in and out of my dreams.
The Next Day
The bell rang signalling that breakfast was over. Well I hardly had any breakfast since I was so nervous. The sniper had made the government nervous so tighter security had been put up. Instead of us going into a stadium the Sargent led us to a white room where round circular doors seemed to be engraved in the walls. We each stood in front of them not looking at one another, I glanced at Ethan who gave me the slightest of smiles. There were cameras at the top of the walls so people could see us, two or three fireflies flew next to me. Then another alarm went.
"Go!" The Sargent shouted and the doors opened.
We all ran through the doors, as I exited mine I entered into a desert. A plain, big desert with no civilisation or water in sight. I had to find water.
The sun beat down on me as I made my way across the desert, sand filled into my shoes slowing me down. Shouting with frustration I collapsed onto the ground and decided that I might as well just lay here and die, there was no good in the world so why should I stay?
My body started to sweat, I crawled up a sand dune hoping for death. Then a drop of water plopped onto my hand, I looked up at the sky and laughed.
It was raining in the desert.
The sky had turned from bright blue to grey in a matter of seconds, water poured from the clouds onto my upturned face. I pushed myself up into a sitting position and opened up my water bottle. As the rain water poured into my bottle I opened my mouth out wide, sighing in relief as the cold drops slid down my throat. Then as suddenly as it had started the rain stopped, the sky turned back to blue and it was scorching hot all over again. Even the sand, which was soggy while it rained had turned back to normal.
Great.
Sipping some water I got back my strength and climbed up to the top of the sand dune. There was still desert upon desert. I had a moment of thought, the other runners must be around here somewhere. The people who are in charge of The Run try to make the runners stay as far away from each other as possible. But to see another runner isn't impossible, just improbable.
I slid down the sand dune and ran to another one, this time a smaller less steeper dune. As I reached the top out of nowhere a gigantic scorpion burst out of the sand. Screaming I rolled down the dune to the bottom landing on my back, the scorpion kept up into the air, it's pincers ready to strike. The colour of its body was a pale white, that wasn't good. White scorpions are poisonous.
I leaped out of the way just as the scorpion crashed down to the ground, instantly it got up on it's legs and scuttled towards me. The face of the scorpion was enough to haunt your worst nightmare. It's face had two red slits for eyes, it's mouth was full of teeth which looked like they could rip you to pieces in seconds. The two massive pincers on its front clicked menacingly at me and the scorpion lunged. I ducked out of the way just in time but my water wasn't so lucky, the pincers ripped the plastic as if it were paper. Water spilled out onto the desert floor but I didn't have time to worry about it.
The scorpion then raised its deadly weapon, the stinger up at me. I grabbed my gun and pointed it at the scorpions stinger then at its face. Where should I shoot it? Those scaly pads on its skin must be armour. I aimed back for the stinger thinking that I might as well destroy its weapon first.
I fired and the stinger burst into flames. The scorpion shrieked in pain and ran around in circles, the fire from the stinger was rapidly making its way up the scorpions body. I took a few steps back a stepped on some pieces of my shredded bottle. My feet landed with a loud crunch and the scorpion stopped running around. It turned and looked at me. It's whole body was on fire but it didn't seem to bother it, all this creature cared about was killing me.
I gulped and grabbed my sword from my belt. My gun was out of bullets for I had used them all for the scorpions stinger. I slowly stepped to the right, trying to calm the scorpion down and make it pay more attention to its flaming body than me. Unfortunately it didn't work, the scorpion seemed to get more enraged and ran to me. It's pincers at the ready,got me in the arm. Screaming with pain I kicked its face which sent us both sprawling in the sand. Blood was seeping from my arm, I staggered and struggled to get up whereas the scorpion jumped up and rushed at me again.
Sword at the ready I ducked as the scorpion leaped at me and stabbed it in the underbelly. Dropping to the ground with pain and exhaustion I groaned and fell onto my stomach. The scorpion withered with pain before turning still.
I ripped off a piece of cloth from my sleeve and tied it around the wound on my arm, the cloth turned red with blood. I groaned but this time with frustration, I had no food or water and my only weapon was a sword which was stuck in the scorpions body.
Cringing I attempted to pull the sword out, after an amount of tugging and pulling the sword handle came out but the blade had suck deep into the stomach of the scorpion.
I kicked the dead body but nothing happened. I decided to just sit on the ground and wait for some other runner to find me. I waited for a long time, the sun didn't seem to be setting so I couldn't rely on it to tell the time. I fiddled with my shoe buckles until I realised I had lost all feeling in my left arm, the one which had been hit. I couldn't feel anything, it was as if my arm had been cut off.

That settled it, I had to get out of here one way or another. Grabbing my remaining strength and stood up and climbed the sand dune. I slid down that one and went to another one and kept on climbing and sliding, climbing and sliding until I had to rest from lack of water.
That was when I heard it.
A piercing scream filled the air followed by a gunshot. I heard shouting and yelling then silence.
I crawled to the top of the dune and looked over, a figure lying in a pool of red which could only be explained as blood was about a few metres away. I slid down the sand dune and stumbled towards the figure. The person had a red hole in their stomach in which blood was poring out of. Trying not to throw up I got down and tried to get a closer look at their face which was covered in gashes, cuts and bruises. The only fireflies I could see were mine. I wiped off the blood from the person face and gasped in horror as I recognised them.
"Lina?!"