Gear Up!

There was something about the highlighter blue of the sky that made Eligh seek out the greenest patches of grass, kick back, and get lost in his head. Though unsure how many of them were real, his eyes were on the fluffy, white clouds; lungs filled with clean air; ears lulled by sounds from a barely-there breeze.

Black birds circling overhead mapped out the surrounding park with sharp eyes, no doubt taking account of Eligh’s still body on the grass. Arm heavy, he raised a hand up high and waved. Instantly, the birds moved on, surely seeking out someone else to hover over.

Eligh let his arm drop to the grass, his fingers loose against the breeze and eyes on the birds as they flew away. Yup, I’m alive. Thanks for checking, he thought.

He’d come out to the always-empty section of the park to relax his body, calm his nerves, and let his mind do some casual wandering. But now, his mind was wandering to the wrong places.

I’m alive, he thought, but is Olly? Is he still out there? … What would mom and dad think if they knew?

His heart felt bothered, like it was being held for ransom until he made things right. He knew he was partly responsible for Oliver running away. At times when Oliver sought Eligh out with worries to be soothed, he was every bit the little brother Eligh felt him to be; he was “Olly.” Eligh’s Olly who was never turned away.

But that night three months ago…

Eligh shook the memory away before it could form and forced himself into a sitting position. There was no point trying to relax anymore.

Suddenly, a shock wave so loud it echoed like a crack of thunder, rumbled through the landscape and brought Eligh’s attention back to the sky above. Little shiny black pods appeared in throngs overhead, darting beneath the clouds in dips, circles, and dives, dancing ecstatically to a blasting theme song of festival fanfare. The music seemed to come from everywhere and nowhere at all—it might have come from deep within—pulling Eligh in as its sole audience, unable to look away.

His previously choked heart was now beating in excitement. This was it, the start of everything.

The black pods zipped in the air for several more seconds before coming to an abrupt halt in the shape of several series of letters formed into words.

“GREETINGS, MISTER ELIGH PERSIL!!” The pods spelled out. Among the pods boomed an authoritative voice belonging to no physical body but existing alone as a replica of Mayor Agatha’s voice. “This moment marks the start of the high-octane Gear Up! Games!!” Automated cheers sounded while a couple of the black pods at the back of the pack exploded into small bursts of fireworks.

The remaining pods spelled: LISTEN CLOSELY while Mayor Agatha’s voice resumed speaking. “This year’s entry to the contest is simple. Contestants must locate and obtain one of the one hundred gift orbs scattered throughout the city. The time limit is one hour. Naturally, gift orbs will be exchanged with competitors from abroad to mark the ceremonial start to the Games; thus, failure to capture one will result in your disqualification.

“Now, be cognizant that you represent the country in strength, talent, and above all, character. So, gear up—” several of the orbs shot toward Eligh, transforming mid-flight into bulky bracelet-like items and shackling his ankles and wrists like hungry snakes— “play well with our friends from abroad, and…” Mayor Agatha’s voice pulled on the word ‘and’ and was met by sounds of crescendo coming from the still-floating orbs. Meanwhile, more than half those black orbs began changing colors, flashing between red, green, blue, white, gold, clear—Eligh’s eyes picked up something within a few of them while others seemed empty—and black again before zipping off haphazardly through the air and out of sight.

Eligh felt an excitement burn in his heart, goosebumps on his neck, tingling in his fingers as Mayor Agatha’s voice finished with: “Let the games BEGIN!”

Fireworks—exploding from the remainder of the shiny orbs even in other parts of the city—rocketed into the air, exploding across the skyscape. Celebration was all around; cheers were ringing out everywhere. Real cheers, this time, amid claps and shouts and whistles.

The other contestants had just been formally introduced to the first phase of the Gear Up! Games.

Eligh drank all this energy in as he double tapped the heavy metallic bracelet encircling his left wrist. It beeped to life with the sound an active bomb would make before detonating and suddenly the metal around his ankles expanded to engulf his feet like sleek metallic shoes. The metal bracelets expanded to wrap over his hands and fingers like gloves.

Eligh opened, closed, opened, closed his hands and couldn’t resist the smile forming on his face. This was his first Games, his first time gearing up, and this excitement he felt blew all his earlier trepidation out the window.

“Olly and I promised to compete together,” he spoke into the empty field, “but that can’t happen now.” His eyes caught another contestant zipping by overhead and he felt his resolve hardening inside of him. “Things didn’t go as planned, but that only means one thing.”

Taking in a deep breath, Eligh closed both fists with a strong grip and stretched his body upward. His feet left the ground with a burst of power Eligh didn’t predict the shoes had. He was high in the sky in seconds, able to see the grounds far below and the fun, spirited chaos unfolding in the sky.

Orbs were everywhere, a beautiful infestation of colors flashing still from red, green, blue, white, gold, clear, and black again. They zipped crazily, running from contestants as young as twelve to those much, much older—a game for everyone.

Everyone, Eligh thought and smiled as an image of Oliver flashed through his mind. He knew his younger brother was trying to, and would, qualify out there somewhere.

“I’ll punch my ticket to the second phase of these Games, and I’ll face Olly head on.” He promised himself. “Just you wait, Olly.

“I’ll put us back together again.”