Memorize (Book One)

Galaxy games

Jay opened his eyes and a thought instantly rushed through his mind:

Today's the day! I'm going to reconnect with my past. This is the day when I break into that damn Memory Hall.

It was also the day when his best friend was going to risk his life, which didn't sound totally right. He had gathered that the Master Games which Starling was involved into were extremely dangerous. Of course, as an Aspiring Challenger, Jay was also involved, but it was a more anecdotal part of the Games. He would participate in tryouts and compete for the Swimming Race Games. As for Starling, he was in for the Skandalopetra Wrestling Challenge, and this was a life-threatening event everybody was waiting for.

Jay scanned his environment with an illogical impulse to linger a while longer on his couch, but a reminder echoed in his apartment:

"Good morning Mr Fleogan. Your daily nutrition ratio is ready, and you have an appointment in half an hour at the Swimming Grounds, for a final training. Please remember to take your supplements; it is going to be a long challenging day."

You have no idea what a long day it's actually going to be!

Jay got up and went straight to the Diffuser. He lingered there for three solid minutes, enjoying the moist perfumed air flows on his skin and trying to even out his mind. Since he had awakened as a second-born, he had gotten hooked to this salutary habit of emptying his head... He then came out and put on his leisure outfit. No need to wear the traditional suit from the Water Department: for the next three days, the Games were to be the sole focus of the entire population of B24.

As Jay stepped out of his apartment, the streets dotted with little blue lights were still dark. B24's two smaller suns were just beginning to rise above the horizon. They were shooting oblique blazing rays on the distant chains of mountains and on the red, dry soil. The air was still a little fresh but the heat was already palpable in long, enveloping breezes. Families were not out yet, but many visitors from nearby planets were streaming steadily through the long, large streets, talking, carrying travel bags, having Morning Drinks at Restoration Spots, or simply watching live recaps projected everywhere in the town. The Red City had tripled its population, and an unusual flow of music and laughter poured from every Social Node and Sleep Stopover. It was impossible to ignore the speaker's enthusiastic, rhythmic talk that echoed throughout the town:

"Semi-finals today! The Challengers and Champions were selected throughout the year: now is the time when only the best get to stay for tomorrow's finals. This will be a very busy day my friends, starting at 10.00 am Universal Cygnus Constellation Time with our Aspiring Challengers. Please select your spots at the Swimming Race Area for watching the best hopes of the Galaxy Games Swimming Races. Followed at 11 pm UCCT by the long-distance Swimmers, and at 3.30 pm by the Skandalopetra Aspiring Wrestlers. After watching the budding athletes, hold your breath and be ready to support the Champions and Challengers from 5 pm onward... Get ready for the longest night ever!"

Jay realized that the effervescent atmosphere was infectious. He was about to leave when he overheard an interview of the most prominent Champion:

"So Dashiel Swash, you're the Galaxy Games' favorite. You're competing for the Master Games, aka the Skalandopetra Wrestling Challenge, and you won the title during the last tournament. What's your view on your competitors? Are you ready to take over, again?"

"Oh well, they're all highly trained and redoubtable. I keep a vivid memory of my last Games here, where I was unexpectedly challenged by the youngest sportsman at the time. Starling Kite was only 19, but he was by far one of the toughest competitors. Ama Pearl is another rival that I will be weary of: she's damn swift and no one in the team equals her velocity. Finally, Merle Dip is of course the former holder of the title, and he's a fearsome, sturdy champion. I'm confident that I'll win again tomorrow. But surprises can always happen, and I have a deep respect for all my sports mates who will brave fear and death this evening, and tomorrow during the finals."

"How would you define Skan Wrestling? Is it your favorite part of the Games?"

"I value deeply all disciplines here. We get to see the greatest running and swimming athletes, racing and doing long-distances lapses, and every three years they push the limits a little bit further. It's a most amazing event and such a great honor to be here. But truth be told, Skan Wrestling is the game in which contestants show the highest level of bravery and don't hesitate to defy death. As you know, going deeper than 140 meters, tied to a stone, is a dare. And each Game sets a new record! Then shifting to deep-pool wrestling, with only a short intake of oxygen in between the three rounds requires all the potential a human being can have in their cells and lungs. Each Skan Wrestling is in its own way a tribute to the athletes who met with an untimely death or a seriously damaging accident while wrestling."

"Is there any novelty we are still not aware of, for this new session of the Galaxy games?"

Dashiel Swash smiled slightly, his sturdy square jaws loosening a little. "Well, I have something new for you: this evening for the Skan Wrestling semi-finals, you'll be happy to discover that more galleries were set up below and around the Deep Pool where the fighting happens. The number of direct viewers will thus increase by approximately four thousand. A new circuit will be presented this year too, for all the swimming racing events. And extra obstacles have also been added for the long-distance swim, which you'll discover later. "

Jay realized he had been watching Dashiel Swash for too long. He had a tight schedule, so he hurried to find a pod and reach the Composium. Together with hundreds of people, he quickly passed through the Arch, to discover the immense Station crowded to the extent of leaving no spare room to shift from one foot to another. From there, he headed to the Swimming Grounds, following the constant, pouring flow of thousands of people.

Arriving on the premises, he gasped at the sight lying before his eyes. The see-through ceilings had disappeared, and some new areas of the Grounds had been converted. Built-in tiers had been set up in the Restoration Piazza, and dizzying stands spread around the South Beach. The other Quarters were hardly visible, due to the extent of the Swimming Grounds that spread over more than nine square kilometers, but distant towering rostrums and galleries could be seen here and there.  A continuous torrent of jingles and music was pouring everywhere, and the Piazza was exploding with people laughing and having drinks. It was a joyful sight, punctuated by the moving images of the immense displays near and far.

Jay was lost in contemplation when he felt a firm grip on his shoulder. He turned around to see Starling:

"Hi man, I need to talk to you. I...mhh...came across a problem. Too long to explain. Heading to the Focus Area now, but...we won't make it today."

"Why?" exclaimed Jay, knitting his eyebrows and instantly tensing all his muscles. "And what's the Focus Area?"

"Well, basically...we need to train and concentrate until this evening. Won't be allowed much diversion until I'm done. That's the thing actually. I thought I could get away with it, but...you're gonna have to do it on your own. "

"Should've seen it coming."

"No, no, it's not that. It's just too risky today, I have a couple of guys following my trail. I've noticed them. I'm being watched now, there's something wrong. Can't come with you, but I'm gonna win the semi finals tonight, and tomorrow evening, there won't be a single living soul that's not hooked on the SW finals. That's when you have to do it, Jay. I'll keep them busy, and you go and get your box."

"Okay then." Jay shrugged his shoulders.

"Oh, in case something happens, here are some coordinates," Starling brushed Jay's right sleeve, inducing a momentary glitter in the fabric, "they'll take you to a place where you'll get all the details about you know what. Just in case, you know..."