Test Of Strength

• Shayla Hymus , Grade 8
• Short Story
• 2022

The boy swung and clobbered me in the head, blurring my thoughts but I couldn’t help realising how aimless this is, everyone knew I would win. The lutte happens every 100 years and in the millions of years it's been happening, a human has never won.
He swung again making my nose bleed. Faintly I could hear another pixie in the crowd screaming for me to use my gift, but they knew I couldn't. My so-called ‘gift’ was a curse and would likely end up killing us both.
I pushed all my energy into my legs, before kicking the boy in the face forcefully, knocking him to the ground. This is why I was chosen, to show the humans again that pixies are stronger, but why?
I turned back around to kick the boy again, but he was standing, pouncing on me with a knife and bringing it to my throat. I panicked as my heart sank until someone in the crowd threw me a small, pink-laced bag.
It was small but it saved my life. Taking a small pinch in my hand I blew the glitter powder on his face, almost immediately he fell to the ground in a heap.
I stood up, brushed down my clothes and closed my eyes feeling the anger and hatred boil inside me until I couldn’t hold it anymore. He stood up rubbing his eyes and saw the bag on the floor immediately knowing what I had done. I let out all of my anger and hatred and focussed my thoughts on his mind slowly consuming it bit by bit. I felt myself tiring as a headache formed taking over my body. I focused on the boy but nothing was left. The crowd had just seen him freeze as he attempted to charge but as I opened my eyes his body fell to the floor lifeless and my heart sank, I killed him. The crowd cheered as I was declared the winner. I somewhat remember being picked up and being crowned but my mind only saw the lifeless look on the boy’s face.
I woke in my bedroom surrounded by flowers and gifts but what tugged on my heart most was regret, I killed that boy and I didn’t know his name. From that day my opinion towards the King and Queen changed, I was overwhelmed with hatred and anger, nothing about the lutte was right.
Pixies had naturally faster reflexes and strength plus their gift. There was no way it was right to slaughter defenceless humans. I was stuck in bed for the next 6 weeks, I’d done something to my brain using my gift. Several reporters came and asked me questions but there wasn’t a whole lot I could remember. When I finally got out of bed I stood proud.
“I demand an audience with the King” I screamed and everything from that day changed.
Humans were never killed in the lutte again.