Page 44 of Monster's Baby

I chuckled.“Just don’t do this when you’re wearing a skirt.”

Clarissa winked at me.“It all depends on how fast you move.”

I giggled behind my hand.“I suppose you could always cast invisibility first.”

“Now you’ve got it.”

We reached the north of the amphitheater and joined our fellow competitors.There were more than I expected, but then I remembered that we were competing against our teammates before the finals.

I meekly removed the hovering charm, landing in front of one of the people in charge, who raised an eyebrow, but didn’t say anything.

The other person was splitting people into their preliminary groups.Clarissa and I were directed to join the Europeans, and by the time the field had emptied behind us, we were ready to start.

“This event is all about the accuracy of a thrown spell,” the announcer said.“Any spell will do, but we recommend the use of a color dart.The closer you are to the center of the target, the higher your score will be.Each competitor will receive four chances.The first wave shall begin!”

The African contingent were first, spread out across the field, their targets twenty feet away.I had the distinct impression I was in a Robin Hood movie.

There was no swish of air or thwip of bowstrings.The contestants didn’t need to all go at the same time.The colors shot across the distance between their fingers and the targets in a riot of rainbow colors.

“What color are you going to choose?”Clarissa asked, distracting me.

“Green,” I said.“I’m representing Ireland.”

She nodded.“I’m going to use yellow, for the fire beasts.”

“Nice.”

Asia was up next.The African hopefuls moved off to the side to receive their scores.

We were next.I swallowed anxiously.

Are we supposed to analyze our competitors to find their weaknesses?We’re not competing directly against them.I may not even make it to the next round.

There was a girl wearing a Turkish flag on her back in front of me.She stood in a relaxed position, one hand in her pocket, the other aiming directly at the target.She didn’t even take the time to shift her aim, firing off four shots in quick succession.

From where I was standing, they looked like a perfect bullseye.I swallowed hard.

How am I supposed to compete against people like her?

It was our turn, and I stepped up to the firing line.I took a deep breath and blotted out all distractions.The roar of the crowd became a distant hum, and the people on either side of me vanished as I focused all my attention on the target in front of me.My scalp prickled and I sent a dart of magic from the tip of my finger at the target.The trail of green began to vanish before I sent off my second shot.I took a deep breath between each turn, making sure I was steady before firing.

I had no idea how I’d done by the end.My cluster of darts looked good, but so did Clarissa’s and the man’s on the other side of me.I followed the others off the field to receive my score.

The North American contingent took our place.About halfway through their turn, a number popped up on my headpiece.

“Is that our rank?”I asked Clarissa, pointing up at it.

“I think it’s our score,” she said.“They won’t put our ranks up until everyone has competed, so the competitors who went first don’t have an advantage.”

I nodded my acceptance and glanced nervously around at the rest of the Europeans.Everyone that I could see had numbers, all of which were lower than mine and Clarissa’s.Hopefully, that meant we’d done well.

After all the contestants had competed, there was a moment of silence, broken by the crowd cheering as the competitors who would move on to the finals were broadcasted to the entire arena.

The number on my headpiece glowed green at the same time as the European names were announced, and I stared at it, confused.

“We’re competing in the finals!”Clarissa said, grabbing my shoulder and shaking it.

“We are?”I said, surprised.

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