Author's note: The first chapter is HERE.. and awaiting your reviews. :-) I have to warn you that it's a little fast-paced, but none of the other chapters are like that. Just try to bear with me here, because a lot happens in this chapter. Enjoy!

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Getting There

By Taryn

Chapter One: The Beginning

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The sun was set high in Ocean Shores, making the air humid and sunburn all the more likely to strike. It was definitely not a typical California day. In fact - it was the hottest day the town of Ocean Shores had ever had - one-hundred-and-eleven degrees right at the end of June.

The only places that were even remotely cool were the ones that provided some sort of shelter, away from the burning sun and roasting blacktop. The most popular place to take refuge, as usual, was The Shore Shack. Today, it was packed full of angry tourists who were all in desperate need of sun tan lotion. One large woman had announced that she would pay twenty dollars for just two ounces of lotion, but nobody would spare any.

A few years later, some people would say that this extremely hot day had occured for a reason - it was meant to let everybody know that something was different.. that something was about to change.. that today was Otto Rocket's lucky day.

Sitting at a table in one corner were the only three Ocean Shores residents in The Shore Shack, aside from Ray and Tito. They were, of course, Otto and two of his friends. It was a very interesting site to see, and many people turned their heads not once but twice to look back at what the teenagers were doing.

Amongst a very large amount of clutter that was scattered all around the table - including empty coke cups and french fry bowls - sat Otto and his sister, Reggie, both of whom were leaning in anxiously on either side of their other friend, Sam Dullard. Sammy, who was at the head of the table, was in deep concentration as he sat hunched over, scribbling on a piece of paper and occasionally looking up to punch in some numbers on a calculator.

Then, out of nowhere, another teenager appeared at the entrance of The Shore Shack, trying to balance a skateboard, video camera, and what seemed like a fairly large amount of cash in his hands. He hastily pushed his way through the tourists, ignoring their looks of disgust, and arrived at the table his friends were sitting at, panting heavily.

"Here," he said shortly, pushing the bills into Sammy's hands and dropping his other things carelessly onto the ground. "That's the last of it."

Otto grinned at Twister as Sammy went busily back to his piece of paper. They did a special hand shake and left it at that.

After about five minutes, when all that could be heard was the scribbling of Sammy's stubby pencil on his piece of paper, the noise stopped. Sammy let out an exhausted sigh, threw the pencil down, and leaned back in his chair. He was wearing a very indifferent expression on his face, and it was impossible to tell the results of his calculations just by looking at him.

"Well?" Otto demanded after a moment. "Do we have enough money or what?"

Sammy turned to look at Otto for a moment with a slight frown set on his pudgy face. But in a split second the frown turned into a grin. Sammy nodded.

Otto let out a loud whoop and practically tackled Sammy out of his chair. "You're awesome, Squid!" he yelled, and by now every tourist in The Shore Shack was looking at him with annoyance.

"Don't thank me," said Sammy as he chuckled slightly and tried to push Otto off of him. "Thank my brain."

Reggie grinned at Sammy for a moment and then turned to look at Otto. "So Rocket Boy, does this mean what I think it means?"

"Hell yeah!" exclaimed Otto with immense satisfaction as he plopped back down into his own chair, grinning from ear to ear. "It means we're goin' to New Zealand!"

* * *

"Please, dad? Please? Please? PLEASE?" Otto practically shouted the last word out of frustration as he looked expectantly up at his father, Ray. It was late that evening, and Otto, Reggie, and Ray sat at their kitchen table. Reggie and Otto were ready to do whatever was necessary to convince their dad to let them go to New Zealand. They had the money, it was official. The only thing they needed now was Ray's permisssion..

Ray looked from Otto to Reggie and frowned. "So you're telling me that you guys all got jobs, worked behind my back, and saved enough money to go to this competition in - where is it - New Zealand?!"

Reggie and Otto nodded their heads in unison. "Here," said Reggie quickly, picking up a packet of papers and handing it to her father. "Otto and I sent for this a long time ago, when we first found out about the competition. It explains everything - the cost, dates, and information about the competition."

Ray took the packet from Reggie and stared at his kids for a moment in disbelief. Without a word, he skimmd the front page of the packet. "This is going to cost a lot of money," he began, but Otto cut him off.

"We told you, dad, we already have all the money!" he insisted.

Ray looked back at the sheet and began to read a paragraph aloud, more to himself than to his kids. "'You've chosen to receive information on the most exciting junior extreme sports competition in the world! This year, the seventh annual RE-PLAY Competition will take place from July 6th through July 11th. This competition, sponsored entirely by RE-PLAY Extreme Sports, has taken place every year for the past six years. Each year, a select few teams of four teenagers from all around the world compete in a wide variety of extreme races. And each year, the RE-PLAY company has found a new extreme sports talent that has displayed excellent athletic skills throughout all the races. The object of the competition is to work with your team to do your best in each race. Whichever individual is the most successful in all the races will be awarded a five-year sponsorship from RE-PLAY and the opportunity to turn pro in the extreme sport of their choice. Whichever team is the most successful in the races will receive $5000 worth of RE-PLAY gear. This is truly an excellent opportunity for any young athletes who think they have what it takes to triumph in the exciting world of extreme sports! If you'd like to apply to be able to participate in the RE-PLAY competition, please fill out the enclosed application and send it to us by June 10th. Good Luck!'"

Ray's eyes darted from the paper to his kids. "It says you had to fill out an application.."

"Already did it," said Reggie happily. "They accepted our team! All four of us - Otto, myself, Twister, and Sammy!"

"How could they not accept us?" said Otto casually as he tilted his chair back and put his legs onto the table. "With all the trophies I've won?"

Ray ignored his son's comment and just shook his head, looking back at the paper. He seemed to be at a loss for words. "Well, guys," he said finally, handing the packet back to Reggie, "this does seem like it would be a lot of fun, and I think you would both do really great. You said you have the money to cover the expenses?"

Both Otto and Reggie nodded eagerly.

"Well, then..," Ray paused for a moment to think. "Oh, heck, why not? Let's do it!"

* * *

Everything happened so fast in the next couple of days that the next thing Otto knew, it was time to leave for New Zealand. He had been so thrilled and excited ever since his dad had given them permission to go. He and Reggie had spent the next forty-eight hours helping to convince Mr. and Mrs. Rodriguez as well as Mrs. Dullard to let their sons go to New Zealand as well. They were pleasantly surprised to find that each parent agreed so easily, especially Sammy's mother!

The next thing they had to do was pack for the trip. Otto and Twister both used the same method - taking a few shirts and pairs of pants and just stuffing them into their bags. Reggie, of course, was a bit neater and took more time to pack. She finished one day before they were scheduled to leave.

And now - none of them could believe it - it was July 5th, and their plane was scheduled to depart in four and a half hours, meaning they had to leave for the airport. Ray's old but sturdy station wagon was parked right in front of the Rocket House, trunk open, ready to be loaded with luggage. Otto and Twister had carlessly thrown their luggage into the wagon and were practically shouting at Reggie and Sammy to hurry up.

"Oh dude, this is going to be so awesome," Twister said to Otto as they were sitting on the curb by Otto's house and waiting for Reggie, Sammy, Ray, and Tito, who had decided to come along as well with heavy persuasion from all of them. "You should've seen Lars's face when he found out that our team got accepted into the competition! He looked so mad, which makes this whole thing even sweeter than it already is!"

"Awesome, bro," muttered Otto distractedly as he craned his head backwards towards the house. "REGGIE! DAD! GET OUT HERE! IF WE DON'T LEAVE SOON WE'RE GOING TO MISS OUR PLANE!"

Two minutes later, Reggie appeared in the doorway, trying with difficulty to carry three suitcases out to the car. Twister hastily ran over to her and took most of her luggage. He grinned at Otto as he put it into the trunk.

Otto rolled his eyes. Just then, Tito walked briskly out of the house carrying a suitcase followed by Ray, who closed the door behind them.

"Everybody in the car!" Ray exclaimed as he loaded the last of the luggage into the station wagon. "We're leaving!" At that, Reggie, Otto, and Twister scrambled quickly into the car.

"Alright, New Zealand - here we come!" said Ray enthusiastically as he started the engine of the car.

"Dad - WAIT!" Reggie screamed suddenly. Everybody turned around to look at her, and she pointed frantically to Sammy, who was running as fast as he could to catch up to the station wagon, several suitcases dragging behind him.

"Oh, uh, right..," muttered Ray, turning slightly pink. "Almost forgot Sam.."

* * *

The airplane was surprisingly not very crowded. Otto figured it was probably because not many people in Los Angeles were planning to go to New Zealand for a vacation. After a long debate about who would get the window seat, Otto reluctantly had to settle for the middle, between Reggie and Twister.

Ray, who was sitting in the row of seats behind his kids and Twister, leaned forward toward them. "Get ready for a long flight, kids," he whispered to them. "It's going to take twenty hours to fly to New Zealand, you know."

"We know that dad," muttered Otto impatiently. "Reg and me practically had that info packet memorized, okay? We know all about the competition! Leave me alone about that already."

For a moment, Ray looked slightly offended. "Fine," he snapped. "I suggest you get as much rest as you can, then, Otto, because you were the one who wanted to do this, so I expect you to work as hard as you can once we arrive in New Zealand. We're not traveling ten thousand miles just so you can goof off - I expect you to really focus and win this." With that, Ray leaned back in his chair and put on a pair of headphones.

"What's with Raymoundo, dude?" Twister mumbled to Otto. "He seemed really ticked off."

Otto just shrugged. "He can get like that sometimes, you know? He's competitive just like me."

After about twelve hours of nothing but playing board games, eating, and talking, (Sammy, however, was perfectly content with reading), they were all starting to get tired. Otto reached across Twister's lap and opened the plastic shade that covered the little plane window, expecting it to be dark. But to his great surprise, he saw that they were surrounded by white fluffy clouds and rays of bright sunlight.

Reggie noticed Otto's confused look and grinned. "Hey, dooshbag, remember that we're in another part of the world. The time is way different than back in California - duh!"

"Who told you that, your boyfriend Sammy?" Otto asked loudly. Reggie's face flushed and she punched Otto in the arm - hard. Otto had known for a long time that Reggie had always had a crush on Sammy. The only person who didn't seem to know was the Squid himself.

Otto sighed and leaned back into the comfort of the airplane chair. He remembered what his dad had told him earlier.. 'Get as much rest as you can..' He couldn't agree more just then, because he was extremely tired. Hopefully, if he just closed his eyes, the rest of the time would pass by in a flash. Maybe they'd be in New Zealand by the time he woke up..

Yes, he thought to himself. He'll just close his eyes, and by the time he opened them again, they'd be there, ready to compete. And that's exactly what happened.

Otto stepped off the plane's ramp and into the airport, immediately noticing that just about everything around him was different than in Ocean Shores. Everybody's clothing was oddly dissimilar, and the airport was filled with accents that could only belong to New Zealanders. As Otto looked around the huge airport in awe, Twister stepped off the ramp as well.

"Woah, that was a long flight, Ottoman!" he said sleepily as rubbed his eyes vigorously. "Twenty hours is way too long to sit on a plane for!"

"I thought it was all right," said Sammy cheerfully as he followed Twister off the plane. "Gave me a chance to do some reading!"

Twister just rolled his eyes. "Oh, uh, yeah, me too," he muttered.

Otto looked at Twister and shook his head. "Just concentrate on the races from now until we leave, Twist," said Otto. "Like Raymoundo said, if we want the team to win this, we have to focus!"

"Chill out, Otto!" muttered Reggie. "Quoting Raymoundo is one thing, but you're starting to sound just as uptight as him too!" She walked out of the plane followed by her father and Tito. "I'm sure the team'll do just fine, and this is supposed to be fun. Geeze!"

"Now Reggie, Otto is right," said Raymoundo as he buried his face in a map of New Zealand. "You guys need to face up to your responsibilities. You wanted to participate in this competition, and you might as well get your money's worth from it. You'll win. But you'll need to work hard, because there's going to be some pretty tough competition in these races."

Otto frowned. "I was just fooling around, dad. We should at least try to have some fun," he said.

Reggie glanced around. "Wow, New Zealand is pretty cool. Even their airport is different."

"Yeah, whatever," breathed Otto, "Let's just leave, I want to check everything out!"

"Okay then, let's go," said Raymoundo. "We have a rental car waiting for us down by the airport entrance."

New Zealand was beautiful. There were huge grassy hills and mountains everywhere. Sammy had a camera with him and was snapping pictures like crazy. Reggie was taking notes on the environment, for an upcoming article in her 'Zine. She had been babbling on and on about how next month's issue would feature nothing but details on the RE-PLAY Competition, and it was starting to drive Otto mad. He and Twister were sitting on the edges of their seats, not really paying attention to the scenery, but just thinking ahead to what the upcoming races would be like.

"So Otto, after we get to the campsite and unpack our things, you should start stretching and such for tomorrow's race. You're going to win the first one, I can just feel it!" Ray said as he tried to navigate his way on the roads.

"Raymoundo sure is uptight," muttered Twister.

"Tell me about it," Otto whispered back. "Obviously I'd like to do well, but when Raymoundo keeps reminding me it gets really annoying."

Half and hour later, the car came to a stop, and they were there - the RE-PLAY racing grounds. It was a semi-wooded piece of land that seemed to stretch out for hundreds of miles. Otto eyed it with excitement, taking in everything he possibly could. The kids scrambled hastily out of the car and quickly walked toward the main entrance, leaving Ray and Tito to carry the luggage. They were greeted immediately by a very tall New Zealand native named Rahiki. He seemed extremely busy - shuffling papers, checking off names, and shouting orders on his loud speaker - but despite all that he was able to greet the four kids, Ray, and Tito, and show them all to their cabins. He also told them that there would be a meeting in an hour that all the race participants were required to attend.

"That gives me some more time to read!" said Sam excitedly. He hurried into his assigned cabin with his luggage bag.

"Lame-o," muttered Twister. Reggie looked at him sternly.

Otto stood next to the two and took a good look around the campsite, carefully eyeing his competition. He noticed lots of other kids there. Most seemed to be from New Zealand from the way they talked and acted, but Otto could also tell that some groups of kids were from China, France, Germany, and the US, because they each wore bright shirts that displayed their country's flag. There weren't more than six teams there - it was apparently a very exclusive competition. Only the best athletes were accepted here. But Otto was fairly confident that he could beat them all. He was going to win this competition and get that sponsorship. Raymoundo had been right, after all - Otto had spent all of June trying to earn money to help pay for this trip, and he owed it to himself to win.. He had been dreaming about getting a good sponsorship for years, handn't he?

Otto quickly shook the thought out of his head and sighed. "Well guys, we should start to--"

"Hey!! Hey, kids!" shouted Raymoundo. He motioned for them to come over. When Twister, Reggie, and Otto went up to him, they saw that he was grinning from ear to ear. "Kids, I want you meet Kyle Parker, my old high school buddy!" Standing next to Ray was a man with slick black hair, a muscular build, and a handsome face.

"Hello," Kyle greeted the kids warmly as he smiled down at them.

"Nice to meet you," the kids said politely in unison.

"Kyle and I grew up together, kids!" said Ray happily. "We both lived in Los Angeles all our lives, and we best friends, sort of like you and Twister, Otto! My goodness, I can't believe you're here Kyle!" he exclaimed, turning to look at the man standing beside him. "What a coincidence, huh?"

"Yeah," muttered Kyle with amazement. "I live in New Zealand now, and I entered my daughter in this competition this year." Then he looked at the kids. "Speaking of my daughter, I'd like you guys to meet her! She's thirteen and will be competing in this race too."

"That's Otto's age," said Ray matter-of-factly.

"Oh, good! Perfect!" then Kyle turned around and yelled, "Audrey! Come here, I'd like you to meet some friends of mine!"

A very pretty girl with shoulder-length brown hair seemed to appear from nowhere out of a wooded area and jogged up to them. "What's going on, dad?" she said.

"This is Ray Rocket. He's an old friend, from back when I lived in the US! These are his kids, Reggie and Otto, and their friend, Maurice."

"Twister," he corrected him quietly, adjusting his hat and turning slightly pink.

"Yes," said Kyle. "And Otto is your age. From what I year, he's as good an athlete as you are!"

What does he mean, 'as good an athlete'? I'm way better than everyone here! thought Otto instantly. But Audrey did look really pretty, and she seemed nice enough. She actually looked like someone Otto and the group might have hung out with back in Ocean Shores - like a Trish or a Sherry, maybe.

"Dad!" said Audrey, rolling her eyes. "Stop. You don't have to tell that to everyone you talk to."

"I'm just proud, honey, that's all!" Kyle exclaimed as he ruffled Audrey's hair affectionately.

"We'll leave you kids to talk," said Ray. "Kyle and I have our own catching up to do. Nice to meet you, Audrey. Uh, but don't talk too long, Otto, you've still got to do some last minute preparing." And with that, Ray and Kyle strolled away, leaving the four kids alone.

"What sports to you play?" asked Reggie immediately.

Audrey looked slightly startled at the question, but answered, "Oh, uh, everything! I always compete in races and contests and tri-athelons and stuff like that here in New Zealand. But I really like snowboarding and surfing."

"Those are the things we like to do, too!" said Twister, grinning at Audrey.

"Do you like skateboarding? Do you know any moves?" asked Reggie curiously.

"Well, I can do all the basics," said Audrey, perking up slightly, "but there are a few more advanced things I'm working on." That got Otto's attention.

"Can you show us your moves?" he asked, suddenly interested in the conversation.

"Sure!" said Audrey, looking slightly surprised again but smiling at Otto nevertheless. "Come on, there's a ramp over here." Twister and Reggie followed Audrey as she began walking back, but Otto was in a daze. Her smile was so beautiful, and perfect. And he realized that she had hazel eyes - huge, round, hazel eyes that seemed to be full of determination, kindness, and life all at the same time. He had never paid that much attention to a girl before, let alone her eyes. Otto suddenly realized he was alone, and ran to catch up with the others.

Audrey stooped down by a tree and rummaged through a duffle bag that was presumeably hers. She took out a skateboard with a dove painted on the back and walked over to the edge of the ramp. Actually, it was more of a dirt ditch that was sloped almost perfectly like a ramp. But it was good enough for skateboarding, Otto decided silently.

"Wait a minute, aren't you gonna put on any pads?" asked Otto suddenly. Even though he thought helmets and gear were extremely lame and weighed you down, he had seen way too many episodes of 'Extreme Accidents' on ESPN to know that they were pretty much necessary.

Audrey looked at him and grinned. "Why? I'm not going to fall." And with that, she went down the ramp and did a perfect, impressive triple- kickflip followed by a grind.

Otto grinned as he watched her. She was so confident that she reminded him of himself - and he liked that. As she continued to do tricks, he liked her more and more. Some of the moves she was doing were hard for even him to do. But he could do them all slightly better, of course.

"Too bad I don't have my video camera," said Twister, sounding disappointed. "It's back at home in California.."

"You're a really great skateboarder!" exclaimed Reggie. She obviously liked Audrey too. "Maybe I could interview you for my special New Zealand issue of my 'Zine?"

"Thanks!" Audrey panted as she skidded her board to a halt next to them, sending specks of dirt and dust flying everywhere. She hadn't fallen once. "But, uh, what's a 'Zine?"

Just then, a horn sounded - a very loud, piercing horn. "All race participants are to report to cabin 17D at this time," yelled the man named Rahiki through a loud speaker.

"Oh, I'll tell you later," said Reggie, turning to leave. She and Twister started walking toward the cabin that Rahiki had indicated. Audrey was putting her skateboard away.

"You guys coming?" called Twister.

"I'll be right there, Twist," said Otto, "I'll wait for Audrey."

"Uh, alright," said Reggie, a bit surprised. As she and Twister began walking to the cabin, she whispered to him, "He totally likes her."

"You think?" asked Twister. They both snickered.

Meanwhile, Otto waited for Audrey. When she was finished putting her board away, she turned to Otto and smiled. "Thanks for waiting for me," she said somewhat awkwardly.

"Oh, uh, no problem," Otto muttered casually. They started walking slowly toward cabin 17D as well, following the footprints left in the dry dirt by Twister and Reggie.

"So I hear you're a great athlete," said Audrey, sounding impressed. "There was a huge newspaper article in the New Zealand Press about all the participants in the competition this year, and you were featured in it. I read you're one of the best in Ocean Shores!"

"Yeah, well..." said Otto, blushing. "From what I just saw, you're pretty good yourself."

"Thanks," said Audrey. Otto and she had reached the cabin. "I'm really looking forward to racing with you - it should be a close competition."

"Yeah, I can't wait," said Otto, smiling at Audrey. For a brief moment he didn't care anymore whether he won the sponsorship or not. But that thought quickly disappeared just as a boy stormed out of the cabin with an angry look on his face.

"There you are!" he said impatiently to Audrey. "Where were you?" Then he eyed Otto suspiciously. "Who're you?" he asked.

"Otto Rocket of Ocean Shores, California," Otto said casually, eyeing the boy with slight distaste, from his chocolate colored hair, to his stony face, to his brand new expensive RE-PLAY sneakers. He expected the boy to look impressed - everybody here had surely heard of Otto Rocket before, especially since there was some sort of newspaper article about him, like Audrey had mentioned.

"Rocket, you say? That name sounds familiar."

Otto grinned broadly and shrugged his shoulders. "Yeah, I sort of expected it to."

The boy stared at Otto for a moment, and then a grin spread slowly across his face. "Ah, yes, I remember now - the loser's son," said the boy, his eyes gleaming with an unmistakable evil. "The name's Theodore McGill. Your dad grew up in California with my dad and Audrey's dad," he said with a sort of fake politeness. "And I specifically remember my dad telling me how he always beat some big loser named Ray Rocket in all the competitions that they both entered." The grin on the boy's face got even wider, making him look extremely ugly. "And with all the training I've done, it looks as if the tradition will continue."

Otto looked at Theodore with surprise. It took him a moment to let what the boy had just said sink in. Otto suddenly glared at Theodore and gritted his teeth. "Well," he said calmly, determined not to react badly in front of Audrey, "if your athletic skills match how handsome your face looks, it seems as though you're going to come in last place rather than first."

Audrey looked annoyed at Theodore. "Stop being so full of yourself," she snapped at him. "Otto's a great athlete, and he's here to challenge us all, including you."

Theodore seemed to ignore Audrey's comment and merely glared at Otto. "Audrey here is on my team, so prepare to lose, Rocket!" And with that, he grabbed Audrey by the arm and yanked her into the cabin. Audrey just had time to mouth the word 'sorry' to Otto, before she disappeared with Theodore.

What a jerk, thought Otto. He shook his head and followed them in. He had no idea if Theodore's athletic skills really were as good as he claimed them to be, but one thing was definitely for sure: It was going to be an interesting competition.

* * *

A/N: Well, you did it! You got through the first chapter. Now all that's left for you to do is give me your feedback; good or bad, I want to hear it! It helps me improve as a writer. Just no flames, please! (Or plot suggestions, for that matter, because I have chapters 1 - 18 already written.) Toodles.. ;-)