DISCOVERY
Once all seven of them had met up at the dam, the group took the usual way to the ruins, crashing through the white water on their tricked boards. "Race you!" screamed Max as she whizzed by. Minerva's blood quickened with the thrill of competition, and she angled her board forward to pick up speed. She passed Max as the rapids ended, but neither of them really cared who won anyway. The friends, which consisted of some girls, some boys, and all soccer players, tucked their boards under their arms for the long hike. All of them being athletic, it seemed to take no time at all. Soon, Min could feel her board begin to rise, gaining purchase from a natural vein of iron that must have been discovered by some tricky uglies years ago.
At the crest of the hill, the ruins spread out below Minerva, glowing under the full moon. A summer breeze rustled through her hair as she took in the view. The ruins were harsh, angular, their crude, boxy forms crumbling with age. And yet, there was beauty there. Minerva loved the ruins because Columbia was just too pretty, too perfect, too clean. The ruins seemed like reality and her own city like a littlie's playhouse. Even though they were centuries old, the buildings' rectangular shapes still thrust themselves proudly into the sky, simple yet elegant. Ironically enough, though, Minerva's favorite one happened to look like it belonged on the skyline of New Pretty Town. A disc-like shape balanced on tall, curvy, spire, all of it topped off by a still-glittering needle.
"Don't lose sight of me," Minerva called, and began to explore some more, darting in and out of ancient windows, the glass long since shattered. In time she had traversed the entire city, and looked behind her and counted, with relief, six other silhouettes. Then, working up all her nerve, Minerva urged her board forward. It felt rock-steady under her feet. "What are you doing?" screamed a voice, but Min ignored it, determined to continue her experiment. No matter how many more yards she went into the evergreen trees below, the board did not fail her. "Come on!" she called. "We've only seen the buildings that are still standing. There's plenty of metal over here." Tentatively, they all followed Minerva out to the shape that had been catching her eye.
It rose above the trees, an elegant, sinuous line. It curved, twisted, and looped, the steel still glinting in the moonlight. It looked to be a sort of track, and in some places brightly colored paint remained. Min looked at Max and grinned. "Are you thinking what I'm thinking?"
Max, also smiling, nodded. "Whatever this thing is, it's pure metal. Perfect for...hoverboarding!" The whoops and cheers from the others signified their agreement.
"I'll go first," Min said. She started off slow, then picked up speed as she reached the top of a big hill in the track. She let out a high-pitched scream as her stomach seemed to drop down to her knees, certain she was plummeting to her death. But her board stayed true to the track, her body nearly parallel with the ground as she rounded a big curve. Echoes behind her meant Max and the others must have started following. Minerva pushed her board to its speed limit in order to survive the loop-de-loops, and she was about ready to go back to the beginning of the track and end her ride when suddenly...there wasn't a track anymore. She was falling, falling into a black abyss! Minerva screamed bloody murder, certain that this was the end. She didn't even say good-bye to her parents...then her crash bracelets tugged her violently to a halt. A section of the track had simply been missing, and luckily she had built up enough momentum to make it to the other side. She pulled off the track and collapsed on the ground, heart pounding and filled with adrenaline.
A minute later, she heard the sounds that meant Max must have jumped the gap, and soon enough Max joined her. They waited for the five others, and chattered excitedly for a few minutes about what they were thinking when they came to the break and things like that. Then someone asked, "So Freckles, was that your big plan for tonight?"
Smiling mischievously, she answered, "Actually, it wasn't." Pausing for effect to hear the gasps of her companions, thinking it couldn't possibly get better after what they had gone through, Min said, "I was just thinking, I haven't been to the beach since I was a littlie. And the sea isn't that far, I could see it when I was up high enough. So who's with me?" And not one of them dared to wimp out.
Minerva had told everyone to bring overnight camping gear, and someone had used their firestarter to make a driftwood bonfire. She collapsed onto her sleeping bag, which was laid out on the cool, moist sand. With Max's warmth beside her and the sound of the ocean and the crackling fire in her ears, Min decided that she had never felt so alive before. Then she fell asleep.
She awoke to bright sunlight in her eyes and the scream of hovercars filling the air and blowing sand on her.