The Challenge. (Started; accepting w/permission)

Katherine

"Rose, I'm really sorry but I really can't let you go first. It's suicide for you in your condition. Let someone go first to see what it's like before you go. Trust me, it's harder than it looks."
"I'll go first," says Andy. "I'll try and Rose can go after me. Kay Rose?" he says smiling at Rose. He moves over and whispers something in her ear and she nods. He picks up his backpack and takes a step forward.

Andy

"Rose, don't do this. You'll die and I know you want to maybe but let me go first ok? Do this for me as a personal favor ok?" I whisper in Rose's ear. I know she won't go down without a fight and I don't want anything bad to hurt her. She nods dejectedly and I follow Katherine.

Brigid|Trail

I jogged after Andy as he followed Katherine. "Hey, Katherine!" I called. "Can I go after Rose?"

"Sure," Katherine said. "Just stay back aways until then."

"Sure," I replied. I stopped, but grabbed Andy's wrist for a moment. "Hey," I said quietly. "If you have a rope or a string, try to secure yourself to something. Don't fall, okay?"

"I'll try," Andy said, giving me a half smile. He squeezed my hand, and then continued after Katherine.

I waved to him once, and then walked back and sat down next to Rose. She was staring determinedly ahead, but one hand rested on her leg, near the cut.

"Hey, Rose," I said. "There are a bunch of sticks around. I could help you make a splint, if you want."

Rosette
I nod when Andy talks, but tears of frustration roll down my cheeks. I sit down, and Brigid comes over.
"I can make a splint for you-if you want." she says, trying to comfort me. Even if I don't use it right now, it's probably a good idea. She looks around, and gathers some branches of wood.
"Hey, thanks. Oh, I'll be right back.... Could you just leave it here for me? I'll come back for it." I say. She nods, and continues making it. I calmly walk towards the trees nearby, and once I get in, run as fast as I can. I have to get away. Everyone treats me like a baby! I look around, and find some plants that would work in my curing herbal remedy. I find a big leaf, and grab a few more. Stuffing this all into my pack, I keep running. I find some thin vines, and take some too. Then, I run back to where the others are. I sit behind a tree. With a stone, I crush the herbs, along with some water, some mud, and a few pieces of a leaf. Then, I smear the mushy paste onto my leg, and onto my arm. I then take a big leaf, and wrap it around my leg, wrapping another around that too. Then, I use the vine to secure it. I do the same thing with my arm. Using the extra paste, I put it on my neck. I can already feel the relief. I put a leaf on my neck too. Hide behind a tree, and change my clothes into clean stuff. I roll down the pants, and the sleeves so as to cover my wounds. Then, I zip up my sweater. I comb through my hair with my fingers, and put some water in it. I wash my face with more of my water, and then pull on my hood. I wipe off my muddy shoes. I look as clean as ever.... well, at least in this situation. I walk out from behind the tree, and make my way towards the group. When I get there, Brigid stares at me.
"Wow. You look much better." she says. I nod in thanks, and then walk towards the waterfalls. I sit down as close as I can. I want to make sure I can see every move Andy makes, so that I can follow him exactly. I pull my hood closer to my face, hiding every emotion.

Mario

Andy nears the other side and I suddenly realize I had been holding my breath. Now I stand as Rose begins to make her way to the waterfall. "Rose," I call out without thinking. She turns to face me, and I see tears glistening in her eyes. I don't actually know what I wanted to say, I just have a bad feeling and couldn't stand the thought of anything happening to her. "Rose," I repeat. Brigid glances at me in curiosity, and I see even Katherine seems to be waiting to hear what I have to say. Finally I shake my head, "Nevermind. Just, be careful, okay? I'll see you on the other side." I swallow down the sinking feeling in my throat and move to lean against a tree and hide my watery eyes from the group.

Rosette
I get near the waterfall. I see that Andy reaches the other side, and he wipes his brow. I see him look over at me, and give me a smile. He goes back through a little, and reaches out his hand. I put on my helmet, and get near.
"Rose---- Be careful, okay?" Mario says, turning away. I turn, and stalk to the waterfall. I get near, and feel the water. I lick my lips, and put on a fake smile.
"Are you sure...." asks Katherine. I nod. I pull out some more heavy stuff from my bag. I carefully step onto the ledge, and slowly inch my way sideways. I finally make it to the very middle. I step again, and slip. I see Mario stand up and go closer, and Andy inch closer under the falls. I am hanging by my arms. I push myself up, but my hand slips. I scream. Just as I let go, I feel strong hands grab me. I feel myself being pulled up onto the ledge. Andy still is holding on to my hand, and we slowly cross, hand in hand. He helps me to the end. When we're out from under the falls, I sigh.
"Thank you--- oh, thanks!" I say, and without thinking, I give him a quick hug. He looks embarrassed, and just nods. I find myself not too wet, but then again, I'm not dry.
I made it!!!! I made it!!!!

Brigid|Waterfall

As soon as Andy got Rose across, I started toward the waterfall, pausing only to make sure I was wearing my grippier shoes. If I didn't just get going, I might start having second thoughts. I reached into my pack and pulled my ball of twine out. Come on, Brigid, I thought, giving myself a mental pep talk. You've done crazier stuff than this. Just pretend you're out walking on the Challenger.

I tied a large slip knot in the end of the twine, and let out about thirty feet of rope. The ledge was only about twenty feet long, but I wanted a little slack in the line. I stood at the edge, not quite on the ledge yet, and started swinging the loop in a circle, winding up for the toss. Once I had enough momentum, I hurled the rope across the ledge, aiming for a thick stalagmite on the other side. I missed by mere inches, the rope sliding down the side of the rock. I pulled it back in, squeezed it dry, and tried again. This time, the loop fell cleanly over the stalagmite and slid all the way to the bottom. I tugged on it hard, securing it in place, and then tied the rest of the ball to my belt. This way, if I slipped, I wouldn't fall into the river.

Once I was sure the twine was secure, I began inching my way along the ledge. The noise from the waterfall was deafening, so loud that it blocked out conversation on both sides of the ledge. I took careful steps, each about six inches apart, moving steadily across. The ledge was slick, and if my foot didn't stick, I would stop, and wait until my boot gained traction to continue. I forced myself to focus on a spot about four feet in front of me--close enough to see where I was going, but far enough to give me a reasonable goal. If I narrowed my vision enough, I could imagine that I was on the back of the Challenger. The rock face behind me was the safety rail, and the noise of the water was just wind.

Then I bumped into someone--Andy. I looked around bewilderedly for a second, before realizing that I was on the other side. The noise from the waterfall had died down, and my boots gripped the dry rock with ease.

"You look like a natural," Andy remarked, pulling the loop of twine in for me.

"Well," I replied, shrugging. "I missed that first throw with the twine. Gotta do better than that." He smiled.

After balling up my twine, I walked over to Rosette. "Rose," I said. "You are one tough cookie. High-five, girl." Rose reached up and slapped my hand.

Rosette
" You are one tough cookie. High-five, girl." says Brigid. Why is she suddenly acting all happy with me? She never seemed to pay attention to me before, so why now? What's up with the 'cookie' thing? I let her reach down and slap my hand in a 'low five'. I walk over to the waterfall, and see the others discussing who goes next. From my view, it looks like Mario's next, but Warren and Zohan are lining up too.... I don't know. All I know, is that I'm safe.
YUP! I made it, i'm safe, i'm happy. The only thing that's missing, is that Mario makes it across okay.

Mario

A part of me wants to get it over with, but I see Warren and Zohan also look ready to go. I suddenly see the edge of the waterfall and feel myself near panic. I motion for Zohan to go first. He steps up, but I can't watch him cross. I don't know what's gotten into me, but it's like through the water I can see the wolf's eyes staring up at me. I freeze. Behind me Katherine seems to notice that something isn't right. She steps forward and puts a hand on my shoulder.

"Are you alright, Mario?"

"Me, yeah, I'm great. Just want to make sure everyone else gets across safely before I go. You know, I want to be on the other end in case... just in case." My voice is still a little bit shaky. Katherine walks away and Zohan steps up to the slippery rock with his hands clenched tightly.

Brigid|Waterfall

As Zohan started across the ledge, I got to work untying my twine lasso. The slip knot came out easily, but the knot in my belt took a little longer. As I rolled the twine into a ball again, I looked around. We were about halfway up the mountain, in the middle of one of those strange zones where the vegetation changed. There were still a few deciduous trees around, but I was starting to see more and more evergreens. Many of them were quite tall, probably at least fifty years old.

"Hey, Katherine," I began. "When was the last time the volcano erupted?"

Katherine thought for a moment. "Off the top of my head, I don't know," she answered. "Careful, Zohan!"

Zohan

The sound of the waterfall was calming but watching the rocky battom made knots in my stomach. I looked back to see warrens reaction but he showed no emotion. Come on. I got this. I can do this I thought as I made tight fists. If I died here no one would ever know who my family was...my family. How were they? Were they still looking for me? I shook my head and began to slowly cross.
For a moment I wanted to blurt out the truth and tell everyone, but I was being paranoid. I guess all those attacks did affect me. For a second I lost my footin and then got it back just in time.
" Warren..." I said in a shaky worried voice. All the trauma was starting to wash over me.
"Yes?" He asked his voice betraying his expression.
"Do you got a rope?" I asked. He nodded and took it out and almost as if knowing what I was going to ask, he throw me one end and tied the other on a huge boulder. When I got to the other side I would tie the rope on something on that side and that would help him cross. If I fell the I would hold on to the rope.

Spoiler

Sorry guys I was away last week

Andy

I turn and look at the group. We've grown so much since we first started. Some of us for the better, others for the worst. I glance at Brigid as she fumbles with her ball of twine. We're all doing better that I could have ever hoped! Whatever the next challenge is, I'm sure we're ready for it. We don't feel much like competitors anymore but more like a group of friends, as if we've known each other forever. I give myself a mental slap and remember I'm suppose to have a heart of stone if I'm ever going to win. Winning is still my goal, not making friends. I must hold that goal above all others. So yeah, I risked myself again to help Rosette, but that's different. She's just the kind of person that I would protect no matter what. Brigid is different. She can fend for herself and has more experience than me. I really hope the last three make it across safely.

Spoiler

DON'T DIE!!!

"Where's Katherine?" I asked Andy. He shook his head. She couldn't be seen on the other side. Where could she have gone?

Brigid|Waterfall

I turned away as Zohan started across the ledge. If anyone fell off, I didn't want to see it. Instead, I looked up at the volcano. The summit was just visible over the treetops, a stark and imposing face of black rock.

"So what do you think of this volcano?" I asked Andy.

"Pretty impressive," he replied.

"Definitely," I agreed. "To be honest, it's kind of making me nervous. I mean, how active is this thing? Is it extinct? Is it dormant? I don't think Katherine ever told us."

Katherine

I watched the first few people crossed and caught myself not breathing. What would I do if one was swept over the falls? I bit my lip and made myself watch them cross. Some were smarter and walked right across without looking down and then others used ropes and helmets and every safety precaution to ensure their survival.
I looked around to see who was left and saw only Warren. He was apparently asleep on the grass with his hat covering his eyes. I walked over an nudged him a little with my foot to wake him up. When he didn't budge I leaned over and shook his shoulders a little. He still didn't move. I took the hat off his face and saw his eyes were still closed. Then a thought struck me. I reached for one of his hands and checked for a pulse. It was there but weak. Was he unconscious from pure exhaustion or was it something more. Then I saw it. A lump the size of my fist was on Warren's left arm. It was purplish green and had a pussy point in the center. It appeared to be some sort of insect bite, but I wasn't sure. The falls being too loud, I pulled out my walkie talkie. I pushed the button for Andy, then thought again. This boy was still unconscious and he needed to get to a hospital. Instead, I pressed the button for Max my brother.
"What's the problem Kath?"
"I have an unconscious boy here who needs a hospital."
"Want me to fly the chopper over?"
"Yes please! And hurry!"
Zohan had made it across safely and now everyone was looking at me. I held out my hand when Andy took a step forward. I didn't want them coming back to this side. THey all looked concerned but I could handle this. I just had to wait for the helicopter to arrive.