removed his jacket and tee, Michael stand s bare - chested and glistening with sweat , a broad smile visible on his face, exhilarated. Her heart rate kicks up a notch.
Michael stands upon identifying Takada , the smile immediately disappearing , as do the sounds of exuberance from the crowd.
Takada approaches, “ I believe its Michael , a m ost impressive display. ”
“Yes , thank you, sir.” Michael replies nervously.
“ I was wondering if you might be willing to indulge my curiosity . ” Takada inquires.
“Sure … I mean. I’m at your disposal. This is pretty much your party , sir.”
“Excellent.” Takada tur ns and addresses Rena, t aking her by surprise. “Please , my dear, you should stand over here, as you have not had an opportunity to observe your colleague’s exploits .” n odding to a spot next to him.
Rena feeling a sense of dread at the invitation, steps past the cr owd to the spot indicated, glancing at Michael.
He briefly reciprocates the sentiment .
Takada addresses her, as a teacher would a student, “Your friend has been performing, to our pleasure, extraordina ry feats of balance and agility … The obstacle course you see in front of you is designed to push the participant ’ s skills . Let me explain. A tracer light , project ed fro m the ceiling , identifies a destination t he participant is meant to reach, by any means possible, a s quickly as possibl e , without touching the floor. Once attained , the tracer relocates , identifying a new destination . I must admit, the theory is a bit medieval, a mouse in a maze flavor to i t, but it does an excellent job id entifying physical capabilities, creativity and determination . ” His explanation delivered without malice or impatience . “My dear, I must apologize, given your schedule, I do not envy you having to follow Michael’s performance t oday. Alt hough , I must also admit , given you r resourcefulness last even ing, I do look forward to your performance .”
Several of the spectators express concurrence with Takada’s comment .
“No w that everyone is up to speed … Michael, I apologize for keeping you waiting. I would like to try a variation on the exercise. Y ou will again run the course , but this time I will attempt to push you considerably harder . In addition to chasing the tracer, there will be several people, positioned around the course … throwing tennis balls at you.”
At this declaratio n, several in the crowd react with surprise and excitement.
Mic hael nods his acquiescence, acknowledging Taka da’s creativity.
Takada reque sts assistance from the crowd as b uckets of tennis balls arrive at the course . Positioning several volunteers around the perimeter with a bucket each, he instruct s them to throw a ball at Michael when h e points at them. Their objective ; knock him from the course . Takada asks the crowd around the perimeter to refrain from excessive celebration. With all participants ready, he instruc ts Michael to prepare himself.
Positioned at the end of the beam in front of him, Michael closes his eyes, focusing his thoughts, trying to recall the course to mind.
“ As before, w hen the tracer identifies the first destination, you are free to begin … Michael , are you ready ? ” Takada asks.
Mi chael nods and opens his eyes.
The tracer light appears on a pedestal at the far corner of the course . Michael launches himself onto the beam in front of him .
I t happens instantly, his perception changes ; the crowd disappears, the floor and arena fade away , Takada and the throwers vanish , even Rena is strip ped from his mind . All he can see are the tops of the beams and pedestals, looking like glowing surfaces floating in space. In the distance, a glowing red light, visible on a square surface at the far corner of his perception .
He moves without hesitation , across the long surface under his feet, no regard for balance or footing . Seeing a
Michael stands upon identifying Takada , the smile immediately disappearing , as do the sounds of exuberance from the crowd.
Takada approaches, “ I believe its Michael , a m ost impressive display. ”
“Yes , thank you, sir.” Michael replies nervously.
“ I was wondering if you might be willing to indulge my curiosity . ” Takada inquires.
“Sure … I mean. I’m at your disposal. This is pretty much your party , sir.”
“Excellent.” Takada tur ns and addresses Rena, t aking her by surprise. “Please , my dear, you should stand over here, as you have not had an opportunity to observe your colleague’s exploits .” n odding to a spot next to him.
Rena feeling a sense of dread at the invitation, steps past the cr owd to the spot indicated, glancing at Michael.
He briefly reciprocates the sentiment .
Takada addresses her, as a teacher would a student, “Your friend has been performing, to our pleasure, extraordina ry feats of balance and agility … The obstacle course you see in front of you is designed to push the participant ’ s skills . Let me explain. A tracer light , project ed fro m the ceiling , identifies a destination t he participant is meant to reach, by any means possible, a s quickly as possibl e , without touching the floor. Once attained , the tracer relocates , identifying a new destination . I must admit, the theory is a bit medieval, a mouse in a maze flavor to i t, but it does an excellent job id entifying physical capabilities, creativity and determination . ” His explanation delivered without malice or impatience . “My dear, I must apologize, given your schedule, I do not envy you having to follow Michael’s performance t oday. Alt hough , I must also admit , given you r resourcefulness last even ing, I do look forward to your performance .”
Several of the spectators express concurrence with Takada’s comment .
“No w that everyone is up to speed … Michael, I apologize for keeping you waiting. I would like to try a variation on the exercise. Y ou will again run the course , but this time I will attempt to push you considerably harder . In addition to chasing the tracer, there will be several people, positioned around the course … throwing tennis balls at you.”
At this declaratio n, several in the crowd react with surprise and excitement.
Mic hael nods his acquiescence, acknowledging Taka da’s creativity.
Takada reque sts assistance from the crowd as b uckets of tennis balls arrive at the course . Positioning several volunteers around the perimeter with a bucket each, he instruct s them to throw a ball at Michael when h e points at them. Their objective ; knock him from the course . Takada asks the crowd around the perimeter to refrain from excessive celebration. With all participants ready, he instruc ts Michael to prepare himself.
Positioned at the end of the beam in front of him, Michael closes his eyes, focusing his thoughts, trying to recall the course to mind.
“ As before, w hen the tracer identifies the first destination, you are free to begin … Michael , are you ready ? ” Takada asks.
Mi chael nods and opens his eyes.
The tracer light appears on a pedestal at the far corner of the course . Michael launches himself onto the beam in front of him .
I t happens instantly, his perception changes ; the crowd disappears, the floor and arena fade away , Takada and the throwers vanish , even Rena is strip ped from his mind . All he can see are the tops of the beams and pedestals, looking like glowing surfaces floating in space. In the distance, a glowing red light, visible on a square surface at the far corner of his perception .
He moves without hesitation , across the long surface under his feet, no regard for balance or footing . Seeing a
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