To Fall is to Die

Chapter One (Isa)

11 Years Ago...

Isa pressed her nose up against the glass, wanting to get as close to the window as was humanly possible. Father had wanted her to stay inside, but even if he wouldn't let her onto the roof to watch, she would still try to see what she could from her own bedroom window.

It was the day of the Cup, the competition held by Council of the United World that had been made as "the solution to poverty". Everyone aged 18-19 was urged to participate. Once arriving, the competitors would be divided into teams of three to four people. No one got to choose their groups, the President decided for them. At only eight years old, Isa was still not eligible to compete.

The prize? A million Earth dollars, a jaw dropping amount. The catch? The race took place in the clouds. If you slipped and fell, that was it. To fall was to die.

Not many people ended up competing, but the ones that did always had something in common. A hunger, a desire, a burning ache to win. They would fight to their last breath to seek the Tower of Bells, to climb to the top and ring the bell to pronounce their victory.

Isa had never heard the bell before. No one had won the Cup in the years in which she had been alive. Those who had heard it described it as a bittersweet sound, something that made you want to laugh and cry at the same time. The winner had received the million dollars and now lived in a mansion. Those who didn't get to the bell in time were much less fortunate.

Today was the day that the Cup was to occur. The starting place was in New York City, Isa's own home. If only Father had let her onto the roof with him, then she would have the perfect view of the starting part of the race.

Isa savored the sound of single bell chime, knowing that she wouldn't hear it again for another year. The race had begun.

She looked up into the clouds, squinting. Try as she might, she could see no movement in them. The air hummed with excitement, but most of it was her own. After a few minutes, she pulled out her book and started to read, bored. Maybe this wasn't such a great lookout spot after all.

A sudden yell jerked Isa from her thoughts, and she turned her gaze back to the window. Her mouth widened in horror. A boy was falling from the sky...

His mouth was wide open in a scream, and she could clearly see the whites of his eyes. His hands wildly moved through the air, struggling to grab onto something...anything...but there was nothing to hold. His eyes met hers and in that second, she could see the desperation there.

Isa reached her hand towards the boy's, but it was too late. He was gone. He was dead.

A sob echoed from her throat as she looked back towards the clouds. She vowed that she would never, ever compete...