The Rules Of Pursuit

3.Stage III

My mind pondered over who my probable opponent would be from the five co-competitors. Putting my silent speculations to rest, three sturdy men and three stout women filed into the room. They wore identical collared white t-shirts and cotton blue shorts. From their demeanor and built I figured they were agents too. 

A man carrying a goldfish bowl followed the six agents inside the room. Instead of water the fishbowl contained a handful of paper chits.

"Each of you will be choosing your opponent," the snooty woman accompanying Chakraborty said pointing at the new arrivals in white t-shirts and blue shorts, "by picking a chit containing their name from the glass bowl."

 The boys from amongst us chose their opponents first. I followed their stance and picked up a chit, being the first of the girls to choose her opponent.

"Chitralekha," I read out the name scribbled on the chit I had picked. One of the female agents with slanting eyes and oval face nodded, informing me that she was Chitralekha, my opponent for the Chess-Wrestling match. She seemed smaller than the other female agents. I sighed in relief, thanking my stars, for making me choose a seemingly less strong opponent.

I watched as each of the boys struggled against their agent counterparts throughout their wrestling bouts. Two of the boys even lost the chess game to their opponents.

It was my turn finally. I stepped on the wrestling mat and immediately lunged at Chitralekha. She smoothly stepped back making me miss her and grab the air instead. We started to circle the mat facing each other, our hands outstretched infront and legs wide apart.

Like a flash of lightning Chitralekha squatted, and swirled her right leg poking it out. It caught me off guard, hitting me squarely on my shank and making me loose my balance.

The small woman immediately grabbed me around the waist without allowing me a chance to recover from her blow on my shank and pulled me down. She climbed on top of me, and pulled my arms back holding them together with one arm. Her knees pushed into my shoulder as pain shot through my shoulder blade. She chocked me with her other arm circled around my neck.

Damn! Appearances can be deceiving I thought. I couldn't breathe and the thought of tapping out flipped through my mind, before I heard the whistle. Chitralekha let go of me allowing me to scramble to the chess board. Moving one of my white pawns, I watched her reciprocate my move.

 I warily approached the wrestling mat for the second time. Chitralekha moved swiftly without giving me a chance to comprehend and once again I was pinned on the mat, with her nearly choking me. Yet I didn't tap out, scurrying back to the chess board after the whistle.

We repeated it few times till Chitralekha found her king surrounded by my King, Queen and Knight.

"Check and Mate!" I grinned as I replaced her king with my queen.

I was satisfied that I had not tapped out even once, even though now I sported a bruised cheek, sore elbow, twisted ankle and bloody lips. I thought about the perfect excuse that I should be giving my parents. Being mugged had a good ring to it.

The remaining two girls, followed me. One of them tapped out more than once, while the other somehow managed to pin down her opponent for three consecutive bouts. None of them won their chess game though. Since I never wore a watch and my phone had been snatched away from me, I had no idea how much time had elapsed after I left my house this morning.

"Follow me," the snooty woman barked once the second task of the Stage III tests was completed. I followed her with the rest of the candidates out of the room and back to the hall with cubicles.