RoA Round 1 Epilogue

As the teleporter-induced whiteout of vision faded once more, Leah squinted, focusing her eyes to view her new surroundings. The checkpoint; the promised respite between rounds. It seemed to be constructed out of corrugated iron, a rudimentary, temporary outstation. The room that Leah in was quite large, with 16 teleporters lined up against one of the wider walls, presumably one linked to each exit : they had signs above them, which read the names of what were presumably planets and locations in the Aleria system. Leah's exit read "Vienien", echoing the name of the planet she had battle Rehn upon. In the centre of the hall was a desk, at which Nah'Yair stood, holding a pen, looking over a sheet of paper.

"Ah, another winner. Well done, Leah. Congratulations. You have made it through to the next round." said Nah'Yair, making a mark on the sheet. "I've noted your victory here. Your fellow victors that have made it through their exit teleporters will be waiting for you in the dining hall through the corridor over there, and we have a communal sleeping hall for you as well… oh…" Nah'Yair looked down at Leah's broken leg. "I hardly think you'd enjoy sleeping with a gash that big… We'll have to draft a tree surgeon in. Until then, we'll take care of you. Anyway, go feed yourself; all the food's on us, prepared by our excellent head chef Riley. Just head on…"

As Leah walked to the corridor on the far side of the Hall, Nah'Yair pulled out a phone and started dialling up someone. The corridor had various signs suspended from the ceiling, displaying messages such as "WE STRIVE TO PROVIDE A HOME AWAY FROM HOME", "STEP OUTSIDE AND ENJOY A BREATH OF FRESH AIR", and "ROUND 2 WILL BEGIN IN THREE DAYS ONCE 16 WINNERS ARRIVE, NO MATTER HOW LONG IT TAKES FOR THEM TO DO SO". And as the corridor ended, and Leah stepped into the dining hall, a round of applause sounded from those who had already cleared their round. "Bravo!" "Well done!" Leah felt pretty proud, and decided to be sure to congratulate the rest of the arriving victors…

Leah ambled over to the centre of the vast dining hall, where a range of heated dishes and cold platters were laid out on a large horseshoe-shaped table. In its hollow centre stood an odd marsupial attending a hob and grill, with various sinks, ovens, and heaters dotted around the place. She had a headphone earbud in one ear, with a cable leading down into one of the pockets of her shorts; the other earbud was dangling down; rather unsafely given her work environment. Through her unbudded ear, the marsupial heard Leah approaching, and turned to greet her.

"G'day! Name's Riley, top chef for the Race of Aleria? So, what'll it be? Tell me about yourself, and I'll be sure to whip something up for you."

"Well, vegetal matter, and lots of it, I'd say;" replied Leah. "Your Alerian vegetables are pretty nice, from what I've had. I'm pretty much the embodiment of verdant nature, so I've got to keep my green energy topped up."

"Well, we have a great vegetable selection over here. How about I pile up a bonzer plate for ya?"

"Sure thing, Riley!"

"OK! And don't forget, I'm at your beck and call! Unless I'm asleep and have delegated the job to a sous-chef. We're always accepting volunteers, y'know? Maybe you could try growing some fruit on that bush of yours!"

Riley spooned various vegetables, prepared in myriad ways, a rainbow harvest. Leah took the piled-up plate and sat it down, and scoffed the lot, and hurriedly brought the plate back to Riley for seconds.

Leah spent some time chatting to victors, and applauding to new ones entering the hall, then decided to explore the checkpoint further. She walked through another corridor leading out from the echoing hall; the corridor was illuminated by bright lamps hanging from the sheet-metal ceiling, while the floor was made of some comfortable, yet firm, polymer. The corridor ended at a signed crossroads. To Leah's left, the way was signed "TO OUTSIDE ENCLOSURE. FORCE FIELDS HAVE BEEN IMPLEMENTED TO PREVENT COMPETITORS FROM WIMPING OUT". Straight ahead, "COMMUNAL SLEEPING HALL. PLEASE KEEP QUIET TO AVOID WAKING UP YOUR FELLOW COMPETITORS".  To the right, "VESPERA'S OFFICE, NO ENTRY. CCTV RECORDING IN OPERATION". Leah thought about where to go. Would she get some rest now, or wait for the tree surgeon to come? Maybe it would be better to get energy from outside; hopefully they had some plants, greenery, a garden… a chance for nature energy to be absorbed after having to cope with Vienein's deathly environment. She headed down the left-hand corridor, and swung open a steel door, and leapt into the outside.

The environment outside was dark and stormy, with wind and rain all around; yet the force field wasn't just there to keep competitors in; it was also defending those who were outside from the elements. Leah gulped some fresh air. How she loved it. She decided that this outside haven would be the place to be until the second round began. She walked around the perimeter of the checkpoint and observed it. It was a seemingly temporary construction, built on the surface of this currently stormy planet. It was built out of rigid corrugated iron sheets. Placed around the outside, both on the ground, and hovering in the air, were beacons that generated an incandescent force field that glowed whenever a lightning bolt struck it. She continued walking around the checkpoint building, stopping near bushes and flowers, smelling their scent. It was so nice of the Alerian Government to provide these relaxing gardens for competitors to calm down despite the harsh weather. Onwards she walked, around and around, greeting others who had come out for a breather. Satisfied with her walk, she headed back into the checkpoint, and turned left once more into the communal sleeping hall.

The sleeping hall was the size of the teleporter hall, with beds placed all around, some single, some double. There were also a few thick blankets dotted around here and there. Feeling slightly tired despite that invigorating walk, Leah leapt into a blanket and fell into a deep sleep…

"Hello?"

Leah could hear a voice. It seemed… familiar…

"Hello? Leah? Can you hear this? This is Viktor! If you can hear this, it means we have successfully located your universe, and your position in it! I'm only sending an audio message right now. I know you can't reply, but it'll ping back. We are tracking you, and we are coming for you! Yes! We're going the distance! We will save you!"

"Oh…" said Leah, still in a groggy torpor… "but I don't need rescuing… not right now…"