Catalyst Chapter 9: Fool's Game

Read chapter 9 of Catalyst by dumbhd on NovelPedia.

2 HOURS TILL THE INCIDENT. Hiro, Denis and Polly walk forward, " Names and schools? " The receptionist asks, their hands hovering over the keyboard. The Catalyst Game's registration booths are packed with students rushing to participate, some even fighting over registration. "Hiro Piltar! Catalyst High New-Jersey!" Hiro yells confidently, pointing a thumb to himself and putting on a toothy smirk. "Denis Ward. Same as him. " He punches Hiro in the gut, "GUH!" "Polly.." She mumbles. "Hm?" The receptionist turns, "P-Polly." The keyboard clicks sequentially, the paint on the keys of the keyboard worn and the letters unrecognizable. Hiro slowly leans over the booth's table, "Ooo." Denis drags him back by the collar of his jacket before he can knock over the stack of official forms. "Don't mind him," Denis sighs, "his brain is mostly decorative. Just give us the badges." The receptionist sighs, sliding three silver-rimmed badges across the counter. "Team 12. Your first round is in Sector B. If you die, the R.C.T. isn't liable for the cleanup. Next!" Hiro grabs his badge, pinning it to his chest with a flourish. "Sector B, huh? More like Sector 'Be-Afraid-Of-Hiro'—!" "That was terrible. Truly," Denis muttered. His pale hand clamped over Hiro's mouth, his height making it easy to restrain the struggling boy. "Polly, you okay? You’re shaking again." Polly grips her badge so hard her knuckles turn white. "I... I just feel like everyone is watching us. Like we're.. Targets." Hiro slaps Denis's hand off his mouth, eyeing him for a second, a single dread covering his left eye. "Targets? Yeah duh, because we're the BEST!" Hiro laughs, staring at his badge, "Hey- SILVER? IT SHOULD BE GOLD!" Denis drags Hiro, grimacing while keeping his head low to not let people recognize him. " I WANT A GOLD ONE! " Hiro flails his arms in the air, pulling forward desperately. His hands grab onto the table next to him as he's dragged away, " RAGHH!! I WILL NOT REST UNTIL I GET THE CORRECT BADGE!! " Hiro roared, the beads in his dreadlocks clacking together as he thrashed against Denis's grip. "NEVER!" After a few minutes of walking, the three emerge in a forest outside of the city, a distinct atmosphere from the crowded plaza. The trees had grown in odd ways, unnaturally. The plants were a bit too large, some glow, others with what looked like eyes. Polly turns to one of the patches, a dead, gigantic sunflower, at least as tall as her, slumped on the ground. Bugs crawl all over the collapsed flower, boring holes into it with their teeth. "Spooky.." Polly shudders. Hiro laughs, "Not to me! This ain't nothing!" A grin spreads across his face, Polly gripped her badge. Her wide, orange eyes reflected the dead sunflower on the ground— two bright petals staring at a withered, dying beauty. Surrounded. Denis kicks a twig to the side, his white eyes wandering around the forest's corners, "Something's wrong—" Out of the blue, the sound of a young man clearing his throat echoed from the borders, a rough voice. Hundreds of purple blobs formed from the floor, flesh connecting them. They all created a dome-like shape, closing the trio inside. They all stop at once, Hiro jumping into a defensive stance almost instantly. "They're putting up the borders already?" Denis turns, staring at a large, bulging eye staring directly at him. "Those.." "T-Those aren't normal boundance borders." A sludge-like fluid pops out from the eye's pupil, splashing onto Hiro's sneakers. "The fuck? Not cool, man!" Hiro shook his foot, looking more offended by the stain than the danger. [-/-] " Hello, catalysts. " The man in the haori spoke, his voice reflecting to every corner of the forest. " You will all still be participating in the catalyst games as usual, so do not worry. " "But there will be some changes." The sound of Ether and yelling comes from the other side of the wall. He turns, a stern expression. He flicks his wrist, "Be gone, apes." Outside, instructors and teachers attack the blig