Winter's Apex: Ch 3 - Soaring in the Snow
Ch3: Soaring in the Snow
A white cloud billowed in Apex's wake as he tore down the hill on his black and red snowboard. Arms outstretched and jacket flapping, he maneuvered with great skill through and over every obstacle on his descent. As he reached the bottom, he turned his body and board sideways, slowing his momentum until he came to a complete stop. Apex was shortly followed by Relic, who pulled up beside him, stopping abruptly.
"Aren't the slopes here great?" asked Apex, removing his snow goggles.
"Yeah, we should come back after the event or tomorrow and really put in some time."
"Definitely. So tell me, what were you drawing last night that was so cool it was able to ensnare three beautiful women?"
Relic simply shrugged nonchalantly, "I was just doing some random sketches for the most part. Some characters I like to draw. Actually, I overheard something you and that vixen were talking about, what was her name?"
"Autumn."
"Autumn." He considered the name for a moment before continuing. "Autumn mentioned something about lights and the slopes at night. It gave me this idea for a luminescent fox spirit flowing through the woods at night. I started working on that about the same time Devin and I really started talking."
"It sounds really cool, you'll have to show me when we get back to the room."
"Just remind me." Relic looked wistful for a moment. "Devin is really great. We just connected so well when we talked. We like a lot of the same stuff, and she's incredibly talented. You know that large, ornate sculpture they put the campus news papers in?"
"Yeah, I pass it every day when I go to class. It's really cool how you'd never know what it was for if the papers weren't in it."
"I know, I always wondered who made it. It turns out it was Devin. She's one of the top sculptors back at Fresno."
"Awesome! Funny though, who'd think so many people from our college would be staying here?"
"I know. I'm actually surprised I never ran into her before."
"I know the feeling. The guy who was trying to help us last night with Orion, Palmer, he goes to Fresno too."
Relic lightly scratched the back of his head and watched the ground. "Heh. This trip's been great. I'm glad I came." He looked back up to Apex, displaying an unnaturally large smile for him. Apex just chuckled a bit.
"We're always glad when you..." Apex, looking out of the corner of his eye, suddenly jumped back just in time to avoid the large snowboarder that sped in-between them. With a powdery thud, Relic was knocked back into the snow and watched as Orion slid off laughing.
Relic looked up from his seat in the snow, paws resting in the snow on either side of him. "I want to know how he does that."
"I know. I've never been able to figure it out," replied Apex, shrugging his shoulders and canting his head.
"He drinks enough to go crashing head first over furniture. He's so tanked he can't even stand without help, and still he gets up this morning like nothing ever happened."
"I have no idea. If I ever did what he does I wouldn't get out of bed for a week."
They both turned to see Dante sidling up, slowing to a stop over Relic who looked up into his smiling muzzle.
"Looks like someone got plowed. Funny stuff."
Relic just rolled his eyes and reached out his paw. "Yes I'm sure it was hilarious." Dante pulled him to his feet, bushing the snow off his backside and shaking it out of his tail.
Dante's gaze bounced between Apex and Relic. "I'm going on another run. You guys coming?"
Apex and Relic exchanged questioning looks. "We've been running the hill all morning. We were going to head over to the competition and save more runs for tomorrow so we don't get too tired."
"Oh, alright." Dante replied lackadaisically. Standing there, he thought to himself silently for a moment as Apex and Relic picked up their boards and headed for the event.
"Actually," Dante shouted after them, "I think I'll just come with you. I've warmed up enough."
The three of them made their way across the snow field that stretched out at the bottom of the slope. As they approached the descending hill at the end of the snow field, they view snowboarders launching into the air; spinning, twisting and flipping as they soared through the chilled air. As they cleared the crest and descended the short hill, they beheld the bedlam unfolding before them. The pseudo-valley floor was replete with company stands, ESPN banners, and an abundant supply of attendees. The bustling crowds migrated from kiosk to kiosk, excitedly inspecting whatever they had to offer. Most stands were snowboarding and skiing related, though there seemed to be near as many beverage, energy foods, and t-shirt stands as well. On the far side of the valley, opposite the lodge and set before the enormous half-pipe, a relatively small stage had been erected. Either side of the stage had been fitted with large black speakers, with the stage itself featuring a set of turn tables. A small crowd had begun to gather in front of the stage, clearly better informed than Apex as they must have had at least some idea of the day's events. Instead of focusing on the stage itself, Apex's attention was affixed to the large X-Games banners running up and down either side of the stage.
"Hey," Dante elbowed Apex and pointed into the crowd. "Here comes Orion."
The three of them moved through the sparse crowd until they intercepted Orion, who was quite excited.
"Any idea what's up with the X-Games flags all over the place?" Apex gestured with a sweeping motion to Orion. "They're on the stage and all along the half pipe."
"I know exactly why they're there!" replied Orion. "I was talking with some of the coordinators before you got here. I asked the same question, and they told me that because of some short-notice cancellation in Aspen, they made this the X-Games trials!"
"No way! Are you serious?" Dante was wide-eyed and incredulous, looking to Apex and Relic, only to find them equally astonished.
"I don't know how it happened, but it's awesome! It means we have a chance to get on the X-Games this year!" added Apex, excitedly.
"Not if you just keep standing there. Come on!" Orion motioned for the rest of them to follow him as he headed back into the crowd in front of the stage. The crowd had swelled in the short they had spent talking, and as everyone stood around waiting for something to happen. As nothing continued to happen, Apex scanned the crowd searching for a familiar face.
"I sure am glad we rushed to stand in this crowd," said Apex to Orion, who replied with a mocking facial expression and a dismissive wave.
"Have any of you seen Palmer?" asked Apex as he tried to look over the crowd.
"Who?" replied Dante. "Oh, that guy you were hanging out with. Nah, I don't think so."
As Apex peered into the crowd around him, a well-dressed Cougar with snow goggles on his forehead, blue and black ski-wear, and a microphone in paw hopped on stage. The cougar wore a big, bright smile as he scanned the crowd in front of him.
"Welcome to Breckenridge! I'm Evan Eaton, and today is your lucky day!" The Cougar's energetic voice boomed through the speakers, instantly gaining everyone's attention and producing a few cheers from the crowd.
"You're so lucky, that the mere knowledge of your luck made me wet myself a little back stage!" The crowd gave a laugh and a cacophony of excited responses.
"Why are you so lucky? Why, you may ask, will people who aren't even here cry with jealousy and not know why? Because due to a freak killer bee incident and the elite team at ESPN, you're now at the X-Games trials! That's right, top finisher in today's competition not only get a seat on this year's games, but will have all their travel expenses paid, plus two thousand dollars, compliments of Bawls! That's right, Bawls!" Evan held up a shirt featuring the Bawls blue studded bottle and tossed it into the crowd. As the crowd lunged for the shirt, Evan picked up more and haphazardly launched them into the now ravenous crowd.
"Official drink of the X-Games: Bawls! Take a break and wrap your lips around some Bawls!" The cougar took another look around the crowd sat down on the edge of the stage.
"Something's wrong here." A devious smile crossed Evan's face, and then quickly turned into an over-exaggerated, forlorn look. "I must have failed to convey the sheer awesomeness, because you guys just aren't pumped up enough given all the sweetness. Unless I can think of something to get you guys moving, I, I just don't think they'll let me start the competition." He gave the crowd an even more pathetic expression and received a barrage of random, enthusiastic, and often explicit suggestions of how the crowd would like to be motivated.
"Hold on, I've got it! To me, snowboarding just isn't the same without the right music, so get off tails and give it up for DJ Tek Fox!"
The crowd erupted in applause and cheers as DJ Tek Fox casually and confidently walked on stage, taking his place behind the turn tables. As Tek Fox's spinning began echoing through the valley, Evan shouted out his last announcement.
"Contenders, head over to the pipe so we can get this party started!"
Apex tried shouting something to Relic, but he only shook his head and shrugged in reply as he held his paws over folded ears. Apex abandoned his futile attempts at conversation and waved his friends toward the half pipe.
The Competition, now in full swing, featured a non-stop barrage of amazing and death defying tricks set to the beats laid down by DJ Tek Fox. Each contender broke out their best to one up all who came before them, showing off for crowd and camera. Apex and crew watched intently, scoping out the competition while basking in the energetic atmosphere. As they watched the current runner, a Fossa, finish up his run, they heard the call go out for Relic. With "good lucks" passed from all around, he picked up his board, took his place, and put his skills to the test. They all watched him pound out trick after trick flawlessly. He finished his run and took an overall score of nine point seven. As Relic returned, a shy smile brushed across his face as his eyes followed the ground. Looking up, he blushed deeper at the enthusiastic cheers of his friends.
"That was amazing!" hooted Apex, running up to congratulate Relic.
"You wiped the floor with those other saps," added Orion. "I bet they're all off crying to themselves right now."
Relic laughed a bit, continuing to blush, glancing quickly up before returning his gaze to the snow beneath him. "Heh, thanks a lot guys. I guess it wasn't too bad."
"Not too bad?" exclaimed an incredulous Dante. "Even Apex here would have a hard time matching the sweet moves you showed them there."
Relic just shook his head and blushed deep crimson through his fur, the smile only getting wider on his face. Out of the corner of his eye, Apex noticed the ears on a passing cougar perk at their conversation. He turned toward them realized that it was Evan Eaton who was approaching them with a wide grin and camera crew in tow.
"Are you Apex?" questioned Evan. "Apex Davenport?"
"That's me, alright, what's up?" Apex smiled, placing his paws on his waist.
"Would you be willing to do a quick interview before your run?"
"Uh, sure. Why not?"
"Awesome, just give me a sec here." Evan hurried the camera guy as he got out his mike, and in under a minute both him and the Otter were set up and ready to go."
"This is Evan Eaton at X-Game snowboarding trials: Breckenridge, Colorado. Standing with me here is Apex Davenport, the winner of 17 top snowboarding events who made his first showing at the X-Games last year." He turned from the camera to Apex. "Do you think you have what it takes to bring home a win here today?"
"I think so. The competition here looks really good, and I'm sure it will be close. With this being a qualifying event, it's going to take a lot more than just a good effort to take this invite. I'm going to get out there and give it everything I've got and more.
As Apex finished commenting, the intercom blasted his name across the crowd.
"Well, that's me. Wish me luck guys." Apex waved to Evan and the rest of his friends who returned with words of encouragement. As he walked away he heard Evan saying something else into the camera, but couldn't quite pick up what it was. Dismissing it he focused on the run ahead of him.
Everyone watched as Apex expertly executed move after move, each one eliciting vibrant cheers from the crowd. As he slid to a stop at the end of his run, he looked up at the score board and watched intently to see how he had done. He watched, excitement growing, as nines and tens unfurled across the screen until his final score was calculated: nine point eight. With a broad smile and a clenched fist of victory, Apex uttered an enthusiastic 'yes!' under his breath. When he returned, his friends greeted him with cheers and congratulatory slaps on the back.
"That was amazing!" Dante exclaimed. "I guess all that practice earlier must have helped 'cause you nailed that one!"
"No kidding," added Orion. "I think I saw one of the other guys soil himself you did so well."
Apex just smiled and laughed as Orion and Dante reveled in his efforts. Standing and imbibing the praise, Apex was surprised to have his vision obscured by a pair of delicate paws.
"Guess who?" came the voice from behind him. Gently removing the paws he turned to see Autumn, grinning mischievously, before him.
"Autumn!" exclaimed Apex, embracing her warmly. "When did you get here?"
"Just now, and it's good to see you again, Apex," replied Autumn. "And look, I brought someone else with me too." From behind her came Palmer, grinning as his tail slowly swished back and forth.
"What's up, Foxie?" Apex moved from Autumn to Palmer, shaking his paw firmly.
"We both saw your run. You looked amazing out there."
"Heh, thanks," replied Apex, blushing faintly. "So when do you two go? You did enter right?"
"Don't worry," replied Palmer in a soothing tone. "We should be up any time now. Other than to see you, that's why we're over this way."
"Hey, speaking of which," interjected Dante. "I think they just called you. Palmer, right?"
"Really, I didn't hear a thing? I better go, but don't go anywhere." Palmer pointed and grinned at Apex.
"I'll be here. Good luck out there." Apex waved, watching as Palmer jogged off to the start of the half pipe. As Palmer slipped out of sight, Apex turned back to a glowing Autumn.
"Sorry about last night," said Apex sheepishly, his ears laying back. "Usually Orion has more self-control than that."
"Oh don't think twice about it," reassured Autumn. "No one thought anything of it. In fact, a lot of people asked if he was okay. The lodge really draws a great crowd."
"Well that's a relief." Apex let out a sigh, his ears perking again. "I was really worried that everyone was going to be really pissed about the whole thing."
"No, everyone pretty much went right back to partying the night away as soon as everything got cleaned up."
Silence followed as they both stared rather blankly at each. Autumn's eyes dropped and she fidgeted for moment as the silence lingered.
"I missed you after you left." She looked up at Apex. "I had hoped you would come back, but I know you had to look after Orion."
"Yeah, sorry about that." Apex peered back into her eyes. "It had been a long day, and with Orion passing out and the competition today I just decided to called it a night. I didn't mean to just leave you there."
"Oh it was okay. I talked with Palmer and got reacquainted with some other people I had met there the year before."
"Palmer said..." she trailed off as she looked at him and grinned. Apex looked on quizzically as she covered her muzzle and giggled to herself. Generally puzzled as her mirth continued, he just stood silent for a moment before inquiring further.
"Did I miss something?" asked Apex, smiling and laughing lightly, unsure of what to think. Trying to quash her giggling, Autumn took in a deep breath and looked back apologetically.
"No, no, it's nothing. Don't worry about it. I'm just being silly."
"Uh, okay." Apex raised a questioning eyebrow, but decided not to pursue it.
"So, if you weren't doing anything later tonight I thought we could gather up some friends and go to this great bar and grill I know just down the street from the lodge."
"Oh, sure, sounds great." As he accepted the offer, he suddenly found himself hunched over as Orion leaned heavily on his back and peered over his shoulder.
"You guys talking about me?" He grinned, looking back and forth between Apex and Autumn.
"Get off," said Apex and put a paw over Orion's muzzle, pushing him off. Dismounting, Orion waived at Autumn. "Hey, I'm Orion, how you doing?"
Autumn looked back with an amused smile. "Hi."
Orion rubbed Apex's head with his knuckles. "You guys talking about me or what?"
Apex slipped out from under Orion's paw and pushed him playfully. "You know it. We were just discussing how the judges would have scored your little crash last night."
"Oh, that's cold." Orion just shook his head and grinned at Apex. "Yeah, I probably had a bit too much, but that's what we're here for, to have fun."
"Yeah, yeah, I know. How bout next time, though, fun involves a little less toppling of tables, alright?" said Apex, giving Orion a reproachful look.
"Alright, alright." Orion held up his paws in peace. "I'll watch myself better, Mr. Touchy, but before we leave I'm going to get you to really party." Apex just rolled his eyes, trying not to smile as he crossed his arms. "Anyway, I'm going to go wait up by the starting gate so I don't miss my run. Try not to have too much fun without me, now." With that said, Orion departed.
"So if you hadn't gotten a good feel of what Orion's like, I'm sure you'll get the chance. He loves to jump in like that." said Apex, looking apologetic again.
"I don't really mind. Seems like if you're not in the path of his fall he's rather harmless," said Autumn quite frankly. Apex just laughed.
"Hey, did we miss Palmer's run? Apex questioned suddenly. "I don't see him out there?"
"I don't know. I don't see him either." Both Apex and Autumn scanned the half pipe and the gate for signs of the crimson wolf.
"Wait a second, I see him over there." She pointed down the path toward the end of the half pipe. The both saw the small figure of Palmer in the distance walking back toward them. As palmer approached closer, he caught sight of the pair of foxes and waved. As Apex returned the wave he tried nonchalantly to mention to Autumn, "Well damn, I guess we missed his whole run."
Autumn noticed a hint of contrition in Apex's demeanor, but before she had a chance to inquire further Palmer managed to make it back and had started right in with his own inquiries.
"So what did you think?" asked Palmer, standing with paws on hips, looking to each of them in turn. Autumn decided to answer, as Apex seemed to be unsure of what to say.
"Actually, we missed it. Between me going on and on, and Orion messing around, we just got side tracked, sorry."
"Yeah," added Apex, his expression hinting at anxiety and embarrassment. "Sorry about that."
"Hey, don't worry about it. I don't think I did very well anyway." Palmer walked up and ruffled Apex's tuff. "Don't worry about it. I'm sure you'll get another chance to see me perform."
"I don't know. I'm not sure that'll be good enough to make it to the second round." Apex pointed behind them. Both Palmer and Autumn looked up to see the score board displaying a final score of eight point five for Palmer's run.
"It might not make the cut," Apex speculated. "But I'm sure you looked good out there."
"Heh. Thanks, Foxie." Palmer beamed for a minute before remembering something and turned to Autumn.
"Before I forget, I spoke to one of the guys working the event and they said you were up really soon so you might think about heading over to the gate before too long."
"Thanks for telling me, I'd hate to miss my run."
"Oh I don't think you were in any danger. They have a tendency to let you know when you're up with those speakers, but I thought it might give you a chance to warm up."
"That's a good idea. I am feeling a bit tight."
Getting a hold of her board, she stepped up to Apex and gave him a hug.
"Promise you'll watch me?"
Apex chuckled a bit as they embraced, looking a bit embarrassed. "Sure, but you've already seen my track record of catching friends on their runs."
"That's okay," she replied as she headed toward the gate. "Just give it your best shot."
"Will do," Apex shouted back.
With Autumn departed, Apex turned his attention back to Palmer who looked eager to talk.
"I missed you after you left the party last night."
"Heh, that's funny. That's what Autumn said too."
"Oh really?" he gave a light laugh at the thought. "Yeah, we both missed having you around. You're good company, but it wasn't a problem. It gave us a good chance to catch up."
"That's cool. It's like I told Autumn, I would have come back but I had to make sure Orion was okay, and I was worried that everyone would be pissed about the whole incident. Also, I had this today, and it had been a long day, and just everything."
"I figured about Orion and the competition part, but you didn't have to worry about people being pissed. Everyone was really cool about it, even came up to me to ask if he was going to be okay."
"Yeah, Autumn mentioned that too. Seems to be a lot good people here."
"Yep, yep. That's why I keep coming back year after year."
"Hey, before I do it again, let's move to edge of the pipe so we don't miss Autumn's run. Whadda ya say?"
"Sounds good to me. Besides, she'd probably kill me if I kept you from catching her run."
They both gave a light laugh and made their way to side of the pipe. As they reached the edge, Autumn had just begun her run and they stood watching as she chambered her momentum. She broke out with an ally-oop, followed by a 540 on the opposite side. She continued along the course, laying down tricks without many mistakes, and finished her run with an enthusiastically applauding crowd. Making her way up the side of the half pipe, tail swinging happily behind her, she met up with Palmer and Apex.
"So, what did you think?" asked Autumn, slightly out of breath.
"You looked great out there! You're a lot better than you let on," replied Apex.
"No, I'm sure I won't make it to the second round, but I sure had fun out there."
"Well that's what we're here for, right?"
Both Autumn and Palmer returned a hearty "Right!"
"Hey, I'll be back in a bit," Autumn added. "I want to go grab a t-shirt from today's event. The design they got is wonderful. I have to have it. I may even get it in a couple colors."
"Alright, have fun. I'm just going to stay here. I'm sure Dante and Orion are going to be up soon and I don't want to miss their runs either."
"Okay, I'll be back soon then," shouted back Autumn as she jogged toward the line of kiosks.
"By the way," Apex spoke to Palmer. "Sorry about missing your run. I wanted to watch you out there; I just let myself get distracted."
"Apex," chuckled Palmer. "It's okay. I really don't mind, so try not to worry about it okay?"
"Okay." Apex smiled at the comforting words, and the two of them turned their attention back to half pipe where Dante had just started his run. As they watched, Dante, Orion, and many others made it through their runs. With the number of competitors left in the round rapidly dwindling, the competition moved toward its second round. Dante was able to finish with a nine point one, but Orion only managed an eight point five. Shortly after his run, Dante rejoined Apex and Palmer to watch the first round wrap up.
"So, Dante," asked Apex. "What did you think of Autumn's run? Don't you think she did pretty well out there?"
"Oh, I don't know. I think your friend here was better, and besides, did you see the white wolf that went after me?" Dante's expression turned to one of astonished concern. "She was incredible out there. Honestly, even with a nine-seven I think she got robbed. It's going to take everything we've got to beat her."
"I saw her out there too," replied Apex. "She was hard to miss with that mohawk, and you're right. She really was great out there, pulling tricks that I have trouble with. You know, I've never seen her at any competition before, but you remember the skunk, CP, that told us about the party?
"Yeah. What about him?"
"Well, I'm pretty sure the two of them are together. I saw them both at the party last night and they were hanging off each other like crazy."
"Hmm, that's cool and all, but what does it have to do with the competition?"
"Nothing I guess. I was just thinking we should see if we can meet up with them after this is all finished up. Autumn knows of some good places to eat out here. We should get everyone together and go to dinner later."
"Sounds good to me, but let's worry about that later. Focus now, plan later."
"Right, gotta keep my head in the game. I need every edge I can get to pull off a win here."
Apex looked around searchingly, ending rather perplexed and scratching his head. "Hey, have you seen Relic, or Autumn for that matter?"
"No, actually, I haven't seen her in a while. As for Relic, I haven't seen him since his run. I think he wandered off somewhere. He didn't say where, though."
"Well, he better get back here pretty quick. The next round starts soon and I'm pretty sure he made it."
"Hey guys," interrupted Palmer. "They just put up the final standings. Why don't we go check them out?"
With a few nods exchanged, the three of them headed to the board to see who had made the cut. The large display screen scrolled the names and placing of all the contenders that had progressed. Apex smiled to himself, noticing that he is ranked second at the end of the first round. After watching the board run through the list twice to be sure, Dante, Apex, and Relic were found to be the only ones that had made it to the second round from their group. Returning to what was quickly becoming their unofficial meet-up spot, they reconvened with Orion and the newly returned Autumn.
"I totally got robbed," shouted Orion as they approached.
"Uh huh," retuned Dante sarcastically. "We should probably do the whole thing over again because the sun was in your eyes right?"
"Exactly, maybe even do it twice just to make sure."
"You're a real piece of work you know that?" taunted Dante jovially.
"Yeah, well at least most of us made it. Where's Relic?"
"We don't know," replied Apex. "But he better get his butt over here soon. They're about to start the next round." As the words left his muzzle, Evan's voice blasted from the sound system, announcing the start of the second round and requesting that a "Diana" report to the gate.
With the second round underway, the white wolf took her place as the first runner. As she broke out of the gate and unleashed her skill on the pipe, the only word that came to mind was flawless. Each move was even more difficult and complicated than those on her previous run. With each aerial stunt executed with increased precision and accuracy, her final score of nine point nine almost seemed to low. As she slid to the end of the pipe she was meet with an enormous outburst of exuberant cheers and clapping from the crowd. They watched as she raised her paws victoriously into the air, knowing full well how she had done, and reveling in the crowd's praise. Even Evan came over the sound system to expound upon her impressive performance. Everyone could feel that the bar had been set high, and only the best were going to walk away from this with prize in paw.
Dante found himself the next to go, and Apex could see the apprehension in his eyes. Like many, he had been shaken by Diana's exceptional performance, and discovered an unfamiliar emotion welling up inside him, nervousness. As Dante rushed over to the starting gate, Apex turned at a voice behind him.
"Hey."
Before Apex stood a lackluster, but grinning Relic.
"Where have you been? We've been looking all over for you."
"You totally missed it too," added Orion. "That white wolf chick with the mohawk has been putting people to shame out there."
"I don't know who you're talking about. I must have missed her earlier too. As for where I was, I went to try and meet DJ Tek Fox. I was really lucky and caught him while he was taking a break. They had some other guy filling in for him."
"Wow, that's cool," replied Apex, rather intrigued. "What's he like?"
"He's really cool. Very down to earth too. Actually, after talking for a bit I convinced him to join us later for dinner. He even signed my CD."
"That's awesome, I can't believe he said he'd come with us just like that!"
"I know!" returned Relic, now beaming. "I sort of just said it as a joke, but he went along with it so, you know, cool."
With this exciting news in tow, they all returned to watching the competition, yammering on about the night ahead of them. The event continued with Dante finishing his run with an eight point nine. Lower than before, but still respectable, even though making it to the next round would be very difficult. Relic was up soon after Dante, and managed to push his score up to nine point five with an excellent show of skill. Upon their return, both Dante and Relic were met with more congratulatory pats and words of encouragement on their runs.
As Apex prepared his mind and body for his run, he found himself preoccupied with a plethora of thoughts dancing through his head. The dinner with Tek Fox and everyone else, the competition, Autumn, Palmer. Bogged down by the night's appealing possibilities, he took in a deep breath, trying to shake off the bedlam in his head and focus on the task ahead of him. His failed attempt at concentration was broken by the startling sound of his name over the speakers. As Apex's got up to head for the gates, Palmer walked over and placed his paw on his shoulder.
"Good luck out there"
"Thanks, I'll do my best." Apex hiked the board up under his arm, gave Palmer a nod and a warm smile, and then got pounced by an overzealous vixen.
"Get out there and rock it!" spouted Autumn as she hugged him tightly.
"Heh. Will do," replied Apex, hugging back and then walking briskly to the starting gate.
Palmer, Autumn, Dante, Relic, and Orion stood together and watched Apex attentively on his run.
Despite an impressive showing, they noticed Apex's moves weren't as clean and crisp, or complex as they had been in the first round. The same was very apparent to Apex as he soared through the air, the frustration building as he couldn't get his body or board to do what he wanted them to. He gained further confirmation of this fact on completion, receiving a final score of nine point one. As his friends watched Apex return, they could clearly see not only the disappointment in his face, but a tinge of frustration and embarrassment as well. Everyone complemented him on how well he had done, but he merely shrugged and sat on his board to watch the remainder of the round. Giving Apex a bit of space, Autumn let him sit by himself for a few minutes before joining him. She gave him a hug and they conversed somberly through the round, eventually easing Apex's mind.
The round came to an end, and shortly thereafter the results were posted. Competitors and onlookers alike formed around the board to see who had made it to the finals. Of those still in from their group, Dante was the only one who didn't move on, coming in only five spots short of making the cut. It was clear to all that he wasn't particularly surprised, but non-the-less displayed a modicum of disappointment. A surprise to none, however, was that Diana sat at first place after the second round.
With the results posted, the wait for the final round was to be short lived. The event, once again displaying stunning efficiency, started the final round ahead of posted schedule. Apex, once again, returned to preparing himself for his run, stretching and working out the specifics of his final run in his mind. Unfortunately, he wasn't afforded much time before he was interrupted by Evan Eaton and his camera crew's return. Wasting no time, Evan dived right into the interview before Apex even realized what was going on.
"Apex, once again we're seeing you in the final round of a qualifier, you've got to be feeling good about that!"
"Yeah, I guess so. I'm happy to have made it this far, but I wasn't exactly pleased with my last run."
"I noticed that your score slipped from your first run, what was going on out there?"
Apex gave a sigh before answering, his expression a stern one. "I don't know. I was just distracted out there or something. Couldn't focus, I won't let it happen again."
"Hope this round goes better for you then. What have you thought of the competition so far? Have you just been breezing though most of it, or has it been tough?
"It certainly hasn't been a breeze," replied Apex, almost laughing at the notion. "I think last round showed that it's been tough. The competition is amazing here. Diana, the white wolf with the Mohawk, is one of the best snowboarders I've seen, and if nothing else she's made everyone have to push themselves to just keep up."
"She's certainly is awesome, but I don't know that she's doing better than we've seen you do in the past." Evan gave Apex a nudge with his elbow.
"Heh, thanks."
"I'm sure you'll bust out some moves that will rival any we've seen before! Speaking of which, it looks like you're up again, Champ."
Apex looked to see where Evan was pointing and saw his name flash across the board as the next competitor mere seconds before he heard his name blasted over the sound system."
Apex collected his board from off the snow and rose with a look of determination. Before taking more than a few paces, he was intercepted by a smiling Palmer who stood between him and the starting gate.
"Alright, Foxie, I know you can do this. I want to see you get out there and win it!"
Snapping out of the zone for a moment, Apex blinked twice, giving Palmer a sheepish smile. "Yep, will do."
With this final encouragement, he moved past Palmer and up to the gate. Once there, he readied himself for his final run with last minute stretches and a mental walkthrough of his run. Looking out, he saw the broad expanse of the half pipe before him, and felt his heart pounding in his ears. It was just another pipe. The faces on the side lines and the time and place might change, but the pipe always stayed the same. Come hell or high water, Apex was determined to show this one what he could do. The competition hadn't left room for error; this run had to be perfect. Steadfast, Apex leaped out of the gate and hit the snow at high speed, giving the run everything he had. He pushed each trick higher, making them more complex, riding the very limits of his skill.
As he neared the end of his run, he felt the seeds of doubt blossom sickeningly within him.
Will it be enough to beat Diana? Will Evan be impressed, the judges, Palmer?
As his board reconnected with the snow, he decided it hadn't been enough. He had to do something stunning, something that would set him apart from the rest of the competitors and push his name into legend here. With unwavering doggedness, he pushed himself harder than ever before so that his next launch into the air would be high enough to facilitate such a complicated and difficult stunt. With a burst of energy he launched himself higher than ever before, spinning and flipping in a stunning display of superb skill. The cheers from the crowd filled his flapping ears as his body whirled and twisted in the air. As he came around from the last flip during his descent, a single thought filled his mind.
"Oh Shit."
From the side of the pipe Palmer, Autumn, and everyone else watched as Apex's body plunged, muzzle first, into the icy, snow-covered side of the pipe. His limp body rolled violently down the icy curvature, sliding to a stop face-down, prostrate, and motionless in the snow.
Plot now, yiff later. :P Hope you're all enjoying the story ^.^
Ch 4 - A moment of Silence