Powerless Revision 1 by Jason Letts Page A

all those who had finished, except Mira, came over to cheer on their friends. Some of those coming in had red paint covering every inch of their bodies. After finishing, they tried to squeeze it out of their clothes. Slower students started coming in, those who were dead tired and those who had spent more time fighting than running. The class’s big men, Dennis and Chucky, came in long after, walking down the final stretch.
    “Yay!” they cheered, faking enthusiasm while Fortst gave them harsh glances. Chucky was covered in smeary, thick oil. Mira chuckled, realizing why everyone always called him “Mucky Chucky.”
    Now that everyone had returned, the students dug through their packs for lunch. Trying their best not to add a healthy amount of red paint to their food, they used leaves to help with the handling. Most of the students sat together in the short grass, avoiding the potholes, and a few sat in the shade. Mira sat alone up against the trunk of a tree. She nibbled at her food with her paint-free hand and watched the other students.
    After a while Aoi walked across her line of sight. Mira scrambled to put down her food and stand up.
    “It’s too bad all that strength can’t help you do something about those front teeth!”
    “What did you say?” Aoi said, astonished and stopping dead to turn and face Mira.
    “If you were any smaller people might mistake you for a rabbit.” Mira crossed her arms and stuck her chin out.
    “You never done anything so dumb in your whole life!” Aoi said, clenching her fists and striding up to Mira.
    “What’s that? No, I don’t have any cheese, little miss mouse,” she retorted, putting her hand to her ear.
    “You asked for it!” Aoi cocked her fist back and jerked it forward, but Mira ducked out of the way and Aoi’s punch struck the tree. The bark cracked and the tree shook. A bucket of paint, tied to the branch right above Aoi with a tape measure, shook loose and dumped its contents down on Aoi’s head. She froze in shock when the cold, wet substance splattered down on her head and shoulders. Everyone turned to look.
    “You better have another trick up your sleeve because you’re in big trouble now!” she screamed. But Mira did not have another trick, and her face turned grave and pale. Aoi effortlessly launched Mira through the air with a sideways push, which sent her flying into the trunk of another tree. She collided with it and came down hard on her ankle.
    Before she had time to move, Aoi was on her again. A terrifying look in her eyes, she cocked her fist back for another punch, but this time Forst stepped in. He caught her punch with one hand and lifted her by the stomach with the other. Aoi rocketed upwards, snapping a few twiggy branches and clearing the top of the tree by twenty feet.
    “No fighting!” Fortst bellowed, while Aoi’s ascension slowed. She hung weightlessly in the air for a moment before quickly falling back down into Fortst’s arms. He set her down and looked at the girls. Mira couldn’t get up and tears trickled down her cheeks, even though she restrained herself from any overt pouting.
    “What’s the problem here?” he said. “You better believe I’m not one to miss out on a fight, so the next one who starts anything will have to take me on as well!”
    Fortst looked to make sure all the students were listening, and Aoi returned to the group.
    “Ok, let’s pack everything up and head back to the school house!” he ordered. He started to walk away when Mira spoke up.
    “I can’t get up,” she said, muffling her sniffling. Fortst jerked back and took a look at her ankle, already red and swollen.
    “This looks serious. We’d better get you home as quickly as possible.”
    Carrying her on his shoulder, Fortst marched through the woods. The students, still wearing the paint they couldn’t rub off, followed behind. Arriving at the school, the students lined up so Fortst could announce the winners. At the end of the line,