The Golden Leaf

After a long tedious day of work, Gerard Ramirez slumped in his office chair and rubbed his eyes. He hated his job as the principal of Tranquillity Valley High School of New York City. This wasn’t an ordinary school where the core subjects would consist of maths, English and science. Under the Government’s latest ‘Talented Students’ scheme, the students of Tranquillity Valley High School were being trained in martial arts, archery, and sword fighting, along with other complex sports. The students here were not like the standard, regular teenagers loitering around street corners after school hours. Far from it. They were sharp, instinctive, highly skilled, and disciplined. With the constant need to monitor their performance in the gruelling training programs, and the endless signatures on irrelevant documents, the dreary meetings, along with the requirement to wear a suit every single day, Gerard Ramirez had h

“What?” Rachel blurted. “Señor, you know how much we love this school and respect you as a principal. But how do you expect us to bring back the Golden Leaf when it could be anywhere? And what about danger? Who knows what obstacles we will face?” I explained. Señor Ramirez stood up and bore his eyes into us. “Hear me out before you overthink the situation and make a decision. Look Marco, your combat skills with a sword and shield are second to none in your weekly classes. Zak, your martial art skills are the best in the whole school. How many tournaments have you won consecutively? And Rachel, your archery ability is unr

Just as we arrived, the lift door opened and a couple walked out, holding hands and laughing. We entered the lift and I pressed the button for the third floor, where our room was. Even the lift was special.  An Alpana themed golden wallpaper ran around the lift and the black marble floor was sparkling in the bright in-built light. The lift door opened and we walked slowly down the corridor, taking in the unique designs and patterns of the walls and ceiling.  “This is the room,” Rachel said.

Having hiked infinite miles, hopped on and off buses and taken four gruelling train journeys, we finally reached the coast of Lower New York Bay, as the Sun began to settle. In front of us, the vast Atlantic Ocean sparked in the dazzling sunset. In the distance, I managed to see a faint silhouette of a few mountains, surrounded by rocks and forests. Zapped of our energy and strength, we slumped on a nearby bench. “Is that the place?” I asked, squinting and pointing out in the direction of the silhouette. “Looks like. We made it guys,” Zak sighed tiredly. I heard footsteps from my left coming towards us. A dockworker. His cl

We managed to find a safe spot to sleep and recuperate just off the beach. Rachel’s bruised ankle was now swollen whilst I struggled to push the sight of my best friend disappearing right before our eyes out of my mind  “Get up, you two. New day, fresh start!” Adrian said, trying to sound enthusiastic.  The morning air felt as hot and heavy and moist as steam, as the scorching Sun’s radiance beat down on the island’s inhabitants. Bees and dragonflies buzzed around the bushes and trees, whilst birds chirped and flew around elegantly. The beaming sun rays reflected off the waves, emitting splashes of heat, as it gently caressed the coast. &nbs