Chương 29: Dodge-Cannon-Ball

As I stood in the middle of the long path, a sense of unease suddenly washed over me. The mechanical whirring and clanking grew louder with each second, echoing through the empty platform that should have been just a simple, harmless walkway. Then, suddenly, five large boxes emerged from the steel platform the edge of the path, blocking my way toward the finish line platform.

"What the-?!" I exclaimed in disbelief. My heart quickened as the boxes opened up, revealing ominous cannon-like tubes extending from within. I watched in horror as all five cannons quickly took aim at me. This was no longer a simple long path... it had become a shooting range for these cannons, and I was their target!

Without warning, the cannons unleashed a barrage of steel balls towards me. The steel balls were almost the size of wrecking balls, and they were all hurtling towards me fast!

As those large steel balls hurtled towards me, my instincts kicked in. Without a second thought, I dropped to the floor, narrowly avoiding the onslaught of cannonballs. My heart pounded hard in my chest as the projectiles whizzed dangerously close above my head, the air filled with the sound of their deadly trajectory.

Soon after, the sound of steel balls thunking behind me echoed through the air. I looked back towards where the steel balls had hit and found a large steel wall had erected, blocking the entrance to the long path where I had entered from. A few dented marks from where the steel balls had struck could be seen on its surface, and the steel balls rolled harmlessly and fell off to the side of the path. This steel wall was now effectively blocking me from going back, as if telling me that there was no turning back anymore.

It was either now or never.

Suddenly, another loud mechanical sound could be heard from underneath me, quickly shifting towards the box-cannons' position at the edge of the long path. It didn't take me long to realize that they were quickly reloading another round of steel balls, aiming towards me as I was still lying on the ground after dodging the first volley of the cannonball onslaught.

"Shit!" I loudly cursed as I quickly got up from my prone position. As I got up, the cannons immediately fired another volley of cannonballs toward the spot where I had been lying. With quick reflexes, I stepped back and away as far as I could. The cannonballs hit that spot with deadly thunks on the steel platform. But it wasn't over, as those steel balls bounced around and two of them came towards me with almost the same deadly velocity as before!

With another quick reaction, I dodged aside from those two bouncing steel balls in quick succession, each miss by a hair's breadth. I could hear the two sounds of metal thunking against the large steel wall blockade behind me.

I was slightly relieved that I had dodged the second cannonball onslaught... but then I realized that I was near the edge of the long path, where I could see the dry, arid land far beneath the steel platform. I gulped as I realized how close I was to falling off the platform...

But the onslaught wasn't over. Another loud mechanical sound was heard once again from beneath me, shifting towards the box-cannons at the edge of the path. This dreadful mechanical sound was now my only signal that they were reloading another round of cannonballs and would immediately shoot out another cannonball onslaught!

I quickly tried to position myself back in the middle of the long path, but soon the sound of cannon fire could be heard, and I saw another volley of cannonballs hurtling towards me fast. I gritted my teeth and prepared myself to dodge the incoming cannonballs. One by one, in quick succession, I kept dodging and dodging each of the cannonballs... until the very last fifth one, which caught me off guard!

Out of defensive instinct, I subconsciously put up my arms to shield myself from the incoming cannonball, and then... it hit me hard! I could feel the impact of the cannonball through my arms, and the force pushed me back quite far. My arms didn't break, but the pain of the impact was excruciating. Not just the pain, but the impact also left me disoriented.

Unfortunately, I was not given time to recover as another mechanical sound could be heard, meaning... another cannonball onslaught was about to begin! I already heard the sound of cannon fire once again, and I had only a few seconds to react to the incoming cannonballs hurtling towards me! Without much of a choice, I put my arms in a defensive state and readied myself to receive the incoming cannonball onslaught.

First hit. I was pushed back. Second hit. I was pushed back further. Third hit. I was pushed back even further! Fourth hit. Not only was I pushed back, but the impact also broke my defensive stance, my arms screaming in pain. Fifth hit... the last cannonball struck me square in the chest. The impact didn't just push me back; it lifted me off my feet and carried me along with its trajectory. I flew through the air, helplessly hurtling backward until I collided with the steel wall behind me with a resounding crash.

The air was forcefully expelled from my lungs upon impact, leaving me gasping for breath. Dizziness clouded my vision, and I teetered on the edge of consciousness, my body screaming in agony. I slowly slid down the wall, about to fall to my knees, but...

I managed to stand up on one leg. My heartbeat quickened, and I could feel the adrenaline pumping through my entire body as I stood up from where I had almost passed out. But that wasn't all that was happening inside my body. I could feel something else...

I could feel a burning sensation... and deep-seated anger.