"Now, for our next act!" the announcer yelled from a nearby platform excitedly. "Sever Abedare on his STUNT BIKE!" The crowd roared!

     Sever gripped the handlebars. The crowd continued to cheer. But Sever did not smile.

     "This is one mean slope. But I've got to prove I'm worthy to join the Ub Military," he said, looking down the hill at the impossible course laid out before him.

     The obstacle course was tricky. Sever would have to cross over a pole, drop twenty feet down onto a narrow rail, pedal hard, fling over a wide gap, land on the other side, hurtle up a ramp, do some stunts in the air, land safely on a thin bar, then go across the steep slope. Once he got to the bottom of it, water would be about one hundred feet down. Sever would have to figure out how to avoid hitting it.

     The crowd cheered madly. They wanted him to go for it. So, Sever began pedaling.

     "Not even Xelonite has been able to pull this off before," said Sever calmly. "But I will. I will."

     The incredible rush of adrenaline began flowing through Sever. Sever, calm as could be, pushed off and tore down the slope.

     The pole was inches away already. Sever soared into the air and twisted his bike around while doing so. He quickly straightened up and landed perfectly on the pole. The crowd went wild!

     So much for the easy part, Sever thought grimly. The pole ended. Sever plummeted downward twenty straight feet. The rail loomed up to his left.

     "Here goes nothing," Sever muttered. He swiveled to the left and nimbly made contact with the rail. He rode some feet smoothly but then his bike began to swing back and forth. By now he was going so fast that even the smallest flinch of his body could ruin his whole course. He safely reached the end of the rail.

     Sever pedaled with every bit of power he had in him to prepare for the huge jump across the gap that was coming up fast. The crowd's cheers echoed in his ears. He pedaled as hard as possible and shot forward into emptiness. The gorge was fast. Suddenly, Sever was surrounded by complete silence in the stillness of the air. He was halfway across and going smoothly. But he began to fall.

     "No," Sever growled. "No. I will not fail. I will - NEVER - GIVE - UP!!!!" He lurched up with all his might and accidentally fell off his bike. But, determined not to lose, he gripped the handlebar firmly and pulled himself back on.

     Soon enough, he landed safely. Shaken, Sever propelled himself onward. He was the large ramp.

     "Which stunts should I use?" Sever asked himself hastily. "Maybe? No. Or maybe"

     But, far too soon, he was at the ramp. Sever wheelied off of it and, on the spur of the moment, flipped over with his bike in midair. A split second later, he backflipped, and landed smoothly.

     Sever was exhausted and sweating from the extreme effort. And next up was the long bar. He jumped up onto it and rode it across, landing firmly on the other side. Immediately he came to the final steep slope.

     Now was the toughest part of all. The crowd cheered him on. Sever, sweating, took off down the slope. He blasted off of the edge, bracing himself for the hundred-foot drop into water.

     So, gritting his teeth, he leaped off his stunt bike at the bottom with all his might - and flipped into the air gracefully. The bike hit the water with a tremendous splash a hundred feet below. Sever stood balanced on a thin rope stretched across the gap. The crowd went wild!

     "Now," Sever said, breathing extremely hard, "that proves I'm ready for the military."