The loud music echoed throughout the place. Bat mockers teenagers, with tattoos on their bodies, and rough scattered hairs gyrated and danced in a frenzy. The atmosphere was fiddly, the setting quite too finicky to explain. A big screen stood on the stage, some people near it. On the screen was displayed - THE BAT MOCKERS GAMES.
Makkot and devon struggled their way into the massive crowd. A man in a black top hat, his face hidden, stood on the stage. He was clothed in a black silk suit and his face was hidden by the hat he wore. He held a microphone. He shook his head forward and did his hands into one of those rock signs.
The rock music bleared on, and makkot and devon could feel it their veins. Makkot couldn't help but move his body to the beat.
" Bat mockers teenagers!", yelled the man in the black top hat into the mike.
His audience echoed a - " Heyyyyyy….".
" Welcome to the launching of the first ever BAT MOCKERS GAMES!", said the man.
" This is a competition where you volunteer to compete in some baby games and win a real dragon!".
The crowd clapped and shouted in jubilation.
The man continued. " Well, for those of you that might doubt the existence of the dragon, here it is!".
A big black dragon took to the air from the back of the stage. Breathing a dark ash- like fire from it's mouth. It shook it's head like a blotto creature and danced, soaring higher to the skies. It breathed fire from its mouth again and this time it printed a sign of flapping bats in the skies with the sign - THE BAT MOCKERS GAMES, scrawly written under the bats.
The crowd roared in applause in a frenzy.
" Well", said the man in the black top hat.
" Now, we need volunteers!".
Makkot became suddenly happy, he turned to devon. " I want to participate, I mean, the dragon will be of great help to me in catching the enchanter".
Devon's face crumbled to a frown. " A bat mockers game, I smell foul play".
" Well, wait for me, I'll volunteer to play and when I win, I'll come and get you and we'll go after the enchanter and your revenge against the government stuff".
Devon tried to speak but was halted by the raising of makkot's hand.
" Oh!- oh! - oh!", said the man on stage. " I see a volunteer. Come on right on stage".
Makkot sauntered up to the stage and then some bat mockers and even some human beings followed. Soon, they were many people on stage. All elated to participate in the game.
" The volunteers are to pick out three people from the crowd to play in the game along side them", said the man.
Makkot instantly raised his hands and blurted : " That guy!", he pointed to devon who gaped and ducked, bending himself and covering his face in his hands.
" Come on up", the man in top hat said to devon who was pushed and dragged up to stage.
" I want no part of this!", he yelled.
The man in the top hat laughed. " Such a grumpy old man", he remarked and that sent the crowd in a voyage of laughter.
" Quit now if you want to", the man continued. " Cos once you're in, you must win to get out".
Devon neared makkot. " Let's not do this, for a dragon?, this is costly, I say no!, seriously I'm too old for -".
The dragon flew up again and devon looked at it, noticing for the first time, it's smooth silk wings, flapping, like a brawny butterfly, roaring and taking to the skies. The old man had always wanted to ride a dragon since he was a child, it was perhaps the only thing he had never done in life that he wanted to do. His eyes widened, big, it seemed to him like he had enveloped the creature into his eyes, like he had absorbed it.
Devon spun around quickly and faced makkot.
" I'm old", he said. " And will soon die and I think there's nothing in this whole wide world that'll give me joy than riding that dragon".
Makkot grimaced. " Then what the F! are you waiting for, follow me on this game and we'll win it together".
The old man smiled - devon, he smiled like a twit, something really spectacular to behold. The lips rising up, bending and stretching up back to form a wrinkled smile.
" Count me in", devon said in a whisper.
People had been calling their selected partners earlier up the stage and now it was full.
The man in the top hat snapped his fingers and dozens of circles appeared on stage. It multipled and soon, everyone was standing on one.
" The BAT MOCKERS GAMES will be showing exclusively on the bat mockers channel for our esteemed viewers to watch", said the man in the top hat. " It's a splendid show really, kinda daunting buh' nothing much. With the snap of my fingers you people will be taken to FLOATING WORLD where you will participate in the game".
Makkot was rooted to his circle and so was devon, they had this nostalgic feeling and it felt as if they shouldn't continue. But it was done, it was done. There was no going back.
The man in top hat, bending his head to add a dramatic effect. Raised his right hand up, rolling it repeatedly. He raised his head up and did an impressive moonwalk, jumping up to end it resulting in sparks of light.
" Au revoir'!", yelled the man. A whirlwind entered the place, swirling and twirling, like a tornado, rolling, like a blister. It swirled the participants around, devon almost puked. It seemed to be jolting the reality out of his brain. Some people actually puked though, nasty stuff, splashing like a borehole pipe, the crowd moved back to prevent it from meeting them.
The wind became fiercer, swirling mightly.
Finally, with a bow from the man in the top hat, it jerked the people up, makkot and devon included, into the clouds.