?“Oh no,” Tyree moaned to his long time friend, Moses. “They’re picking the human sacrifices again. I’m scared. Aren’t you? You don’t seem like it. Well, you might but---“
?“Ok! I get it! You talk a lot when you’re nervous, and it really gets on my nerves! Please, shut up! I’m trying to think!”
?Tyree smiled inwardly, not wanting to say aloud the undeniable truth: And you get angry with me whenever you are nervous. He took a deep breath before gently apologizing to Moses. “Sorry, bud. You know me. I’m a total train wreck right now.”
?Slowly but surely, the two of them crawled out from their rooms in the orphanage to the sacrificial stage, where an enormous crowd of people stood. “Well, we’re late,” Moses, pointed out obviously, his eyes nervously darting around like lasers. “And I’m happy about that. Maybe they’ve already done the draws and we weren’t picked!”
?“Sure,” Tyree mocked, heavy sarcasm dripping from his voice. He attempted to stifle a laugh, which turned into a loud outburst of coughing.
?“Now, where is the kid section?” Moses inquired, “I don’t see it anyw----“
?“Wow! Look at that!” Tyree suddenly interrupted. His chubby index finger pointed at a small black bear in the distance, paddling quickly across the surface of the River of Death. “What is th-----“
?Tyree’s and Moses’ jaws both dropped open at the same time in utter astonishment. They couldn’t believe their eyes. In that moment, although the whole town of Maxim was there, it was silent, an eerie, luminous silence. A chill sprinted up Tyree’s spine, but he was too occupied looking at the bear transform to care.
?The bear that Tyree had pointed at earlier, the one that had been paddling across the River of Death, suddenly began to morph and transform. Its eyes seemed to pop out of its head, as his head blew up like a balloon to make room for them. Muscles began to bulge out of his body like nobody’s business, and his body tripled in size. Soon, the small black bear stood 20 feet tall and 20 feet wide. Long fangs, about the size of an adult’s arm, stretched from his top jaw to the bottom one, glistening in the sun’s reflection. At the tip of each point was a tip so finely pointed and sharp it looked as if it could cut through metal with ease. Over 50 fangs filled its jaw.
?The bear’s eyes were a devilish red, glaring down at the citizens of Maxim, who were terrified out of their minds. They desperately wanted to run, run far away, anywhere away from the bear/monster, but the bear’s evil gaze seemed to hold them still like glue. The bear’s legs and arms were about 10 feet long, each, with multiple muscles the size of a human head.
?The bear was nothing short of a monster. In fact, the word “monster” would be an understatement. It was more like… a god. An evil one, of course, but nevertheless, a deity.
?Tyree opened his mouth to say something to Moses, but the bear beat him to it.
?“People of Maxim,” it addressed in a deep voice, one that sounded scratchy and hoarse and painful to the ears. “You have sent two sacrifices to the River of Death. However, I am hungry, so I want more. Give me two more, and I will leave you all alone until next year. You have my word on that.” Then, signaling to the River of Death, he growled ferociously, “This time, I want kids. Now!”
?A cry of surprise arose from somewhere in the multitude of people. “Come on, mayor, do something! You know the agreement was that only people above the ago of 18 got sacrificed! Do something already!”
?“Yeah, mayor, you promised you would stand up for the people!”
?“Yeah! We didn’t elect you to do nothing!”
?All at once, everybody in the crowd started jeering at him, complaining how he just sat in his office, eating Lays potato chips and spending the city’s money to go on vacations. Although it was true, until then, none of the citizens had felt the necessity to be rude to the mayor. Overall, he was a nice guy who tried hard at what he did.
?The mayor’s name was Charlie Lee, a heavily overweight Japanese man. He wore flimsy, cheap glasses that constantly fell down his face. He had lived in Japan for his whole life until his college years, where he studied political science at Boston College in Massachusetts. Once he’d gotten his degree, he retired to the town of Maxim. Charlie was elected mayor shortly after, as no one else in the town wanted to, after the beast inside the River of Death murdered the previous mayor.
?Charlie shuddered as he stood on the stage, listening intently to the insults the citizens of Maxim hurled at him. The one thing he hated most, aside from speaking in public, was making decisions. He immediately sensed the stress enter his body; he began to sweat profusely, the weather suddenly got three times warmer, his thoughts became jumbled up like a maze.
?However, the stress did not last for long. He was frightened into action when the giant bear/god chucked a ball of fire that it had seemingly materialized out of thin air at Charlie. Luckily, the ball just missed the mayor’s left ear, instead bursting in a massive flame on stage. This caused panicked screams to rise up from the crowd as chaos ensued. The crowd went from an orderly crowd to frantic people scurrying around within seconds.
?“Aaaah!”
?“The world is about to end!”
?“The end is here!”
?“We’re all gonna die!”
?Meanwhile, the bear fumed, despising all the chaos, all the disorder. It needed control. It needed power. Most of all it needed food. It was starving. The bear wanted kids to eat, since it wasn’t that hungry, and it hated wasting. Almost as much as it hated chaos. Well, I didn’t want to have to do this, but these imbeciles asked for it, the bear remarked to himself snidely.
?It raised itself fully up out of the water, tried to look as menacing as possible and pounded its chest with its two meaty fist. Then the bear leaned its head back and roared, a roar so loud it made the ground rumble and the water churn. It shook the trees, and a blast of hot breath that reeked of trash washed over the citizens of Maxim. The roar entered into every citizen’s eardrum and made it scream in pain, a blinding pain that felt like a thousand needles piercing the heart.
?The roar frightened the citizens into stock-still statues, petrified of fear. Despite how badly they wanted to budge, they simply couldn’t. They seemed attached to the ground by glue.
?“So, am I gonna get those kids or what? I’m hungry and I want food! Now! And if you don’t give them to me, now, I’m taking all of you citizens into my restaurant! As the main course!”
?Scared into action, the mayor slowly rose from the ground, having fallen when the ball of fire exploded on stage. He cleared his throat and shook his fist high in the air, yelling at the bear to back off. At least, tried to. However, nothing came out, not a peep. All that could be heard in the then silent town was the clanging of the mayor’s expensive Rolex watch as he shook his fist.
?“What is it, mayor?” the bear scoffed at the strangely mute Charlie. “Too scared to talk? Don’t worry, I don’t bite.”
?Oh man, why can’t I say anything? the mayor complained silently. Why am I so nervous that I cannot even get words to come out of my mouth? Why?
?He opened his mouth wider, attempting to choke the words out of his mouth, as long as they came out. I mean, something is better than nothing, right? he reminded himself. However, no luck. He pushed even more, twice as hard as before. Still, nothing came out. Nervously, Charlie glanced around the crowd, and his worry was confirmed. I’m letting my people down, the mayor observed, angry with himself for not having the guts to stand up to the bear. I had one job, and I couldn’t do it. The citizens had begun whispering to each other with scared looks on their faces. They were growing shifty. If he didn’t act fast, chaos would ensue. All right, the mayor took three deep breaths of air, letting the cool breeze dry the sweat forming in beads on his forehead. Now, be-----
?“Look, bear,” Tyree challenged menacingly, “We’re not giving you anything. The only way you’re gonna get us is if you do it by force!”
?Tyree, Moses, the mayor and the rest of the town were surprised by his sudden challenge. Shocked, so shocked that everyone’s face turned a pale white, like that of a ghost. Tyree himself was surprised. He’d never had that kind of strength before. Or at least, never known he’d had that kind of strength before.
?Charlie’s mouth dropped open in shock. He had been about to say something, about to stand up to the bear himself, but the kid had beaten him to it. And of all kids to do it, the mayor observed, extremely confused, Tyree was the one? Tyree was the one who stood up to the bear? My world is getting more and more messed up by the minute! The mayor knew Tyree (he had met everyone in the town orphanage), and he had always been shy, always been locked in his own little world. His best friend, Moses, had always been the courageous one, the hero. Tyree had lost both his parents recently in a car accident, and their deaths had pulled him into a silent trance. He rarely spoke, and if he did, it was only to Moses.
?The rest of Maxim was just as shocked. Even the bear/god was surprised. He couldn’t believe his ears.
?“Excuse me?” the bear growled questioningly. “Did you just say what I think you said?”
?Unable to find the words to answer, Tyree nodded his head up and down, slow as a snail. He was nervous himself, scared as a mouse being chased by a lion. Just because he didn’t sound nervous didn’t mean he actually was not nervous.
?An eerie silence followed. Everybody from the town of Maxim was too afraid to speak, too afraid to move, too afraid to breathe. Tyree’s short, ragged breaths sounded to him like a speaker blasting music on full volume. The whole time, all he could ask himself was, Why? Why did I stand up to that bear? That’s not my job; it’s the mayor’s! Why?
?As the awkward silence followed, Tyree came to a conclusion in his mind. It’s because I’m sick of this, he discovered. It’s because I’m sick of all this fear, all this bullying. I’m done with it. We should not be allowing this bear to provoke us, no matter what its size. That’s why I’m gonna stand up------
?His thought abruptly ended when he heard a huge explosion behind him. He swiveled his head back towards the sacrificial stage as his eyes widened in fear and bewilderment. A massive hole the size of Jupiter sat in the middle of the sacrificial stage, steam and ashes slowly rising up from it. Just four feet from the gaping hole crouched the terrified mayor who was cloaked in dust from what looked to be the fire explosion. Again, Charlie had gotten lucky, and the bear/god had missed.
?However, the third time, the bear seemingly would not be denied. He growled softly but angrily in disgust as its eyes turned blood red. The fur on its back was raised like a bar, standing in rows. The bear lifted its palm, sucked in a large breath of air and blew. It blew so hard the citizens could feel a gust of wind fly through their hair like a bird. The trees swayed from side to side, the gust of wind emanating from the bear’s mouth forcing them to do so.
?Meanwhile, Tyree realized what the bear was going to do before the bear even did it. It’s like I know this bear, Tyree wondered curiously. I just have this gut feeling, this feeling inside me…. That this bear is gonna do what I think it’s gonna do. With that thought in mind, Tyree, without saying a word, made a sudden break for the sacrificial stage, where the mayor huddled in a tight ball.
?His suspicions were confirmed as he heard a deafening gasp come from the citizens of Maxim. He glanced at the bear, seeing another ball of fire in its hands. I knew it, the orphan exclaimed inwardly. However, he didn’t have time to focus on his correct guess. Well, more like instinct, but still, I have a job to do, and I don’t have much time to do it!
?A deep cackle emitted from the bear as it noticed what looked like a child running to save the mayor. “You think you can stop me?” the bear grumbled noisily. “I can kill you as easy as I can walk. Save yourself now by turning around and running back to where you came from. Go on, leave!” The citizens of the town looked in awe at the courageous kid, but that awe turned to wonder extremely quickly.
?“What’s he doing?”?
?“Why did he just stop running?”
?Yes, that was exactly what happened. After hearing the bear talk clearly, Tyree paused, thinking he had heard the voice before. He couldn’t place it. The orphan stood frozen like ice, unmoving, as he racked his memory for where he’d heard the voice. Deciding to stall, to hear the voice more, so he could place it, he shouted back to the bear in his toughest, meanest sounding voice, “Why? What will happen to me if I don’t turn around and don’t go back?”
?The bear laughed again and responded, “Just leave me alone, kid. You are wasting my time. What will happen to you if you don’t go back? To answer your idiotic question, I’ll kill you, that’s what. Now turn around and run the other way!”
?However, the orphan had already stopped listening. He knew exactly where he had heard the voice? Is it? Is it really them? My parents?! No, it can’t be? Well, might as well find out!
?Tyree cleared his throat, feeling the eyes of the citizens boring a hole through his head. He hated being the center of attention, hated any attention, good or bad. He just wanted to be left alone. But I don’t have a choice here, do I? No, I don’t. Pretend everyone around you is naked. As much as he wanted to believe the people around him were naked, he couldn’t. It was a trick all teachers said that helps overcome stage fright, but for some reason, it never worked for him. Just do it and get it over with! If you don’t ask the question now, when you have the chance, you will regret it for the rest of your life!
?“So, what is your name, bear?” That time, Tyree did not use a fake voice. He used his real voice, praying with all his might that the bear was actually his parents, and that they would recognize it. They didn’t. Or, if they did, they didn’t act like it.
?“My name? You wanna know my name? Let’s start with yours, kid. Don’t forget, I’m the one in charge here.”
?Tyree seized the opportunity as fast as lightning. “My name? Tyree Graham. I’m an orphan with a dad and mom who “supposedly” died in a car crash. Their names were Oliver and Madison Graham. But you know what? I think that is a downright lie. I think that’s not true. You know what I think?” He fumed then as tears spouted from his eyes. His heart beat faster than ever, the adrenaline coursing through his veins as smoothly as a river. His fist wanted to punch something, anything, as long as it wasn’t him. He was about to lose his temper, if he didn’t say something soon, something to get his mind off anger.
?“You… you… you are my parents.” His voice shook with nerves, with anger, with anxiety. He couldn’t help. Tyree tried to remain strong, but simply could not.
?Suddenly, the whole town of Maxim fell silent as something that sounded like soft sniffles and soft crying coming from within the bear. Then, yet another miracle unfolded. That time, it was a good one.
?There was a loud creaking noise, like the sound a rusty door makes when it is opened. Following that was an intermittent crunching noise, as the bear seemed to fold itself up until it became nothing more than a small, white rowboat.
?The town of Maxim gasped in amazement. They were shocked and confused, perplexed and bewildered. They all just stood there, gaping at the transformation they had witnessed. However, the one citizen that did not stand there, mouth hung open, was Tyree. He was already off and running toward the boat in the middle of the River of Death.
?Happiness and ecstasy coursed through Tyree’s veins. He was right! His parents were in the bear! The bear was just a ploy, just a machine; it was not actually real. Tears of joy flooded his eyes, blurring his vision, but he didn’t care. At the moment, he didn’t care about anything. Even swimming through the River of Death, since that was exactly what he did.
?Nobody shouted out to Tyree, to stop him. They were too shocked to. Even if they did, they couldn’t stop him. Nothing can stop me! He shouted inwardly.
?Dripping wet, soaked, freezing, Tyree came up out of the River of Death and onto his parents’ boat. His lips were numb, his arms were numb, his legs were numb, his face was numb, but he didn’t care. It was the single happiest day of his life. His parents were alive! 
?At first, neither of the three of them said anything. It was an awkward reunion. Finally, his mom spoke first, “Tyree, we are really, really, really sorry. We know you are mad at us, and we understand.”
?She was hardly able to finish that sentence, for her crying was so intense. Tyree put his head on her shoulder, crying with his mom, not caring that they had lied to him for all those years. His parents were alive and well, and he was no longer and orphan. That was what was important. That was what mattered.
?Meanwhile, Tyree’s father, who had so far said nothing, paddled the rowboat back to shore. Inside, however, a whirlwind of emotions flowed through his mind. There was anger, directed towards himself, for being such a bad father, a father who didn’t care, a father who lied to his own son, a father that sucked. He continuously berated himself, asking a single question that seemed impossible to answer: Why?
?When the three of them had arrived at shore, a surprise awaited them. Not a good surprise, a bad one. Ten armed guards stood, rifles hoisted onto their muscular shoulders. Behind them was the mayor of Maxim, Charlie Lee. Tyree’s mouth dropped open in shock. Is this? Is this really happening to me? He wanted to run, to flee, to run away with his parents. However, he couldn’t bring himself to. What is done is done, Tyree consoled himself, the law is the law, and there is nothing I can do about it.
? His fears were confirmed as soon as the words were out of the mayor’s mouth: “You three are under arrest. Get in the car.”
?Tyree and his two parents directed their attention toward Charlie’s outstretched finger. Their eyes immediately widened in horror. A police vehicle, covered in a pitch black coat of paint was parked by the sacrificial stage. “Wa….wa….wait!” Oliver sputtered. He could not get arrested. The only way to get out of it was by telling the whole town the truth. “You ca…. ca….. Can’t arrest us!”
?Charlie threw his head back and laughed. “I ca…. ca….. Can’t arrest you? And exactly why is that, Oliver Graham?” he mocked. Hatred filled his voice.
?“Because… Because… Because I’ll explain everything,” Tyree’s dad responded shakily. He was unsure of himself, unsure than he’d ever been in his life, but he said it anyway. I have a duty to protect by beautiful wife and my long lost son.
?Madison shook with fear, hanging on to Tyree with all her might. Her husband, Oliver, towered behind a podium engraved with the Maxim town emblem located in the center of the sacrificial stage. Moses stood beside them, awkwardly, trying to divert his attention from Madison and her son. However, it was so hard, nearly impossible, as tears welled up in his eyes. All he could think was: He’s so lucky that his parents are alive. Why can’t I be normal like everybody else? Why can’t I have parents? Why, God, why me?
? Oliver twiddled his fingers and took deep but quick breaths of air. He was nervous and afraid. For one, he had always been one to hate the attention of the public eye. Two, he was about to reveal and tell the entire town of Maxim what him and his wife had been doing the past two years. His eyes scanned the large crowd anxiously, looking for visages. Most of them were perplexed, bewildered and shocked. No, not most of them. Every single one. They all gaped at Oliver, mouths hung open, drool dripping from the side. But they have a right to be shocked, Tyree’s dad told himself. You were supposed to be dead, and now all of a sudden, you are alive? It makes no sense whatsoever!
?Suddenly, the microphone placed directly in front of Oliver’s mouth crackled to life, like a stereo being turned on. “Go on,” the mayor encouraged sarcastically. “Give the people a good story, and let them decide whether you should be arrested or not.” He grinned at Oliver devilishly, like a glowing Halloween jack-o-lantern.
?At first, Tyree’s dad had been so nervous that he stuttered after every sentence. He seldom finished a sentence without ending in multitudes of coughs or sneezes. He twitched his fingers and squirmed around the podium several times, the spotlight, attention and embarrassment being the major cause of it all. However, as soon as the story got interesting, his voice transformed.
?It became loud and clear, almost as if it were proud of the crime he had done. When he first began, he talked of the reason why his wife and him had done it in the first place. Why had they built a mechanical bear/monster to terrorize the town? He said it was because of the car accident they’d gotten into had been with the mayor. It had paralyzed both of their legs, allowing them to never walk again. However, Oliver said his wife and him had figured out a way to get their legs to work again, by injecting a chemical that made life. That chemical was also used to make the mechanical monster.
?The reason they terrorized the city of Maxim was to get revenge on the mayor for all the time they were unable to walk. At that point, Tyree’s dad had started bawling like nobody’s business; the next couple words that came out of his mouth were not comprehendible. He said, to the pure amazement of everybody else listening, that there was no such monster in the River of Death. There was not even such a thing as the River of Death! All that had happened to the supposed “sacrifices” was that they were brought to the other side of the river, to the nearby town of Courth, to live out the rest of their days. That sentence caused a lot of citizens in the audience to being sobbing with tears of joy, for their relatives were ok.
?Then, Oliver explained why the “River of Death” was created. He said it had been a practical joke by the first mayor, an ancestor of Oliver, a man named Tommy Graham. However, his “practical joke” developed into something a lot more serious and a lot less funny. Soon, it was out of Tommy’s hands, and there had been nothing he could’ve done to stop it. It was supposed to be just like the “Boogie Man” or something silly like that, something to scare little kids.
?When Tyree’s dad finally finished his epic, emotional, hour-long speech, the crowd gave him a standing ovation. A huge burden had been lifted from all of their shoulders, every single one of them. Finally, the moment of truth came.
?The mayor hoisted himself onto the sacrificial stage (with the help of two of his bodyguards) and walked out to the middle. Raising himself to be as tall as he could be, his voice boomed with energy, “You guys in the audience will decide: does this man (along with his family) deserve to live the rest of their days free of charge? Or do they deserve to spend the rest of their days in jail? You guys DECIDE! All in favor of them being free raise your hand and shout, AYE! If you do not agree, don’t say anything!”
?The moments of silence that followed were deafening. The world seemed to scream in Oliver’s ears. Tyree looked at the floor, unable to make contact with anybody’s eyes. He was too scared for his life. Moses prayed with all his might that his best friend would not be ushered to jail, the two would be able to still hang out. Maybe his parents could even…. Adopt him? Madison Graham doubted the ruling would be in their favor. She had a gut feeling, a gut instinct, that the three would be headed to jail any second.
?Luckily, she was wrong. Dead wrong.
?After the first chorus of “Aye!” Oliver sprinted off the stage, running to Tyree and Madison, who were already hugging. The three knew that the impossible had occurred. They had won, been set free. It was all over: all their problems, all their worries. The Graham family was huddled in a circle, jumping up and down, shouting and screaming like there was no tomorrow. Maxim became heaven. However, there was one more issue to solve.Tyree and the River of Death
?“Oh no,” Tyree moaned to his long time friend, Moses. “They’re picking the human sacrifices again. I’m scared. Aren’t you? You don’t seem like it. Well, you might but---“
?“Ok! I get it! You talk a lot when you’re nervous, and it really gets on my nerves! Please, shut up! I’m trying to think!”
?Tyree smiled inwardly, not wanting to say aloud the undeniable truth: And you get angry with me whenever you are nervous. He took a deep breath before gently apologizing to Moses. “Sorry, bud. You know me. I’m a total train wreck right now.”
?Slowly but surely, the two of them crawled out from their rooms in the orphanage to the sacrificial stage, where an enormous crowd of people stood. “Well, we’re late,” Moses, pointed out obviously, his eyes nervously darting around like lasers. “And I’m happy about that. Maybe they’ve already done the draws and we weren’t picked!”
?“Sure,” Tyree mocked, heavy sarcasm dripping from his voice. He attempted to stifle a laugh, which turned into a loud outburst of coughing.
?“Now, where is the kid section?” Moses inquired, “I don’t see it anyw----“
?“Wow! Look at that!” Tyree suddenly interrupted. His chubby index finger pointed at a small black bear in the distance, paddling quickly across the surface of the River of Death. “What is th-----“
?Tyree’s and Moses’ jaws both dropped open at the same time in utter astonishment. They couldn’t believe their eyes. In that moment, although the whole town of Maxim was there, it was silent, an eerie, luminous silence. A chill sprinted up Tyree’s spine, but he was too occupied looking at the bear transform to care.
?The bear that Tyree had pointed at earlier, the one that had been paddling across the River of Death, suddenly began to morph and transform. Its eyes seemed to pop out of its head, as his head blew up like a balloon to make room for them. Muscles began to bulge out of his body like nobody’s business, and his body tripled in size. Soon, the small black bear stood 20 feet tall and 20 feet wide. Long fangs, about the size of an adult’s arm, stretched from his top jaw to the bottom one, glistening in the sun’s reflection. At the tip of each point was a tip so finely pointed and sharp it looked as if it could cut through metal with ease. Over 50 fangs filled its jaw.
?The bear’s eyes were a devilish red, glaring down at the citizens of Maxim, who were terrified out of their minds. They desperately wanted to run, run far away, anywhere away from the bear/monster, but the bear’s evil gaze seemed to hold them still like glue. The bear’s legs and arms were about 10 feet long, each, with multiple muscles the size of a human head.
?The bear was nothing short of a monster. In fact, the word “monster” would be an understatement. It was more like… a god. An evil one, of course, but nevertheless, a deity.
?Tyree opened his mouth to say something to Moses, but the bear beat him to it.
?“People of Maxim,” it addressed in a deep voice, one that sounded scratchy and hoarse and painful to the ears. “You have sent two sacrifices to the River of Death. However, I am hungry, so I want more. Give me two more, and I will leave you all alone until next year. You have my word on that.” Then, signaling to the River of Death, he growled ferociously, “This time, I want kids. Now!”
?A cry of surprise arose from somewhere in the multitude of people. “Come on, mayor, do something! You know the agreement was that only people above the ago of 18 got sacrificed! Do something already!”
?“Yeah, mayor, you promised you would stand up for the people!”
?“Yeah! We didn’t elect you to do nothing!”
?All at once, everybody in the crowd started jeering at him, complaining how he just sat in his office, eating Lays potato chips and spending the city’s money to go on vacations. Although it was true, until then, none of the citizens had felt the necessity to be rude to the mayor. Overall, he was a nice guy who tried hard at what he did.
?The mayor’s name was Charlie Lee, a heavily overweight Japanese man. He wore flimsy, cheap glasses that constantly fell down his face. He had lived in Japan for his whole life until his college years, where he studied political science at Boston College in Massachusetts. Once he’d gotten his degree, he retired to the town of Maxim. Charlie was elected mayor shortly after, as no one else in the town wanted to, after the beast inside the River of Death murdered the previous mayor.
?Charlie shuddered as he stood on the stage, listening intently to the insults the citizens of Maxim hurled at him. The one thing he hated most, aside from speaking in public, was making decisions. He immediately sensed the stress enter his body; he began to sweat profusely, the weather suddenly got three times warmer, his thoughts became jumbled up like a maze.
?However, the stress did not last for long. He was frightened into action when the giant bear/god chucked a ball of fire that it had seemingly materialized out of thin air at Charlie. Luckily, the ball just missed the mayor’s left ear, instead bursting in a massive flame on stage. This caused panicked screams to rise up from the crowd as chaos ensued. The crowd went from an orderly crowd to frantic people scurrying around within seconds.
?“Aaaah!”
?“The world is about to end!”
?“The end is here!”
?“We’re all gonna die!”
?Meanwhile, the bear fumed, despising all the chaos, all the disorder. It needed control. It needed power. Most of all it needed food. It was starving. The bear wanted kids to eat, since it wasn’t that hungry, and it hated wasting. Almost as much as it hated chaos. Well, I didn’t want to have to do this, but these imbeciles asked for it, the bear remarked to himself snidely.
?It raised itself fully up out of the water, tried to look as menacing as possible and pounded its chest with its two meaty fist. Then the bear leaned its head back and roared, a roar so loud it made the ground rumble and the water churn. It shook the trees, and a blast of hot breath that reeked of trash washed over the citizens of Maxim. The roar entered into every citizen’s eardrum and made it scream in pain, a blinding pain that felt like a thousand needles piercing the heart.
?The roar frightened the citizens into stock-still statues, petrified of fear. Despite how badly they wanted to budge, they simply couldn’t. They seemed attached to the ground by glue.
?“So, am I gonna get those kids or what? I’m hungry and I want food! Now! And if you don’t give them to me, now, I’m taking all of you citizens into my restaurant! As the main course!”
?Scared into action, the mayor slowly rose from the ground, having fallen when the ball of fire exploded on stage. He cleared his throat and shook his fist high in the air, yelling at the bear to back off. At least, tried to. However, nothing came out, not a peep. All that could be heard in the then silent town was the clanging of the mayor’s expensive Rolex watch as he shook his fist.
?“What is it, mayor?” the bear scoffed at the strangely mute Charlie. “Too scared to talk? Don’t worry, I don’t bite.”
?Oh man, why can’t I say anything? the mayor complained silently. Why am I so nervous that I cannot even get words to come out of my mouth? Why?
?He opened his mouth wider, attempting to choke the words out of his mouth, as long as they came out. I mean, something is better than nothing, right? he reminded himself. However, no luck. He pushed even more, twice as hard as before. Still, nothing came out. Nervously, Charlie glanced around the crowd, and his worry was confirmed. I’m letting my people down, the mayor observed, angry with himself for not having the guts to stand up to the bear. I had one job, and I couldn’t do it. The citizens had begun whispering to each other with scared looks on their faces. They were growing shifty. If he didn’t act fast, chaos would ensue. All right, the mayor took three deep breaths of air, letting the cool breeze dry the sweat forming in beads on his forehead. Now, be-----
?“Look, bear,” Tyree challenged menacingly, “We’re not giving you anything. The only way you’re gonna get us is if you do it by force!”
?Tyree, Moses, the mayor and the rest of the town were surprised by his sudden challenge. Shocked, so shocked that everyone’s face turned a pale white, like that of a ghost. Tyree himself was surprised. He’d never had that kind of strength before. Or at least, never known he’d had that kind of strength before.
?Charlie’s mouth dropped open in shock. He had been about to say something, about to stand up to the bear himself, but the kid had beaten him to it. And of all kids to do it, the mayor observed, extremely confused, Tyree was the one? Tyree was the one who stood up to the bear? My world is getting more and more messed up by the minute! The mayor knew Tyree (he had met everyone in the town orphanage), and he had always been shy, always been locked in his own little world. His best friend, Moses, had always been the courageous one, the hero. Tyree had lost both his parents recently in a car accident, and their deaths had pulled him into a silent trance. He rarely spoke, and if he did, it was only to Moses.
?The rest of Maxim was just as shocked. Even the bear/god was surprised. He couldn’t believe his ears.
?“Excuse me?” the bear growled questioningly. “Did you just say what I think you said?”
?Unable to find the words to answer, Tyree nodded his head up and down, slow as a snail. He was nervous himself, scared as a mouse being chased by a lion. Just because he didn’t sound nervous didn’t mean he actually was not nervous.
?An eerie silence followed. Everybody from the town of Maxim was too afraid to speak, too afraid to move, too afraid to breathe. Tyree’s short, ragged breaths sounded to him like a speaker blasting music on full volume. The whole time, all he could ask himself was, Why? Why did I stand up to that bear? That’s not my job; it’s the mayor’s! Why?
?As the awkward silence followed, Tyree came to a conclusion in his mind. It’s because I’m sick of this, he discovered. It’s because I’m sick of all this fear, all this bullying. I’m done with it. We should not be allowing this bear to provoke us, no matter what its size. That’s why I’m gonna stand up------
?His thought abruptly ended when he heard a huge explosion behind him. He swiveled his head back towards the sacrificial stage as his eyes widened in fear and bewilderment. A massive hole the size of Jupiter sat in the middle of the sacrificial stage, steam and ashes slowly rising up from it. Just four feet from the gaping hole crouched the terrified mayor who was cloaked in dust from what looked to be the fire explosion. Again, Charlie had gotten lucky, and the bear/god had missed.
?However, the third time, the bear seemingly would not be denied. He growled softly but angrily in disgust as its eyes turned blood red. The fur on its back was raised like a bar, standing in rows. The bear lifted its palm, sucked in a large breath of air and blew. It blew so hard the citizens could feel a gust of wind fly through their hair like a bird. The trees swayed from side to side, the gust of wind emanating from the bear’s mouth forcing them to do so.
?Meanwhile, Tyree realized what the bear was going to do before the bear even did it. It’s like I know this bear, Tyree wondered curiously. I just have this gut feeling, this feeling inside me…. That this bear is gonna do what I think it’s gonna do. With that thought in mind, Tyree, without saying a word, made a sudden break for the sacrificial stage, where the mayor huddled in a tight ball.
?His suspicions were confirmed as he heard a deafening gasp come from the citizens of Maxim. He glanced at the bear, seeing another ball of fire in its hands. I knew it, the orphan exclaimed inwardly. However, he didn’t have time to focus on his correct guess. Well, more like instinct, but still, I have a job to do, and I don’t have much time to do it!
?A deep cackle emitted from the bear as it noticed what looked like a child running to save the mayor. “You think you can stop me?” the bear grumbled noisily. “I can kill you as easy as I can walk. Save yourself now by turning around and running back to where you came from. Go on, leave!” The citizens of the town looked in awe at the courageous kid, but that awe turned to wonder extremely quickly.
?“What’s he doing?”?
?“Why did he just stop running?”
?Yes, that was exactly what happened. After hearing the bear talk clearly, Tyree paused, thinking he had heard the voice before. He couldn’t place it. The orphan stood frozen like ice, unmoving, as he racked his memory for where he’d heard the voice. Deciding to stall, to hear the voice more, so he could place it, he shouted back to the bear in his toughest, meanest sounding voice, “Why? What will happen to me if I don’t turn around and don’t go back?”
?The bear laughed again and responded, “Just leave me alone, kid. You are wasting my time. What will happen to you if you don’t go back? To answer your idiotic question, I’ll kill you, that’s what. Now turn around and run the other way!”
?However, the orphan had already stopped listening. He knew exactly where he had heard the voice? Is it? Is it really them? My parents?! No, it can’t be? Well, might as well find out!
?Tyree cleared his throat, feeling the eyes of the citizens boring a hole through his head. He hated being the center of attention, hated any attention, good or bad. He just wanted to be left alone. But I don’t have a choice here, do I? No, I don’t. Pretend everyone around you is naked. As much as he wanted to believe the people around him were naked, he couldn’t. It was a trick all teachers said that helps overcome stage fright, but for some reason, it never worked for him. Just do it and get it over with! If you don’t ask the question now, when you have the chance, you will regret it for the rest of your life!
?“So, what is your name, bear?” That time, Tyree did not use a fake voice. He used his real voice, praying with all his might that the bear was actually his parents, and that they would recognize it. They didn’t. Or, if they did, they didn’t act like it.
?“My name? You wanna know my name? Let’s start with yours, kid. Don’t forget, I’m the one in charge here.”
?Tyree seized the opportunity as fast as lightning. “My name? Tyree Graham. I’m an orphan with a dad and mom who “supposedly” died in a car crash. Their names were Oliver and Madison Graham. But you know what? I think that is a downright lie. I think that’s not true. You know what I think?” He fumed then as tears spouted from his eyes. His heart beat faster than ever, the adrenaline coursing through his veins as smoothly as a river. His fist wanted to punch something, anything, as long as it wasn’t him. He was about to lose his temper, if he didn’t say something soon, something to get his mind off anger.
?“You… you… you are my parents.” His voice shook with nerves, with anger, with anxiety. He couldn’t help. Tyree tried to remain strong, but simply could not.
?Suddenly, the whole town of Maxim fell silent as something that sounded like soft sniffles and soft crying coming from within the bear. Then, yet another miracle unfolded. That time, it was a good one.
?There was a loud creaking noise, like the sound a rusty door makes when it is opened. Following that was an intermittent crunching noise, as the bear seemed to fold itself up until it became nothing more than a small, white rowboat.
?The town of Maxim gasped in amazement. They were shocked and confused, perplexed and bewildered. They all just stood there, gaping at the transformation they had witnessed. However, the one citizen that did not stand there, mouth hung open, was Tyree. He was already off and running toward the boat in the middle of the River of Death.
?Happiness and ecstasy coursed through Tyree’s veins. He was right! His parents were in the bear! The bear was just a ploy, just a machine; it was not actually real. Tears of joy flooded his eyes, blurring his vision, but he didn’t care. At the moment, he didn’t care about anything. Even swimming through the River of Death, since that was exactly what he did.
?Nobody shouted out to Tyree, to stop him. They were too shocked to. Even if they did, they couldn’t stop him. Nothing can stop me! He shouted inwardly.
?Dripping wet, soaked, freezing, Tyree came up out of the River of Death and onto his parents’ boat. His lips were numb, his arms were numb, his legs were numb, his face was numb, but he didn’t care. It was the single happiest day of his life. His parents were alive! 
?At first, neither of the three of them said anything. It was an awkward reunion. Finally, his mom spoke first, “Tyree, we are really, really, really sorry. We know you are mad at us, and we understand.”
?She was hardly able to finish that sentence, for her crying was so intense. Tyree put his head on her shoulder, crying with his mom, not caring that they had lied to him for all those years. His parents were alive and well, and he was no longer and orphan. That was what was important. That was what mattered.
?Meanwhile, Tyree’s father, who had so far said nothing, paddled the rowboat back to shore. Inside, however, a whirlwind of emotions flowed through his mind. There was anger, directed towards himself, for being such a bad father, a father who didn’t care, a father who lied to his own son, a father that sucked. He continuously berated himself, asking a single question that seemed impossible to answer: Why?
?When the three of them had arrived at shore, a surprise awaited them. Not a good surprise, a bad one. Ten armed guards stood, rifles hoisted onto their muscular shoulders. Behind them was the mayor of Maxim, Charlie Lee. Tyree’s mouth dropped open in shock. Is this? Is this really happening to me? He wanted to run, to flee, to run away with his parents. However, he couldn’t bring himself to. What is done is done, Tyree consoled himself, the law is the law, and there is nothing I can do about it.
? His fears were confirmed as soon as the words were out of the mayor’s mouth: “You three are under arrest. Get in the car.”
?Tyree and his two parents directed their attention toward Charlie’s outstretched finger. Their eyes immediately widened in horror. A police vehicle, covered in a pitch black coat of paint was parked by the sacrificial stage. “Wa….wa….wait!” Oliver sputtered. He could not get arrested. The only way to get out of it was by telling the whole town the truth. “You ca…. ca….. Can’t arrest us!”
?Charlie threw his head back and laughed. “I ca…. ca….. Can’t arrest you? And exactly why is that, Oliver Graham?” he mocked. Hatred filled his voice.
?“Because… Because… Because I’ll explain everything,” Tyree’s dad responded shakily. He was unsure of himself, unsure than he’d ever been in his life, but he said it anyway. I have a duty to protect by beautiful wife and my long lost son.
?Madison shook with fear, hanging on to Tyree with all her might. Her husband, Oliver, towered behind a podium engraved with the Maxim town emblem located in the center of the sacrificial stage. Moses stood beside them, awkwardly, trying to divert his attention from Madison and her son. However, it was so hard, nearly impossible, as tears welled up in his eyes. All he could think was: He’s so lucky that his parents are alive. Why can’t I be normal like everybody else? Why can’t I have parents? Why, God, why me?
? Oliver twiddled his fingers and took deep but quick breaths of air. He was nervous and afraid. For one, he had always been one to hate the attention of the public eye. Two, he was about to reveal and tell the entire town of Maxim what him and his wife had been doing the past two years. His eyes scanned the large crowd anxiously, looking for visages. Most of them were perplexed, bewildered and shocked. No, not most of them. Every single one. They all gaped at Oliver, mouths hung open, drool dripping from the side. But they have a right to be shocked, Tyree’s dad told himself. You were supposed to be dead, and now all of a sudden, you are alive? It makes no sense whatsoever!
?Suddenly, the microphone placed directly in front of Oliver’s mouth crackled to life, like a stereo being turned on. “Go on,” the mayor encouraged sarcastically. “Give the people a good story, and let them decide whether you should be arrested or not.” He grinned at Oliver devilishly, like a glowing Halloween jack-o-lantern.
?At first, Tyree’s dad had been so nervous that he stuttered after every sentence. He seldom finished a sentence without ending in multitudes of coughs or sneezes. He twitched his fingers and squirmed around the podium several times, the spotlight, attention and embarrassment being the major cause of it all. However, as soon as the story got interesting, his voice transformed.
?It became loud and clear, almost as if it were proud of the crime he had done. When he first began, he talked of the reason why his wife and him had done it in the first place. Why had they built a mechanical bear/monster to terrorize the town? He said it was because of the car accident they’d gotten into had been with the mayor. It had paralyzed both of their legs, allowing them to never walk again. However, Oliver said his wife and him had figured out a way to get their legs to work again, by injecting a chemical that made life. That chemical was also used to make the mechanical monster.
?The reason they terrorized the city of Maxim was to get revenge on the mayor for all the time they were unable to walk. At that point, Tyree’s dad had started bawling like nobody’s business; the next couple words that came out of his mouth were not comprehendible. He said, to the pure amazement of everybody else listening, that there was no such monster in the River of Death. There was not even such a thing as the River of Death! All that had happened to the supposed “sacrifices” was that they were brought to the other side of the river, to the nearby town of Courth, to live out the rest of their days. That sentence caused a lot of citizens in the audience to being sobbing with tears of joy, for their relatives were ok.
?Then, Oliver explained why the “River of Death” was created. He said it had been a practical joke by the first mayor, an ancestor of Oliver, a man named Tommy Graham. However, his “practical joke” developed into something a lot more serious and a lot less funny. Soon, it was out of Tommy’s hands, and there had been nothing he could’ve done to stop it. It was supposed to be just like the “Boogie Man” or something silly like that, something to scare little kids.
?When Tyree’s dad finally finished his epic, emotional, hour-long speech, the crowd gave him a standing ovation. A huge burden had been lifted from all of their shoulders, every single one of them. Finally, the moment of truth came.
?The mayor hoisted himself onto the sacrificial stage (with the help of two of his bodyguards) and walked out to the middle. Raising himself to be as tall as he could be, his voice boomed with energy, “You guys in the audience will decide: does this man (along with his family) deserve to live the rest of their days free of charge? Or do they deserve to spend the rest of their days in jail? You guys DECIDE! All in favor of them being free raise your hand and shout, AYE! If you do not agree, don’t say anything!”
?The moments of silence that followed were deafening. The world seemed to scream in Oliver’s ears. Tyree looked at the floor, unable to make contact with anybody’s eyes. He was too scared for his life. Moses prayed with all his might that his best friend would not be ushered to jail, the two would be able to still hang out. Maybe his parents could even…. Adopt him? Madison Graham doubted the ruling would be in their favor. She had a gut feeling, a gut instinct, that the three would be headed to jail any second.
?Luckily, she was wrong. Dead wrong.
?After the first chorus of “Aye!” Oliver sprinted off the stage, running to Tyree and Madison, who were already hugging. The three knew that the impossible had occurred. They had won, been set free. It was all over: all their problems, all their worries. The Graham family was huddled in a circle, jumping up and down, shouting and screaming like there was no tomorrow. Maxim became heaven. However, there was just one more issue to solve.
?Moses stood to the side of the happy, ecstatic Graham family, tears streaming down from his eyes like a river. Why me, God? Why can’t I have parents who-----
?He wasn’t able to finish his thought, for all of a sudden, a strong, calloused hand jerked him. Recognizing it as the hand of Tyree’s father, he wondered what was going to happen. Why does he want----
?Once again, his thought was interrupted, this time by a loud, joyous shout, “Welcome to the family, Moses! We are adopting you! Come on, enjoy this moment of celebration with us!” Moses smiled widely, wider than he had ever smiled in his life, and for the first time, a smile that wasn’t pretend. And it felt great.
?Once the four had gotten exhausted from all the jumping, all the shrieking, all the crying. Taking deep breaths of air, the four smiled. Each and everyone of them, a smile of true happiness. It was the best feeling ever. It was the happiest day of their lives.