The Radicals - Vedanshi Jain - Std 8 -12

It was a sunny Saturday morning. The sun was shining brightly, and its rays took away the dampness from the previous day’s rain. But I didn’t have time to bask in the sun. I had to reach the school hostel to organize a surprise birthday party. It was one of my best friend Cooper’s birthday and we wanted his day to be perfect.

But fate had some other plans.

I reached the hostel with Herrona and Romus, my other best friends and started decorating at top speed. Cooper-a tall, dark and lanky boy - was out on the field for his basketball class.

It was 12pm. Cooper entered the building which was empty from the top to bottom; it was really weird to find the hostel empty. He headed towards his room to freshen up and have lunch. But the moment he stepped foot on his darkness-engulfed floor, he was sent back in alarm; such loud was the noise.

“Happy Birthday, Cooper!”, we all screamed and the lights came back on.

And the party started. Just a regular crazy teenage party.

After the party, we loaded up all of Cooper’s presents in Heronna’s car and went to Romus’ place. There started one of the world’s most dangerous gift opening spree.

I ripped off the wrapping paper of an old-fashioned video game disk. It had intricate carvings on its cover- named ‘The Radicals ’.Cooper went into transports of delight upon seeing it. He immediately plugged it in and handed us all remote controls.

It was one of those survival skills, meet military moves game. Romus was just teaching me how to play when Herrona chucked her controller hard on the floor in anger.

BOOM!

There was a sudden flash of bang and everything went dark…

We opened our eyes, disoriented. I got up, saw that we near a fighting pit, and looked around. I observed my surroundings closely . I saw that my friends were gathered closely. The noise in the background was deafening; the people were cheering for someone called Ratak.

“Oh no!”, Herrona wailed. “ We are in the game! This is really dangerous! You have to win the fights to complete the game. This is all my fault!!”

We desperately tried to get out of the crowd when suddenly the mob went quiet.

A heavily-muscled and boar-like man stepped out, who I assumed was Ratak. He stepped into the ring and the crowd went mad again. The weedy-looking host raised his hand for silence and said, “His opponent today is the newbie- Vegran!”.

“What?”, we exclaimed together.

I blinked. They surely didn’t expect me to get in the ring and fight a hefty man using defensive skills? I took a tentative step backwards but Herrona pulled me towards her and muttered,” It is not possible to get out of this area before you play at least one bout.” Then Romus pushed me into the ring.

I looked at my opponent, terrified. I had never even fought in a video game, let alone in real life. I wanted to run away but at that moment the host blew a whistle and Ratak came darting towards me. I had no plan! So I turned my back on Ratak started running towards the wall.

I had a stupid idea!

I ran straight towards the pit wall, hoping my plan would work. Ratak was following me intently. Unless I veered off-course,I would crash head-first into the wall but, at the last second, I changed my direction! Ratak wasn’t as lucky as me. He wasn’t able to change course and crashed into the wall with a crunch. He swayed on the spot and then fell face wards on the ground.

A moment of silence and the crowd cheered for me. But I only wanted to get to my friends. We hugged each other and celebrated my smart win. I was happy because now we could get out of there. But my happy thoughts were disrupted by the host who came up to tell me a news. “Congratulations on defeating Ratak! Since you are such a great fighter, we will keep you here. Rest of you can leave.” There was an evil smile on his face as he pushed into the pit-“NOOOOO!”

I woke up with a start, rubbed my eyes, and looked around. I was in my bedroom and covered in cold sweat. I propped myself on my elbows and was in deep thought.

It had been a scary dream…

About the Author :

Meet Vedanshi Jain

Vedanshi  is a 13-year-old student of St. Arnold’s Central School, currently in Grade 9. With a head full of stories and a heart full of dreams, she finds joy in reading, dancing, and—unsurprisingly—getting lost in the magical world of Harry Potter.

Fascinated by creativity and ambition, Vedanshi dreams of becoming a businesswoman someday, inspired by the success of the Harry Potter franchise and the steady encouragement of her parents. Her personality sparkles with curiosity and confidence, and she believes that imagination is just the first step to real-world success.

She chose to share this story because some dreams are too special to keep to yourself—and every story brings her one step closer to the world she hopes to create.

About the Story

This story was submitted by the author as an entry for the BhashaLab Ultimate Story Writing Competition, 2025. We appreciate their creativity, thoughtful expression, and the courage to share their voice with a wider audience. Thank you!

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