The Archer's Paradox

“Release!”

Jay heard the whistling of arrows and the twanging of seven bowstrings. Simultaneously, each of the arrows buried itself into the target buttress with a satisfying thud. He smiled. Despite the lack of a grouping, at least his students hit the target this time. The dark-haired man with soft, brown eyes and a muscular build rose from his chair and inspected the row of students before him.

“Excellent,” he said to his students who stood in a row.

Some admired their shot with a proud grin and others simply shook their heads in disappointment. Jay, in all his eight years of teaching experience, found that all beginners always had such a simplistic view of the art of the bow. Always about hitting the target.

“Good, Katie. Keep that bow hand steady and don’t draw for too long,” he said to a tall blonde woman around Jay’s stature and age. “Your arrow is veering off because of that.”

He inspected his next student. The arrow hit the black buttress but not the circular target placed at its centre. Jay passed his fingers through his thick, black beard in thought. “Do exactly what you did last time, okay?”

Confused, she nodded and knocked another arrow onto her bowstring.

Jay inspected each of his students until he came to his last student. Alex was hardly talented. He barely hit the target and some arrows soared over the buttress and into the field of grass behind them. He was, however, the first to arrive at every lesson and the last to leave, and that showed something to Jay that he valued immensely.

“Well, well… What happened here?” Jay asked with a small chuckle. He spotted the third arrow of Alex behind the buttress buried in the thick grass.

Alex dropped his head in disappointment. “I don’t know, Mr. Stones. It just happened, I guess?”

Jay patted the young man on his back. “I want you to do the exact same thing for your next two arrows. Don’t change a thing. Got it?”

Alex nodded fervently.

“Alright, fellas! Last one for today. There are three arrows currently on that target. You’ve got two more in your quiver. Take aim and fire when you’re ready. Aside from those I told to change nothing, I want your third arrow to be your best arrow. Remember where you aimed and adjust accordingly. Cool?”

“Yes Sir!” the class of seven boomed.

A flurry of arrows flew down the range and buried themselves in the targets. Jay smiled, nodding approvingly. Each of his students had gotten at least one arrow on the target. Well, everyone except Alex. Somehow, his arrows got successively worse. Jay stroked his beard once more.

“S-s-sorry, Mr. Stones,” he apologized meekly.

“Oh, don’t apologize to me until you’ve apologized to that patch of grass there. It’s taken quite a beating from you today.”

They both shared a quick chuckle. “Come talk to me after class, Alex. Cool?”

A few of his students began to murmur. One or two of the younger ones snickered. “Problem child...” one of them muttered. Alex lowered his gaze and his shoulders closed in.

“Problem?” Jay asked. “I see no problem if someone progresses slower than others. A wise man dares to acquaint himself with failure and a forbearing man is one who can withstand its bitterness. Now tell me... what is more admirable. The traits of wisdom, and forbearance or a bullseye. I will have none of this nonsense. Am I clear?”

“Uh… Yes, Sir,” the two hastily corrected.

“Good.” Jay turned around and examined each person’s grouping of arrows. He smiled proudly. “Good work. Seems like you all are getting the hang of this!” He pulled out each of the arrows from the buttresses and wrapped a rubber band around it. “Take a lap around the range and then do the regular cooldown stretches. It’s just about time up.” He singled out the two that snickered. “You two look quite stiff. I think two laps for you will help you loosen up.”

“But you said...”

“Two laps, gentlemen. Quickly!” Jay insisted.

He turned to Alex and winked.

“Thanks, Mr. Stones.”

***

With the rest of the class gone, Jay walked up to the buttress and removed the white paper with the target on it such that the buttress was merely a mixture of black and white leather like a Zebra’s coating.

“Let’s try something. Pick a spot and shoot.”

Alex looked at Jay, his face puzzled.

“Doesn’t have to be the centre. Just pick a spot and shoot your first arrow. Then without breaking eye contact with that specific spot, take a step back and shoot your second arrow. Repeat until you’re out of arrows.”

Jay stood aside and carefully watched Alex perform the drill. He watched his eyes as they remained focused on a point on the buttress, his shoulder blades as they slid towards each other on his back as he drew his bow, his bow hand as it gripped the shaft of the bow, keeping it steady.

Upon drawing his last shot, his eyes flickered to the edge of the range before flicking back to the target. But that break in focus was enough to break his momentum as it strayed from the rest of his arrows.

“You’re nervous,” Jay noted with a little smile. “When you’re around her.”

“W-what? That’s ridiculo—”

“She also stands next to you in our class and you’re both sixteen. I am saddened to inform you that you’ve been shot by Cupid.”

Alex hung his head low. “Annie’s also in my class in school. She’s a friend.”

“My deepest condolences, young man,” Jay said patting Alex on the back.

“Show me the way, master,” Alex said sarcastically.

Jay heard a grunt mocking him from behind. “If it helps you feel better, young man, Jay here is just as bad at talking to women as you are. And his taste in women is questionable, to say the least.”

“Detective Smith,” Jay remarked, shaking the pale, brown-haired man’s hand. “There’s really no need to go into all that detail about my pa—”

“He once fell in love with a serial killer!” Smith exclaimed holding a hand to his forehead. “And funny enough, they actually had some fun as well!”

“Oh my God, Marty! That’s enough of that,” Jay said covering the detective’s mouth with his hand as Alex giggled sheepishly. “Do you always come around to embarrass me in front of my students?”

“Yes… And you love me to bits despite it,” Marty mocked, nudging Jay in the shoulder.

“How are you my best friend and my worst enemy?”

“It’s a skill I’ve mastered,” he replied with a smug grin across his face.

Jay rolled his eyes and turned to Alex. “There’s nothing wrong with your shot. You’re just nervous.”

“And how would I overcome that nervousness?” Alex asked hesitantly.

“Monday… is February 14th…”

“Absolutely NOT!”

“Yes, you are. If she says yes, you’re happy. If she says no, you’re depressed. Either way, you’re no longer nervous.”

“I don’t think that’s how it works, Mr. Stones…”

Jay sighed. “Do you want to be a better archer or not?”

Alex gulped, looked over to where Annie was standing, and then straightened his shoulders. “Consider it done.”

Jay grabbed the young man by his shoulders and dusted the dirt off his shirt. “That’s my boy! Now get going. It may be Valentines Day on Monday but that doesn’t mean your maths test is going to disappear. You’d best start studying.”

“Roger that, Sir,” Alex said with a smile. He picked up his equipment and jogged to the exit of the range.

Jay watched him disappear behind the bushes at the exit of the long stretch of neatly cut grass they called a range.

“That kid is going to stay single his whole life if he keeps taking advice from you,” Marty said with a chuckle.

“I think he’ll make it quite far. As long as he turns out better than me, I’m happy.”

A moment of silence spread between the two friends. “So, what brings you to the range on this fine Saturday morning?” Jay asked.

It wasn’t like his friend to spend time with the common folk unless his work demanded it. Being the chief detective of the police force, he was busy on cases non-stop. Whatever time he had on hand, he’d spend with his newlywed wife and his family. Jay was occasionally invited, being close with both Marty and his wife, Lian.

“Walk with me,” Marty requested.

That’s never a good sign, Jay thought. Nevertheless, he obliged. They walked down the range and opened the green fence at the end. Winding through the forest was a partially marked hiking trail with eroded bricks on the side to guide them. Jay and Marty’s feet kicked up the brown dust as they walked through the miniature forest. The trees reached high and wide, providing ample shelter for the two below.

Jay let Marty lead the way.

“Nice range you’ve got here?” Marty remarked. “And an even better forest.”

“Yeah. Been teaching for close to nine years now. I teach a pretty rare style but I also include a bit of the spiritual elements of it, y’know?”

“You turned it into a religion?” Marty asked as he jumped from rock to rock to ascend a steep incline.

“No, you idiot,” Jay said. “I emphasize focus, tranquility and restraint when shooting. It’s a good batch of qualities to instil in the youth. Though, I tend to stray away from the lovey-dovey side of things. That’s not my expertise. You’re the love doctor around here.”

They climbed up a few large rocks in their path and jumped from stone to stone across the small stream.

“Oh, I have noticed that,” Marty replied shrugging his shoulders. “So, this... Alex. He’s a bit of a weird one, huh?”

“He’s an orphan who stays in the city but he spends most of his time around the village. He’s paying for his school fees with the inheritance his parents left for him.”

“What happened to his parents?”

“They were killed... A while back. That’s all he’s ever told me. He’s a sweet kid. He doesn’t deserve to fall into bad stuff in the city so I’m glad I can keep him around here where it’s safe, y’know?”

“Yeah, I know what you mean. Lian and I were considering moving here if we ever had a kid. It’s getting borderline unbearable in the city with all the crime.”

The incline became steeper as they continued to climb until the rays of the sun peeked through the canopy of the trees. They were near the clearing. A clearing all too familiar to Jay.

A lone stone bench sat at the edge of the cliff overlooking the city of Ockstead. The birds flew in their arrow-like formations from one end of the city to the other. The towering giants of glass and steel reached toward the heavens, reflecting the sunlight on the city folk below. The cars meandered along the winding roads between the buildings like veins spreading out to reach every part of the body. It all looked beautiful from afar.

Behind him was a view of his entire village. A secluded part of the city that remained untouched by the ruling government party to protect the indigenous habitat. Many people came for vacation to a small, cozy village like his but very few stayed. It was a land that had been ripped from the 1800’s and dropped into the 21st century.

Farmlands spread far and wide, populated with livestock. The main river, originating from a mighty mountain ran through the forest and split off into smaller streams. Small, cozy huts and large red barns were scattered randomly across the green fields running parallel to it for easy access to fresh water.

A relic compared to the metropolitan city. Ancient people who practiced an ancient art that was now nearly extinct. Asiatic Archery.

Jay had trained hundreds of them. His classes grew exponentially over the years due to the nature of his course. It was more than simply shooting an arrow. It was clarity, stability, and harmony. That’s what his students said. As for Jay, he hadn’t fired a single arrow in ten years. He could never bring himself to knock an arrow let alone shoot it.

“It only looks this beautiful from up here, you know?” Marty said.

“Cut to the chase, Marty. Why’d you bring me to this place? Why here?” Jay asked as if unaware of the significance of the bench before him.

“Do you remember the pledge we made here? You, me, and Lian fifteen years ago?”

“Yes. I also remember walking away from it ten years ago,” he retorted. He didn’t like where the conversation was going.

Marty sighed. “In the past ten years, crime has escalated… out of control. We’re struggling to keep the reigns on the city. Everyone is corrupt. From the homeless man on the street to corporations like White Industries. Day by day, my hands are being shackled and tempted to do things I know aren’t right.”

“Where are you going with this, Marty?”

“The law isn’t enough. Not anymore.”

“Marty, I told you ten years ago…”

“I know,” he said with empathy in his eyes. “But as the chief detective, I need to ask. When you walked, we had faith the law could hold this city together but time and time again it has failed us. The only thing these bastards fear is the Ghost. They fear the real justice.”

Jay’s eyes widened with horror at the mention of that name.

***

“Stop Jay! It’s enough!”

“It’s enough when every bone in his body is broken! Then I’ll end this monster’s life!”

“Please. I’ll do anything for you. Just stop!” pleaded the victim.

Jay stood up panting like a rabid dog with his hands dripping with blood. He dragged the man to his feet. “Run. Run to your boss and tell him that I deem him guilty. That it doesn’t matter what he does or what he says, I will drive my arrow through his heart along with anyone who stands in my way.”

The Ghost killed twenty people that night all in the name of ‘justice’ and then vanished.

***

“The Ghost wasn’t justice. He was a monster. The best thing to happen to Ockstead was his death.”

Marty took out a piece of paper from his pocket. “If you’re not willing to return as the Ghost, then I have an alternate proposition for you.”