My sweat and blood had literally drenched the mat and I'm patched with bruises and cuts. I couldn't ignore the fact that my left eye can't dilate properly. We've been doing this for hours, but at least I had the brains to analyze the moves quicklier than an average Seeker, I just had to repeat it three times or less. So far I've learned at least fifteen moves, as if I was born to be this way.
My shoulders were aching and my legs have stretched out like taffy. I've been dueling with Ace for quite a while now, and he always seems to be stumbling back, dodging every hit. I've learned so much from Jackson, who's more swift than a fox. I learned how to counter-attack, to jump over a seven foot gauntlet, and hurl tomahawks for a split second.
Sarra has taught me be more agile and flexible. She made me hate having arms and legs for making Jackson and Robert trip both my legs in different directions, causing me to collapse in full-splits. She kept me like that for at least an hour, convincing me to meditate and allow the pain to strengthen me. Once I got up I couldn't feel my legs, so I had to keep icing them until I felt the pain again.
Never did I wince once nor screamed, I endured it. Like a real mercenary.
Once I fought a boy twice my size, with a braided ponytail, dark skin and chinky eyes, but he was as scrawny as I am but had a little of muscle. He is a lot faster, a lot bigger, but I have a few advantages. Thanks to Robert I learned how to master a few armbar techniques. I could take him down simply stretching.
Our sleeveless shirts and knee-length trousers were already lined in sweat after all that warm-up. We squared off each other by Mr. André's bone-chilling yell command.
We lunge for each other, his glare striking through my bones, my foot thrusting into his solar plexus. He got down on his knees but recovered quick, returning the favor by swinging a fist up my jaw. I dodge and block with my right forearm and swiping his neck with my left hand. I bounce back and forth, constantly messing up his momentum. I was agile, agile enough to abstain from getting kicked in the hip by cartwheeling around his launching leg. He slid down and spread out his other leg, slicing through my Achilles tendon. As I lay down flat on the podium, he crouches over me, preparing for his final offense.
As for me, my legs sprung up, snaking around his shoulder and neck while I repeatedly thrust my elbow onto his head. He stands up suddenly, managing to carry my whole weight and throw me down. A massive avalanche slithered down my spine, so I force myself to moan in pain just to release the venom snaking all over. My ribs ached as if they actually fractured, I fought back the tears and got up all of a sudden, my buttocks feeling like molded cement.
"Fight's not over yet, boys," Mr. André said. "Don't rush, you still got...oh--" He stares grimly at his watch. "Fifteen seconds."
He stand, facing each other, rocking like chairs and luring one another through false offenses. I take a step forward, yet he shifts back swiftly. How am I getting inside if he keeps closing all the paths?
If he keeps them closed, then I'll burst in instead.
I was enslaved by my feet as I drive myself towards him. He engages, continuously swinging his hands which only passed through my head dismally. I grab his outstretched left fist and propel my legs around his neck and drag him down in a single flip. Mr. André yelled in victory.
His watch beeped and beeped while I pull on my opponent's arm as I lock my legs down his neck.
I am victorious.
Two days from those events, I have never felt so bare. It's incredulous how they keep a large enclosed aquarium that could rise from the training grounds. I could have fallen down long ago and drowned, but at least they kept a gigantic metal platform to cover it up.
"All trainees are to dive down the water for a short period of time, working together to find a new method to escape," said Mr. André. "You kids will require a breathing tank on your backs. It'll have an unlimited usage so don't go panicking underwater. Although, that'll be the only thing you kids can use while under, weapons or other types of arsenal are strictly prohibited. If you're caught cheating, you'll be evicted from the program immediately."
Immediately...
It echoed in my head as I stare down at the platform below us.
The gushing of the waters below flush in my ears. I know I can't do this, but my heels were glued to the platform. No escape, for I'm placed in the middle and Mr. André's eyes scout the area like a hawk. If his instructions are as short as his patience, then there must be something he's leaving out. I suppose I can ask some questions.
I moderately raised my hand.
"Yes, Jess?" Though I couldn't find the exact words, or the right amount of things I want to ask. I sweat waterfalls, good thing I'm only wearing swimming trunks and fingerless rubber gloves.
"It's just that--I think we're lacking more instructions and mechanics for this activity, sir." His head snapped up at me, looking away from the control panel next to him as his hand hovers above a certain button.
"Are you questioning my teaching skills, Mr. Mckidd?" He cracks his knuckles. I swallow hard.
"N-no, sir." He looks back at the control panel.
"Then keep your traps shut and dive down into that water--And one more thing:" He raised his index finger for emphasis. "He likes his meal running, so don't just stay in one corner and expect the other kid to fight it off. Good luck to ya'll."
He pushed the button.
My bottom hits the surface of the water first and then the rest. My body's sinking so fast, I had no time to hold breath and look for my breathing tube. I could still hear a little of the outside world, the deep rumbling of the platform closing in on us, blocking our only light source. This is just great, a dim, blurry sight is such a good weapon against a predator lurking under.
My lungs stiffen like a raisin, I paddle my feet as hard as I can against the hard murk until I reach the water's surface. I keep my hand raised to justify how large the gap was. My skin felt the cold metal of the screen platform as I wrap my fingers around its small gaps and pull myself up. The frigid air licked my sharp nose; two inches of air to be exact. I suck in all the air I could detect.
While I could still breathe, my fingers slither across my body, seeking for the breathing tube. I could feel my body limping and stiffening, but I'm sure I'm still trembling. My fingers retract around a flexible tube down my waist, so I slipped it between my lips and sucked in the breathable air. I slowly released the screen platform, allowing myself to engage in the activity. I realized I've taken to much breaths using the tank while sinking, my heart rate constantly pounding on my ribs.
The mixture of colors of their remaining clothing flashed before my eyes, coming closer. One of my classmates hooked their arm around me, pulling me away from my position. For the past two minutes, they've been dragging me off position too many times, only realizing they're pulling me away from the danger. I could sense another presence in the tank, making the lump in my throat grow larger and larger. I swat my classmate's hand away, regaining the proper bloodflow on the veins on my wrists. There's nothing else happening in this tank but fleeing from some creature they haven't even seen yet--I haven't even seen yet. Perhaps it's an advantage to not wear glasses, I could engage at any moment, not knowing what I'm conquering. This is mostly like hand-to-hand combat, but underwater. You're clueless about who and what you're facing, and it gives me the bone-chilling sensation that keeps me going.
I swim forward, further into the dark murk. My eyes are bloodshot, burning after each second. Eventually, my cataracts were engulfed in eternal flames as I witnessed something slither out of the corner of the tank. I could feel its jagged teeth digging into my own flesh, each row of them devouring me. Its eyes shot me like a silencer, so instant and lethal. By the size of its fins, I could already tell what it is.
A humongous great white.
My time was consumed after a split second, and I was helplessly trapped in invisible chains that held me like a shark bait. A suspenseful thought sparked into my mind that proved insanity wasn't the worst thing in the world--There are a thousand different ways of to impale a shark with a weapon, so why not impale the shark from the inside?
I wrap my arms around my freakishly lengthy legs and allowed the shark to swallow me whole. I felt no teeth grinding against my marrow, I proceed to travel down his digestive system, which is strangely more spacious than I thought. I pry my eyelids open, covering my mouth to keep from vomiting after what I'm about to see. I frown in dismay.
This is isn't even a shark's digestive system. Or any of its systems. It's nothing but--code. The light refracting from it is easily seen from inside the stomach, reflecting in my flammable eyes. It's a hologram. It's not real. Mr. André had us all played. Though he did an extravagant job on creating this hologram, crafting up the darkness inside the hologram shark's system. It's incredible how a tiny tweak of creativity can improve a simple type of technology. I swim further into the corner of the tank, placing my hands flat on everything, feeling the edge for something I can use to turn off the hologram.
Something small and round lingered in my fingers, coated in heat and dull gray shading. I press down on its center button and afterwards, even on my blurry state, I could see that classmates were so eager to ask to be taught by me next time. The way they studied and observed my every moment. I've defeated the "shark", and they felt like they've done nothing but beat each other up for the past couple weeks. Whereas for me, I've been keeping my mind and eyes open, keeping myself out of ignorance, and I remained strong until now.