THIS FEELS INSANE...FOUR CHAPTERS IN ABOUT A WEEK? WHAT CAN I SAY...I'VE HAD A LOT OF FREE TIME LATELY, AND IDEAS FLOWING OUT OF ME. DOESN'T HAPPEN OFTEN IN TANDEM, SO I'M TAKING ADVANTAGE OF IT AND MAKING OF IT WHAT I CAN WHILE I CAN.
THIS ONE DEALS WITH A FOUR MONTH TIME JUMP, AND WHAT'S BEEN HAPPENING IN BETWEEN. THIS IS WHERE I DETAIL THE TRAINING ITSELF-HOPEFULLY YOU'LL SEE WHY I DIDN'T DO IT DAY BY DAY. BESIDES, WE GET TO THE NEXT ACTION SEQUENCE FASTER THIS WAY! HOPE YOU ENJOY...
TRAINING THE SHADOW
PART TEN
The instructor was as good as her word.
It turned out that the Instructor, known simply as Ravenna (real name unknown, probably deleted from records) was one of the best at her job-any sexist objections to her being in the military had been responded to with broken arms and legs as she made her way through the Republic military. Her skills had attracted the attention of the new Chancellor Palpatine, who appointed her as one of her Red Guards. As a result of her success in this role, she had been headhunted for her unarmed combat skills primarily though she was a renowned sniper and had a good all-round knowledge of all combat methods, and offered a spot in the new Royal Guard Training Academy. I was her first solo training assignment, and as there were a lot of people wanting her to fail, she worked me to the limits of my physical endurance.
I would be up at the crack of dawn, get an hour of physical gym training in before my trip to the Mess Hall (she would eat her food while waiting outside my room for me to finish mine), then we would spend the next few hours learning Ashani. The martial art is mainly used by the Royal Guard, and gives us an edge over most combatants in Melee combat. This required me to be beaten to within an inch of my life on a daily basis, but I soon found myself being able to grasp the fundamentals of the fighting style. The serum's influence was soon being mixed with my training (the trainer was unaware of the nature of my edge, but was grateful for it nonetheless) and as a result, I was able to develop faster than the trainer had envisaged-by the end of the four month period, she believed that by the time that we were finished, I would be capable of defeating her on a daily basis-a feat that she was truly impressed by, as she informed me that very few had been able to accomplish this task. The fact that she could believe it was possible is what she declared made it so impressive. She still vowed that she would be working me harder to make sure this happened.
In the afternoon, we would work on more physical training, this time with weaponry. She assessed my skill with a blaster, as well as that of a vibroblade, and decided that I would need less time with these as I was proficient enough already. I would get trained on each of these once a week, which would be two sessions out of the seven. She also decided that I would need to learn how to use a Sniper Rifle, in the event that I would be required to use one while on a mission guarding the Emperor-this sniper training would take up another session, as I had a reasonable enough grounding with blasters already-the time was to be spent working on my aim and fine-tuning my use of the weapon. The other four sessions were devoted to what would become my main weapon of choice: the deadly Force Pike.
On our first session, she showed me a long staff-like weapon.
"Do you know what this weapon is?" She asked. I shook my head, truthfully.
She then explained the weapon in detail.
"This is a Force Pike. It will be your visible weapon-the others shall be concealed beneath your robes. It is a long staff configurable depending on requirements. On its lowest setting, it will stun-but even in this lowest setting, the shock will be extremely painful. Allow me to demonstrate…
She then shocked me with it. It was excruciating-I can only feel sorry for those who I would attack with this weapon. I didn't black out instantly, but I did after a few seconds. After I recovered, she continued her lecture, having proven her initial point about the weapon.
"This Force Pike has many adjustable settings-it can go from a painful stun, as I just demonstrated on you, all the way up to full power. At that level, it can actually penetrate durasteel-that information may come in useful someday, so do make sure to file that away in your memory. If you modify it with magnetic clamps, as this one is modified with, you can do this…
She then pointed the weapon at me. I was suddenly lifted off the air-I did not jump, I was propelled by some sort of invisible force. To make matters even worse, I found that I could not move a muscle. This was nothing to do with the conditioning-I was genuinely immobilised!
"Immobilisation field…impressive, isn't it? Use this and a solo assailant has no hope at all. Use it on a group, and you can take the biggest threat out of the fight while your fellow guardsmen-not to mention anybody else around-deal with the rest." She then disengaged the device, allowing me to land using my physical skills. I then stared her down as she continued the demonstration.
"The Force Pike has other uses, too. In between the stun and Durasteel melting, there are a whole selection of other levels. These can cause varying amounts of pain…and can be used for interrogation and torture, should His Excellency desire it. Allow me to demonstrate…"
She then spent some time demonstrating the level of pain that she was talking about, using the Force Pike to deal increasingly painful shocks-but stopping short of the level where it would become fatal. By the end, I was lying on the floor, beyond even the increased pain threshold offered by the serum pumping through my body. To add insult to injury, the Emperor had demanded in my head that I would not scream out in pain…so I did not. This impressed the Instructor.
"You endured all that without crying out, though you did collapse. Your pain tolerance must be abnormally high…we could possibly work on that, to make it even higher. For now, you know what sort of pain you will be inflicting on your victims. There are some that feel that you should experience what you inflict on others. One bounty hunter in particular swore by that mantra-that said, he did get punched into space by a Captain who didn't want him collecting the bounty on one of his crew, so it obviously worked out well for him. Still, even a broken chronometer is right twice a day." She let out a small laugh. "Wow…you actually got me off topic. That doesn't happen very often…anything to say?"
Unfortunately, my conditioning forced me into an ominous silence.
"Strong, silent type…I like that. I daresay His Excellency will appreciate that too. That said, your abilities do tempt my curiosity. I'd like to find out a bit more about you, in the name of learning how we can make you a more efficient killer and a much better servant to the Emperor."
That was my introduction to the Force Pike. I would learn to fight with it three times a week, and by the time the initial four months were up, I was starting to grow quite adept at it-in fact, it was becoming my most proficient weapon. I hate to admit it, but I was starting to grow used to the weapon-it was becoming an extension of my arm in a way. My bond with the weapon was growing so well that I was beginning to find ways to combine use of the Force Pike with the Ashani martial arts and my own serum-enhanced fighting style. My Instructor was growing excited with this development and admitted that she greatly anticipated not only the ongoing training, but also the impending fights as well. I had been dangerous before this, thanks to my serum, but I was now reaching a new level of threat-and becoming more of a useful lapdog to the Emperor by the day.
After an evening meal, I would undergo one last session of training. This would be spent working on the more mental aspects of the prospective role. This would mainly involve the secret language that the Imperial Royal Guards would use to communicate with each other (some of it made through gestures and unspoken commands), but there was also some lecturing on the value of obedience and to be ready to die in service of the Emperor. Unfortunately, I was fully obedient already due to the serum, but this was not known to the Instructor, so she kept instilling in me the propaganda nonetheless. Unfortunately, I could feel myself starting to succumb to the lure of it-it was a well-designed brainwashing course, constructed to produce fanatical devotees to the Emperor. What allowed me to keep my focus was the fact that my children were still out there, and that I needed to keep my mind intact if I was ever to be able to see them again. I suspect that is the main reason that I am still who I am (to an extent) mentally-that and my general stubborn will that served me so well as Queen of Naboo and then Senator.
When all of that was done, I would have to recite the Oath of Obedience to the Chief Instructor after one last hour of gym training. After that, it was finally time to get some rest…for a few hours. The reason for this was that we would be frequently under extended periods of physical and mental stress, so it would train us for these periods too, so that we were more used to them.
This was my routine day in, day out for four entire months. Over that time, I became a much more efficient and deadly killing machine-the Emperor frequently commented on my progress on his frequent comments inside my head. He declared himself proud of me…a statement that made me feel sick to my stomach, as it meant that I was becoming exactly what he wanted me to become.
Finally, the Instructor met me after breakfast. However, instead of our usual Ashani session, she instead took me to the Courtyard. The Chief Instructor was there, along with the other students, all awaiting the impending briefing. I took my allotted place, and listened intently. Like I had a choice…
"Students, you have been training for six months now. You are now officially halfway through your training. At this point, it is time to put your training to good use, and time to cull the herd of the unworthy to allow the truly worthy to rise to the top where they belong. As a result, we will be organising fights to the death between all of you. Half of you will die, and that is how it should be-those of you who perish will be laying down your lives for a chance to become a personal guard of the Emperor himself. There is no greater honour in the Empire than that…"
He looked dead at me as he said the word 'Unworthy'. My mask conveniently hid the disdain in my face that must have been emanating from my every glare, even with the conditioning in place.
"The fights start in a week's time, so you have seven days to prepare before you will be thoroughly tested in the rigours of combat. Good luck to you all…and may the worthy emerge."
As I walked with the Instructor for our latest Ashani session, I reflected on the fact that I had been able to cram four months of training into six. Would I be a match for the remaining competitors, knowing that they had a two month advantage over me due to my imprisonment and torture? It would not be long before I would find out. The combat arena awaited…
Unfortunately for me, not everybody wanted to leave it that long…
My enemies had not forgotten me, and they had been merely biding their time.
Now that time had passed, they were ready to strike again…