Here thee be. Enjoy thee selves. Oh...and this one is way longer.
Chapter 11: The First 4:00
The only thing I could think that morning was:
I should have gone to bed earlier.
I set my clock for 3:45 AM.
I drug myself out of bed and climbed into the suit.
It was way too early to be making a 45 pound fashion statement...
Once I had the armor on, I looked at the clock.
I had two minutes.
It only takes a few seconds to get down there... I could sleep for one more minute...
But then, thank god, I remembered what Slade had done to me the day before. I did not want another strapping...yesterday, he gave me five.
My usual number for punishment was 20... It still is.
I got up and made my way to the stairs. Slade was already there. He was wearing his suit too. And he was wearing his mask
"Good morning, Stygian. Are you ready to get started?"
I nodded sleepily.
"What was that?" he asked, his tone was a warning.
"Um, yes, Master. I'm ready."
"Excellent. Come with me." he ordered.
I followed.
"Each morning, you will begin with a ten minute run." he ordered. "You will be timed to the second. There will be no walking, no stopping. Clear?"
I nodded.
"CLEAR?"
"Yes, Master."
"Get to your mark."
I did.
"Begin."
I took off. It wasn't really a run... But it wasn't a jog either. It was in between. I was ok for the first few minutes. But after about five minutes, I got a stitch in my side.
And man, did it hurt. But I kept going. The fear of a strapping kept me going.
8 minutes... I could barely breathe. I wasn't use to this kind of thing. Yeah, I could run... But I never really did. The suit wasn't helping either.
9 minutes. I couldn't go any longer...
I started slowing my pace.
"KEEP GOING!" Slade instructed. I tried... I really did.
I did finish the ten minutes... But not as fast as when I started. I walked up to Deathstroke when he called time. I was panting. Sweat rolling off of my face.
"Moving on." he said.
I followed.
We sparred for a while with the bo staffs. Not really trying to win... Just keeping each other on edge. Slade had me do weights and showed me how to hit a target with a disk. I did ok...
Before I knew it. It was 6:30.
"Good job." he said. "Go get a shower and get ready for school. Breakfast will be waiting on you."
I nodded.
"Stygian."
I turned.
He stared.
I was confused.
"Sir?" I asked.
"If I have to tell you one more time to answer me..."
"Sorry, sir. Yes, master." I tried to cover.
He shook his head.
"Go." he said as he tilted his head to the door.
"Yes, Master."
I went upstairs, took a shower, brushed my teeth.
Fixed my hair.
Got dressed.
Headed to the kitchen. It was 7:00.
"Good morning, Dick." Slade greeted as I trudged through the kitchen.
"Mornin..." I mumbled.
I sat down in the chair. My head fell to the table.
"Sit up." he said.
I did.
"I don't want to see that. You will not be moping around all day. If I find out you're sleeping in class..." he trailed.
I shook my head.
"No need for that, Slade. I've never fallen asleep in class, and I have no intentions of starting now."
He smiled. He placed a plate of food in front of me.
Eggs, toast, oatmeal, bacon.
"Wow. Thanks... Whats all this for?" I asked.
"No more sugary cereal or whatever it is you eat. You have to stay in shape. Eating right is one way to get started."
"I'm in shape..."
"No arguing."
"Yes, sir."
School didn't go by fast enough for me that day. It seemed the minutes turned into hours. I was tired. When the teacher called my name, I barely mumbled a response. I didn't play at recess. I just sat. A young boy walked up to me. I remember his name as Victor.
"Hey, man... Are you ok?"
"Yeah... I'm fine... Just really tired."
"You know... When I'm tired, I like to run, or play football. Pop says it gets the blood flowing... Wakes you up. Wanna race?"
"Not really..."
"Come on man! How about just throwing the ball back and forth then?"
I shrugged.
"Ok. Sure."
"BOOYAH! Come on, Dick!"
Victor Stone and I became good friends that day. We graduated high school together. He was the quarterback for the Jump City Ravens high school team. He was a champion. We lost touch after high school.
Anyway...
When I got home from school, Slade was no where to be found.
"SLADE?!" I called. No answer. I went to the kitchen to get something to eat. There was a note on the table.
"Meet me downstairs. 4:00 sharp."
Ok... It was 3:52.
I grabbed some saltines and made my way down. I found him sitting in the observation room. I headed up.
He turned to face me.
"What are you doing?" he asked.
I swallowed the cracker.
"The note said-"
"What are you eating?"
"Um...crackers." I stated bluntly.
"What did I tell you this morning?"
"To eat healthy... They're just crackers, Slade."
He took the bag from me.
"I have food in there for you to eat... You could have at least eaten some soup with this."he said.
I shrugged. He tied the sleeve of crackers up and put them on the table.
"Are you still any good at acrobatics?"
"What? Of course. It's in my blood."
"Get down there and give me a show."
"Ok... Why?"
He looked at me.
I looked at him.
"When we are down here, you do not question my authority."
"I'm not... I just want to know what the point in it is."
"If you must know. You unconsciously use acrobatics in everyday life. Especially when practicing martial arts. You are light on your feet. You're quiet. I want to see what you can really do. And I want to utilize your skills and help you develop a fighting style all your own."
"Ok... I'll be out there in a few minutes. I gotta change outta this."
"5 minutes."
"Yes, sir."
"You will find tape and powder at the base of the ladder."
"Ok. Thanks." I said.
A few minutes later, there I was wrapping tape around my knuckles. I rubbed the powder on. I climbed the ladder.
I looked down.
There was no net.
I glanced at Slade.
I almost told him.
He already knew.
He moved the net.
What if I fall...
I couldn't do it without a net.
"I-Slade... The net..."
His voice came over the speakers in the room. I didn't even know we had speakers in the room.
"I am well aware the net is gone. I want a little pressure for you to work in.
"I can't do this without a net..."
"Of course you can. You're only ten feet up."
I shook my head.
I was scared.
"MOVE IT, STYGIAN!"
I jumped at the harsh tone... It got me moving though. I stepped back and launched myself at the trapeze.
I hurled my weight through the air withe ease. But my movements were too stiff. I was terrified. I loved the feeling of flight when I was on the trapezes, but my fear if falling was overpowering me and making me lose focus.
"Loosen up, Stygian." came Deathstroke's voice.
I remained silent as I willed my body through the familiar motions.
As I twisted around in the air, my balance was off. I wasn't going to make it to the bar. I tried.
I reached.
I grabbed empty air.
I fell.
I landed in a shoulder roll.
Physically, I was fine. Mentally, I was dying. I didn't get up. I laid there in shock. I heard the observation room door opened and Slade come running down the stairs.
"Stygian! Are you alright?"
"Oh...yes, sir... I think."
"Well, come on. Get up."
I curled into a ball in terror.
Slade picked me up and carried me to the kitchen. He made me some soup.
I ate it with more crackers.
"I'm sorry." I said.
"For what?"
"Being afraid. For falling."
"Don't apologize for something like that. I'm the one who should be sorry. You told me you couldn't do it. I should have listened. I'll put the net back up and you can do it again tomorrow."
I nodded.
He let it slide.
"Hurry up. Today, I'm going to teach you to hack through a basic security system." he stood to leave.
"Yes, sir." I said. He left.
I finished my soup.
I followed.
The day wasn't bad.
Not bat at all.
R&R please!
