The Crimson Assassin

Chapter 6

The Lead words settled in Ryan stomach as soon as they had left his twins mouth, Are you telling us that this is our parent's fault? Our parent's almost got us killed? His eyes darted from Crimson to Nao to Peter, none of them denying it. None of them defending the people who had raised them.

Sure, they hadn't always been around but when they had been they were great parents. Memories they had made together were the building blocks of who he was now. When his parents were home they would sometimes take Ryan and Peter on surprise last minute holiday's to wherever they wanted to go; Disney land, Italy, Greece, wherever.

And now, standing here in the middle of the Assassins equivalent of a Bat Cave, he's having the building blocks removed one by one, as if his life was a teetering game of Jenga. Anger boiled in Ryan's stomach, not just at Peter for even making the suggestion but at Crimson and Nao for not disagreeing.

A familiar tightness pulled at Ryan's tense muscles, a tightness that has got him in a lot of trouble before. Without saying anything, Ryan turned leaving the lab in a molasses silence. Ryan's pace increased until he found himself running down the hallways lost and looking for something to punch, be it a human, a pillow or even an unsuspecting wall.

Finally the corridor opened out into the main room and his eyes landed on the practice dummy standing to the left of the sparring mat.

He sent his fist into the stomach of the foam man and let the jarring sensation sooth away his anger. He punched again, and again, and again until his angered screams every moment of silence.

"Your punches should come from your body not just your arm." Crimson said quietly from behind him.

Ryan spun around before his mind had caught up with his body and his fist was flying at Crimson she raised her arm blocking the punch.

"See, your punches are all over the place. You're focusing on power not on accuracy. If you don't have a set location in mind, all that power your building up will be wasted." Crimson's eyes boared into Ryan's finding there way past the anger, "Try again." Crimson pointed to her stomach, "Aim to hit through here."

Ryan silences the annoying voice in his mind telling him not to punch a trained killer in the stomach. He raised his fists and fixed his gaze on the point Crimson's finger still sat. His clenched fist split through the air and all the remaining tension in his muscles unwound.

To Ryan's surprise, Crimson didn't block but tensed her stomach as to absorb the powerful blow. The breath rushed from her lungs momentarily but she quickly regained her composure.

"Why didn't you block?" Ryan asked, still angry but no longer violent with it.

Crimson shook her head slightly with a smile, "Because you were expecting me to block it. The shock of me letting you punch me snapped you out of your violence which is always a destructive cycle."

A wave of gratitude temporarily washed over Ryan, sibsiding the anger for a moment.

"I'm going to go to my room." Ryan muttered and turned his back on Crimson.

Crimson's voice echoed after him, "Just don't take this out on Peter. He's got enough on his plate."

What gave Crimson the authority to tell him that his twin had a lot on his plate? She'd known Peter for a day and she thought she knew him better than the person who grew up with him.

Ryan walked blindly down the corridors lost in a cloud of anger. The walls all looked the same with no markers of where he was or how long he's been lost in the maze of his mind.

"Ryan." Peters voice called down the hallway after him, "Ryan. Slow down."

Ryan slowed his pace but didn't turn to face Peter. Peters footsteps increase in rate as he broke into a jog, stopping at Ryan's side.