A Prologue Part Two ~ Growing Up(sample)

Chapter Fourteen ~ Indurating the Crew Part I:

Reine shifted beneath the covers and trembled in pain, as she rubbed her wound the wrong way. She groaned and slowly sat up, as the covers fell from her. She squealed in surprise, as her father spoke and broke the silence.

"Finally awake, pipsqueak?"

She shot him a glance, which clearly conveyed the fact she was not in the mood. Zaül chuckled and shook his head, as he handed her the tray with her cold breakfast. She crossed her legs and accepted the tray, as three books fell off the edge of her bed onto the floor.

Her father's expression became concerned, as he started to speak again, "All you have done for a week is eat, sleep, and read - when you finish your food, you're doing something else!"

Reine gave him an attitude in response, "Why are you here again?"

His eyes widened in anger and he slapped her in the back of the head. She was instantly dazed from the impact, but managed to grab her tray before her food went everywhere. His voice was firm as he replied.

"I'm here to beat you out of this rut you've fallen into, if I have to..."

Her gaze returned to him and she could tell, 'he means business this time'; however, her eyes narrowed instinctively. She made a retort, but decided a curt nod would do and started to eat instead. His eyebrows raised in surprise, but he was satisfied and sat down at her desk to wait.

She finished eating and pushed her tray off her lap, before she climbed out of bed and started her exercises. Her body ached with each repetition of the physical exertion, but she suffered in silence. She was covered in sweat, when she finished and sat in a slump on the floor out of breath; however, she managed to address her father, as she caught her breath.

"Okay... we will do the cruiser simulator. I'm going to take a shower."

Zaül nodded and stood, before he turned and walked up the stairs. Reine slowly stood and stripped out of her pajamas on the way to the shower. Some time later, she would emerge to disappear behind her closet's holo-curtain. She heard her friends coming down the stairs, as she finished arranging her plain, red sundress awkwardly on her shoulders to cover the scar.

"What happened here?"

Alex was immediately hushed by Acovis, as he whispered, "Shhhh! Do you want her to choke you out again?"

"Love, are you okay?"

She perked at the sound of Dey's voice and found herself spinning around to leave the curtain behind. She ruffled her hair beneath the towel wrapped around it, before she tossed the towel onto one of the nearby weight machines, as she made her way towards them with a grin. She spoke with confidence.

"Yes - I'm fine, Dey. I've been learning, Alex."

She gestured to the many scattered piles of books littering the areas surrounding her bed, desk, and the bookshelf. Dey gave her a flabergasted expression, Alexia's eyebrows raised, and Acovis chuckled at her good mood. She gave a serious expression and placed both hands on her hips, before she continued with a commanding tone.

"Today - however, we will be practicing on the cruiser simulator. We will do so every day this week, and next week we will be starting to practice for the games again."

Deytria closed her mouth, and her crew made their way to the cruiser simulator. When they were seated, they quietly started the start-up sequence, and Reine used her chair's holo-console to select one of the more difficult missions. When the mission briefing appeared on the main screen, the crew's objections were apparent - her gunner shook her head holding her forehead, her hacker groaned loudly, and her navigator spoke up.