Only Through Pain [Collab with kayfiles]

Chapter Nine [ZiaRenee]

Kitra rolled over in her sleep. Her eyes fluttered open and she let out a shaky yawn. She rose groggily and brushed her wild hair out of her face. She felt well rested. She hadn't felt this way in ages. In fact, this would be the first time in too long that she's gone a night without nightmares. It felt great. She collected her thoughts and slowly began to remember where she was. She looked down at her hands and tried to imagine flames shooting out of her fingertips. The image made her laugh.

There was a small knock on her door. One of the sandy haired nurses walked in. He pointed to a dresser pushed up against the wall and instructed for Kitra to pick something out and call him back in when she was ready. She nodded and when the door shut behind him, she rose off the bed and immediately realized how well she really felt. No bruises, no burns, no aches or pains. She was perfectly fine.

She sifted through the clothes until she found a pair of white sweatpants and a plain white t shirt. Kitra's favorite color was white. It was pure and unsoiled. Untainted. She fit the clothes over her body and they fell against her skin in all the right places. They were perfect. She combed through her hair with her fingers and smoothed it out before calling to the nurse. He came in, looked her over, and smiled sweetly.

"You've got training today. We need to get those powers under control, Little Miss." he said enthusiastically. He held out his arm for her and she hesitated a brief moment before taking it. He lead her out of her room and down the hall where they stopped at a large door. Once inside, Kitra waved goodbye to the boy and turned around to survey her surroundings.

The place was huge.

Kitra had never even finished Elementary School, but she could remember the huge gymnasium she used to run around in. This place was quite similar. There were ropes dangling from the ridiculously high ceiling. There were matts and balls and jump ropes and targets and tons of things. Kitra started to feel a little nervous. She wasn't exactly good at sports. She was weak, malnourished, and her muscles were all but imaginary. Her bones felt brittle as she stared at the gym and its equipment. She made her way towards the group of kids gathered together at the far right side of the gym. She squeezed her tiny body through the mass and saw the rather meaty man in the middle. He was only a bit taller than Kitra herself and Kitra was rather tiny. His height did not diminish his intimidating demeanor. He had rippling muscles and every part of him look rock solid. Kitra thought he looked a little silly, like a balloon filled with socks or a bag of potatoes.

The man introduced himself as Greg in a very deep and rough voice. He instructed them to only call him 'Sir' and that they were going to undergo some tests this morning. Kitra's stomach churned. She hadn't exactly loved the last test. Greg started the day off by lining them up against the wall to run for an endurance test. Kitra felt her heart beating a mile a minute and she hadn't even taken her first step. She was far too weak for this kind of thing. Greg said they had to run back and forth across the gym until they couldn't stand it anymore. Right now, the opposite wall looked miles away in Kitra's eyes. She felt her breathing grow ragged and sharp. She didn't want to fail these tests or look like an idiot. But she also didn't want her legs to fall off or turn to ash.

"Calm down, spaz." a low but smooth voice whispered.

Kitra swiveled her head to the side and saw that she was standing beside the black haired boy from the first meeting. He was clad in a dark gray sweatsuit and his rather long and shaggy black hair was swept to one side of his head, hanging over one ear. A few loose bits clung to his forehead and dangled over his eyes. Every part of his ears were pieced with little black gems and studs and spikes. A little ring ran through his right eyebrow and both his cheeks sported little black balls. Kitra wondered what it felt like to get your cheeks pierced. He had a ring hanging from his nostrils and a small stud in the side of his nose. Beneath his bottom lip, he had a pair of little spikes. They were placed directly under the pair of rings around his bottom lip. Kitra was a little curious what he looked like without all the piercings in his face. Was he covered in holes?