Assassin

Chapter Two

                                                                       Chapter Two

     The boy in front of Taiven lunged at him, aiming a blow at his face, Taiven blocked with his right arm, driving a blow of his own into the other boys right side.  The boy, Dillon, blocked at the last second.  He was getting tired, Taiven wasn't surprised, they had been sparring for over half an hour.  In that time they had beaten one another black and blue, but both were still standing, both determined to win.

     Dillon brought up his knee, preparing a kick, Taiven blocked.  As he blocked he aimed a punch into Dillon's chest, it made contact hard, knocking the other boy backwards.  Grunting, Dillon barely stayed on his feet.  Seeing his chance, Taiven threw himself into action, catching Dillon on the right side of his head with a spinning backward round-house kick.  Dillon fell to the floor, unconscious.  Taiven glanced over to his left, to where his combat trainer stood, talking with a senior officer Taiven had never seen before.  The combat trainer, who nodded at him, gestured to Taiven to sit down.

     Taiven retook his seat with the other trainees of his age, as another trainer moved Dillon off the sparring mat.  He was about to call up two fresh trainees when the senior officer, having moved towards the mat with the combat trainer, stopped him.

     “Wait!”  The senior officer called.  “I want to see the boy fight again, this time against an older boy, maybe a fifteen year old.”

     “Someone three years older than him?”  The combat trainer asked.  “He isn't trained for that, he doesn't yet know the techniques they have learned.”

     “I think he can handle it,” the other man replied, “you just told me that the boys in his own age group aren't enough of a challenge, his report tells me he has a lot more to give.  Let's see how he performs against a fifteen year old, and just to make things even more interesting, let them use any style or tactic they wish.  Last boy standing wins.”

     The combat trainer waved Taiven back to the combat mats, then gestured to one of the older boys at the back of the hall.  The boy came forward, taking his place opposite Taiven, his name was Kiang.  He was quite a bit bigger than Taiven, both in height and build, but that didn't bother Taiven.  Looking at the other boy, studying him, Taiven began to circle the second the combat trainer shouted.  “Begin!”

     For a moment or two the boys just circled, weighing each other up, then Kiang attempted to wrestle Taiven to the ground.  Seizing Taiven's arms, placing one leg behind Taiven's, he tried to use his bodyweight to push the smaller boy backward.  Twisting his arms free, Taiven turned quickly to his right, grabbing Kiang's head as he moved.  Dragging Kiang's head down, Taiven forced him into a forward roll, then kicked the older boy in the lower back as he rolled back onto his feet.  Kiang stumbled forward a little, then turned, glaring at Taiven.

     They circled again, both of them faking a lunge or the start of a punch, watching each other for an opening in defences.  Finally Kiang threw a punch, which Taiven blocked easily, followed by another that caught him in the stomach.  Winded, Taiven felt himself begin to double over, but forced himself to stop.  He saw Kiang move in a little closer, readying himself for a second attack, Taiven forced himself to breathe.

     A fist flew at his face, he dodged it, aiming a kick at the inside of Kiang's legs.  Kiang blocked, then spun, aiming a kick at Taiven's side.  Taiven caught the other boys leg, aiming a sweep at his other leg as he did so, Kiang hit the ground.  Taiven dropped down, hoping to drive an elbow into Kiang's back, but Kiang was already rolling to one side.

     Grabbing each other, the two boys punched and wrestled on the ground, lashing out at every opportunity.  Kiang finally pushed Taiven aside, both boys scrambled to their feet, charging at each other.  Taiven slammed into the older boy, blocking a punch as he did so, bringing a knee up hard into Kiang's groin.

     The older boy grunted, his hands automatically moving towards his groin, his upper body bowing protectively.  Taiven seized his chance, bringing a fist up into Kiang's jaw, knocking him backwards.  As Kiang stumbled a little Taiven spun around, aiming a kick at the side of Kiang's head.  Kiang ducked at the last minute, then struck out with one leg, trying to sweep Taiven's feet from under him.  Taiven jumped, punching at Kiang, who dodged and lashed out with a spinning back kick of his own.

     Twenty minutes later the boys were still fighting, both bleeding from various punches and kicks, neither one seemed to be gaining an advantage.  Then, all of a sudden, Taiven feigned a blow to Kiang's left side.  Kiang moved to block him, leaving the right side wide open, and Taiven struck him hard in the lower ribs.  The older boy yelled out in pain, the cracking of his ribs audible in the quiet hall, and tried to shove Taiven away.  Sweeping his right leg behind Kiang's, Taiven shoved him backwards, aiming another blow at the older boys broken ribs.

     “He's quite ruthless,” the superior officer observed, “is he always this relentless?”

     “Yes,” the combat trainer answered, “he can spot a weakness faster than anyone I've known and he won't let it go until he's brought his opponent down.  He's the same in every area, always pushing himself, and sometimes us.”

     “Oh?”  The senior officer asked, as Taiven wrestled Kiang to the ground and punched him again in the face.

     “The punishments we use on the other boys don't phase him,” the combat trainer replied, “and he gets in trouble more often than most.  He can be disruptive, harder to control than the others, then there are the nightmares he gets.  The little bastard has been known to fight back when the night guards go in to punish him, he's broken more than one nose.”

     For a moment the other man was silent, watching as Taiven got to his feet, then he asked.  “He gets these nightmares a lot, what are they about?”

     “He gets them most nights, they seem to be memories, but that's impossible.  He had the memory wipe and replacement memories inserted just after he arrived here, the same as the others.”

     “I'll have a team from headquarters sent over,” the senior officer said, “they can try the memory wipe we used on the Thiassun mining slaves.”

     “Isn't that dangerous?”  The combat trainer asked, as the other trainer knelt beside Kiang, who lay groaning on the floor.

     The senior officer glanced at the combat trainer.  “It is,” he told him, “but not nearly as dangerous as one of these boys remembering who he really is.  Besides, we have been hoping to test the full strength memory wipe on a Finoran, might as well use a strong willed subject.”

     “Well he is certainly strong willed,” the combat trainer replied, as Taiven was declared the winner.

     “When it's done, move him into a training group more suited to his combat needs,” the senior officer ordered, “leaving him with his own age group is a waste of his potential.” 

Copyright 2012. G M Owen.