Rising Power ~ p. parker

Shark Bait

Taylor had a few hours of downtime between each test, so she spent the time before Barton's assessment in her room, nursing her sore limbs. She was already starting to feel pain in her legs from sparring with Natasha. When Friday reminded her that she needed to be back in the gym in fifteen minutes, she groaned and rolled off the bed. Her whole body felt like one big bruise.

Friday helped guide her back down to the gym where she stretched and waited for someone to show up. Apparently, superheroes don't adhere to schedules.

Taylor took the time to look around the room. She didn't have the opportunity earlier, seeing as she was a bit preoccupied fighting a trained assassin. There were several foam body targets set up and an array of weapons off to the side.

"Oh, they mean business," Taylor thought.

The weapons were nothing fancy. At least in comparison to the Iron Man suit. Before their lunch break, Clint and Natasha set aside a few guns and knives they thought Taylor would be the most successful using for her assessment. Their arsenal was intimidating, and they figured she would appreciate them narrowing down the selection.

Seeing the guns set out made Taylor freeze mid-stretch. They obviously wanted her to use them, why else would they be out? Her heart dropped at the thought.

She heard the quiet patter of feet behind her, so she whipped around to see Clint approaching her with Natasha not too far behind him.

"Hey, Taylor," he greeted with a smile. "Let's get started, shall we?"

Romanoff moved over to where the others watched her combat assessment. The other Avengers joined her gradually, Tony being the next one to show up. Clint turned to Taylor and clapped his hands together, signaling the start of their session.

"Ready?"

Taylor shrugged. "I guess. Sorry in advance if I accidentally stab you," she said, trying to calm the awkwardness in the room.

He chuckled, "wouldn't be my first time. What are you most comfortable with in terms of weapons?"

"Knives, probably."

"Great, then let's start with that."

Clint led her over to the table they set up. She decided on the box of throwing knives since she was instructed to throw something at the targets. Something similar to what she would normally use would only be good if she was close to her target.

"No powers," Clint reminded her, wagging his finger around in a teasing manner.

Taylor flipped the blade around in her hands a couple times before sending it flying into the target. She wasn't at all surprised when all of them hit exactly where she wanted. Two in the chest, one in the neck, one in the stomach, and one in the head. She caught a quick glance of Natasha's face. Her eyes were wide, as if she wasn't expecting that from her.

Taylor turned back to her instructor, a cocky smile painted on her face. "Sorry, I could do a lot better. Must be an off day for me or something."

He picked up one of the remaining blades in the basket and spun it around with his fingers. "Oh, 'an off day,' huh? Alright, Thompson, since you're so good, tell me where the best places to hit are when in close range combat."

"Bottom of the sternum upwards, across the neck, and right under the jaw," she replied, demonstrating on herself with two of her fingers.

"Huh. I was always taught to go right for the gut." He also demonstrated with his fingers.

"Well, try my way. See for yourself how much more effective and efficient they are."

She knew more than he thought. "How do you disarm?"