Pirate Assassin

Page 24

Zack mentally kicked himself. A second later, he mentally UN-kicked himself. Discipline, he thought single-mindedly. Patience, though it was severely tested. Humility, too much of that. Yet again, under the streaks of warp travel, he was swabbing the deck. At least, he thought grimly, I did chores at home so I'm not like a spoiled brat. Then again, he couldn't help think that this was getting ridiculous. He pushed those thoughts aside as he stuck the mop into the bucket, squeezed it and ran mopping down the deck. He pivoted around at the edge and went back up. He repeated this again and again but by the time he was halfway done, he was panting for breath. How ironic that sparring with Yohkin was less tiring than mopping the ship. He took a deep breath and dipped the mop in the bucket again. There must be a better way to do this, he thought. "Let's see," he mumbled to himself, "how to make this easier....." and something clicked in his head. Taking a deep breath, he willed himself to imagine Tucker in front of him. His image visualised in front of him, every single detail of it, and he imagined him being scared of the mop, as if it were the deadliest weapon in the world. He mopped. He saw in his mind's eye the fear and the helplessness in his eyes. It was hardly the most practical of methods but Zack still found himself finishing the job with renewed vigour.

Zack was scrubbing the floor furiously when out of nowhere, a foot appeared out of nowhere. Zack instinctively rolled out of the way and got up and leaned back as a vicious punch clipped past the side of his cheek. He blocked the next punch with his arm and kicked his assailant in the shin. Yohkin responded by knocking the leg aside with one of his long arms and swung a fist at Zack's stomach. Instead of stepping back, Zack flung himself down and tripped Yohkin. He tumbled and got back up in a split second but Zack wasn't going to give him a chance. He kicked Yohkin in the ribs but it was fluidly caught and he was thrown away by the ankle. He planted his hands on the ground as Yohkin charged and kicked upwards, forcing Yohkin to block. Zack pressed his advantage and windmilled, constantly barraging Yohkin with kicks. He flipped himself up, ducked a punch and gave Yohkin a mean uppercut. Yohkin faltered and as Zack was about to charge, Yohkin held up his hand with a grin. "Alright, alright. You win man, you win. Never thought I'd ever get hit again," Zack went to him and offered a hand.

Yohkin promptly kicked his feet from under him, sending him crashing to the ground. "What did I tell you bout letting your guard down?" he said to Zack as he aimed a kick at his ribs. Zack caught it and pulled it in the direction he started rolling and this time, it was Yohkin who had an intimate meeting with the metal deck. "I never let down my guard," he said as he got up quickly and into a ready stance. Yohkin rubbed his back painfully, "Guess you didn't then," and launched himself at Zack again. This time, it was a raw and brutal boxing match, no more acrobatics, just punches, kicks and guards. However, Yohkin's greater height, build and experience already meant that his victory was ensured. As Zack blocked his face and as much of his body as possible while Yohkin rained blows on him, he suddenly remembered a move he saw in a movie. Taking an opportunity, Zack snaked his arm out, with his first two fingers stretched out, aiming for the point right below Yohkin's diaphragm. His shorter height would have ensured a hit if he was a little faster but Yohkin was alert. He casually slapped the hand away and shot his right arm out, palm first, and smacked Zack full on the face and causing him to be suspended in the air for a few seconds before crashing down on his face. "Lesson over, Mr Ying," Yohkin said with a wry grin.

Zack winced as the medic on board, a middle aged woman with a kindly smile, dabbed the last of the alcohol on his wounds. Yohkin was sitting next to him gulping down large quantities of booze. They were both sitting at the edge of the ship with the mast which pointed forwards like a spear between them. Zack was a bit dubious about hanging his legs free over the edge where a fall could send you careening off into dead space but Yohkin had no such qualms. "Where didja learn that last move anyway? Coulda totally felt that killing intent of ya," Yohkin asked. Zack nodded his thanks to the medic as she finished her work and walked away, "Saw it in a movie. Ninja Assassin. Looked painful and effective so," he shrugged, "tried it to see what would happen," Yohkin bobbed his head thoughtfully, "That move is real, and deadly. It can kill or incapacitate depending on the amount of pressure you use and where you 'hook'. Not a bad job picking that up. I'd say you're pretty prepared for the academy if that's the standard you're at," Zack accepted the compliment silently. He knew he had much more to do, especially if he wanted to be the one who caught Tucker. The pirate had years of experience on him and powers he didn't have which was a worrying point that Zack hoped to rectify in the academy. "Hey Yohkin," Zack had longed ceased to use any honorifics to address Yohkin, due to his constant refusals for them and after being continuously ambushed by him, Zack found it hard to garner much respect for the man who beat him up every morning, "how do you stop someone like Tucker anyway? He can stop time!" Yohkin was silent which was surprising. After a while, he replied, "Youll find out at the academy. As well as everything you need to know," and he turned around, planted his feet back on deck and walked towards his cabin. That was the moment that Zack Ying would realise just how much a threat the pirate Tucker Wicky was to the galaxy. The usually laid-back and indifferent Yohkin was afraid of him.

"I planned to assess you today, but you look like a bruised apple. Go see the medic, get some rest and I'll see you early tomorrow," Zack noticed he didn't say 'morning' as the phrase usually went. Hard to tell when you were deep in outer space. "Well, I'm rested, I'm pretty sure I saw the medic already unless she has a twin sister and it could be tomorrow for all I know since I don't get to see a beautiful sunrise in warp-space," Tetrad lifted an eyebrow, "I'm going to pretend that whatever you just said came out in a respectable and military way," then he rounded on Zack, "Do not assume I will let that pass again," If he was looking to instill some fear in him, he would have failed spectacularly. Zack Ying had enough of being cowed over by those in authority but he maintained his decorum with a simple, "Yes sir," and a nod. "Since you seem so confident Mr. Ying, perhaps you would like to show me your ability," Tetrad said and Zack replied readily, "I thought you'd never ask sir,"

Zack slowly let out a breath as he had been taught and when the last bit of air had been expelled from his lungs, he fired. The shot took the dummy in the head but he was no longer even looking at it. As soon as he had fired, he pulled down the rifle lever, aimed at his next target and repeated the process. Tetrad was impressed. Though he wasn't fast, Zack was accurate. Deadly accurate; and this was impressive because it had only been around two weeks of constant practice. He eyed Zack again as he took his next round and inspected closely as he aimed. He was focused, syphoning out everything except his target and Tetrad could feel it. He motioned to Yohkin who was also watching. "Do you feel that?" and Yohkin nodded, "I knew there was something about the kid. Not only Presence but Mind too!" he gave Tetrad a strange look, bordering on awe. "I think Tetrad, we found ourselves a gold mine," It was then that a soldier went up to him and motioned towards the wheel. Tetrad nodded and calmly clasped his hands behind his back, "Alright Mr. Ying, you may stop," Zack lowered the rifle, "We are about to reach our destination," Without even looking, Tetrad boomed out, "Pull out of warp-space!" and the ship lurched as it pulled out into the spacesea and Zack saw a line of planets in the distance. There were other ships drifting to and fro; it was crowded with them and he could hear people shouting orders. He marvelled at the booming cannons as practice shots were fired as well as the cracks of multiple rifles. Tetrad looked at him, his face as stern as always but there was a slight grin playing on his lips. "Welcome Mr. Ying, to the GGPU training academy. Welcome to your new home,"