Chapter 4: Bitter Truths and Progress

It took more than two days before I could finally run twenty-five kilometers without collapsing. It took me two more days to run the entire distance without Mayer bludgeoning me whenever he thought I was faltering. After that, well, it became a question of pace. That's because I didn't stop running. Twenty-four hours straight...

Only breaks to eat and rest...

I was happy to find that Mayer stopped considering me a worthless effort, but Claudette was right when she described him as a slavedriver. He was hellbent on making me achieve a four-minute mile pace, or fifteen miles per hour (twenty-four km). To put it in perspective, I remember the world record back home for a mile (1.6 km) was three minutes and forty-three seconds.

When I arrived here I'd have considered him insane to think I'd get there in three months, that is if it weren't for the speed of my progress. I now starting to see it from Flole, Evira, and Mayer's perspective: without everyone, there would be no way I could have achieved this growth. In less than five days I was running a half marathon without much issue; barefoot.

The bottoms of my feet had become like stone: callused enough that I barely felt sharp rocks, stiff roots, or the occasional sun-dried bones. My heels could probably be stabbed by daggers and I wouldn't feel a thing. Which was good since I was currently running as fast as I could on mountainous terrain.

My lungs and heart hardly felt taxed, only my body as I kicked my legs and pumped my arms as fast I could to try and make Mayer's time. I could see the elevated path through the forest to Mayer's house, a giant mountain looming over his equally giant home.

"One kilometer left. You are almost there! Now go!" Mayer roared as he revved his engine. I could hear Briannaisa as she cheered me on.

I roared back as I pushed myself to my absolute limit. And my absolute limit was pretty fucking fast: in short bursts I felt confident I could compete with world-class sprinters. Gnarled roots and uneven terrain became obstacles that I hopped and skipped around as I tried to keep up my speed. My body was doing its best to keep up with my lungs, but my lungs had long since moved past the limits of the rest of my body.

Closer, closer. The path opened up as the clearing that held Mayer's estate emerged in the distance. A tall wooden fence wrapped around the entirety of a field that could fit a college campus. All of it sat neatly in the shadow of one of the mountains of the Gordeau-Certes Mountain Range. I could see my finish line in sight: large ornate wooden gates that could protect a village from bandits without trouble.

My legs protested, pain and fatigue doing their best to defeat me. Sweat running down my face as it did its' damnedest to blind me. I could feel it sting my eyes, but I didn't dare blink. A mixture of tears and sweat leaked out of my eyes as the wind assaulted my wet eyes.

30 meters. I felt a twinge in the back of my leg. Ignore it.

20 meters. A pop in my left knee as my foot hit the dirt. Ignore it!

10 meters. Sudden, intense burning in my right thigh hit me like a heated knife. IGNORE IT!

Just as my legs decided to give out, I jumped through the gates. I rolled across the ground, rocks and twigs stinging my body as I skidded to a stop. A huge smile broke across my face as I laid there in pain.

The reeving of a motor and its sudden halt told me that Mayer had just arrived, and I couldn't be happier, "I fucking did it, right? Right?... I had to, I must've ran...ran like, twenty miles an hour!"

Mayer grunted as he got off his bike, but he had a faint grin on his face, "Faster. Maybe thirty-seven kilometers per hour. Kilometers. We use kilometers on this earth. Remember that. If you get that confused when speaking to someone, it will be an issue."

I laid my head flat on the ground as I caught my breath. The sky looked beautiful in the morning dawn. Sunlight hit the snowy mountain tops just right, light refracting as rainbow lights danced across the mountain range.

"Yeah, yeah...I'm from Yorknew city, we still use miles. And if the U.S.S is anything like the U.S.A, it'd...it'd make more sense for me not to...not to give a shit... I broke five-minutes, right?... Come on, tell me..." I said in between catching my breath.

He shook his head before answering, "You are a smart-ass. It was better when you were quiet and meek."

I laughed. After a week of running like a mad man and being hit and prodded by Mayer, well, I lost all fear of the giant, "Yeah, yeah; you're big and scary. Come ooooon, did I do it or not?"

He didn't respond. His face grew stern as he crossed his arms. As the silence stretched my stomach dropped. Fuck not again.

A small smile stretched across his face, "Yes, yes you did. You ran at a four-minute pace."

I jumped off the ground and pumped my fist, yelling victory at the top of my lungs! I unceremoniously groaned in pain as I quickly fell to the ground, my legs giving out from under me.

Mayer grunted, "You may have reached a good pace, but you still need to get used to it. Come, I promised you thirty minutes of rest. No doubt Claudette is preparing the food."

Briannaisa walked over next to Mayer, dark circles under her eyes as she smiled tiredly at my success. I frowned as she yawned, guilt bubbling up from my gut.

Part of the reason I've improved so drastically was something that was the dream of every workaholic ever: I didn't need to sleep.

Well, that was a stretch; but not by much. See, the funky magic oasis Briannaisa made allowed me to recover from not only injures and exhaustion, but sleep as well. Even five or ten minutes of sleep in her oasis was enough for a person to keep on ticking. It wasn't perfect, brain fog clouded my mind most of the time, but it kept me going.

No one told me about it, but it was pretty easy to figure out when I didn't drop on the third day from sleep deprivation. I asked Briannasia and she confirmed my suspicion, but refused to elaborate on it any further.

I tried asking Mayer, but he ignored me. When I started to pester him about it in between running, he threw me into the oasis like a shot putter and told me to shut up.

While I didn't need to sleep, Mayer and Briannaisa did. Well, at least Briannaisa. Mayer must be a golem or something. He just kept on riding his bike, not needing a wink of sleep the whole time I've been with him. Not even a yawn.

On the other hand, Briannaisa wasn't nearly as superhuman as Mayer. Oh, she's definitely superhuman, the slap she gave me when I accidentally mooned her can attest to that (even the unflappable Mayer winced at that hit). From what I saw from her, she could stay up for two days without issue. But she wasn't a robot.

At the beginning of my hell marathon, Briannaisa got four or five hours of sleep... but as my endurance and pace increased she found less and less time to rest. She'd nap or meditate during my runs, but resting in a cramped sidecar isn't the best of sleep. Even a superhuman Hunter needs restful, uninterrupted sleep.

While her efforts were valiant, she was running on fumes.

I wobbled to my feet as my tired legs did their best to put me back on the ground. I hobbled towards the two, "You guys need to sleep, seriously. I'm pretty sure you can't use your own oasis, but I don't know why you didn't hop in Mayer. You're good at hiding your fatigue, but I'd bet you're dying to get some sleep."

Both of them looked surprised, then squinted at me as though they were staring right through me, "Uh, guys? Are you zoning out or something?"

"No...nothing," Mayer rubbed his face and stared away before looking back at me, "How did you know that Briannaisa's ability could not be used on herself?"

"Huh? " I stared at the two of them before shrugging, "Just a guess. I mean, if I were her I'd have used it on myself if I could. And don't say modesty or something."

Briannaisa was less than convinced if the eyebrow she was giving me was anything to go by, "Oh yeah? I'm sure you would peak if given the chance," she said with a sultry smirk

I made the face a person gets when they eat something incredibly sour, "Naaaah, really full of yourself, aren't ya'? That teasing was three out of ten. Especially since you were the one who looked at my dick first."

She somehow managed to stumble while standing still. The look of shock and confusion across her face was the stuff of beauty. I could see her brain reboot as she pointed a finger towards me that Phoenix Wright would have been proud of, "Wha-What are you talking about! You jumped out of the pool without any warning! Even Mayer was attacked by your nudity!"

I looked out from the corner of my eye at nothing in particular, a facetious smirk spread across my face without a hint shame, "Nah, see Mayer looked me in the eyes. I knew there was something off about you. You're a pervert, aren't ya?!"

Incredulous, thy name was Briannaisa. She stood stone still, occasionally shaking as she failed to deny my accusations. The maid somehow rotated to face Mayer without moving, that shocked me more than anything else I had come across on this world.

Mayer looked at both of us before grunting, "James is right: I stared him in the eyes."

"I didn't stare at anything! I'm not a pervert!" Briannaisa shouted at the top of her lungs. I laughed so hard I couldn't keep myself back up. But my laughter stopped when Briannaisa held a hand on her head and almost fell over from exhaustion.

Mayer walked over to Briannaisa and steadied her, he looked at her face and shook his head "It seems James is correct. We both are in need of rest." He handed over his stick to me and began leading the tired maid to the house.

I used the accursed wooden practice katana I dubbed The Stick as a cane. The pain in my legs was a reminder that I still had a long way to go, no matter how fast I was improving. We left the gate and walked down the path to his home. It was about two or three soccer fields away, which might have well been a dozen miles with how messed up my legs were.

While I limped my ass over, Mayer pushed his bike with Briannaisa in the sidecar. She was barely awake, dozing in out of consciousness. I turned to my trainer while walking and said, "Hey Mayer, is she going to be ok?"

Mayer nodded as he stared straight at our destination, "Yes. She has pushed herself is all."

"Her power must be draining then. I've seen people live off two or three hours of sleep, and they were regular students," I said, my intentions blatant.

Mayer looked at me from the corner of his eye before going back to staring at his home, "Yes, the...magic we use is tiring."

"Sooo...what is your magic? And why are you guys being vague about it? Wouldn't it give me an advantage if I learned it, or at the very least avoid being at a disadvantage?" I said pointedly.

The giant of a man huffed through his nose like a bear before speaking, "Would if I could, but right now I cannot. But, let us say I could; it would take several months to several years for you to learn it safely, depending on your talent."

"That still doesn't answer two of my three questions..."

He grunted in annoyance, but conceded, "Fine. The reasons we are being vague are many: First, the 'magic' we use is considered a secret by the Hunter Association. If you are capable enough to pass the Hunter Exam you will find out eventually. You would have not known if we had the choice, but desperate times call for desperate measures. That should answer questions one and two."

"As for being at a disadvantage: I will not lie, that may be a possibility. The examiners will be on the lookout for that. Ordinarily, they make sure the candidates that can use said 'magic' pass as quickly as they can while separating them from the rest of the group."

"That's kinda unfair, so they get a free pass?"

"No, no one is given a free pass during the Hunter Exam. In theory, anyone could pass the Hunter Exam: but theory and reality are two different beasts. The proctors understand how great of an advantage having 'magic' is. It is almost a guarantee the person will pass, regardless of what is thrown at them. Even elite humans stand almost no chance against someone of that caliber."

"Alright, alright. But why can't you even say the word?"

"Hmph, you know why. You can answer that question yourself."

I twisted my mouth in frustration, "Yeah, yeah. Since it's a secret, if I told anyone by mistake that'd be a big issue or something. Right?"

Mayer grunted before speaking, his voice low and dangerous, "Yes. I do not know why you play dumb, you are quite capable of coming to the correct conclusions."

I shrugged, "Easier for a person to slip up and give up more answers. I'm not doing it to disrespect you, but I don't like being left in the dark."

He grunted, seemingly satisfied by my answer, "If you have a question, I will answer it. If I cannot answer it, I will tell you as such. Is that fair?"

I sighed, "Yeah ok."

The rest of our short trip to his house was in silence. Briannaisa created her oasis once we got there, bringing me back to full health like a video game character. After that, Brainnaisa left to get some well-deserved sleep.

Mayer lead me through the front doors of his house. This was the first time I entered his home, and it did not disappoint. The wooden doors were intricately carved, with a large bear at the center of them wrapped around twin crescent designs. The entryway of the house was enormous, with stairs leading up to the second floor and three hallways leading into different directions.

He led me straight past the stairs and into a corridor that had tiles so smooth and shiny, I felt genuinely uncomfortable walking on it with my bare, calloused feet. I noticed the hallway was tall and wide enough to fit him without a problem, which now dawned on me why he built such a big fucking place. Mayer was a giant who lived in Average-Sized World; which was a world about two feet shorter and narrower than the one he'd prefer to live in.

Right, left, right and we were in a enormous kitchen that only rich people on TV owned. Wide, open spaces with everything covered in marble. Stainless steel cooking equipment that was impeccably maintained, as well as enough of them to satisfy an army of chefs and cooks. That wasn't an exaggeration: Claudette was practically sprinting around the place as she worked to finish the meal.

Flole was in the dining room; which was virtually three rooms away and big enough to fit one of those long tables that seat a dozen people. I knew because it there was a long table that could seat a dozen people. The open design of the whole thing reminded me of an enormous, man-made cave. Just a vast emptiness that was more unnecessary than it really needed to be.

I looked around with my mouth gaping open, "Dude, Mayer, I think you overdid things with your home. It's the size of a school. I mean, your kitchen is bigger than a professional kitchen. I'm jealous. Oh yeah, I'm definitely jealous."

Mayer raised an eyebrow as a twinkle of pride appeared in his eyes, "Oh, how so?"

"'Don't play dumb, neh, neh', fishing for compliments... I used to work for a pizza restaurant. For eight years. At one point I even ran the kitchen..." Hazy memories of Al's Pizza muddled through my head before I snapped back to reality, "...Anyways, the kitchen was as big as," I measured and traced out a ten by five foot area with my feet. It didn't even make a dent in the size of the room, "this. This was how big the kitchen was! Man, you don't know how many times I knocked shit over."

Much to my surprise, Mayer barked out a laugh, "Well, my kitchen is yours to use. God knows it needs attention. I have not used this place in years."

I shook my head in disgust, "Man, how rich are you?"

Another twinkle of pride, "Quite rich. Continue on my path, young James, and you too shall have this success," he said before he gave me a thumbs up and actually winked at me.

To think I understood the guy as someone dead serious and then he starts acting silly. My face glazed over in confusion as I lifted my hands to my head, doing my best impersonation of a confused Jackie Chan. I walked the considerable distance to the dining room and sat down, intending to reboot my brain.

But upon seeing Flole sitting at the black, oversized table, I snapped out of it. Outside our introduction, I hadn't seen or spoken to her the entire time I've been here. And, to be honest, I'm still annoyed at the 'family' horseshit. As I resigned myself to be polite, I noticed something in the reflection of the polished table. At first I thought it was the color of the material or something, but as I stared closer my stomach dropped.

I ran towards the kitchen right as Flole stood up to say something. I turning towards one of the metal surfaces. I looked at my reflection in horror.

My face was different, sharp features and a square jaw replaced the smooth and round face I had before. The round nose I was familiar with was replaced with a straight, triangular nose. My hair was a maroonish color, similar to Flole and Evira's hair. Even the stubble growing out was the same dark red color. More shocking than that were my eyes: they were narrow and squinted, with a bright emerald-like color, like grass. As though a perpetual glare on my face.

I could only stare in muted horror as even my appearance had been taken away from me. First my life, then my identity, and now even my face? The one thing that someone can say is them.

Something snapped inside me. I punched the oven or whatever god damn thing it was that held the mockery of my face. I kept punching and punching until Mayer's enormous hand grabbed me by the shoulder and slammed me to the ground.

I struggled as Mayer's giant hand pinned me to the floor with ease. Rage flowed through me: all the frustrations and bullshit up to this point coming out in a tirade of curses. Gone was the silly Mayer that joked. What was staring back was the cold Hunter I had come to know. His narrowed, focused eyes staring back at me while he spoke, no words penetrating my ears as all I could hear was high-pitched ringing-

Then he slapped the shit out me. It came across as a casual, weak slap. Barely a flick of the wrist: but it was so hard it felt like being hit by a boxer. A trickle of blood dribbled down my nose as I blinked back my sanity. All the rage inside of me petering out like a rapidly cooling teapot.

"-re you back to your senses?" Mayer's voice came back into clarity as he gave me an evaluating look.

I looked around. Claudette stared at me with sadly, while Flole stood half up from her seat. She looked on with a mixture of shock and guilt. Rage came bubbling up at the sight of her before I forced it back down. I took some deep breathes and closed my eyes.

"Y-yeah. I think I'm going to be ok," I clenched my jaw in rage, "well, not really. I'm angry, but I won't freak out again. I promise," finished as I stared back at Mayer's blue eyes. He gave me a long stare before letting go.

I rubbed away the pain I felt on my chest and face. Obvious note: Mayer is strong as fuck.

I stood up and began walking away, before realizing I didn't know where to go. I just wanted to get away from the kitchen. I let out a frustrated sigh before turning to Mayer; both my face and voice emotionless, "Can you bring me to the gym. I'm supposed to start training with your sons."

He looked at me coolly, but he couldn't hide the concern in his eyes. The giant closed his eyes and nodded before leading me away. But before I could take a step Claudette stopped us," Um, you still need to eat."

I stopped and turned towards Claudette in the way the Terminator would aim at its next target, but when my vision finally reached her I stopped. I realized she wasn't the reason behind this. I gave a small smile that didn't reach my eyes, "I know it's a hassle, but I'll eat in the gym if you don't mind." She nodded and went off.

My face turned back into an emotionless mask as I did my best to contain the rage inside of me. Mayer led me down the hallway from before, taking a few turns as I did not bother to take note of the direction we went. After a few minutes of walking, Mayer spoke.

"You are angry. I understand. I apologize for not informing you about your appearance. Do not be angry at the maids. I told them not to inform you," He said as he led the way, his head staring firmly forward.

I tried counting to ten. I only got to five, "I know they aren't to blame... hell you aren't to blame. I would accept your apology... but this is just another reminder that I can't trust you all. You could have told me what was happening, instead, you choose to hide it from me. Another reminder of how expendable I am. Just a tool."

The big man stopped and turned around and stared at me with faint guilt, a look of someone who has done a lot of regretting in life and was used to it, "No. You are not a tool. You are a human, and I refuse to reduce you to anything less than that."

The rage began to bubble up again as my hands turned into fists, "Yeah?! You fuckers took something precious from me, who I am! Me!"

He shook his head as his voice became more exasperated, "I understand appearance is important, but it is not everything. You are not defined simply by your face, James. If you are that troubled by the change you can dye your hair or procure contacts. You have bigger things to worry about."

I looked at him in disbelief, before it dawned on me. I shook my head in frustration, of course, they wouldn't know, "You have no idea. You didn't read Evira's or Zhulong's report. Even if you fuckers did, you wouldn't know, would you? They're a bunch of words. Mere fucking letters, that's all," I laughed. It wasn't a nice laugh.

Mayer turned his head, his eyes filled with confusion, "What are you talking about?"

"You think I'm some vain, superficial asshole? Even if I was: It's. Still. My. Face! I have every reason to be as furious as I am! But no, you guys did something worse than that: I was the spitting image of my father. My hero. Of everything you could have taken from me you took that!" I roared out.

For the first time I saw horror come across Mayer's face. It was rapidly replaced by shame, "Yes. I did not read the report... but Evira did fill me in on your background. Your father died when you were young... James, I did not..."

"He isn't at fault here," I turned around to see Flole, arms crossed as she gave me a serious look. I was taken aback at her attitude, but only for a second. I rounded on her like a roaring flame, "You did this!"

She shook her head, "No. Mistress Zhulong did this. This is her blessing, why did you think Evira and I made you related to us?"

I looked on confused, "Wait, what?! Why the fuck would she change my appearance?"

Flole shrugged, bitterness in her voice as she spoke, "On a whim. She prefers the look on mortals. She does it to everyone she marks. It was supposed to happen gradually, over the course of months..."

I stared at her dumbly. My mouth opening and closing like a malfunctioning garage door as my brain short-circuited from the response.

'It will also serve to identify yourself as belonging to me. Well, to those who matter anyway.' A satisfied smirk spread across her face.

"You're like me, huh." I said deflated. I stared at Flole in a whole new light.

She nodded, "Yes. Evira and I didn't look like this when we were born. We are named Tao Long after all."

I stared at her in surprise and sadness, she did not look Asian at all. Our shared hair color was no shade of natural red, and her face pegged her as European or Eurasian. If anything, she had it worse than me; but if only slightly.

I could never look in the mirror and imagine my father staring back at me as I often did. To feel the comfort that he was with me. Even from beyond the grave.

Everything fell into place into my head, but now my rage was directionless. I would fix that soon, but first I had to do something.

"I'm sorry Mayer, I do accept your apology. Flole, I'm also sorry about how I treated you when we first met. I'm still... I'm still pissed that you guys held it from me. But it was inevitable, wasn't it..."

Flole's face softened before frowning and shaking her head, "No, you have the right to be mad. I did intend to tell you the day we met, but I'll be frank: I chickened out. I'm not good at facing people," She pushed her index fingers together like a shy child and folded in on herself.

I stared at her in confusion, "Aren't you, like, the second-in-command or something? How are you this bad under pressure?"

She looked away, refusing to stare back at me, "Well, I've always been-Wait, how did you know I was second-in-command?"

I shrugged, "I had some suspicions, but you confirmed it right now. You and Evira are sisters, and both work for that bitch," Flole winced at my insult of her boss, "it only makes sense you would be the second."

Mayer walked up from behind and placed a hand on my shoulder, "Most of the organization receives their orders from intermediaries and in-direct methods. Dead drops, phone calls, letters. She does not interact with people directly; very few people in the Tao Long Family know she is Evira's right-hand woman. They believe me to be Evira's second, but I am actually her left-hand. You must keep it a secret."

I turned around to face Mayer, "I'm gonna assume everyone else in our meeting a week ago knows? The maids, Zelle... Even your sons?"

"Yes, they know. But no one outside this group knows."

A few things fell into place, as well as some new theories; but I kept them to myself. I had too much on my mind and I could confirm my assumptions later. Right now I wanted to release some steam.

I asked one last thing before leaving, "Are there any other changes I should know about?"

Flole became serious again as she placed her hands to her hips, "Yes. One should be obvious now while the other... I will tell you when we aren't rushing to get you up to speed."

"Hmm... Alright, I'll hold you to the second one. As for the obvious one... you mean the fact that, even with the amount of training I've done, I shouldn't be progressing this fast?"

The amount of running I did was insane, but it was only a hundred and forty-four hours. To put it in perspective, if I trained eight hours a day that would mean I've only trained for about two weeks and a half.

Nowhere near enough time to reach the level I was currently at.

"So, I'm somehow adapting to this world's rules or physics?" That was the only thing I could think of that made sense.

She nodded, "Yes. The only thing stopping you are the laws of physics of this particular world. You're human, but so far as it matters in this universe."

That made sense, a lot of sense. No way I'd be able to survive what was to come if I wasn't capable of reaching superhuman potential. A terror crept down my spine as a thought sprung up: if I was only starting, how strong were the people I would face in the hunter exam?

"Shit," I turned to face Mayer, panic plain on my face, "I don't know why, but I just realized how little time I have!"

Mayer gave me a look so flat I wanted to vanish into thin air from sheer embarrassment.

"Yes. Very, very little time. It will take three to four weeks to bring you to sufficient endurance levels. We still need to teach you combat, stealth, hunting, tracking..."

I started running down the hall like a mad man, "Where the fuck is this gym!?"

After calming me down Mayer brought me to his gym.

Oh, what a fucking gym.

It was located in his basement, a basement so big it was the size of a warehouse. There was a boxing ring, an entire weight lifting area, a large wrestling mat, a dozen or so punching bags of all types and varieties. There were even a climbing rope and various gymnastic equipment in one of the corners.

And standing before me were the twins. They had their arms crossed, giant smiles plastered on their face as they did their best not to fidget and utterly failing.

The twins tilted their heads and looked at me with confusion. They pointed at me in unison before announcing in stereo, "You look different James! Have you lost weight?!"

I squinted at the two of them, dumbfounded, "Are you serious? How about-"

"No! Do not tell us! We will figure it out! Ah, your clothing is different!"

"No! I'm wearing the same clothes! What is wrong with you two?!" They knew perfectly well I looked different, trolling assholes.

They both started laughing like the pair of idiots they were, until their father loudly coughed into his fist. They straightened up and turned to their far more mature progenitor.

Mayer began, "I need to sleep. In the meantime, my sons will train you in hand-to-hand combat. As well as various other disciplines. I will be back in twelve hours to begin your running again, after which I will teach you swordsmanship."

My eyes grew wide from shock, disbelief in my voice, "You stayed awake for six days, don't you need more than twelve hours of sleep?"

"No." That was all Mayer said before tossing the The Stick to one of the twins. He turned around and walked away through the giant, Mayer-sized doors, and up the spiraling staircase that brought me down to, apparently, Batman's fucking gym.

"How rich are you guys? Jesus Christ."

The two smiled, then erupted into laughter before they spoke in unison, "Very rich! It is not difficult to earn money as a Hunter, and our father was one of the best Blacklist Hunters!"

"Ah. That's like a bounty hunter, yeah?

"Indeed!" They said as one, before both of them cartwheeled next to me and grabbed each of my arms. They lifted me like I was a display mannequin.

"Hey, what are you doing! Put me down!" I said while kicking and twisting in vain to escape their grip. They put me down alright, after tossing me into the boxing ring like a sack of potatoes. I landed with a crash on my face. The padded, wooden ( and it was definitely wooden, my face would know) floor of the ring doing little to cushion my fall.

"What the fuck!" All they did was laugh, the little shits.

"We must test your abilities! You must get used to pain, pain different from simple exhaustion! You will fall many times here, James, but you must always remember to get back up!" They both said with a clap of their hands.

I grumbled something unkind before speaking up, "Alright, alright. Whatever. So, do you need me to put on gloves or something? What're we doing here?"

From standing position one of the brothers jumped straight up and corkscrewed into the ring. He had just done a two to three-foot horizontal and a ten-foot vertical jump from standing position. The twin did it as casually as I did jumping a street curb.

"Alright, at this point I think you're showing off..." I hesitated, "...uh, which one are you? Kalvin or Clyde?"

His smile never left his face as he crossed his arms, "I am Kalvin. Clyde will be teaching you boxing and grappling, as well as strengthening your body! I will be teaching you kickboxing, knife fighting, and to train you to be flexible! We will also train you in together in gymnastics and acrobatic maneuvers! It shall be fun!"

I gawked at the both of them, my head swiveling back and forth to each of them like a sprinkler. Anxiety and fear came crawling out, "A-alright. Shit, that sounds like a lot to learn in a short time."

Kalvin cheerfully nodded, "It is! Quite too much! But you have no time to spare! Now, we shall spar!"

Clyde hopped up to the elevated ring and stood next to one of the ring buckles. He gestured to his brother to get ready before turning to me, "Ok James, we will see how capable you are. My brother will only fight you with pure boxing, and you will only use boxing as well."

I nodded and gulped nervously. It was hard to breathe. I looked down at my clothes and found them to be too hot and restricting. I removed my dirty, sun-baked shirt hoping it would help me breathe. I tried taking some deep breaths, but my chest felt tight and stiff, as though my lungs refused to expand. Removing my undershirt did nothing to relieve it either.

I threw my shirts over the side of the ring and walked over to Clyde, who was outside leaning over the ring ropes. I pointed to myself and his brother, "Shouldn't we get sparring equipment. I took some MMA classes and we used gloves and headgear when we sparred."

Sparring was an overstatement. It was more light-contact touching with some shitty grappling, but my point still stood.

Clyde shook his head before laughing, "You are nervous, James! It is written all over your face! Calm yourself! Relax!"

I was annoyed at his insinuation that I was scared. He was right, I was scared, that's why it pissed me off even more than if he was wrong. I'm not a macho guy or anything, but the accusation hit my pride. Maybe I took it the wrong way, or have the wrong mindset, but it felt like I was being called weak. I hated that.

"I don't want to get hurt so casually, OK? Its obvious you guys know how to fight, way more than me."

I turned to his brother who was shadow boxing like a young Mike Tyson. With the speed, power, and ferocity of a wild animal.

"Oh, do not worry James! He will be going easy on you! Besides, we can always heal you, haha!" Clyde said as held up the stick and wagged it like a, well, owner wagging a stick to a dog.

I clenched my teeth, rolled my eyes and proceeded to turn around to meet my executioner; only to feel Clyde grab my arm.

I turned to find his face still had the perpetual grin on it, but his voice was cold and serious, "There will be no safety net during the exam, no one will pull their punches. They will kill you if they have to, and some will kill you for no other reason then they can. You will need to feel and endure the full sensation of pain, James. You must understand it, the fury of combat. It will be nothing like running."

He slapped a mouthpiece into my hand, "Flole's stick cannot regenerate teeth. Nor can Claudette's food or Briannaisa's water."

I shoved the mouthpiece firmly between my teeth and walked up to Kalvin. The teen moved around with effortless grace, throwing short, straight punches with the technique and speed of a champion boxer. He was wearing the same clothing he wore the day I met him: a white sleeveless shirt with brown pants held up by suspenders. It didn't hinder him at all: in fact, seeing him not work up a sweat at the intensity he was going at was terrifying.

On the other hand, I was wearing black slacks that had become shorts from all the falling I did. They were tattered, frayed things. They looked fit for a peasant from the eighteenth century.

Also, why does everyone here wear the same clothes? Did they all take a page from the Steve Jobs school of fashion? I had the same clothes on since my first day because I didn't have a choice. What was their excuse? More stupid questions for later.

I struck the stance I learned from the MMA class: right leg behind me, my body angled with a slight crouch, hands up to protect my face. I began rocking my weight back and forth like I was taught to do and stared back at Kalvin. He contained a laugh as a wicked grin slowly spread across his face. I did not like that at all.

Clyde hopped off the edge of the ring floor and clicked something that made a high-pitched beeping sound, "Ok, that was the bell! Three minutes, go!"

Kalvin rocketed forward into a blur, closing the distance in an instant. I held my breath and decided to guard myself. I had no chance of hitting him at all so defense was best, right?

An uppercut to the left side of my body caused me a world of pain I had never experienced before. Electricity shot through me as I crumpled to the ground in sheer agonizing pain. The pain was so mind-numbing I couldn't even hear the sound of my scream. It was as if someone lodged a knife connected to a live wire. It didn't get better, it just got worse and worse and wors-

That was all I could remember before Clyde hit me with the stick.

Like a snap of the fingers, all the pain was gone and I found myself laying on my side in fetal position. My body found itself confused: sweat was pouring out of me without pause and my lungs were sucking air by the mouthful. I braced myself for more hellish pain that never came. Even my mind was confused as I gradually stood up from the strange, post-pain haze.

I tentatively stood on my legs, the same legs that lost all strength and collapsed on me like a house of cards. I touched the spot where I was hit. The right side of my body. I braced myself for pain. Nothing. I was confused, that was until I remembered where I'd been for the past week. I turned to Kalvin and found both the brothers in the ring staring at me with their aggravating smiles.

"Painful, yes? A hit to the liver is debilitating and, if hit hard enough, lethal. You would be like this for a while before you die," One of the brothers said. I didn't know or care which.

"Brother, you will need to go easier on our dear student. He is of a frail constitution!" I realized Clyde said from context clues and my brilliant reasoning of subtracting one from two.

"Yes, I shall brother! Come, we will fight again!"

With that Clyde hopped out of the ring and Kalvin proceeded to pummel me into shades of color no healthy human should be capable of turning into. I thought running was bad.

I was wrong. So very wrong. My true nightmare began today.

Oh god, help me!

End of week 1

Weeks remaining until Hunter Exam: 14

Current chance of success: 0%

Projected chance: Yet to be determined.

Recommendations: Proceed with training.

Notes: Managed to achieve 25 kilometers in a week. Predicted to make 100 kilometers in at least 3 weeks. Physical capabilities are poor, though not hopeless. If this were a question of endurance we would be fine, but the Exam requires more. Much more.

His true strength lies with his mental fortitude and faculties. We will see how long that lasts. Winter is coming and his true training has just begun.

Message Sent

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Logging Out User: Mayer Domo

Mayer rubbed his tired eyes as he turned off his computer. The six days had been long. Not the longest the old Hunter had endured, but too long for an old man like him. Although, if he had a choice he would stay awake forever.

His body and mind, nevertheless, resisted. His hair was still blonde and his body was strong, but he always felt tired.

Tired and listless.

His eyes glanced at the photo of a woman next to his bedside. She was as beautiful and alive as spring. He could hear his wife's words dance through his thoughts.

"You are not old, my love! You are healthier and sprier than men half your age! We will all die far before you, my bear!"

If only she could have been wrong Mayer thought.

He slipped off his red, sleeveless shirt and stared at the mirror in his room. A large scar across his chest, cut deep into his muscles and bones. Grotesque scarring marred a statuesque form. The giant scar stretched from his right armpit down to the other side of his hip.

Mayer stared at it every night before he went to sleep. He hoped that it would be gone the next morning. He hoped that he would wake up from his nightmare and his love would be there lying next to him.

But every morning he would wake up from his nightmare and stare at the other nightmares on his body.

The one on his chest. The one around his right wrist. The one around his right ankle. The waking terrors.

But they were preferable than the nightmares he had in his sleep. That was where the true terror began.

The dream was the same one. Every night. The one under the big top.

The screams of the crowd.

The horror for his family.

The rage at her death.

The Samurai and the Barbarian.

Always those two monsters.

He closed his eyes to blink away the memory, steeling himself for sleep. It was pointless. He would be reliving it soon enough.

If he had a choice he would stay awake forever. Anything was better than enduring that moment for one more night.