Vengeance Is Mine

by Katherine Elizabeth Curtis

  A few murmurs of assent came to Nathan and Hunter took that as encouragement to begin. “We'll go over the exercises we did yesterday,” he said, casting a commanding eye over the boys. Nathan felt a little strange as he sat there and watched it all. It was as if Hunter had morphed from a kind, mild mannered young man into a commanding general in just a few moments. The change was a little eerie, but Nathan enjoyed watching it all. He would've liked it better if he could participate, but for now he'd take what he could.

  The room broke into activity.

  First, the warm up exercises. Squats, push-ups, running laps around the rather large room. Hunter was doing the same thing as his boys, something that Nathan's trainer had never done. Instead, he preferred standing around screaming orders and throwing fits if they weren't obeyed right away. Nathan had never had much respect for his trainer, but now what little he had melted away when he saw Hunter's firm, decided leadership.

  He would look in to seeing if he could be switched with another boy and take up arms in Hunter's dormitory. Things would be so much better if that happened, and it would make it easier for him and Hunter to plan out their mission. Speaking of which, he would take Hunter to where he had first seen the control room and the ward and see if they could find it again. As soon as this was over, which would be in about another forty-five minutes, that's what they'd do. They'd be able to squeeze in a small expedition during the few moments of free time after his training and just before they went out to clean houses – something he now viewed as an annoying chore.

  “Good job. Now we'll move on to the moves we practised yesterday and then I'll show you the new one we'll be working on for the next week, or so.” Nathan leaned forward. This was what he wanted to see. If he couldn't be transferred to Hunter's unit, he'd absorb everything he could during the training and practise that in private. It was the only thing he wanted almost as badly as saving the children, for the simple reason of being able to defend himself in a professional manner against Dylan and anyone else who challenged him.

  Hunter moved slowly at first, but then gained speed until he was running right toward the boy nearest him. The boy had obviously been through this before, for he didn't flinch even as his trainer practically threw himself toward him. At the last possible second, the boy stepped out of the way with a quick step, grabbed Hunter's arm and twisted it behind his back.

  Hunter nodded and the boy let him go. “Excellent,” Hunter managed between gasps of exertion and probably a little pain, “you've obviously been practising.” The boy nodded, a little satisfied smile on his face. Not smug, just pleased. “Now let's see how well all of the rest of you have done.” He divided the twenty boys under his charge into ten groups of two and told them to go at it. Then, he went over and sat beside Nathan, pulling a water bottle out from under his bench and running a hand over his sweaty forehead.

  “Bat really knows his stuff, doesn't he?” Hunter said to Nathan.

  Nathan assumed he was talking about the boy who had bested him, so he nodded. Hunter took a swig of water and then reached over for his knife. “He's a good student. One of the best I've ever had. And believe me, I've had some that were terrible.” His face broke into a grin for a moment, and Nathan knew he was probably remembering some amusing incident concerning a poor pupil. “But this set is really good. Just look at them.”

  Nathan was looking. All the boys were engaged in the moves Hunter and Bat had demonstrated, and most of them were doing well. He kept his eyes on the swiftly moving figures, committing every gesture, even the slightest one to memory so he could try it out on the boys in his dormitory. “Think you could do that?” Hunter asked suddenly.

  Without taking his eyes of the boys, Nathan nodded absently.

  “Are you sure?”

  “Sure I'm sure,” Nathan said, turning to look at him.

  Hunter gave a quick nod and they both stood up. “Stand right there and stop me as I come at you, just like you see the others doing.”

  Nathan felt a little twinge of uncertainty, but he brushed it aside. After all, how difficult could it be to grab someone's arm and use their own weight to twist it behind their back? “Ready?” Hunter asked, running in one place to warm up again.

  “Ready.”

  And then Hunter was running toward him faster than Nathan had ever seen anyone run. It took all his presence of mind to focus on just when he should grab his arm and- With a blow that felt like a million knives gouging his insides, Hunter punched him in the stomach. He had meant for it to be a light blow, but his momentum had made him misjudge and Nathan went spinning. Instantly Hunter was over him. “Oh, man, I'm sorry, Nate. Didn't mean to do that.” He helped him to his feet. “Got any broken bones?” He might have meant it as a joke, but Nathan didn't see it as funny right then. “I was just trying to show what could happen if you aren't prepared.”

  Nathan gave a weak nod. “Yeah. It's okay.”

  “I'll make sure not do that again,” Hunter said with a wry smile. “And if you want I can teach you how to tense your stomach muscles up so that a hit like that doesn't hurt half as bad.”

  Nathan nodded again and then realized that all the boys had stopped their practising to watch him and Hunter. “It's okay, guys,” Hunter finally said. “That's all for today.” He was letting them off early, but Nathan felt that was alright given the circumstances. And it meant they had more time for a search.

  Then, one of the hooded women came into the room. “Hunter, the head office wants to see you.” It was Laii. “Nathan, go to your dormitory. Training starts soon.”

  Arguments were useless, so Nathan turned to go. Just before he left the room, he caught a glimpse of Hunter's face. It was afraid. Nathan wanted to run back and ask him what was the matter, but something held him back. Something he couldn't explain. But it had to be something terrible, if it made Hunter afraid like that. He wasn't sure he wanted to know what it was.

  :::::

  “No, Nathan,” Laii cried out, her hand outstretched. “Don't go in there.”

  Nathan ignored her and ducked into through the door of the hospital ward. Laii watched him go a frustrated look on her face. “It's all ruined now,” she murmured. Nathan would find Hunter and be outraged and then their whole plan would be for aught. And if anyone had seen her trying to stop him – anyone important, that is – her career and possibly her life was over.

  She shook her head. “Why can't anything ever be simple?” She let out a long breath that was mixed with a curse and left. She didn't want to be there when Nathan found Hunter.

  “What have they done?” Nathan whispered, trying to keep back tears.

  Hunter lay on one of the beds in the hospital ward, a bed in the farthest, most shadowy corner. He offered Nathan a weak smile before biting back a gasp of pain. “It's...”

  “Don't say it's nothing,” Nathan said fiercely. “It's not nothing. Why did they do this in the first place?” His tears were fast turning to anger the longer he looked at Hunter. His face was heavily bruised and from the way he drew in breaths, Nathan suspected he had a broken rib, if not two or three. Hunter looked a mere shadow of himself and Nathan was determined to make whoever had done it pay.

  Hunter shook his head. “They didn't say, but I think-I think it's because we're searching for-for the truth. About those children you saw.”

  “But how did they know?”

  “Spies are everywhere, Nate. You know that.” Hunter propped himself up on one elbow, not matter how much pain it caused him and said, “Anyway, I'd rather it was me than you.”

  “But why?”

  “I'm older than you. I can take it better. And I'm not being a hero, Nate. It's just the way it is.” Hunter bit his lip, as if holding something inside him, and supported himself with one arm. “And, anyway, brothers stick up for each other.”

  “It's all over,” Nathan said bitterly. “I can't keep doing this, and neither can you if this is what happens.” He felt like throwing something, like screaming. He di
dn't want to give up his dream of rescuing those in need, but if he were responsible for hurting Hunter, no matter how indirectly, he wanted no part in it. He angrily scuffed the ground with his boot and bent his head down to hide tears of sadness and frustration.

  “It is not over,” Hunter said vehemently. “I won't allow you to just give this up. I'll recover soon, and then we'll just be more careful and not talk to each other very much, and when we do talk to each other it'll be in code. I don't know what kind of code, but we'll figure it out.”

  Nathan felt a bit of excitement start to seep back into him. “But I don't want them to hurt you again.”

  “They won't,” Hunter said firmly. “I won't let them.”

  “You won't let them?” Nathan asked, incredulity tinging his voice. “How on earth are you going to prevent it? We're helpless against them.”

  Hunter only said two words, but they were enough to give Nathan hope again. “Defensive Arts.”

  “You mean it?” Hunter rolled his eyes and Nathan remembered what he had said about always meaning what he said. “Of course you do,” he hastened to add. Hunter smiled. “It's a brilliant idea,” Nathan added.

  Hunter nodded again. The motion sent a spasm of coughing through him and Nathan watched in concern. It didn't look as if Hunter would recover all that soon, but Nathan was willing to believe it. “Do you want me to continue trying to find the children?”

  “No. I mean, I'd like for you to keep trying, but they'll expect us to try something now. If this little incident means anything, it means we should bide our time.”

  “That's what I'll do, then,” Nathan said. Even though it was he who'd found the children in the first place, he felt satisfied with laying the decision making in Hunter's hands, mostly because he was still so young – though he didn't think of himself as such – and it was hard to hold such a heavy responsibility all the time. “I should go now,” he said regretfully, “since it's almost time for the work details to assemble.”

  “Oh, of course. See you later.”

  “Yeah.”

  Despite her intention of leaving as soon as Nathan entered the hospital ward, Laii stuck around to see how he looked when he came out. She heard footsteps and she drew back a little into the shadows so he wouldn't see her. The door opened and he came out. Despite a few traces of tears around his eyes, he looked remarkably self-possessed. There was a quiet determination in his eyes and a new vitality in his walk.

  Now, what was he up to?

  :::::

  To his surprise, Nathan was put in charge of the squad Hunter usually commanded. There were no other comments made about it, just the fact that he was to be the new team captain until Hunter recovered. He would've been thrilled, had it not been for the fact that made him the team captain. As it was, he was still excited and couldn't believe his good luck. There were older, more experienced boys in the squad, but the woman in charge had picked him. A feeling of pride filled him.

  They went back to the same house that Nathan had gone to the very first time he went out. He noticed that both Aaron and Dylan were acting antsy and restless, but it didn't interfere with their work, so he refrained from making any observation about it. Better not stir up trouble. The two of them had had a certain attitude for several days now and had stuck closer together than Hunter and his knife.

  He ignored them until he heard a whispered conversation between them. Or, rather, bits of it. He overheard it while the two of them were dusting furniture side by side and he was sweeping the floor just a few feet away, apparently minding his own business.

  “Think it should be tonight?” That was Dylan. He was obviously nervous and Aaron tried to calm him down, or so it appeared to Nathan.

  “Definitely. Nathan isn't all that great. It'll be easy.”

  Nathan had really started listening to the conversation when he heard his name mentioned, and the comment about him made him angry enough to listen in to the rest of it, if he had been able to hear anything more. But he wasn't and the two boys stopped talking and moved farther away from him, perhaps fearing they'd be overheard.

  What they didn't know was that they already had been.

  Nathan was prepared for any stunt they might try, but he didn't know what it was going to be, which made it harder. Much harder. But he was up for the challenge.

  The shock came when they left the house.

  Chad was the first to notice Aaron and Dylan weren't with them.

  “Okay, guys,” Nathan said, trying to behave much like he imagined Hunter would have. “We don't have much time before we have to get back, so come out of hiding.”

  Silence.

  “Right now!”

  More silence.

  Now Nathan was worried. Had their plan been to run away? The sick feeling inside him pointed in that direction. And now what would the guardians say, now that two of the boys had been lost who knows where?

  “This is not good.”

  He would just have to wait until the boys decided to come back, if they ever did. For now, there was nothing he could do. Absolutely nothing.

  Chapter 4 – Fighting To Die

  2120

  Nathan let out a frustrated sigh. His group of boys that he was training weren't good at all. Not like the last batch he'd had to train. They had been a stellar squad – respectful, obedient, not lax about training, and always ready and eager to learn more. All in all, they had been the best group in the four he'd trained. But this one... The boys ranging from ten to fourteen were lazy and slack as a whole. Only a couple showed real promise.

  Out of the corner of his eye he saw Hunter enter the training room. He raised his hand in a greeting, but his face remained unchanged from its sour look, or what he imagined was a sour look. In fact, it was black as pitch and getting darker by the second as he returned to watching the bungling of his pupils. “Come on,” he shouted half-heartedly out to them. The pace picked up in the warm up exercises, but soon went back to its usual sluggish look.

  “Trouble?” Hunter said, a half smile on his face.

  Nathan nodded. “Worst squad I've had.”

  “I know the feeling.”

  Nathan loved being able to talk to Hunter like this, not just as brothers, but as equals. Six years had passed since their pact, but the friendship had remained just as stronger, if not growing stronger. And when Nathan had become a junior trainer under Hunter and then a full-fledged trainer in his own right, the bond had tightened to the point where it was unbreakable.

  “I've trained four groups by myself and this is definitely the worst I've ever seen.” He spoke low, for he didn't want bitterness and anger against their leader and trainer to be added to the list of his team's faults.

  Hunter nodded reflectively. “I've had some bad ones before, but there's always been a couple of good ones in the bunch. How about this one?”

  Nathan quickly catalogued the the twenty boys in his group. Most of them were dismissed immediately as being lazy troublemakers, but Hunter was right. There were a few that showed promise. “Well, that one over there,” he commented, pointing to the oldest one in the group, Ethan, who would probably become his junior trainer soon, “would do better if he was away from the influence of the others.”

  “He's the oldest,” Hunter said. It was a statement, rather than a question.

  “Yes.”

  “He'll be the junior trainer soon.”

  Nathan nodded.

  “Have you taught any of them the Defensive Arts I showed you?”

  “No. They don't deserve it,” Nathan said, scorn in his voice. “They wouldn't have the brains, anyway.”

  “If that boy – what's his name? - is as good as you say, you'd better take him away from the others and start teaching him Defensive Arts, especially if he's going to be a trainer soon.”

  “His name is Ethan.” Nathan thought over what Hunter said. “But won't the other boys be angry if I single him out?”

  “I doubt it. And if they are, just get him to tel
l them that you're making him do extra work. That should stop any jealousy.”

  “Good idea. Well, I need to get back to work with them.” Nathan felt a little uncomfortable with Hunter standing around watching his training techniques. For one, he'd been embarrassed for Hunter to find him not participating in the warm ups with his men, although he usually did so. And even though Hunter was just twenty-two, he was a veteran trainer and now had a class of fifty boys to teach – a new class every three months. What if Hunter thought his teaching wasn't up to par, especially as he'd had experience with three other squads?

  To his relief, Hunter left the room soon after Nathan started showing them a new technique to practice. He chose Ethan to be his practice partner and as he had him in a headlock just before threw him to the ground in one fluid motion, he whispered, “I need to see you after class,” in the boy's ear and then threw him to the ground. Ethan gave a quick, almost imperceptible nod to show he understood. His eyes were bright.

  “You have potential,” Nathan said curtly. He was here for business and business only. No use in getting attached to the boy, especially as he'd be gone in just a few weeks. Ethan blushed a little and scuffed the ground under his foot with his shoe. He didn't say anything. “I mean it,” Nathan continued, “and since you'll most likely be junior trainer to me or some other senior trainer soon, I'm going to teach you Defensive Arts.”

  Ethan looked up, his eyes shining. “Really?”

  “Yes.”

  “When?”

  “Right now.”

  The enthusiasm in the boy's face made Nathan think he was seeing a mirror image of himself as a young boy when Hunter had offered to teach him. So long ago. So many wasted dreams, and hopes. But he refused to think of all he had lost at that moment, for if he did he could stew for hours and right now he didn't want to stew. He wanted to teach Ethan and explore his full potential. Plus, teaching the boy Defensive Arts would keep himself from getting rusty, as he hardly ever practised anymore, except in play with Hunter at rare times.