16-Jul-2000
I don't own the GW guys. I'm poor. This story is for entertainment only.
At the back of the room, a small blond boy watched the others advance on the new pair. The King had instructed him to test them and so he had called everyone together. They were to test the skill and nerve of Duo and Ashi. If they tried only to flee this encounter, it would prove them cowards. After all, no one had made a single threatening move and if the two broke simply because of appearances, what would they do against the real thing? Courage could not be taught. He had to know if they had any.
If the pair stayed, then the second part of the test would begin. Everyone would attack. How they fought back and defended themselves would tell the blond what kind of training they needed. The King seemed to think they would make excellent assassins. Given their history as thieves, he might be right. Thieves knew how to get in and out of places without being seen, how to escape if caught, and how to avoid getting caught. The only extra instruction would be in killing, Royal mannerisms, and using different kinds of weapons.
As the crowd advanced, the blond saw they passed the first test; neither ran. The boy stepped to the right as the girl moved to the left. They were giving each other room to fight, but not enough room for anyone to come between them. The move gave the blond the impression they had fought large groups before. Then the fight began.
It really was a hopeless battle for Duo and Ashi. All of their attackers were training in both armed and unarmed combat. All the young thieves had were those skills earned in street fights. Yet, they put up a bigger fight than the blond anticipated.
Duo waited until Heero lunged toward him to lean to one side, grab the now unbalanced fighter, and strike his unprotected neck. The girl used similar tactics. Three fighters when down before the others changed the battle plan. Moving as one, they charged the couple. The biggest fighters were in front and they used their superior size and weight to overwhelm the young pair.
Briefly, the blond wished he could take part in this. As a strategist, he was forced to watch things from behind the fighters, but still felt responsible when someone got hurt. He always felt he should have been closer and then the injury would not have happened.
The two separate piles merged into one as the set upon pair tried to reach other and succeeded. Together, they managed to fight free of the group for a few seconds before being swallowed again. In that time of freedom, the blond saw everything he needed to see. These two would be an asset to the group.
Whistling above the noise, the blond gave the signal to end the attack. As one, all the attackers pulled back and formed a semi-circle behind the blond. Several people were limping or otherwise moving in a manner that told of painful wounds. Facing the twin terrors, everyone viewed how they had fared.
Duo's right arm hung useless against his side. While not broke, the dislocated shoulder hurt worse than any break he'd ever had. One eye was swelling shut, a cut in above his hairline drenched the right side of his face in blood, and both lips were split. He was being careful not to put his full weight on his left leg and swayed just a little while standing.
Ashi spat blood from her mouth and almost everyone knew it was only partially her blood; the lavender-eyed girl had a mean bite. Her left arm was broken and she clutched it to her side, trying to ignore the pain. Blood caked the underside of her nails and several of her attackers had claw marks on various parts of their bodies. One eye was dilated.
The blond cleared his throat, giving them time to focus on him, not those behind him. Realizing, it was sheer will keeping both thieves standing, he chose to make things as simple as possible.
"Congratulations." He said cheerfully. "My name is Quatre and you passed the test."
The pair stared at him, then those behind him, then turned to each other. Something passed between the two, but Quatre was at a loss as to what it was. Finally, they once again faced him.
"Great," they chorused. As one, their eyes rolled back into their heads and they began a boneless collapse toward the floor. Neither reached the cold stone. Quatre's troops caught them in suddenly gentle hands as he left to find a healer.
Yes, these two would make wonderful additions to the team, but he was going to have to break them of their independence. Probably other things as well, but those could wait. No, their independence had to go first. They would have to follow him without question; obey him in all things. He'd broken stronger spirits than theirs and with the help of the others, he would break these two as well. Moving deeper into the castle, Quatre plotted how to turn the young thieves into the perfect killers.
End Part 1
So young to be so cold. Will he succeed or will the twins teach him a few lessons instead?
Phoenix
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